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  • Friday favorites: more holiday cheer

    I hope you are enjoying some holiday cheer and taking time to savor the special moments. I’m practicing what I preach and reminding myself to stop, breathe, and be fully present in the moment. So when I went to the Little America breakfast buffet with my coworkers, I didn’t hesitate to sample all the breakfast…

  • Christmas carols: for mature audiences only?

    I love Christmas music. From the day after Thanksgiving until Christmas night, that’s pretty much all I listen to. There are songs that make me smile, some that make me feel nostalgic and tender, and a few that make me go, “Huh? What they’d just say?” I recently read Vikki Claflin’s Laugh Lines post about…

  • Friday favorites: season firsts

    Winter is in the air, if not officially on the calendar. This week’s Friday Favorites centers on season firsts. First  valley snow. Of course by the time I took this picture from my office window, the valley snow was melted, but you can still see it on the mountains. This is my favorite type of…

  • It’s all about the present: 3 simple mindfulness exercises

    It might sound a little selfish, but this holiday season I’m all about the present. Okay, not the present that comes in a pretty package—though I’m not opposed to that kind either—what I’m talking about is mindfulness, being fully present in the present. Mindfulness is simply being aware of what is happening right now without…

  • The magic coffee bean

    I’m convinced that the deceptively simple-looking coffee bean has magical powers. How else could someone born and raised in a predominantly Mormon state (where coffee drinking is taboo) fall so hopelessly, madly in love? Because of my strong affection for the magic bean, I was a little afraid to ask the question: Is coffee good…

  • Friday favorites: Happy Thanksgiving!

    This year’s Thanksgiving was a quiet celebration–just me and Larry–at the luxurious Grand America Hotel. We checked in the night before and were treated to this stunning sunset outside our window. Thanksgiving morning started with a light breakfast, beautifully served in our room. Then we played Yahtzee while we watched the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade…

  • Fall bucket list update

    Two months ago, I joined with a group of my blogger friends to create our fall bucket lists, with a commitment to check in every month. Well, it’s that time again, so here’s the latest progress. Health and fitness 1. Try a new workout. Mission accomplished! I tried Orangetheory Fitness and loved it. If you’re…

  • Friday favorites: fancy fun

    Doesn’t having afternoon tea sound so sophisticated? Add “at the Grand America Hotel” and it’s downright fancy. We may not normally be a fancy bunch, but that’s exactly what the daughters, granddaughters, and I did this past Sunday–afternoon tea at the Grand America Hotel and it was just as lovely as it sounds. There were…

  • My experience with Orangetheory Fitness

    Two months ago, I lamented on this blog that I was bored with my go-to exercise routines and wanted to mix things up. Three weeks later, I still hadn’t done anything about it, so I put “Try a new workout” on my Fall Bucket List. It would be another six weeks before I accomplished that goal,…

  • Friday favorites: giving thanks

    Here we are in the midst of November, a month traditionally dedicated to gratitude and giving thanks. In that spirit, today’s Friday Favorites are in the form of things for which I am thankful. I am thankful for Mother Nature, her beauty and her bounties. We made our final (possibly) trip of the year to…