They can't dim that light

 

Keep that light shining so that others can see who you are.  

Too many of us seem to think that we are not worthy of being seen or heard.  Too many of us think that if we are quiet and don't make waves, we can't get hurt, so we try to "cover up" the light that shines within us.  That is WRONG.

Keep bringing the YOU to the table so that the beautiful light that shines within YOU will be seen.  

Don't hide.  Be seen for the wonderful person that you are!

Make a difference.  I KNOW you can!  You do just by being here.

Surround Yourself

 This is something that we need to teach our children, right along side Math and Reading, as part of our Life study.

Much too often, we allow people to stay in our lives that do not help us, but actually hold us back.  

We may or may not realize it but those people need to be vanquished from our lives.  We need to be free of them so that the true beauty of our lives will unfold.

I am real

You are real too.

Being real is a good thing no matter how many mistakes you make or imperfections that you have.

Celebrate the realness of YOU.

Promise Me

If you have kids, no matter how old they are, you are family with Christopher Robin and Winnie the Pooh.

As cute as they are, sometimes they were pretty smart for a kids book characters.
Like this one where Christopher Robin was talking to Pooh.

Promise me you will ALWAYS Remember

You're Braver than you believe and

Stronger than you seem.

But most of all,

You're Smarter than you think!

We can all learn something from this, don't you think?

Maybe we should be taking some time to revisit our childhood storybooks and see what else we can learn.

Where is YOUR Happy Space

Is there a place where you feel safe?
A place where you can let go and be yourself?

You know that place that you call your "Happy Place".

My Happy Space

I know that I always feel at peace when I am by the water.
I don't know that I could live ON the water, but living BY the water brings a smile to my face.  The changing scenes the sky, even when a storm is rolling in, is always gorgeous to view.

Now if You (I) still need a reason to smile ... 

a little wine would be a great addition.

Are you READY

Are you ready ?? 

Ready for what you ask...

Its almost time for a HUGE Giveaway Hop!

'Cause 

Jeepers it's JANUARY

I am just putting the finishing touches on my post and making sure I have all kinds of things ready for my prize .......  Just 5 short days!

I'm getting excited!  I hope you are too.

Keep checking just in case there are some hints about what will be the prize on this blog.

Or maybe you can tell me what you would like to see as the prize this time.

Who knows, maybe you could influence the prize ....

The Strongest Women

Do you know anyone that fits this description?
Perhaps it is you.

I can honestly say that I know of a few ... they are the best women I know, and I am all the better for knowing them.
They are ALWAYS there for you.  They are ALWAYS bringing the calming thoughts / questions / answers to the situation you think have no solutions. 

How about you?   Share your thoughts or give a special shout out to those strong women in your life.

Yeahhhhh It's the Weekend

I don't know about you, but I just feel like this has been the LONGEST week (and I haven't even started going into the office yet!).  Please note I did not say I haven't started working yet ....

Now I know that some of you will have all kinds of wonderful things planned for this weekend.  Some will not have anything planned, but will end up with all kinds of great things to talk about on Monday morning...


And then there are others ....

Whichever you are ...

Have a wonderful weekend.

Do you have any plans or are you just going to wing it and come up with something wonderful?
Or are you going to be like my little buddy above?????

Tell me what your plans are.  
I really don't have any definite plans (except picking up some Tupperware items to replace under our awesome Warranty program).  I may have to think about doing something more ... unless this white stuff keeps falling and then I will be very happy to hibernate inside by the woodstove.

Remember who the really important person is.

I saw this one recently and thought it was a perfect way to start the new year!

Good morning

Some days its really difficult to say good morning.

If it is one of those difficult days for you ...

Here's a cup of wonderfulness to start your day.

You can thank me later. 

I'm going to be enjoying my cup too!

What true friendship is

I think I've heard this so many times from "little" kids.  
Oh she's my best friend.  She's my bestest friend.  
Sally is my bestest friend, you know she is right mom?

When I just heard this discussion the other day in the grocery store, my thoughts went to what IS the meaning of a best friend?  Can you have more than 1 best friend?

As we grow older, go away to school or our parents move us because of job changes or whatever, even our "bestest" friends can be separated from us.  But that doesn't mean that our "bestest" friends have left us.

I know I've had this happen, so its not just a saying.  
But true friends are friends forever, because no matter how many miles separate you - when you get together again, you can pick up on each others thoughts, and it is like you have never been separated for even 1 day.

Oh and that question I asked about having more than 1 ?? Of course you can.  Sometimes its because its a "different" time and you or they need someone "different" to get through that time.  

But lets face it ... 

if you have more than one best friend - 

you are pretty LUCKY.

Perfect definition of a Friend

I got this originally from a friend, a friend that I think of as a member of my family so she is much more than "just" a friend, but I think this is the perfect definition of a friend.

Friends

They love you,

But they're not your lover.

They care for you, 

But they're not from your family.

They're ready to share your pain,

But they're not your blood relation.

They are ... FRIENDS

A True Friend,

Scolds like a DAD,

Cares like a MUM,

Teases like a SISTER,

Irritates like a BROTHER,

And finally, 

Loves like a Lover.

Be sure to share this with your good friends,

Make sure that they KNOW 

that you consider them a Friend!

Family is more than just blood relatives

There are a lot of people, perhaps even you, who I consider part of my family.  If someone (or perhaps a psychologist) was to try and do my "family" tree - I am quite sure they would either be totally frustrated OR think I was descended from so many that I would be related to three quarters of the world!

