Finally! Snow has arrived and winter is here! I have been stalking the weather channel for weeks. WEEKS!
I grew up on the Gulf Coast of Louisiana and winter was just "less hot" than the rest of the year. We saw snow in the mountains of Colorado on annual family vacations. Maybe that is why I love it so much. I have memories attached to it. It takes me back to places I love. Happy places.
And when the snow is gone, I will be happy to see green grass, leaves, and flowers. And then I will celebrate summer so my kids can swim and swim and swim. And I will celebrate fall (my other favorite) when the leaves are changing and I can start anticipating snow again.
Change is good.......
Wednesday, January 12, 2011
Sunday, January 2, 2011
Now What?
Happy New Year! Have you spent the last several days resolving to make changes? Resolving to not make changes? If for only one day a year we think about where we are in our lives, and have even small thoughts about how we love that place or how we would like to be in a different place, what is the harm in that? Personal reflection is good. If it also happens to motivate us to make changes, even better! Please don't lecture me on how resolutions are stupid and you have no faith in people following through on them. You focus on what you need to do in your life and I will focus on what I need to do in my life. I will celebrate your successes with you and offer a shoulder and an ear if you need to reflect on why it did not happen the way you planned it. Either way - it is YOUR life and you have the power to make it what it will be. It is your journey. Every success and failure are equally important on the path.
Even thoughI do not consider my journey to be on a 12 month schedule, I posted this blog on myspace on January 5th, 2007: I am dedicating 2007 to finding Elainne. There! I said it!!! Let it be.......
I will continue on my journey, but as of right this minute, I do not know what that means. What can I do today/this week/this month/this year that will make my life better? I can make a list of things, but I have to be honest and say that I do not know how many of them I am willing or even ready to tackle. And I am ok with that. I don't need a "grand plan." As long as I hold strong in knowing that I am in control of my life, whatever it is, this is what works for me. On the other hand, I must also accept the consequences for my lack of action. No regrets. This is the hard part. I cannot justify beating myself up for how things are if I have done nothing to change them. January 1st, 2012 will come whether or not I make any changes in my life. It is up to me!
So, now what?
Even thoughI do not consider my journey to be on a 12 month schedule, I posted this blog on myspace on January 5th, 2007: I am dedicating 2007 to finding Elainne. There! I said it!!! Let it be.......
I will continue on my journey, but as of right this minute, I do not know what that means. What can I do today/this week/this month/this year that will make my life better? I can make a list of things, but I have to be honest and say that I do not know how many of them I am willing or even ready to tackle. And I am ok with that. I don't need a "grand plan." As long as I hold strong in knowing that I am in control of my life, whatever it is, this is what works for me. On the other hand, I must also accept the consequences for my lack of action. No regrets. This is the hard part. I cannot justify beating myself up for how things are if I have done nothing to change them. January 1st, 2012 will come whether or not I make any changes in my life. It is up to me!
So, now what?
Friday, December 31, 2010
Holiday Traditions......
I started this blog post on Nov 19th.....
Since we have had kids, I have tortured myself with creating traditions that they will look back on and remember with a happy heart. I have memories like that and I want it very bad for them. The problem is that we travel for holidays so often that it has been impossible to create those traditions. I don't want our tradition to be that we were never home for Christmas. Although, it will be interesting to hear how they feel when they realize what we had to do to get those HUGE christmas gifts to Nana and Granny's houses for so many years!!
Big Daddy and I have talked about this often and we know what has to happen. We need to stay home and create our own traditions. I want to bake holiday treats and decorate the house and go to every Christmas related activity we can squeeze in. We will search for the best neighborhoods for light displays. And we will anticipate Santa with every ounce of holiday spirit.
This is how it really worked out........
We stayed home.
We saw Santa's Christmas Clown at The Crown Uptown.
The kids decorated the Christmas tree and I did not re-arrange even one thing!
We did not drive around to look at lights, but we noticed them and oooohed and ahhhhhhhed while we were driving around doing other things.
We listened to Christmas music every time we were in the car and a little bit in the house.
We made gingerbread houses, fudge, and baked a cake.
We did a very speedy "Santa" visit at the mall.
The kids anticipated Santa with a greater gusto than ever before.
Christmas morning was magical and everyone was happy.
Here is what I learned:
Relax............I try too hard to force traditions and memories on us. If we live our lives and do things that make us happy every day, those are the things that matter. I cannot re-create "my" memories in my kids heads. And I know for 100% sure that I do not want their memory to be that I forced them to do stupid stuff nobody cared about and then cried when they were not interested. That would be crazy :)
Moving on to the New Year!
Since we have had kids, I have tortured myself with creating traditions that they will look back on and remember with a happy heart. I have memories like that and I want it very bad for them. The problem is that we travel for holidays so often that it has been impossible to create those traditions. I don't want our tradition to be that we were never home for Christmas. Although, it will be interesting to hear how they feel when they realize what we had to do to get those HUGE christmas gifts to Nana and Granny's houses for so many years!!
