Most weekends, our family enjoys exploring the beauty of the Pacific Northwest nature. Recently, we had the chance though, to head up to Seattle for some exploring in the city. Our son had a special performance at MoPOP (Museum of Pop Culture) and since our family loves to travel, we grabbed the opportunity to make a family fun weekend trip out of it!
MoPOP was so fun! After the performance, we ended up roaming the exhibits and playing the musical instruments the rest of the day! Besides visiting MoPOP, we didn’t really have a lot of plans set in stone. This unstructured time allowed us to find a place we would have otherwise never known about, as it opened very recently. However, we were all blown away by the experience. 
Museum of Pop Culture (MoPOP) in Seattle, WA
As we were walking the streets through the South Lake Union neighborhood on our way to play tourists at Pike Place Market, we noticed an eye catching building at the end of the block. We couldn’t help but move closer and asked a person who looked like someone who would know, standing near the door, what this building was all about.
We found out this building was named “The Spheres” and that these peculiar buildings were amazon’s new offices. He invited us to come in. Really?! Inside, the atmosphere was transformational as huge close-up images of beautiful plants greeted us. The room’s exhibits explained the unique architecture of “The Spheres” and the philosophy behind it. 
The Spheres in Seattle, WA
While we couldn’t access the upper floors of the buildings, videos and photographs gave a pretty clear picture of what these spaces looked like. The middle of the building had a huge tree in it and thousands of plants from all over the world were brought in to create a green, natural environment.
The conference rooms were built like a bird’s nest and a tree house connected by wooden walkways that reminded us of suspended bridges in the forest. Amazon encourages their employees to have meetings in these inspirational places. Based on scientific research that shows people think best when walking, employees can move on the wooden walkways to gain new insights or figure out the creative solution to a problem. 
My husband and I have been reading the book “The Nature Fix” by Florence Williams. This book discusses the scientific evidence behind nature making us happier, healthier and more creative. We have been very intrigued by this book and have certainly found that spending time in nature has added much happiness and joy in our own lives.
Here are 3 ways:
1. Go out into nature as often as you can Find outdoor activities you enjoy to stay fit and have fun with your family. Maybe instead of going to that matinee at the movie theater, go for a hike? 2. Bring nature in Indoor plants benefit the air quality and beautify our home. 3. Walking meetings Can you do some of your work while walking? Meet a friend for a walk instead of sedentary coffee or lunch?
What is your favorite way to incorporate these concepts in your life? Which one of these ideas most speaks to you? Please share your thoughts in the comments. Would love to hear from you!
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So I have to admit…. I’m not like Professor Trelawny. I have no abilities in reading tea leaves or crystal balls. I can’t predict the future. Although my hair does look like hers most days as I go for my walk in drizzly Portland or get so absorbed in making my art that I forget to look in the mirror. Whoops.
So why this title? I like fortune cookies. The cookie part is just okay but I like the surprise of opening it and reading what the little piece of paper says. We’ve had some funny and interesting ones over the years. My husband got one that said “ Be careful not to overspend” …… while we were at Disneyland! Ha! Right! So this is what happened. I started writing my own “fortunes.” Not quite like the fortunes you receive in the Chinese restaurant cookies but just bits of positive inspiration and uplifting encouragement inspired by the simple joys in life. With so much negativity in the news, I guess it's my way to counterbalance that a bit. You will now receive a Presents of Love fortune in a cute mini-envelope that I cut and fold myself by hand, complimentary with each order from my etsy shop (excl. digital download printables as those are sent via email). My hope is that you will feel my heartfelt gratitude for each and every one of you who support my art and that my "fortunes" will leave you inspired and reminded of the good in this world. Kind of like a supportive, warm hug tucked into a tiny, colorful envelope.
I’ve been adding lots of new items decorated through pyrography or wood burning over the past few months: driftwood art, modern rustic home decor and cool keychains. Keeping me busy! It was so fun communicating with an absolutely wonderful customer last week and knowing that my art found its way across the world safely, all the way to Switzerland!
See just a few examples of my new creations below:
I would love to hear from you! Please leave a comment if your hair is frizzy too, you have a funny fortune cookie story to share or just to say hi. I love that too! Make sure to add your email to my Simple Joys Club as I have all sorts of fun planned for this year.
You don’t want to miss out! Have a great weekend! 
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If you have been following my journey (or instagram) for awhile, you know I love nature and spending time in the outdoors. As I continually reflect on how I can make a positive impact on our environment, I’d like to share these 3 no-brainer ways to help our Earth as they are easy to incorporate in a busy family lifestyle:
1. Walk or Bike 
Consider walking or biking next time you have to run some errands. When your errands are close to home, it really doesn’t take that much more time than jumping in the car, sitting at a red light and having to find a parking spot. Not only is walking or biking better for the environment, it makes you feel so much better too!
One of the ways I literally got back onto my feet after dealing with agonizing back pain was by starting to go for daily walks as part of my physical therapy routine. I love my daily walks now! They provide for so much inspiration for my art! Walking helps me to clear my head and often gives me a new perspective. I realize not all cities are as well set up as Portland is to bike all over the city, but most places have sidewalks for walking. Take the kids along and use the time to chat with them as you get your errands done the fun way. Some of my favorite walking errands? Picking up a few groceries. Going to the local library. Going to the bank. Could you do some of your errands by foot or by bike instead of by car? 
2. Reuse more
Instead of purchasing everything new and having to go shopping for more stuff, we try to reuse items whenever we can. Especially if you are into crafts and enjoy being creative, you can have fun with this one! Some of the items we regularly reuse are yogurt tubs or small plastic containers for leftovers, gift bags that still look nice and large coffee containers to store art supplies.
Did you know that the lid of a yogurt container makes for a wonderful paint palette? Another idea: we cut off the bottom of an ice cream bucket, poked a couple of holes in the side and wove some string through the holes to hold our dry erase markers. This reuse method has made for an easy way to hang them near the dry erase board. New ipad or tablet? The sturdy tray in which they are packaged can be used as a handy organizer for tights, nylons or other accessories in your closet. What are your favorite items to reuse? In what handy way are reused items serving your family?
3. Eat vegetarian food more often
My husband gave me a vegetarian cookbook for Christmas. I have wanted to eat more vegetarian food for quite some time and he figured I could use some inspiration! It’s been really fun to try some new recipes. The cookbook is called How to Cook Everything Vegetarian by Mark Bittman, the Revised Edition.
I like how the recipes are explained with clear instructions and expectations on the time needed to prepare them. There are plenty of easy recipes in the book that help you to maximize flavor without adding stress to your busy week. While we are not 100% vegetarian, I have felt good about making this change to our lifestyle both for health as well as environmental reasons. It’s really not been that difficult either. If you’re interested in reading more about how our food impacts the Earth, here are a couple of interesting articles on the topic: https://www.npr.org/sections/thesalt/2017/04/22/525113726/chew-on-this-for-earth-day-how-our-diets-impact-the-planet http://time.com/4266874/vegetarian-diet-climate-change/ Has your family tried to include more vegetarian meals? What are your favorite veggie dishes? Would love to hear from you in the comments! 
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