Feather Mountains

The Ultimate Peanut Butter Cookie Bake Off!

2013-12-03T19:34:00.000-08:00

Sending out the request for everyone's favorite peanut butter cookie reciepes, I came up with 4 distinct variations and whipped them up to find my favourite.

From left to right: Batch 3, 2, 1, and at the bottom--Batch 4.

1st Batch: Easy and Classic

1 egg
1 cup peanut butter
1 cup white sugar

Mix ingredients together, put spoonfuls onto a cookie sheet, use fork to flatten, bake at 350 F for 8 minutes, let cool, and enjoy.

Result: A soft and nutty cookie with a sugary crunchiness to it.

2nd Batch: Katie's Secret PB Cookies

1/2 cup peanut butter
3/4 tsp baking soda
3 tbsp flour
1/4 cup sugar
2 tbsp brown sugar or coconut sugar
2 tbsp applesauce
1/2 tsp pure vanilla extract
tiny pinch salt

Mix dry ingredients, mix wet ingredients, then combine. Form balls onto sheet, bake at 350 F for 8 minutes.

Result: A great flavour, but even after baking an extra 2 minutes, these stayed dough-like. Someone suggested these would make good balls, and I did end up rolling the baking cookies into bite sized pieces (yes, they were that soft). I am curious as to what the sugar free ones would be like! Any suggestions as to what would improve the substance of these (their flavour was fantastic!)?

3rd Batch: Chocolate Oatmeal

1-1/4 cup all purpose flour
1 cup rolled oats
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
2/4 cup packed brown sugar
1/3 cup butter
1/3 cup peanut butter
1/4 cup buttermilk (I used milk with a splash of vinegar)
1/3 cup chocolate chips

Mix dry ingredients, mix wet ingredients, then combine. Stir in chocolate chips last. Roll dough into spoonful sized balls and put on cookie sheet. Use a fork to flatten cookies. Bake for 10 minutes.

Result: I liked the oatmeal and chocolate. The dough felt very dry while making it, so perhaps my buttermilk substitute was not as great as I thought. The cookies were fairly crumbly, though tasty.

4th Batch: Ooey Gooey Chocolate Peanut Butter

1 cup brown sugar
1 egg
1 cup peanut butter
Tbs vanilla
1 cup chocolate chips (or chunks for a better melted swirl)

Mix, spoon onto cookie sheet, bake at 350 for 8-10 mins depending on softness desirability. Let cool and savour!

Result: The brown sugar compliments the peanut butter wonderfully! Simple ingredients, easy preparation, and chocolate. The cookies came out soft, the peanut butter was strong but not overwhelming . . . I present to you THE WINNER OF THE BAKE OFF! ^_^

Challenge: Daily Organizing (Junk Drawer)

2013-07-05T22:12:00.001-07:00

Sooooooooo . . . 2 months later, I finally get started.

Day 1 consists of the relatively gentle task of sorting out the junk drawer.

Or ALL the junk drawers

Instructions were simple. My interpretation is as follows:

1) Pick drawer(s)

2) Take picture of chaos

3) Dump contents onto floor

4) Take drawers outside and blow off accumulated pet hair/dust. (Aren't I classy?)

5) Sort junk into categories; keep, donate, or toss.

6) Put keep items either in their proper spot in the not-so-junky junk drawer or relocate to proper home elsewhere

7) Move cat out of drawer

8) Take picture proof that I was productive today

Ta-da!

Conclusion:

If I am being honest with myself (always a dangerous thought), while the drawers look better, no system was set up for keeping the drawers organized. These drawers tend to act as a landing area for the various bits and pieces that you have in your hands when you come home. Currently I have a drawer for things I need to return to friends or the library, one for dog walking, and one for "I am going outside, but it is too bright/dark/buggy". No drawer for "I just came home with random things that I have to find a home for". This could be a good thing, forcing me to find a home for things. Yay! Knowing myself though, those random things will find their way onto the kitchen counter.

Constant vigilance, my pretties!

