Than this face!!
June 30, 2010
June 29, 2010
If someone told me…
That in February my father-in-law would get diagnosed with a brain tumor and that in June we’d still be dealing with all that that means, I would have called you a liar. But I’d have been wrong. And probably out of line. Luckily I am only currently calling myself a liar. But oh how I wish I had been neither a liar nor wrong
I haven’t updated about Mike on here since this last time. And I couldn’t figure out why…but then I realized…my blog is my sanctuary. It’s my place where I put the good in my life. Lately we’ve had enough tough stuff that I don’t want to spread my blog pages full of it. I open this page when I need a lift to see pictures of our little boy discovering the world. That being said, I’ve also said before it’s not fair to gloss over the realities with pretty pictures. This kind of stuff is reality. And I feel there must be a fine balance between totally avoiding the subject and being real about the stuff that sometimes consumes our life. But…rather than get overly personal about what is happening…details are not necessary…I will simply ask for prayer this time. Mike has suffered many frustrating setbacks. So he could use a lifting of spirits…heck we all could. Cancer, and everything that has happened in its wake since, has been life changing for all of us in this family. Even me. Who mostly just tries to help where I can, and otherwise stay out of the way. So anyway…keeping it simple…prayer is best. It is just what we need. For everyone touched by this and what’s happening here. For strength. For clarity. For forgiveness. For patience. For everything.
I haven’t updated about Mike on here since this last time. And I couldn’t figure out why…but then I realized…my blog is my sanctuary. It’s my place where I put the good in my life. Lately we’ve had enough tough stuff that I don’t want to spread my blog pages full of it. I open this page when I need a lift to see pictures of our little boy discovering the world. That being said, I’ve also said before it’s not fair to gloss over the realities with pretty pictures. This kind of stuff is reality. And I feel there must be a fine balance between totally avoiding the subject and being real about the stuff that sometimes consumes our life. But…rather than get overly personal about what is happening…details are not necessary…I will simply ask for prayer this time. Mike has suffered many frustrating setbacks. So he could use a lifting of spirits…heck we all could. Cancer, and everything that has happened in its wake since, has been life changing for all of us in this family. Even me. Who mostly just tries to help where I can, and otherwise stay out of the way. So anyway…keeping it simple…prayer is best. It is just what we need. For everyone touched by this and what’s happening here. For strength. For clarity. For forgiveness. For patience. For everything.
June 28, 2010
Congratulations Devon and Matt!!
We recently celebrated my cousin Devon’s wedding and welcomed Matt to the family! He told us at the reception it was official. He was family now. And we were both stuck with each other! He also added a “what the %#$^ did I do?” They enjoyed a honeymoon in the tropics and I can’t help but be little envious! I also couldn’t be happier for them!!
The wedding and reception were beautiful which I had no doubt they would be! Devon looked amazingly beautiful, and I adored every touch they put into the whole event! The guys wore aqua Chuck Taylor’s…LOVE IT! I realized now that I am getting older b/c on the following Monday my body was still sore from dancing and staying out way past my bedtime. But a fun time was had by all! I danced with my Pap, my Uncle Doug and my hubby. Watched my brother swing my Mom and Grandma around the dance floor and listened to my Uncle Doug slam on the drums…he’s awesome! It does the soul good to be with your family and really be reminded what life is really all about!
**A disclaimer about the photos...I did not like a single shot I got of Devon and Matt that day. All of them came out blurry! So my best one is dark and not good...but it's here anyway!
The wedding and reception were beautiful which I had no doubt they would be! Devon looked amazingly beautiful, and I adored every touch they put into the whole event! The guys wore aqua Chuck Taylor’s…LOVE IT! I realized now that I am getting older b/c on the following Monday my body was still sore from dancing and staying out way past my bedtime. But a fun time was had by all! I danced with my Pap, my Uncle Doug and my hubby. Watched my brother swing my Mom and Grandma around the dance floor and listened to my Uncle Doug slam on the drums…he’s awesome! It does the soul good to be with your family and really be reminded what life is really all about!
**A disclaimer about the photos...I did not like a single shot I got of Devon and Matt that day. All of them came out blurry! So my best one is dark and not good...but it's here anyway!
