WHO DOESN'T LOVE SURPRISES?

For years I’ve made our household a welcoming environment for friends, family and fun. I’ve always wanted kids to feel comfortable when they come over. I would bake yummy, homemade snacks, and sometimes would have the kids help me make them.

I also created an area for arts and crafts. It’s so important for kids to use their creativity, exercising their brains to make what ever they choose and not just what they are “supposed to make.” We had crayons, paper, markers, chalkboards with different colored chalk, and a lot of play dough.  As the kids got older, I transitioned the art supplies to be more mature and sophisticated, like pastels, oil paints, beads, etc.

We would have un-birthday parties, as they do in Alice in Wonderland, celebrating with fun party paper goods, like hats and whistles.

The most fun for me was to have a prize drawer. I emptied a drawer in my kitchen and constantly stocked and restocked it with items that were simple and inexpensive. I still do it to this day, taking inventory to make sure no one will ever be disappointed. I stuff it with everything from candy to small plastic toys, little games and even bubble pop plastic that you find in boxes that are shipped so the items don’t break. Kids pull this bubble wrap out of the drawer and begin jumping on it, popping away the individual bubbles in between giggles. Is there anything more satisfying?

All the kids in my life and neighborhood know where this drawer is.  The minute they stop into our home, that is where they are headed. Its such a joy to watch them—I want them to love the simple things!

OUR FIRST REAL HOME IN A SIMPLE LIFE

While we lived in Anaheim, in the two-bedroom apartment, Dad and Mom saved as much money as they could. They had their eyes set on buying their first real house. They found one that was new and in a central location for Dad to make veterinary house or barn calls in an efficient amount of time. He would use his truck that had a veterinarian pack on the back of it, filled with all the medical supplies needed to give the appropriate care to each animal.

He again went to the bank for a personal loan and used the cash as a down payment on their new house. Off we went to Palos Verdes Peninsula!

It was a beautiful hill that over looked the ocean, set on a little cul-de-sac street. To me, as a kid, this street was so steep and a mile long. We were a couple of blocks away from the local high school and below the local shopping mall. The junior high school I would soon attend was on the other side of the shopping mall.  The entire hill offered a wonderful lifestyle.

The home was not large, but it did have four bedrooms. In the middle of the house was an atrium. We used this area for our desert tortoise that Dad had found walking across a busy street. He didn’t want it to get hit by a car so he stopped, picked it up and brought it home. We have had this tortoise, Touché, for over forty years.  He is a simple, loving being. Calm yet filled with personality. We are lucky to have Touché in our lives.

Mom decorated this home very minimally since they did not have a lot of money to furnish it. We had a phone radio system in the family room so Mom could radio any horse calls to Dad.  People who needed veterinary care would call our home’s business line.  Dad would be out and about in his truck and Mom would radio the call to him.

One of my childhood memories is in Dad’s truck. The main box for the radio rested between two bucket seats. It became the third seat in the truck for me. On weekends, especially on Sundays, Mom, my sister and I would pack into the truck with Dad driving. My sister would sit on Mom’s lap and I would sit on the phone box, with dad driving and no seat belts! The box would overheat as I sat on it so the warmth made me fidget. I sat so high on this box my head hit the top of the roof.  We would take off to our destination barreling down the freeway. Our family’s life began to grow in a fun, exciting but simple way.

ALL THE FIRSTS

Almost all moms and dads get that first year baby book as a present at their baby shower. The one where you document all the first times of everything. There is a place for pictures, the first haircut, which even has a spot for that first lock of hair. These books are wonderful to go back and look through, remembering all the firsts. And where did the time go...?

The second book of firsts for my first born

All the extra things I collected stuffed into the pages of the book of firsts

At the end of that first year, I decided to continue this baby book throughout my girls' lives. I went to the store and bought a few blank journals. I started just after the end of their first year and began writing a new journal every month. I kept them in a spot that was safe, but where I would be reminded that they were there and to write in them. Each time I wrote, I dated the page. I wrote whatever they were doing in their life at that time. I wrote in a positive, fun way, but once in a while, if something occurred that was sad, I included it.

A look inside the pages of the second book of firsts and a picture my first born drew

I also stored their important school items and certificates folded into the pages of these books. As the book filled, I labeled its back the year and a number depending on how many I had written in that year. Then I wrapped them in a bag and put them away in their baby storage box. They are now grown adults and I still keep a journal for each of them.

As my girls have aged and time has flown, I haven't gotten the chance to write in them as much as I wish, but I still do make it a point, every few months or so. One day they will be able to go back and recount their entire childhood. It was easy to do, giving simple memories and will be fun for generations to follow. For me this is priceless. 

