Out of my Comfort Zone!

Today is a day of lots of different emotions! This quote tells it all for me!

I just decided to quit one of my jobs ( that I love ) and give myself more time to work on my new and upcoming business! I am going ...with the help of these amazing people ( my family ) to start an Online Video Class for Sewing/ Quilting classes! Our business name is LynnMade and we will have a website, blog and Facebook page up and running soon. 

I really shouldn't be that scared, but it is something definitely Out of My Comfort Zone! As I read this quote from Helen Keller it made me think. She had such challenges in her life, and had to do many things out of her Comfort Zone ( Hard things ) and yet...look at her amazing challenges and successes in her life. My challenges are so small compared to her and so... I am just going to say that I am going on a Grand Adventure!

I need to remember I will still be doing what I love...TEACHING! I pray that I will continue to have a connection with the amazing ladies that I have met along the way, and personally look forward to meeting more and more new friends!

So I am just going to keep smiling, and remember how very blessed I am... to be where I am in my life at this time.
Seven years ago this very time of the year, I was terrified, because I had just been diagnosed with Breast Cancer for the 2nd time. I was dreading what the future was going to bring, and wondering how long that future was even going to last.
 Now 7 years later, I have 4 more beautiful grandchildren, a new son in law and many, many new and dear friends. I have so much to be grateful for...and to look forward to! I am truly, truly blessed and so that makes my heart feel good! Thank you for all of you, that have been there all along this journey for me, and for your continue support and excitement for me... you are True Friends!
Thank you,Thank you!!!

Happy Birthday Bradley!

Today is our oldest son Bradley's Birthday. I can hardly believe that he is so grown up now and a husband and a Father, where did that time go? I still remember his birth, he was born on LABOR DAY, how appropriate was that? I remember Jeff going right out (when he saw how much hair Brad had ) and bought a comb, so that he could comb his hair over with a part. Then he took a photo and shared it with our family saying  "Here is our all American Boy!" He was a happy baby and just a treat to have around. He was loved by his older sister, and they became fast friends. As Brad grew up, he continued to watch out over his younger brother and sister who joined the family. Now he no longer towers over them but still keeps close tabs on them, and shares with them his Older Brotherly Advice...free of charge of course! :)
In this photo Lee is on the left and Lauren on the right. ( And of course that is Brad in the middle )



Now here is a photo of Lee on the left still and Brad on the right ( but this time there isn't as big of a height difference ), then his son Kai is bending over and collecting shells with his cousin Jenny. We have no idea who those 2 people walking are...in our photos!


I have always loved the quote for parents that says " My job is to build you up, so the world can't ever tear you down"
When Brad was placed in my arms 27 years ago, on Sept 4th, at 9:40 in the morning, weighing in 9lbs and 4 ounces and his temperature was 94.9.... I knew he was special! I had the strongest impression, that I would need to do all that I could to raise him to be the boy that the Lord wanted and needed him to be. I was overwhelmed with the feeling that I would have to fight his whole life to protect and teach him, and I really have tried to do that to my best ability.



I look at him now as a great husband and a sweet Father and realize that he is making it in the world, and that it didn't tear him down. The world is actually a much better place, because he is in it! That was what I always dreamed for him...to be safe, to be a great person, to make a difference in the world and to do the same for the next generation...his family. And he is doing it!




Jeff and I just got back from helping them move into Austin, Texas. They enjoyed their time in Boston, but now he is off and on a new adventure...starting his own business ... BRAVETHEWOODS.COM. Yes, he and Krystal have worked hard to make this dream of owning their own business come to pass. They are doing great!
 I hope on this Birthday, that he remembers not only how blessed he is, and that he is grateful for his talents, but especially remembers ... how loved he is by all of us!
It truly has been an adventure for us to have you as our son. And we are so excited for you! Happy Birthday dear Bradley!

 You can find out more about Brad's business HERE:

What an Adventure!

I knew when I got to become a Mother of 4 kids, that life was not going to be easy, and that probably it would be quite an adventure to raise them all! Still there were overwhelming days, and then there were days of pure GRATITUDE that I was blessed to be called their Mother.  I have always loved being a MOM, I realize...not every woman gets that oppourtunity and so I try not to complain too often. But yesterday was one of those days that I felt so helpless in so many ways with my kids. Three out of 4 of them were quite sick and we don't live close to them, so it is very hard to see them sick, hurt or scared and be this far way. Still I am grateful for a loving Heavenly Father who loves them as much ( actually I am sure MORE ) than I do, and so last night with a heavy heart. I prayed that my kids ( each in their own situation  ) would be watched over and comforted! Yes, Motherhood isn't easy...especially on your heart!
"A Mother thinks about her Children day and night, even if they are not with her and will love them in a way they will never understand."
 Since I didn't sleep much last night I am going to head to bed early. Good night dear friends!

