So, a few days ago I received a free sample of ZzzQuil from Influenster (this totally terrific site I've told you guys about!) I was skeptical at first...it isn't like I don't have trouble falling asleep, because I absolutely do! It is just that I cannot stand to be groggy the next day when I take something to help me sleep. Having tried natural solutions like Melatonin and Nyquil and other products specifically for nighttime before, I find that the grogginess is almost worse than the inability to sleep in the first place. But, like a good "sampler" I decided to give it a go. Besides, I was really tired of being tired, if you know what I mean:-) I wanted to try to get a good night's sleep and I didn't have to get up early the next morning, so what the heck!
Well, I was pleasantly surprised--to say the least. I was able to fall asleep quickly and wake feeling refreshed in the morning. Without the residual hangover feeling I so often get when I try to take any sleep products. I am definitely recommending that those of us who want an occasional boost to our sleep life invest in ZzzQuil from the maker's of Nyquil. Great product--great sleep!!
Thursday, July 7, 2016
Friday, April 29, 2016
Full circle?
My first baby, the one who turned my life around in the blink of an eye, is about to become a father. Which makes me a grandmother, right?! My mind is still trying to come to grips with that little fact and she'll be here in 3 weeks.
I can still remember, literally like it was yesterday, the anticipation, the fear, the excitement of my final weeks pregnant with him. Now I'm waiting for my grandchild to get here! How blessed am I to get to love and experience a new generation. A new life that comes from so many other little choices that were made far back before I was even thought of.
Think on that for a minute....so many choices were made, for my great-great-grandfather to turn down that hallway, to bump into that girl and ask her out for a soda. She had to decide to go that way and to say yes. And on and on and on.
Choices. Little, seemingly inconsequential moments, blinks of an eye really. They make up the large stories that are lives. Entire generations. Wow.
Friday, April 22, 2016
Sunday, April 17, 2016
Tuesday, April 12, 2016
What a ride!!
What a crazy week (or so!) it has been! I feel like I haven't stopped moving for the past week and a half--but it's been amazing! Happy, bittersweet moments that have made me stop and really appreciate how amazingly beautiful life really is. Every single second is beautiful. We often forget to appreciate the small moments in our lives--the touch of a little hand in ours when our kids are small; the beauty of a blooming flower--the vibrant colors, the delicate scent, the softness of the petals; the feeling of a good belly laugh when out with good friends; the incredible feeling we're left with when you finish a REALLY good book--the kind you get lost in and immerse yourself in so much that it actually feels as if you've been on a voyage when you're done; the little things.
Too often, we're caught up in the crises, in the major life events and we forget to really stop and appreciate the little ones. The ones that truly make a life. As I've gotten older, I've begun to realize that it wasn't the arguments, the collection calls when I had no money to even buy food for my kids--let alone worry about an old credit card debt, the times my jeans didn't fit just right, the breakups or embarrassment of falling in front of the class--well it isn't those things I've found myself remembering as I've gotten older. Those things are not even a blip on the radar of my mind any longer. Instead, I remember how excited my son was the first time he encountered a goose up close and personal. I remember the squeal of his laugh, how he tried to feed the goose his Doritos, and how his laugh turned a little less certain once he ran out of Doritos and the goose wasn't done. I remember how my mother and I laughed and laughed about that moment once we all scrambled into the car--in fear for our lives from one little goose.
I remember each of my children's first days of school. Their little bodies carrying a backpack that was almost as big as them, as they turned around to grin so hugely while walking up the steps of the school bus. I remember my first concert, with friends--more the trip there than the concert itself. I remember countless lazy days on the beach with my family growing up, and cookouts in the park. I remember the little moments; the happy moments--some sad, I'll admit, but mostly happy. And I realize how precious and how amazing my life has really been. I have more happy, little moments than big, bad, horrible moments. What's more--in those moments I think I felt like life was going to end; like things would never be all right again (you know those moments, when the "wolf is at the door, breathing down your neck, and you can't see a way out of this situation!), but it didn't--life went on, and it was happy again. Those moments do not break us--unless we let them. They are nothing more than the dips on the roller coaster of life. Just a quick dip to remind us to appreciate all the exciting, thrilling, beautiful moments that surround us in every other second.
