Football

 

 

Son1 and son2 helping son3 put on his football gear for the first time…

He may be the slowest one on the team but he is giving it his all…

And he has the sore muscles to prove it…

Son1 has been going to his practices with hubby and working with him on non practice days…

Grrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr…

Football carnival tomorrow on Friday…

On this day, God wants you to know

... that life is not a distraction from, life is an occasion for prayer. You don't need a special place or special time to pray. You don't need to be in a special mood to pray. Praying is like breathing, - continuous, essential, life-giving, - praying is the conversation with God you start with birth and continue into old age. Praying is your celebration of God, - everything you do, everything you think, everything you say is another word, another sentence of your prayer.

On this day, God wants you to know

... that every moment is an opportunity for you to be happy. You know how sometimes it seems that life is just throwing you one curved ball after another? Well, guess what, - you have a great way to respond! - you can use every opportunity, every single one, to be happy. Don't just take a shower - feel into and receive pleasure from the water on your skin. Don't just walk on the street - enjoy the fragrances of the trees and the flowers on your way. Don't just drive your car - sing karaoke to your favorite radio station.

On this day, God wants you to know

... that all emotions grow in size when practiced regularly. Practice love to have more love, practice hate to have more hate. Practice kindness to have more kindness, practice depression to have more depression. The choice is yours as always.

On this day, God wants you to know

... that if you would rather live than die, all is in your hands. Life is not lost by dying; life is lost minute by minute, day by dragging day, in all the thousand small uncaring ways.

Happy Journaling…

August Twenty First

Happy Anniversary J-Land

AOL journals started back in August 2003… I started journaling January 1st, 2005 I think… as I started reading journals June 2004 before I jumped in with a journal of my own… It’s seems so long ago since we were at AOL journals at 3 years ago… when the four years of journaling at AOL seemed like a lifetime of friendships and good times… with many of those friendships lasting to today and many years to come…

My main topic of journaling of course has always been son1, son2 and son3… who back in 2005 were 18, 11 and 4 years old…

Here they are literally today as they were helping son3 try on his football uniform…

Son1 is 24, working full time and engaged…

Son2 is 17 and a senior…

Son3 is 10 and in the fifth grade…

I miss you J-Land, but so glad to have made so many great friends that we are still able to keep in touch through facebook and blogger…

One of my favorite things from facebook below that I like to share in my blog…

On this day, God wants you to know

... that when you are unsure how to proceed, stop. Be still and enter into the silence. Allow your mind to cease its restless thinking. Wait. Let the answer come in its time.

On this day, God wants you to know

... that greatness is your birthright. Who are You to shine brighter than others? Who are You to take a step forward when others are shrinking back? Who are You to make others feel insecure with your greatness? You are a child of God. Take a step forward, shine bright, - inspire others with your light to their own greatness.

On this day, God wants you to know

... that you are a child of God. Remain strong in your faith, no matter how many mistakes God's children make along the way of growing up, they are still destined for Grace and eternal Joy.

Happy Journaling…

August Eighteenth..

 

 My little monsters are getting so big… Six months old on the 26th of this month… Time to schedule their appointments at the vet… and then they will be able to explore outside… they are quick and sneaky now and we have to keep an eye whenever we open a door that they have not zipped outside or into a room that they are not supposed to be in or locked in a closet or the pantry so we have to follow the mewing sounds to rescue them…. I am back, Maple was digging in my houseplants again… and she knows that she is not supposed to as she runs now when she hears me coming… Above is Indy sleeping on son3’s backpack… They both fight over who’s turn it is to sleep on the backpack… and below is Maple staking out a new box… every box that comes into the house is claimed by them… they have a box and paper fetish…

I had Tuesday off this week instead of Wednesday as I had to close last night and again tonight causing me to work seven days in a row til I am off again next Wednesday… I can be a team player helping to cover the schedule where needed… Work is crazy right now with all the back to school shoppers buying new shoes… the other two school districts here don’t start til the 22nd so one more week of crazy with everything on the floor and good luck finding the other half of the pair you like… whatever you do don’t put it back in the box and on the shelf where you got it from… I’m sure the two that are scheduled at a time will be able to clean up after the twenty five of you and do our daily duties of stocking the floor and giving you great customer service while we crawl on the floor picking up after you… sorry did I sound bitter… when I went shopping at Sports Authority to get son3’s football cleats none of their shoes were on the floor and their clearance wall was even still sized… different part of town I guess… and it wasn’t because they have more clerks than we do as it was a Saturday and I only saw two… and we have up to four associates at a time on the floor and still can’t keep up with all the customers who feel that it is our job to clean up after them and to not control their children that they can be entertained with taking all the shoe boxes off the shelves and proceed to empty them as if they are building blocks to play with… and if you say something even politely they pretend not to hear you… back to work today to continue to zip tie shoes together that are piling up on our mismate wall… and manager on duty and closing manager…