Challenge: Getting Organized With A Bowl Full of Lemons

2013-04-14T11:47:00.002-07:00

The current state of our home is mid move chic. There are boxes from when I moved out from my mom's, and boxes from when my fellow and I moved in together, and boxes from our move into our new house . . . 18 months ago.

We have two of things that we don't use, and do use, and might use one day. We have sheets that don't fit on any of our current beds, two cats and two big dogs that like destroy things that then I like to think I can fix one day. In fact, I have an entire room dedicated to things I am going to make and fix one day. Every room is a big project with more stuff in it than we need or can use.

I dance, so even clothes I won't wear to work or on weekends, I keep "for a costume". We have books we've never read, furniture we can't use, and more posters, pictures, and art than we have walls for.

It is all very overwhelming and suffocating. I come home and want to be creative, but just walking into my "creative space"makes me tense and 9 out of 10 times I flee the scene of the clutter crime. Something has to change, and when I saw the challenge by A Bowl Full of Lemons to organize your home in 21 days, I knew I had to give it a go. I'm a drowning woman and this is my attempt at pulling driftwood together to make a raft.

Now, I do not have 21 consecutive days to organize my home, but I do have need and anticipation, which will get me at least into day 7. After that I have the commitment of having posted my intentions on here, which will hopefully help with the rest of it. I'm going to take this challenge in the spirit it was meant for, and do a challenge each day that I am able to until the very last "day".

So deep breath in, deep breath out, and let's do it!

Challenge: Happiness Advantage Week 3

2013-03-29T11:52:00.003-07:00

More details about this challenge can be found in this post.

Day 15
Good restaurants to meet with friends and have date nights in
Finding mystery seeds and all the potential they contain
A merciful game master

Day 16
Beating my fear of making the wrong choice by making a meaningful but meaningless choice every day. Take left or take right to get to work. Depending on the traffic flow, one could get me to work faster or late, but in the big picture, it doesn't matter.
Playing real life Mario cart with my life fellow on the way to work
Celebrating birthdays to show your appreciation of someone

Day 17
Access to healthy food and clean water
Getting my registration as a therapist sorted out
Truthful meetings with the boss

Day 18
The magical soothing powers of a good cannoli
Lazy days off
Loooong weekends

Day 19
Sleeping in and snuggling
Hot showers and good accoustics
The sun in my window

Day 20
Having the ability to improve my mood
Cuddling and watching a movie
Fresh baked cookies

Day 21
Flexibility and adaptability
Access to good healthcare
Setting goals and sticking to them . . . mostly. =p

Week 3 conclusion:
Okay, my time goals were a bit out of whack. This one week was really two. While I thought about things every day, they weren't always new, and I didn't write them all down. I am glad I did this challenge, but I am also glad that I no longer have the small pressure to record things and can just sit back and enjoy. Every grateful statement had a moment of "this is life". I felt more aware of those moments by week 3-4, as if I was both looking back and feeling it happen at the same time. Revolving around the little happinesses and really seeing how good I have it.

Happiness Advantage Conclusion:

So now that my little experiment is done, and I am deeply grateful for my life. Yes I was grateful before in a "cool, I am doing okay at this life thing" sort of way. Honestly though, I can be a bit of a whiner, focusing on the things that went wrong in my day rather than the things that went well. I really do have it good. This is a feeling I would have in passing, but now, a month after having started truly thinking about the small and big things in my life that make me smile, I feel appreciation far deeper than I normally am used to. As time passes, I hope to still practice small moments of gratefulness daily.

Enjoy what you have now, because tomorrow everything could change.

Challenge: Happiness Advantage Week 2

2013-03-29T11:37:00.003-07:00

Details to the challenge can be found in this post.

To sum it up: find three things a day for 21 days that you are grateful for.

