⋆✴︎˚｡⋆⊹₊ ⋆

➜ on Monday D’s 6 week summer break from school officially started and I felt like I needed a plan to fill our days at home together. so I got a subscription to thelittleartistsroom (which I wanted to try for years already!). ➜ we also filled our days with making puzzles, making mango cheesecake and drawing. ➜ after getting a thousand advertisements about the clothing brand halara and filling my cart in their shop at least 5 times (and always clicking it away again because I kept thinking ‘do I…

D called me the 3rd time this evening. the first time because she wanted to drink something. the second time because she heard weird noises and this time she said she couldn't sleep. this is probably very recognizable for most parents ;) we had a day that I cannot call easy or without struggle. so I was happy I could finally sit down and rest. when I went up the 3rd time, I could feel my body clench and my head trying to suppress my annoyance that was turning into anger. mostly from feeling…

It's day 3 of the 6 week school holiday for our little D. We are just at the start of the summer period, so we have a lot of time in front of us before school starts again. And every year it's the time of year I dread the most... I don't know how the summer is for other people, but for me it's the hardest time of the year. Being chronically ill, I need quite some time next to my work, to 'restore' my body so that it is able to sort of function like a half normal person ;) That's why I have 4…

A lesson on creativity by Rick Rubin.

That people are selling stolen designs on Vinted. Today I saw 2 (!!) designs (a drawing and a linocut print) on Vinted that I knew for sure weren’t made by these people. I recognised them from printmakers from completely different countries. Just to be sure, I did an image search to track the original maker. And I was right: they were stolen…. I wrote both of them asking where they got the design. And nicely told them it’s not okay to just copy something. And even worse: ask money for it! One…

➜ On Monday I wrote down an old school brain dump about (yet another) new sports routine. It's been so long since I've written a brain dump! But I clearly needed it. Apparently this is how it works for me... come back to my journal every couple of months to write up a new sports routine and then work on it. It's how I can get myself motivated. And if it works... why not? ➜ Making a new sports routine directly made me super motivated again. The past two weeks were quieter in the sports…

Yesterday I went to see my new hand therapist. After examining me and asking a lot of questions, it became clear that it's not tendonitis in my wrist (like my house doctor thought). The physiotherapist said it's caused by my hypermobile joints. With my work, my hobbies and sports, my wrists and fingers get strained. More than with people that are not hypermobile, and that causes pain because they have to work extra hard to keep everything together. And when the metaphorical bucket is too full,…

Yay, the heatwave has gone! Halleluja ;) This was a week with lower, but still sunny temperatures and I just function A LOT better! Here's how my week was... ➜ I've was feeling productive at the beginning of the week! It was one of my intentions to take a look at how I divide my time every week between the things I have to do and want to do (chores, sport and creating). And I made some more time free for creating. I finished my portfolio on Monday to show everyone the things they can ask me to…

My brain dump of today. To put the thoughts I've been having lately on paper... Most of my headspace is going to the topic: how do I do all the things I want every week? I feel so out of my routine. And it's hard to find it again! I've been thinking a lot about this. Because it seems my head and my time have room for 2 different things/hobbies every week. Not more. If I want to add one more thing, it just doesn't work. Right now I'm struggling to do the things I want. Ideally, I would like to…

The last days I've been working on my website and portfolio and I'm finally finished! Yeah! Just wanted to show my portfolio on here too, for anyone who might be interested ; )

The month June I can describe best as hot, hot, hot and slowing down. We had 2 weeks of uninterrupted rain and 2 weeks of heatwave. Talk about contrast! Maybe the longest heatwave the Netherlands ever had in consecutive days? The contrast was huge and it took some time getting used to. Because of these high temperatures, exercising was almost not existent this month. That also took some getting used to ;) And I started with some new / old things again! I decided it was time to do something with…

♡ after a long social media and creative break, I set up my online portfolio again and even made new art! ➜ thedoodlenoodle.com. ♡ despite being in a heatwave, our living room temperature never rose above 25/26 degrees. win! upstairs in the bedrooms it was a different story ;) ♡ my tattoo completely healed and wasn't itchy anymore. can't wait to finish it in July! ♡ I was able to go on 1 hike this week, when I thought I would have a 2 week hiatus because of the heat. ♡ I was so thrilled I found…

After a long social media break and deleting most of my online presence, it was time to make a change again. After a very nice and fulfilling talk with someone last week, I realized that I am missing my creative side, a lot! It was more than a year ago that I got an email from my hosting provider that it was time to renew my website subscription. The website where I store my online portfolio. All the linocuts that I made in the last 10 years. Because I wasn't really doing anything with it…

I forgot where I found a link to the MOMENTS website exactly... but I'm so happy I did! This is exactly the photo sharing journal that makes my eyes shine! As peter (the creator) says himself: it's not a social platform, it's not a portfolio... it's because you enjoy it! If you want to have an online photo journal that emphasizes easy, clean intimate and slow... and want to have a look around the world and how life is over there (and it's very interesting!)... then this is definitely your…

a quick little update about my week... ➜ on Tuesday I visited Fleur to get my new tattoo. she took her time adjusting the design perfectly to my arm and started tattooing. it's 2/3 done and I have to go one more time to finish it. it was a lovely experience, because we seem to have so much things in common! we had a great chat and I felt so at home with her and in her studio ♡ it was a very valuable day for me in more ways than one. oh and of course I LOVE my tattoo! ♡ ➜ we are in the midst of…

