 It's Spring in New Mexico!  Remember the plum tree that was struck by lightening?  It is the same tree I caught my neighbor (from down the street) trying to pull up? Via a rope and his car?  Because he just knew it was dead? Yeah...that was a wild day. Anyway, this is THAT very same tree all decked out in spring blossoms!  They are just beginning to flower...the pictures do not do it justice.  Overflowing with pretty pink blossoms.   Aren't they pretty?   I have this in a vase, it's so perfect it doesn't look real.   Just a few more..   It's actually still far from warm here.  But I'm not wearing 5 layers - only two now. Happy Spring!
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 Carcassonne, France Hello Travel Family! Hope you're having a wonderful winter day! I was digging around on an external drive looking for business files and found these pictures from a sunny day in France. How was this four years ago??  Carcassonne is easily accessed by Train from Spain or by Ryan Air from the UK. The first time I flew over Carcassonne I knew I had to go explore! Reading about the fortified town is one thing, seeing it from the air is another!  The Cite at night is breathtaking!  Full of many hidden gems!  If you are at a loss as to where to go in the south of France (and want to avoid the trite American tourist destinations), I suggest Carcassonne. "Since the pre-Roman period, a fortified settlement has existed on the hill where Carcassonne now stands. In its present form it is an outstanding example of a medieval fortified town, with its massive defences encircling the castle and the surrounding buildings, its streets and its fine Gothic cathedral. Carcassonne is also of exceptional importance because of the lengthy restoration campaign undertaken by Viollet-le-Duc, one of the founders of the modern science of conservation." read more  The Medieval City is beyond impressive.  From there you can rent a car and explore further the countryside,  Out driving-- eating and shopping in small markets to.. #FrenchThings I'm missing France and all things French right now. From the wonderful food to the good friends I have made there. I love Paris, because who doesn't? But I also adore the beauty of nature and the friendliness of the people in the south of France.  ​Too pretty for weather... Hence the (null)  This trip we stayed three months and yes, I cried when we left. I love how clear the water was! We stayed in a three story gite, right beside the river and could look out the window and see the fish swimming by! We were also less than a block from cafes and shops. It was a prefect holiday and I cannot wait to go back!
 Ever wonder why we celebrate Autumn with bright chrysanthemums?  Today's post is about art and flowers! Today I wanted to talk about two things I love...art and flowers. In Chinese Art chrysanthemums are part of what is known as "The Four Gentlemen" or "The Four Noble Ones". They are one of four plants used to mark the seasons. The other three are: Plum blossom, the orchid and the bamboo. You will find these plants in traditional ink and wash painting from the beautiful 'bird and flower' paining category of Chinese Art in most museums or collections.  Love this style!  These plants have been depicted since the time of the Song Dynasty (960–1279) because of their refined beauty, and were later adopted in other parts of East Asia by artists in Japan and Korea.  (Plum blossoms) These colorful plants represent the four different seasons (the plum blossom for winter, the orchid for spring, the bamboo for summer, and the chrysanthemum for autumn). The four are used to mark the seasons through the year in art and decorating.  Orchids for Spring. (I'm still not happy with the placement of this table.)  (Bamboo for summer.)  And chrysanthemums for autumn. Now you know the story of the "Four Gentlemen" and why we are drawn to these colorful flowers.
Do you have any art or arraignments featuring these refined plants?  How are you? It's a chilly 42' this afternoon in overcast New Mexico. (I love it!) And because I have a MEGA amount of traveling coming up I am out walking around trying to do anything but work, lol. So behold the beauty of a chilly afternoon walk...  Its cold, but still nice to be outside.   40 layers of clothes, lol  Layers of socks too! More videos soon, I may even finally post the Iceland videos. Better late, than never.