Day 8
Neighbours who shovel your driveway when you aren't home
Warm days that melt the ice away
People sharing hard won wisdom

Day 9
Creative outlets
Strengthening willpower
Laughter

Day 10
Finding my wedding rings the day after I lost them at the YMCA
Unexpectedly meeting friends in strange places
The joy dogs have in fresh snow that banishes my own bitterness at the lack of spring

Day 11
Being able to stay in the office on bad weather days
Sharing food with coworkers
Winter tires

Day 12
Making pancakes with my husband, each one a different type of fruit and candy
Reading a gardening book and feeling excited about spring
Finally fitting my car in the garage! No more ice scraping mornings!

Day 13
Playing dice with family
Flushable toilettes
Not crashing into other vehicles during a particularly bad stretch of swirling snow

Day 14
Being friends with your coworkers and visa versa
No injuries when pup got into a dog argument
Extra wedding dress material to make cool momentos out of

Week two conclusion:
This was the hardest week for sticking to it. I would find things I was grateful for, but not write them down, or forget to do it altogether. For future challenges, I am going to need a sticky note or some other daily reminder. It has definitely increased my willpower abilities to stick through with this. Huzzah!

Challenge: Happiness Advantage Week 1

2013-03-01T20:58:00.002-08:00

Details for this challenge are in this post.

Summary: I want to rewire my brain to look for positives in life by spending a few moments every day thinking of 3 different things I am grateful for.

63 things I am grateful for? Eek!

Day 1
Employed in my chosen profession.
Own a house to call home.
Newly married to an honest, loving, supportive, and kind man.

Day 2:
2 dogs that are currently sleeping peacefully at my side
Access to beautiful music
Work out instructors that are encouraging and persistent.

Day 3
Long distance communication
Nearly telepathic shared thoughts
Lovely artwork in unexpected places

Day 4
Expensed lunches
Meaningful conversations with friends
People who just GET IT

Day 5
The funny face my big dog makes when food bounces off of his nose . . . for the 25th time in a row
The way we can't stay mad when saying "bubbles"
Getting caught up in a long awaited scene of a book

Day 6
Warm fuzzy blankets
Baths with lots of bubbles and scented goodies
Travel Treasures

Day 7
Rich dark chocolate
Feeling my body get stronger with exercise
Inspirational videos that give me hope for the world and my place in it

Week one conclusion:
I am finding myself searching my day for things to be grateful for that I haven't thought of yet. Even by reviewing what I am already grateful for, I find myself staying more positive, despite some not stellar moods the last few days. I wouldn't go so far as to say this is full life style change, but it is a start!

Two more weeks to go! ^_^

The Happiness Advantage

2013-03-01T20:44:00.001-08:00

This week I have been feeling dissatisfied. It feels like I am unwanted, unneeded, unsuccessful. The key word there is "feels". At no point has anyone ever told me these things, nor do I have any evidence. It is a mental state I walked myself into and haven't yet figured out how to walk myself out of.

Wanting some advice, but not sure what I was looking for, I rifled through TED talks until I found something that seemed to call to me. A talk by Shawn Achor, called "The happy secret to better work".

If you haven't made your way to TED talks before, I highly recommend you give it a try! They host some of the most amazing people in the world to spread new ideas through videos and conferences. They even have an app. ~_^

With humour, logic, and good story telling, he rapidly leads you into a hopeful state of mind. You can change your mental attitudes. Then he sets a challenge: Rewire your brain.

Challenge accepted.

Part 1:

21 days
2 minutes per day
3 things you are grateful for

I will update this post at least once a week until the end of the 21 days detailing my gratitudes. After 21 days, I will try to honestly answer whether or not I feel it has helped.

Part 2:

These are other things he mentions, and I see them more as goals than daily challenges.

Journal about something positive that happened to you in the last 24 hours to relive it
Exercise to teach your brain that what you do is important
Meditate to practice focusing on one task
Perform acts of kindness to open up your world to small satisfactions

After the first challenge I will tackle these. ^_^

Mindfulness: Tips to Experience the Moment

2012-07-06T10:46:00.001-07:00

Mindfulness, being present to the moment and its experiences.

Not judging yourself for the thoughts and emotions you have inside of you, but instead acknowledging and accepting what is. This doesn't mean you can't adjust and change those thoughts and feelings, but the first step to change is to recognize what you want to improve and what you want it to be instead.

