Goodbye Week. Hello Weekend. Lessons Learned: Take 53.

Goodbye schizophrenic week of weather starting with breezy and cold, ending with sweltering heat.
Goodbye baseball game-ball awarded to our son: way to rally with a big hit!
Goodbye golf, golf, and more golf - watchout USGA Kids.
Goodbye celebrating Super Hubby's birthday with Brave and cake with 7-minute frosting.
Goodbye cleaning up a patio table tragedy.

Hello attempting a popcorn run as we're down to the last kernel.
Hello waiting and waiting for the cable guy to come and fix our Internet connection - day wasted!
Hello hairs cuts for the boys and feeling better without the mop in this heat.
Hello working out a better blog writing schedule that allows me more fun with my son (why do I have a feeling it means less sleep for me).
Hello July and enjoying the dog-days of summer and seeing where the warm breeze leads us.

My lessons learned this week will help you avoid a lot of frustration. This may seem obvious but are you setting yourself up to be a victim? Do you leave your umbrella up to your deck or patio furniture set? DON'T!!!! It was Monday (Super Hubby's birthday), it was cool, it was breezy. I left the umbrella up. We hear this huge crash while inside the house and began hunting down the disturbing noise until we got to the back deck. There was our 15-year old table from our patio set, over-turned, glass broken into a million, tiny pieces, and the umbrella cracked and blowing in the yard. Oops!

The clean-up was mind numbing, glass everywhere, through the cracks of the deck boards, falling below the deck - all had to be cleaned up or we may never be in bare feet in the backyard ever again. Thank you to the neighbor's wet/dry vacuum. Along with the glass, it picked up half the rocks and mulch below the deck, too, but clean-up was a lot easier.

I like my son's approach to seeing the positive in a situation such as this. He took the ring of the table that once housed the glass, took the broken slat of the umbrella arm, and turned it all into a toy from Colonial times - way to go kiddo: another lessons learned! You'll notice he's wearing the boots for his protection from all the broken glass.

Be sure to check out LOVD's latest giveaway celebrating 1-year of blogging! Click here to leave a comment for entry!


Have a great weekend!

You Know You're a Blogger When...and {A Giveaway!}

Source

You know you’re a blogger when…

10. You’ve attended more Linky parties in one week than you have cocktail parties all year.

9.  You watch the weather forecast for sunshine and schedule those days to take photos of your latest craft or recipe to get the best natural light.

8. “Just give me 5 minutes, son” turns into 45 minutes because you’re visiting other blogs and commenting.

7. You look for scrap pieces of paper to jot down a random thought you just had in line at the grocery store because you don’t want to forget it for a future blog post.

6. You save tons of cool recipes but never get around to making any of them.

5. You don’t look at everyday items the same way anymore because you think, “How could I use that in a craft project?”

4. Your family thinks every time you whip out the camera it’s only to take pictures for the blog.

3. A lot of your pictures in your photo library are close-ups of inanimate objects.

2. You’ve been late picking up your child from school because you couldn’t tear yourself away from Pinterest.

1. You know in your heart bloggy friends are real friends.

The Giveaway

This giveaway is going to be a bonus for me as much as for you, so thank you in advance. Here's the prize: $20 gift card to my LOVD Etsy Shop. It's not even open, yet? Yes, I know! But having a $20 gift card floating around out there in some one's hot little hands will force me to list my wares!!!! Above is a small sampling of what I'll be listing. Tons more from where this came from, trust me!

How to Enter

Be sure to leave a comment for each activity you do:

1. Leave a comment telling us if you've ever shopped on Etsy.

2. Become a LOVD Follower via GFC, Linky Follower, or "Like" LOVD on Facebook - be sure to leave a comment saying you did so or if you are already!

Comment entries deadline: Monday, July 2 at midnight! Check back on Tuesday for the winner announcement!

Winner will be chosen using random.org. Good luck!  

