Front Porch Sittin’

It has been a great summer (with the exception of a few too hot days to do much of anything) for doin’ some front porch sittin’.

Working two part time jobs (three, if you count my essential oil training & building of team members ‘job’) I have been making a concerted effort to take some time to just be.  To relax.  To enjoy the wildlife of the farm.  To play with the new kitties.  To just sit.

Simply sitting is not always easy for me but I know the importance and value of downtime so I make the time to do it and what better place than a front porch.

A little over a year ago we expanded our front porch to the front of the house.  (The side porch was turned into the greenhouse.)

It’s a very roomy porch now but it just did not feel very welcoming to me.

During porch construction I had envisioned a conversation-style seating arrangement in the center of the porch with appropriate furniture to accomplish that with lots of plants.  But, porch furniture is crazy expensive and it just wasn’t going to happen anytime in the near future, so I set our two rocking chairs in the center of the porch underneath the ceiling fan then set about creating little welcoming spaces but where conversations could be held across the porch.

I’ve been repotting and rearranging plants to fill spaces both on the porch deck and in hanging planters.

This was my morning view during coffee…

and our morning entertainment…

The young’uns are getting big.

A week or so after we got them we discovered that we didn’t have an Amos & Andy but an Amos & Andie.

We thought we got two males but soon discovered that Andie (the one with the white spot on her neck) was missing a few ‘parts’.  Hahaha!  It’s all good though.  They’re both just as sweet as can be and they are quite entertaining.

Are you wondering about the birdbath on the porch?  The cats like to drink out of it.  Don’t ask.  They’re cats!

During my downtime on the front porch I have been fortunate to witness a few of these beauties…

We have lots of volunteer sunflowers surrounding our bird feeders.  I just so happen to catch this Appalachian Tiger Swallowtail butterfly enjoying them also…

It was a beautiful site to see and one that I would have missed had I not taken the time to just be!  Sometimes I think we get so caught up in the busy-ness of life – whether it be self-inflicted (such as myself – always needing to be doing something) or from others or organizations, jobs, etc., that we miss out on the simple joys and beauty of life.  It’s everywhere if we just take the time to see it.

There are times, though, when I do ‘take the time’ that my mind wars with itself.  I feel like I should be doing something.  That I’m wasting time.  Yet at the same time I know I need this time in order to stay balanced.  In my opinion, we are an unbalanced society.  Some people just work.  Some just play.  But what I’ve learned from the OolaGuys (awesome fellas who I had the privilege of meeting and attending one of their seminars) is the importance of balance in one’s life.  In order to achieve balance in an unbalanced world the seven F’s of life must be addressed – Faith, Family, Friends, Finances, Fun, Fitness and Field (your job).  (How many of you just counted to make sure there were seven?  Ha!)  In other words, if all you do is work (Field) but don’t make time for Fun then you’re not balanced.  If all you do is have Fun but don’t have time for Family – you’re not balanced.  If your Finances are good but maybe your Faith is lacking – you’re not balanced.  Make sense?  It only takes one area to be ‘off’ to make you unbalanced.

I had never really thought about the combination of all these areas of life and how too much of one or not enough of the other would throw me out of whack making me unbalanced and actually quite unhappy or stressed.  I now realize the importance of keeping these areas balanced in order to help me feel less stressed and, in turn, allowing me to enjoy this life I live.

My weaker areas?  Fitness (bleh!), Finances (is there ever enough money?!) and Fun.  Yes, fun.  I don’t take enough time to do fun things.  I’m working on improving all those areas a day at a time. Except for Fitness.  ugh.  I just… ugh. Does going up and down stairs count?  Occasionally pulling weeds?  Anyway, click HERE for the OolaLife link.  (I’m not selling anything nor do I get any commission – just thought y’all would be interested in checking it out.)

I’m off to join CountryBoy on the front porch.  I’ll leave you with this…

Have a great weekend!