Wow! Another Holiday Season is upon us--and I am continually amazed by the blessings in my life! I honestly could not have asked for a better life -so thank you God! Your blessings of children and happiness that they bring is abundant! I am forever grateful~ The magic of Christmas is overwhelming--I am just trying to enjoy every second of it and recognize my gratitude for everything that is in my life--So Blessed~ Thank You!
† ★ Merry Chris†mas ★ ¸.•*¨)¸.•*¨) (¸.•´(¸.• (¸.•´¸¸.•¨¯`•.¸¸.♥★
Monday, December 26, 2011
Sunday, December 11, 2011
Day 19: Decorating
Decorating--The tree, the home, and all the in betweens......if you are like me, then you need ideas. I was just discussing this with my friends at a hair salon......the fact that we all love those home design/decorating shows because they give us great ideas.......and then I found this website that I MUST share! www.houzz.com (well there's also that other plethora of ideas on the other popular website www.pinterest.com but if you really want home interior ideas.......houzz is the buzz :) Everything you would get in one of those expensive decorating magazines but much, much more! My daughter found ideas for her bedroom--(uh, oh, maybe I should re-think this post :) haha-
Friday, December 9, 2011
Day 18: Goodness
We have been doing a community service learning project to raise $$ to purchase gifts for the Angel Tree children and I have been so humbled by the goodness that I see in the children I am blessed to be surrounded by. There is still goodness in the world-and many of them are children! We had reached our goal today, well slightly surpassed it actually and then a last minute donation came in (from a dear friend whose child is in my class) and it literally brought me to tears! This will enable us to purchase gifts for 2 more children on the Angel Tree......and while I was sitting in awe of the generous hearts and souls in my daily walk.......I was just overcome with emotion. It brought me to tears. Here these children are......many of whom could very well be ON that Angel Tree themselves......yet, there they were......so excited about the opportunity to give......and I am humbled and warmed by their genuine goodness. I see goodness in EVERY single one of my children-those I teach and those I gave birth to :) so there is goodness in the world.......and many are children! So if you'd like to restore your faith in humanity.......spend some time with children. They never cease to amaze me! I am so blessed to walk this life doing something that I passionately LOVE and hope that I am impacting their lives as much as they are impacting mine! :)
Monday, November 28, 2011
Day 17: Leftovers :)
One of the best things about Thanksgiving is..........yes, you guessed it--LeFtOvErS:) Just when you think you can't eat another bite......and you begin to store each and every item in those various sized storage containers once reserved for the pricey brand name of Tupperware......yet now those containers might say anything from "I can't believe it's not butter" to.....oh, say......cottage cheese???? And it is at precisely that point in time when you realize that you are going to be eating a combination of everything on your plate ....over the course of the next few days....in some form or fashion (turkey soup anyone?)
We should praise God in all of it--because if we have leftovers........that pretty well declares .......that "our cup runneth over".........and we can be extra thankful that we not only had a delicious, bountiful meal.........but that we will continue to reap its benefits........for days to come.......and for that my dear blog readers.........we can be.....ThankFULL :>
Saturday, November 12, 2011
Day 16: Number Crunching
So everybody gets those chain letter emails right?? All about how IF you blah blah blah......then all these wonderful things will happen to you......blah blah blah. Well, I'm not a fan and so I usually delete them at best or skim over them at worst. In the rare event that I actually discover that I LIKE what I read......I will sometimes choose to send them on but I NEVER include the forward request. I always delete that and just choose to share a good message instead. Spreading goodness is important to me. Threatening ill if people don't-not so much. Soooooo......anyway, I love numbers-Math-go ahead call me a geek but I love when there are patterns and we can plug in formulas and crunch out cool results.
You're thinking.....where is she going with this?? How do these two topic relate? Well I''m about to explain.
In the year 2011-there is a lot of cool dates centered around the digits 11. Chinese Numerology says this brings good luck (in my best Chinese accent "you have good for-chune") :) Well, I received an email FW that had a cool number pattern. Try it-
Worthy of sharing---still not worthy of threatening bad luck if you don't! #SpreadingFun
You're thinking.....where is she going with this?? How do these two topic relate? Well I''m about to explain.
