Still Learning!

For the past 3 years...I have been very blessed to be healthy. So much of my life I have been sick and down for one reason or another. In the past when I was down with my back or battling cancer or whatever, I knew that at least sitting down I could draw, crochet, paint, make thank you notes or do something with my hands. But when I did have pneumonia in the past, I well remember not having the desire or the strength to do anything but just sit or sleep.
When I went to the Doctor on Monday evening and explained to her my concern of not getting better and actually getting worse (after only being out in the public 3 days); she told me something that made me feel a bit better. She said this has been a terrible year for the flu and viruses that have been going around. She has seen many patients who have had it for anywhere from 4 to 8 weeks.
Why is it comforting to know that you aren't the only one? There is a lot of truth in that, knowing that there are others who have had it or experienced it...for some reason makes you feel less ISOLATED and ALONE!
The tough thing about being so sick that you don't want to do ANYTHING at all, is that it makes for LONG DAYS and LONG NIGHTS. I keep coughing so hard that I feel like my ribs will break, I get winded to even go up or down the stairs to eat. I am lonely, but even talking on the phone hurts my throat and causes me to cough. I love to read, but I even feel too bad to want to do that even. I hope the antibiotics kick in soon so I at least feel like doing something, anything!
I realized now that I took my good health for granted, I just kept doing more and more, and was loving the fact that I was up and healthy and able to accomplish soooooo much each day.
 Now I am nervous about just going out at all and being around anyone who is sick. I remember after my radiation treatments and that next year having pneumonia, one month after another... I thought I would never go out in public again because of all the germs. Finally after 2 years of being sick, I was able to get healthy and stay healthy. I didn't worry about being around someone sick, because I knew my immune system was up and running ...doing it's job.
Now here I am again, worried if someone comes near me with a cough or sneezing!
I know this too will pass, just trying to remember the LESSONS that I need to learn from this.
1. Pace myself, be ok with saying No sometimes, and not taking on too much at one time.
2. Continue to eat better, cleaner, healthier...hard to expect my body to help me out if I don't fuel it properly.
3. Don't overdo, as much as I want to do so many things and help so many people, I still have to be smart about my choices that effect my time and energy.
4. Replace what I have lost...time, energy and sleep.
5. Be positive, this too will pass but don't forget what it felt like to be this sick...make better choices all around.
Life is sure full of lessons isn't it? Seems like if we don't learn from them the first time, they keep happening to us ...until we finally learn from them. Some times I wonder why I am such a slow learner?

Do as I say, not as I do!

This past week since I have been sick, I have been going over and over in my head, what I have done wrong to have my body so run down that I got sick. Now you are probably thinking "Lynn, don't you remember the days when you got sick a lot?" Well, I do and I actually changed a lot of things in my life to focus on taking care of myself. I learned that through doing that and being more in balance and not running faster than I should, that I was a lot healthier and able to actually serve and give more. Now fast forward that 3 years... and here I am doing a LOT of things, and not actually paying attention to myself or my needs as much. Still all the time requiring a lot out my physical and emotional bank account. Those two things are not a good combination for me or my body and so ....here I am a week later and still feeling bad with this cold.
So when my daughter sent this quote to me the other day, it made me realize that someone probably wrote this for me or maybe even knew me. Or at least she sent this to me because she knows that her Mother hasn't quite learned this lesson yet. Smart girl, just hope she learns from her MOM to do as I say and not as I do. At least until I start doing the right thing in the future.
Good night dear friends!


"I want you to think of your life as an hourglass. You know there are thousands of grains of sand in the top of the hourglass; and they all pass slowly and evenly through the narrow neck in the middle. Nothing you or I could do will make more than one grain of sand pass through this narrow neck without impairing the hourglass. You and I and everyone else are like this hourglass. When we start in the morning, there are hundreds of tasks which we feel that we must accomplish that day, but if we do not take them one at a time and let them pass through the day slowly and evenly, as do the grains of sand passing through..., then we are bound to break our own physical or mental structure."

A Father's love and commitment!

I just loved this story, probably because I love to write notes and cards. I do think they make a difference, this story proves that they really do!  Read it ( but have tissues near by).
Have a great day dear friends!

Father with cancer communicates with 14-year-old daughter through napkins. 

                  