Big Daddy and I have talked about this often and we know what has to happen. We need to stay home and create our own traditions. I want to bake holiday treats and decorate the house and go to every Christmas related activity we can squeeze in. We will search for the best neighborhoods for light displays. And we will anticipate Santa with every ounce of holiday spirit.
This is how it really worked out........
We stayed home.
We saw Santa's Christmas Clown at The Crown Uptown.
The kids decorated the Christmas tree and I did not re-arrange even one thing!
We did not drive around to look at lights, but we noticed them and oooohed and ahhhhhhhed while we were driving around doing other things.
We listened to Christmas music every time we were in the car and a little bit in the house.
We made gingerbread houses, fudge, and baked a cake.
We did a very speedy "Santa" visit at the mall.
The kids anticipated Santa with a greater gusto than ever before.
Christmas morning was magical and everyone was happy.
Here is what I learned:
Relax............I try too hard to force traditions and memories on us. If we live our lives and do things that make us happy every day, those are the things that matter. I cannot re-create "my" memories in my kids heads. And I know for 100% sure that I do not want their memory to be that I forced them to do stupid stuff nobody cared about and then cried when they were not interested. That would be crazy :)
Moving on to the New Year!
Wednesday, November 10, 2010
Tis the Season - To Be Thankful
I am thankful for Big Daddy
I am thankful for Amanda, Samantha, Zachary, and Cooper
I am thankful for my dad, mom, sisters, brothers, nieces, nephews, and a very large extended family.
I am thankful for a large home, 3 working vehicles, and two incomes.
I am thankful for friends.
I am thankful for all of the experiences in my life. The good, the bad, and the ugly.
I am thankful for Sammy dog, and that I did not break my neck when I tripped over Sadie dog.
I am thankful for Pumpkin Spice coffee and Cheesecake
I am thankful for healthy children who laugh and love
I am thankful for my laptop and my baby lappy
I am thankful for Nicole and that she has Marcus and Raylee
I am thankful for cool crisp temperatures
I am thankful for C-Pap
I am thankful that soon it will be the season to be jolly!!!
I am thankful for Amanda, Samantha, Zachary, and Cooper
I am thankful for my dad, mom, sisters, brothers, nieces, nephews, and a very large extended family.
I am thankful for a large home, 3 working vehicles, and two incomes.
I am thankful for friends.
I am thankful for all of the experiences in my life. The good, the bad, and the ugly.
I am thankful for Sammy dog, and that I did not break my neck when I tripped over Sadie dog.
I am thankful for Pumpkin Spice coffee and Cheesecake
I am thankful for healthy children who laugh and love
I am thankful for my laptop and my baby lappy
I am thankful for Nicole and that she has Marcus and Raylee
I am thankful for cool crisp temperatures
I am thankful for C-Pap
I am thankful that soon it will be the season to be jolly!!!
Sunday, October 10, 2010
The missing blogs.....
Even though I have no formal event or thought process I want to blog about right now, I felt a need to acknowledge that I have not blogged in a while. There have been plenty of blog-worthy events in my life, I have just not had the energy to put them in grammatically correct blog format. Instead, I will leave you with random thoughts that I would blog about if I had the energy. Enjoy!
If you are going to have friends in your life, know what that means to you. And know what it means to them.
I love Miche bags, Pampered Chef, Scentsy, and C-PAP!
I found Cooper half asleep peeing in the dog food. I am still laughing about it. Poor lil guy. Gotta love him!
I hate back pain, tooth pain, when people I love are struggling, and that my children are growing way faster than I can accept.
Walter's Pumpkin Patch is a fabulous place to make memories with your children and friends.
Graduate school is no joke and I am SO glad I decided to go part-time.
That's all folks!
If you are going to have friends in your life, know what that means to you. And know what it means to them.
I love Miche bags, Pampered Chef, Scentsy, and C-PAP!
I found Cooper half asleep peeing in the dog food. I am still laughing about it. Poor lil guy. Gotta love him!
I hate back pain, tooth pain, when people I love are struggling, and that my children are growing way faster than I can accept.
Walter's Pumpkin Patch is a fabulous place to make memories with your children and friends.
Graduate school is no joke and I am SO glad I decided to go part-time.
That's all folks!
Saturday, September 11, 2010
September 21st: 1968, 1994, and 2007
One day with three reasons to celebrate.
September 21st, 1968: I made my entrance in to this world in a small town in Southwest Louisiana. My reasons to celebrate this day have changed in the last few years. In addition to increasing the number that describes how long its been since I was born, it is a day to be thankful for the two daughters who have called me "mom."