These moments can come at the busiest times. Take a breath and enjoy where you are at. Place something in your memories to be kept safe. Reframe your mind so you can better face a challenge. Sort your thoughts so you can take the next step forward. There are so many uses for being mindful, and so many different ways to go about it. It doesn't have to take much of your time to better appreciate what time you have. It could even be something you do already without being aware of what you are doing. But of course that is the point of this mental exercise, being as aware of yourself and your environment as you possibly can.

Myself as a bridesmaid for a wonderful
friend who is no longer with us.
A moment I am glad I was present for.

In A Word
Summing up my day with a word is a small way of reflecting on all of the events in the last 24 hours in under five minutes. Today was . . . brilliant, devastating, humdrum. There are a million words to describe this day of your life, twelve million if you make up your own words. Every day matters, and if a small moment defines the entire day, then that is the moment you want to acknowledge. Been a bad day? Acknowledge that too. Experiences and the lessons you get from them are what create you, in all of your imperfect glory.

In Many Words
Journal. Open a blank book, grab a pen, and write down every thought that hits your brain, as it is being thought out. This can be an amazing process of discovery, because you never know where you will take yourself. I have countless pages that start with "This is stupid, I don't know what to say" and end with revelations about why I am really upset, or how small annoyances don't matter. From big picture to micro analysis, this is your brain in free flow.

If typing is your thing, have a go at it! You don't have to post it online. Easy enough to open a document, put your fingers to the keyboard, and try to keep up!

In A Song
This is my favourite. Who doesn't listen to music? Even at times of my life where I am listening to audio books all day instead of music, I still walk into a store and hear something playing on the speakers, get put on hold and hear just the song I need, listen to the street musician and nod my head. Music is everywhere!

In lyrics, you can sometimes find the description to your feelings that you are having difficulty expressing. When I had my first breakup, I was a Linkin Park addict. Three Days Grace and Breaking Benjamin just seemed to get me.

When my friend, Michelle, was killed three weeks ago, I started listening to music again. I had the radio on scan, searching for a song or lyric that could sort through the mess my head was in. Then I rediscovered Florence + the Machine's album, Ceremonials. It just seemed to express all of the emotions that were churning inside of me. I am still listening to it on repeat, but the same songs take on different meanings as my mind sorts through different aspects of the situation.

What the song is about really doesn't matter. It is the lyrics that stand out and seem to call your attention to them. An unrequited love song can describe your attitude about work with a single line "day after day after long hard day and you still don't see me".

This is a very personal process, and yet one many people can identify with. There are quite a few resources online to help you find just the right song, if listening to your radio or ipod on shuffle isn't doing the trick. I just listed my top two free favourites, because a) I am cheap and b) no point listing crummy sites.

StereoMood is my favourite way to listen to online radio ever since Pandora closed it's doors to us Canadians. Radio stations playing music to fit an activity or mood. There is even a dishwashing radio station.
The Experience Project allows you to enter a mood or experience and find songs that other people associate with it. More mood options than Stereo Mood.

In an Image

Art has been around for so long for a reason. It gets you to stop, think, and feel. Great art, anyway. Some art is just pretty, and that is okay too.

When pictures in magazines grab you, cut them out and put them in a journal. When you are needing a reminder to be in the moment, look back at these and find the one that shows what you are thinking or feeling. Remember not to judge your choices. If unicorns make you think of your deceased father, go with the flow of your thought and remember him without questioning too much why.

Deviant Art has taken many of my hours away, but it is also a way to find art on so many subjects. Heartbroken, depressed, joyful. Do a search and see what comes up. Let the artist know they moved you, or made you think.

Take a picture of the world as you see it in this moment. A shadow on the wall, the screaming man who hit your car, the clouds going by. People do this on vacation all the time, but that can be its own trap. If you only remember your time in Germany through the camera, you missed the point of the exercise. Putting away the camera can put you more in the moment sometimes, and if that is what is needed, then do that instead.