For Garth Callaghan of Glen Allen, Va., writing simple notes on napkins for his daughter’s lunch did not initially seem like an important component of her meal, but nine years later, he feels differently.
“[When Emma] started public school, either my wife or I would put a note in her lunchbox from time to time. It wasn’t a daily occurrence, and it was just really simple, like, ‘Have a great day,’ ‘We love you,’ ‘Good luck on your test,’ really basic, simple things,” Callaghan said in an interview with the Deseret News. “(But) as she became older … she started treating the napkin notes as if (they) were a required part of her lunchbox. She would often check in her lunchbox, and if there wasn’t a napkin note written, she’d come by with a lunchbox in her hand and kind of open it up and say, ‘Napkin note?’ That told me that there was something there, that there was something that was just as important as water in her lunch.”
After recognizing his now 14-year-old daughter’s positive reaction to his napkin notes, Callaghan began putting more effort into the messages.
“Between work and school and homework and sports and all these other things that are in our lives, we only have a couple of times a day that we can actually connect,” Callaghan said. “There’s the time that we drive her to school, we’ve got five or 10 minutes in the car. We have hopefully meal times, so we have hopefully half an hour or 45 minutes together as a family for dinner. And then we always make time with her at bedtime … so creating that additional moment of lunch, of her opening up her lunchbox and thinking about her dad, thinking about something that I’ve written, because she knows that that quote or that saying … generally has a purpose, even if it’s only a micro-moment … it’s really, really important to our family.”
But the role of napkin notes became even more meaningful when Callaghan was diagnosed with kidney cancer two years ago.
“I have been battling cancer for a couple of years now. … I’m not going to die from it, not this time, I mean. I may eventually, but not this time. But things like this just solidify my belief that as a dad, for myself, I owe it to my daughter to do whatever I can to impart wisdom, my philosophy on life, how to be a good person in the world, whatever I can, and one of the ways she’s receptive to it is napkin notes,” Callaghan said.
“If I sit down and talk with her about how to be a good friend, it’s a little bit of a more difficult conversation than if I write a couple of sentences on a napkin on how to be a good friend.”
As the primary lunch-maker in his home, Callaghan believes that when parents include “napkin notes” in their children's lunches, the notes can make a positive difference.
“It’s such a simple act, it just takes a few seconds a day, but if I can get one parent more to do this, I’m convinced that that relationship between that parent and that child is going to be a stronger relationship,” he said.
Emma Callaghan also values the napkin notes. She began gluing the notes from her father in a book to keep them as a physical reminder of her father.
“The reporter (with the Richmond Times) asked (Emma) why she had been saving the quotes … and putting them into a little book, and she said, ‘My dad was really sick and I was trying to save a piece of him,’” Callaghan said. “She had never expressed that to me, and it just completely blew me away.”
For Callaghan, the physicality of the napkin notes resonates with his daughter more than an email or text message.
“I know (writing out napkin notes) sounds crazy because I’m a computer guy, and I love apps, I love texts and I love iPhones and everything like that, but there’s absolutely something humbling and down-to-earth about writing a real note,” he said. “It’s tangible, it’s something she can hold, and, frankly, she turned it into her own thing where she started saving them.”
Since sharing his experience, Callaghan has received positive feedback on his Napkin Notes Facebook page.
“You are going to ROCK 3rd grade! We love you. — Mom & Dad,” Ariane Herrholz Grabill wrote for her child on the Napkin Notes Facebook page. “It’s not poetic, but it’s the first of many,” she wrote about the napkin.
After realizing the power a note can hold for someone, Callaghan began sending napkin notes in the mail to people who could use some encouragement.
“I don’t believe that this is the solution to all the world’s ills, and world peace isn’t suddenly going to come about because parents are doing napkin notes, but maybe our individual relationships will get a lot better,” Callaghan said. “I am very purpose-driven with this. I really feel that this is something that is so simple, and so easy to do, and will make such a difference in their child’s life.”

I found this wonderful story HERE:

Being alone with oneself!

It took me years to truly understand this quote and what it. means. I usually didn't ever want to be alone, especially with myself. Why? Because being alone with myself meant I a had to be alone with the thoughts I had too. I didn't really like myself very much for years, and so once I did learn to love myself and to control my thoughts and fears...I actually enjoy spending time with  ME !
Good night dear friends!

The Example of a Child

Lynn is out enjoying a family reunion for the next few days, so she has asked me (Krystal, her daughter-in-law) to fill in while she is away. She is always so good at finding such inspirational quotes and stories, I hope I can come up with something you will like for the next few days. Please bear with me.
As many of you know, Brad and I have a little boy named Kai. Kai is a sweetheart, but the older, and more mobile he gets, the more he turns into a wiggly, energetic little guy. Going anywhere that we have to sit still for more than 10 minutes is such a struggle...especially church. There have been so many Sundays that I have seriously wondered why we even bother coming. I don't hear the lessons, we spends half of the time in the hall chasing Kai, and I spend all of the time frustrated. Why do we put ourselves through this madness?
A couple of weeks ago at church, as I was trying to coerce Kai into sitting still by bribing him with pretzels and milk, Kai all of sudden stopped what he was doing, sat down, and folded his arms. I looked up to see that the closing prayer was being said. I was shocked. I had no clue he was even paying attention! I wasn't even paying attention! In that moment, Kai taught me more about parenting than any book I have read or article I have studied.
I am sure many of you are already through this stage in your life, and could have told me this lesson ages ago, but seeing my 15-month-old son know that it was time to pray, and fold his arms in reverence hit me like a ton of bricks. He learns by example (and thankfully there are so many other examples than my own to help teach him), and he teaches me by example.
I'm grateful to have the opportunity to muddle through this whole parenting thing with Brad, and that I have such an awesome, if not rambunctious, little guy to teach me what life is all about.

"Parents must lead by example. Don't use the cliche; do as I say and not as I do. We are our children's first and most important role models." Lee Haney

"I think that the only way to teach is by example, as children will more easily follow what they see you do than what you tell them to do." Gloria Estefan

"If you as parents cut corners, your children will too. If you lie, they will too. If you spend all your money on yourselves and tithe no portion of it for charities, colleges, churches, synagogues, and civic causes, your children won't either. And if parents snicker at racial and gender jokes, another generation will pass on the poison adults still have not had the courage to snuff out." Marian Wright Edelman

"Learning is a result of listening, which in turn leads to even better listening and attentiveness to the other person. In other words, to learn from the child, we must have empathy, and empathy grows as we learn." Alice Miller

A little word called NO

 I loved this article by Jason F. Wright. It is about the art of saying "NO". Something we all could probably benefit from, plus we would probably be much happier, IF we could learn how to use this little word properly.  Good night dear friends!

