Oh, hello there neighbor. Thanks for dropping by. It occurred to me last night, after one of my neighbors was locked out of their home, that I don't know my neighbors very well. I say "hello." They say "hello" and that's where it ends. It's a shame. I makes me think, there is a certain generosity and kindness with knowing neighbors and it has been lost.

Today, let's create acts of kindness. Here is a list of 10 ideas to help our neighbors and share our generosity with the world today. Consider doing all 10 today or picking a few. Perhaps none of these are feasible for you. Go ahead do your own act of kindness. Whatever you choose make it generous and full of meaning.

Drop me a message and let me know how it felt to do a random act of kindness. I'm going to get back to baking muffins and meeting neighbors. Until tomorrow folks!

Hey you. As summer end starts to get closer, something is just around the corner for all the parents out there. Well, and maybe some adults too. It's back to school time. Yes, it's that time of year for backpacks, sharping pencils and best of all, brown bag lunches. As a kid, I always had the weirdest lunches. They often consisted of: 1 hard boiled egg, a can of V-8 juice, a pack of saltines, a thermos of warm milk and a beef sandwich. No one ever would trade lunch with me, no one.

Flash forward years later and here I am thinking about the proverbial school lunch. How can I make a lunch that will be down right irresistible, delicious and healthy? More importantly, I need to make something completely envious to all small and big kids alike. Well, since I live in the land of granola, let's start today with a project to whip up some darn good homemade granola bars. 

School Daze Granola Bars

• 1 cup dates (pitted and packed)
• 1/8 cup maple syrup
• 1/3 cup sun butter or nut butter
• 1 3/4 cup old fashioned rolled oats (toasted)
• 1/2 cup chocolate chips
• 1/2 cup coconut chips
• 1/4 cup sunflower seeds

Step 1: Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Place oats on a cookie sheet. Once the oven is at 350 degrees, place the oats in the oven and bake for 12-15 min.

Step 2: Add the dates to a food processor and pulse for 2 minutes. Add the maple syrup and pulse for 1 more minute.

Step 3: In a bowl, add the blended dates & maple syrup, oats, sun butter, coconut chips and 1/4 cup chocolate chips. Mix together until combined. In a  8" x 8" baking pan lined with parchment, smooth and spread the batter in the bottom of the pan with a spatula so the dough is firmly packed. Sprinkle the sunflower seeds and the remaining chocolate chips on top of the dough. Press the sunflower seeds and chocolate chips into the dough with the spatula. 

Step 4 : Freeze the granola bars for 15-20 minutes. Remove the them from the pan and slice into 10 bars. Keep in an airtight container in the freezer and enjoy!

Well, I hopefully these granola bars create a school lunch wow. Drop me a note and let me know what you remember about your school lunch. Until tomorrow kids! 

Oh hi. Oh dear, it's Monday again. Why can't we just take Monday out of the week? Today might be a great day to take a nap and elude Monday. For the record, I hate naps. A rest in the middle of the day? First, I barely find time to get a 5 hours of sleep at night. A nap sounds more luxurious than buying a 24ct gold toilet brush. Second, who wants to wake up from a nap and be greeted by Bob from accounting asking for the TPS report? Or a toddler covering you in stickers? 

However, the CDC states that 1 in 3 adults don't get enough sleep. Lack of sleep contributes to accidents, causes cognitive dysfunction and temporary memory loss. In fact, there is a whole list of problems that lack of sleep causes. The list can be viewed on "Healthline: The Effects Of Sleep Deprivation On The Body."

With all that research, it has become apparent that it's important to create wellbeing today. Find a comfortable place to catch a few ZZZs. Before closing your eyes, take note of how you are feeling. Set a timer and take a deep breath. Now, close your eyes, breath and rest. After the 5 minutes note how you feel after the nap.

Well, I'm going to go begrudgingly take a 5 min nap, make a few notes and see you Tuesday sleepy heads!