High heels, sore feet, and kids with books

Posted by random olio

On Friday, we had the opportunity to go to the “2014 SMART Gala: Dinner, Auction and ‘Make a Difference’ Paddle Raise.” There were a few reasons I was interested in going. One, we never dress up. Last October, Chris purchased his first suit ever in the decade + we have been married, and I purchased a sassy dress, and gulp: high heels. I am not a high heel kind of woman. I think there was a time in my life when I might have gone down that yellow brick road, but that time has long passed. I can manage in high heels for a few hours, but the end of that night means a foot massage is due. I seriously do not know how Carrie, Samantha, Charlotte, and Miranda did it for so many years, especially in New York City. My own experience concludes that a city block in New York is much longer than a city block in Portland.

I digress. The dressing-up part was fun, and I was hoping to end up with some glamorous photos of me and my better half, but the lighting sucked. So here is a so/so photo. So back to the Gala. The second reason I was interested in going is the charity event itself. SMART stands for Start Making A Reader Today, here is an excerpt from their website :

“One child at a time. One volunteer at a time. One book at a time. Since 1992, SMART has been pairing caring, adult volunteers with children in need of reading support and books to take home and keep. SMART volunteers read one-on-one with students weekly during the school year, modeling a love of reading and building children’s reading skills and self-confidence in a positive, child-driven environment.”

The event included a silent auction, raffle, and live auction, and at the end of the night they had estimated that we raised over $400,000! I was impressed with the span of ages, and the amount of money that was dropped in the name of literacy. One couple gave $25,000 and offered to match another $25,000 if enough folks contributed during that auction — and they did. Timber Joey (the Portland Timbers mascot) was in attendance, and was part of the live auction. The prize? Timber Joey and one of the players would come and read at the school of your choice.

Such fun. I am grateful for all the individuals that donated money to support children, books, and reading. A cause near and dear to my heart.

Lean towards the positive

Posted by random olio

We all have had rotten days, that we thought would never get better, but sometimes we have to look at what we can learn in those moments, and on those days. We can look at those around us, our peers, friends, and family and sometimes we see folks who look like they have it all. We covet what they have, we want their life, we think they have it easier and that their life will make us happier. Yet, is that really true?

Recently I was catching up on my Daily Om newsletters and found this one “Making Life Yours” where this quote stood out to me:

“The individuals who move through life joyously have not necessarily been blessed with lives of abundance, love, success, and prosperity. Such people have, however, been blessed with the ability to take the circumstances they’ve been handed and make them into something great.”

After having lost both of my parents, I have had others ask me: “What a great loss. How do you get by?” There are definitely days when I struggle, usually when there is a big life moment, a birthday or a holiday, but mostly I have figured out how to move on, to continue to grow, learn, and be me. I have heard others that have lost folks in their life say “It is what they would have wanted, for me to move on.” While I cannot tell you if that is true, I can tell you that living my life to the fullest is the only way I know to cope, to take my circumstances and try to make it as great as can be.

I have had a full, roller coaster week. There have been ebbs of goodness, and moments of frustration. At the end of it all, I can honestly say how grateful I am for all the good I have in my life. I may work hard, I may want more sleep and time to myself, but I love the moments where I can connect with others, learn more about how they live and love, an in turn learn about myself. We each can do more, love more, and connect more. If we attempt to lean toward the positive, we are one step closer to bringing our circumstances from good to great to amazing.

Bring it on.

Nostalgia of Girl Scout Cookies

Posted by random olio

I will always have fond memories of being a Girl Scout. I was pondering the impact it had on my elementary school days as I waited for Chris to break into our box of Samoas. You should have seen my face on Monday when I received my boxes of Girl Scout cookies. A huge smile, and pride for what those girls are hopefully learning about themselves, leadership, competition, friendship, and service.

There is a lot I do not remember, but I have tiny morsels of events from being a Brownie (pre-Girl Scout) and then the years I was a Girl Scout. I remember some of the ceremonies we had, that we each had to take turns bringing in the treat for our meetings each week, earning merit badges, and even dad and daughter campouts. I remember learning how to make blueberry muffins on an open fire by baking it in an orange peel. I know, strange that I remember that so vividly. I remember events my troop went to, prizes we won, and even scary moments, such as driving back from an event and almost getting hit by a drunk driver (seconds from impact).

