It’s March which means it is time for my first Taking Stock post for 2017. As I mentioned in my last Taking Stock post in December 2016, I plan to do a Taking Stock post quarterly this year as I did last year, so March, June, September and December.
Before I get into Taking Stock though, a huge thank you to Deborah Cook of Debbish for being an awesome member of #TeamLovinLife. Deb is taking a bit of a blogging break so has stepped aside for now. But wait, we still need six in the team so please welcome Jo Tracey of And Anyways to #TeamLovinLife. Welcome aboard Jo!
Making: Up with my pots and garden for neglecting them during summer. I can’t handle gardening in Brisbane summers – too hot and humid!
Cooking: Family favourites. Looking forward to cooler weather when I’ll start making soups and using the slow cooker a lot more.
Drinking: Probably too much Diet Lime Juice Cordial but there are worse things!
Reading: Lots of blog posts, especially on Thursday’s
Trawling: The internet trying to decide where to get new carpet from. Bought new carpet lately – got any recommendations?
Wanting: A holiday away somewhere peaceful and beautiful
Looking: After Dad while Mum is away for a sister’s birthday (all siblings on a roster)
Deciding: What to write about on the blog every week!
Wishing: A lot lately
Enjoying: The fact I live on Moreton Bay and can head to the waterfront whenever I need to clear my head.
Waiting: For summer humidity to go away
Liking: The chance to sleep in my childhood bed again. Not everyone gets that opportunity at the age I am!
Wondering: How long I might be at my parents house? Torrential rain and flooding expected in Brisbane today (typing this Wednesday night). I was meant to go home this afternoon but won’t be driving in dangerous conditions. Wouldn’t surprise me if I end up staying at least one more night!
Loving: Some time with Dad
Pondering: A bit of a getaway one day soon
Listening: To the whir of the fan sitting on the bench in my parents kitchen as I tap away on my laptop at the kitchen table
Considering: A photography idea I have. My photography has been neglected lately. I need to re-ignite my passion for it. This idea might just do that.
Buying: New seedlings and plants for pots to replace tired or dead ones.
Watching: Adele live in concert would have to be the highlight of the year so far for me
Hoping: Mum gets home safely this afternoon! Flight from NSW and shuttle bus from Brisbane airport.
Marvelling: At how quickly grass can go from crunchy brown to lush and green with a bit of decent rain!
Cringing: At the fact my gorgeous new car is not tucked away at home in the garage but is parked out on the street at my parents house and exposed to whatever mother nature is going to throw at us today!
Needing: A good massage! Yes please!
Questioning: Lots of things all the time
Smelling: Nothing at all. Refer all previous Taking Stock posts.
Wearing: Summer clothes still! The humidity of summer lingers.
Noticing: A lack of ladybirds and brown skinks that were in huge populations during my childhood!
Knowing: Stuff. When you know you know!
Thinking: How much I miss my dog Ava already. We spend every day together usually.
Admiring: A friend who works two jobs (one full-time, another casual) to help make ends meet.
Getting: Sick of the regular specialist appointments in the city (apart from the smashed avocado and feta with a poached egg that I have for lunch at the nearby cafe).
Bookmarking: Anything that takes my fancy that I might want to refer back to at some point or read when I have more time.
Disliking: Hot, humid weather in March!
Opening: A parcel which contained my favourite salad dressing! One whole litre of it in a squeeze bottle. I usually buy it at the local markets but the stall wasn’t there last farmer’s market and I couldn’t go without any longer so I ordered it online. Even though it gave me the option to buy it in the form of a 1 litre squeeze bottle (not offered at market), I won’t do that again because freight costs!!
Closing: The door on things that deplete me rather than fill me up, inspire me, or serve me in some way.
Feeling: Many feels!
Hearing: The TV that Dad is watching while I sit at the kitchen table typing up this post on my laptop.
Celebrating: A freshly mopped floor! Sooo satisfying!
Pretending: To not be freaked out by all that I’m seeing in the media about the expected weather situation today thanks to Cyclone Debbie.