June 27, 2010
Because that’s the way we roll…
It’s a Wednesday night. Me and Steff. Our first girls night just us since…well if you ask us…foreva! Way overdue. We make our way to Edwardsville. After a stop at Michaels for me and Best Buy for her, we head on over to Buffalo Wild Wings for dinner. We pretty much had the place to ourselves. Nice! One giant Blue Moon (with orange of course), one bloody Mary, some southwest dippers and two delicious salads later we were leaving for Target. Once to Target we began the search for a list of items I needed for a co-worker’s shower. We shared a cart, first mistake. Wait…I should mention our first mistake was going into the depths of the store with NO cart and NO registry list to begin with. Once we got that figured out…we spent the next 2 hours rolling through Target’s every aisle. From clothes to PJ’s to shoes to gardening. At one point we had cart full of kitchen gadgets, one of which was a seriously dangerous meat tenderizer, some sandals, a bunch of home goods and table cloths, cups and plates for a shower. I will NEVER forget the moment that came next. We had just finished loading a huge self-standing, easel mirror into the cart and returned the tenderizer to it’s proper home on the kitchen gadgets shelf (Why? Because I had a theme darnit…and I could get nothing to come together…so big gift, more money spent…less themey…I was disappointed…but Target registries suck…ok off my soapbox!). Anyway…the unforgettable moment. Admist the chaos…Steff sat down in the middle of house-wares to try on the sandals (which by the way came from the front of the store and not the shoe aisle...totally weird location for shoes anyway!) and looked at me re-cramming the mirror around trying to get it to fit into the cart so we could see to steer. She laughed "We’re a hot mess Jess!" As I looked at us and our cart and the lady skirting by us (who I didn't even know existed until Steff mentioned it a few days later), I couldn’t help but agree. We had crap everywhere. We laughed for about 30 seconds at our mess and craziness. Then without missing a beat…she says…"So what do you think of these?" Flashing me her newly sandaled food. "With jeans I think they're good. You won't see this weird strap b/c that looks horrible." She stood up to model, sat back down to change her shoes back and said "What’s next on the list?" And off we went to wrap up our shopping.
Maybe it’s because we attempted to multi-task after a drink or two? Maybe it’s because we didn't remember to grab separate carts? Maybe it’s because though we claim to be very organized women, we truthfully are not? But the why really doesn’t matter to me…because I honestly think, it’s just because that’s the way we roll. Cart full of stuff, chatting like we’re the only two people in the store about every topic under the sun, reading from a registry of gift items and cursing the Target gift registry system. It’s the only way Steff and I do anything! Full on, always together, and we have more fun than anyone should have. Love you girl.
June 24, 2010
Thankful Thursdays!
So I missed blogging one of these last week…but I’ve kept track…so here is my two week collection of Thankfuls!
A Friday night out with Owen and Jer – no makeup, no dress clothes, just the 3 of us doing our own thing
Devon and Matt’s beautiful wedding on Saturday
Being reminded of my wedding day…the words you say…the excitement and hopefulness you feel
Seeing my Uncle play the drums – so fun!
Spending time with my brother and Katie
Staying up till WAY past my bedtime
Lunch with the Linley clan on Sunday at Taco Bell
The CDI BBQ
Getting lost in the wrong neighborhood on the way to the BBQ – we saw every house that wasn’t the right one before Jer called to get directions!
Laughing at my husband because he forgot the directions
For watching Owen get chased by his orange ball
For patience
For kind words
For prayer
April and her calm and steady reminders that God answers all prayers in some way
For a Wednesday night shopping with Steff and Owen
For a best friend who literally just knows what I’m thinking/saying/feeling without even putting it into complete sentences
That my son was a complete angel the entire time we tooled around Bath and Body Works – go Owen!
For anticipating a weekend with my hubby and a date night! Yay!
For a whole summer of promise ahead of us
A Friday night date night with my hubby – complete with dinner a Peel (delicious) and Borders coffee stop (a favorite of ours)
Saturday spent relaxing. We needed a family recharge of batteries and it was just what we needed
Celebrating Jer’s second father’s day
Making Father’s Day Cards with Owen (Pictures to come)
Father’s Day with family
For feeling the itch to do something…I don’t know what it is…a new blog, putting my hand to writing a book, changing jobs, taking a photography class, something is itching me to make a change or do something new…I’m just not sure what it is yet …but I intend to do some investigating and figure it out. In the meantime…I’m going to enjoy the ride!
