Thursday, December 18, 2008

Where Have I Been?


I've been dreaming of a White Christmas...Just like the one's I used to know.
Look upward seeking God's will in your life...
Look outward desiring to help other's...
Look inward maintaining a deliberate and devoted faith...
I'm so excited we have a big surprise planned for Christmas...stay tuned to find out!

Wednesday, December 10, 2008

Transformed: Day 30 of 30 Days of Positive!

Romans 12:2

...be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind...


Cricket's translation: change your thought pattern- what goes into your mind comes out in your life.

Wow, it's done! 30 days of positive, I did it. It has been a beautiful, rewarding experience. The last 30 days have been awesome. My mind and heart have been exactly where God has intended them to be. Everyday I prayed and meditated on each positve post that I made to make sure it was the right one. I've wrote some that I've never submitted because they just didn't settle in my soul. I truly have been on a positive journey these last 30 days and feel I am in a better place in my life because of it. I felt accountable to all that follow this blog- I felt it a necessity to make sure I was in tune with what God wanted me to post for me & for you.

I started this idea while I was re-reading "The Power of Positive Thinking" by Norman Vincent Peale. I read it last year and decided to read it again and decided to follow some of his thought patterns. The funny thing is he wrote the book in 1952 and he advised making a list of positives on paper for 30 days. I guess I updated it to the 2008 version by making it the focus on my blog. I felt if I had others to hold me accountable I would be less likely to fail. It worked, but I found instead of writing the positives as a daily chore they became more of a daily birth of my heart and mind. My heart and my mind have been forever changed. I find if a negative thought even creeps into my mind now I can feel it. I feel it like I feel a bug crawling on my leg or a cramp in my stomach. I feel ugly and useless and immediately throw that thought to the curb.

I want to thank each of you that have followed and responded via email, phone calls , with a comment in person or by commenting on the blog itself. You all have inspired me to be better and to think better- Thanks... Who knows maybe my New Years Resolution will be 365 Days of Positive??? It has been suggested by my sister and I feel she may be right.

I Love You All- Have A Great Day- Your Mind is New... & Your Heart Changed!

Tuesday, December 9, 2008

Gift Suggestions: Day 29 of 30 Days of Positive!

Christmas gift suggestions:

To your enemy, forgiveness.
To an opponent, tolerance.
To a friend, your heart.
To a customer, service.
To all, charity.
To every child, a good example.
To yourself, respect.

Monday, December 8, 2008

Be Thankful For Work: Day 28 of 30 Days of Positive!

Never work just for power and money. They won't save your soul or help you sleep at night.
Marian Wright Edelman

-from the fruit of his lips a man is filled with good things as surely as the work of his hands rewards him.
Proverbs 12:14


I long to accomplish a great and noble tasks, but it is my chief duty to accomplish humble tasks as though they were great and noble. The world is moved along, not only by the mighty shoves of its heroes, but also by the aggregate of the tiny pushes of each honest worker.

Helen Keller


Opportunity is missed by most because it is dressed in overalls and looks like work.

Thomas Edison



So this morning I had to run to the grocery store to pick up a few things. I immediately noticed the man replenishing the produce, he was happily whistling the Twelve Days of Christmas as he worked. In one of the isles another man was stocking the crackers and he too was humming a little tune and acknowledged me with a big, "Good Morning." Then as I was checking out the joyful voice and intriguing story of the bag boy in the lane behind me caught my attention. He was talking with the elderly couple that were checking out , and upon hearing his voice I immediately smiled. You know the type. The "older jolly grandpa voice" the voice that brings you comfort- He was telling the little couple about an episode of "Johny Carson" from years ago. Apparently Johny had a 144 year old guest on the show and he was asked his secret to living so long. The 144 year old said "I never let a day go by with out happily accomplishing something." The man checking out then asked the bagger how old he was, and he answered 88. I put 2 and 2 together and figured out that they too were taken with him. They must have commented on his great attitude while bagging their groceries, which led him to his Johny Carson story. Wow I thought- so happy just to be working, so happy just to talk to people...and 88 years old! He was adorable and he made my day! My post for the day too-
I hope my attitude may always be like those Publix employees while I am working. I also hope that I too will be as grateful as that 88 year old seems to be.
What a great morning- I was blessed! Thanks-




Sunday, December 7, 2008

You Can! Day 27 of 30 Days of Positive!

I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me!
Phillipians 4:13

Saturday, December 6, 2008

Your Season is Coming: Day 26 of 30 Days of Positive!

Most of my youth was spent in Michigan & Pennsyslvania. The thing I miss most about those states are their beautiful seasons. Mother Earth's way of showing us that everything has it's moment, things are born, they change , they rest and next season they bloom again. This is Father God's way of showing us we too will bloom many times over the course of our lives and at different seasons. Have Faith, no one ever just "blooms" once!



In three words I can sum up everything I learned about life: it goes on.

Robert Frost

Friday, December 5, 2008

No Complaining: Day 25 of 30 Days of Positive!

No matter how small your paycheck was this week, No matter what the weather was like, No matter what the "grouchy lady" said to you, No matter how much you have -to-do, No matter how tight your jeans are, No matter who cut you off in traffic , No matter how messy your house gets, No matter how much "it " cost, No matter how tired you are, No matter how long you waited in line, No matter how hard you worked, No matter how "lucky" they are, No matter what time you had to get up, No matter how bad your bones are aching, No matter how much your electric bill was last month, No matter what- don't COMPLAIN!
Complaining does nothing good for anyone. It only brings you and the ones you complain to down and eventually if you let it it will keep you there. Don't get caught up in Complaining - it is a nasty trap!