However, what I remember most, and what was my absolute favorite month of the year was selling Girl Scout cookies. I was a fanatic. I lived, breathed, and slept with the idea of selling those sugar filled treasures. I mean, like Christmas, they only come once a year. Each year I attempted to sell more than the year before. I competed against myself and my own goals, the other girls in my troop, and the other girls in my county. See, I was a poor girl, and selling cookies not only benefited and gave funds back to my troop, but it meant winning prizes (such as tickets to a large amusement park, a TV, and a 12 speed bike). All things that were not in my realm or remotely accessible to me. So I sold, I charmed, I conquered. Want to see me in action?

I recently read this Fast Company article: “Lessons from Inside the $800 Million Girl Scout Cookie Selling Empire.” I agree with their five points discussing selling cookies, leadership, and entrepreneurship. It taught me a lot about what is mentioned in the article: money management (it felt like a lot of money to deal with at the time), overcoming shyness (that was never really an issue for me), business ethics (I sold ever single box, no help from the parents), setting goals (whatever the biggest prize was), and group decisions (not something I remember much about).

A message to little Girl Scouts out there: Make sure you make the sale and exchange the cash. Having your parents do it for you teaches you nada. While I am not one to encourage sugar indulgence, it is definitely hard to resist. Especially when you are walking into the grocery store. Go buy a box, and maybe let that girl creatively get you to buy two, three, or ten more.

Beds and crisp, clean sheets, ahhh…

Posted by random olio

I was talking to a friend yesterday over lunch and we discussed a plethora of topics, but one that I kept thinking about later in the day was our shared excitement over having clean sheets. I know what you might be thinking. “Are you seriously going to write about sheets?” Yes, I am. “Why?” Because it is one of the best things ever. “Really??” Yes, really.

Call me a dork, but there are a few little things in life that make me feel relaxed, grounded, and completely at home. One of those things is crawling into a bed with clean, tight sheets at the end of a long week and weekend. There is something fulfilling about it. Kind of like that first day of your stay at a hotel before you have lived in it for a week, except in my opinion my bed is far better than most hotel beds.

Beds. Yes, let me just tell you about my bed snobbery. I am in no way ashamed about it. Think about how many hours you spend in your bed each day. If we each got a good night sleep, we would potentially be in bed for 8 hours a night. That would be 1/3 of our entire day. On weekends you might get even more sleep. It is my opinion that a bed is worth spending good money on in order to find one of good quality. Think about how much money we spend on a car, and I sit in my car for maybe 30 minutes a day, yet I spend more time in my bed. Food for thought?

So back to sheets. If you have a good bed, then you cannot skimp on sheets. The quality also needs to be outstanding. It is what your skin touches all night. They should be soft, appropriate for your body temperature (flannel if you get cold, lighter cotton if you sleep hot), pillows, comforters, they all matter for that perfect night of sleep. Feathers, faux feathers, down, faux down, there are so many options but at the end of the day what is it about your bed that makes you crawl in, decompress, let your body relax, and you fall into a fitful night of sleep?

For me it all starts with the bed, and those clean crisp sheets. Absolute bliss.

No Poo

Posted by random olio

I know what you are thinking. I am going to talk about poo, or poop. You are wrong. I am talking about the “no poo” movement that has caught my attention. The “no poo” movement is about not shampooing your hair. At first you might think gross! Go ahead and think that, because I thought the same thing, but let me explain. “No poo” means you do not use traditional shampoos that clean AND strip the natural oils from your hair. Why do I care? Well, I like to wake myself up in the morning by washing my hair and letting the scalding hot water surround my head. It is the way that I start my day, but I end my day with a good long run and that means a head of sweat. I think it is gross to not wash all the sweat out before my head hits the pillow at night so I wash it again. Recently I have wondered what that is doing to my hair.

After extensive sleuthing on the Internet, I found quite a large “no poo” community. This Facebook group page shows endless posts from users by the hour or minute, with the community in full comment mode to support those that are embarking on whether to “no poo.” On Sunday I decided to start “no poo” by washing the sweat from my run out with baking soda. It was not that bad, and my hair actually felt clean. You “poo” your hair with baking soda and water, and follow-up with a vinegar/water mixture as a conditioner, shown here.

I wanted to try to wash my hair less. Meaning not twice a day, and possibly not for a few days. I have heard from many that giving your hair a break from washing helps to keep the natural oils present for healthier hair, but I have not been able to give in and try it for fear of my hair feeling “gross” all the time. On Monday (the day after my baking soda wash) I gave in and washed my hair regularly.

Have you tried it? I am curious if I am crazy or if I will be able to stick with it.