Sitting on the stoop at 6:30 am with my coffee. Listening to quiet punctuated by kids noisily running for the bus.

Midday walk around the block. Oh hostas, what big leaves you have!

Gorgeous flowers all throughout the hood.

Porch Fest! I only had energy for a short walk during tonight’s Porch Fest, but I managed to see 6 bands during my short little walk.

The sound of music wafting all through the streets reminded me a little of my beloved Rocky Mountain Song School, which I’ve missed so much these past few years. There is just something so magical about people making all kinds of music in one place. ✨✨✨

Today I am thinking about the intersection of privilege, resources, community, mental health, and positive psychology.

I am passionate about positive psychology and about helping people find ways to increase their happiness. But I do have questions.

How can I account for and address the fact that I am working from a position of incredible privilege?

How helpful are the tools I use and suggest to people who are marginalized by systemic racism, or who don’t have access to the resources I do for any number of reasons?

Are there ways to make these tools more applicable to a wider audience, or are they only useful given a baseline of ease?

I don’t know. What do you think?

Sarah’s expert and enthusiastic pruning of our weigela, which brought forth a riot of blooms!

Living with truly adorable people.

Our new fancy fenceline with snapdragons, clematis, and sedum, oh my!

Superhero walks.

Tag-team lego building.

My newly-won title as the Pajama Whisperer. Taking my place among the greats!

Delectable meals with my beautiful friends and family. 💙

Divine walks with my beautiful friends and family. 💚

Delightful social time with my beautiful friends and family. 💛

My beautiful friends and family! ❤️💜❤️💜❤️

Fantastic progress on Project Chickens including a stunningly clean and newly spacious attic, discovering the floor of the garage, and a laundry room all prepped to house baby chicks! 🐥🐥🐥

Superbly silly housemates who make everything fun. Even getting home from grocery shopping. I mean hunting and gathering. 😉

The introduction of haikus and iambic pentameter couplets into work emails!!! 🖋️

Seeing Guardians of the Galaxy 2 with the kids! 😄

The regular occurrence of bubbles and/or chalk time around here. ✨✨✨

1. Pulling this $10 bill out of my wallet. IT SAYS FISH!

2. Mother’s Day gifts. Katie & Mckenzie each gave me a pair of sunglasses to replace the beloved rainbow and blue ones I lost during the past couple months.

3. May 24th gifts. Today I FOUND both pairs of sunglasses. Hahahaha! 😄 You guys! Now I have FOUR pairs of beloved sunglasses!!!!

Another wonderful dinner and race group with Delaneys, the Duncans, and Rachel. I planned to leave early…but was drawn in by the complex, often challenging, beautifully expansive discussion about our relationship to and understanding of privilege, false empowerment, and systemic racism. I feel like I am learning so much.

GOOD: Ridiculously cold rainy weather for a yard sale – during which we had lots of fun and sold some stuff. 😊

BETTER: Driving home after dropping off ALL the rest of the stuff at Value Village! Wheeeeeee!

Fun party to celebrate Cina’s birthday and graduation. 😃

Getting to watch a play at Phoenix Theater with sound design by Katie and original music by Mckenzie. ❤️❤️❤️ #myawesomekids #proudmama

Breakfast with Amy and Alison. I love you two so much – both for the fun we have, and for the ideas I can steal from you. 😘

More garage & chicken prep work. Chickens!!

So much energy these days. Wow, I am so grateful. Last week I did 12,000 – 14,000 steps every day, and still had energy for yard work, work work, and family fun. SO loving this time!!

At Skynote Consulting, we take Mondays (and haikus) seriously.

My message to Sara:
New name for Pat’s list
Sunshine, coffee, back to work
Monday morning fun

So much walking and gardening and zooing! What a thrill it is to have the energy for wondrous weekend adventures!

My first trip to Friends School plant sale. O M G. That was amazing! Sarah, Ida, and I had So. Much. Fun! 🌿

Our subsequent gardening spree with Mckenzie. I don’t have before pictures, so you won’t get the full effect…but we did SO much clean-up (filled our empty compost heap twice over!). And planted so many awesome plants. Fun fun fun fun fun! 🌺

Zoo day with Katie, Cina, Mckenzie and the Duncan girls. Holy hot one! I’m glad we got there early!

Check out the Kangaroo Crossing Rules. Hahaha! We all got a good laugh out of that…though we were very disappointed to have to leave our wedge-tailed eagles outside the exhibit…

Spring greening. And purpling! Our new oak tree is leafing out and our lilac is going crazy!

formerly overgrown front garden

formerly overgrown fenceline (newly planted with sedum)

formerly overgrown hostas

geraniums, hostas, and ferns, oh my!

ribbit

formerly empty compost bin

All the weather. Warm, sunny, hot, cool, breezy, stormy, rainy goodness.

All the walking! 25,000-step weekend. Yay, heart!!!

All the yummy meals, exciting adventures, and joyful moments with excellent people. This means you, Sarah, Mckenzie, Katie, Cina, Terri, Ellis, Alison, Jeff.

CoffeeCoffeeCoffee.