Social media is all the rage now. It is everywhere, all of the time. You see people on Facebook, Twitter and other sites. When is the last time you went out and didn't see someone on their phone. Perhaps you are guilty of it yourself, I know that I am.
In my house we have a simple rule of no phones or devices at the dinner table. Most of us abide by it, with one exception, my husband. If his phone goes off he will check it. I am not sure what could be so important that it can't wait 15 minutes, but it is something I have accepted. He is an adult after all and can make his own choices. My children however do not have that choice.
Social media can be a nice way to keep in touch with distant family, catch up with long lost friends, and even waste a little time mindlessly. The problem is that for many people it becomes a time sucker. You go on the computer just to check a couple of things and before you know it an hour is gone. What could you have accomplished if you didn't have the Internet during that hour? What did you miss out on?
It leads me to wonder, are you on line, dreaming of the life you want, or are you out there living the life you dream? We are only here once, why waste it? Nobody is going to put on their gravestone "wish I had spent more time on Pinterest, Facebook, Twitter, etc."
It is time to live the life you dream. Stop thinking of the adventures you would like to have, things you want to try, and get off the computer and Do Them!

growing up

 

I remember it like it was yesterday. My little boy held my hand and looked at his teacher, Mrs. Berthiaume, with eager eyes. I told him it was okay to go with her and he just let go and walked away. My little boy never even looked back down the hallway at me. I left the school with tears in my eyes but proud. I had raised my child with enough confidence to go on his own with my reassurance.
Today I watch as my boy has grown to a young man. He starts high school this year, still eager to learn and experience new things in life. I left him with the words that this was his time, his life, his experience.
It is again a bitter sweet moment. My child is growing up so fast. High school! I am proud of who he is becoming. He volunteers at the library, plays sports for fun, and became a state licensed emergency medical responder this past summer.
May the road that lies ahead of him lead to great places. If it doesn't then I have no doubt he will create his own path.

Walls

Walls. Not physical walls but rather I am thinking more about the imaginary ones that are in our lives.
Some people put up walls to protect themselves. This happens after we have been hurt by someone that we let ourselves love. We hope that by putting up a wall around our heart we protect our feelings, we will not let anyone hurt us again. We no longer trust. But who are we really not trusting? If you don't give someone a chance then you can't decide if they are worthy of your trust. Maybe the person you truly are not trusting is yourself. You don't trust your instincts to choose the right person to open your feelings to. You don't trust yourself to go through the pain of losing someone if they go away. To break down the wall you need to trust yourself first. If you don't allow yourself to feel for others you lose out on a wonderful part of life. You must feel pain to really know what pleasure feels like. You are here for one lifetime, why waste it feeling nothing?
If you build a wall to keep friends out then you feel alone when you need support. You need friends. You also need family. People put up a wall to keep family out too. This seems to be okay because family is replaced by friends that we consider family. Maybe these friends treat us the way we wish our family did. Perhaps these friends have similar moral values, therefor we want them as our family. Truth is they are still not your actual family. The wall you use to keep family out may be necessary because your family is truly abusive or dangerous. If it is simply that you don't agree with their choices in life then you may end up with deep regrets when they are gone forever and it it too late to love them for who they are, even with their faults.
If you have walls then as you grow and mature there comes a time to ask yourself what purpose these walls are serving.

Quote of the week

This is your world. Shape it or someone else will.
Gary Lew

This is my new fountain. There is something so peaceful about the sound of flowing water. I love to sit quietly by and listen to this fountain. It reminds me to let things go, relax, find peace inside myself.
I remind myself to be in this moment, not in the past that I can not change, not in the future that will come in its own time.