In the year 2011-there is a lot of cool dates centered around the digits 11. Chinese Numerology says this brings good luck (in my best Chinese accent "you have good for-chune") :) Well, I received an email FW that had a cool number pattern. Try it-
- take the last 2 digits of the year you were born
- add the age that you are this year
- It will =111 (or if you are very young.....and born later than 2000.....it will =11)
Worthy of sharing---still not worthy of threatening bad luck if you don't! #SpreadingFun
Day 15: Random Acts of Kindness
Tis the Season-- Lately everyone on facebook has been posting what they're thankful for.....and while I love that idea ......I also love the idea of paying it forward and doing random acts of kindness. So as I was driving the other day......listening to Christmas music (yes, it's playing already and I <3 it!) it occurred to me.....that the spirit of the season is truly about giving. Not just the gift giving type....but the other type of giving. Giving kindness. So, I challenged my fb friends to join me in sharing our random acts of kindness during this beloved holiday season! What have you done for others lately??
I paid for the person's order who was behind me in the drive thru's at Starbucks! It felt great! I can't begin to tell you how good it made me feel--not just at the time but ALL DAY I was in the best mood. I really think that's the magical twist in doing random acts of kindness......how good it will make YOU feel! Who's with me?
I paid for the person's order who was behind me in the drive thru's at Starbucks! It felt great! I can't begin to tell you how good it made me feel--not just at the time but ALL DAY I was in the best mood. I really think that's the magical twist in doing random acts of kindness......how good it will make YOU feel! Who's with me?
Day 14: ♬ ♫ ♪ The Sound of More Music ♬ ♫ ♪
Well the day finally arrived......the day we had been counting down to and waiting for since Easter! The Taylor Swift Concert with my girls! Of course we had to make it a GNO and enjoyed some good food, a little shopping and then--Miss T-Swizzle!
She had a cold that night so her voice was a little under the weather but she said she did not want to cancel and well.....the 16,000 fans kind of helped her out with the lyrics as we all sang along. I really love her songwriting and a couple of my motherly favorites are Never Grow Up and The Best Day. Those 2 songs in particular are special to me because they remind me of my journey in motherhood with my children. They reflect back on all those childhood days when things are going by so fast but you have these wonderfully-long accounts and memories of some of the most ordinary events......getting ready for school.....tub baths with the lotion song....Saturday morning pancakes and staying in pajamas til 10......playing dolls, cars, and building forts. All the great stuff that makes life so amazing and just the pure joy that children are! I have posted before about Taylor Swift music......but she really did put on a great show. So refreshing to hear music and nothing had to be bleeped* or omitted. Then there were the fans-wow! We joked about never seeing so many cowboy boots in one room. And there were so many little girls....toddlers even. Fun times. An arena filled with mostly mommies and daughters sharing a night of good music and fun.
Day 13: ♬ ♫ ♪ The Sound of Music ♬ ♫ ♪
beginning but she's a fast learner and her progress has been amazing to see (and hear:). We so enjoy the sound of her playing around the house. So peaceful-so beautiful-
Day 12: Halloween again--this means I've been blogging a whole year!
So I realize the gratitude project is taking a little longer than one might have imagined!! It's been a year now since I started blogging. Wow-time flies! It's not that I don't have an abundance of blessings or things I could post about daily.......it's that I don't have enough time to post as often as I'd like on all the wonderful blessings for which I am thankful!
As I wrote when I first began this journey........it may take a while but it'll be worth it! I'm just a little busy as we all are....... (Really?--hey I said I do have a life outside of blogging ya' know) ........(*wink*) A life that involves facebook and twitter #sarcasm (enough said!) Oh and I do have 3 precious kids.....AND a husband, cat and dog and....yes, a job.
But I'm back on for an update and hopefully a couple more gratitude acknowledgements!!
This fall has been gorgeous!! The colors, the weather, you name it and it's pretty much been an all around perfect fall. When the seasons give us so much to enjoy--that's a blessing in itself--to have that beautiful canvas as a backdrop for all the enjoyment going on in our lives. Fall is busy with back to school and all those day-to-day activities with the kids and of course it means FOOTBALL! (that was for hubby :)
But fall means something else too......because our girls received tickets to go see Taylor Swift in their Easter baskets (wow that seems so long ago......talk about patience!) and the concert is this month so we are all getting super psyched for a GNO!!! We can actually have a countdown on the whiteboard that hangs on the side of our frig.......because we are within single digit days now.......
I'll try and post again soon with a concert pic--we're T-party hopefuls!!
