Category Archives: Birthday

Naturally Creative: The Perfect Gift

I love it when I get to make gifts for people.  I really try not to be annoying about it.  I mean I don’t make things to get out of buying things.  It is nice to save money when you are on a budget but I genuinely enjoy being creative.  So, when the stars line up affording me the time, opportunity and inspiration to make something I believe someone else will appreciate, truly, I am at my happiest.

Up until recently, I never had the chance to make anything for my dad.  Dad is a manly sort of guy!  I make jewelry, bath and body products, etc. While he enjoys my baked goods, I have never have been able to make him anything that lasts.  So, imagine my delight when I happened across this dragon egg tutorial from Accio Lacqueur!  So happy!

Just to give you a little background.  Dad is a very well-read cat, everything from classics to military history, sci-fi, thrillers, you name it BUT fantasy is one of his faves.  So, Dad is a big Game of Thrones fan.  In fact, Dad, my brother, sister and I, all started out reading the George RR Martin Series but I bowed out after two or three books.  (I need more dragons and magic, less gore; more romance, less creepy sex.  I digress…)  Dad has been an avid fan of the show since the beginning. When he took me to the Renaissance Festival last September, it seemed like every time we turned a corner, he was greeted with “Game of thrones!” or “Winter is Coming!” because he was sporting the coolest Family Stark tee shirt in all the realm.

We both like dragons.  Here are two of Dad’s snaps from that day:

Bigger DragonLittle Dragon

 

 

 

 

 

 

Pretty cool huh?

So, after after putting 5000+ tiny coats of varnish on 1000+ tacks over countless netflix sessions, this

image

 

Turned into:

Dragon Egg Two

So much fun!  I just had to share.

Do you ever make gifts for people?  Leave me a reply in the comments section.  I would love to hear all about them.

Many blessings,

Cynthia

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justdragonfly

 

A Different Kind of Birthday…Naturally!

My birthday has never been a convenient day to celebrate. When I was a little girl, my birthday parties were rarely looked forward to because it meant summer was coming to a close and school was starting soon. As I got older, many friends and family members would be away because it falls on or near Labor Day weekend. So, I have gotten quite used to not celebrating on my actual birthday. This year looked like no exception, as it fell in the middle of the week.

I knew I was going to be alone on my birthday and honestly, as an introverted person, that is absolutely fine with me! I like spending time with people but I also need, make that NEED, time alone. So, normally, a day to myself: to read, practice yoga, write, be in nature, make jewelry or some other artsy-crafty project would suit me down to the ground. However, since it was my birthday, I wanted to do something to celebrate. I decided the best way to do that was to make it a day of gratitude and giving.

My first stop was Target. Since I started all this dental work, my monetary donations have dwindled. So, when I got a gift card from the sales guys at work for Target, I decided to buy food to donate to a local food pantry. I was inspired by Mimi Ikonn’s birthday video for this first deed. (Our plans diverge after that. She gave people free hugs.  I’m … not a hugger.) I went over the limit for the gift card but it was worth it. I was pretty happy with my haul:

Target Food HaulI also may have gotten a treat for myself.

Why do I dig English Muffins so much?

Why do I dig English Muffins so much?

Okay… two! (It was my birthday after all.)

iice cream and Enlish muffinsWhen I returned home, I wrote out a list of 100 things for which I am grateful. I won’t be sharing this (you’re welcome!) It is a really good exercise to do, especially on a birthday. We are trained by advertisers practically from infancy to think about what we are going to receive on our birthdays. It’s worth taking a moment to appreciate all that we already have.

It’s funny. The landscaping guy broke my car window by accident the day before. Initially, I was pretty annoyed that my birthday was going to start at the glass place. Then I gave myself a little smack-down. How many people in the world would love to have a car in the first place? How many people would love something to eat on their birthday? “#1stworldproblem, Cynthia Lenz! Get over it!”  And I did quickly.

I decided not to keep all my gratitude to myself.  I wrote out a card to one of my friends expressing how pleased I was to have such a good friend in my life. It was a lot of fun mailing a card to someone else on my birthday. How nice is it to get an unexpected bit of appreciation in the mail? At that moment, knowing I was doing something to bring a bit of cheer to someone else, which no one else knew about, was a gas! I think it will be a new tradition. Thankfully, I have a lot of other people in my life to send cards to.

cardAfter I mailed the card and dropped off the donated groceries, I was hungry. So, I had some lunch. Then I took a nice, long nap. Highly recommend a birthday nap, by the way.

My last act of goodwill was to make banana bread for everyone at work the next day. Judging from how often I see people at the vending machine, I figured an unexpected homemade sweet treat would be appreciated.

Banana BreadWhile the banana bread was in the oven, I sat down to eat dinner. I poured myself a nice glass of sauvignon blanc. The wine was a gift from my buddy, Jack, at work. I told him I would toast to his health and prosperity on my birthday and I did.

Chilled and delish!

Chilled and delish!

I really enjoyed my different kind of birthday. Birthdays have a special energy to them. They remind us we were given the gift of life. Think of what it would be like to never have existed. Impossible! I don’t mean to sound like Pollyanna. Life is really REALLY hard sometimes. Having a little awareness of the beauty, that is all around us every day, makes it much easier to endure those challenges. What better way to celebrate it than by creating a little beauty for others?

Many blessings,

Cynthia

Please follow me on Twitter.  Also, please LIKE my Facebook Page.

justdragonfly