There are so many things that we want to accomplish each day, why sweat the small stuff? When it comes to raising children, I often hear people say, “You have to pick your battles.” I tend to agree with choosing to focus on the things you feel are most important. Allowing some of the smaller less important things to go and focusing on the more important issues at hand. However, it is important to make sure you focus on some of the issues. Picking your battles does require you to choose items to focus on! For me, when we lived…
Honesty is a very tricky thing. On the one hand, we want to be honest with others and on the other hand, sometimes honesty can be very hurtful. Honesty is important and should be heartfelt, taking into consideration how we would feel being told the same information by someone else. One of the most crucial points is how honesty is delivered. Being honest to a fault can be tough on friendships. It can be hurtful, ugly, and yet sometimes necessary. It gets difficult when there is a fine line between being honest, not saying anything, and lying. Sometimes these are…
Sometimes our feelings of rejection are real, other times the rejection is perceived. Either way, it is a terrible feeling and one that we hope rarely or never happens to anyone. Unfortunately, it happens to most of us all too often. Welcoming people into our circle of friends is a risk, particularly those who were once rejected. We normally welcome people of like minds who have similar values as ourselves. However, it is more difficult to accept people who have for some reason been an outsider or lost their rapport with the group. Not being aware of people feeling rejected…
Just as the moon shines light through the darkness so does hope. Sometimes the moon shines bright, other times it is difficult to find. Hope also shines bright at times and at other times one has to search for signs of hope. Although we don’t always see it, the moon is always there. So too, hope is always present. During the dark, difficult times, finding hope can be a struggle. But hope is present for those who choose to have faith. I can remember times when hanging on to hope was difficult, but it has always paid off. One…
More often than not the anticipation leading to an event is equally as fun as the event itself. As a family, we love to anticipate what adventures are ahead of us. We think about, plan, and dream about what might occur at the actual event. I love that my girls find joy in thinking about what might happen, and are able to dream about different possible outcomes. Not only does it enhance the imagination, I believe it strengthens our overall ability to enjoy the event. As a family, we talk about various places we would like to go and think…
With spring comes all the beauty of new blossoms and beginnings. Just as we are getting restless with our old winter routine, renewed life and beauty arrive. In comes spring! Allowing yourself to blossom and reach your potential is something that we all have an opportunity to learn. It takes a conscious decision to do things to help us achieve our potential. We can choose to live our lives at our current potential or to take ourselves to the next level. Often we look to reading self-help books, listening to motivational podcasts, and reciting daily affirmations to help us…
One might say that I am in the zone or maybe that I have tunnel vision. I have this habit of focusing on the task at hand to the point of being somewhat oblivious to other things around me. Sometimes this can be a huge asset and other times it can be rather embarrassing. I find it rather humiliating when my tunnel vision takes over and I don’t see or acknowledge people that I know when I am out and about running errands. Partially at fault is the fact that my corrective eye surgery is wearing off. But more…
What makes a day great? What makes one day better than another? What is it that energizes us to smile and say, “That was a great day!”? How can we make our days as great as possible? We often tell each other to have a nice day or maybe even a great day. Although those are pleasant comments that I use daily, I also like to challenge myself to, “Make it a great day.” The one-word difference makes us put action into our day. It assumes that we are going to set out to turn the day into something…
Sometimes doubt prepares us for what is ahead, sometimes it produces fear, and sometimes it offers an opportunity to change direction. Have you ever experienced feeling apprehensive about something you are about to do or say? It is that feeling of doubt that sends out a warning signal, almost like an SOS, giving one an opportunity to stay on course or change direction. Preparing us for what is ahead. As uncertainty sets in so do the feelings of discomfort. What am I getting myself into? Suddenly a feeling of panic and the question, am I doing the right thing? That…
I will never forget the day that I was painting the master bathroom. I had just finished with the last of the painting. It was late, I always painted late at night when the kids were little. Of course, I was tired and thrilled to be finished with the room. All that was left was to clean up. As I went to remove the ladder from the bathroom, I was unaware that I had left the open can of paint on the top of the ladder. I carried the ladder out of the bathroom into the bedroom so I had…