Taking Owen to Ketchum's for ice cream for the first time.
A surprise dinner with my bestie because she knew I needed a little encouragement and company
Going to bed at 9:30 last night...so nice!
A Friday night out with Owen and Jer – no makeup, no dress clothes, just the 3 of us doing our own thing
Devon and Matt’s beautiful wedding on Saturday
Being reminded of my wedding day…the words you say…the excitement and hopefulness you feel
Seeing my Uncle play the drums – so fun!
Spending time with my brother and Katie
Staying up till WAY past my bedtime
Lunch with the Linley clan on Sunday at Taco Bell
The CDI BBQ
Getting lost in the wrong neighborhood on the way to the BBQ – we saw every house that wasn’t the right one before Jer called to get directions!
Laughing at my husband because he forgot the directions
For watching Owen get chased by his orange ball
For patience
For kind words
For prayer
April and her calm and steady reminders that God answers all prayers in some way
For a Wednesday night shopping with Steff and Owen
For a best friend who literally just knows what I’m thinking/saying/feeling without even putting it into complete sentences
That my son was a complete angel the entire time we tooled around Bath and Body Works – go Owen!
For anticipating a weekend with my hubby and a date night! Yay!
For a whole summer of promise ahead of us
A Friday night date night with my hubby – complete with dinner a Peel (delicious) and Borders coffee stop (a favorite of ours)
Saturday spent relaxing. We needed a family recharge of batteries and it was just what we needed
Celebrating Jer’s second father’s day
Making Father’s Day Cards with Owen (Pictures to come)
Father’s Day with family
For feeling the itch to do something…I don’t know what it is…a new blog, putting my hand to writing a book, changing jobs, taking a photography class, something is itching me to make a change or do something new…I’m just not sure what it is yet …but I intend to do some investigating and figure it out. In the meantime…I’m going to enjoy the ride!
Taking Owen to Ketchum's for ice cream for the first time.
A surprise dinner with my bestie because she knew I needed a little encouragement and company
Going to bed at 9:30 last night...so nice!
Time for a Switch
I know I made some changes sometime last week to my layout, so this might be slightly delayed, BUT Blogger came out with this nifty new template designer. I have been itching to change my blog background. I debated heavily before making the change because the polka dots were just…I don’t know…always what I liked and I'd stuck with them from the beginning. But I'm starting to cultivate my own style and I am falling in love with the styling of the blogs that are more set up like a Website and less cluttered with other things. I’m actually debating venturing into my own URL and trying my hand at something new altogether. However, in the meantime, I’m scratching that itch by playing with my blog layout, my title fonts and everything else. I’d like to add a few more pictures and some more info to my profile…but all in good time. Anyway, if you see changes to stuff around this blog…don’t be alarmed. I’m just getting happy with a new blog tool and making some changes!
June 12, 2010
And Owen discovers the awesomeness of the garden hose…
There is nothing quite like watching your child discover something new. This moment was one I know I’ll always cherish. It was simple and unplanned and to be quite honest a total blast!
June 11, 2010
Homemade Pasta Salad
I have been reading a lot of blogs lately where they share their recipe ideas and I am loving trying them. So I thought why not share some meals from my kitchen here as well!
I've been busting out some old summer recipes as of late...and I wanted to share one I discovered last summer. I'm pretty sure I made it some changes to it...but I was going for easier ways to implement this into a nightly meal or a lunchtime snack that's easy to take to work. Here are my ingredients:
One bag frozen Cheese tortellini
Half a red onion diced up
Two cups of frozen peas
A handful of cherry tomatoes, cut in half
Bottle of Kraft Zesty Italian Dressing
Bring tortellini and peas to a boil in a pot of water - I follow package directions for the tortellini and just toss the peas in together (you can also just throw the peas in frozen and they will stay crisp)
While it's boiling, dice up your red onion and halve your tomatoes, set aside
Strain noodles and peas
Rinse with cold water
Place in bowl (I use a tupperware style bowl with a lid for ease of storage later)
Mix noodles and peas with onion and tomato
Coat to taste with Zesty Italian Dressing
Let set in fridge until chilled before serving...but remember to taste test as you cook...otherwise what's the fun in that???