As I wrote when I first began this journey........it may take a while but it'll be worth it! I'm just a little busy as we all are....... (Really?--hey I said I do have a life outside of blogging ya' know) ........(*wink*) A life that involves facebook and twitter #sarcasm (enough said!) Oh and I do have 3 precious kids.....AND a husband, cat and dog and....yes, a job.
But I'm back on for an update and hopefully a couple more gratitude acknowledgements!!
This fall has been gorgeous!! The colors, the weather, you name it and it's pretty much been an all around perfect fall. When the seasons give us so much to enjoy--that's a blessing in itself--to have that beautiful canvas as a backdrop for all the enjoyment going on in our lives. Fall is busy with back to school and all those day-to-day activities with the kids and of course it means FOOTBALL! (that was for hubby :)
But fall means something else too......because our girls received tickets to go see Taylor Swift in their Easter baskets (wow that seems so long ago......talk about patience!) and the concert is this month so we are all getting super psyched for a GNO!!! We can actually have a countdown on the whiteboard that hangs on the side of our frig.......because we are within single digit days now.......
I'll try and post again soon with a concert pic--we're T-party hopefuls!!
Sunday, September 11, 2011
Day 11: 9/11 Remembering a day that United America!
I love America!! I love the stories of hope, courage and a nation united......what a beautiful memorial being created at Ground Zero! Watching the footage today....... I swell with pride and compassion. I am inspired to post.......from a different perspective a decade later. Rememberence of a day that United US.
So much of the tragedy of that day included horrific facts, details and such sadness. While I would never intend to take anything away from those who lost ........I was inspired by God's presence in it all. If we only choose to acknowledge that He was in control. He allowed that tragedy......and those of us who believe, know that He can (and in many ways--already has) turned the evil we witnessed on that day.......for a greater good. Evil does not win. Ever.
Several writings have been published with stories from that day......detailed accounts from those who were there......cell phone conversations taking place simultaneously while the world watched......and I am amazed by the inspiring statistics from the tragedy- a testament that God's blessings can be found........the four hijacked planes which could have held 1000 ppl-only held 266, the courage and calm recorded in the voices of those on the planes who FOUGHT like soldiers selflessly to save others, the towers which typically held 50,000 workers yet on that day had less than 20,000, the heighth at which the towers were struck- sparing many as opposed to possibly striking lower in the buildings, the length of time the towers held up before collapsing-making evacuation possible for 70% of the ppl, the way in which the towers collapsed straight down rather than toppling over-sparing countless other lives......and the countless other testaments from individuals who say a sick child, a coffee spill, flat tire, or some otherwise menial annoyance lead them to be absent from the disaster. Yes-it was a tragedy......but only God knows how much worse it could have been. And yet, we were not defeated. We bound together--UNITED WE STAND--and we have stood up-as a nation, a world, against evil. We have come together stronger, and through adversity-many have strengthened their faith or found it. I can still remember with tears strolling down, watching as members of Congress gathered together on the front lawn of the Capitol and sang "God Bless America".
September 11--I remember.......and I thank God for our heroes of that day......and the heroes who continue to serve and protect us. One Nation-Under GOD!
Several writings have been published with stories from that day......detailed accounts from those who were there......cell phone conversations taking place simultaneously while the world watched......and I am amazed by the inspiring statistics from the tragedy- a testament that God's blessings can be found........the four hijacked planes which could have held 1000 ppl-only held 266, the courage and calm recorded in the voices of those on the planes who FOUGHT like soldiers selflessly to save others, the towers which typically held 50,000 workers yet on that day had less than 20,000, the heighth at which the towers were struck- sparing many as opposed to possibly striking lower in the buildings, the length of time the towers held up before collapsing-making evacuation possible for 70% of the ppl, the way in which the towers collapsed straight down rather than toppling over-sparing countless other lives......and the countless other testaments from individuals who say a sick child, a coffee spill, flat tire, or some otherwise menial annoyance lead them to be absent from the disaster. Yes-it was a tragedy......but only God knows how much worse it could have been. And yet, we were not defeated. We bound together--UNITED WE STAND--and we have stood up-as a nation, a world, against evil. We have come together stronger, and through adversity-many have strengthened their faith or found it. I can still remember with tears strolling down, watching as members of Congress gathered together on the front lawn of the Capitol and sang "God Bless America".
