Rays of Light

Etsy: Your place to buy & sell all things handmade madebyswirlygirl.etsy.com

Sometimes We Need to Stop and Breathe

I don't know about you, but there are days I wake up and start thinking about all of the things I should do, need to do, want to do, and have to do and get so anxious and overwhelmed that NOTHING gets done.

Trying to balance being a mother, wife, friend, business owner, ballet teacher, pet owner, housekeeper, school volunteer, chauffeur...well---it's impossible. Something is always being neglected.

Anxiety about schedules and money and deadlines and important dates and having enough food in the house and clean clothes in the drawers often prevents me from experiencing the moment.

I try to meditate, exercise (although that is one of the first things that gets neglected when things get busy), find things to do that I enjoy to keep myself from getting down, and daily I count my blessings for all I am so fortunate to have in my life!

When I am successful in slowing down for a few moments, I find that I'm able to find wonder and beauty in the most common occurrences: the chirping of the birds, the chattering of the squirrels, the grasshopper that crosses my path and camouflages itself amongst the tree branches, the flower buds ready to burst open,

the little butterfly that is in no hurry to get anywhere, the man walking his cat on a leash in the park (okay, that is not as common!), the mother pulling her toddler around in a wagon, the man taking a lunchtime nap in the cool grass and warm sun, the dog in the adjoining yard that keeps jumping up to say hello a fellow canine over the wall...

There are books galore written for people who want to simplify their lives---I've got a few of them myself. And many have valuable insights and suggestions.

But in this era of information and technology, I spend so much time on the computer doing everything from connecting with friends and networking with business acquaintances, to learning how to improve my business,

to researching where our next family outing might be, to blogging and updating my shops, to checking out the blogs of others, reading this, reading that...ENOUGH already with the DOING!!! I need to BE sometimes!

Just BE. We only have NOW. That's the only thing we have for sure at any given moment.

The photos accompanying this post were taken this past weekend when my family took a day to BE in Carrizo Plains National Monument. It was exactly what I/we needed to remember that we already have the most important things in life: each other, our health, and an abundance of beauty in our own backyard.

So, my hope for all of us is that we make the time when things get crazy to look around at the world around us and enjoy the simplicity of the moment, soak it up, breathe deeply, smile, and realize that much of what is making us feel like a hamster on a wheel is not really that important in the big picture.

Our relationships, our health, our well-being...well, they ARE.

What the World Needs Now...

YuliyaArt

allmyary


maiaart


oneheartjewelry


meanttobecalligraphy

mysticorb

RosieGirlArt


SilvinePhotography

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Spring Break is Over (sniff)

After a lovely week and a half spent with family and friends, getting some spring cleaning done (although not nearly enough!), doing a little shopping, and taking some photographs, I'm sad to see Spring Break come to an end. From here till summer our days will be longer and filled with things that will all culminate around the same time at the end of the school year: recitals, school events, graduation, as well as personal celebrations that occur at the same time in the form of birthdays and anniversaries.

But, until TOMORROW, we're still on break! So today I am going to share some of my vacation with you all just like the slide shows of yesteryear that friends and neighbors were forced to sit through for hours at a time! (Only MUCH shorter! LOL!) Enjoy!

Create your own video slideshow at animoto.com.

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Spring Break!!

If you are on Spring Break this week, like many of us, I hope that your week is filled with these types of things!

TaraMPhotography, AmeliaKayPhotography

BunkFossStudio,FromMyBookShelf

AbbeyJames,karencaseysmith

Visit Made by SwirlyGirl on Etsy!

Fun with Fonts

Have you ever seen something that you don't have a lot of use for but wish you did? I discovered a site, Web Design Booth, through another blog which I was directed to from a fan page on Facebook, (I think!--with so many things to check out every day, it is hard to keep track sometimes!), and I've bookmarked it to use when and IF I ever have need of it.

I've gone back a couple of times and these fonts look so good that I'm trying to think of a card line that I can create just so I can use them! :-)


Perhaps you use fonts more frequently than and are tired of the selection you have? This post has links to handwritten fonts:




cartoon fonts:


grunge fonts:


calligraphy fonts:


and dingbats:






---all free downloads! See what I mean???? I don't know about you, but my wheels are turning now!....

If you happen to know of other download sites for great fonts, please share them in the comments! I'd love to check them out!!

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Inspirations of Spring

Just like the world opening up around me, I'm itching to create, create, create! Spring is here in southern California and my desire to get cozy in my cave has turned into the desire to be outside with my camera and look at all that is coming alive! I have a zillion photographs of every kind of flower and sign of spring in my folders on my computer, but I can't stop myself! I need to take more! So...I've been experimenting with new ways to share these photos that look a little different than my other shots. These are a few examples of new filters and effects I've been playing with. I'm not sure if I'll be doing more with these than sharing them here on my blog and on Facebook, but any feedback is welcome and I appreciate your taking a look!

Visit Made by SwirlyGirl for cards and photo art!

New on RedBubble

I have just listed four of my new photographs that I've turned into digital paintings--(soon to be added to my Plein Air series on Etsy)--in my RedBubble shop! I love the way they look in the matted and framed previews as well as the other options. If you haven't explored RedBubble yet, take a peek--they allow you to preview all the images in the various forms they are offered!

Look through my RedBubble Gallery!

Proof of Spring

Usually, my Monday blog posts are Etsy items that demonstrate a mood that I've chosen for the day, but today I'm stepping outside of my self-created box. I know parts of our country have been deluged with snow and rain, but here in Southern California, we have definitely begun our spring. Every where we look there are flowers in bloom, new leaves on trees, and green grass! Below are a few photos I took yesterday afternoon in our front yard.

If spring feels a long way off where you live, I hope that my photos have given you a lift! It will return---no matter how long winter seems to drag on! And for those of you down under who are beginning your Autumn, well...Spring is a little farther away for you---but it'll be here before you know it!

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