In everything you do, stay away from complaining and arguing,
Philippians 2:14

A Complaining spirit is first a caller,



then a comforting guest,




and finally a master...a master leading you no where.


Thursday, December 4, 2008

Accept Differences: Day 24 of 30 days of Positive!

I love my dogs just as they are- just like they love me just as I am! Pets are awesome...they don't try to change us, they love us when we're sad, when we're happy, when we're right and when we are wrong. They love us when we stink, or say the wrong thing, if we're too fat or too skinny. They like all our hairstyles, and any outfit that we are wearing. Pet's love our hearts. I too want to be more like my pets.
"Charlie" are big bundle of love.
Accept differences.
We are all unique, in our outlook, perceptions, attitudes, feelings, experiences, and history. There is no one just like us in the world. There never has been an exact duplicate of us, nor will there ever be one.

Differences make life interesting, and yes, challenging. Dealing with other people who see life differently makes for interesting relationships. Differences give life its opportunities for growth, insight, and awareness. The unfortunate thing is that these differences can often lead to unmanaged or unresolved conflict, stress, and disappointment.

People who live happy lives accept the uniqueness of individuals. They are not on a mission to change them, correct them or invalidate them. Happy people understand that everyone is on their own path throughout life doing what they need to do in order for them to fulfill their destiny.

Happy people also accept themselves for who they are, and who they are becoming. They are not in a rush to get to the end of the game. They are patient with themselves and others knowing that differences in human behavior is, just the way it is.

Who are you trying to change? Who in your life needs behavior or attitude modification? If you have a long list you have a lot of work to do on yourself before you will find true happiness.





Phoebe posing for the camera...she is a super model!

Wednesday, December 3, 2008

Focus: Day 23 of 30 Days of Positive!

WHAT YOU FOCUS ON GROWS!



GOOD



OR BAD!


Tuesday, December 2, 2008

Be Present: Day 22 of 30 Days of Positive!

Throw your "act" away so you may offer the "real" you to others and in return begin to live!


I heard a story once about an elderly married couple. They were at a newcomers' dessert-type thing, a get acquainted type party. As part of the introduction they were asked to share their "family motto." The elderly couple was the type you are easily drawn to. The gentleman had a twinkle in his eye, a spark, as if he had discovered the secret to life. His wife was a tiny woman who was described as being very present. She was not a woman in hiding, nor a woman afraid. She was a woman at rest, at home with herself and with all pistons firing. She was alive and beautiful.

The gentleman looked at his wife and asked, "Do we have a family motto?" She answered, "Well, it's been on the refrigerator for the past thirty years." He asked, What? Amana?" (the Brand name) After some laughter, this is what she shared. This is what she lived by. This is what she invited others into.

This is their motto:


Now we should live when the pulse of life is strong. Life is a tenuous thing...fragile, fleeting. Don't wait for tomorrow. Be here now! Be here now! Be here now!


Be here now. Be real and present in this moment. Do not continue to hide, so much will be lost. We cannot have friendship or intimacy with God or anyone else if we stay hidden and offer only who we think we ought to be or what we believe is wanted. Remove your face that you have learned is safe, remove it and be what God intended you to be. It's not by accident that you were born; it was not by chance that you have desires you do.


God really does want you to know who you are. He wants you to be able to understand the story of your life. To know where you've come from, and where you are going. There is freedom there. Freedom to be and to offer and to love.

So who are you? You are God's perfect design. You were chosen before time and space, and you are wholly and dearly loved. You are needed. You are needed to play out your role in this life. The role God intended for you.

So go and let your guard down- be you- the you God intended. He makes no mistakes and everything he makes is beautiful!

Monday, December 1, 2008

Do Something Good: Day 21 of 30 Days of Positive!

Do Something Good- Because You Never Know- You May Be Laying The Groundwork For Something Great!
** In the late nineteenth century, a member of Parliament traveled to Scotland to make a speech. He traveled to Edinburgh by train and then took a carriage southward to his destination. The carriage, however, became mired in the mud. A Scottish farm boy came to the rescue with a team of horses and pulled the carriage loose. The politician asked the boy how much he owed him, "Nothing," the lad replied. "Are you sure?" the politician pressed, but the boy declined payment. "Well, is there anything I can do for you? What do you want to be when you grow up?"The boy responded, "A doctor." The aristocratic Englishmen offered to help the young Scot go to the university, and he followed through on his pledge.
More than half a century later, Winston Churchill lay dangerously ill with pneumonia- stricken while attending a wartime conference in Morocco. A new wonder drug was administered to him- a drug called penicillin that had been discovered by Sir Alexander Fleming. Fleming was the young Scottish lad once befriended. His benefactor? Randolph Churchill, Winston's father!
Sometimes the good that we do may come back in the form of a miracle you need.

**

Don't be misled. Remember that you can't ignore God and get away with it. You will always reap what you sow! So don't get tired of doing what is good. Don't get discouraged and give up, for we will reap a harvest of blessing at the appropriate time.
Galatians 6:7,9 NLT


Hayden

Hayden
Fun at the beach

St. Anthony's

St. Anthony's
Brooke, Aubrey & Cricket

I'm Tryin!

I'm Tryin!
You've Come Along Way Baby.

St Anthony's

St Anthony's
Go Paulser!