September 11--I remember.......and I thank God for our heroes of that day......and the heroes who continue to serve and protect us. One Nation-Under GOD!
Sunday, January 2, 2011
Day 10: Precious~
There is nothing better than being a mom........or parenthood for that matter........I know it is God's greatest gift......love and the gift of children.....and mothering, while it is a huge responsibility......it is also an enormous blessing! Our children grow up too fast......as much as that is a cliche......it is the truth. And I have enjoyed every minute of my precious time with my precious, precious children. This post is about that......how quickly children grow.
My daughters are fans of Taylor Swift......and let me just say that I am not usually big musical fans of the fad-typical-Disney-turned drughead coming of age STARS that seem to be everywhere we turn these days.......but I must admit, that Taylor Swift certainly seems to be different. My girls tell me that she WRITES her own music and from what I have listened to, she writes very well. I have also only seen her perform on tv or videos and she seems to have a fresh, silly, don't- take -me -too -seriously attitude. Which I like. So last night, my girls came to me with this song of Taylor Swift's that I MUST hear--and I was pleasantly shocked! The song is "Never Grow Up" and I was in tears by the end of it........but what surprised me the most was how she (Taylor Swift) was able to write the song and completely GET the perspective of loving your daughter from a mother's view. Wanting to protect them, hold onto them and cherish all those little moments......such as tucking them in bed.....and holding their small hands. Taylor Swift wrote about it beautifully. And so after we enjoyed the song, and dried our eyes :) I told my girls that as hard as it is to let your children Go and GROW.....it is an absolute JOY to watch them grow up......and that they would ENJOY every stage of their lives. I told them how much I have enjoyed mothering them and watching them grow......and then my youngest said "mommy, wanna do my Science fun kits now?" Absolutely!! (She only asked Santa for 2 things by the way......BOOKS and Science fun kits--gotta love her simplicity!!) --so spa bound we were (at home spa that is......with real oatmeal and honey face masks to boot!)
And that is when I realized that Taylor Swift must have a good relationship with her own mother to be able to write so authentically about growing up from a mother's perspective.......because she's still so young.....but then again.......maybe that's just part of her GIFT and talent......in either case, I'm certainly glad she's sharing her GIFT and I thoroughly enjoyed her song. Give it a listen sometime--
My daughters are fans of Taylor Swift......and let me just say that I am not usually big musical fans of the fad-typical-Disney-turned drughead coming of age STARS that seem to be everywhere we turn these days.......but I must admit, that Taylor Swift certainly seems to be different. My girls tell me that she WRITES her own music and from what I have listened to, she writes very well. I have also only seen her perform on tv or videos and she seems to have a fresh, silly, don't- take -me -too -seriously attitude. Which I like. So last night, my girls came to me with this song of Taylor Swift's that I MUST hear--and I was pleasantly shocked! The song is "Never Grow Up" and I was in tears by the end of it........but what surprised me the most was how she (Taylor Swift) was able to write the song and completely GET the perspective of loving your daughter from a mother's view. Wanting to protect them, hold onto them and cherish all those little moments......such as tucking them in bed.....and holding their small hands. Taylor Swift wrote about it beautifully. And so after we enjoyed the song, and dried our eyes :) I told my girls that as hard as it is to let your children Go and GROW.....it is an absolute JOY to watch them grow up......and that they would ENJOY every stage of their lives. I told them how much I have enjoyed mothering them and watching them grow......and then my youngest said "mommy, wanna do my Science fun kits now?" Absolutely!! (She only asked Santa for 2 things by the way......BOOKS and Science fun kits--gotta love her simplicity!!) --so spa bound we were (at home spa that is......with real oatmeal and honey face masks to boot!)
And that is when I realized that Taylor Swift must have a good relationship with her own mother to be able to write so authentically about growing up from a mother's perspective.......because she's still so young.....but then again.......maybe that's just part of her GIFT and talent......in either case, I'm certainly glad she's sharing her GIFT and I thoroughly enjoyed her song. Give it a listen sometime--
Day 10: The Joys of Motherhood
Saturday, January 1, 2011
Blessings Abound!!
Happy 2011 to ur family. May the days ahead be Merry and Bright!!!! And May U open ur heart to Christ......if u haven't already......and if u have......may u strive for a greater closeness in deepening that relationship with Him!!
DAY 9: FamilyTime
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