Fork in the road

     For the past couple years I have been at some sort of fork in the road of my existence.  It started as "Finding myself at 40 and 3/4", but obviously I haven't yet found myself and I'm now 43 and 3/4.  I do think, however, that I may have stumbled upon a signpost with an arrow pointing in a most unexpected direction. 

Gotta have a plan

I have a new tactic to stop my lack of getting anything done.   I'm making a flowchart of my day.   Using an Excel spreadsheet, I am making a daily planner sheet so I can try to follow it and perhaps stop being so overwhelmed by having so much I want to do and never knowing what to do because I have so much to do. By allotting myself TIME to do each thing, even if it is a small amount (like 1 hour a day to each venture), I am at least telling myself "OK, self, this is what you have to do right now... don't think, just do!"

Autumn is upon us

Well, it seems as though fall is falling.  While we may have a few more days or even weeks of summer-like weather, I do believe that the season will be changing.  Autumn is my second favorite season (spring being the first favorite), but it seems as though both of those seasons are terribly short in comparison to the hot, humid summer and the cold, snowy winter!   Ideally, I would like to live somewhere more moderate, but for the time being, that isn't really a possibility, so I'll try and enjoy the great weather while I can! 

That being said,  my La Bella Gift Baskets store has some amazing gifts in time for the changing seasons.   Candle gifts, gift baskets, fresh fruit and cookie bouquets are some of the items available.  Here are a few of them. 

All Star

What a neat idea for that sports fan in your family or group of friends!

Autumn Harvest

 Heading to a fall barbeque?  Why not take a gift for the hosts as a thank you!  This Autumn Harvest basket would be a nice idea. 

Monster Mash

Who doesn't love to eat cookies that have monster faces on them!!!

Hunter's Retreat

Send your favorite hunters off with a basket of snacks for the weekend in case their hunting expedition doesn't go as well as hoped!!

The great thing about La Bella Gift Baskets is that there are so many different items available for so many different occasions!   There are lots more to see at my La Bella Baskets online store.  You can shop and pay online and the gifts you purchase will be delivered directly to you or your recipient, whichever you choose. 

If you like what you see and would like to be added to my mailing list, click here to add your name and email. I will occasionally send out updates on sales and special reminders for holidays.  

Have a great Autumn!!!!

Welcome to Hopeful Valley!

Greetings and welcome to the new blog of Hopeful Valley.  What is Hopeful Valley, you might ask.  It is the name of my website,  www.Hopefulvalley.com.  I am an affiliate with La Bella Gift Baskets and call my business Hopeful Valley Gift baskets.  I have a shop on Etsy.com called Hopeful Valley Vintage.  Both stores can be accessed through my main website and I am also going to put links on here.

Hopeful Valley is ALSO the name of the fictional town where many of my stories take place.  What stories, you wonder?  Well, the ones that are in my head that I am eventually going to WRITE!   Many of the stories are romantic adventure types.   Currently I am a student through the Institute of Children's Literature and once I am done with those classes, I may see about taking some other writing classes through online means.  I have learned a lot through the classes so far.

Hopeful Valley is also an idea in my head that I am trying to work into a website.  I am always searching online for inspiration and guidance for various reasons, and I would love to make HopefulValley.com a place where people, probably women mainly, can come to as a one stop place to find links to amazing sites that can provide information they need!   It is a work in progress, mainly in my head at this time, with a bit here and there added to the actual site. 

Hopeful Valley's blog is about the growth of all of the Hopeful Valley entities listed above, as well as things I have learned and am experiencing!  I'll try to be consistent in my entries. In the past I have been known to procrastinate because I get side tracked, and months could go by before I make an entry. I am determined to do better here!