My wife answered this figurative newspaper ad several years ago: "HELP WANTED. Desperately need someone to train me in the art of saying No."

"No" is such a fascinating word, isn’t it? It’s among our children’s very first and it continues tumbling out of toddlers’ mouths for years.

As parents, we teach our little ones not to say it. “Eat your vegetables. It’s time for a nap. You’ll keep our little doughnuts-for-dinner secret from mom?”

“No.”

Then, when our children become teenagers, we want them to say it all the time. “Will you break curfew with me? Will you drink this beer? Will you tease the kid who’s different?”

Nothing would make me more proud than to know my two teenage daughters say the word a thousand and one times a day.

Years later, as adults, the word can become even tougher to say. “Can you help me move? Can you work late? Can I borrow a hundred bucks, even though you don’t really have it to loan? Can my nine kids and me stay with you for a week while visiting town, even though we’re third cousins twice removed and I can’t remember your first name?”

“Of course! What kind of cereal do you like?”

Does this sound like you or someone you know? Then you might also need a "No Coach." Frankly, I’m not sure how I ever survived without one.

For most of my career, I couldn’t say yes fast enough. “Will you speak at my small Baptist church 700 miles away with a dozen people in attendance? Will you donate 50 books to the library? Will you present an assembly to my school for free, even though you spoke to our rival school across town and they paid you for your time?”

“Sure!”

It’s been so bad, even if I’d been asked to fly around the world and speak at the Kremlin — on my dime — I would have struggled to say, "Nyet."

But everything changed a couple of years ago when my wife answered that ad and became my No Coach. She was the perfect fit for the job because she loves me and despite my efforts to prove her otherwise, she still thinks I'm a swell guy. Evidently she likes having me around and for my children to know what I look like in person and not via Skype from three time zones away.

It wasn’t easy, but she taught me to weigh every opportunity and learn to say no. With her gentle but steady nudging, I’ve learned that sometimes no matter how great the cause or the conference, a polite no is the right answer.

“I wish I could come; my daughter has a recital that night and I missed the last two. I sincerely regret that I can’t help this time; my wife hasn’t had a date night in weeks. I really wish I could speak to your book club; my wife is scheduled for a C-Section that night and I’d like to be there.”

As I write this column, I realize I’m not the only one who needs a No Coach.

I have a dear friend — we’ll call her Sabrina — who lives near me and hasn’t had a weekend to herself in more than six months. Every single Saturday she’s helping someone move, driving a friend in need across the state or donating some vital organ. She has an extraordinarily difficult time saying no, and people around her know it. She’s become everyone's go-to-gal for service.

Thousands will read this column and the vast majority will never meet Sabrina, but if you needed anything, I’m certain you could call. Need to borrow a car? Need someone to mediate a family dispute? Need someone to race over and perform a tracheotomy with a Pixy Stix and the tiny tweezers from the Operation board game? She’ll happily say, “Yes!” and throw in a hug for good measure.

I love my sweet friend, but just like the rest of us who struggle to say no, each time she says yes, isn't she also saying no to someone else?

Likewise, every time we say no and put our family's needs first, we’re really saying yes to those who matter most.

It's natural to want to say yes, especially for Christians wired to serve at the drop of a scripture verse. And it's natural to regret having to decline wonderful causes and opportunities to serve, but is there a greater cause or opportunity than our spouses and children? It’s easy to get lost in serving those at a distance and neglect the ones standing right at our side.

Despite my wife's best efforts, I'm sure I still say yes much more than I probably should. And, as a result of this column, I'll likely get a dozen new requests and probably agree to the majority of them.

Still, I’m grateful for the perspective that my personal No Coach has provided me. She understands that by saying no more often, I'll have more energy to say yes when it matters most.

Yes or no, do you need your own No Coach?

You can read more from Jason here: 

“I am definitely going to take a course on time management… just as soon as I can work it into my schedule.” – Louis E. Boone

 “You will never find time for anything. If you want time you must make it.” – Charles Buxton

 “Time lost is never found again.” – Benjamin Franklin

The art of learning!

I love to learn, not something I used to say when I was young. But as I became a Mother and now a Grandmother, I have loved learning with my kids! I feel like I missed so much and though it may sound silly, I am amazed at how fun learning has been with them.
Dr. Seuss was some of our favorite books and stories, I loved the morals that they had. We used to read the book Sneetches, when someone made front of the kids or what they were or were not wearing. When you look at his books, you will see a 100 little lessons in them, to teach your kids, grand kids and of course...yourself!
So take time to find a Dr. Seuss book and get reading!
Enjoy!

A dream come true!