Enjoy! What are some of your favorite summer recipes? I'd love to hear them!
I've been busting out some old summer recipes as of late...and I wanted to share one I discovered last summer. I'm pretty sure I made it some changes to it...but I was going for easier ways to implement this into a nightly meal or a lunchtime snack that's easy to take to work. Here are my ingredients:
One bag frozen Cheese tortellini
Half a red onion diced up
Two cups of frozen peas
A handful of cherry tomatoes, cut in half
Bottle of Kraft Zesty Italian Dressing
Bring tortellini and peas to a boil in a pot of water - I follow package directions for the tortellini and just toss the peas in together (you can also just throw the peas in frozen and they will stay crisp)
While it's boiling, dice up your red onion and halve your tomatoes, set aside
Strain noodles and peas
Rinse with cold water
Place in bowl (I use a tupperware style bowl with a lid for ease of storage later)
Mix noodles and peas with onion and tomato
Coat to taste with Zesty Italian Dressing
Let set in fridge until chilled before serving...but remember to taste test as you cook...otherwise what's the fun in that???
Enjoy! What are some of your favorite summer recipes? I'd love to hear them!
June 10, 2010
Thankful Thursday
Taking Owen to the library
Signing Owen up for Play Pals...he starts June 23
That my wisdom teeth are done and over with.
Advil
Owen's little giggle
Watching so many movies over the weekend I was bored of it
Saint Louis Bread Company's French Onion Soup
Seeing our backyard project come together (lots of pictures in a different post coming soon)
Our hydrangeas out on the patio
Finding inspiration to write
Planting a garden
Having some solitude and time to breathe
Catching up laundry
The beautiful weather
Talking about summer plans and putting some things on the calendar
Fireflies
Summer time and all the promise the next few weeks holds
Signing Owen up for Play Pals...he starts June 23
That my wisdom teeth are done and over with.
Advil
Owen's little giggle
Watching so many movies over the weekend I was bored of it
Saint Louis Bread Company's French Onion Soup
Seeing our backyard project come together (lots of pictures in a different post coming soon)
Our hydrangeas out on the patio
Finding inspiration to write
Planting a garden
Having some solitude and time to breathe
Catching up laundry
The beautiful weather
Talking about summer plans and putting some things on the calendar
Fireflies
Summer time and all the promise the next few weeks holds
June 9, 2010
Things I've learned...since having my wisdom teeth removed
Warning...some of the details of this post may be considered gross. There might be mention of blood clots, stiches, vomitting and bad breath. But maybe...it will make you laugh too? Anyway...I just wanted to add that little disclaimer!!
You don't actual loose your wisdom...though I was warned by many hilarious people I know that all my smarts would be gone. I'd say in fact the very opposite thing happened. I gained some!
My teeth are strong and they were bigger than normal. I had to pack gauze for 5 hours instead of 2.
Packing gauze is gross and if it weren't for Mom's help...I'm pretty sure I would have bled to death.
You want the clot to stay on your gums...not be pulled out with the gauze. Lesson learned...luckily only once!
Your breath can in fact smell worse than your worst hung over, teeh haven't been brushed in 24 hours breath...and yes...even worse than after the flu. It's awful people. Awful.
I LOVE Advil.
I HATE Hydrocodone (a codine derivative I believe)...well I should say I hate what it does to me
Throwing up the pain medicine that's supposed to help your pain doesn't help. In fact, the violence of puking made my gums throb. Yuck.
It's possible to drive a car and get sick in it, w/o making a mess and w/o opening the driver door. Tricky.
Said car ride was NOT something I should have ventured on just yet. Stupidity.
Half a day of throwing up chicken broth...will in fact land you a pretty nice little prescription for anti-nauseous medicine.
I LOVE Advil.
My best friend truly loves me beyond measure because she came over after my whole day of throwing up...on a Friday night no less...crawled in bed next to me and watched movies with me while I iced my cheeks.
You can in fact find yourself jealous as you watch your toddler happily chewing on a boring old saltine cracker and cheese sandwich
My mother is a saint...and I hope that one day I am able to cultivate the same endless selflessness she expends taking care of me and my family.
