Searching for Inspiration

Today is day two of the Blogathon. Our prompt asks that we share something that inspires us.

When I want to be inspired, not by the inspiration that I happen upon on a daily basis but rather that born of a desire to be inspired, I always turn to the philosopher Kierkegaard. And so I was perusing some of his works this morning and happened upon a quote that I have read many times, but today it struck me as remarkably fitting and profound.  

“If I were to wish for anything, I should not wish for wealth and power, but for the passionate sense of the potential, for the eye which, ever young and ardent, sees the possible. Pleasure disappoints, possibility never. And what wine is so sparkling, what so fragrant, what so intoxicating, as possibility!”
Soren Kierkegaard

Oftentimes our society tells us that wealth, power, material possessions, etc. are those elements which are most important in life. But I think that we could learn a lesson from Kierkegaard. As we embark on this new year, we should strive to grasp the wonderful idea of possibility. We should make our plans and dreams and then realize that we are capable of accomplishing anything we could desire.

The year is yours to make with it as you please. What will you do with all the possibilities?

What inspires you? A quote, a scripture, a picture? Link below!

Christmas Recap LINK UP!!

Today is day one of the January Blogathon! Thank you to those who are linking up this month! I am looking forward to learning more about you. And to those who are here to read a little here and there in the hopes of a chuckle, inspiration, or a glimpse of simple writing about real life, thank you for being a part of this. It should be a lot of fun :) 

Our first prompt is a fun and easy one. Your personal "home for the holidays" recap complete with all of your own traditions you love. 

Christmas is so much fun in our house. I mean… it is amazing. Most people would probably think it is a little crazy, but to us it is just perfect. 

Our traditions have morphed and changed over the years to accommodate the changes in our family. But each year it seems to get better and better. We are family. We love each other. And that is what makes it great. 

So there are seventeen of us in all (strictly in my immediate family) and we all love to be together. We do Christmas morning and pretty much all day at my parents house. We buy gifts for everyone, and we all take turns opening them. Presents are an all day event in our house. Thus my logic for using the term “crazy.”

My husband is like a little boy when it comes to Christmas, I love this about him. I kid you not, the first year we were married he woke me up at 2:00 and then I made him go back to sleep until 4:30…. Yes FOUR THIRTY, when we got up and opened presents. Pitch black outside. What a memory. This year he was a little better. Woke me up twice in the night, but didn’t insist I get out of bed until 6:30 : ) 

Because of Cory’s early hours on Christmas, we are generally the first ones to arrive at my parents. We start with coffee while we admire the mountain of presents. Then we have to wait for all of the other siblings (six in all, plus the spouses and kiddlings) to trickle in one by one. Everyone comes in like numerous Santas, bringing their piles of wrapped packages. 

Before opening any presents we always give glory where it is due and listen to the Christmas story. My dad used to read it every year. Then when my brother was a little older (he is the baby of the family) he started reading it. And now for the last three years my six year old niece has been quoting it for us. Yes, she has had Luke 2 memorized since she was three and has performed at church every Christmas since.

We then do our stockings and spend the entire day opening presents. It is all about giving in our house hold. Everyone sincerely loves to give their gifts to one another. Whenever anyone gives a gift, the giver stands by eagerly anticipating the excitement of the receiver. 

At about eleven we take a present break and work together to make a giant breakfast complete with my dad’s famous sausage, hash browns, scrambled eggs, and pancakes. In the midst of the eating, the present opening, and the socializing, we do a crazy "getty-up" dance to the song "Sleigh Ride". I don't know when we started doing this... probably in our teens. But now it is great fun with all of the little kiddies running around. They love it.

This year was very special because my Aunt and Uncle joined us for Christmas and two wonderful guests of honor – my grandparents. They made a perfect day even better by being a part of our Christmas. 

What a wonderful season it was indeed. 

What kind of fun traditions do you have on Christmas? I can’t wait to hear! Link below!

Blogathon Starts Tomorrow!

Hope you are all having a splendid weekend thus far. I also hope that you are going to be busy writing this evening in preparation of the fun challenge ahead. Yep, tomorrow is the first day of the January Blogathon! It is going to be lots of fun, so get excited and start getting those creative wheels turning.

If you missed my previous posts about this event, you can get a complete list of the upcoming prompts here.

Let's go for it guys, it is just a fun way to meet some new people and hopefully get creative. Grab the badge below (it won't really be this giant) and get ready to link up!

 

<a href="http://www.jollylittlelife.blogspot.com" target="_self"><img src=" https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-ruYIuuo2LS0/UsYAKxTy_iI/AAAAAAAACQc/jbQfz2n0cGw/s512/IMG_4215.jpg " alt="My Jolly Little Life" width="150" height="150" /></a>

Hooray for Blog Award Fun

Something fun occurred this week to kind of change things up on this jolly little blog. I was nominated for my first ever blog award. Hoorday! Daisy at Jetsettin Daisy nominated me for the Liebster Award! At first I had no idea what this meant. Liebster means, "getting to know you." It is all about finding other bloggers who may inspire you or who you enjoy and connecting with them. Sounds like fun! So a BIG thank you to Daisy for giving me the opportunity of participating!