Ever since I was a little girl, I have loved to do things with my hands. Any type of arts and crafts, sewing, painting, drawing, crocheting, needlework and etc. Some things you learn because that is what your Mom does, but my Mom didn’t like to do any of those things. She was a cook and a fabulous one at that. I really never saw the value in spending hours making and cooking something, just to watch your family devour it in minutes…that never appealed to me ( still doesn’t really ). But as I got older, I realized that I would need someone to teach me so that I could learn more and more. My girlfriend’s Mom used to make her clothes and I really envied her. So one day when I was at her house, I asked her Mom if she would teach me how to sew my own clothes. That is exactly what she did, we got a pattern, materials and some needed supplies… and then we went back to her house to sew. But before I was even able to cut out my material, she showed me how to read a pattern, she also said that clothes look really well made when you are good at your top stitching, and so she gave me a piece of lined notebook paper, put in an old needle in her machine and would have me practice over and over again..sewing on those lines. Then when I got that perfected, then she would have me practice over and over again to stitch exactly in between the lines. Even though she has passed away many years ago, I will never forget her kindness in teaching me how to sew. So, I try to be there to help anyone who asks me to teach them how to sew (haven’t had a lot of time for that since I started working), but still I love to pass on that tradition.

My grandmother and Aunt used to make beautiful quilts out of their old dresses and aprons. I was shocked to see how most of them were done by hand. I couldn’t believe that someone could do that kind of detail by hand. They also quilted by their machines too. I only got 2 of their quilts, but they are displayed proudly in my home and only dreamed that one day I could quilt like that.

Fast forward to the present day, now I am teaching at a Quilt Shop! Who would have ever thought I could do that? I am still a beginner compared to most of the ladies in there, but still I have a love for quilting/sewing and I love to teach …so it is a great opportunity for me to do something that I had never done. The fun thing about working at the quilt shop and getting to know all these wonderful talented women is….that I am learning something new every day! I see all the wonderful things that these ladies are creating, it gives me a desire to do something else I have never done. It is exciting and scary at the same time. I wonder at times, if it would be possible to do some of these amazing things but… I have finally realized that I just need to try new things and never say never! 
Good night dear friends!

“To have passion, to have a dream, to have a purpose in life. And there are three components to that purpose, one is to find out who you really are, to discover God, the second is to serve other human beings, because we are here to do that and the third is to express your unique talents and when you are expressing your unique talents you lose track of time.”    ~Deepak Chopra

“Sewing mends the soul.”     ~Author Unknown

Mothering

   I had a Doctor appointment a few weeks ago and as I was sitting in the office waiting my turn, when a young women came in who was pregnant and very sick. As soon as she came in she ran to the bathroom to throw up, she came back into the waiting room but was hurting so bad that she could hardly sit still. Just a few minutes later another lady came in, she was probably about 20 years older than the first woman, and she stated she was the young woman's Mother. It made me homesick for my Mom when I saw her sit down beside her grown daughter and move the hair out of her eyes and rub her back. I felt like I was invading their privacy as I listened to her whisper words of encouragement, and yet you could still see the worry in her eyes. I am not sure if this was her daughter's first pregnancy or what, but still she was a Mother who cared and loved this daughter and I am sure... the baby that was inside of her. Yes, I have been blessed with an incredible husband, sensitive kids and the most amazing friends so that when I am sick, I am well taken care of...but I still miss my Mom!

   Now I am a Mother of adult children, and it is a new role for me. It is hard know when to Mother and when to stay away. It gets more complicated when each child is different, so you don't treat each of them the exact same way. Then you add on top of that Grandchildren, who you naturally want to help Mother and some times that is ok and sometimes it isn't.
    I remember when Amy was born and how inadequate I felt as her Mother. I had never been a Mother before, there wasn't any instruction book that came out with her and so I had to watch, learn and listen to my heart...to teach me how to be her Mother. Now 29 years later, there still isn't an instruction book and so ... I sorta feel like that new Mom again. When do I give advice? What boundaries should there be? How much do I help?
   I have learned the hard way that you almost have to start over like a new Mom, you have to watch, learn and listen to your heart to know how to Mother an adult child. The only difference is that little newborn didn't tell you if you did something wrong, or if you should have done it this way or that instead...adult children do. Sometimes that hurts, only because that isn't what you meant to happen. But then again the nice part is that as adults, you can talk and work things out, so I guess it all equals out in the long run?

But as I remembered that Mom, I realized that no matter what...most Mom's just love their children sooooooooo much that they would do absolutely anything to help them. So hopefully there is forgiveness and a lot of patience, as we all learn how to handle the new aspect of our roles as adult children and Mothers.

"Mother's love grows by giving."  ~Charles Lamb

"If you have a mom, there is nowhere you are likely to go where a prayer has not already been."  ~Robert Brault,

"Grown don't mean nothing to a mother.  A child is a child.  They get bigger, older, but grown?  What's that suppose to mean?  In my heart it don't mean a thing."  ~Toni Morrison

A Mother's Heart

   Tonight at a meeting, I was able to talk for a moment to a friend of mine whose son got very sick a couple of years ago and they never could figure out why. Her son now is doing great and healthy again. I was just curious how they found their answers and how she as a Mom, handle all of it. It was nice to talk to another Mother, heart to heart. She knew exactly what I was talking about when I mentioned Lee and how we still don't know what is going on and the frustrations that come with that. Now Lee hasn't had an attack in almost 7 weeks, but the concern is definitely still there because we don't have any real answers.
   I shared with her the number of times I have pleaded with the Lord to let me have the problems, not my son. She knew the exact feeling and concern I was talking about. I asked finally how they got his problem diagnosed and to my surprise she said " we didn't, it just went away". Then she added "looking at the young man my son has become today, I realized all those things made him who he is". She knew that the Lord taught him things during that time that he might not have learned in any other way.
   So she really didn't have any real answer for me, she just gave me a hug and said " I will keep you guys in my prayers". I thought what a wonderful gift it was tonight to connect heart to heart with another Mom and to be reminded that our Heavenly Father is in charge, and we just need to have faith and know that everything will just work out. I needed that wisdom and insight tonight, and I needed that hug too!