My Dad got dry sockets when he had his wisdom teeth taken out...but "he has NO idea why...because he was an A+ patient." The above comment followed this conversation:
Dad: Can you feel your stiches back there?
Me: No that would require me to touch my tongue to my sockets. That's gross.
Dad: Oh...well I wouldn't leave my stiches alone.
Hmmm Dad. And you were an A+ patient huh?
No...you will not remember most of what happens to you following being put under by twilight (not the book series) however, you will swear you are with it and fully functioning in the moment. I posted to Facebook and didn't even realize I did it. Scary.
I now consider last Thursday a flash of events...many of which I don't remember. My husband said it best...you had your wisdom teeth out. Not worth remembering anyhow.
Oh and did I mention? I LOVE Advil!! It has been almost a week and I still can't skip a dose. Waiting for that to subside...any day now would be great!
The actual chewing of food is all part of the process of enjoying eating. I miss it.
I'm so glad this is finally over.
Oh and anyone know when dissolvable stiches finally dissolve?????????????
You don't actual loose your wisdom...though I was warned by many hilarious people I know that all my smarts would be gone. I'd say in fact the very opposite thing happened. I gained some!
My teeth are strong and they were bigger than normal. I had to pack gauze for 5 hours instead of 2.
Packing gauze is gross and if it weren't for Mom's help...I'm pretty sure I would have bled to death.
You want the clot to stay on your gums...not be pulled out with the gauze. Lesson learned...luckily only once!
Your breath can in fact smell worse than your worst hung over, teeh haven't been brushed in 24 hours breath...and yes...even worse than after the flu. It's awful people. Awful.
I LOVE Advil.
I HATE Hydrocodone (a codine derivative I believe)...well I should say I hate what it does to me
Throwing up the pain medicine that's supposed to help your pain doesn't help. In fact, the violence of puking made my gums throb. Yuck.
It's possible to drive a car and get sick in it, w/o making a mess and w/o opening the driver door. Tricky.
Said car ride was NOT something I should have ventured on just yet. Stupidity.
Half a day of throwing up chicken broth...will in fact land you a pretty nice little prescription for anti-nauseous medicine.
I LOVE Advil.
My best friend truly loves me beyond measure because she came over after my whole day of throwing up...on a Friday night no less...crawled in bed next to me and watched movies with me while I iced my cheeks.
You can in fact find yourself jealous as you watch your toddler happily chewing on a boring old saltine cracker and cheese sandwich
My mother is a saint...and I hope that one day I am able to cultivate the same endless selflessness she expends taking care of me and my family.
My Dad got dry sockets when he had his wisdom teeth taken out...but "he has NO idea why...because he was an A+ patient." The above comment followed this conversation:
Dad: Can you feel your stiches back there?
Me: No that would require me to touch my tongue to my sockets. That's gross.
Dad: Oh...well I wouldn't leave my stiches alone.
Hmmm Dad. And you were an A+ patient huh?
No...you will not remember most of what happens to you following being put under by twilight (not the book series) however, you will swear you are with it and fully functioning in the moment. I posted to Facebook and didn't even realize I did it. Scary.
I now consider last Thursday a flash of events...many of which I don't remember. My husband said it best...you had your wisdom teeth out. Not worth remembering anyhow.
Oh and did I mention? I LOVE Advil!! It has been almost a week and I still can't skip a dose. Waiting for that to subside...any day now would be great!
The actual chewing of food is all part of the process of enjoying eating. I miss it.
I'm so glad this is finally over.
Oh and anyone know when dissolvable stiches finally dissolve?????????????
June 8, 2010
Our Little Adventurer...
June 7, 2010
Blowing Raspberries and Give Momma kisses!!
There is something to be said for this thing called blowing raspberries. As of late, Owen feels the need to blow them during every car ride he goes on. It could be a ride home from Grandma’s (2 minutes) or a ride to Target (5 minutes) or even a ride over to the STL (45 minutes) he will stick out his tongue and shower himself with spit until his shirt is soaked!
Another game that he loves is laying his cheek on your lips and letting you blow raspberries on it. And he will sit there for minutes while you tickle his cheek with this! He literally lays his whole face on your mouth and lets you go to town. And he won’t move for minutes on end!
ALSO!
