{ The moment you have to step back }

I received this book in the mail, just two days ago.  I didn't buy it, I didn't ask anyone to buy it, it didn't bring a return address or even say who it was from, it just showed up delivered from Amazon.

I sat and stared at it for a while, my brain turning and turning trying to figure out who could have sent it, and I came up completely empty handed, I have absolutely no clue.  So if you , whoever you are, are reading my blog right now and sent this beautiful book, just know that I appreciate you so very much and this brought so much joy to my day.  Not to mention, it is so poignant for me right now, that I'm working on Hygge and replenishing my soul.  So again, thank you, from the bottom of my heart :)

As I sat and looked through the pages, a recurring theme played in my mind, and that was "you have got to step back from those things that rob you of the calm in your life.  Those things that bring irritation, and annoyance, those things that in no way, shape or form, contribute to the kind of life and state of mind you want to be in".

Of course my thoughts immediately went to social media and the current situation of the country, how so many things I'm seeing are irritating me to no end, making me want to lower myself to certain levels to be on the playing field.  And then I realized that is NOT who I am and not who I want to ever be.

I try to keep politics or my opinions out of the blog, out of facebook and instagram etc, but the past few days I've found it extremely difficult to say nothing and so I have.  But no more.  It's not worth it, to be honest.

So I'm stepping back.  I'm making a conscious effort to only post positive, happy, day to day things on Facebook.  To not engage, not share, not reply, not debate, not even entertain anything politically related.  For my own sanity, and so that I can continue on this Hyggelig road I'm on.

I feel better just typing that, which tells me I'm on the right path.

Anyway, today was a bit of a slow day for me.  I puttered around the house with my usual chores and even managed to take a small 15 minute nap on the couch with my Marley.  I needed it, we don't get very good sleep lately and I feel like I'm constantly exhausted.  Those few minutes of shut eye, helped a lot.

Tomorrow I plan on doing something for the blog, something a little different and I invite you all to come along with me.  I am going to do a {Spend the day with me}, but it's going to be almost in real time.  I'll post a photo of what I'm doing, along with a little blurb, every hour, on the hour, so I'll keep coming back in and updating the blog throughout the day.

I'm not sure how this will turn out, I'm not sure if it will be something I'll do again or if you guys will even like it, but it's worth a try. 

I guess if you're really interested in what I'm doing throughout the day, you'll have to keep coming in and refreshing the blog :)

Well my friends, I'm going to sit for a bit, work a little more on the mandala, and watch something on TV before heading to bed in about 2 hours.

Have a wonderful blessed night!!!

{ Hygge }

I recently came across a word that seems to be everywhere, at the moment.

The word is "Hygge"!!!

Do you know what it means?  Well it's a Danish word, usually pronounced as hue-gah. When I first came across it, I wondered what it was and why it seemed to be featured so prominently on Pinterest, in Vlogs, Blogs and just the internet in general. So I did a little digging into what it is, where it came from and what it signifies, and what I came to find out is that it is MY word for this year.

Hygge is a feeling or mood that comes from taking pleasure in making ordinary, every day moments more meaningful, beautiful or special. {Hygge House}

It is the absence of anything annoying, not nice, things that bring us grief or anger, sadness, annoyance or feeling overwhelmed. It is the pure act of being in the moment and enjoying your surroundings.

It was first documented in 18th-century Denmark, and it is now a very important part of Danish life.

Simple elements, small things that make your home look cosy. Lots of candles, and wood and nature themed.

Sitting by the fire enjoying the crackling sounds.....

Fairy lights and a homemade orange slice garland, just hanging there, letting the light through as if rays through a stained glass window.....

Or a simple handmade quilt draped over a chair, just sitting in the corner of the room.....

It's plain dried sticks in a beautiful, delicate vase that seems to be hand knitted.....

Or the tea set that sits on the baker's rack, waiting to be filled with boiling water and scented tea leaves.....

It's the crochet you so enjoy doing, the colors, the textures, the way it brings brightness and joy to a room.....

And often times, it's the cup of tea or coffee you sip in the afternoon when you need a little pick me up......

Or that simple candle you have lit.....

That is Hygge!!!

That is the pure joy of being in the moment and surrounded by simple things.  Letting all cares drift away, and for that single minute you focus on what is in front of your eyes.

I've been feeling this way for a long time, then my husband retired from the Air Force and our lives were turned upside down, nothing made sense, everything was different, and harsh and new, and we struggled to know where we belong.  In a sense, we still do.  In our hearts we will always be a military family, but to the world we are just every day civilians, same as everyone else.  That's not a bad thing, not at all, but when you've devoted your life to a certain way of living, it's very hard to be thrown into the open without knowing where to go from there.

When that happened 3 years ago, I lost my Hygge....I lost that sense of contentment and being in the moment, of seeing only the positive.

I allowed life and it's horrid phases to get to me, to blind me to what I have around me.

When I decided to get back into blogging, about two weeks ago, it was because that feeling had come back.  I felt like my old self again and that right there, that was pure joy.

So Hygge is my word for the year, and for the rest of my life, if I'm to be honest.  See, Hygge is not something you get, or find, it's something you feel.  It is our conscious choice to be in that moment, to stop, to smell the flowers, to let the world go by and to slow down enough to enjoy that

I'm going to take a page from the Danish folks, and really do my best to live up to this.  You'll probably see a lot more on this word and this concept coming up on my blog.

I invite you all to join in, live your life to the fullest, let 2017 be the year where you really enjoy *cozy* and everything it signifies.