Good night dear friends!

"I remember my mother's prayers and they have always followed me.  They have clung to me all my life."  ~Abraham Lincoln

"If you have a mom, there is nowhere you are likely to go where a prayer has not already been."  ~Robert Brault

"Grown don't mean nothing to a mother.  A child is a child.  They get bigger, older, but grown?  What's that suppose to mean?  In my heart it don't mean a thing."  ~Toni Morrison

People Watching!

   Today I got to work at the Quilt Shop for the Shop Hop. I have to admit, I was so excited to go into work! I could hardly wait to get there, and had a hard time leaving when I was suppose to. I love to watch and meet people! I love PEOPLE! There is always an interesting story in their life that is playing out in their attitudes, personalities, clothing and so on. I have to admit that most people are as nice as you are to them. I was the one of the ladies who stamped their passport ( that is all Quilt/Shop Hop lingo, in case you are wondering) and gave them their free block. It was fun to have them ask about the block, and to be able to say it was mine. Then I was able to tell them step by step how I made it. They really seemed to like my block, I am so glad. When I first thought about doing a block to see if might be chosen... I was a nervous wreak. So many of the women there are amazing seamstresses and they have been quilting for years, my stuff seems so elementary compared to them. But I have learned that everyone has different talents and styles. And basically we all enjoy and appreciate each others styles and talents.

   It has been a blessing to be able to not only watch, but meet so many incredible women and even some of their families. It was also great to talk to many of them and hear about their struggles in their own life. The truth is...everyone is going through something. And those experiences and struggles are truly what shape our lives, and make us who we are. I have learned to try and not judge so quickly, because if you haven't walked in their shoes, lived their life...then we really don't know exactly what they have been through!
    Yes, it was a good day!  I can hardly wait to go tomorrow...except I a so tired! Oh well, I will head to bed soon. Good night dear friends!

"Our greatest strength as a human race is our ability to acknowledge our differences, our greatest weakness is our failure to embrace them."  ~ Judith Henderson

"Opposition is nothing more than truth; though hard that truth maybe be, it is essentially beneficial to one's self. In life your greatest enemies are in reality your greatest benefactors. Learn from them; opposition only makes you stronger and more capable."

"We can never judge the lives of others, because each person knows only their own pain and renunciation. It's one thing to feel that you are on the right path, but it's another to think that yours is the only path."                    ~ Paulo Coelho

"I know there is strength in the differences between us. I know there is comfort where we overlap."  ~Ani Difranco

By small and simple things...

I loved the moral of this story! How many times, I have missed the little things because I was too busy getting ready or working, toward the big things! Just one more important lesson for today.

Good night dear friends!

"There was a young merchant from Boston, who in 1849, as the story goes, was caught up  in the fervor of the California gold rush. He sold all of his possessions to seek his fortune in the California rivers, which he was told were filled with gold nuggets so big that one could hardly carry them.
Day after endless day, the young man dipped his pan into the river and came up empty. His only reward was a growing pile of rocks. Discouraged and broke, he was ready to quit until one day an old, experienced prospector said to him, " That's quite a pile of rocks you are getting there, my boy."
The young man replied, "There's no gold here. I'm going back home."
Walking over to the pile of rocks, the old prospector said, "Oh, there is gold all right. You just have to know where to find it." He picked two rocks up in his hands and crashed them together. One of the rocks split open, revealing several flecks of gold sparkling in the sunlight.
Noticing a bulging leather pouch fastened to the prospector's waist, the young man said, "I'm looking for nuggets like the ones in your pouch, not just tiny flecks."
The old prospector extended his pouch toward the young man, who looked inside, expecting to see several large nuggets. He was stunned to see that the pouch was filled with thousands of flecks of gold.
The old prospector said, "Son, it seems to me you are so busy looking for large nuggets that you're missing filling your pouch with these precious flecks of gold. The patient accumulation of these little flecks has brought me my wealth."

“Enjoy the little things, for one day you may look back and realize they were the big things.” ~ Robert Brault

"One day at a time...this is enough. Do not look back and grieve over the past for it is gone; and do not be troubled about the future, for it has not yet come. Live in the present, and make it so beautiful it will be worth remembering."

"Live is not measured by the number of breaths we take, but by the moments that take our breath away."

Hope

Today I went to the Doctor and had blood work done, to see why my extreme fatigue is back. We won't know any of the results till next week, so I will have to be patient. I hope that it isn't Mono again. I had such a hard time getting over it the last time, I think I actually battled it for a year and a half. Anyway, I just need to think positive and be hopeful.

A dear friend of mine called today, and asked me to pray for a mutual friend of ours. She then told the situation that was going on in her family. They have gone through a couple of tragedies in just this past year.
There are people who experience tragedy and come out stronger for it, and others who have seemed to lost faith in anything, and even lost their desire to live. What is the difference? I believe it is where their faith is, and if they will give their trials to the Lord. Trying to do it on your own, can be overwhelming and almost impossible.
I myself try to remember not to say WHY? But What am I to learn from this? Who can I help from this experience? It also helps if I focus on the many blessings I have, even during the times of terrible troubles. There is always something to be grateful for.
Yes, having hope is a better way of life. Trusting our Heavenly Father, and realizing that He will never give us more than we can handle, and that He will never leave us alone during our trials is ... a great comfort to me.