Our son is officially a kiss giver!! He still only does this when he feels like it…but it’s something he’s decided he likes to do. The only thing about his kisses is that he doesn’t know he needs to close his lips just yet! So you get upper lip and his tongue! It seriously leaves me in stitches and melts my heart!
Another game that he loves is laying his cheek on your lips and letting you blow raspberries on it. And he will sit there for minutes while you tickle his cheek with this! He literally lays his whole face on your mouth and lets you go to town. And he won’t move for minutes on end!
ALSO!
Our son is officially a kiss giver!! He still only does this when he feels like it…but it’s something he’s decided he likes to do. The only thing about his kisses is that he doesn’t know he needs to close his lips just yet! So you get upper lip and his tongue! It seriously leaves me in stitches and melts my heart!
June 6, 2010
While we’re at it…
On the subject of the little things…I can’t remember where I read this…but I read about a statistic that said we spend something like 80% or more of our life doing the every day stuff. Showering, getting dressed, brushing our teeth, driving to and from work. You get the idea. The author of the article I was reading said that based on that study, in order for us to be truly happy…we have to enjoy the everyday stuff. B/c life is full of little everyday activities. Guess we better find some way to make brushing our teeth a little bit happier huh??
One thing I’ve been doing is buying a cheap bouquet of fresh cut flowers every time I go to the grocery store. Sure the $5 could be spent on something else…but I like the sight/smell of fresh flowers and it perks up my grocery shopping trip. Just knowing I’m allowing myself to buy them every trip. I was so excited to see the white hydrangeas had come back to the Schnucks by us. I LOVE them in our bathroom!
I’ve also been trying to incorporate one new recipe into my meal plans each grocery shopping trip. Cooking something new is exciting and keeps it interesting. I also love the way Jer politely side-steps around saying he doesn’t like something new ;) Like the time I made Lima Beans. Hilarious!
How do you find ways to make the everyday stuff happier? Got any tricks? I'd love to hear about them!
One thing I’ve been doing is buying a cheap bouquet of fresh cut flowers every time I go to the grocery store. Sure the $5 could be spent on something else…but I like the sight/smell of fresh flowers and it perks up my grocery shopping trip. Just knowing I’m allowing myself to buy them every trip. I was so excited to see the white hydrangeas had come back to the Schnucks by us. I LOVE them in our bathroom!
I’ve also been trying to incorporate one new recipe into my meal plans each grocery shopping trip. Cooking something new is exciting and keeps it interesting. I also love the way Jer politely side-steps around saying he doesn’t like something new ;) Like the time I made Lima Beans. Hilarious!
How do you find ways to make the everyday stuff happier? Got any tricks? I'd love to hear about them!
June 5, 2010
1000 awesome things and the little things
So I stumbled on this blog from this blog. And I haven’t gotten into a daily reading habit, but I certainly found the prospect of the book interesting. I also love the pictures of people he posts at the end of each post. They always have his book in their hands and share a thought about changes the book has made for them. What a great way to be reminded that folks are out there really reading his books and he’s impacting lives! I also love the idea behind his thinking. Each day is made up of little moments. Small things. I read on there that even the big things like week long vacations to exotic places are made up and made special by the little things…like brilliant sunsets…or the sand in your toes. I fully intend to purchase this book and teach myself to spend more time looking at the little things in my every day that make it awesome! I’ve even thought about incorporating a piece of this into my Thankful Thursday blog.
As an aside…I’ve done a lot of thinking lately about happiness and life in general. Some things that have happened in the past year and a half have made me see things a little more clearly. While others have muddied the waters. Regardless, I feel a strong assuredness that God is teaching me a lesson of humility and patience through the situations I’ve been moving through. Each situation has helped to shape and smooth me into someone new or the same me, just with a new perspective. It’s hard for me to wrap up into one simple idea all the jumbles of thoughts that have come to me lately. I sort of feel like I’m this canister of puzzle pieces. I am taking all my life experiences as of late and mixing it up with all the things out there I’ve heard/read/see/feel about happiness and living life to the fullest. Right now they feel like they are shaken up. But every once in awhile as I get a grasp on what I’m trying to understand or see, I’ll dump a few out and I find a puzzle piece that matches. And so part of the picture that was fuzzy and jumbled, becomes clear.
