About Me

Hello and welcome to Splendor in the Sticks, a site devoted to “women of a certain age” who yearn to find balance in their overly-busy lives. You can use the buttons above the coffee cup to navigate around the site, but let me give you the nickel tour here.

There was a time when we knew how to play and take care of ourselves, but as we grew up, we took on more and more responsibilities in eleventy-hundred areas and we sort of . . . forgot. It’s high time we remembered what amazing, incredible, and downright magnificent creatures we are! You see, I truly believe that we are meant to “scatter joy” (thanks, Emerson!) throughout our lives. I also subscribe to the idea that we will get more work done, of a higher quality, and with less fuss, if we go about our days feeling joy. We are incredible, magnificent creatures and we have too much work to do in the world to forget that.

The idea for Splendor in the Sticks had been brewing for quite a while. For ten years (an astronomically long time in internet years!), I kept a blog called Mockingbird’s Nest. Over the years, it developed a lifestyle focus, especially as I got older and began to grapple with the challenges that come with transitioning from the final blush of youth to middle age. I really enjoyed keeping the Nest, but it was time to move beyond the confines of that platform. The result is Splendor, which is designed to take the best of what I’ve learned and put it out there for others to use and explore.

If you’re still undecided about committing to taking care of yourself so you can take care of others, I suggest you click here – it’s a post from the “Diva Dispatch” blog section and has helped other just-a-touch-hesitant Divas-in-Training realize that yes, you are worth self-care! Once you’ve made that decision, you’re ready to start exploring the rest of Splendor! 

Be sure to explore the “Resources” tab – that’s your one stop Diva Media Center where you’ll find (among other things) suggestions of books and movies that celebrate strong women taking care of themselves, along with a “Home Luxuries” section designed to help you transform your home into a soothing nest of comfort, calm, and respite – at least for a few minutes every day.

The Resources tab is also home to a series of weekly  “Diva Drills” which are designed to teach you the fundamentals of how to put yourself on your “to do” list by providing you with four weeks of directed self-care lessons – at absolutely no cost to you! Think of them as “Happiness Homework.” These simple exercises are designed to help women who, like me, found themselves at their wits end, wondering why we felt so gray-and-drudgy all the time.

As part of this journey through my life’s “second act,” I discovered I really enjoyed watercolor painting – you can buy those over on the “River of Cream” tab, but don’t worry – you can visit without any obligation to buy anything!

So please – enter! Feel free to leave comments – Splendor loves hearing from Divas-in-Training!  Follow us – there’s a link on the home page.  Splendor also has a presence on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram – just click on the buttons at the bottom of the page to be added to those platforms!

Come on in – and brace yourself for success!