This past week my children and I travelled to my nephew's graduation from boot camp. I cannot express to you how incredibly bittersweet it was for me. I remember the day this child was born; changing his diaper, watching him play baseball and basketball and football--and gradually getting better. Watching him come to grips with his mother's (my sister's) death from breast cancer--when she was only 28 and he was just a baby of 13--with no idea who his father was. He is now a man. And I am so proud of the man that little baby has become. Against all odds, he has not allowed adversity to get him down--when so many others would have. I know my sister was shining down on him as well.
Anyway, the point of this is to stop stressing over the seemingly monumental moments that are really inconsequential in the grand scheme of things. You will survive. And I promise you that down the road, when you look back on the days of your life--it won't be how many toys you bought your kids (or yourself if you don't have them); it won't be how many times you beat someone else that matters--it will be those little moments--the number of times you laughed or made someone laugh; the number of times you helped someone out, the small joys and pleasures in every day (fresh watermelon on a hot summer's day; biting into a juicy peach; watching the fireworks with family and friends). Those are the moments that matter. So, breathe and take it all in!
Too often, we're caught up in the crises, in the major life events and we forget to really stop and appreciate the little ones. The ones that truly make a life. As I've gotten older, I've begun to realize that it wasn't the arguments, the collection calls when I had no money to even buy food for my kids--let alone worry about an old credit card debt, the times my jeans didn't fit just right, the breakups or embarrassment of falling in front of the class--well it isn't those things I've found myself remembering as I've gotten older. Those things are not even a blip on the radar of my mind any longer. Instead, I remember how excited my son was the first time he encountered a goose up close and personal. I remember the squeal of his laugh, how he tried to feed the goose his Doritos, and how his laugh turned a little less certain once he ran out of Doritos and the goose wasn't done. I remember how my mother and I laughed and laughed about that moment once we all scrambled into the car--in fear for our lives from one little goose.
I remember each of my children's first days of school. Their little bodies carrying a backpack that was almost as big as them, as they turned around to grin so hugely while walking up the steps of the school bus. I remember my first concert, with friends--more the trip there than the concert itself. I remember countless lazy days on the beach with my family growing up, and cookouts in the park. I remember the little moments; the happy moments--some sad, I'll admit, but mostly happy. And I realize how precious and how amazing my life has really been. I have more happy, little moments than big, bad, horrible moments. What's more--in those moments I think I felt like life was going to end; like things would never be all right again (you know those moments, when the "wolf is at the door, breathing down your neck, and you can't see a way out of this situation!), but it didn't--life went on, and it was happy again. Those moments do not break us--unless we let them. They are nothing more than the dips on the roller coaster of life. Just a quick dip to remind us to appreciate all the exciting, thrilling, beautiful moments that surround us in every other second.
This past week my children and I travelled to my nephew's graduation from boot camp. I cannot express to you how incredibly bittersweet it was for me. I remember the day this child was born; changing his diaper, watching him play baseball and basketball and football--and gradually getting better. Watching him come to grips with his mother's (my sister's) death from breast cancer--when she was only 28 and he was just a baby of 13--with no idea who his father was. He is now a man. And I am so proud of the man that little baby has become. Against all odds, he has not allowed adversity to get him down--when so many others would have. I know my sister was shining down on him as well.
Anyway, the point of this is to stop stressing over the seemingly monumental moments that are really inconsequential in the grand scheme of things. You will survive. And I promise you that down the road, when you look back on the days of your life--it won't be how many toys you bought your kids (or yourself if you don't have them); it won't be how many times you beat someone else that matters--it will be those little moments--the number of times you laughed or made someone laugh; the number of times you helped someone out, the small joys and pleasures in every day (fresh watermelon on a hot summer's day; biting into a juicy peach; watching the fireworks with family and friends). Those are the moments that matter. So, breathe and take it all in!
Sunday, April 10, 2016
Interesting video
https://youtu.be/Xp02R9fgSKI
This was a rather interesting video I found that explained a bit about the law of attraction and why it isn't quite as easy as "The Secret" made it appear to manifest your deepest desires. Enjoy.
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