Hope trumps doubt everytime

Hope trumps doubt everytime

Live Brightly

Live Brightly

Friday, February 28, 2014

Always Learn

Have you ever asked yourself the question, "Why am I acting like this, I thought I was done with this?"  I find myself in that situation sometimes.  Words, smells, just everyday life stirs up thoughts, thoughts stir up memories, and memories stir up emotions. It all seems to go in a continuous, almost viscous, circle.  
Then I came across this quote and had a Ah Ha moment.  Moral of the Story: People come in and out of your life to teach you something.  Whether it's a good or bad lesson, try to learn from it, you need to learn from it.  Sometimes you will be surprised what you learn when you dig deep, really deep and open your heart to all the possibilities.  Although it may be difficult and even down right painful,  It will only help you in the future.  Always keep in mind: 

If it comes easy, it won't last.  
If it is meant to last, it wont come easy. 

Wednesday, February 26, 2014

Priorities in check

It is so wonderful, realizing just how much my priorities have changed.  Even down to my own Birthday!  Today I was talking to a friend, making plans for her and her boy to drive down to visit me and my little guy next week when I realized, hey...That's my Birthday!  I had completely forgot! So many things that were so important to me in the past just arent' that important anymore!  So later on today I received an email from my Dad asking what I want for my birthday, I instinctively asked for a present for my little guy.  My dad wrote back...It's your Birthday.  I said Yes and I want to give my little guy a present, that would make me the happiest! 
 I am really quite lucky that all my focus, all my heart and soul, everything I have, I get to give all that to him.  
Moral of the Story: If you are unhappy, check your priorities. The greatest and most precious things in life......are not things.

Tuesday, February 25, 2014

I get to just be me

Last night, my little guy and I played the Drums sitting on the kitchen floor, surrounded by pots and pans, tuperware bowls, salad bowls and wooden spoons!  We played drums for over an hour, until we both couldn't handle the drumming anymore!  Then we moved on to a game of ROAR (I chase him around the house, crawling and roaring at him as he runs away screaming, giggling and laughing until I catch him and tickle him...then after bath time, which is always fun, we finally moved on to an evening of drawing, coloring and then reading a book about bubbles over and over again.  My circumstances now allow me to be silly, I get to be a silly, loving, playful Mommy.  He doesn't care if my hair is perfect or my pajama's are cute.  He loves me for me and boy do I love him for that.  I love how I just get to be me.  Moral of the Story, make sure your life allows you to be silly and not care who is watching or you are missing out on a ton!

Monday, February 24, 2014

Attitude: Laughter: Power:

EVERY CIRCUMSTANCE HAS A SILVER LINING
YOU HAVE POWER
YOUR ATTITUDE IS UP TO YOU




























All three quotes come from Joyce Meyers

Joyce Meyers is one of the Most inspiring people I have ever listened to.  She has a way of saying things that just stick with you.

Moral of the Story: Search for things that pick your spirits up and keep you there!  I listen to Joyce Meyers almost every morning from my little boys daycare to work.

If you need some inspiration, some laughter, someone to pick you up then I suggest listening to one of her video's or CD's.


Friday, February 21, 2014

The Middle is always the Toughest Part

I had a long conversation with a friend the other night about what has happened to me and my son over the past year.  Everything we have endured and where we are now.  I received this letter by email from him.  What a wonderful inspiring letter.  

If you need some inspiration, replace your name with mine and read it as it is your own. 

Thank you J! 






Chantel,
This is not a time for regret but a time for courage and rejoicing in what you have achieved and what you are yet to achieve.  Now that you have accepted that some things must come to an end, now you can open your heart and mind...just a little more cautiously this time. Always remember that for each ending there is always a new beginning of something better.  When a door closes another one with so much more to offer will open.  
The very best things in life really do come to those who wait. Rushing into anything only guarantees disappointment.  There are always silver linings to every story. Because of this emotional change your family of two has endured together, you are closer because of it.  The bond is undeniable. Keep your head UP and your Courage STRONG. Love and protect your son with all your might.  Teach him love,compassion and truth.  You are his rock that he will lean on, the one that he will learn the most from.  Focus on being the person he would be proud of and everything will work out perfectly in the end.