Catch you later~ How's your weekend going? The weather is changing fast, winter is almost here. The winds have kicked up and the temps are dropping just in time for the yearly Balloon Fest. This year it will run from October 6-14, 2018. *Hit the link to read more about it.  The mass take-off in the morning is defo something to see. Guess what I did instead?  #TrueStory Turns out Balloon Fest here is a lot like Mardi Gras in NOLA, all the locals leave and let the tourist run wild! One of my native friends told me it's not safe to drive, as all the tourist are looking up watching the balloons and not paying attention to the traffic. She has gone to Vegas for the weekend to escape. #VegasIsAlwaysAGoodIdea I did manage to get out of bed today and go for a walk. Spotted this lovely morning glory, blooming like no ones business while I was out. The color was so intense and vibrant my silly iPhone did not catch it, but you get the idea. I always marvel at what thrives in the desert.  The wind is howling tonight.  It's a lot better than it sounds, trust me.  It could be time to unpack the winter clothes. Although I'm more excited about buying new clothes since I dropped more weight! Either way it is time to do some closet cleaning and make room for new leggings and fuzzy sweaters. I was looking around yesterday, in two years we have filled this house! It doesn't feel empty anymore. Funny how that happens, isn't it? You grab a few things and then a few more and before you know it, a 5 bedroom house is full! If you have been following me awhile you know I dislike clutter and too much stuff. I'm not a minimalist, but I also don't like the general disarray that too much stuff can cause. So I may spend this month editing both my summer and winter wardrobe and boxing up stuff to donate. Meanwhile I went outside to pick the last of the tomatoes and this happened....  The sunsets are always amazing here in central New Mexico! Hope you have an amazing week~
 And the blogging challenge continues.. This is an easier post for me than some of the other topics in this daily blogging challenge. I'm very fortunate to have so much good in my life right now. It hasn't always been this way, but I do feel very blessed right now. Ten things that make me happy and/or I'm grateful for: #1 is of course my son. #2 Nature #3 Travel! #4 Plants!  I know I said nature, but plants just by themselves make me happy!  #5 Books! (Bet you didn't see that one coming.) #6 FOOD! All the wonderful fruits and veggies! I'm so happy we get to eat healthy food everyday.  #7 My friends! They are so cool, so supportive and are so crazy! They make me happy everyday.  #8 My health. It sucks ass to be ill and I'm very lucky that I feel great 90% of the time now and that makes me VERY happy!  #9 My home!  #10 Tie--Sunsets/Raining days  Rainy days and watching sunsets always makes me happy. :D I feel so blessed!
See you tomorrow for the next post in the blogging challenge!  Blog Challenge Continues... Today's topic is "Thankful" I really have so much to be thankful for this wasn't difficult at all. Here are a few random thankful thoughts:
What about you? Can you come up with a quick list of things to be thankful for? I bet you can! I think we often forget how lucky we are and take things for granted.  Like the beauty of nature. But honestly, if you are online reading this, then you too probably have a lot to be thankful for.
Read my progress with this daily challenge here: September Goals and here Fashion Trends and do leave me a comment and tell me what you are grateful for. See you tomorrow for Top 5 Highlights of Summer!  Summers end in New Mexico is one of my favorite times of the year. There are so many flowers blooming I’m keeping myself busy taking photos of every single one I see, lol! This means I get into hilarious positions next to the side of the road or awkward situations taking pics. #GoodTimes lol (Have you seen me on the side of the road, upside down with camera in hand? Lol) But it is so worth it! I love all the amazing colors and textures. This years flower crop is really kicking it because of the monsoons.  So with all of the wildflowers blooming & the weather being just perfect, I do not want to stay inside at all! I'm so glad I took the week off. #HappyBirthday2Me Normally we would have gone on a cruise or made a trip to Europe, but with my friends recent passing, I wasn't in the mood for a grand adventure. Being in nature was just what I needed.  This turned into a week of camping & warm nights under the stars.  Monsoon clouds have continued to cool the evenings off. Everything has slowed down as summer comes to an end.  I have to go back to work soon, but can we just move my desk to the patio?  This weather is prefect for sunsets and dinning all'aperto. Camping pictures and other adventures posted up soon.
See you at the airport~  Hi, Hope your summer is going well. August is my birthday month and like all good leo's I begin celebrating in July and go into September, lol! (That would be a funny story, but it is actually true, lol) One of the treats I bought for myself to celebrate was a SketchBox. (Because I clearly do not have enough monthly boxes, hahahahhah!) Oh and by the way, I really did purchase it, this isn't sponsored. The first box arrived August 1st and sadly I have not had much time to draw, but I am excited to use the supplies when things slow down. Let's look inside the box:  Front  Back I opted for the Premium Box. It is $35usd a month plus shipping. You never know what you are going to get, but looking at past boxes they included such favs as Copic Markers, Koi Watercolors, Charcoals, and other mediums I was excited to try! They theme the boxes so you can try a new medium with all the tools you will need to finish a project. They have also just recently started including a "How To" video on the website to help you learn to the use the products, which I love as well.  Inside  I love the collectable pencil tin! Inside the box:
While I love all the pencils, as you can see it wasn't much of a savings over retail. But of course the Lightfast oil based pencil set isn't on the market yet and it does seem to be incredible. I can't wait to play with them all! The Pros:
I liked the box and will enjoy using the pencils. They will complement my already large collection and I feel it was a fair price, maybe not a HUGE savings, but the items were very good quality. I'm going to give it three months to see what supplies are included before deciding to cancel or purchase a yearly subscription. What do you think? Do you subscribe to this box? Do you think it's worth the money? I hope to take some time off this week and use them all.  The sunsets are totally inspiring me to draw, paint and spend more time relaxing. Catch you later!
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Author Welcome to my travel blog, my healthy Vegan lifestyle blog and my life! It's a lot, but it's my passions and I just love to write about it. Here I share tips, stories and photos from my adventures and life. This is the place where people can find daily inspiration to travel and motivation to live healthier lives and laugh a bit too! 
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