Getting things done :-)

I was about to blog about productivity and the irony is that it has just taken me about half an hour to get this laptop to work well enough to be able to start to write! :-)

My Husband just made a valid point; sometimes technology is just too advanced - and then gets in the way of itself when it tries to be too clever!  Either way, it got the better of me!  But, phew - it's working now :-)

So I started the evening with a little girl still awake but running in and out of Daddy's gym - which was actually the perfect scenario for me because it meant that she was having a great time; Daddy and her were spending time together (which if you knew my little girl you'd know she really likes to be with Mummy!), & I was able to crack on with some work :-)  I had a sudden creative spurt; scissors out, bits of fabric everywhere and fingers covered in glue and sawdust! This is some of what I came up with:

You can't really see in this photo but the bottom left block is really unusual.  We had a plank of wood that had split and Mum thought we wouldn't be able to make use of it.  We managed to snap it in several places and it split really beautifully to leave us with 4 or 5 unique pieces to work with.  Actually let me take some shots of one of them......

I could see this one as a snowy Winter scene straight away...with trees and I wanted it to be fairly muted.  We found this lovely muted green fabric in a local shop, with tiny bits of red in it - you can see it above in the first photo.  It reminds me a little of the liberty prints.  We've not used it much so far but I knew it would be perfect teamed with a neutral star print.  I've only got as far as painting the snow in - before I got the urge to pack up for the night and write this ;-) 

So my productivity definitely comes in waves......and when I get that inspiration I just have to go with it and see where it takes me.  Which I kind of like - that trust in your intuition - it's very liberating and exciting to see what comes out of it :-)

Gemma xx



When you're glad you didn't throw out that book :-)

Yesterday I was out with Mum at a bookstore and I suddenly felt inspired to start reading again and when I got home I searched through my wardrobe and I found this.

Mum bought it for me years ago.  I can't believe I still have it!  I have a horrible habit of decluttering - which you might think sounds great but our house has ended up pretty sparse!  And it means often there's something I'd really like to look at again but, oops, looks like it went to a charity shop! 

Anyway, this one made it for some reason - The Secret Daily Teachings by Rhonda Byrne - it's a great little book Mum bought me years ago, pre-children and when I started to get interested in the Law of Attraction.  It's got a quote or paragraph or something to mull over each day - for a whole year.  And although I remember starting this one January, you know what it's like - by April I was forgetting to look at the day's page (in fact I think I did pretty well to make it to April!).  So I decided to open it up as I kind of felt I *needed* to look at it.  And I came across this page very early on.

It's amazing what a buzz reading this stuff gives me!  It reminded me of years ago when I started to realise that gratitude was the key to shifting my mood.  I used to spend each morning on the train to work counting as many things as I could to be grateful for until my mood would lift.  Gratitude is simply remembering all those little things; the things we are too busy to notice; the things that are around us that uplift and enliven our mood a little :-) The more you focus on these things, the less space there is to see the other stuff; the stuff that drains us; that eats away at us; that causes us to feel less great than we should. 

And you know what?  For most of us, life doesn't always run as smoothly as we might like.  Things happen.  Sometimes they are small things and sometimes they are huge and we don't know how we are going to get past them. And sometimes it's just not feasible to feel like you can be grateful for things...when you're in the depths of a down-time or things just don't seem to be going right it's hard to pick yourself up and see the other side.  I have been here - sometimes I just don't want to feel good.  But since regularly making gratitude practice a part of my life, overall, I can pick myself up quicker from one of these dark days.  Little by little you can help yourself to get back to where you want to be. 

I love this little quote that I found on Pinterest.  I did a bit of research and this was created by Chelsea at Moments A Day.  Isn't social media just amazing for connecting people?  I already know that Chelsea's blog and Facebook page are right up my street :-)

*This* is exactly how I try my best to see the world.  I believe that in every situation there is a way to look at it in a positive light.  It can be hard.  It takes a lot of training yourself if this isn't your natural outlook but it is such a lovely way to live - to see the best every day.  *This* is what I want to teach my children.  I want them to look at the world through loving eyes and approach life with love, not fear. 

I'm going to leave you with this funny image I found (from Pinterest also). 

 

I love the guy at the desk reading :-)  It takes a lot less stress and energy to trust in life and look for the best - and be truly content with what you have.  I always wonder what might happen if the people in the left-hand queue took the stance of those who aren't in the right-hand one?  What do you think about this?

Love and ((hugs))

Gemma x