Love

J

25 Rules....Love this!

25 Rules for Mothers of Sons

4JAN
This is definitely worth of Fridge Posting!
25 Rules for Mothers of Sons
1. Teach him the words for how he feels.
Your son will scream out of frustration and hide out of embarrassment.  He’ll cry from fear and bite out of excitement.  Let his body move by the emotion, but also explain to him what the emotion is and the appropriate response to that emotion for future reference.  Point out other people who are feeling the same thing and compare how they are showing that emotion.  Talk him through your emotions so that someday when he is grown, he will know the difference between angry and embarrassed; between disappointment and grief.
2. Be a cheerleader for his life.
There is no doubt that you are the loudest person in the stands at his t-ball games.  There is no doubt that he will tell you to “stop, mom” when you sing along to his garage band’s lyrics.  There is no doubt that he will get red-faced when you show his prom date his pictures from boy scouts.  There is no doubt that he is not telling his prom date about your blog where you’ve been bragging about his life from his first time on the potty to the citizenship award he won in ninth grade.  He will tell you to stop.  He will say he’s embarrassed.  But he will know that there is at least one person that is always rooting for him.
3. Teach him how to do laundry.
..And load the dishwasher, and iron a shirt.  He may not always choose to do it.  He may not ever have to do it.  But someday his wife will thank you.
4. Read to him and read with him.
Emilie Buchwald said, “Children become readers on the laps of their parents.”  Offer your son the opportunity to learn new things, believe in pretend places, and imagine bigger possibilities through books.  Let him see you reading…reading the paper, reading novels, reading magazine articles.  Help him understand that writing words down is a way to be present forever.  Writers are the transcribers of history and memories.  They keep a record of how we lived at that time; what we thought was interesting; how we spoke to each other; what was important.  And Readers help preserve and pass along those memories.
5. Encourage him to dance.
Dance, rhythm, and music are cultural universals.  No matter where you go, no matter who you meet – they have some form of the three.  It doesn’t have to be good.  Just encourage your son that when he feels it, it’s perfectly fine to go ahead and bust a move.
6. Make sure he has examples of good men who are powerful because of their brains, their determination, and their integrity.
The examples of men with big muscles and a uniform like Batman will surround your son from birth.  But make sure he also knows about men who kick a$s because of their brains (Albert Einstein), and their pen Mark Twain, and their words (Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.), and their determination (Team Hoyt), and their ideas (The Wright Brothers), and their integrity, and fearlessness (Neil Armstrong), and their ability to keep their mouths closed when everyone else is screaming (Jackie Robinson).
7. Make sure he has examples of women who are beautiful because of their brains, their determination, and their integrity.
The examples of traditionally beautiful women (like Daphna Blake) will surround your son from birth.  But make sure he knows about women who are beautiful from the inside out because of their brains (Madame Maria Curie), and their pen (Harper Lee), and their words (Eleanor Roosevelt), and their determination (Anne Sullivan), and their ideas (Oprah Winfrey), and their integrity (Miep Gies), and fearlessness (Ameila Earhart), and their ability to open their mouths and take a stand when everyone else is silent (Aung San Suu Kyi).
8. Be an example of a beautiful woman with brains, determination, and integrity.
You already are all of those things.  If you ever fear that you are somehow incapable of doing anything - remember this:  If you have done any of the following:  a) grew life b) impossibly and inconceivably got it out of your body c) taken care of a newborn d) made a pain go away with a kiss e) taught someone to read f) taught a toddler to eat with a utensil g) cleaned up diarrhea without gagging h) loved a child enough to be willing to give your life for them (regardless if they are your own) or i) found a way to be strong when that child is suffering...you are a superhero.  do not doubt yourself for one second.  Seriously.
9. Teach him to have manners.
Because its nice.  and it will make the world a little better of a place.
10. Give him something to believe in.
Because someday he will be afraid, or nervous, or heartbroken, or lost, or just need you, and you won’t be able to be there.  Give him something to turn to when it feels like he is alone, so that he knows that he will never be alone; never, never, never.
11. Teach him that there are times when you need to be gentle.
Like with babies, and flowers, and animals, and other people’s feelings.
12. Let him ruin his clothes.
Resolve to be cool about dirty and ruined clothes.  You’ll be fighting a losing battle if you get upset every time he ruins another piece of clothing. Don’t waste your energy being angry about something inevitable.  Boys tend to learn by destroying, jumping, spilling, falling, and making impossible messes.  Dirty, ruined clothes are just par for the course.