FOLLOW YOUR OWN PATH

One of most favorite, simplest things ever, is the children's book, Harold and The Purple Crayon by Crockett Johnson. This book is the most adorable book. Harold gets to tell his own story using his purple crayon. In essence, he gets to write his own life. He is in control of what he wants and what he is doing. I believe this message is so important, not only  to children in our world, but adults as well. With work and imagination, you can do and create anything. You are in power and it is your life.

In the past, I have given this book to many new parents to read and enjoy with their new babies as they grow older. I believe its lesson is powerful and important and it is told in a most simple way.

ONE STOP SHOP

Me circa '64 or '65 in my Sears Catalog dress, bag, shoes, socks and bow!

When I was a little girl, one of my past times was to look through the good old Sears catalog. Every year, I could not wait for the new catalog to come out. It was around 8 inches wide, 11 inches long, and a good two to three inches thick. I would carefully look at each page, which was filled with any and every thing you may need, or not need, in your life.  I would look at all the pictures and read their descriptions, reviewing them over and over again throughout the entire year, then marking each page that had an item that I wanted to own.

This catalog is what I used to make my Santa Christmas wish list. Of course, throughout the year this list would change and so would all the tab markers or bent corners made to mark where all the special items were. All the time I spent enjoying this catalog is, in today's age, called shopping online. Who would have known? If you get a catalog in the mail and it's contents interest you, take a moment and thumb through its pages and remember what it was like with no computers, a simpler time. 

GIVE BEFORE YOU GET

Every once in a while I go to different home decor stores and do what I like to call "hunting". I walk through, see the newest home goods that are out, and maybe even holiday items. 

I also hunt at clothing stores for the newest fashions. I don't actually buy anything at that time, I just think about what I could add or take out of my wardrobe.

While at home, I look at my wardrobe and think about the clothes that don't fit so well anymore, look a bit old, or are just out of fashion. I put them in a bag and give them to a local charity. Maybe a homeless shelter or safe house for those who have had a hard time or who may have had to leave their homes in a rush. Doing so keeps my closet at a minimum, which I love because it keeps it simple and clutter free.

THE BIG MOVE

Me and my sister circa 1965 - That is the photo Coco thought was a window!

When Dad graduated veterinary school, he decided to get a job in warmer weather. From Colorado we moved to Los Angeles, California. We found a cute little two bedroom, one bath apartment in an area named Anaheim. We were in the big leagues now with a giant place to live. In a real city and, most importantly, no more snow!

This was in the mid 1960's when Anaheim was not like it is today. It was literally acres and acres and miles and miles of flat grassy dairy land. The perfect place for a young veterinarian, and it was affordable.

I have a few great memories about this time and can still envision the apartment to a T. As you entered the front door, you walked straight into the living area complete with a couch, coffee table and television. Next to the living room sat a round four-person table that led into the cute little kitchen. A narrow hallway led to the two bedrooms and one bathroom that we all shared. It was just enough for our family of four, and our boxer Coco, too.

Coco loved the couch and when we left the apartment she would sit on top of the couch and look out the window, waiting for us to come home. The only problem was that there was no window. It was a large picture that we kept finding smudge marks on. She thought it was a window so no one told her otherwise. This was verified by my dad when he walked in one day and caught her nose pressed into the painting. 

My favorite part of this apartment was the car port and the driveway leading up to the complex. Dad used to let me sit on his lap, take the steering wheel with my hands, and drive his truck in or out of the driveway, whichever way we were going. I thought I was so big!

Just down the street from our new home was a berry farm. It was a large farm with a yummy fried chicken and boysenberry pie restaurant. We went to this restaurant almost every Sunday. The farm had an adorable strip of restaurants and shops called Fiesta Village, which is still there to this day. One year I had a birthday party there. It also had an old fashioned car ride that circled the entire parking area. This little berry farm has now grown to be the large Knotts Berry Farm theme park. It is amazing how much a place grows in 50 years...

While living in this apartment, another fun place to go was the Nabisco cookie warehouse. The building was gigantic, tall and long. I would love to see it today--it probably isn't quite as big as I remember it! As you walked inside, there were aisles and aisles of boxes and bags of every possible kind of Nabisco cookie available. This warehouse was used to sell all of the damaged cookies, so they cost almost nothing to buy. I remember picking out anything I wanted. YUMMY! A box of cookies was such a treat. Of course Mom wouldn't let me eat them all at once. One man's damaged goods is another man's prize.

I loved this apartment and have been back to visit the area with my kids. My husband and I would take them to the amusement park for fun growing up and I used to tell them these stories of what Knotts Berry Farm used to be. 

MOMS OLD FRIEND, MY NEW FRIEND

While Mom, Dad, our boxer Coco, and I lived in our 20 foot trailer, and Dad was at school, Mom studied her Betty Crocker cook book to a T. She became a wonderful cook. In my parents' fifty years of marriage, almost every night Mom made full meals for dinner. Always a salad to start, then a main course with a side dish, and finally, a homemade desert.

