Back To Reality

June 13, 2016June 13, 2016 / ktbuchs87 / 1 Comment

I feel like there are only two camps when it comes to returning from vacation. Either you are super ready to get back to things and your regular routine or you just don’t wanna return to reality.

Back To Reality | Life Healthfully Lived

Our little cottage for the week. We stayed at Timber Ridge Resort and it was awesome!

I’m definitely in the second camp.

Made it up one of the many dunes at Sleeping Bear Dunes.

We’ve been back home since Friday, but I’m still resisting getting back into the swing of things. Saturday we spent the day at the beach and Sunday was just a lazy-do-nothing day. I know eventually (like today) I’ll start being an adult with responsibilities, but I really enjoyed my week away from the “real world”.

View at the end of the Empire Bluff Trail.

Have you ever just checked out of the everyday grind? Like really unplugged? I won’t say I totally removed myself from social media, I mean, who finds a taxidermy museum and DOESN’T share it on Instagram and Facebook? Selfish people, that’s who. But I will say I didn’t check my email, or constantly scroll through my Facebook or Instagram feed and it was really nice. If I missed anything, it wasn’t life-altering because the world still turned.

View from the highest point on Mackinac Island. There is more on the island than fudge and horses!

I don’t need to be connected 24/7.

Me refusing to get any closer to the dead stuffed lion than this. Also, that ox is blue in the background

The albino deer we dubbed the “Come at me bro” deer due to his hoof placement

And that has been a really hard concept for me to grasp because I work from home so I am ALWAYS connected. I always feel like there is something I could be doing. I always feel like I’m not working hard enough. I always feel like if I take a break, I’m missing out on some opportunity to better myself, my life, my home, my blog, my work.

We found a lot of fun stuff to take our picture in front of like this giant rooster….

But that’s ok. This vacation taught me that in order to give my best it’s completely ok to not always be working, or doing something, or checking something, or fixing something. Things will be just fine and life will keep on coming and if I actually rest, I and my work will be better for it.

And this wooly mammoth made of scrap metal….

That’s just one of the many lessons I learned during my week off, and I’ll share more in the coming weeks, but enjoy some of these awesome adventures I had and maybe schedule some down time for yourself.

And this ferocious bear!

Who knows? You might find your own two-headed calf to marvel!

Not making this stuff up folks!

Vacation Mode

June 6, 2016May 24, 2016 / ktbuchs87 / 1 Comment

Hello friends! I hope that your Monday morning has started off wonderfully. I know mine has because I’m currently on my way to vacation!

Did you know that Adam and I haven’t really taken a vacation since our honeymoon over three years ago? Yeah. We decided it was time for a little rest and relaxation.

We’ll be spending the week in Traverse City, Michigan at the Timber Ridge Resort. We plan on hiking, kayaking, swimming, exploring, and most of all just relaxing and enjoying doing nothing. I probably won’t be as active on social media, but I’ll try to share a few snapshots of our vacation and I’ll definitely have pictures and a recap once we get back.

I’ll have a few round-up type posts this week but I’ll bring back some new stuff once we return from Michigan. I hope that you guys have a great week and even if you’re not on vacation take just a little time each day to get some relaxation!

See you in a week!

Happy Memorial Day!

May 30, 2016May 29, 2016 / ktbuchs87

Happy Memorial Day | Life Healthfully Lived Remember today isn’t just about the delicious BBQ food you’re going to eat or the parades you’ll watch or the fireworks you might set off. It’s about the ultimate sacrifice that some have made for our nation.

So, thank you to all who have served our country and given their all to keep America and our freedom safe. Thank you to their families who have also given a tremendous amount in the name of America. Enjoy your day off and remember why you get to enjoy a day off.

Happy Memorial Day everyone!