13. Learn how to throw a football.
Or how to use a hockey stick, or read music, or draw panda bears (or in my case alpacas), or the names of different train engines, or learn to speak Elvish, or recognize the difference between Gryffindor and Slytherin, or the lyrics to his favorite song.  Be in his life, not as an observer but as an active participant.
14. Go outside with him.
Turn off the television, unplug the video games, put your cellphone on the charger, even put your camera away.  Just go outside and follow him around.  Watch his face, explore his world, and let him ask questions.  It’s like magic.
15. Let him lose.
Losing sucks.  Everybody isn’t always a winner.  Even if you want to say, “You’re a winner because you tried,” don’t.  He doesn’t feel like a winner, he feels sad and crappy and disappointed.  And that’s a good thing, because sometimes life also sucks, no matter how hard (as moms) we try to make it not suck for our kids.  This practice will do him good later when he loses again (and again, and again, and again, and again…..)  Instead make sure he understands that – sometimes you win – sometimes you lose.  But that doesn’t mean you ever give up.
16. Give him opportunities to help others.
There is a big difference in giving someone the opportunity to help and forcing someone to help.  Giving the opportunity lights a flame in the heart and once the help is done the flame shines brighter and asks for more opportunities.  Be an example of helping others in your own actions and the way your family helps each other and helps others together. 
17. Remind him that practice makes perfect.
This doesn’t just apply to performance-based activities (like sports and music) but also applies to everything in life.  You become a better writer by writing.  You become a better listener by listening.  You become better speaker by speaking.  Show your son this when he is just young enough to understand (that means from birth, folks – they are making sense of the world as soon as they arrive), practice trick-or-treating at your own front door before the real thing.  Practice how you will walk through airport security before a trip.  Practice how you order your own food from the fast food cashier.  Practice, practice, practice.
18. Answer him when he asks, “Why?”
Answer him, or search for the answer together.  Show him the places to look for the answers (like his dad, or grandparents, or his aunts/uncles, or his books, or valid internet searches).  Pose the question to him so he can begin thinking about answers himself.  Someday, when he needs to ask questions he’s too embarrassed to ask you – he’ll know where to go to find the right answers.
19. Always carry band-aids and wipes on you.
Especially the wipes.
20. Teach him how to do things.
…Without interrupting about how to do it the ‘right way.’  If you show and teach and discover with your son while he is growing up, some day down the road (after a short period of your son believing you know nothing), he will come to the realization that you knows everything.  
21. Give him something to release his energy.
Drums, a pen, a punching bag, wide open space, water, a dog.  Give him something to go crazy with – or he will use your stuff.  and then you’ll sorry.
22. Build him forts.
Forts have the ability to make everyday normal stuff into magic.  Throw the couch cushions, a couple blankets, and some clothespins and you can transform your living room into the cave of wonders.  For the rest of his life, he’ll be grateful to know that everyday normal stuff has the potential to be magical.
23. Take him to new places.
Because it will make his brain and his heart open up wider, and the ideas and questions and memories will rush in.
24. Kiss him.
Any mother of sons will tell you that little boys are so loving and sweet.  They can be harsh and wild and destructive during most of the day.  But there are these moments when they are so kind and sensitive and tender.  So much so that it can cause you to look around at the inward, reserved grown men in your life and think, ‘what happens in between that made you lose that?’  Let’s try to stop the cycle by kissing them when they’re loving and kissing them even more when they’re wild.  Kissing them when they’re 2 months and kissing them when they’re 16 years old.  You’re the mom – you can go ahead and kiss him no matter how big he gets – and make sure he knows it.   p.s. (this one is just as important for dad’s too). 
25. Be home base.
You are home to him.  When he learns to walk, he will wobble a few feet away from you and then come back, then wobble away a little farther and then come back.  When he tries something new, he will look for your proud smile.  When he learns to read, he will repeat the same book to you twenty times in a row, because you’re the only one who will listen that many times.  When he plays his sport, he will search for your face in the stands.  When he is sick, he will call you.  When he really messes up, he will call you.  When he is grown and strong and tough and big and he feels like crying, he will come to you; because a man can cry in front of his mother without feeling self-conscious.  Even when he grows up and has a new woman in his life and gets a new home, you are still his mother; home base, the ever constant, like the sun.  Know that in your heart and everything else will fall into place.

