A Mix of Emotions for Mother's Day
It happened again this year. Foraging through the greeting card aisle looking for just the right Mother's Day cards for the women I adore. I'll admit it, Mother's Day is not a simple holiday for me. It is a one that fills me with love and gratitude and grief.....all rolled up into a 45 minute roller coaster of emotions that leaves me fighting back tears, biting my lip and taking a deep breath when I'm done, in the card aisle no less.
It happened again this year. Foraging through the greeting card aisle looking for just the right Mother's Day cards for the women I adore. I'll admit it, Mother's Day is not a simple holiday for me. It is a one that fills me with love and gratitude and grief.....all rolled up into a 45 minute roller coaster of emotions that leaves me fighting back tears, biting my lip and taking a deep breath when I'm done, in the card aisle no less.
How do you find the perfect card to say thank you to the abundantly loving, generous, stylish, talented mother, Jeri, who adopted me at 3 days old and took to mothering so naturally from that first moment in the hospital? Thank you is never, ever enough for this endless gift of love.......
How do you find the perfect card for the optimistic, fun loving young woman, Marcia (my birth mother) who struggled and grieved her own path through an unplanned pregnancy and the painful adoption of her first born? Thank you is never enough for her courageous choices.
I realize, with fresh pain, that I will not be able to find a card for my mother in law, Margie, who passed away just over a year ago. She was loving, talented and lots of fun and oh, how we miss her.
I am reminded of my own losses and the devastating miscarriages that rendered me "not the mom" I had always dreamed of becoming (Why is that lady crying in the aisle, Mommy?). Sigh......it happens to me every single Mother's Day.
I see some rather lame cards for 'stepmothers' down on the lower shelf and, though, it is so touching to be acknowledged as a step-mom, it must feel a little bit awkward for my 3 step-daughters. Thank goodness for texting and I'm grateful for some sweet ones that have come my way on Mother's Days past. I'm also grateful that Briana, Lauren and Annika have a loving mom and lovely grandmother in town and that they will be able to celebrate together, as all 3 of the girls are living back in Chico this year.
I see cards for Aunties and I pick one up for my special Aunt Yvonne who lived near me a year ago but is now living back in Southern California. I'm grateful we had a couple of years of frequent visits over lattes and lemon bars.
I see cards from "your pet" on mother's day. Hallmark-you'll try anything, right? And I laugh out loud as I remember the card that my loving husband, who deeply understands my mixed emotions, brought to me with coffee in bed last mother's day......embellished and personalized.......
(Yes, I've been holding out on you.....I do have a child, a rather large, very furry one, named Jack. I'm really not even a cat person, but what can you do? He's hysterical...and quite the looker).
And finally, I smile and maybe even laugh out loud again when I think of my sisters and their healthy, happy, bouncy, beautiful, smart, energetic and adorable kids, ranging from ages 3 to 24. To Heidi, my adopted sister who I grew up with, made mischief with, fought with, love and absolutely adore. Thank you for inviting me to be there for your firstborn, Jordan's, birth. It meant the world to me. Dorie, my full biological sister, who I met 17 years ago, and Andrea, my brother's wife, who have both been so good to me and made me feel like a very special auntie. My deepest thanks for sharing your wonderful kids with me. I do adore being an auntie and you girls did a wonderful with the babies!
And I remember, with a sigh, as do we all do........that you can't have everything. Just having some perfect slices of life means something, and we so we carry on.
Cheers,
Heather
When I have a bit of time for planning, my favorite card giving always comes from Greeting Card Universe, my cousin Mindy and her husband Nasser's company. I love creating my own photo cards or having an artist create something special for me. It's the best.
Welcome to the Weekend...Sublime Saturday
Welcome to the Weekend!!
It's a sublime Saturday here and I'm dreaming of beachy vacations(The Viceroy Anguilla would certainly do)
And finally.... a little mood music from Vargo while you chill.
