{garden progress}

Top of the morning to you!!!
It's been HOT here ..... even Ruby and L.C. are contemplating a dip in the pool!
Actually they have their own baby pool that I fill daily with fresh water! L.C. loves it....but Ruby still won't go in:)

Things have been growing like crazy in the garden!!!!
The only thing that didn't do well were the peppers?!??!

So I just started some cucumbers....hopefully I didn't plant them too late:)


I have to say that I love the garden! I have been enjoying fresh arugula and herbs daily:)

The other things aren't ready to be harvested....but I don't think it will be too long!!!

It's so rewarding to eat the things that you have grown! Organic and pesticide free.......who cares if I had a tiny inch worm in my salad the other day:)
I made a cute little sign for the garden out of that old fencing I still have hanging around!

I just glued on sea glass and a chalkboard I painted.

I think it's kind of cute....but if I make another one i'll whitewash the wood! I think it would make it pop more on the fence and it would show off the seaglass better! But I still think it's pretty cute.....what do you think?!?!?!?!

Oh and yesterday I did my first 50 mile ride of the season.....
probably not the brightest thing i've done.....it was super hot and humid and I got a terrible headache when I was finished!!!
But I did it:) I feel like I am already much further ahead in my training then I was last year!!!
I'll keep you posted along the way!! The 100 mile ride isn't until September....so I still have plenty of time to get some more long rides in:)
I have to say.....there is nothing like going out and doing something like that on your own.....
I definitely feel pretty proud that I can just get up and go ride 50 miles....
Or maybe you're like my husband and you think I am just nuts:) :) heehee!!!!!
But just remember...if you have a goal....you can accomplish it if you put your mind to it!!!!!! It makes me happy to be an accomplisher!!
Oh....fine....I won't lie....I also like the fact that I burned almost 1500 calories....hello wine:):)

What are your goals?!?!?!

Don't say you don't have enough time. You have exactly the same number of hours per day that were given to Helen Keller, Pasteur, Michaelangelo, Mother Teresea, Leonardo da Vinci, Thomas Jefferson, and Albert Einstein.
H. Jackson Brown, Jr

{riding & trunk show}

Good Morning to you!!
What a weekend it's been.

In true simpledaisy style I thought it would be great to get up early Saturday morning to do a 20 mile ride with a friend:) All this before I headed out for the simpledaisy trunk show the same day!!
It was just such a gorgeous morning. I was so happy we decided to ride. Here's what you'd see if you headed out to the country in Indiana:)
Lots & lots of farmland!

It was a great morning & even though we were pretty slow it just felt nice to get out on my bike for the first ride of the season!!

Now I am starting to feel the 100 miles in my future.....stay tuned:)

I told you I was going to do a trunk show at a friends house.

Well.....i'd be lying if I told it turned out as I had it planned in my mind! It was cold and gray outside and not a lot of people came. Good thing I had my trusty wine:)

You know I picked this wine for the label......I thought it would be perfect for this event!!!

Matches my display:)

Even though not a lot o people came.... I was SUPER thankful for the wonderful people who did come and who were kind enough to purchase a few simpledaisy pieces!! I hope I made them super happy!!!!!!!

My friend who hosted the trunkshow also had 2 other talented women bring their merchandise.....

We all set up on her deck!! It was so cute. She has the most cozy backyard.

Here is Sara's display....

So completely adorable! Her company is named Girlogik & she makes all sorts of girlie things:)

Stefanie was also there with all of her amazing things she makes in her studio!

I wasn't able to get as many photos of her set up because she came a little late and I had already had my camera put away....

But if you live in the area her shop is Interior Elements & Design...

Well...darn...she doesn't have a website but I included a link to her shop's address:)

And my set up.....

What do you think?!?!? Except for the wrinkled tablecloth!!

But that's how I roll......always in a rush and a little messy:)

I also included lots of cute little starfish......

Starfish just make me smile!

All in all it was a really wonderful time! It was all set up like a cute little shop in the French Quarter. Plus shoppers got enjoy some delicious appetizers and vino. How could that not make you happy??!?

Makes me want a cute little shop of my own......maybe someday:)

Hope all was well with you this weekend!! Did you have any big plans!?!?!?

“If you want to live a happy life, tie it to a goal, not to people or things.”
Albert Einstein

{taking advantage}

Hi everyone...
I couldn't be any happier today!! I am sure you are all well aware that I live in Indiana where the weather is NOT often agreeable!!
BUT, guess what....today it was 70 degrees and SUNNY!!!
Early in the day my friend called and wanted to go to New Buffalo to ride!!Soooo....we went and rode 20 miles (my only outside ride since the Apple Cider)!! After the ride we cleaned up and enjoyed the rest of the day...
We sat outside and enjoyed some vino~

I cannot believe that we actually got to sit outside in NOVEMBER!!

After a little vino...we got a wild hair and decided to watch the sunset on the beach!!! We went and ordered pizza to go and grabbed a bottle of wine at a local store!! The best things in life are NEVER planned:)

I actually got to put my toes in the sand~We enjoyed a little vino in Styrofoam cups and some pizza!! No cheese for me:)I was just so happy!!

20 miles on my bike....wine...pizza in my belly and my toes in the sand.....PURE BLISS:)

Hope you got to have a happy day wherever you live:)

“Enjoy the little things, for one day you may look back and realize they were the big things.” Robert Brault

{The Ride}

Good evening all~
WooHoo....
I did the Apple Cider this morning and it was FABULOUS:)

I started the morning looking like this...

Dare I say excited to ride~

all full of excitement and anticipation~

Little did I know what the winds would have in store for me:)

There were so many riders everywhere that it was hard not to be inspired and happy!