What I Made Wednesday {Delicious Homemade Pita Chips}

Stacy's Pita Chips

Dear Stacy,
I do so love your pita chips. I love your hip commercials and print ads. What I'm not loving, lately, is the rising price of your product. I've been with you from your humble beginnings. I've dipped your chip in many a hummus, never to be let down, but I'm afraid the ol' mighty dollar forces us to part ways.

I'm a smart and resourceful girl, so I did the only thing I could do to protect my child's college fund, I made my own Pita Chips. These bleak economic times have caused many a heartache and our relationship has also fallen victim. I hope we can still be friends.
- Lilly

Lilly's Homemade Pita Chips

What You'll Need

My pita choice, available online

Small, Plain Pita Bread

Olive Oil

Salt

Pepper

2 cookie sheets or oven trays

What You'll Do

1. Cut the pita in half. 2. Cut the half, in half. 3. Cut the quarter in half. 4. These pita breads are double-layered so peel them apart. (I keep some doubled.)

Lightly coat, do not soak, the cut-up pita chips in olive oil. Add salt and pepper to taste. Mix it all up using your hands.

Divide the pita chips onto 2 trays. Make sure the pita chips don't overlap entirely.

Place in a pre-heated 350-degree F oven (177 C). After 8 minutes, toss the pita chips on the tray and bake for another 2-3 minutes, or until golden and crispy. (Dirty oven! Look away!)

What You'll Need to Know to Finish

Allow baked chips to cool on trays for 5-10 minutes.

These chips are absolutely delicious. I like that you are in control of the amount of salt that goes into the chip. My plan is to try a cinnamon and sugar version one day - YUM!

 And, if you're looking for a great dip to go along with this chip, try my White Bean Dip from this What I Made Wednesday, click here! So much tastier than hummus, in my opinion.

Celebrating a 1-year Blogiversary

272 Posts.

30,000 Page Views.

950 Comments.

65 Countries.

My jaw is to the floor, my heart flutters with astonishment, and my cup runneth over with the generosity you all have shown me in the past year. One year ago today I began feelLOVDeverday with one intention: to introduce my Etsy shop of handmade jewelry. A year later, the Etsy shop is still not open for business and my daily musings through words have become my main objective at this Internet address. Whether I've lost focus (highly probable) or found a new path (slightly possible), I know that I love to write, and so, I do. Having an actual audience, well, that's just a bonus. A bonus I appreciate tremendously because I did have a goal with my writings and I think that has been a constant: to uplift and inspire readers in a beautiful way. I wanted this place to be an escape from your daily grind, your moment of chaos, and offer a respite by sharing some hearts, laughs, and yes, even heartaches. My posts have always been rooted in truth and have always been an extension of my heart, shared with you. Thank you for sharing back.

My first post, a year ago today, helped me to snag the honor of BlogHer's 2012 Voices of the Year! Here's the link if you missed it. Click here.

The most popular What I Made Wednesday post was the Milemarker Bucket List Project when I turned 40 years old this year. If you missed it, click here.

And, Gratitude Journal Monday and Lessons Learned are the most popular posts each week. This gratitude photo alone was pinned 1,841 times on Pinterest.

So, dear readers, I humbly thank you for your commitment to stopping by and visiting this little ol' blog. It wouldn't be the same without you. Many bloggers say they'd keep writing posts, even if only their mom read them (thanks, mom). But to be honest, I'm not that dedicated without an audience (with the exception of my family). I write because I want to reach out, I want to spark a thought in you, or heal an emotional wound and tell you it'll be alright. I need that interaction, so if that makes me less of a pure blogger, than stuff me with fluff preservatives and call me a Twinkie. I need you, dear reader. Thank you for taking the time. Thank you for caring. Thank you for coming back. I only hope I continue to earn your views and clicks. LOVD tidings, Lilly


What would a 1-year celebration be without gifts?? Come back and check out the giveaway on Thursday!!!