I think I see that happening now, with this awesome things idea and the idea that happiness is something you cultivate in your own life. B/c a lot of what I read about happiness says that you can find it whenever you want to and it mostly takes work to do so. Happiness doesn’t just happen. It’s in the moments you make. The time you spend. The things you do. So a lot of my thoughts about this whole concept have circled back around to me. To my life. What I’m doing with my every day. How I spend my moments. I know I used to be one of those people who dreaded the morning. It meant another work day. Another busy crazy run around day. It meant a possible traffic jam and the list goes on and on and on. But I’ve learned over the past few months that life is short. Very short and you never know how one phone call can change your world in an instant. I've also learned that rolling with the punches is always better than going against the flow. Having plans is the way I like to live my life. I like to know what's coming next. I like to fill up our time with adventure and fun and family. But it's not required for life to keep moving in any direction. Plans change, life changes. And those changes can be hard and out of your control. But, you can't let that stop you from seeing the amazing things around you. The things that make life worth living...even if life isn't how you planned at that very moment. And this 1000 awesome things idea helped solidify the life lessons I’ve been learning over the past several months. It helped me be better at finding the wonderful moments in the everyday. And I realized in the simple act of changing the way I look at things…I am happier. It actually makes me a lot happier than I ever imagined.
Some of my little moments could include:
That morning drink stop with my hubby and those 2 extra minutes to chat about our drive, our day or joke around, to remind each other to be careful and that say I love you….
That new CD in the CD player or the song lyrics that hit you just right even though you’ve heard the song 100 times.
When I ask Owen for a kiss and he’s finally to an age where he’ll give me one. Those chubby little legs that come toddling and those lips poked out to me melt my heart.
The list could go on and on…my days are filled with these moments. And those make it easier to overlook a crappy morning, a father-in-law suffering from cancer, a sudden death in your family, watching those you love struggle with the loss of a child, or a friend at work loose a mother to a year and half long battle with cancer. I've found that finding them is essential to me being able to keep moving forward in the face of so much crap going on all around me. It helps me see all the wonderful and remember why the heck we are all here to begin with.
I’d love to hear from someone out there reading. How do you spend your moments? The big ones? The little ones? Do you anticipate each wake up as a fresh start? Do you drink in the peaceful moments you spend waiting in traffic? Do you think about the last thing to say to someone before you hang up the phone? Does any of this even make any sense? Or am I just rambling away on my own little tangent that makes no sense to anyone?? Probably some of both…but I’d love to hear from you anyway!
Thanks for reading!
As an aside…I’ve done a lot of thinking lately about happiness and life in general. Some things that have happened in the past year and a half have made me see things a little more clearly. While others have muddied the waters. Regardless, I feel a strong assuredness that God is teaching me a lesson of humility and patience through the situations I’ve been moving through. Each situation has helped to shape and smooth me into someone new or the same me, just with a new perspective. It’s hard for me to wrap up into one simple idea all the jumbles of thoughts that have come to me lately. I sort of feel like I’m this canister of puzzle pieces. I am taking all my life experiences as of late and mixing it up with all the things out there I’ve heard/read/see/feel about happiness and living life to the fullest. Right now they feel like they are shaken up. But every once in awhile as I get a grasp on what I’m trying to understand or see, I’ll dump a few out and I find a puzzle piece that matches. And so part of the picture that was fuzzy and jumbled, becomes clear.
I think I see that happening now, with this awesome things idea and the idea that happiness is something you cultivate in your own life. B/c a lot of what I read about happiness says that you can find it whenever you want to and it mostly takes work to do so. Happiness doesn’t just happen. It’s in the moments you make. The time you spend. The things you do. So a lot of my thoughts about this whole concept have circled back around to me. To my life. What I’m doing with my every day. How I spend my moments. I know I used to be one of those people who dreaded the morning. It meant another work day. Another busy crazy run around day. It meant a possible traffic jam and the list goes on and on and on. But I’ve learned over the past few months that life is short. Very short and you never know how one phone call can change your world in an instant. I've also learned that rolling with the punches is always better than going against the flow. Having plans is the way I like to live my life. I like to know what's coming next. I like to fill up our time with adventure and fun and family. But it's not required for life to keep moving in any direction. Plans change, life changes. And those changes can be hard and out of your control. But, you can't let that stop you from seeing the amazing things around you. The things that make life worth living...even if life isn't how you planned at that very moment. And this 1000 awesome things idea helped solidify the life lessons I’ve been learning over the past several months. It helped me be better at finding the wonderful moments in the everyday. And I realized in the simple act of changing the way I look at things…I am happier. It actually makes me a lot happier than I ever imagined.