September 21st, 1994: "Amanda Lynn" entered this world in a small town in Lapeer, Michigan. When they handed her to me at 4 months old, I loved her immediately. When they told me her birthday, I knew she was mine. I knew the reason for all of those years of infertility were so we would open our hearts to other options. I remember every detail about the day we first met her. She was wearing the most adorable pair of denim overalls and had a head full of crazy curly hair. She no longer lives in our house, and now calls us Aunt and Uncle, but she will always be a part of our family and have a place in our "home." I earned my mommy stripes with her and nothing changes that! When people ask how many kids we have, I say "three," but then take a moment to acknowledge her in my heart. She is always there.
September 21st, 2007: Samantha Jo White became Samantha Jo Fulenwider in a small courtroom in Wichita, Kansas. The phone call you get when someone says "come get this baby," is not one you ever forget. November 2003: I was sitting at work with no idea of how my life was about to change. A series of phone calls, an urgent plea for time off work, and less than 24 hours later, I was on my way to Arkansas to "get that baby." Three years later, we were notified that on September 21st, a judge had granted our petition for adoption.
September 21st! Our special day!! Three lives not bound by blood, but connected with an eternal bond. I can't think of a better way to celebrate my birthday than to celebrate two incredible girls who I get to call "mine."
A perfect day to reflect on the journey, and to be thankful that even though Big Daddy was not sure how it would go, he opened his heart and trusted my mantra that it would be ok. It only took him about .5 seconds to love them too!
September 21st, 1968: I made my entrance in to this world in a small town in Southwest Louisiana. My reasons to celebrate this day have changed in the last few years. In addition to increasing the number that describes how long its been since I was born, it is a day to be thankful for the two daughters who have called me "mom."
September 21st, 1994: "Amanda Lynn" entered this world in a small town in Lapeer, Michigan. When they handed her to me at 4 months old, I loved her immediately. When they told me her birthday, I knew she was mine. I knew the reason for all of those years of infertility were so we would open our hearts to other options. I remember every detail about the day we first met her. She was wearing the most adorable pair of denim overalls and had a head full of crazy curly hair. She no longer lives in our house, and now calls us Aunt and Uncle, but she will always be a part of our family and have a place in our "home." I earned my mommy stripes with her and nothing changes that! When people ask how many kids we have, I say "three," but then take a moment to acknowledge her in my heart. She is always there.
September 21st, 2007: Samantha Jo White became Samantha Jo Fulenwider in a small courtroom in Wichita, Kansas. The phone call you get when someone says "come get this baby," is not one you ever forget. November 2003: I was sitting at work with no idea of how my life was about to change. A series of phone calls, an urgent plea for time off work, and less than 24 hours later, I was on my way to Arkansas to "get that baby." Three years later, we were notified that on September 21st, a judge had granted our petition for adoption.
September 21st! Our special day!! Three lives not bound by blood, but connected with an eternal bond. I can't think of a better way to celebrate my birthday than to celebrate two incredible girls who I get to call "mine."
A perfect day to reflect on the journey, and to be thankful that even though Big Daddy was not sure how it would go, he opened his heart and trusted my mantra that it would be ok. It only took him about .5 seconds to love them too!
Monday, August 30, 2010
Teach your children about your journey
"You have to teach your children about your journey"
I heard this on a television program and can't get it out of my head. What would I want to teach my children about my journey? What journey? My entire life journey? Spin-offs of my journey? I'm not really sure, but it sure has me thinking about what kinds of things I hope my kids will be thankful for learning from me. Here are a few that stand out.
1) Blood does not make you family. This is by far the most valuable lesson I have learned in my life. I could talk about this for pages and pages and pages.
2) Secrets are destructive. Even when kept in order to protect. No one has a right to decide what you should or should not know about yourself. The events that people keep secret are a part of your story and you have a right to decide how they will impact your journey.
3) You control your own destiny. You can only expect to have the kind of life that you are willing to work for. You are not entitled to anything. Live without regrets.
4) No one is better than you because of tangible items, economic class, or popularity. You are not better than anyone else because of tangible items, economic class, or popularity. This speaks for itself.
This blog post could be a million pages full of my thoughts and opinions about things, but these are things that are on my mind today. What do you want your kids to learn about or from your journey?
I heard this on a television program and can't get it out of my head. What would I want to teach my children about my journey? What journey? My entire life journey? Spin-offs of my journey? I'm not really sure, but it sure has me thinking about what kinds of things I hope my kids will be thankful for learning from me. Here are a few that stand out.
1) Blood does not make you family. This is by far the most valuable lesson I have learned in my life. I could talk about this for pages and pages and pages.
2) Secrets are destructive. Even when kept in order to protect. No one has a right to decide what you should or should not know about yourself. The events that people keep secret are a part of your story and you have a right to decide how they will impact your journey.
3) You control your own destiny. You can only expect to have the kind of life that you are willing to work for. You are not entitled to anything. Live without regrets.
4) No one is better than you because of tangible items, economic class, or popularity. You are not better than anyone else because of tangible items, economic class, or popularity. This speaks for itself.
This blog post could be a million pages full of my thoughts and opinions about things, but these are things that are on my mind today. What do you want your kids to learn about or from your journey?
