Life at a "Swell's" pace: Friday things

Hello.

Here are five things this week.

1. This kitty.

Always my morning wake up call.

2. These boxes.

Mighty Nest and Birchbox came this week. Reusable sponges are a plus in our house, so this month's item was a good one. With Birchbox I loved the Lavanila deodorant and the Aromatherapy Associates Revive Morning Bath and Shower Oil. The deodorant smells great, and the bath and shower oil smells amazing! I have been wearing it as perfume this week, because it smells so incredible. I will definitely be ordering a larger bottle of it.

3. This doggy.

Everyone had gone to bed already and I was still up getting things around for work the next day. Hardy normally goes upstairs with Skylar, but this night he wanted to spend time with me. He is getting older and with every animal we have had, when they get old they get more clingy to me. I let him hang out with me and I loved on him a lot that night. We adopted Hardy when he was four years old. We found him huddled in a corner at the local animal shelter when we went in to donate some items. He had a cone on his head and looked beat up. We were told that someone had thrown him and his brother from their car on Interstate 5. I asked if he was up for adoption and they told us yes, but with some previsions. We brought Baz the next day to see if they got along and they did. More than we expected. That was 2011. If you did the math, that's 19 years. He has been with us longer than any other pet that we have had. Meia was 18, and Baz was 16. It's going to be incredibly hard when his time comes. We are keeping him as healthy and loved as much as we can. The sweater he is wearing was Baz's sweater, but I used old baby diaper pins to take it in so it fit him. He loves wearing it. He loves us so much, and we love him as much right back!

4. This bread.

This week I made cranberry bread with the leftover cranberries from Thanksgiving. I thawed them out and tossed them in sugar. I followed a mix of this recipe and this recipe to make my own version. It was easy to bring together and it tasted wonderful. I will definitely be making this one again soon.

5. These items.

Kiwi Eco Box also came this week. It seems this was the week that all my subscription boxes arrived together. I love the Kojac facial sponge. I have extremely sensitive skin and these are great for my face when I wash it. They are really gentle and don't hurt my skin. Right now, I am dealing with some redness and dry patches. These sponges are so gentle that it doesn't make it worse. Everything that comes with this box is eco-friendly and nothing is plastic, which is a definite plus. The company is woman owned and the women are Ukrainian. I feel so good that I am giving to a good cause, and to other women, as well as doing my part to not add to the plastic waste in the environment.

One last thing:

These cute Sardine Pens are now in the shop.

They come in a box that looks like an open can of sardines. Sardines Tinned Fish Pens all have black ink and look like fish as you hold them and write with them. They are the cutest thing. They are priced at $13 and are a lot cheaper in the shop than other gift shops. They would be the perfect addition to a gift bag, or just buy them for yourself and set them on your desk. Set of 3 pens per box.

You can check out the rest of the Five Simple Things shop here.

Positive affirmations this week:

A good way to help you stay on track with your positive changes, weight loss, mental health, or even just reminding yourself that you are loved is to make a symbol that is close to you and place it around important areas around your home, or office. You can even place them in your car, or your wallet. The more you have around the better you can keep your reminders up to stay focused and on task. The image below is an example, but you can make any image that is important to you, or one that you like. With the new year just starting, and not pushing yourself to feel obligated with resolutions, this is a good way to stay on task without the pressure. Start with one, and see how it goes.

You can do this!🌈

Have a nice weekend.

Hello.

Here are five things things this week.

1. This park.

We took a walk through Avery Park in Corvallis, Oregon, this week. There was a small cargo train derailment near the park, so we watched some of the cleanup efforts, as well. We have always loved this old coal engine that's setup in the park for people to climb on. It was once the backdrop of our holiday cards one year when Skylar was four and we still had Baz with us. This picture with Skylar and Hardy are perfect to go with the one of him and Baz all those years ago.

2. This art.

I bought this painting from a Twitter friend. She used spray paints and was feeling down about how it turned out, so I bought it. I love the Scream movies, and this painting is so quirky that it's perfect for what I want to use it for, which is a library, or possibly a studio later. The Ghost Host on Twitter is a cool person to follow, too, if you're into horror and Scream.

3. This game.

My sister and I used to play Skee-Ball at an arcade in Hot Springs, Arkansas. My dad would take us to the Hot Springs Mall and give us about $5 and let us play games. The place was called Aladdin's Castle and to this day I have great memories of doing that. My dad tried hard to connect on our level, and I think he did a good job taking us to different places when we were growing up. I think back on that time period and my dad was younger than I am now, and had two girls. We would go to play games at Aladdin's Castle and have corndogs at Corn Dog 7. I found this mini desktop Skee-Ball game. I ended up sending it to my sister in hopes that it would bring back those old memories for her, too.

4. This day.

It was a weird morning-type of week this week. No wind, not mist, just fog and flat. We are still in the winter months here, so it's to be expected. But, with the wind not blowing even a little, it made these flags look eerie. Which, I do love.

5. These papers.

Skylar made us all, including the animals, honorary members of his railroad company, Deer Pacific. We feel special.

One last thing:

I bought this 12 Days of Beauty from Whole Foods and I waited until December 25 and kept opening until January 5. Those are the 12 days of Christmas. I loved everything in the different advent windows. I couldn't pick a favorite, because they were all great!