Ten things I learned in February

Today I'm linking up at Chatting at the Sky where we are sharing the things we learned in February. 

Here are ten things I learned this month in no particular order.


1. If you have a Valentine's Day date that is less than stellar and you find yourself getting a little disappointed when your expectations aren't met, look for the humor. During the evening I started noticing things that made me shake my head and giggle a little inside. I decided to write a little story about it. It made us think more humorously about the evening. Even my husband said it was funny.

2. Watching the Ellen show makes thirty minutes on the elliptical seem more like ten. I'm serious. There's nothing like laughing on the elliptical.

3. The movie Nebraska didn't do too much to glamorize my home country. Well, what can you really do with black and white? Although, Maine would probably still look beautiful in black and white. I recognized pivot sprinklers and corn fields in all directions. But, honestly, the movie mostly made Nebraska look depressing. It may be flat, but it really is beautiful farm country. In color.

4. Downton Abbey Season 4: {SPOILER ALERT TO THOSE WHO HAVE NOT WATCHED SEASON 4!}My synopsis is that it did end better than last season. However, I don't really like Rose all that much and she was in almost all episodes. I miss all the tension there used to be between Mary and Matthew, and none of her present suitors thrill me. However, I WILL watch it next season!

5. I am now classifying myself as a birder. My chair sits facing our front window and I've become obsessed with watching the birds that keep landing on our weeping cherry tree that is right at eye level. 

worth sharing again!

I've been sharing some of the pics I've been able to get of these little creatures on my blog this month. If you didn't know before, I LOVE birds.

6. Don't dawdle on museum exhibits that you don't really like. This month hubby and I went to the Eisenhower Presidential Museum in Abilene, KS. It was great, but there was a whole bunch of less interesting stuff at the beginning and it took forever to get through even though we didn't read everything in print. 

Come to find out, there was LOTS more to the museum and we ended up having to kind of rush through some better stuff at the end. Lesson learned.

7. The Nester posted a blog yesterday that changed my perspective. It is called The 1 Thing Every Home Needs and she suggests finding a space in your home that is no longer going to be a home for things.

I've struggled with clutter on surfaces my entire life, but yesterday, after reading her post, I cleared my table off for the first time in months. And, I truly enjoyed wiping it down with a damp cloth. Read her post. You'll be inspired.

8. I was equally inspired by Emily Freeman's post from Monday titled In Celebration of Slow. I'm not sure why, but I've often felt "less than" because I take a while to process things. I am a deep thinker and a slow processor. 

In this post, Emily gives our kind much needed perspective and permission to keep being the slow processors and thinkers that we are. I feel so liberated by her post. Thank you, Emily.

9. Writing a spiritual narrative of your life might stir up some stuff. Just a fair warning if you're thinking about writing one of these.

10. My favorite quote of the month:

"When we give our lives the gift of attention, our consciousness blossoms. Attention is an act of love, an act of connection. Like a child in a good home, our art responds to a nurturing atmosphere."

Julia Cameron in The Sound of Paper

I like the idea of giving my art a nurturing atmosphere.

Thanks for stopping by today! 

Blessings to you,