Embracing: The fact that it’s likely that I will not be heading home this afternoon as expected but instead spending another night at the house where I grew up.
That’s it – my first Taking Stock post of 2017 – finalised at 1am on Thursday morning whilst perched on my childhood bed with a fan blasting on me (so humid!) listening to rain and tapping away on my laptop. Apologies if photo quality is poor in collage. They are all phone pics and I am so unused to operating on a laptop. Usually I’m on my huge iMac. Next Taking Stock post will be towards the end of June. Now I really need to get this scheduled to publish and then go to sleep!
Ciao for now,
Link up here at WOTM or with another of us in the Lovin’ Life Linky team:
Leanne of Deep Fried Fruit,
Johanna of Lifestyle Fifty,
Lyndall of Seize the Day Project,
Kathy of 50 Shades of Age,
and Jo of And Anyways.
It doesn’t matter where you link up as it will magically appear on all six blogs.
28 Comments
Min,
I’m with you on the weather.. it is draining.
Thursdays are my blog reading day too.
SSG xxx
I was surprised to wake up to blue sky and sunshine this morning! xo
Min your photos look terrific! I love the way you have arranged them on the page. What a good idea to do a taking stock exercise! It’s like a combined practice of mindfulness, reflection, and gratitude.
Thanks Jo! I forgot to include a bit on the post that refers to the creator of the ‘Taking Stock’ concept – Pip of Meet Me at Mikes. I love what you’ve said – so true – a combination of mindfulness, reflection, and gratitude! Yes! 🙂 xo
I hope the cyclone gives you a pass, and I LOVE that you got a litre of salad dressing. Lovely pic of the bay too.
We did pretty well here – just some flooding downstairs but all cleaned up and no damage. I love that salad dressing! lol xo
Oh wow, you are in the midst of it as it affects more and more of Australia. I hope that the day is OK and your Mum gets home safely. A taking stock post is always reflective isnt it? I find it can bring out more than we realise. Glad you are thinking about getting back into the garden again. I read recently its good for our mental health as there is serotonin in soil!! Who knew!! I hope your lovely car is OK.
Mum cancelled her flight and will arrive home on Saturday afternoon now. Such a relief because arriving Thursday afternoon was not a good idea. You’re right Denyse, a Taking Stock post really makes you dig deep and reflect on many things. It can be surprising! There is serotonin in soil! OMG – I didn’t know that. My car is just fine. I took her for a drive today to pick up some groceries for Dad. xo
I like your photo collage. Very pretty. Taking stock is a great idea. It just shows how much you have achieved during the last 3 months. I have to pinch myself to realise that one quarter of the year has gone already. It’s absolutely pissing down here on the Gold Coast and my puppy is lying at my feet as I type this. I think it will be an indoor day for both of us. 🙂
Thanks Kathy! Taking Stock is always an interesting process that’s for sure. I can’t believe we are nearly at April already. Why does time seem to go faster and faster the older I get? Hope you didn’t have any damage during the Debbie aftermath. My puppy is usually at my feet all the time too. I’m missing her. Can’t wait to see her again. xo
So many things I love here Min. Spending time with your dad (something to be treasured, as I’m the same with my mum), and getting back into photography via a new project sounds really exciting.
And as for the massage… I’ve had some neck issues since last year and I almost saw a physio in December but left it and have been a bit too cash-strapped to justify it since then but soon I’m gonna get there and see a physio / massage therapist and get these kinks out of my neck!
Yes spending time with my Dad is something to be treasured and I know why you say that. I really need to make a move on my photography idea. Need more hours in a day!! Think I will book an appt with the massage therapist I used to see monthly when I lived the corporate life (for maintenance). She’s very good!
I often wonder where people who live close to a beach, go for their holidays. Because for me, somewhere warm and coastal will always top my list. But is it different for you since you are close enough to get down to Moreton Bay and clear your head whenever you get the chance?