Simply sublime here on the deck today. Hope you are enjoying your time with family, friends or some quality time to yourself.
These are a few of my favorite inspirations to keep the relaxation vibe going for the weekend......
What are yours?
Cheers,
Heather
Welcome to the Weekend...Fabulous Fridays!
I'm crushing on a fresh pop of color with some shine!
I adore Friday. It's the gateway to the weekend for most of us and it's also my day off from my career as a School Psychologist. During the rest of the week, I try to "make the world a better place" for our teachers and their students with emotional/developmental disabilities. Our teachers and clinicians are fantastic- they ROCK!- and I'm honored to work with them four days a week. These fine folks also kindly tolerate me in a bit of a split personality. I may wear a heel a little too high to be practical ('what if we have a runner?' and I don't mean in your tights) or maybe a little too much animal print for an IEP/case management meeting or maybe those folders seem a bit too coordinated to my outfit (sometimes you just can't help it). My team does, however, appreciate the regular parties I throw to celebrate their dedication and indulge my love of entertaining.
I'm crushing on a fresh pop of color with some shine
I adore Friday. It's the gateway to the weekend for most of us and it's also my day off from my career as a School Psychologist. During the rest of the week I try to "make the world a better place" for our teachers and their students with emotional/developmental disabilities. Our teachers and clinicians are fantastic- they ROCK!- and I'm honored to work with them four days a week. These fine folks also kindly tolerate me in a bit of a split personality. I may wear a heel a little too high to be practical ('what if we have a runner?' and I don't mean in your tights) or maybe a little too much animal print for an IEP/case management meeting or maybe those folders seem a bit too coordinated to my outfit (sometimes you just can't help it). My team does, however, appreciate the regular parties I throw to celebrate their dedication and indulge my love of entertaining.
There, I've said it......... I must do meaningful work for my mind AND I need to indulge my eye for design, fashion, a little sparkle and the occasional stiletto for my sense of style. My new blog and upcoming side projects are my attempt to balance this slice of life with my workday world. I'm hoping Stylemindchic is just this balance for me and may bring some lifestyle inspiration to you.
It's Fabulous Friday and I want to share a few of my favorite design inspirations for today borrowed from my Pinterest boards. If you aren't yet obsessed with Pinterest I'll send you an invite so you can join the rest of us sleep-deprived Pinterest addicts (just make a comment and include your email address below).
Thanks for stopping by and enjoy your weekend!
Cheers,
Heather
Photo credits to Pinterest Follow me here
Rainy Sunday at Home
It's a rainy Sunday at home and lattes for two, chill music and snuggling up by the fireplace with a favorite book or 2 sounds just about perfect.
It's a rainy Sunday at home and lattes for two, chill music and snuggling up by the fireplace with a favorite book or 2 sounds just about perfect.
For design books my current fav is Kelly Wearstler-
Modern Glamour: The Art of Unexpected Style
~she's always up for an intriguing twist and pop of color. She is into yellow which is my current go to fun color. I recently redecorated our master bedroom with color inspirations from her luxe, glamour filled pages. For now it's time for a little relaxation and catching up on some favorite blogs.
Let's Get it Started in Here (my first blog post)!
Let's get it started in here with sunset from our deck tonight.
It all begins with that first step, being the water baby I am, I'll plunge right in.
Today I'm inspired by the color yellow, so fresh and cheery, even on the rainiest of days. I had to have some yellow in designing my blog today. Putting together styles, colors, fonts, photographs and working to create the right vibe. I'm sure it will be a work in progress.
I'm loving Pinterest and the ever-present inspirations for everything under the sun.
Visit Heather Lindstrom @ Stylemindchic Life's profile on Pinterest.
I have a few favorite blog writers that I've been following (but without a blog home had no where to invite them to visit). I will share those soon and hope you enjoy them as much as I do.
For now it's Saturday night and I'll share the view from our terrace for some natural inspiration.
Cheers,
Heather
