May25

Thank God it’s Friday

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Thank God it’s Friday

Thankful for newness of life (called the weekend) that brings hope and fresh beginnings.  Have you been in a slump lately?  I know that I have been in a state of mourning and with that comes a sadness and life seems not as exciting as it once was.  But it is Friday.  There is something about Fridays that spark a fresh start because the work week is over and it is time to spend the next 2 days doing things that you want to do.  That is why I began Fabulous Fridays here, to celebrate life.  To bring awareness to the joy that is the weekend.  What will you do with your weekend?  How will you celebrate life with your family and friends?

This weekend I plan to really enjoy my time with my children.  To hug them just a little bit longer.  To look them in the eye when they speak to me.  To love my husband well.  To give him all of those extra hugs he needs(it is his love language) and wants.  To laugh with my daughter and spend time with her.  To make those calls to loved ones that live so far away.  I also plan to spend time with myself, doing what I love to do.  Even if it is just for a few stolen moments, I will do something just for myself.

Leave the housework, yard work and the TO DO LISTS behind and live the weekend!

May20

How Close is Sorrow from Hope?

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How Close is Sorrow from Hope?

Have taken a few days to reconnect with family and friends after two deaths in our family within 6 days of each other.  One of them was my uncle Joe and the other was a dear cousin of my mother’s who was her best friend.

Grief and Sorrow

Listening to the news

Hard to believe

Wishing it was just a huge joke

Seeing the grieving loved ones

Hugging and holding on to each other

Hoping to ease the pain

Viewing in disbelief

Tears and sorrow hold hands

We all carry the same face

Condolences

Words cannot penetrate

Dirt cannot bury our memories

The sun will shine again

Hope

 

May4

Fabulous Friday: E for Effort

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Fabulous Friday: E for Effort

Every September I tell myself that I will not plant another garden that doesn’t flourish.  Meaning that I don’t want to be reminded that I can’t grow any vegetables.  I do okay with herbs and flower, but veggies, eh, not so much.  But then I find myself in the garden center again with a basket full of plants.   

This year, I am here to say that I am giving myself an E for effort.  The jury is still out on my tomato plants for this year but look at what has made it to the table.

My lettuce although small in portion was very tasty.  I was so excited to be eating something I grew all by myself.  And today I picked this broccoli floret for a small snack at lunch time.  This is all I have to show for my garden thus far but I think that I will choose to rejoice in this accomplishment.

Whatever you are up against in your life today, be it something that is not looking promising or giving you much hope, just stick to it.  Be happy about the effort you are putting in and don’t look at the results so much.  Sometimes my son’s soccer team loses and he is sad, but then I tell him that our goal here is participation, not winning.  Things seem to look better when you take the pressure off of the result and focus on the effort.    Do it all out and give yourself an E for effort!

May1

Expand your little World

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Expand your little World

 

Mailing a package for my daughter today and tried to slip the box into the mail box(for big boxes) and realized it was stuck.  I tried several times to make it drop on the other side but to no avail.  I then saw a lady who asked me if it was stuck and I said yes.  So she took a double take at me to which I took as “wait here, I’m gonna get some help”. She entered the post office and headed for the clerk.  I thought “what a nice lady, she is going to tell them my package is stuck.”  I was just about to do that myself.  Just then I saw her drop off her postage-paid package and walk off to her car. Oh, ok. I was not expecting that response.  I read her all wrong.  I am not one to expect help from anyone but this incident made me realize how much we are all in our own little world and never stop to help or just let other’s know that we are all in this together.  Of course I have gone on my day before not caring about anyone but myself and my to- do list.  Just going about my merry way and doing what I need to get done before my head hits the pillow.  But I don’t feel good about it.  Unlike when my head hits the pillow and I know that I have helped someone. 

Take some time to see what is going on with your neighbor or the person in line next to you.  Offer to help carry groceries for a busy mom with her hands full.  Or help someone out at the office. Help them out with the kinks in the copier.  I mean really, do we really need to be in such a rush that we cannot spare a few seconds to lend a hand.  Allow that Spirit in you that has been place there by the Mighty Father to lead you today and mark your steps.

Please share with me some of the things you have done in the past where you have helped someone.  It does not go unnoticed.

Apr27

Bake Something Yummy For Fabulous Friday

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Bake Something Yummy For Fabulous Friday

I am more of a cook than a baker.  But since our resident baker (aka our daughter) is away at school, I have been filing(no pun intended) in this year.  I recently made a crumb cake that was delish.  You can find the recipe here.

Here is a picture of my version.  I half-ed the crumble topping recipe.  And I put it in a 8×8 pan instead of a 9×13. 