So the way it works is I have to state eleven random facts about myself and then answer the eleven questions Daisy asked me. Then I get to make some of my own nominations (of people with less than 200 followers) and it keeps going and we all get to meet new people in the blogosphere.

 So here goes my 11 random facts:

1. I have lived in the same small town my whole life. Probably always will.

2. I have an obsession with buying pants. This is something born of my height. Because I have really long legs I always found it SOOO difficult to find pants. Now I am better at shopping for them and buy them obsessively. I have more pants then most women. And if I were given another pair of beautiful jeans tomorrow I would be thrilled.

3. I have never attended school (until college, that is). I was homeschooled for the entirety of my pre-college education.

4. I met my husband when I was seven and been friends with him since.

5. When I discover a new song that I love, I listen to it over and over. In my house, in my car... until I am sick of it. Then I won't go back to it for months.

6. When I was eighteen I sold my car, saved every penny I had, and went to Europe with my sister for three months. I still say it was the best thing I ever did.

7. I have seen Patrick Dempsey twice in two very different locations. One time he was eating lunch next to me at one of my hometown restaurants. The next time he was walking around Disneyland. I got pictures of him that time :)

8. I usually keep a very neat and clean house. But sometimes on the weekends I "let myself go" just for fun. I don't bother with the dishes or the laundry... it gets a little crazy. But it is kind of fun.

9. I always wanted to be a writer and I wrote my first book when I was fifteen. Never did anything with it because it will be silly to other people. But to me.... the characters are my friends.

10. Me and my five siblings are the exception to the "Pastor's kids" stereotype. We were always good kids and to this day are heavily involved in our church and are best friends with one another.


11. I have loved the show Boy Meets World since I was a kid. I have been re-watching it this year and still laugh and cry just as much as ever.

Here are the 11 questions I was asked:

1. If you could only eat one thing for a month, what would it be?
- This is a really tough one…I guess I would say fruit. I hope that counts J But it wouldn’t make me feel ill, I wouldn’t get sick of it, and it is good for me.

2. If you could dress up as anything for Halloween (no budget or time constraint), what would it be?
- I have never really done the whole Halloween thing. But if there is no price tag I would get the biggest, most beautiful bell costume. And I would get my husband an awesome beast costume. That would be great.

3. If you won a free trip anywhere with anyone, where would you go and who would you take?
- Hmmm… I might take my husband because we have so much fun together. However, we could go anywhere, anytime if we want. So in this hypothetical situation I would take all four of my sisters (with no husbands and none of my dear nieces and nephews) and we would go to Paris. We have all gone before, but man did we have fun eating crepes and drinking lattes. Good times.

4. What is your favorite magazine and why?
- I don’t really read magazine. But sometimes I pick them up while I am waiting in line at the grocery store. If that is the case I like to go to the back of US magazine and read the mockery of the celebrities’ outfits. Gives me a good chuckle.

5. What is your favorite candy?
- I don’t really eat candy… but sometimes I love sour patch kids. Makes my mouth taste the tartness just from thinking about it!

6. If someone gave you a $1000 gift card, where would you spend it?
- Probably Amazon. What couldn't I get there?

7. What three websites do you have to check every day?
- My e-mail, my blog, and my bank account. I know… not very exciting.

8. What photos are sitting on your memory card right now?
- Oh dear… My memory cards (yes cards plural) are a mess right now. I have not taken the time to move the zillion pictures to the organized folders on my hard drive. Ridiculous. So I have everything from Random photos of food, to thanksgiving, to scenery shots, to Christmas. I would say there is well over a thousand pictures just sitting there.

9. What is the design on your phone case?
- This is not very interesting because my phone case is just black. However, I did want to get a super cute Disney one but they didn’t have ANY android ones. Just stinking Iphone. Ridiculous.

10. What is your favorite cookie?
- Oh this is easy considering my latest obsession (which I think I have blogged about like three times already… bad sign?) the delicious maple cookies from Trader Joes. I think they are seasonal (I hope, or else I might get a little rotund). But they are delicious.

11. If you won free tickets to any concert, who would you see?
- I would have to say Elvis. I mean the real Elvis J But if this question doesn’t include going back in time before the king of rock and roll died, then I would choose the Killers. Although I have seen them three times, I love them and would love to see them again. I hope these free tickets are front row seats and include backstage passes.

Here are the 11 questions for my nominees:

1. What does the name of your blog title mean to you?

2. Why did you start blogging?

3. Who is your favorite author?

4. Sweet or savory?

5. What is your idea of an ideal date?

6. You are stranded at home for the evening all by yourself, what do you do?

7. What is your favorite go to scripture?

8. What is a crazy thing you have done?

9. Treadmill or running path?

10. What is your favorite TV show and why?

11. Guilty pleasure?

Here are my 11 Nominees

Ashley at A thousand Words

Danielle at Admissions of a Superhero

Shannon at The Good, the Bad, and the Amazing!

