Day 5 and I am enjoying the Gratitude Challenge so far. Although I did get a little behind, I figure as long as I complete all the tasks and stay on track this is still a positive activity! Although, I am going to try and stay on it daily from here on!
Today I was supposed to call someone I haven't talked to in a while..I didn't do it..no excuses, there are many I need to be calling, and I know texting doesn't count! I did do one better and organized a little gathering tomorrow night for some of my former co-workers from the airline. I am looking forward to a fun night with great company and delicious Mexican food tomorrow..of course, I will post a pic. :-)
Tuesday, August 16, 2011
Sunday, August 14, 2011
Day 4..Giving Thanks
Day 4 is all about just taking stock of what BLESSINGS I already have in my life and remembering how fortunate I am. It is hard to even know where to start, but I will focus on the people in my life that I love very much.
My Parents: They are wonderful parents, grandparents and more than that, now that I am also older and wiser..great friends. They have been there for me all my life and I am so lucky.
Mike: He is my rock, he is the logical one, he knows how to talk sense into me when I am really upset or overly emotional...he always knows how to calm me down and I love him lots!
Casey: I didn't know that in being a parent you would learn as much or more than you taught your child. I am proud of him, he is a caring, responsible, creative and hard working 20 year old who means everything to me. He has made me a better person and I love him so much!
Grandma: Words can't describe how much she means to me.
Caleb and his adorable kids: My "little brother" and his 3 great kids! I love being an aunt!
My cousins, aunts, uncles, relatives near and far,including those that I have been lucky enough to inherit through marriage, and those that I inherited through Casey's dad's side of the family...they all have a special place in my heart.
Friends: Friends from Washington State that I have known most of my life, ones that I met along the way and friends right here in Ohio.
BFF's that I have been lucky enough to re-connect with due to technology! Nickey, I am so happy to have gotten to know and your beautfiul family and look forward to hanging out with you for many, many years! Dionne, Janet and all of the other close friends, it is a gift to be able to be in contact with you on a regualar basis now. Just writing about all the awesome people in my life makes me appreciate again all of the gifts in my life...
xoxo :-)
My Parents: They are wonderful parents, grandparents and more than that, now that I am also older and wiser..great friends. They have been there for me all my life and I am so lucky.
Mike: He is my rock, he is the logical one, he knows how to talk sense into me when I am really upset or overly emotional...he always knows how to calm me down and I love him lots!
Casey: I didn't know that in being a parent you would learn as much or more than you taught your child. I am proud of him, he is a caring, responsible, creative and hard working 20 year old who means everything to me. He has made me a better person and I love him so much!
Grandma: Words can't describe how much she means to me.
Caleb and his adorable kids: My "little brother" and his 3 great kids! I love being an aunt!
My cousins, aunts, uncles, relatives near and far,including those that I have been lucky enough to inherit through marriage, and those that I inherited through Casey's dad's side of the family...they all have a special place in my heart.
Friends: Friends from Washington State that I have known most of my life, ones that I met along the way and friends right here in Ohio.
BFF's that I have been lucky enough to re-connect with due to technology! Nickey, I am so happy to have gotten to know and your beautfiul family and look forward to hanging out with you for many, many years! Dionne, Janet and all of the other close friends, it is a gift to be able to be in contact with you on a regualar basis now. Just writing about all the awesome people in my life makes me appreciate again all of the gifts in my life...
xoxo :-)
 |
| Thanksgiving 2008, my Parents, Grandmother, Brother and his family and Casey and I, (Mike took the picture!) |
Thursday, August 11, 2011
During the hard times...
