My home is comfy and cozy by design. We live at the beach and there is also a coastal classic flair to it.
Part of what I’m drawn to from growing up on a farm can also be described as a twist on Country French. Visitors tell us our home is comfortable and recently a friend called it “cute” much of what we incorporate into our home environment has some fondness or memories associated with it.
Like my personality there is nothing pretentious in our home. It’s welcoming by design. A place of calm and retreat surrounded by my many books.
During the holidays our everyday plate and glass collection is replaced with Christmas themed plates and glassware.
Being so close to the ocean we tend to decorate for two seasons like summer coastal and winter Christmas. That’s what works for us!
My husband and I decided that our mantra for this period of our lives in retirement will be referred to as “STAYING ALIVE” and the Bee Gees song Stayin’ Alive from 1977 is our theme song! So it goes …
“Well now, I get low and I get high And if I can’t get either, I really try Got the wings of heaven on my shoes I’m a dancin’ man and I just can’t lose You know it’s all right, it’s okay I’ll live to see another day …”
For us it’s about a wholistic approach to living out the rest of our lives with the trinity of mind, body and soul. What have we done and what can we do to be sure that each and every day we do something that 1) enriches our mind through reading, conversations, laughter and learning 2) what healthy choices have we made for our bodies like good healthy eating choices and exercise and 3) have we prayed and enlightened our souls, have we connected to others and the Lord our God in a meaningful way.
We try and live a healthy lifestyle grounded in gratitude and love. We eat fresh fruits and vegetables and good prime meats for protein. Eggs are a stable and healthy fats. Being Italian we, both enjoy a pasta dish at least once a week. Exercise is important to us whether at the gym or outside activities, we do our best to get our goal of 10,000 steps daily. Living minutes from the ocean allows us such great beach walks and getaways. Sunshine is healthy too! The air by the ocean just feels more alive and for us it never gets old.
Fun stuff like spending time with friends and loved ones as well as enjoying concerts, restaurants and the theater outings make us happy. We both love music and nothing better than live music from a beloved artist. Traveling is fun and we prefer a healthy long road trip to planes, do love a good train ride too.
Seeking out beauty in all its forms adds to our love of life and our staying alive mantra!
Not long ago an acquaintance who is still working full time asked us, “what do you do all day?” In unison we responded with, “whatever we want to do!’ We love our life and my husband Brian often remarks, “we earned it!” Both of us have worked hard in our careers and together we raised three children and five precious pups! We have lived a full life and this phase means so much to us. We choose peace, love and happiness and we choose it each and every single day!
So here is to “staying alive” as long as possible and hopefully until we take our last breath … and doing it our way …
Do you think we’re shaped more by our experiences or by who we are?
By Bernadette A. Sahm
Such a great question! Are we shaped by our genetic makeup and who we are born into? Or are we shaped by the experiences we have in our lives?
I’m willing to bet it’s both, part of our personality comes from our family ties and our roots, and part of our personality is formed by who and what we experience in our lifetime.
We are a composite of all that we learn and who we learn from.
Bernadette A. Sahm 