Kari at Lipstick Stains and Coffee Cups

Elizabeth at My Glad Heart

Jess at Miss Morgan xo

Lauren at Peach State of Mind

Robyn at Invincible Summer

Laura at Happily Ever Parker

Anna at Happy Medley

Join in the fun!

Christmas is over. Hello Discipline

The New Year is here, everyone is busily making their plans and goals, dreaming of all the wonderful achievements to come this year. I am linking up with Darci at The Good Life Blog once more today as I ponder my goals for this grand new year.

The New Year officially starts for me on Monday. When I am in the throes of party mode, it is difficult for me to make the switch half way through the week. Therefore I always give myself to the Monday after New Years to make all the changes that need to be made. I STILL have not finished all of my Christmas chocolate. That is my “goal” for the weekend :)

1.     New Years Blogathon! Ever have one of those days in which you aren’t sure what to blog about? To kick off the New Year strong on my blog, I am hosting a blogathon that should be super fun. I have posted Monday through Friday topics for the month of January. There just fun ideas and prompts to inspire, amuse, and perhaps get to know some new friends. Participate as much or as little as you want. It’s going to be fun!

2.     For Christmas I got this little baby…. I know it is intense right? One of my goals for this month is to take some amazing pictures that make me feel semi worthy of this gift my husband got me. 

   

3.   Time to get back in the gym. For me, I mean this in a BIG way. By the end of January, I will be the thing that wouldn’t leave in the gym (okay maybe that is a slight exaggeration). But starting Monday my strenuous workout routine will be going full throttle. Running, lifting, doing classes, and so forth. The atrophy that has begun in my muscles will be reversed and the dimples that have appeared in unheard of places will disappear. I am so looking forward to it. 

 4.     Reading! We decided to read Les Miserables with my book club. Not the abridged version (of course) therefore the thing is like 1500 pages. I am afraid I slacked in my reading for the month of December. Not anymore. I am going to set some goals in regards to a reading minimum until I conquer this book.

5.     And finally, I am taking this scripture to heart this year. Proverbs 28:18 “where there is no vision, the people perish.” In order to be successful in various areas of my life I need to develop a clear vision for what I want and make plans of how I am going to get there. The success of my dreams, desires, and goals are wrapped up in the power of this scripture. 

Let's Get This Party Started!

How is everyone dealing with the New Years Blues? Perhaps you don't even have that.... but I am just working on getting over it. The "New Years Blues" is referring to that space in time in which you are sad the holiday season is over and real life commences, and the excitement that ensues when you begin to make big dreams for the coming year. I am almost getting to the excitement part... just have to focus on all of those grand things I want to accomplish.

We are four days out from the commencement of the blogathon. Hooray! Here are the "rules" for participants:

1.      You can post as much or as little as you want. If you miss a day or don’t like the topic, don’t worry about it. It is just a fun way to connect.

2.      Grab the nifty blogathon button I will be posting and put it in your post or sidebar.

3.       Follow me on GFG, bloglovin, and/or facebook. 

4.      Try to respond to at least a couple other posts a week. This is a great way to meet new kindred spirits in the form of blog friends!

5.       Have fun with it!

  

      Share this upcoming project if you can. The more people who are involved, the more fun it will be. This is a great way to be inspired and maybe even inspire others as well! I will be posting the blogathon button over the weekend and the link-up will be available on Sunday night. Here is a refresher on the topics so that you can start getting those ideas flowing :)

Here's to 2014

Happy New Year everyone!

Well today was my last morning having cookies and eggnog for breakfast. Man, I am going to miss that. I had a good run though and I can always get back on that wagon sometime in November.

But starting tomorrow, it is the disciplined, fit, motivated train I will be riding. And you know... I am looking forward to it.

I have so many goals that I am excited to tackle. I will expound on some of those next week for the link up. Which is going to be so much fun by the way! But more on that later :)

One of my big goals that I am really looking forward to improving is photography. My husband gave me an AMAZING lens for Christmas. The kind you look at and think, "ouch". He just spoils me. I am going to prove myself worthy of this lens by really focusing on photography in January.

With that in mind I am joining project 365. What better way to improve than to force yourself to take pictures, get inspiration from other photographers, and be given prompts? I am going to take a picture every day this year, some based on the prompts and some not, depending on what I am feeling :) I am really excited about this opportunity to delve into my creativity. Even if every picture is crap, I will have captured my year in photos. The perfect, the imperfect, the whims, the random, the memories, even the "what the heck was that all about?"... they all make up my life and are part of me.

Today's prompt is celebrate. I am not going to post all of my photos every day like this... but since this is my first I want to commence capturing my 365 with a bang.