In A Breath

The most basic of all mindfulness. So often we get caught up with the stresses of the future that we forget to enjoy where we are at. I am very guilty of this one, but I am trying, and I like to think I am getting better for the trying.

For one minute, stop planning, stop worrying, and treasure the moment you have right now, because you can never get it back.

Breath in. Breath out. Feel your heart beat and watch the world move around you. However, if it is a charging rhino that is doing the moving, it would be prudent to step away first, breathe second.

Enjoy your life. Every frightening, fantastical, phenomenal moment of it. As Michelle once said, in her blog, The Canadian Pun'd, "The world is built on seconds." Make those seconds your own.

I am always looking for more ways to be present in the moment. Got one I haven't mentioned yet? Just let me know!

Beta Females CAN Cope with Alpha Females

2011-09-20T10:48:00.000-07:00

The following advice was gleaned from my Alpha Female mother when I expressed my frustration at handling certain personality types during my practicum. It mainly has to do with my Beta Female personality briefly fooling the alpha female into thinking I am of her ranks so as not to be ripped to shreds or worse, treated like a child.

Women, like dragons, will eat you where you stand

and barely stop for a toothpick.

1) Distract. If they are in a position of authority, ask them questions unrelated to what their authority is in. Example: for my preceptor, I asked her questions about her upcoming New York trip, her children, etc. By conversing on an neutral subject, you are seen more as equals. Warning: make sure it is one that they LOVE to talk about, or you will be counter productive in your aims, gibbering on in a one sided conversation like the ultimate prey, the bimbo.

2) Act confident. Being told you are doing it wrong tends to make Betas more hesitant as they double think their every word and action. Alphas sense this weakness and assume we are incompetent. Remind yourself that you know what you know. This works best with #3

3) Don't care. If you care about their opinion, you are giving them more power over you, thus putting them in a position of authority, allowing them to stomp on your confidence like a floor full of peanut shells. Not caring about impressing them makes you more confident as well, assisting advice #1 and #2.

Mr Bear thinks you are crazy.
Mr Bear is memorizing every word.

4) Speak assertively. Our passive Beta female personalities like asking if we are right, thus garnering both approval and equally passive compliments. This is seen as another weakness to the Alpha Female, leading to the afore mentioned "you are incompetent" mind frame. Do not end sentences with an upward lilt, like you just stepped out of an Irish film. Do not ask if you are right. Don't ask how they would do it. State how you are going to do it. State that you would like their input.

Example: "I am going to _____. Afterwards, I would love to hear how you would _____ differently." Alternately: "This is what I do, but I am interested in knowing what you do." These assertive comments show that you know how to do the procedure, but are open to suggestions IF YOU DEAM THEM CORRECT. This means you are not simply a follower, you made your own choices and are thus an equal and no one's fool.

5) Redirect anger. This is one many of us Beta personalities already practice. In a non-blaming manner, don't allow the anger to latch onto you. Example: "I understand your frustration completely. I have been having the same frustration with _____." Again, this is putting you on equal terms with the advantage of allowing you to have a small bonding moment in a shared rant.

Some of these are counter intuitive to the Beta female and go against our every instinct. They can be especially hard to manage when you feel put in the spot. That being said, this really helped my practicum experience.

Good luck, Beta Female! And let me know how it goes.

Easy Ways to Snaz Up Your Invitations

2011-09-16T10:11:00.000-07:00

It doesn't take much to say "I want you to be here" in a really special way. Invitations, whether for a wedding, baby shower, or a backyard pot luck, are one of the simplest things to personalize!

I've seen these at both Michael's and Staples.
Too much brown for me though.

Get your stationary. For our wedding invitations, I went hunting through stationary and craft stores until I found invitation kits on sale. A batch of 30 for $20 and later a batch of 12 for $3 was the perfect start. There was no damage to them and no missing pieces, they simply were last seasons invitations in a clearance section. Score one for the consumer! Alternately, you can take sheets of good quality paper and cut them in half horizontally so you have 5.5 x 8.5 inch sheets. If you use coloured paper, placing slightly smaller white or cream paper on top will give you a gorgeous frame. Don't put it together until after you print your invitations, though, or you will ruin your printer and paper!