The Power of Your Mind

April 25, 2016April 25, 2016 / ktbuchs87 / 2 Comments

Do you ever feel like you get trapped in your own mind? It sounds weird, but the mind is a pretty powerful thing and mine can be my worst enemy sometimes. The Power of Your Mind | Life Healthfully Lived

I feel like I’ve been in a little bit of a funk lately and my mind is largely to blame. It keeps telling me things that aren’t true and it’s tough not to believe them sometimes. Like, I’m not good enough, strong enough, creative enough, special enough, healthy enough…. the list honestly goes on and on. Every time I try to be positive, the little voice in my head has to bring me down. The Power of Your Mind | Life Healthfully Lived

Of course, it isn’t constant and I do have my good moments or days where I feel completely in control, but that voice is just lurking back there waiting for a moment of weakness to pounce. What’s worse is that I know how easy it would be to just give in because I’ve done that before. It’s pretty simple to let your mind tell you you’re worthless. To tell you that you don’t measure up to everyone around you. To convince you that you are just an average, mundane, run-of-the-mill human being. There’s almost a weird comfort in knowing that you can never be great because then you don’t have to try. The Power of Your Mind | Life Healthfully Lived

But as much as I want to just let my mind take over and go on auto-pilot, I’m going to fight it. Because I’m NOT just an average, mundane, run-of-the-mill human being and neither are you. Don’t let anyone, even yourself, tell you that. It’s tiring to struggle with something that is so internal, something that you can’t see, but every ounce of effort you put into that struggle is completely worth it. The Power of Your Mind | Life Healthfully Lived

Some of you reading this might have no clue what I’m talking about. You might think I’m a little strange for going to battle against my mind but the people who needed to read this will understand. They will get that fight and I hope this encourages them to know that not only are they not alone, they’re strong enough to keep going. To keep fighting. And to one day…

Win. The Power of Your Mind | Life Healthfully Lived

Attitude of Gratitude

April 11, 2016April 10, 2016 / ktbuchs87

Anyone else feel like there is A LOT of negativity floating around lately? No matter where you look, something is making someone upset or someone is doing something horrible or the world is just falling apart.

Attitude of Gratitude | Life Healthfully Lived

How I feel if I pay attention too much to what’s going on in the world.

Yeah, me too.

So while the internet can be a dark whole of anger, madness, and craziness, I’m turning my tiny corner into one of happiness, rainbows, and sunshine. There might even be a unicorn or two and there will definitely be cats.

Cats riding unicorns? Definitely part of my happy world

Without further ado, here are things that made me happy this weekend:

Spending some much needed time with this guy. I was in Sycamore for the past week or so and finally got home Tuesday afternoon so this weekend was all about being together.

Back off ladies… This one is mine!

We got him new glasses, which won’t be in for two weeks but I can tell you they’re pretty spiffy. Then on our way to get him some donuts because he did such a good job at the eye place (yes, he is like a small child in that sense) I found $20 on the street. Like no joke, 20 bucks on the street. We asked the people standing near us if it was their’s and they said no, which side note gives me hope for the human race because they could have easily lied and said yes and gotten a free $20, so there we were with an extra $20. I don’t know what to do with it because I feel like it’s not mine but how do you return it when you have no clue how long it was on the street or where it came from? Maybe I’ll donate it or give it to a charity or something.

Banana bread and hamburger buns thanks to avocados. Recipes soon!

Anyway’s, I also had some nice successes in the kitchen this weekend and it was all thanks to avocados. I k know you can bake with avocados, and I’ve tried it a few times but I decided to go all out and try hamburger buns. While they still need some tweaking they came out really well and they’re gluten-free, egg-free, and dairy-free so be looking for those in the near future. I also tried out some banana bread with avocado and while I haven’t eaten it yet, it smells amazing.

Adam’s pretty sourdough loaf

Adam even got in on the kitchen action and turned out some awesome loaves of sourdough. He has been telling me for years that he wanted to start making his own sourdough bread with his own starter and everything. Well after we watched the Cooked documentary on Netflix (HIGHLY recommend) he made his starter and gave it a go. The first two had some…. troubles, but this batch is pretty good and I’m excited he is making his own stuff!

Meet Inara, our newest kitty addition!

And of course, my cats always make me happy. Inara, our newest addition, is starting to feel more at home and actually plays with Olaf our still very kittenish cat. This is a good thing because Dot our oldest wants nothing to do with play time and Olaf has a lot of energy to burn. So thanks Inara for playing with your new brother!