I hope I can remember these things, more and more each day. Good night dear friends!

"Most of the important things in the world have been accomplished
by people who have kept on trying when there seemed to be no hope
at all." ~ Dale Carnegie

"There are those who have met disaster, which almost seems defeat, who have become somewhat soured in their natures; but if they stop to think, even the adversity which has come to them may prove a means of spiritual uplift. Adversity itself may lead toward and not away from God and spiritual enlightenment."  ~ David O. McKay

Why don't you grow up?

I found this article about your kids growing up so fast. As I read it, I thought how true. I remember the crazy days when all four of the kids were young, and life was hectic and never boring. I wondered many times, how in the world I would ever make it, would I truly survive? I did... and it seemed just like yesterday they were all little and now, our youngest is graduating from High School and Brad and Krystal from college in a month. How did that happen? Where did the time go? I miss those days...can you believe it? I really do, the house is too clean and too quiet and dinners are a bit boring sometimes.
I have heard there is a time and season for everything, that is true also. The trick is to enjoy the season that you are in and not wish it away or wish another season to take it's place.
Now we can't wait, for our granddaughters to come over and make a mess and some noise. Yes, it is different watching your kids grow up so fast.
So for all of you that still have little ones under your feet. Enjoy them, cherish that time, because they will grow up fast and you will really miss them!

Oatmeal Kisses

The baby is teething-the children are fighting. My husband just called and said to eat dinner without him. Okay, one of these days you'll shout: "Why don't you grow up and act your age!" and they will, or "You guys get outside and find yourselves something to do...and don't slam the door!"...and they won't.

You'll straighten up their rooms neat and tidy...bumper stickers discarded...spreads tucked and smooth ... toys displayed on the shelves...hangars in the closet...animals caged, and you'll say out loud: "Now I want it to stay that way!" and it will...You'll prepare a perfect dinner with a salad that hasn't been picked to death and a cake with no finger traces in it and you'll say, "Now there's a meal for a company." and you'll eat it alone.

You'll say, "I want complete privacy on the phone. No dancing around, no pantomimes, no demolition crews. Silence! Do you hear?"...and you'll have it. No more plastic tablecloths stained with spaghetti, no more anxious nights under a vaporizer tent, no more dandelion bouquets, no more iron-on patches, knotted shoestrings, or tight moots.

Imagine, a lipstick with a point, no babysitter for New Year's Eve, washing clothes only once a week, no P.T.A. meetings, carpools, blaring radios, Christmas presents out of toothpicks and paste. No more "Wet Oatmeal Kisses". No more tooth fairy giggles in the dark, or knees to heal.

Only a voice crying..."Why don't you grow up?"... and the silence echoing ......."I did."

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

"Cleaning your house while your kids are still growing up is like shoveling the walk before it stops snowing."  ~Phyllis Diller

"If you haven't time to respond to a tug at your pants leg, your schedule is too crowded."  ~Robert Brault

Time...how do you measure it?

   We just spent the evening with some dear friends, that used to be our neighbors. Our kids were young then, now we are exchanging REMEMBER WHEN stories, and trying to remember names and faces. It was fun, it is hard to believe that was almost 9 -10 years ago. We had a wonderful dinner and evening together, the hours just flew by, that's what happens when you are having fun and with someone you love.
   How grateful we feel to have them as our dear friends. You know you are dear friends, when you haven't seen on talk to each other in years or maybe months... and as soon as you start talking, it was like you were together yesterday. We just started our conversations it seemed, where we left off! They are great people and it was fun to catch up on each other's families and to hear what they have been doing lately. Life is certainly a place to learn and grow. A place to reconnect and cherish. Life is good, and I am grateful for the time we had to share with them tonight!

TIME

Time is not measured
by the years that you live
But by the deeds that you do
and the joy that you give

And each day as it comes
brings a chance to each one
To love to the fullest
leaving nothing undone

That would brighten the life
or enlighten the load
Of some weary traveler
lost on Life's Road

So what does it matter
how long we may live
If as long as we live
we unselfishly give.

by: Helen Steiner Rice

"Time goes by so fast, people go in and out of your life. You must never miss the opportunity to tell these people how much they mean to you."

"One must learn a different... sense of time, one that depends more on small amounts than big ones."  ~Sister Mary Paul

"May your love grow with each day that passes, may you be lifelong friends and my the faith you have in each other, grow stronger with time."

What is your prognosis?