Thursday, February 20, 2014

My favorite Word and my favorite scripture

I wait for the LORD, my soul doth wait, and in his word do I hope

Having hope is a beautiful thing.  It brings peace to the mind and soul.
Hope keeps you smiling even when the rest of the world is telling you there is no hope.
My other favorite scripture is "God is on your side, then who can stand against you".  

There is always a Funny Side

This is for my friend who had to deal with a very difficult situation last night.  I hope I helped you find some logic and then find some humor in it.  Moral of the Story: Share your experiences, share your funny stories, share your thoughts and ideas.  Sometimes the best medicine is just two friends, laughing and laughing at how rude, cruel, dumb some people are.  Always remind your friends....Karma comes.  She may come late.....but she always comes.  he he he

Tuesday, February 18, 2014

Climb girl climb!

blackboard-quote_2
Sometimes you have to make yourself step out of your comfort zone to find out that your comfort zone has so many more levels to it!  


Moral of the Story: 

If you find your second guessing yourself.....
Just look at all the blessings you have 
because you climbed out onto the limb!  

Monday, February 17, 2014

Be Happy

You are never to old to Play!  Run around, play hide and seek, Build towers with Blocks for the sole purpose of Tearing them down.  Playing is good for the Soul!






Friday, February 14, 2014

Silliness = Happiness

Today I realized how much I wasn't hurting.  It's Valentines Day and I am spending it with the cutest boy on the planet!  My little boy.  I couldn't imagine spending it with anyone else.

One year ago today I knew my life was falling apart, today I know my life is falling together.

In one years time my son and I have become so close, closer than I ever imagined.  I feel more love for him than I ever thought possible.

But the most successful small effort I have accomplished in the past year is that I am once again Silly!

Just the other night as I was chasing my little boy around, crawling underneath tables, hiding under blankets and jumping over the couch playing a game of Hide and Seek, and suddenly I realized I didn't worry what anyone thought.  All that mattered is that we were having a great time giggling and laughing.  All those tough moments, the sad times don't even come close to all the happy, fun, silly games we have played, all the bed time books we have read, all the great moments with just me and my little guy.  He gave me my silliness back!  I forgot how much I love to be silly!

Moral of the Story: Sometimes it is more important to find your silliness, happiness just follows suit.

Thursday, February 13, 2014

3 Post kinda day


 I wanted to post something about being confident.  Whether you are a man or woman:

A Confident Person is a Beautiful Person

Quote 1
Quote 2
My past choices and circumstances left me feeling very unconfident.  I made huge mistakes and have paid for them both emotionally, financially and physically. (Karma came, as she always does)  I have trusted many people that I  found out later that maybe I shouldn't have trusted.  In any case, my ability to love, my ability to trust and my self confidence is returning - slowly.  However, I want to make sure that my confidence returns along with humility.  When I smile, people see a beautiful confident person - not a conceited egotistical person.  Confidence not Cockiness.

The ability to say that my confidence is returning not because of what I have done but because of what other people have done for me.  The forgiveness that special people have given me, the people that came to our rescue - the people that have spent time building me back up from being torn down.  It is because of all of the friendships and charity of people in my life that I am finding confidence in myself and in others again.

Moral of the Story: Quote #1: I don't think you can be confident without being proud of who you are.  If your not proud of yourself, your choices and your experiences.  Make amends with who you need to make amends with.

Quote #2: A unhappy / un-confident  person lashes out at others, a happy confident person feels empathy for the unhappy/unconfident person.  Show empathy toward those who hurt you, you become stronger and happier and you just might help another person along the way.

Quote #3:  This is my own quote (by the way)  I created this a long time ago before my "life experiences" hit me. Always remember to giggle.



Monday, February 10, 2014

Rooting for you




This week I learned how many people are "Rooting" for me and my guy!
It turns out that the very people I honestly didn't think were "rooting for us", well...they are!

Moral of the story.  You may think you are completely alone and that people just don't understand your situation.  You may be wrong, there just might be people out there that are rooting for you, people that know your story and in their hearts are sending you wishes and hope,  but for whatever reason they cannot show it. Be grateful for their prayers

Thursday, February 6, 2014

Give yourself a break

I love this quote.  Reminds me that it is really this simple.  
If life hands you a  "Start Over" card - for whatever reason
Remember
 It's not going to be easy, 
but it is going to be beautiful!

Moral of the Story: 
You are a work in progress, 
and you are progressing beautifully!

Tears

I searched for this quote today as an answer to a moment I had last week!

These days are all about pressing forward and moving on.  So when I have a sad moment I have to stop and think about exactly what I am sad about, making sure I haven't moved backwards in my thinking and I am Pressing On.  I read this quote and immediately realized; my sadness wasn't for me anymore.

Feeling sad for others is a great trait to have.  It simply means you are a good human being, you do still have feelings and you didn't allow your circumstances to harden your heart.

Tuesday, February 4, 2014

Press on toward the Best Miracles

The words Press On have been showing up in my life a lot lately.  I mean alot.  I even wrote a story about it for my little guy to read one day.   Without going into great details, I started  noticing the words "Press On" being placed infront of me over and over again precicely right before the time I was going to need it the most.  


The Moral of this Story is: 
Take time to notice things around you, 
you may be getting help from angels and not even recognizing it!  
Expect the Best 
Do your Best
Press on and Press Forward.