Remember When...

Perhaps you're one of those people that spend all your spare time scrapbooking. Or perhaps you're more like me and have all the good intentions of doing so, but can't ever quite find the time.

Today, take a few minutes and sit down with your children and go through your albums and photos and memory boxes. Though it's true that a picture is worth a thousand words, there is no replacement for sharing your thoughts and feelings about the moment the photo has captured in time. Your child will LOVE to hear about his/her silly antics, the special things they did, the warm feelings you experience when you think about the moment. For some pictures, they'll be able to remember it and can share thoughts of their own.

Be sure to include some pictures of family and friends, too. Perhaps pictures of great grandma and grandpa that came to this country a 100 years ago, or Skipper, your childhood best friend. Your family and life together is the very best story you'll ever share with your children.

Give Someone a Random SMILE Today

With today's hectic and stressful lives, it doesn't take much to send someone over the edge. On the other hand, it doesn't take much to make someone's day either. Sometimes the simplest gestures leave the biggest impression, especially since they're more likely to happen. The school across the street once had a sign that read, "The smallest of actions is more valuable than the greatest of intentions."

The dollar stores around here have mylar balloons for a buck. One of them near me has a design that is a bright, yellow smiley face. The ones near you might have the same pattern, or certainly something similarly cheerful. For your pay-it-forward this week, buy one or a couple or a whole bunch, and then give them to people for an instant face lift. You can also tie an encouraging note to the string. This can be done anonymously or with full disclosure.

Some examples of people who might need a face lift:
- co-worker
- teacher
- mailman
- bank teller
- hair stylist
- next-door neighbor
- bus driver
- your child or spouse

Some ideas for attached notes:
- "Have a GREAT day!"
- "You are appreciated"
- "Smile, you're on camera"
- "You make the world a better place"
- "Thought you could use a smile today"
- "Don't worry, be happy!"
- "Be a kid today"

The great thing about a pay-it-forward is that it often does as much for the sender as it does for the receiver. In fact, I bet you're smiling already just thinking about who you might target.

NOTE: I would suggest not substituting with latex balloons, as you might not be aware of latex allergies or restrictions.

Up Close and Personal

Grab yourself and your child a magnifying glass and head outdoors! If the weather is bad, inside is the next best thing.

Take a close look at the things around you that you overlook everyday. Perhaps a flower, a bug, peeling paint, a blade of grass, an orange peel.

Use the opportunity to teach your child about the things he or she is looking at. It's one of the best hands-on classes available, and so much more interesting than reading the lesson from a book. Ask him to describe for you what he's looking at, to exercise his vocabulary.

To make it even more fun, create a story adventure about exploring a far-away jungle or an alien planet. Use small figurines if available. Let him contribute his own storyline. Make the experience a time to remember, with the added bonus of learning something at the same time.

NOW is a Good Time Tutorial

Whoever coined that phrase has my undying gratitude. It has become my mantra. It's sort of like the old saying, "a stitch in time saves nine," except not as fluffy. It's more like something my mother would say to me.

Do you remember the story about the cobbler and the elves? The one where the old cobbler would go to bed at night and a couple of elves would come in and make up his shoes for him? Whatever happened to those elves? I want to know. I really need some. Elves, that is, not shoes. And I don't need them for making shoes, of course, but for everything else. Well, maybe some shoes too.

I have a horrendous list of things to do, and they're all past due. I would have never considered myself a procrastinator, and I'm still not really sure that's the appropriate description, but I'll have to get back to you on that later. I really think it's just more a matter of too many things to do on my to-do list, and me not being the greatest at prioritizing. So I want some elves.

One of the worst by-products of my poor management is "piles" all around the house. Piles of things that I'm "going to get to one of these days." And I sincerely have every intention of doing exactly that, it's just that "one of these days" is not on my calendar. So piles become more piles.

And piles cause me stress. Because in spite of being really good at making them, I really don't like them. And I don't like things on my to-do list forever either. So with my new mantra repeating in my head, I'm willing myself to do those piles one at a time. Because I haven't been able to find any elves.

Or perhaps they simply aren't coming because they're afraid of being crushed by a falling pile.