Give up or step up

Today is fat Tuesday, the day before Ash Wednesday for Catholics. This means that for those of us practicing, we traditionally give up something until Easter.
In my household we have a second option. We can step up. What does that mean? Well, it means that you step up for the Lenten season and do something positive. For example you will be kind to at least one person everyday, or you will volunteer to help someone less fortunate, you get the idea. You step up to do something positive until Easter.
My children have found this to work better when they were younger. Instead of setting themselves up for failure by giving up something impossible they set themselves up for success and develop a positive trait in the process.
This year my boys are old enough to give up something. They are giving up arguing with one another. This should be interesting since this is their favorite pastime lately. They will replace insults with positive reinforcement.
I am giving up potato chips. This may not seem like much but if you know me then you know that I go through a couple of bags of chips myself every week. My boys are a little worried that I might be miserable to live with. I think I will be fine once I detox from the salt and carbs that I crave. I will have to do double duty and step up this year. I will resolve to step up and check my mood as the time progresses.
Whatever you are giving up or stepping up to for this season ask yourself why you are choosing the choice you made. Is it for your benefit or the benefit of others? Both is a good answer. If you are unsure of what to give up then look back to your New Years resolution. Now might be the perfect time to reinforce what you resolved to do almost two months ago. Step up to improve your health by exercising, or give up an unhealthy food.
Whatever you choose good luck and remember you only fail if you quit trying. Nobody expects perfection.

February resolution

A month has passed by and I need to make a new resolution. I make a new resolution every month instead of one for the whole year. In January it was to clean out and organize my kitchen. I was pretty successful. I completed my kitchen with exception of two drawers. I was sick for two weeks so I missed a bit of time. I will complete these this month.
February will continue my cleaning. Now I will move on to closets and bathroom cabinets. These areas tend to get quite cluttered. It is good once a year to go through and get rid of what I don't need or use as well as things that have expired. It always amazes me how much room I end up with when I am done. My donate bag will be full if I do a good job.
How are you doing on your resolution? Don't be afraid to set new goals as the year progresses. Life changes as we move forward. It is a good sign when we need to readjust our goals. Move forward on your journey.
Live Laugh Love

Motivating quotes

I have recently been introduced to a new web experience called pinterest. It is a place that collects images, quotes, recipes and other random items from the web and posts them. You can then select the ones you love and "pin" them to your profile. This allows you to recall them at the click of a mouse. I love this idea. I have been finding quotes that both inspire me and make me laugh. I have found recipes to try and cool ideas for my garden this spring.
My favorite thing to search for though is the motivational quotes. They are moving me in a positive direction. I have decided to pull them off of my computer and every week and post a new one on my mirror so I can see it every day. This is a new exercise for me in motivating my life. Some days I just need a gentle reminder of the direction I want to go. Forward. I like to look back at my past sometimes to remind myself how far I have come but I don't want to live in it.
Live Laugh Love

Courage

Courage is waking up to the same challenges of yesterday and fighting them anew.
It is the commitment to hope when holding onto one's heart by the treads of a prayer.
Courage is the giving of all that one is without knowing what shall be offered in returned.
Courage is Faith in action.
Courage is You.
Live Laugh Love

Priorities of my 10 year old

Every night I tuck my children into bed. It is a time when they feel most comfortable talking about their day, especially if they have a problem or concern. Last night my youngest had a simple question. He asked what the highest paying job is. I told him probably a football or baseball player. His reaction was priceless.
He immediately was shocked and said to me " that is messed up". He couldn't believe that an athlete gets paid more then those who save and protect lives. He wanted to know why, so I explained that Americans value entertainment more. My child then decided that this is very wrong.
In this moment he said he realized what his purpose on earth is. He is to become president and fix this problem. He believes that those who protect people and save lives should be valued more then someone who is running around playing sports that are fun to play anyway.
Pretty profound for a 10 year old child. I came out of his room, looked at my husband and told him that we have raised a great kid. I couldn't have been more proud of him then in that moment. Sad thing is that if a child gets it then why don't adults?

Progress

We are three days into the new year. It may seem too soon but I am taking note as to whether I am keeping my resolutions. My yearly resolution is to take a picture every day. Well I haven't taken one yet so as soon as I am done with this post I will be getting out my camera. I am thinking that maybe a picture a day is a little unrealistic. I may need to adjust this one. I would rather allow some leniency then to set myself up for failure.
My monthly resolution is to reorganize my kitchen. I started today with my kitchen island. I reorganized my k cups. I also finally organized my recipes. I was getting recipes from a mail order club for about a year. I had three months worth of them that needed to be put into their binder. Today I did that and reorganized my recipe books. I have a long way to go but I also have the rest of the month.
So how are you doing on your resolution? If you check in frequently it will catch you when you slip a little. Then maybe you can get back on track before it feels like it is too late. It is never to late.
Time for me to go take some pictures now.
Live Laugh Love