I want ALL of the colours!

Add colour. Now that you have your invitation kits with their handy online templates, pre-cut paper, and delicate designs, take your markers, water paints, or coloured pencils and proceed to make them the perfect colours to match your theme and whimsy. We hadn't decided on our wedding colours, but after a few experiments on the small RSVP envelopes, we settled on pink, orange, and yellow. That doesn't mean I wasn't able to sneak in touches of purple, blue, and green though!

The bottom ribbon was folded over to hide
where the tape was and give it a touch of class.
You can also make this your front with a
decorative decal over the fold.

Gather your decorations. Ribbon, stencils, stamps, stickers, flowers, crystals, sequins, lace . . . The possibilities are astounding and completely up to you! I bought my ribbon at Michael's for $1 per 3 meter roll. One roll made 9 invitations and each invitation needed two kinds of ribbon. Considering the amount I needed, it probably would have been cheaper to buy bulk from an online store like CV Linens (100 yards of organza ribbon for under $6) or Save on Crafts, but at the time I was not aware of that. See, dear reader? That is why you scour the internet. To learn from the mistakes of others!

Consider stamps. Unlike stickers or seals, you won't have to run back to the store for more when you realize you forgot that uncle in Uzbekistan, then end up buying a 24 pack for just 3 more invitations. Seriously, stamps could easily be your biggest friend. To personalize our invites, I used two stamps: a dragonfly and the words "dream". As you might have guessed, I was very pleased with how they turned out. Again, Michael's dollar bin for the dream stamp and pink colour. A friend let me borrow the dragonfly and brown ink.

Experiment. Arrange your ribbon and other decorations on top of your invitations until you find a layout that works. Keep in mind the actual content of the invitations. As nice as a flower with bees flying around it looks, if the flower covers up the date of the event, the whole invitation is useless. Be practical, then be fearless. Once you know what you want, add that first touch of glue or double sided tape on an invitation. Stare at it. Tilt your head. Try again. Tilt your head the other way. Still look good? Awesome! Keep going.

Don't be afraid to change your mind. I originally had all of the info sheets centred, but upon realizing the perilous journey these little invitations of mine would go through, moved things around once more. I ended up liking this new placement better. If your envelopes are sealed and you decided to add one more bit of gaudiness, don't worry. tDo what you can and I'm sure those who have a bit extra won't brag to those who don't. Which leads me to my biggest piece of advice:

The same, but different

Allow for differences. While it would be nice to have an army of identical invitations marching out into the world, this may not be the case. Whether because you couldn't make up your mind or ran out of something and had to improvise, no one but you will know. People see their invitation only, and unless you reveal your secret on the internet where anybody can see (ahem), your secret is safe.

I can't even express how much pressure lifted from my shoulders with this one concept. My invitations are handmade with a personal touch, and I wouldn't have it any other way!

Happily ever after . . . as soon as you RSVP!

How to Complicate a Cross Stitch Project And Learn A Valuable Life Lesson Along the Way

2011-09-11T20:57:00.000-07:00

Step 1:
Decide to make two excessively complex cross stitch projects (because these things should come in pairs).

Seriously, how can there be so
many shades of grey?

Step 2:
Go to a dedicated cross stitch store with very knowledgeable staff who are paid through overly expensive thread that it turns out you have already. Get fabric cut to particular dimensions, receive far too many instructions, and leave promising to return "soon" (hahahaha) to get project framed.

Step 3:
Start the more complicated, but smaller of the two projects with high high hopes of finishing both by Christmas.

Step 4:
Shriek in frustration as you realize you have embroidered fabric horizontally, not vertically.

Step 5:
Undo all of previous work. Cry a little inside.

Step 6:
Start the easier of the two projects, easy being relative to image looking like a child colouring inside the lines vs size. Which is large.