I want to get back into the habit of writing in my blog regularly… so much to talk/.vent about and then maybe I won’t yell/vent on hubby as much… So much going on right now with work, house, boys, me, hubby, unemployment, hubby’s job, pets, emotions, organizing, starting over, losing weight, gaining weight, books, movies, TV… lots and lots to talk about that I don’t stare at my blog with writer’s block but where to start and do I have an hour to sit here and type it all out…

I started this entry on the 16th…

Now it’s time to get lunch, shower, get ready for work and get gas on the way to work in the van…

I did get new books when we went football cleat shopping… clearance at Barnes and Noble…

And do you think it’s been awhile since I have been in the backyard doing any work on the roses and such…

 

On this day, God wants you to know

... that when you expect nothing, you always receive a lot. No matter how much you receive, if you expected even more, you will be disappointed. No matter how little you receive, if you expected even less, you will be happy.

On this day, God wants you to know

... that to burn out the pain, just find a place filled with joy. God created joy as a balm for pain. What are some places, who are some people filled with joy that you can rely on to ease your pain?

On this day, God wants you to know

... that creativity is good for the soul. Creativity is when your spirit gets a chance to play and express itself. So whether art, dance, cooking, making music, writing, or creating a garden, let yourself go! Create!

Happy Journaling…

Blogging

Taking a minute to talk about my other blogs…

Every Thursday I host The Motivation Station… We have been motivating for almost two years now…

With Summer ending, back to school here and Fall on it’s way I have started a new theme for Thursdays with Linda…

The theme is “What I Cleaned Today” and “A Question of the Week”…

This weeks Question was “Do you own/collect any antiques and/or have a favorite place to go antiquing…”

This is my desk I bought back in the 80’s at an antique store in Belmont Ca…

These days we go antiquing in Clovis Ca…

Be sure to stop by each week and play along… You can link up your answers from in your blog to our Show and Tell link…

Every second Saturday of the month I host Our Krazy Kitchen…

Stop by and check out my BBQ Riblets…

I also have a photo blog: Not Just Roses, that I do not update as often as I would like… I just haven’t had time for photography lately…

Full Moon last night behind the trees…

Happy Journaling…

Back to School

 

The boys went back to school last Wednesday…

Son2 is now a Senior…

He said it was his last first day back to school…

Son3 is a Fifth Grader…

He said he was too tired to smile, not used to getting up early after summer…

He joined football on the first day of school…

On this day, God wants you to know

... that God accepts even the smallest offerings of your devotion with great love. The size of your offering does not matter to God. It is the attitude with which the offering is made that matters.

On this day, God wants you to know

... that God is crazy about you. God sends you fresh flowers every spring, a breathtaking sunrise every morning. If God had a wallet, your picture would be in it. If God has a refrigerator, your childhood scribbles would be on it.

On this day, God wants you to know

... that God loves in you even that which you dislike. God doesn't partition you into pieces and loves some and not loves others. That's what people do. That's what you do. God, who created you, accepts and loves every little part of you, even those you deny and hate in yourself. So next time you try to dislike a part of you, just pause, look and remember that God loves it.

On this day, God wants you to know

We do not stop playing because we are old; we grow old because we stop playing. Lighten up and play. Remember, you are God's child, so it's ok to be silly, be curious, be fun.

On this day, God wants you to know

... that the way you treat others is the way you treat yourself. True respect for another comes from self respect. True love for another comes from self love. True forgiveness for another comes from self forgiveness.

On this day, God wants you to know

... that to worship God you must go beyond words to speak with your heart. You can mouth the words of a prayer all day long and just waste your time, unless you also speak with your heart. And to speak with your heart means to embody first. If you pray for love, be loving. If you pray for wealth, be generous. If you pray for health, practice health yourself. What is your favorite prayer? How can you begin to embody it?

On this day, God wants you to know

... that everyone mistakes the limits of their vision for the limits of the world. Have compassion for others when they cannot see what is obvious to you. Have compassion for yourself when you realize that you can see only a small part of God's vision for the world.

Happy Journaling…

God Wants You To Know…

 

 On this day, God wants you to know

... that it's time you remembered who you really are. You are not your wallet, your job, your kids, your house. You are not your activities or your worries or the labels other people give you. Like an actor you play these roles, and like a good actor you sometimes forget who you really are. Time to wake up now, and remember that you are a being of immense power and breathtaking beauty created in the image of God.

On this day, God wants you to know

... that your pains are God's way to rouse you from slumber. Pain is your wake-up call to awaken, to look deeper into yourself, to adjust the course of your life. God tries to be as gentle as possible, and only if you ignore the call does the pain get stronger.

On this day, God wants you to know

... that inevitable is best accepted with serenity. There are times when you absolutely see no solution. When you've thought and thought and prayed and prayed; when you've sat still in meditation listening for an answer and still no answer comes. There are times when it's okay to just surrender.