Gratitude Journal Monday

Sometimes you get really, really lucky. Sometimes you're gifted a life where the Higher Power watches out for you. He makes sure you meet the right person, the one you'll spend your days with making a life, sharing a laugh, and shedding a tear. It's the one you were meant to be with because you know in your heart of hearts there isn't anyone out there more perfect for you than the one you're with. That's how I feel about Super Hubby - my perfect match, my guy, my soul mate, the love of my life. I look at his intense, yet gentle eyes, those cute little ears, and that humble smile that always suggests he's trying his darnedest, no matter what the task. Today is your birthday, Love, and I celebrate you for all you are and what you mean to our little family. We love you more than I think you'll ever realize in a lifetime, but we'll do our darnedest each day, showing you how special and important you are to us.
Happy Birthday, Super Hubby/Daddy!

251. I'm grateful I get to spend my life's journey with Super Hubby.
252. I'm grateful Super Hubby has given me the joy and purpose in my life: our son.
253. I'm grateful Super Hubby is so wise, of high moral character, honest, and funny.
254. I'm grateful Super Hubby works hard for us, each and every day, whether it's growing his own business or working daily on catching and pitching baseballs with our son.
255. I'm grateful I married my bestest friend.

Super Hubby, Kiddo, and a friend of ours all went out to brunch yesterday for a birthday celebration. The four of us came up with life's best wishes between bites of strawberry pancakes, omelets, and prime rib, so get ready, here it is: Long Life, Good Food, Great Friends! 

Gratitude can begin by thanking the people in your life that you love, and those that love you back, no matter what! My hope is that your list is a long one, for you are truly blessed. Want to know more about starting your own Gratitude Journal? Click here.

Who would you thank for being in your life? Who makes your days better?

You, LOVD reader, make my days better, too! Tomorrow is my 1-year Bloggy Anniversary. If you like and enjoy reading feel LOVD everyday, please consider following me via Google Friend Connect (found in the column to the right). I'd love to reach 100 Followers by June 26 and would be ever-so-thankful to you for helping me achieve that goal.
LOVD tidings, Lilly 

Goodbye Week. Hello Weekend. Lessons Learned: Take 52.

Goodbye baseball game rain-out earlier this week (looks like our rain dance worked, friend).
Goodbye sprinkler time, pool time, sno-cone time, and fun times with precious friends.
Goodbye bathing suit shopping that had the potential for disaster but ended on a happy note thanks to Lands' End.
Goodbye heatwave that lasted all week, making me less than a happy mama.
Goodbye starting up at the links again with a brand new set of golf clubs for my growing kid.

Hello golf and baseball on schedule for the rest of the summer.
Hello to my kid swinging at something every day of the week.
Hello Super Hubby's birthday weekend and coming up with a way to make it special for my special guy.
Hello break in the heat and getting back to feeling normal.
Hello beginning jogging and feeling the ache in my muscles and knees, already.

My lessons learned this week is heat and humidity are not my friend. How do you girls in the hot States do it? Do you get used to it or something? This I know: it was in the 90's all this week and I was a hot mess! I had a headache every day. If you wanted to find me, you'd have to look for me in the air-conditioned house laying on the living room sofa with a cold compress glued to my head. How pathetic is that? I've got to do something to get used to functioning in this kind of heat or I may very well miss the entire summer! No, that is NOT happening!

Happy weekend, friends. I hope where ever you are, in what ever climate you live, you are comfortable.

Did you notice this is Lessons Learned #52? There are 52 weeks in a year so LOVD is coming up on its 1-year anniversary!!! If you like reading feel LOVD everyday, please consider becoming a Follower via Google Friend Connect (see it to the right?). I'm celebrating one year of blogging on June 26 and would love to have 100 Followers by then. Thanks so much for helping me achieve that goal!

Too Hot

Too hot to cook.
Too hot to blog.
Too hot to type.
Too hot to jog (likely excuse).

Too hot to sleep.
Too hot to drink.
Too hot to work.
Too hot to think (OK, I'm not trying).

Perfect for swimming.
Perfect for sitting.
Perfect for reading
In air-conditioning (meant to rhyme).

Luckily for me I'm inspired often and my blog posts practically write themselves. Today, not so much.

Happy First Day of Summer!!!

How are you beating the heat?