You would think these meals cost a lot of money, but my parents did not have much money to spend. So, the Betty Crocker cook book did its job. It has hundreds of recipes for all different kinds of food and desserts.

To this day my family uses this cook book and its recipes. We have taken a few of these recipes and added our own touches to them. Recently my daughter and I made Betty's homemade donut recipe, but substituted brown rice flour and whole wheat pastry flour for the white flour. 

Now, it is hard for us to eat some types of food out because we can make them at home even better. I hardly ever eat dessert out because Mom spoiled me with magnificent homemade cakes and pies growing up.

I like to give these cook books as gifts to our friends and family members in hopes that they will enjoy it as much as I have.

Just a simple thing.

SMALL SHOPS

We get so busy driving through our neighborhoods, we rarely slow down to enjoy them. We rush to go to the big malls or large retail stores for the one stop shopping convenience. What we forget, is sometimes small gems are hidden out of sight.

Recently, I was going to an appointment in my local shopping area, or as locals call it, the village. I parked my car and was walking down the sidewalk to my destination and caught a shimmer out of the corner of my eye. I looked over and noticed the cutest display window. It was fun and so inviting. I made a note to stop in that little store on my way back to my car.

And so I did.

As I walked through its doors, I felt like I entered another realm of life. Every inch of this stores space was filled with fun, exciting, different little gifts. It was adorable. I stopped as I entered and just enjoyed being there. There was a feeling of giving, friends, families, parties, love and happiness, all in this little store. I was greeted by a young woman who later told me she owned the store.I picked up a few things that I knew I could use as gifts for family and friends. She helped me put them on the end of the counter close to her register. She giggled and stated, "My mom told me I should get some baskets and stack them at the door so people can put what they choose to buy in them." I told her that was a great idea and continued to shop and pick up a few more things.

They were all small items but special things you may not find in those big malls or stores. I paid for my new prizes and told her I would be back. I had the best time, taking a break out of the big world and walking into this special place.

And I even got holiday shopping done.

Look around the area you live in and find a special place. Step in and disappear for a while into a peaceful happiness. I am making hunting for these places a new hobby. 

WHY I LOVE SMALL SPACES

Me and my best friend, our family boxer, Coco

Although we all live on this earth together, each of us live in different kinds of spaces. Some of us live in large spaces and some small. I prefer small cozy spaces which may stem from the first home I ever  lived in.

Mom and Dad got married young. They were 19 and 20 years old and Dad went to veterinary school in Fort Collins, Colorado. A year after they were married, I was born. At the time, this little town of Fort Collins, Colorado, was just that, little. The year I was born it snowed 9 months out of the whole year. Right after I was born was one of the biggest and earliest snow storms they ever had. So this set the stage for staying indoors a lot.

Dad was a close-to-starving student, now with a wife and baby. They could not afford much. Luckily there was a small trailer park across from the collage campus. Dad and Mom thought this area was perfect for us as Dad got through school so they purchased one of the little trailers. Dad made a deal with the local bank to only make payments on the trailer in the summer when he could work more.

It was all of 25 feet long and 8 feet wide and was an old blue color. My parents' bedroom was on one end, barely big enough for a twin bed. The kitchen and family area was on the opposite end and my bed was in the wall in the middle. Mom's dad, my grandfather, built my bed onto the wall of this space right above the fuel line which would freeze when the temperature dropped 20 below zero. Dad thought I would freeze to death. He would have to crawl under the trailer, usually in his PJ's at night, using a small blow torch to thaw it out. He tried putting on electrical heat tape that was used for water lines, but they still froze. They thought they were living in a castle, and that was all I knew.

Dad's dad would bring us meat every couple of months. He lived  in Denver, not too far from us. This is when Mom began reading and studying her Betty Crocker cook books and learned to make all of her delicious dishes.

We lived in this home for four years, Dad, Mom, me, and my best friend, our boxer, Coco. My sister was born and they bought a new trailer that was 10 feet wide and 45 feet long. The best part was, it was a light pink color.

We were moving on up! 

To this day I prefer small spaces. They are simple, they are cozy and with the right organization and planning they can have everything you need, just as if you were in a big space. With these memories, small spaces make me smile and make me happy. 

SMILE

Remember, just smile. It speaks in any language and they say its worth a thousand words. It shows your inner soul and who you really are. It will always be the one thing people remember you by, if you smile, you can't help but be happy.

My mom always said "Smile and the whole world smiles with you".