You see I have quite a few "family" members that aren't related by blood - they are people I always felt were part of my family .... the family of my heart.

So when I saw this, I knew I had to share.

Now I know you can't "share" if you agree ........ unless you want to share this post on your facebook page, which of course I would love, but that wasn't the point of the post.

These are the people who are the "Family of my Heart".

Do you have people in your life that you count as your family, who aren't blood relatives?

Ring OUT the old .... Ring IN the new!

Happy New Year.

I hope you all had a wonderful New Years Eve Celebration and are not suffering any ill effects, read this as nasty hangover, and are looking forward to 2014 with great optimism.

With that in mind, here is something that I saw a few weeks ago that pretty much sums up what I thing you and me and everyone else needs to do today, as we look forward to this brand new year

I know you have been told this before, or maybe you've said it to others, 

but sometimes we need to be reminded 

YOU ARE 

GOOD ENOUGH 

and anyone that doesn't see that does NOT belong in your 2014!

Now do you think my sister will recognize this too?

There are many times I know she doesn't think she is good enough

WRONG 

she is BETTER than 

GOOD ENOUGH!

And just in case this isn't enough ...
here's something else to leave behind!

So are you going to join me and my sister  in 2014 and recognize that you are good enough and let go of anyone that doesn't see that and tries to make you believe otherwise?  I hope so.


Thank you Mandy Hale, for reminding us what our true worth is .... and what it isn't.
We are all unique and need to be embraced as such, without comparison, without judgement.

Not Perfect

Yes ma'am
this one says it all

I am definitely NOT perfect .......
Not politically correct either

I hope that there is no one out there that thinks I am fake either,
especially since I try to be ME every day ..... 
not something that someone "thinks" I should be.

How about you ... are you perfect?

Successful Woman

I love this
For all the Successful Women in my life

Even if they don't think they are Successful!
Because those are the MOST SUCCESSFUL

I hope that they will think I am that Best Friend ..........

So tell me - how many Successful Women do you have in your life?
Do you think they count you as one of these "best friends"?  I hope so.

Out of the mouth of Babes ....

Explaining death to a child is kind of "touchy".  You don't want to scare them or make them think that everyone they love are going to die for no reason or make them afraid to do things because they could die.  I think this is a wonderful way to start the explanation of why those things we love die.  Obviously you don't want to start with "people" in their lives unless there is no choice, but most children are exposed to warm wonderfully loving animals as pets or pets of friends and family.

WHY DOGS LIVE LESS THAN HUMAN ? 

ANSWER OF A 6 YEAR OLD

This story Melted My heart I wanna share it, so of course it made it's way here for you! Must read .

Being a veterinarian, I had been called to examine a ten-year-old Irish Wolfhound named Belker. The dog’s owners, Ron, his wife Lisa, and their little boy Shane, were all very attached to Belker, and they were hoping for a miracle.

I examined Belker and found he was dying of cancer. I told the family we couldn’t do anything for Belker, and offered to perform the euthanasia procedure for the old dog in their home.

As we made arrangements, Ron and Lisa told me they thought it would be good for six-year-old Shane to observe the procedure. They felt as though Shane might learn something from the experience.

The next day, I felt the familiar catch in my throat as Belker ‘s family surrounded him. Shane seemed so calm, petting the old dog for the last time, that I wondered if he understood what was going on. Within a few minutes, Belker slipped peacefully away.

The little boy seemed to accept Belker’s transition without any difficulty or confusion. We sat together for a while after Belker’s Death, wondering aloud about the sad fact that animal lives are shorter than human lives.
Shane, who had been listening quietly, piped up, ”I know why.”

Startled, we all turned to him. What came out of his mouth next stunned me. I’d never heard a more comforting explanation. It has changed the way I try and live.

He said,”People are born so that they can learn how to live a good life — like loving everybody all the time and being nice, right?” The Six-year-old continued,

”Well, dogs already know how to do that, so they don’t have to stay as long.”

Live simply.

Love generously.

Care deeply.

Speak kindly.

Remember, if a dog was the teacher you would learn things like:

When loved ones come home, always run to greet them.

Never pass up the opportunity to go for a joyride.

Allow the experience of fresh air and the wind in your face to be pure Ecstasy.

Take naps.

Stretch before rising.

Run, romp, and play daily.

Thrive on attention and let people touch you.

Avoid biting when a simple growl will do.

On warm days, stop to lie on your back on the grass.

On hot days, drink lots of water and lie under a shady tree.

When you’re happy, dance around and wag your entire body.

Delight in the simple joy of a long walk.

Be loyal.

Never pretend to be something you’re not.

If what you want lies buried, dig until you find it.

When someone is having a bad day, be silent, sit close by, and nuzzle them gently.
ENJOY EVERY MOMENT OF EVERY DAY!

Author : Unknown

Butterfly Kisses

I saw this and had to watch it.  And of course being the sap that I am I cried the whole time ....

I know that I will never be able to listen to this song again without thinking of the wonderful thing that her brother, family and new family did for her on her special day.

What do you think?  Was this not perfect?

Having a bad day?

Sometimes when you are having a really really bad day, you just need someone to give you a hug and share with you and then it makes everything "feel" better

Just look at that face .....

Doesn't that just make you feel better?

Strong Enough?

Are you Strong Enough?

What do YOU think?

Here's what I think.
No matter how difficult things seem to be .....