Five Random Things in My Week

Oh Friday… what a wonderful day in this busy week.

I am participating in the Five on Friday blog hop on The Good Life Blog. The prompt is as follows: blog about any five things… things I am loving, things on my mind...anything I want. How fun is that? And so here goes….

-One-

One of my favorite shows started up again last week. I am not condoning a lot of TV watching.... but I think it is so fun to have a few shows to look forward to each week :) And Person of Interest is one of those intense, comical, entertaining, and therefore addicting shows! Love it.

-Two-

My adorable little nephew turned one last month. So crazy! I just loved the array of emotions that was portrayed while waiting for his coconut chocolate cake (which was both healthy and insanely delicious by the way!)

-Three-

We are reading "The Old Curiosity Shop" in our book club this month. I am about half way through. I laugh and I cry. There are some of the most fascinating, inspirational, and frankly weird, characters in this novel. Dickens has to be one of the most amazing writers.

-Four-
I am on like the hundredth day of the squat challenge (perhaps this is a slight exaggeration). There are some feelings of relief when I am done with my squats for the day... but I am really enjoying the challenge. Squats are one of THE BEST things you can do for your rear, especially if you suffer from FBS (Flat Booty Syndrome). Its just about building the habit and sticking with it :)

-Five-
So the other day when I went to visit my hubby in Tahoe, he decided that he wanted to take me on a "just because" shopping spree (aren't husbands the sweetest?). I have more pairs of jeans than anyone I know. But I LOVE getting a new pair of nice jeans. Some girls do shoes... I do pants. And so Cory took me to Buckle and bought me these beautiful MissMe's... They are the kind of jeans that you put on and feel better about your life. So, thank you husband :)

So there are my five random thoughts for this week :) I hope you all have a wonderful weekend!

On Daddies and Daughters

Here is to one of the most wonderful and special relationships that exist in the world, that of father and daughter. 

I don’t mean to sound redundant but this is yet another area which I feel extremely blessed. My dad has always felt strongly about the importance of the dad’s role in a daughter’s life. He wanted to be the loving father so that we could get a little glimpse of the love of our Heavenly father. He wanted to be the example of a gentleman so that we knew what to look for in a husband. He wanted to be the first man that any of his daughters danced with.

My dad wanted to demonstrate the importance of these principles to other fathers and daughters. Coming up on October 13^th is the 13^th Annual Father Daughter Tea in Big Bear Valley. It is only a few hours in which you get to spend truly quality time with one another. 

Lives are changed at this event… and it is not merely about the memories made there while sitting with your dad or your daughter. It is about the principles that are learned and the habits that are formed because of the experience. 

Even if you live too far away to participate in this event; drink tea, dance with your dad, enjoy the moment that you have. These moments are so fleeting….

Anyone in the Big Bear area should come. You will have the most amazing time, make the most wonderful memories, and realize some valuable principles (not to mention eat some delicious food!)

Encouragement for an Autumn Tuesday

October already. Where does the time go? Sometimes I wish I could just slow things down a little. 

I decided to postpone my weekly bit of encouragement for today because I was finishing up Blogtember yesterday. So I hope you are having a wonderful Tuesday on this beautiful autumn day. 

With my hubby working up north (only two more days woohoo) I have been spending a lot of time over at my parent’s house. A few nights ago I pulled a late night with my two younger siblings (side note, sisters and brothers have to be one of the most wonderful things in the world). 

We were talking about life and about goals. Some advice that my sister was giving my brother reminded me of something I used to, and occasionally still, struggle with. 

When I was growing up my parents always told me how smart I was. As a homeschooled student, I didn’t feel that I could properly gauge that for myself. I got straight A’s but my parents, the ones who cared most about me, graded my work. I distinctly remember thinking, “does my dad really think I am smart? Or is he concerned that I am not too bright and that is why he tries to encourage me?” I struggled with this question until I got out of high school, feeling uncertain about myself and my abilities. It was a legitimate fear that I had. In retrospect, I know where the thoughts came from, and it wasn’t from the father of the heavenly lights. 

After I began my first semester in college I realized that I had been listening to a lie for years. Why would I ever doubt myself? Why would you ever doubt yourself?

I know there are some scriptures that you have heard a million times. “Yeah, yeah, I know I can do all things through Christ (Philippians 4:13)…. I know I am fearfully and wonderfully made (Psalm 139:14)… I know I have a spirit of power and of love and a sound mind (2 Timothy 1:7).” But do you really know?

I know for myself, if I could really grab a hold of these truths I wouldn’t doubt myself any longer. These are only a few passages that I thought of off the top of my head. There are so many scriptures that affirm God’s promises for your life; so many truths that really need to be imbedded in your mind. 