♡ oh how lovely it is to make your kid happy with her childhood heroes ;) we can make D very happy soon because I FINALLY found the Paw Patrol Cat Pack, after months and months of searching on Vinted (I'm not kidding, MONTHS). she was asking for Rory and Shade figurines months before Christmas. she wanted them soooo bad, that she kept on asking. but they are not made anymore and most people on Vinted sell them for 35+ euros (when they once cost 15 in store). I found them for a reasonable price,…

➜ I can't wait to clean the canopy area in the garden. and put our new rug on the floor and buy new cabinets in some weeks. right now, the things lying around there (toys, sports shoes, etc) are cluttering my mind. ➜ oops, I've spent a big chunk of my wages on new sport clothes... :D In my defense... I couldn't find good sweatpants for walking that fit really wel. so now that I have, I bought 4 pairs! ➜ the 'no lifting, just walking' week is feeling so good at the moment! it's making me…

➜ found an outdoor rug that hopefully fits great with our minty sage colored walls under the canopy in the garden. ➜ after some months with a (Vinted) shopping break, I found some great secondhand items that I needed. ➜ my parents are back from vacation and it was really good to catch up after a long time. ➜ had a really good call with the tattooer about the design and am stoked to get it in 2 weeks! ➜ am happy that I prevented a second migraine this week, ugh. ➜ am thinking of joining a local…

Sunday check-in... And a kick in the but for me ;) On Monday I got a big migraine that I still haven't fully recovered from today. I have been very tired every day this week. The kind of tired that doesn't go away with more rest. I didn't train that much this week (because I changed my exercise routine and added more rest days). Because I felt like I was on the path to overtraining maybe? On Thursday evening I did the CeeCee lift challenge. It felt better than the first day of the new routine…

I've never really listed to nothing but thieves, but this new song is on repeat now!

Oops, my last monthly recap is from February. I took some time off from the internet, and that also meant my blog. But I want to try to update more often again. So here is my recap from May! The first days of May we were still on our Spring holiday in Turkey. We had a great time and great weather and spent most of our time at the beach or pool. The hotel we stayed at was really nice, I enjoyed the food so much, I even managed to keep my sports schedule and D made a friend and said she wants to…

things I'm enjoying lately: • strawberries • going to the outdoor swimming pool • peonies on the dining table • reading ruck it • working and playing in the garden with D • seeing bright red poppy's on the side of the road

my photo a day project has stalled and I want to get it going again. but this time a little different, so that I can hopefully remind myself to post more. no more 'there has to be a photo every day', but just posting when I have a photo to share. maybe that gets the pressure off? so check it out, the new photo page.

I haven't updated in a while about my sports routine. so here a little update about how I'm doing. my schedule nowadays as of this week I'm trying to make a new exercise schedule. as simple as possible, so that I can really do it. the goal is to have more rest days because research says women at 40+ need less cardio and more rest. with rest days meaning: walks! 3 days of full body weight lifting and a lot of walking, that's all it takes. so I'm trying to not overdo it and add more walking. the…

hiii, May has ended and it's time for another update! some things I have been doing, reading, seeing lately... ➜ I started 2 weeks ago with my (daily) walking challenge and have tracked 9 walks so far. I was very motivated to add extra walks during the week so that I would go outside almost daily. but life and my schedule (work, other exercises, more days off from school for D) just didn't really allow more walking. so I'm happy with what I can do for now! but I will still try to add more walks…

today a shout out to a wonderful person that I haven't even met in real life, but already made an impact. I saw Kayla on Instagram during one of my rucking deep dives. I found her profile because she also loves rucking. she even wrote a book about it, that I'm currently reading (very interesting!). She posts rucking tips and food tips on a regular basis (she's a dietitian) and I reacted to one of her posts a while back. She was so nice to send me some advice and tips and we've been sending…

currently reading

This year I've started moving more and found a routine that I can actually stick to. But I feel like it's time to up my game a bit. That's why I am doing a 30 day hike challenge, with the idea behind it to try to go for a walk (almost) daily. My 'rules': ➜ Some days I will add weight, preferably 3 times a week. The other days I will let my muscles rest and go on a normal hike to just get the steps in. ➜ I don't have to walk far every day; a 30 minute walk is the minimum, but I can do more if I…

just a quick little update in bullet points: • we are back from a 10 day family vacation in Turkey and it was really lovely! lot's of sunshine, tan lines, good food, beach and family time <3 • I had no problem keeping my goal to not eat any sugar while there - I didn't eat any ice cream or other delicious dessert *pat on the back for me! • I also managed to do sports in the hotel gym. I did miss my weighted vest, but did some incline walking on the treadmill instead. and I started Cheryl…

I haven't been much online lately. My last sign of life was the weekly update of week 14, on the 6th of April. That's already 2 weeks ago! So here a quick update: First of all, I'm doing really well. Since I've started with physio exercises last February, something spiraled. And I am now one of those people that works out on a daily basis. I've started a new physiotherapy training program with Dr. Claire Bowes, which I'm doing 3 days a week. My knee(s) have improved drastically and I can feel…