Some of my little moments could include:
That morning drink stop with my hubby and those 2 extra minutes to chat about our drive, our day or joke around, to remind each other to be careful and that say I love you….
That new CD in the CD player or the song lyrics that hit you just right even though you’ve heard the song 100 times.
When I ask Owen for a kiss and he’s finally to an age where he’ll give me one. Those chubby little legs that come toddling and those lips poked out to me melt my heart.
The list could go on and on…my days are filled with these moments. And those make it easier to overlook a crappy morning, a father-in-law suffering from cancer, a sudden death in your family, watching those you love struggle with the loss of a child, or a friend at work loose a mother to a year and half long battle with cancer. I've found that finding them is essential to me being able to keep moving forward in the face of so much crap going on all around me. It helps me see all the wonderful and remember why the heck we are all here to begin with.
I’d love to hear from someone out there reading. How do you spend your moments? The big ones? The little ones? Do you anticipate each wake up as a fresh start? Do you drink in the peaceful moments you spend waiting in traffic? Do you think about the last thing to say to someone before you hang up the phone? Does any of this even make any sense? Or am I just rambling away on my own little tangent that makes no sense to anyone?? Probably some of both…but I’d love to hear from you anyway!
Thanks for reading!
June 4, 2010
My Brother Turns 26!
My brother and I go way back. You could say since birth ;) There are so many memories I could talk about here that you all would be reading until next Sunday. And though the trip down memory lane would be great for me and him if he stumbled over and read this post...I'm sure most folks wouldn't appreciate every one of them!!
He turned 26 last weekend and his girlfriend Katie, her Mom Bobbi and Step Dad Rex threw Josh a bash of a birthday party! It was complete with delicious homemade salads, BBQ, and Katie made black bottom cupcakes which I didn't get before I left (Katie can you make some for our next get together?!? They looked delicious!) It was luau themed and they opened their beautiful home for our family. Owen enjoyed toddling in the back yard and playing in the grass. He also met Katie's nephew Noah. We had a great time meeting Katie's family and just enjoyed a beautiful summer evening together! I snapped some great pictures, though through this I realized that I am not as good with getting up and snapping photos as I would like to be b/c I only had the camera out in the beginning and I missed some pictures that I would have liked to get! Either way though, we had a great time and enjoyed ourselves immensely!
For Josh, I'll never forget the flour and sugar fights, the rubber snakes in my sleeping bag, the time we snuck out and walked down the street (and got in BIG trouble), breaking Mom's ornament on the Christmas tree, driving to high school together, going to Prom together (a memory I'll always cherish) or any of the other crazy, fun trouble we got into together!! I'm so proud of the person you've become. As Grandma Flo would say, Love you to pieces Little Bro!
June 2, 2010
Owen Posts
It’s impossible, I have come to learn, to capture the amazing-ness (yes I just made up a word) of a child simply with pictures, stories or videos. It’s the little nuances, the glances, the gestures, the quiet babble, the tiny fingers working out a new task, all combined together. But I decided to try. To search into my creative writery depths (yes another made up word) to find Owen in pictures, videos and words and put him here. To capture my little boy as he is right now. Full of crazy ambition. Willfulness. And a sense of humor that is already apparent as he ducks around corners to scare us. Closes himself in the bathroom alone. Or runs after his Daddy with abandonment and pile drives him like Stone Cold Steve Austin. So if you start seeing a lot of Owen posts here coming up…it is only b/c he amazes me more and more every day in every way!
June 1, 2010
CROCS!!!
One of our other stops this weekend was to a Croc store. And it did not disappoint! These are perfectly adorable on our little man :) We also got him the jacket while we were shopping. Baby Gap...it's got way too much cute stuff!
Trying to escape out our dining room door...it goes right to our breezeway and outside. He would move his crib outside if we let him...I have no doubt!
A little upset b/c we wouldn't let him go outside!
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