My "do-it now" for now was to separate and transplant a pot of African violet leaf propagations that I did too long ago to remember. So I put down some newsprint, opened my bag of potting soil and got to work.

After removing the clump from the single pot, I gently separated each plant, keeping as much root intact as possible. Then I pruned as necessary, planted each plant in an appropriately-sized pot, and watered them in. Initially, it appeared a bit like a violet massacre. But honestly, it's all part of the process and no violets were harmed in the making of this post.

This process always results in a few leaf trimmings, either because they were trimmed off on purpose or they were broken off in the handling. Check back later and I'll show you how to propagate from just a leaf.
Meanwhile, my task is done, and when I stand at the kitchen sink, I can view my grandma's violets without being distracted by the nagging task on my to-do list. "Now" really was a good time!

Save it for a RAINY DAY

How many times have you come out to the parking lot after work or after shopping, only to find it pouring down rain and you without an umbrella? How many times have you noticed other people in the same predicament?

The dollar stores have compact umbrellas for a buck. Frankly, I can't comprehend anyone being able to purchase the materials, manufacture, and ship umbrellas across the ocean, and still be able to sell them for $1, but they do! For this week's pay-it-forward, pick up a few umbrellas and keep them in your car. Then the next time it rains, hand them out to needy bystanders.

You can even make it an intentional excursion and head out to the nearest city bus line. People waiting at bus stops are helpless to do anything about their circumstances if they get caught unprepared, and will likely be very grateful for the simple comfort of an umbrella.

Extraordinary lunch

Everyone has to eat. It's just a matter of what, where and how.

Do something unusual with your child for lunch today. Make a couple of peanut butter and jelly sandwiches and go have a picnic in his playhouse. Don't have one? Throw a blanket on the floor in the living room.

Make faces on the sandwiches or with other menu items.

Use the really fancy dinnerware and cloth napkins.

Eat with chopsticks.

Play a game.

Let your child create the lunch menu. And you eat it too!

FALL Flower Bouquet Tutorial

As I was cleaning up the garden and preparing for the upcoming chilly weather, I noticed the wonderful variety of flowers still in bloom. Don't get me wrong, mum's are nice and I'm sure I'll even be planting a few of them myself. But while we think of fall as a time of colorful leaves on the trees, you might want to take a moment to notice the many other colorful contenders.

For this week's pay-it-forward, I decided to gather a variety of flowers, foliage and other fauna and arrange it into a vase to give to a neighbor. (I make a point to purchase inexpensive used vases from thrift stores and yard sales and keep a supply on hand, as this PIF can be done throughout the blooming season.)

So my son and I went exploring to see what we could find, keeping an open mind to what we could put in our vase. It really was amazing to see the assortment of flowers -- and shrubs -- that are still putting on a show.

Sedum, hardy ageratum, mini blacked-Susan, asters,....

... Japanese anemone, tall verbena, caryopteris, and butterfly bush.

Don't forget the not-so-obvious which work great for filler, like crabapple, persicaria, boxwood, euonymous, ...
... blooming annuals (which will be dying soon anyway,) decorative tree branches like birch or curly willow, fall-colored leaves, and annual foliage.

You never know what other unexpected treasures you'll find on your search, like this fascinating praying mantis that my son found.

After clipping a variety of fresh blooms and foliage, my son helped me arrange it all into a vase and then delivered it to a neighbor. She was so pleased, she insisted on rewarding my son with some candy treats, which my son considered to be a great idea. And after making one for our PIF project, we still had enough flowers and foliage to make an arrangement for ourselves.

For your own flower and foliage foraging, you'll want to bring with you a bucket of water and a pair of garden clippers. I also recommend wearing gloves, because you don't want to accidentally grab onto something that has legs without your hands being protected. If you don't have enough of a variety in your own backyard, browse the roadside -- but be careful of traffic. Your child might also want to bring along a magnifying glass, for those more interesting creatures!

Thinking of you....

Take just a moment to write a note to an old friend. Yes, I said "write." Not email, not IM, not text or call, but write. With a pen.

Let them know that you're thinking about them, what they mean to you, how much you appreciate your relationship. Take the moment to do it now, rather than put it off.