"Out of all the Moments in my Life...the ones I SPENT WITH YOU are my most Favorite!"

"Having somewhere to go is HOME. Having someone to love is FAMILY. Having both is a BLESSING!"

When do children become your friends?

Our daughter Lauren just had another birthday, how in the world did she grow up so fast? I always wonder when it happens, that our kids become our friends? It is somewhere between the teenage years and young adulthood I imagine. Where you start sharing things and the conversations sound more like friends, than talking like a parent and child. It is a wonderful thing though to realize that these kids that you have loved and served their whole life, now become dear friends. What a neat compensation for those younger years.

I wish I had photos of Lauren when she was younger to show you, she was quite the character. She was always using her imagination to take her somewhere else, or help turn her into someone or something else…usually some type of animal. She really didn’t play lots with dolls, her stuffed animals were her daily friends. When Lee was born, she couldn’t wait till he crawled and could learn how to bark, so she could have her very own puppy! Bad news was, she always wanted a lease on her puppy and so to say that Lee is lucky to be here, is an under statement! :) Now she is still using her imagination and usually through it’s through her photos, which is fun. She has also always liked super heros. So here is a photo of our Lauren ready to go back to school and start yet, another ADVENTURE! Good luck Lauren, you will be GREAT!!!

  “Of course if you like your kids, if you love them from the moment they begin, you yourself begin all over again, in them, with them, and so there is something more to the world again.”   William Saroyan quotes

“While we try to teach our children all about life ,our children teach us what life is all about.”   ~Angela Schwindt

Grounded

When my kids were teenagers there were a few times ( ok quite often ) that they got grounded. That seem to help them come to the conclusion quicker that…family rules were to be honored and kept. It also reminded them that they might have the ability to choose, but they can’t choose the consequences of their actions. That was a hard lesson some times to learn. Sometimes it is even hard to understand or handle those types of lessons, even when you are an adult.  Also, some of our kids were dare devils with a huge sense of adventure and others were not. Some were when they were little, and then it changed as they got older and some were just the opposite. So each time I felt like I had finally got through with one lesson, drama, concern…it seemed like one of the other kids would have a problem. I remember having my share of worry as I tried to figure it out as a parent. Parenting is much harder than it looks!
One thing that I struggle with is adventure, danger, thrill seeking. I am just not that type of person, and  I’m getting much more cautious as I get older…that probably isn’t a good thing. The kids tease me as times, when I warn them about this or that, and they just say “ Mom, you don’t have to go to the worst case scenario do you?”  Ok, I am a little different than a lot of people, but still being cautious maybe isn’t all that bad. However it is difficult because I am married to a man who loves adventure and many times, because of my physical limitations I can’t go do them with him. Gratefully we have had children who love many of the same things as their Dad, and he loves being and going places with them.

A few weeks ago, Lee and a few friends went to take a hike up in the mountains. He gave me all the information where they would be… but I didn’t know the trial or the area, since I hadn’t hiked it. But Jeff had and he said when you get to the top you will love it, it is breathtaking.

Ok, speaking of breaths, you might want to take a deep breath before  you scroll down and look at this photo of Lee, that they took of him when he reached the top! Lee put it on a the screen saver, so it was big. That was the first time I saw it and my first two reactions were…Why would you even climb us something that high?  And you are so grounded from ever taking trips like that again!    Remember these were my thoughts!
Then when Jeff saw it, I thought for sure he might reprimand Lee, but his response ( out loud ) was… “that is incredible Lee, that must have been a rush to have climbed up there, what a gorgeous view!” Guess we are safe to say that Mothers and Fathers are different  and even among our own, there are probably some of you Mother’s out there that think this would be a neat place to go your self or to take your kids too! I will just try to remember to smile and be grateful that he didn’t FALL OFF that mountain, and that he was able to experience the beauty of the great Northwest!  Still, I am sooooooooooo glad I didn’t know he would be doing something like this. Maybe that is why they say “sometimes it is just better if Mom doesn’t know? “  Wonder it they were talking about these kind of experiences?

So to  all you Mothers, just remember to really support  your kids, but also know exactly where they are going and what they are going to do…that might help your decisions. But at the same time, I am so glad that my kids are more like Jeff and not me. I am soooooooooooooooo boring, and I just love keeping my feet on the ground.

Good night dear friends!

  “Life is uncharted territory. It reveals its story one moment at a time.”  ~ Leo F. Buscaglia

  “Man cannot discover new oceans unless he has the courage to lose sight of the shore.”  ~ Andre Gide

“People travel to wonder at the height of the mountains, at the huge waves of the seas, at the long course of the rivers, at the vast compass of the ocean, at the circular motion of the stars, and yet they pass by themselves without wondering.”   ~St. Augustine, Early Christian Priest