BAKED CARMEL CORN

Everyone enjoys the delicious smell of popcorn popping, the fun-loving sound of each kernel as it pops and then the taste of it with a little salt and maybe melted butter poured over it. When my girls were growing up, it was so easy to buy the pre-measured bags of unpopped popcorn at the grocery store for a quick and easy preparation. As they got older, they found fresh organic corn kernels and, I have to say, you cannot only taste the difference, but also see it. These organic kernels are thicker in texture and give the feeling of a more substantial popcorn experience. If you have the time and option, try the second type. If not, enjoy the bagged version. Either way, popcorn is a wonderful, simple treat and fun at all times of the year. 

When I was young, there was an indoor shopping mall that had a small caramel corn business in the food court section. As you walked in the mall, the fragrant smell of sugary goodness immediately hit your nose and it was always the first stop for me and my family. What a treat!

It was just as tasty as it smelled. They made it in little batches so that each box filled was still warm. Since then, I have not seen many places that make caramel corn.

Recently, I was looking through Mom's recipe box and came across her caramel corn recipe. So I went to the store and bought the few ingredients I needed to make my favorite childhood treat.

I always assumed making any type of caramel would be hard but this was so simple. I enjoyed this treat with my family then put the extra in an air-tight container so it could last all week--even though it was gone in two days!

I am sharing this recipe with you and hope you enjoy it with your loved ones. Let me know how it turns out!

Baked Caramel Corn

1 cup melted butter

2 cups brown sugar

1/2 cup light corn syrup

1 tsp salt

1/2 tsp baking soda

1 tsp vanilla

6 quarts popped corn

(FIND MY POPCORN RECIPE HERE)

Preheat oven to 300 degrees. Place popcorn in pan and put in oven to keep warm while making topping. Melt butter in pot on stove using medium heat. Stir in brown sugar, corn syrup and salt. Bring to boil and stir for five minutes. Add baking soda and vanilla to mixture. 

Remove popcorn from oven and pour caramel mixture over popcorn mixing well. Pour the mixture onto two large cookie sheet pans in thin layers. Bake a 250 degrees for one hour, mixing every 15 minutes, making sure all the carmel is covering the popcorn.

Let cool until hard and enjoy!

HOMEMADE POPCORN

My daughter recently discovered homemade organic popcorn and I fell in love with the freshness and taste. Now, I make it several times a week to share with my husband while we watch television and movies at home. 

Here is our recipe for you to enjoy!

Homemade Popcorn

1/2 cup corn kernels

1 T oil

1 tsp salt

1 T butter

In a large pot over medium heat, drizzle enough oil to cover the bottom of the pot. Place three corn kernels in and cover. Once you hear those little kernels pop, it is time to add in the rest of the kernels, covering the bottom of the pan. Close the lid and wait for all the kernels to pop and remove from heat. Pour popcorn into a large bowl and melt butter in the pot that you cooked the popcorn in. Then drizzle the melted butter over the popcorn and sprinkle with salt. (If making carmel corn, do not pour melted butter or salt over popcorn - you can find my carmel corn recipe HERE)

A SINGLE ROSE

A simple thing I like to do to add a bit of joy to my week is buy a single flower to put in my home. My favorite is a white rose, but you can choose your favorite. 

If you do not have a bud vase, you can cut the flower where the stem meets the bud and float it in a bowl. This is a simple and easy way to bring a little light and love into your home.

If you do not want to go out and buy a flower, you can borrow one from your garden or a nearby field.

USE YOUR INTUITION

Each day we go through life doing and fulfilling all that needs to be done. In doing so, situations arise, some good and some bad. In order to be happy we just have to laugh at them all. I am going to be sharing some of my situations in life with you and would love for you to share some of yours with me. Please feel free to comment here or reach out to me via email just to chat. 

The first situation I will share with you has the theme I have used my whole life: never go against your gut, or a more grown up term, your intuition. I rarely go against my intuition, but if I do, I either get sick or something not good comes of it. Not long ago, a situation occurred that made me realize there was more to it than I thought. 

Throughout my high school and college career, I used one paperback dictionary. Now, thirty years later, I have come to cherish it and call it "my baby". Ten years ago it broke in half. It had gotten a lot of use, so I didn't think much of it and I put it in a small plastic baggie to keep it safe. 

A few years ago, my husband and I decided to get a boat and were thinking of what to name it. Since using my intuition has been my philosophy for many years, we decided "Intuition" was the perfect name, but I wanted to look up the true definition in "my baby" before making the final decision. When I opened the dictionary it fell in half and a page that was cut in half fell out. I didn't think anything more of it than it was a shame "my baby" was getting old and breaking. As I started to look for the name, the dictionary happened to be open to the exact page beginning with "INT". As I looked closer, I realized the word "Intuition" was on the page that had been torn previously, right below the tear. 

WOW!

When my dictionary broke ten years before, this was a sign that I was supposed to use my gut, or intuition. Most of the time I do, but if I had realized this at the time, I would have paid more attention and not crossed that gut feeling I always get. This proved to me that it is more than just a feeling, and I haven't gone against it since.