I love a mountain holiday Kat. LOVE the mountains. LOVE rainforests. LOVE winter holidays in cute little cottages in these places with a nice fireplace, lovely walks and of course beautiful nature for me to photograph. I think perhaps because living in Brisbane SO much of our year is hot and humid weather, the cooler weather in winter is something I very much enjoy. 🙂
What a great idea to take stock like this every few months. Your thoughts are quietly revealing without being too revealing – if you know what I mean 🙂 It would make a lovely book with photos to pass down through the ages. Ohh, I feel for you in the humidity and I really hope you get to go home soon, and that there isn’t any damage at your house, and all in all that everyone in Queensland is safe and out of the danger zone xx #teamlovinlife
The first time I started Taking Stock I was doing it monthly. I found that too much. Quarterly is perfect. Yes you can be revealing without being too revealing LOL. Some things I’m happy to share in detail. Some things I hint at by keep to myself … or leave a little mystery. lol Such a great idea to make a photo book out of these posts! I really am over the humidity – cannot wait for cooler weather. I should be home late Saturday afternoon I think. No damage at my house or my parents house. Bit of a flooding situation here (at my parents house) last night but all cleaned up now and no damage. It sure has been a lot worse for many others though! xo
Taking stock, a time of reflection.
I have neglected to take stock for so long.
To be honest the first quarter of this year hasn’t given me much to take stock of.
Lots of negativity in my world and in the world around us.
Your photos do inspire me and remind of a good couple of hours spent photographing plants at the Geelong Botanical Gardens for an artist friend. Whilst collating them I found one gem.
Spent time sitting on the sand at Lorne last Friday during my cousins wedding did a bit of pondering. I have some serious decisions to make about life and my journey to make soon. The beach, the sea indeed help with clearing ones mind.
Thanks for sharing and prompting even this short reflection.
Now to get back to my blog post, rewritten for the tenth time and its still not right, my first post in over a year.
There sure has been a lot of negativity in the world Patrick and I’m sorry there has been in your world as well. So pleased to hear you’ve been doing some photography – it’s so therapeutic! I really must get out with my camera more too. Lovely to hear you’ve been sitting on the beach too and getting your feet in the same – nature can do wonders for the soul. Good luck with the decisions you need to make and your blog post. I look forward to reading it when it is complete.
What a great concept, Min!!
It reminds me of a post I’m working on that’s a sentence a day for the month!! They both remind me of a diary. Although I have to laugh—a freshly mopped floor probably wouldn’t be on either of my lists—LOL! (maybe because I can’t remember the last time i did it—eeek!!)
jodie
http://www.jtouchofstyle.com
A sentence a day for a month – how interesting Jodie! I can’t wait to see that post! You don’t get a thrill out of a freshly mopped floor? LOL xo
What a busy month you’ve had Min. I too am cringing at my lovely new car (only a month old) sitting out in the driveway tonight. Hoping nothing happens to it… and the rain and wind dies down very soon xox #TeamLovinLife
There’s been a few things happening this month that’s for sure Lyndall. My car is safe and well thank goodness. Hope yours is too! Things are looking a bit scary down your way – so much flooding! Stay safe! xo
Thanks for the welcome. I’m in my hotel room in Vietnam reading the news of the Debbie aftermath. Our daughter has reported that she’s lost power in Buderim, but everything is dry. She’s such a city girl that this is the first black-out she’s been in.
You’re most welcome – it’s so lovely to have you join the team Jo! You are amazing to manage your first post as a Lovin Life team member having just moved and then being in transit and travelling! Hello to Vietnam – I’ve never been there. Enjoy your travels! Hope your daughter has power back on by now. xo
I think I would be enjoying your ENJOYING bit too if I was on Moreton Bay
#teamlovinlife
Yeah it’s fabulous to have that on our doorstep – love it! 🙂 xo
It’s funny how, when you write it all down, there’s so much that happens in a few months. Love all the little pictures (especially the childhood bedroom!) and love that you’re choosing to be positive and upbeat. Glad the cyclone has passed too!
It’s a really interesting exercise to do Leanne. It really requires digging deep to find what each word brings out. Three nights I have spent in my childhood bed. It is still comforting to sleep in that bed. I always felt so safe there. 🙂