Hard times...we all have them, some days it seems like more than we can handle..I was just talking with someone today who shared with me that she didn't know how much more God was going to throw at her, because it had been a rough couple of weeks and she had all she could handle. I was reminded of one of my favorite teaching pastors at Ginghamsburg United Methodist Church, http://www.ginghamsburg.org/. Mike Bowie just shared last weekend a quote worth remembering...."Sometimes a set-back is a set-up for a GREAT COME-BACK!" I love this, you see Mike is a man who had been living with a brain tumor for 12 years and had no idea until he sat in a staff meeting in 2008 and then started having a seizure...of course, it was then found out that he had a baseball size tumor and really nobody would thought he would be here to talk about his trials today..but he made it through and shares that those days of being in the hospital, thinking he was dying, then having to leave his job at GUM were, although hard days, they were also BLESSINGS, he realized how strong he was and how much he had to be grateful for.
I dont have a story as dramatic as Mr. Bowie's, but I do like to remember that during all the "hard times," there are always blessings to be found, sometimes you have to really seek them out, but they are there.
http://ginghamsburg.org/sermon/resources/2011_08_07_Video/393/
Maybe this link will work to last weekend's sermon, if you have an extra 20 minutes or so..very worth it!
I dont have a story as dramatic as Mr. Bowie's, but I do like to remember that during all the "hard times," there are always blessings to be found, sometimes you have to really seek them out, but they are there.
http://ginghamsburg.org/sermon/resources/2011_08_07_Video/393/
Maybe this link will work to last weekend's sermon, if you have an extra 20 minutes or so..very worth it!
Wednesday, August 10, 2011
Day 3-What am I Grateful for? This is EASY!
Day 3 of the Gratitude Challenge just asked us to write about something we are thankful for...and I have many, many things to be thankful for in this life. I have a job I love, wonderful parents, a great young adult son, (although still getting used to an empty nest..at 41, I know I AM old enough for this, just don't FEEL old enough...lol,) a great husband, love my job, a roof over my head, plenty of chances to spend fun times with the ones I love..yes those are the things I'm thankful for, but just to think outside the box a bit, I am going to write about all of the times in my life in which I worked MANY different jobs, while in college, while trying to get ahead on bills, etc, etc...whatever the case was, I have been BLESSED to have opportunities to work in many different types of settings and I wouldn't trade any experience for the world. Each job taught me a little something, making me who I am today...
Where to start? At the age of 14 I started my working days as the concession stand girl at The Ephrata Speedway in little old Ephrata, WA. I sold popcorn, elehpant ears, cotton candy, and the list goes on..FUN for a 14 year old and at 3.35 an hour, I had plenty of money to keep myeslf stocked in 80's fashions. :-)
Another fun job?? In between school years at the Moses Lake School District I had the opportunity to bartend at The Gorge, not just your typical beer garden but in the VIP section...now that was fun, and lots of extra cash to get ahead on bills when I wasn't working with the school district during summer months.
Of course my jobs as a school age day camp coordinator, (did this in a few locations, Ohio, and Washington,) were great...where else did I get to practice what I learned in all my education classes, take kids to FUN places and bring my own son with me AND get paid to do it?
I cannot forget to mention my years at a couple of different airlines, LOVED these jobs, they were "second jobs," but I LOVE people..LOVE travel, so of course, loved these jobs, I always thought it was fun to see how long it would take me to calm down very angry passengers. :-)
Many of my opportunities have been in education, and I love that, but I also so grateful for all the little positions in-between that have helped shape me to be the person I am today. There were others..many others..but these were a few highlights :-)
Where to start? At the age of 14 I started my working days as the concession stand girl at The Ephrata Speedway in little old Ephrata, WA. I sold popcorn, elehpant ears, cotton candy, and the list goes on..FUN for a 14 year old and at 3.35 an hour, I had plenty of money to keep myeslf stocked in 80's fashions. :-)
Another fun job?? In between school years at the Moses Lake School District I had the opportunity to bartend at The Gorge, not just your typical beer garden but in the VIP section...now that was fun, and lots of extra cash to get ahead on bills when I wasn't working with the school district during summer months.