And I would also like to offer a gluten-free recipe for my friends.  Try out my friend Amy’s recipe for blueberry muffins here.

 Even if you bake using a box mix, the important thing is the smiles and warmth it brings to you and your family.  So fill those tummies up with something made by you with L-O-V-E!  Have a wonderful and Fabulous Friday.

Apr23

Who’s in Charge Here?

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Who’s in Charge Here?

Keep your head up straight

Walk with purpose

I think my arm is going to fall off

Did I bring enough bags

No stopping here

How about this empty lot

Just say hello

Please don’t jump on them

I am the pack leader

I am the Alpha Dog

Wait a minute who is on the leash here.

Things I say to myself or think while walking our new dog.  Do you have a dog?  If so, please share any tips with me.

Apr20

Fabulous Friday: Golden Slumbers

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Fabulous Friday: Golden Slumbers

On this Fabulous Friday I would like to feature SLEEP.  So many times we don’t get the sleep we really need.  I am the world’s worst because somehow in my upbringing I was convinced that we should never sleep in, lie around, or take naps.  That these things meant you were LAZY.  Not sure how this crept into my brain but it is there.  So, many times I deny myself the sleep I truly need.  And I have trained my body to keep going and then of course it crashes or I bite someone’s head off.  Well, figuratively “bite their heads off”.  So many times I don’t realize it and find myself so grouchy.  Many arguments (in my household) spring from lack of sleep or they come up late in the evening when we are just tired and in need of sleep.   I am still working on letting myself take naps and sleep in without feeling guilty.   I believe few of us are really getting the sleep we truly need.

How much sleep do we need? 

Find yourself on this chart and work on getting what you need.

Sleep needs

Newborns (0-2 months)  need 12-18 hours

Infants (3 months to 1 year) need 14-15 hours

Toddlers (1-3 years) need 12-14 hours

Preschoolers (3-5 years) need 11-13 hours

School aged children (5-12 years) need 10-11 hours

Teens and preteens (12-18 years) need 8.5 – 10 hours

Adults (18+) need 7.5 -9 hours

So, don’t feel bad when you take a nap this weekend, or sleep in on Saturday or Sunday.  You need to catch up from all the times you did not get your full 8 hours of sleep this week.  So get a blanket, find a quiet spot, close your eyes and let ” Golden Slumbers fill your eyes.  Smiles await you when you rise…”

Are you getting enough sleep?

Apr18

Bringing the Bread Machine Back

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Bringing the Bread Machine Back

I have had this crazy, painful tennis elbow, in both arms I might add, for sometime now.  Don’t know how I got this since I don’t play tennis.  But it makes it tough to knead any dough for my homemade pizza (will post recipe later).  As I was watching my favorite YOUTUBE gal Rachael ,she recently posted a video on how she makes her pizza dough in her bread machine. 

I was elated because that would solve my problem with not being able to knead the dough by hand.  So, I just had to go out and find a bread machine and try it.  So I went on a hunt to find a bread machine to my liking.  I found one at a Goodwill store for $6.99.  It still had the owner’s manual and recipe book.  I was so excited, that I called my friend and talked to her about it and she came over and bought one too.  Now I am busy reading my manual, it’s like having a new toy.

My one hesitation about bread machines was the size of this appliance.  It resembles a small refrigerator on your counters.   But I though, why does it have to be in my kitchen on the counter.  Why can’t it make its home in the laundry room?  I mean if I am using it for dough making then it won’t be a huge deal to pull out the bread pan fill it in the kitchen and then put it back to mix.  So that is my plan.  I will let you know how it goes.  Hopefully you will see a HUGE POST with pictures of my pizza dough & a new recipe called zesty pizza dough in the near future.

Do you have a bread machine?  If so, where do you keep it?

Apr16

Words with Friends

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Words with Friends

 

Words are possibly the strongest persuasive method to hurt or encourage man. 

 Mother Teresa says that

“Kind words can be short and easy to speak, but their echoes are truly endless.”

Benjamin Franklin speaks of the opposite effect of words. 

“A slip of the foot you may soon recover, but a slip of the tongue you may never get over.”

Wise words I must say.   My desire is to walk in wisdom and not foolishness.  I want to share good & wise words with friends, not hurtful ones.  Yet there are times when my actions are in line but my mouth escapes the chains like a dog and bolts! 

I am not going to go on and on about how keep from letting your words hurt anyone or 5 ways to curb your tongue.  I don’t have answers on this one.  But I do know that I will get up each day, say my prayers and  hope to not hurt anyone with my words.  I will try to speak kind words to those in my world.