So if you ever struggle with doubts or thoughts that are not lining up with the word of God then cast them down. Stop listening to those lies of the world and of the devil. Find some scriptures for yourself that reinforce your faith and encourage you in all of your endeavors. 

He said you can do ALL things! 

P.S. Isn’t my niece the most beautiful little six year old in the world?

Something Special

This is the last day of Jenni’s Blogtember. Crazy how fast the month went! The prompt today is: share a photo of something old. Maybe something that has personal history for you, that was passed down to you, and that has special meaning to you. Tell us about it and why it's special.

There are a few people in one’s life who make an impact in a very small period of time. My Grandpa John passed away when I was only twelve, and I still frequently think of some of the most wonderful memories with him. 

There is one memory in particular which I am constantly reminded of. He had an old marble game in his house; the kind that just sits there as a decorative brain teaser and nobody really uses. The goal of the game was to jump over and remove the marbles in a way that enables you to only have one left in the center. 

On one of our visits he showed me how to play the game. I was only ten, and he spent hours going over it with me until I had mastered the technique. Then he told me, “Now you and I are the only two people in the world who can do this.” I was so proud and honored to be the one that he chose to share his secret with. He told me the game was mine and I was so excited to have something so special. 

As we were leaving he told me not to forget my new game and I distinctly remember my parents saying, “oh no its okay.” I looked at them with a lump in my throat, not sure if it was wrong to accept the gift. My grandpa was very insistent, and my parents saw that we had shared a memory and he was giving me something to remind me of it forever. 

I got home and wrote down all of the rules to the game, afraid that I would let my grandpa down and forget how to accomplish the goal. He died less than two years later. Now I was the only one in the world who knew how to play. To this day I still go over the game, making sure I can recall the process he taught me so long ago. 

The sixteen years since then has passed so rapidly. Now I am a grown woman with my own house. This game represents a special memory and a special person in my life. Because of that, It sits in a place of honor in my home. 

An Out of the Ordinary Day

Creative writing continues!

Well Johnson and I had a very challenging but fun time working on our first project. I must say that my little bro's "Blue Bicycle" was so creative and heart wrenching that he really must take the cake for "A Life Changing Experience."

Apparently we are of a similar bent of mind based on the content of our two stories. Both on the melancholy side (his far more than mine), both pointing to what really matters most in life. But I suppose the topic lent itself to a more serious composition.

Just because we have taken many weeks, doesn't mean we are giving up on our creative writing challenge. I will post both of our responses to a prompt every month on the "writer's corner" page. This month is going to be, "An Out of the Ordinary Day." Easier said than done, that is for sure (not that Johnson hasn't already informed me that he has a good idea). I am still awaiting my own brilliant idea, but it will come, even if I have to force it from my mind to my fingertips.

I have a feeling the content of this assignment will be on the lighter, more amusing side. But that is just a hunch. We will see what comes of it next Wednesday.

Funny things teenagers do.... at least I did

Day 17 of Blogtember: Write about a time you screwed up - a mistake you made. I didn't have the inspiration for a picture to grace this post. Then I came across this photo I took of my cute little niece and I thought she looked so..."Oops, I look so cute so you will forgive whatever I did, right?"

A mistake I made…. So once when I was a youngin of about seventeen (which, when I think about it now, seems quite old for this sort of behavior, but oh well, some people are late bloomers), I was sitting on the island in my parent’s kitchen eating ice cream. Don’t ask me why I was doing that, because in retrospect, I hardly know.

My friend thought it would be funny to push me around on the island (I guess it was more like a table because it had wheels). So I just sat there, eating my ice cream… oh those were the days when my metabolism was like that of a ten year old boy… but that is a side note.

My friend pushed me down the hall and alas, the wheels of the table got caught on a chink in the floor and the whole ensemble, the table top, the legs, the ice cream, and me (a very full grown woman), went crashing to the floor. I was pretty relaxed about the situation. I just sat there on the floor and continued eating my ice cream. From what I hear, it was a comical spectacle. 

So I screwed up. Somehow I broke my mom’s workspace in the kitchen. After a few moments consideration, we quickly realized the beauty of the situation: nobody else was home.

With that in mind, we put the table and the legs back together as best we could (which really means that we positioned everything in such a way as it looked like it was in once piece, but it definitely was not). I got a book, sat on the couch, and waited for events to unfold. 

One of my sisters got home and headed for the kitchen. She was on the phone with my mom at the time. I watched her eagerly, wondering if she was going to set anything heavy on the reconstructed table. Alas, it didn’t even take that. She bumped it slightly and the next thing I heard was a great crash and my sister standing there by the ruins of our furniture with panic in her face. 

When she was able to get some coherent words out I heard her explaining to my mom on the phone that she had broken the table somehow, and she was sorry. 

I couldn't contain my laughter anymore.