Welcome back fellow festive Yule Bloggers! Are you hanging in there? We are getting closer to Yuletide celebrations on the 21st, Christmas on the 25th and of course New Years to end this crazy year on the 31st. Did you see the Northern Lights this week? I've been standing outside looking up at the sky, as usual, not just to watch satellites but to get a glimpse of the Arora borealis brought to us by a friendly CME earlier this week.
Save the birds! I was just watching animal special on nat geo about how Chicago is the deadliest city for birds due to birds hitting windows on the tall buildings. I used to put stickers on our slider doors in San Francisco when we began to notice dazed and confused birdies on our balcony. Maybe I'll do that for our large front windows again? (so, I was just looking up cute window decorations and look at these snowflakes! such a good deal for 30% off!)
Being outdoors in any capacity is very soothing for me and I truly believe that nature's healing power can help us all year round (not just during the summer when we are luxuriating in the sun's love and light). I'm a big fan of backyard bird watching and especially enjoy visits from our feathered friends during the winter time. My first tip for spotting birds, or other critters, during the winter season is to have a heated bird bath or another source source of water for thirsty animals. It get's pretty cold up here in Northern Michigan and I keep 2 sources of water on our front deck for all of our furry and feathered friends. Firstly, the neighborhood cats, squirrels, chipmunks, raccoons and even sometimes opossums drink from my water fountain (mine is from an old funeral home that was going out of business in California but you can get one just like it here! I love my fountain!). To keep the water flowing all year round and enjoy the soothing sound of water trickling, I bought this water heater that plugs in and just sits in the fountain's base. For Christmas last year my parents got me this amazing outdoor heated bird bath and most days I watch as blue jays and chickadees stop by for a sip or a bath.
If you are looking for more festive wintertime backyard animal inspiration, check out this youtube channel! It's become a Christmas tradition to have this video on our tv during Christmas morning when we are eating our own breakfast with a fire going in our wood burning stove. This traveling bird feeder is absolute goals! I want to create a sled smorgasbord just like this to put in our side yard when the snow finally lands permanently this season. (I just need to insert that if you want more soothing animal cams to watch- omg I'm obsessed with watching these kittens! https://explore.org/livecams/currently-live/kitten-rescue-cam, I'll also add that this was a good place to find live web cams for viewing the Northern Lights as well)
Here's another inspiring "natural" holiday tradition that I enjoy: orange clove ornaments! or you can call them pomander which is a mixture of fragrant, dried herbs in cloth bags or perforated boxes—to ward off illness or bring strength and good fortune. To me there is nothing more soothing than doing crafts like this that harken back to a simpler time. I enjoyed making Victorian Christmas crafts with my Nanny growing up and this year I want to try a new one with oranges. I want to make dried orange garland! I have the bag of oranges sitting on our kitchen counter as we speak.
As I've mentioned recently, I am upping my side hustle game more lately and I am excited to have become an amazon "influencer" which means I get a ton of really good deals sent to me for me to share with my blog readers. I'm not going to waste all these good deals on myself! I want to share the wealth! (hey, that rhymed). Most of my Christmas shopping is done but there's still time for all of you to get last minute items from Amazon and take advantage of their prime 2 day delivery! (click here for a free trial of amazon prime! so many good deals!) I have gone through the mast majority of the currently offered promotions and picked out a few of my favorites to share- but hurry because some of these deals expire in a few days! Happy shopping!
good stocking stuffer idea- reusable straw set 40% off https://amzn.to/3oF1nDW
germ conscience friends would love these https://amzn.to/3qHZY1c
for that friend that needs to start a podcast https://amzn.to/3qEppkx
Don't forget to get yourself a gift this season as well and take your self care to a whole new level with my favorite CBD oil brand, started by a local Traverse City Mom! I love to support this company because a donation is made every month to local charities that specialize in helping women and children. This company is dedicated to providing quality, organic, US grown and manufactured CBD. The CBD is cold pressed from actual bud/flower instead of hemp/hemp seeds. The proof is in the pudding folks. You know how much I've been struggling lately with my mental and physical health. I would not be able to get through this with out my full spectrum CBD oil from Nuvita. Give it a try and to make it even sweeter, use my code "LRL" at checkout to get 10% off. and feel free to use the code as often as you like! Click here if you want me to invite you to become a Nuvita affiliate, or as I like to say a Nuvita babe, as the affiliate program is brought to you by invite only.
Thanks for stopping by today and don't forget to share this blog on your social media accounts and also click on the advertisements as that is how this blog supports me! I just fulfilled 2 large orders of Pinup Girl Holiday cards from my etsy shop! That's so up lifting for me. Be sure to get some before they are gone! Use code "THANKYOU10" for 10% off! I hope things are getting easier for you and I can't wait to see you back here again tomorrow.
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