Step 7:
Join full time schooling and enter the force of Study Students of Solace. Dedicated cross stitch time now reserved to summer holidays exclusively. Christmas completion date thrown out window.

Step 8:
Pick up project on following summer, by which point you have completely forgotten thread placement and plans. Spend 5 hours staring at instruction book counting tiny boxes that only Thumbalina could have drawn

Step 9:

Ah, the smell of success and blistered fingers

Feel moment of pride as features become recognizable and thread length is perfected so as no longer to cause knots large enough for a mouse to nest in. Have creepy sensation of being watched by project's half formed face. Make mental note to do eyes last on the next go around.

Step 10:
Put finishing touches onto first project 1.5 years after start date.

Step 11:
Stare at second project in fear.

Step 12:
Check and recheck fabric is vertical. Place first two stitches. Recheck fabric is still vertical.

Every X is a victory

Step 13:
Start second colour. Immediately lose place due to the entire thing being in 27 shades of grey.

Step 14:
Develop system where complete 10x10 boxes are crossed off with pencil.

Step 15:
Change to crossing off 5x5 sections after multiple miscounted boxes have to be unthreaded.

Step 16:
Feel pride as features FINALLY come into shape. Finish entire face before adding eyes.

Step 17:
Decide to add quotes to both projects, further complicating a task that the smallest child able to hold a needle without stabbing themselves is able to do.

Step 18:
Realize that you can get a college education before completing a Christmas present for your nieces.

Through all of this, I finally had to accept that I was not perfect, and neither was my crafting. Making something flawlessly would not make me any less flawed. Boy, was that a big pill to swallow.

I let go, and only then was I able to ask for help to get this thing finished in time for the newest Christmas deadline. The girls I had originally started these projects for were now facing high school. Would they still want it? My husband, solid and stable as always was certain they would.

Matted and placed in oak frames built by their uncle, the two humble projects looked fantastic. The faces of my nieces when they saw what they had made it all worth it. They didn't see the mistakes that I had agonized over. They saw the hard work and love that had gone into their gifts, and the last weight was gone from my shoulders

5 Tips on Writing Your First Blog Post

2011-09-10T23:16:00.000-07:00

Orange Peel Flower,
temporary art from a restless student.

Congratulations, you have or soon will have started a blog! You've chosen your hosting site, your name, your layout, and hopefully your subject matter. Now for the first post. It is blog warming time!

Relax. Starting an online journal is a scary and exciting step. Don't make the mistake of over thinking it, though. Take a deep breath and remember that you can always go back and make changes.

Make it sincere. People read what people say because it is people that said it. That seems pretty obvious, but breaking it down, you have goals, experiences, and opinions. That's something everyone can relate to! Share that with your readers and you can't go wrong.

Make it count. A small child could easily drown in the amount of "Hi, I have a blog!" posts that are on the internet right now. In the interest of saving that small child, I encourage you to make your first post an example of the kind of writing you will offer the world. It is the preface to the rest of your blogging experience. If someone were to only read that first post, would they know what to expect from the rest of your blog?

Don't put pressure on yourself. Readers need constant content. Take the first steps at your leisure. Write a few posts, warm up to your style, come up with content ideas and if you are really on the ball, write a few rainy day posts for those days where you just don't know what to say. By the time you are ready for readers, you will actually have something for them to read.

Have fun! Make jokes, post stories about the cute things your pet does, have pictures of your worst mistakes. If you make the process enjoyable from the very beginning, you will keep coming back to it. Few things are sadder to see in a blog than a last post made three years prior, usually saying something along the lines of "sorry I haven't been updating recently".

All of that being said, this particular post is MY blog warming ritual. To sum up my goals with this blog: helpfulness in a stress free environment with a touch of silliness to brighten up your day. Each post is a small lesson on living. Perhaps a post is relevant to you today, perhaps tomorrow. Perhaps you already know everything here and are just being a smarty pants in the class. Share the wisdom! So far as lessons go, that sentiment could write an entire textbook.

So without further ado I welcome to Feather Mountains, where Responsibility kicks off her heels and relaxes.