Today at church I ran into my friend, who just lost her husband recently to cancer. She is holding up well, or at least so in public. She really is a strong woman and I admire the way she continues to get up each day and keep going, when I am sure there are days, she doesn't feel like even doing that. We spoke about how she was doing and holding up. We spoke about how hard this has been on her grandchildren, to lose their Grandpa all of a sudden, and then we talked about Angie (my granddaughter) and I making some of our RECNAC MONSTERS for each grandchild. (If you haven't heard or seen our Monsters that we created, just put the word RECNAC MONSTERS or MONSTERS in the search engine at the top left hand side of my blog and it will pull them up. We have loved making them and giving them away.
As we were getting ready to leave she asked me a question that startled me a bit. She said "Lynn, what is your prognosis?" Now that isn't an odd question, of course I have been asked it many times... but for some reason today, it hit me differently. It has been almost 2 years exactly, since I was diagnosed again with Breast Cancer, yes this was my second time. I had it 7 years prior to that. And at that time, the prognosis was a fearful one. I didn't do the ( normal procedure in getting rid of cancer ) so they gave me scarier numbers.
I however felt strong and good about the road I have chosen to take both times. I still feel good about it, but for some reason when she asked me that question, for just a moment....I wondered how do I answer that?  The truth is... no one ever really knows IF or WHEN your cancer will come back, I chose to believe that it is completely gone, and that gives me the hope and strength to get up every day and no be scared. However if I listened to or put any credibility on statistics, I guess I would have answered different, like with a percentage or something like that?  But I didn't, I said my prognosis is good and I left it at that. The truth is, I have left that up to God. He knows how long exactly I will be here on earth, I on the other hand ...don't know, and so each day I cherish and try to do my best...and for that I am grateful, so grateful! 

My daughter took my picture this weekend, so that I could update the one on my blog, which is a pre-cancer photo. At first, I was disappointed at how much I have aged, but then I realized that in the short two years since that photo was taken, a lot has happened...I had a mastectomy, I had Radiation for 3 months, I have had pneumonia and mono... multiple times, my Dad passed away, we lost our job, had a new granddaughter and have started my blog, working on a book, done a few Motivational Speeches and also we got a new daughter-in-law. Yes, lots has happened in the last two years...both bad and GOOD!

As I look at my photo, I realize that I need to quit worrying about my age, or areas on my body that I would like to change. I need to remember to keep smiling, and keep doing all that I can to keep my body and spirit healthy. It has been a hard and yet enlightening two years, one that I would have never chosen, but will never forget and will be always grateful for! Yes, I am a survivor and I am going to try hard to keep it that way!

"The human spirit is stronger than anything that can happen to it."  ~C.C. Scott

"Don't count the days, make the days count."  ~ Muhammad Ali

"Feed your faith and your fears will starve to death."  ~Author Unknown

Never too young to learn, or too old!

I am always amazed how much I learn on Sundays. It's not that I am really hearing something new, but yet each time I hear someone give a talk, it's like I am hearing something for the first time again! Repetition has always been how we teach our children, so I shouldn't be surprised that, that is also how our Heavenly Father teaches us...repeating the same things over and over again!

One important thing that I was reminded of today, was to be more grateful. I have to admit that sometimes I forget to count the many blessing I have, and instead focus on the what I don't have.
Another thing I learned today was to get to know the scriptures better and more consistently, because in them we get to know our Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ better. "We cannot love what we do not know"...so true!

The last thing that struck me hard today was... how important our examples are for our children and grandchildren. They are ever watching us and the choices we make. They watch what types of music we listen to, the types of movies that we go to, or bring into our homes, how we treat our bodies and how we serve or don't serve others. Yes, we can say all we want to our children but...it is our example that will speak the loudest. Are we living the type of life, that we wouldn't be afraid for our children to follow? That is a big question, and one that I need to ask myself often. I know that I fall short in many of these areas, but I was grateful to be TAUGHT AGAIN!  Yes, even at the ripe old age of 51, I am still not too old to learn!  :) And remember the little ones are always watching us too!  (This photo of Jenny, was taken by her proud Uncle Lee )

"It's not only children who grow.  Parents do too.  As much as we watch to see what our children do with their lives, they are watching us to see what we do with ours.  I can't tell my children to reach for the sun.  All I can do is reach for it, myself."  ~Joyce Maynard

"Don't worry that children never listen to you; worry that they are always watching you."  ~Robert Fulghum

"If there is anything that we wish to change in the child, we should first examine it and see whether it is not something that could better be changed in ourselves."  ~C.G. Jung

What I learned today...

I am always so grateful for the chance to be healthy enough to go to church. Jeff and I only went for part of it ( he is still trying to get better from his pneumonia, and I am still trying to NOT catch it ) but I did learn something during that little bit of time. The theme today was about patience. The speakers gave some great points about it. I will only share a few of them, especially the ones that touched my heart. In a world where we want what we want and we want it now, I think that this topic is something we all could be the better for...if you remember it and work on it!

pa·tience  –noun

1.the quality of being patient, as the bearing of provocation, annoyance, misfortune, or pain, without complaint, loss of temper, irritation, or the like.

2.an ability or willingness to suppress restlessness or annoyance when confronted with delay: to have patience with a slow learner.

3.quiet, steady perseverance; even-tempered care; diligence: to work with patience.

