I honestly think it was the right place at the right time moment when I came across a clip of Taylor Swift's commencement speech last week.  I immediately needed more, so I found & read the entire transcript.  It's golden, to say the least.

I will say that I'm entirely biased because Taylor & I are around the same age, so I could relate to many things she said.  Although I'm not a world-famous superstar, I thrive on creativity, so I can relate.

"You get to pick what your life has time & room for.  Be discerning."

Taylor's commencement speech affected me because we are starting to get our "different life" moments--the event that throws our lives in a completely different direction.   You all know this, but it was the loss of my husband for me.  There have also been tons of notable mentions in the past few years (a failed foster placement, our beloved dog dying, etc.).  That life-changing event is starting to show up for many, if not all, of us.  If you haven't experienced the big event, I'm sure you have some notable mentions that gave you plenty of grief & perspective.

I have some exciting news:  I'm releasing a gratitude journal!

What started off as an experiment in book printing quickly turned into the side project of my dreams!

It has definitely been a learning curve for sure.  This is actually my second attempt & I still need to adjust some things!  I had no idea book printing was this difficult!

I'm doing everything on my own except for the printing part.  For this journal, I'm using Amazon KDP for printing.  I also used Blurb & I love them both so much.  The quality of the books is fantastic.

I'm going with Amazon because they offer it for sale directly on their website.  Someone can simply purchase the journal from Amazon & have it shipped straight to their house.

I didn't really sit down & make an actual comparison, but I think they are both around the same price for printing.  I'll do another post soon with more details on book publishing because I know a few people are interested in how it all works.

The plant crew of 2022 is finally coming together!

It was so funny; we were at our local greenhouse last weekend & I admired their beautiful veggie plants.  I told my son, "This is what happens when you don't wait until April 15 to start your seeds!" 

My plant crew seedlings are still super tiny, but they're coming along.  I have been taking them out of the greenhouse every day to get a little sun.  The temperatures here have been fantastic & they're only getting warmer this week.  We're also going to have a stretch where it will not rain for 5 days! I'm looking forward to that!

In other planting news, the little greenhouse that could is coming along nicely.  I dug some supplies out from the basement & moved some plastic shelving out to the greenhouse for storage.  I need to do a greenhouse tour because it's just the cutest.  It's such a small space, but it works really well for me.

Seedling mode is in full swing over here.  I'm slowly 'leveling up' some plants--moving them into bigger containers as they grow.  I love coming out & looking at the little ' glow-ups' of the plants every morning!

Melanoma Monday is the first Monday in May.  It's used to raise awareness of the disease.

A friend sent me this photo of my husband, James.  The pictures of James growing up are few & far between.  I have just one tote of pictures from when James & his siblings were growing up.  They're all young childhood pictures.  Before this, I think I've seen only one other picture of my husband as a teenager.

It's so neat to see James like this.  I didn't officially meet him until he was 22.  I'm so thankful that I got 15 years to know him.  I wish I had known him earlier & I wish he was still here.  He evolved so much as a person & I was looking forward to many more years with him.

Last year, I didn't know I would be a widow.  I didn't realize how deadly Melanoma can be.  Melanoma can spread more quickly & earlier than many other forms of cancer.

In James's case, his Melanoma developed from a mass in his left underarm region.  It was a race against time until the treatments could no longer keep up with cancer.  After 7 months of battle, James peacefully passed away.