Of course my jobs as a school age day camp coordinator, (did this in a few locations, Ohio, and Washington,) were great...where else did I get to practice what I learned in all my education classes, take kids to FUN places and bring my own son with me AND get paid to do it?
I cannot forget to mention my years at a couple of different airlines, LOVED these jobs, they were "second jobs," but I LOVE people..LOVE travel, so of course, loved these jobs, I always thought it was fun to see how long it would take me to calm down very angry passengers. :-)
Many of my opportunities have been in education, and I love that, but I also so grateful for all the little positions in-between that have helped shape me to be the person I am today. There were others..many others..but these were a few highlights :-)
Tuesday, August 9, 2011
A to Z's of Gratitude
A- Angels..love them, they are everywhere :-)
B-Mr. Bowie, Pastor Mike Bowie
C-Casey, my son, love him more than life!
D-Dancing, all kinds!
E- Easter, I love this holiday and what it stands for :-)
F-Facebook..I am thankful for a tool that has let me connect and re-connect with so many wonderful people!
G-Ginghamsburg United Methodist Church-Love this place!
H-Hocking Hills, Ohio..such a lovely place
I-Icicicles that glisten on a sunny but cold day, I've grown very appreciative of the beauty that winter can bring :-)
J-Jelly Fish, they are fascinating
K- Kahlua!
L-Love, it makes the world go AROUND!
M-Mike, my husband and best friend
N-Nickey, a super dear friend for life who started on this journey :-)
O- the OCEAN of course :-)
P-Pearson, my last name before I was married, it is a part of who I am, forever :-)
Q-Queen City Cookies
R-Roses :-)
S- Santa Monica, (I went there in May and fell in love!)
T-Topanga Canyon :-)
U-Umbrellas, cute and colorful please, if you must carry one, it must be cute :-)
V-Vegas!
W-Wine!
X- X-rays...my husband is an x-ray tech..soI am thankful for his job!
Y-Yoga, love it...
Z-Zumba baby!
B-Mr. Bowie, Pastor Mike Bowie
C-Casey, my son, love him more than life!
D-Dancing, all kinds!
E- Easter, I love this holiday and what it stands for :-)
F-Facebook..I am thankful for a tool that has let me connect and re-connect with so many wonderful people!
G-Ginghamsburg United Methodist Church-Love this place!
H-Hocking Hills, Ohio..such a lovely place
I-Icicicles that glisten on a sunny but cold day, I've grown very appreciative of the beauty that winter can bring :-)
J-Jelly Fish, they are fascinating
K- Kahlua!
L-Love, it makes the world go AROUND!
M-Mike, my husband and best friend
N-Nickey, a super dear friend for life who started on this journey :-)
O- the OCEAN of course :-)
P-Pearson, my last name before I was married, it is a part of who I am, forever :-)
Q-Queen City Cookies
R-Roses :-)
S- Santa Monica, (I went there in May and fell in love!)
T-Topanga Canyon :-)
U-Umbrellas, cute and colorful please, if you must carry one, it must be cute :-)
V-Vegas!
W-Wine!
X- X-rays...my husband is an x-ray tech..soI am thankful for his job!
Y-Yoga, love it...
Z-Zumba baby!
Sunday, August 7, 2011
The Gratitude Challenge
I am starting this blog as a part of a project, the Gratitude Challenge that my friend Nickey and many others are participating in. I like to say that I always see the glass as "half full" and that there is always a "silver lining" for me, but, since I am human, I have also felt myself get pulled into negative directions at times..and it is so easy to get pulled that way! So, with that, I am starting this blog to help me keep focused on the 21 day challenge. The blog may not go anywhere after this, but we'll see! Today, I sign the Gratitide Pledge as my first task. This will be fun...I'm new to blogging, not sure that anyone else will really read this..but it helps my FOCUS! I will spend the next 21 days focusing on all the things in life that I am most grateful for, and there are many! Life is a journey to be enjoyed and I can't wait for this challenge!
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