—Synonyms
1. composure, stability, self-possession; submissiveness, sufferance. Patience, endurance, fortitude, stoicism imply qualities of calmness, stability, and persistent courage in trying circumstances

"A certain amount of impatience may be useful to stimulate and motivate us to action. However, I believe that a lack of patience is a major cause of the difficulties and unhappiness in the world today. Too often, we are impatient with ourselves, with our family members and friends, and even with the Lord. We seem to demand what we want right now, regardless of whether we have earned it, whether it would be good for us, or whether it is right. Some seek immediate gratification or numbing of every impulse by turning to alcohol and drugs, while others seek instant material wealth by questionable investments or by dishonesty, with little or no regard for the consequences. Perhaps the practice of patience is more difficult, yet more necessary, now than at any previous time." ~Joseph B. Wirthlin

"We should learn to be patient with ourselves. Recognizing our strengths and our weaknesses, we should strive to use good judgment in all of our choices and decisions, make good use of every opportunity, and do our best in every task we undertake. We should not be unduly discouraged nor in despair at any time when we are doing the best we can. Rather, we should be satisfied with our progress even though it may come slowly at times." ~ Joseph B. Wirthlin

"Patience sometimes needs to be acquired"

"We need to take action in the midst of our patience, not just simply wait for something to happen"

Leaning into the curves

Today is Jeff's birthday, he really didn't remember that, but all of us did. I am not sure if Jeff's family made a big deal out of birthdays or most holidays but to celebrate each birthday and holiday is our family tradition. I don't know, life is just hard enough...I think it is important to remember those special days in our lives. We went out to lunch today (after my  Dr. gave me the ok, that my pneumonia was gone ) and then we went to a book store for a minute. One book title that caught my attention was called Learning to lean into the curves or something like that. I didn't even  have to pick it up to understand what the title meant, I have heard Jeff say that more than one occasion.

I got Jeff a motorcycle a couple of years ago, many of my friends told me that is the craziest thing I could have ever done. They didn't want their husbands to have one, they are just too dangerous. Well, if you would have told me that years ago, I would have agreed with you 100%, but ever since I was diagnosed with Cancer, my perspective in life has changed some. I don't want to be living life scared of a lot of things, like I have done most of my life. Now remember, it isn't me that bought a motorcycle for myself, but for Jeff. I had no idea that he always dreamed of having one. My logic was, the money was given to me and even though we put most of it to good sensible uses...paying of bills and putting some away for college for the kids, paying for my cancer bills...I felt a real need to get Jeff something that he would really love. I had no idea when I asked him, that it would be a motorcycle. Yes, I thought they were just too dangerous but for some reason I knew that he was a grown man, who had spent most of his adult life being the most incredible husband and father. He never asks for anything for himself, he never even took too  much time when the kids were growing up to do things for himself. I don't think I have ever given a gift that was so appreciated in my life. He can hardly wait each morning to check the weather and see if he can ride his bike to work. Wouldn't it be great if we all had something that brought such joy and pleasure to us each day that we could hardly wait to get up?

Now having said that, I have to admit that riding with him on the bike scares me to death. It isn't actually my thing. Lucky for Jeff some of his kids don't feel that way, and can't wait to ride with  him... as you can see in the photo with Lauren. I actually rode on it with him on my 50th birthday, never prayed so hard in all my life! :) I had a real problem with the curves. Jeff and the bike would lean one way and I would lean the other. I just knew if I leaned with him that we were going to fall over and think of all the injuries!  ( See, obviously I am not there yet ).

I do think that learning to lean into the curves has a bigger and more profound meaning that just on motorcycles. I think it applies to life, so often we fight the hard parts, the scary parts and so we often  pull too much the other way, making it dangerous that way too. So tonight as I think of Jeff and the many things I have learned from him throughout the (almost) 32 years that we have been together, and I feel blessed. He is my best friend and even though life hasn't been easy for us, we have certainly learned how together to lean into the curves that life has thrown us. Now if only I could learn to do that on his bike.... someday! Happy Birthday Jeff!

"May you live all the days of your life."   ~ Jonathan Swift

"Grow old along with me!
The best is yet to be, the last of life, for which the first was made."   ~ Robert Browning

"No wise man ever wished to be younger."   ~ Jonathan Swift

On the road again!

One of my least favorite things of Motherhood is watching my kids learn how to drive. It is just downright painful. Today Lee started his first Driver's Ed class. He is a bit late taking it, because of other obligations last summer so... here we are. The parents were suppose to be there for the first class. I sat there and remembered how hard the chairs were in school, how boring lectures can be and how I have to go through...yet one more of my children learning to drive. For those of us that are blessed to have husbands, we can let them do a lot of the first few scary drives. Still I catch myself wearing a whole in the floor board on the passenger side, the first few months. I won't even tell you how I feel when we do our first Freeway drives...yikes.

They focused today on things that we as parents do that are wrong and which are bad examples to our kids. They asked us to take a good hard look at our driving habits and try to learn at the same time our kids are learning, so that it will be a beneficial experience for both of us. I thought that was a good idea.

The last few weeks I have been so caught up with being lonely for my other kids that left. Today I realized I am still mothering one more at home and that if I do my job right, I still should stay pretty worried...I mean busy :)

My sister-in-law sent me this funny bumper sticker cartoon by Maxine and it went like this...

"Honk if you love Jesus. Text while driving if you want to meet him."

I think that is exactly what the teacher was trying to impress on us as parents to change, things like that.

I don't text at all, but I do have some lazy things or bad habits that I realized today that I should work on while driving so ...maybe this isn't going to be so bad at all, at least I hope not!

I hope you had a great day, and that this post will remind us all, to take a look at our driving habits and see if there is any room for change? Good night dear friends!

"Don't worry that children never listen to you; worry that they are always watching you."  ~Robert Fulghum

"To bring up a child in the way he should go, travel that way yourself once in a while."  ~Josh Billings

"Worrying does not empty tomorrow of its trouble, It empties today of its strength." unknown