Stopping to smell the flowers

The past few summers I have been envious of my neighbour's flowers on her side of the alley. The lady is blessed with a seriously green thumb. You should see her yard! Seriously, I'd take pictures, but I know they aren't at home at this minute.

Isn't it pretty? Much better than the collection of weeds on my side of the alley.

So here's the story. In late spring, I happened upon her working in the garden and asked for some advice on how to pretty up my little slice of alley. She gave me great information, offering to lend me her roto-tiller to break up all the soil, once I'd weeded thoroughly of course.

Fast forward a few days...

Lizzie and I head out back on a walk and my neighbour is WEEDING my part of the back lane. She offered to "adopt" the patch of land, because she was so excited about having a new gardening project. I was overwhelmed by her generosity. The lady is so kind.

I relayed the story to Javier, who prompted burst my bubble by telling me she was probably just tired of looking at my weeds. However, I prefer to take the glass half-full approach and see it as just a friendly-neighbour gesture. I made two batches of muffins as a thank you for her hard work.

Two months later...

This is my back lane. I feel like I'm walking down a country road. Isn't in pretty? The red flowers are my favourites.

And some more flowery wonder.

I'm not even allowed to water or weed the area. She's serious about her gardening commitment.

I think another batch of muffins is due right away!

I love my neighbours.

Eat, Work, Exercise

This is my life these days. It's been a long time since my last post, but seeing my holiday photos from my Beverly Hills trip was the kicker to get my butt off the couch and start taking care of myself. I've had no time for my blog, crafting, really anything for the past 3 months.

I honestly thought this blog was a goner. I kind of lost the interest for a while, but the draw of an online diary of sorts is pretty strong. I just couldn't abandon my OliverRain persona.

This is what I've been doing...



Trying hard to cut processed food out of my diet. I've been trying to follow the Eat Clean Diet. Five small meals a day, lots of water...It feels great and my entire family has been eating better and healthier than ever. It takes a lot of planning though.



I have been in a temporary part-time position at the hospital since early April and I'm working well over full-time hours. For some reason, all the babies in town want to be born early these days and our unit is full to bursting most days. As much as I love the work, it's really quite exhausting...and I've had no time for summer holidays. Fortunately, it will end soon. Unfortunately it ends about the time the weather starts to cool off.



And exercising. There's been lots and lots of exercising. I started out with relatively easyDVD workouts, but then I heard about Turbo Fire, order it, and now it's kicking my butt (in a really good way). But working out for a approximately 1 hour per day is a big commitment. However, it has quickly become addictive so now I'm lost if I don't work out. I love the high I get from high-intensity exercise.

So there it is...my life right now. I find more balance in my life and bring my blog back full time. Sooner than later, I hope.

What are all you up to right now?