Except you had to wait a long time to use tinkle town~My friend and I rode together for the first 50 miles...You remember her from last year:) The sag stops were wonderful and just full of happy riders ready for a little fueling. I ate more bananas than I knew what to do with....but they kept me going~
The ride was just wonderful! There were so many vineyards that I passed. The air just smelled of sweet grapes! Perfect since I was definitely looking forward to some vino after the ride!Me at the end. I don't think I could have been anymore proud of myself~All in all I did just over 76 miles....
in 5 hours and 20 minutes......burning a smooth 2500 calories!And that was with thigh burning hills the whole way after mile 26 and gail force winds. OK...they weren't gail force winds but they felt like it:)

I have to be honest that it's not the 100 miles that I really wanted but after last weeks 50 mile ride I knew I hadn't put in enough long rides to really be ready for 100. And that's ok!

People had asked me what I was doing this for...was I raising money for something....

NO....this was ALL for me. It was a very personal goal. Other goals are great too....but this was MY goal.

Six years ago this September my grandfather (who was the only father I had ever known) died suddenly and since then I really lost myself. I just didn't realize it until about 2 years ago. I realized that I was no longer doing all of the things that I really loved. Crafting, running, reading, just being happy. I really gained weight during this time and just didn't feel right with me. Two years ago I started on my journey to being happy again. I started crafting and began exercising again. BUT I still wasn't really happy with me. This year I decided to really get things in order ..... get healthy, become super active and be the person I know I always was and am. So I really started to focus on this ride and put all of my energy into it. This lead me into really thinking about what I was putting into my body and how that helped or hurt my riding. The more I learned and did, the better I felt and so the more I learned and did. It was really like a snowball effect for me:) I still have a ways to go.....but I know I am now on the right path again!! And that feels so good~ It has taken a long time and hope that anyone who has lost a loved one might give themselves a break for a little while.....but then realize that they can pick themselves up again....

Life does go on and it should:) Life is a journey and you never know where it's going to take you so as my friend says "buy the ticket and enjoy the ride."

Thanks for letting me share:)

So after all this riding, I cleaned up as best I could without a shower..... And ended up at The Stray Dog, where they still had the upstairs patio open!! YIPPEE~

I was tired and a little stinky but I didn't care.
I got my vino and pizza! Vegan, of course~

I also got to see how proud my honey was of me! Who knows maybe i'll inspire another rider. {hint hint, honey}

Just remember...no matter where life takes you, through all of the ups and downs, just remember it truly is a journey! There would be no ups if there weren't downs! So enjoy all that life has to offer and go out there and go after something that you really want! You won't be dissappointed...even if you don't meet your exact goal! Ok .... I am off to bed now! Have a super happy week:)

{autumn decor}

I love autumn! I just don't love what follows autumn:(
This weekend I was inspired to do a little autumn inspired decorating.
I made this little wreath today out of all the wine corks I had on hand.....hmmm what does that say about my wine consumption:)

I think the yellow sunflowers look really cute against the blue door~
Do you think it's wrong to use faux flowers with real ones?

I do it all the time when it's time to change seasons but I don't want to tear out my summer flowers! I think it looks ok...
I did leave my starfish out! You can take the girl away from the ocean but you can't take the ocean away from the girl~
And the flower box underneath my house numbers~

more faux flowers mixed in with the real ones~

I definitely love mums for autumn decorating!

I just think the color is so happy~I also made a little display on the front porch table~I think autumn decorating is so cozy and inviting~and if you noticed you can even see my fish food for the pond hidden among the items in the display.

So there you have it....simple ways to make your home feel a little more autumish! Is that even a word:)

and in case you were wondering about my riding....
I did 50 miles yesterday~ ok really 49.73 miles......in3 hours and 20 minutes! Not too bad but not exactly where I wanted to come in at! Next week is the ride I have been training for! I am definitely fine to ride 75 miles but don't feel like I am ready for 100 miles! Owell there is always next year! Now I will know more of what to do in my training! It is sort of hard when you don't have a coach telling how to train and what exactly to do! Either way I am still pretty darn proud that I can get out there all by myself and ride 50 miles! It gives you a lot of time to clear you mind!!!!

"The basic thing is that everyone wants happiness, no one wants suffering. And happiness mainly comes from our own attitude, rather than from external factors. If your own mental attitude is correct, even if you remain in a hostile atmosphere, you feel happy." The Dalai Lama

{a perfect day}

Good morning blogger friends~
Hope you are having a wonderful weekend. I know I am!
Friday morning my friend and I got up super early to ride 23 miles! You know it's been hot here so we thought the earlier the better. Well it was perfect! We saw so much nature and when were finished we went down to the beach in New Buffalo and then after that went to my favorite beachy place that we have around here ~ The Stray Dog ~

They have an upper deck that is just so happy and cute!It overlooks a marina and if you look in the bottom left-hand corner of this photo you can see our bikes on her truck!

I know it's not the ocean....but it still makes my heart happy! The breeze..the water...the wine...
What.. that's not three glasses of wine that I had! At least I skipped the pizza this time...still working towards my goal from my birthday~
Look at all the happy people on a gorgeous Friday afternoon~
I love that they have umbrellas everywhere because it gets really hot in the sun. If you look really hard over the tops of everything you can see Lake Michigan in the distance! I just love that~I was super happy that I could actually be warm in a little sundress and sandals...it really doesn't take much to make me happy~ I think we clean up pretty well after sweating out 23 miles!
It great to have fun while still working towards fitness goals...at least I think it is! This week's long ride will be 30 miles.....getting closer to that century!

"If you want something, don't wish for it, work for it. Life is too short to wait." ~ Stephen Hines