On this day, God wants you to know

... that when you feel alone and your heart is troubled, talk to God. Let the presence of God come to you and envelope you and bring you peace.

On this day, God wants you to know

... that your kindness makes a difference. Even if it is a very tiny act of goodness and you think no one notices, God notices. Always remember that one little act of kindness can tilt the balance of an entire situation. One little act of kindness can ripple out in countless ways that you many never know about.

On this day, God wants you to know

... that pain is inevitable. Suffering is optional. Pain is the reaction of the body, and as long as you have the body, some pain is inevitable. Suffering is the contraction of the mind, and unlike pain, is optional. Don't add suffering to pain, - relax your mind and the suffering will pass.

On this day, God wants you to know

... that family is not a name for a group of people, but the quality of relationships between them. Relationships grounded in mutual love, trust, caring and forgiveness. In all the ups and all the downs of life. Look closely, - who is really your family, and who in truth are just strangers in for the ride?

On this day, God wants you to know

... that all those little things that annoy you, are God's way of watching out for you. You never know when an untied shoelace saves you from an onrushing car. On September 11th, one man was saved because he had to get donuts for his team; another because he developed a blister on his foot from wearing new shoes.

On this day, God wants you to know

... that every day you are choosing either to be grateful or to be disappointed. You can worry to no end about what you don't have. Or you can marvel at God's breathtaking gifts: the morning dew, the sun, the clouds, the trees, the flowers, the birds. Could you create any of these? These miracles of life are always around you, ready to be celebrated, ready to be welcomed into your life.

Happy Journaling…

July Twenty Seventh

Only two weeks til school starts… son3 has barely gone in the pool… he prefers to play his video games… Just as well as I’ve barely gone in the backyard… I haven’t trimmed the roses, cleaned the pool or watered the plants… although the sprinklers are on a timer too…

I had three days off for the boy’s birthdays… I had so many plans of things I wanted to get done… I knew they wouldn’t happen…

Maple is a big stinker… She gets into everything… Even when Indy gets into something, Maple takes over and ends up getting blamed for it… She scratches the furniture, scratches my carpet trying to get into doors that are closed, she runs into rooms she is not supposed to be in when you open the door, and she can jump on the kitchen counters now… She is sleeping behind me on the couch now… Isn’t she too cute, when she’s sleeping…

Holly hates the kittens and the dog… She hisses at all of us… Even when I try to pet and hug her…

The boys were on a coloring kick a couple of weeks ago…

Son3’s…

It’s been four weeks since my car accident… AAA called today to let us know that we didn’t have to pay our deductable, so if we had already paid it when we picked up our car, they would reimburse us… We said we haven’t picked up our car yet nor have they called us with an update… she was surprised as she thought we had our car, so she called the mechanic and called us back saying the shop had sent the paper work to AAA saying the car was a total loss and not worth repairing, however she had never gotten any paperwork… so she is researching as to what is going on… and yet how can they give us an estimate for repairs and then three weeks later send a report saying it is a total loss…

Girlfriend’s…

I worked Thursday through Sunday… Friday we got Carl’s Jr… I felt like a special treat… Teriyaki Turkey Burger…Sunday I had to close so son3 opened his presents in the morning…

Son2’s…

Monday and Tuesday  I took vacation days… Son1 also had Monday and Tuesday as vacation days… So Monday before hubby went to work son1 opened his presents… Monday when hubby got off work we all went to Home Town Buffet, girlfriend too… It was so good… the food is better since they remodeled… Then when we got home we had birthday cake for both the boys… Tuesday we went to Transformers Dark Side of the Moon… Not son1 though he had seen Captain America on Friday… Transformers was so intense…

Son2’s…

Today I had to go into work for a minute to put the hours in the schedule… I had a ton of hours… Found out we have an audit visit on Tuesday… I don’t even have enough associates to use all the hours I got… Son2 came with me so he could look for back to school clothes… He got five character shirts and three plaid button shirts… they were all 50-60% off… we also found five character shirts for son3 and a windbreaker jacket that were all on clearance and then an additional 40% off… also got son1 a Captain America t-shirt and hubby a Marvin the Martian t-shirt…

Son1’s…

Movies we’ve seen lately: Just Go With It, Adam Sandler and Jennifer Aniston, it was actually kinda cute; Hall Pass, Owen Wilson, not good at all although I watched it til the end; Rango, Johnny Depp, So Good, we watched it twice… Tonight we saw Season of the Witch with Nicholas Cage, it was interesting and strange and a bit scary…

Son2’s…

We’re watching How I Met Your Mother season 4 that we got son1 for his birthday… So funny!

Maple in the box that son3’s video games came in for his birthday… The kittens claim every box and bit of wrapping paper that comes in the house… Son3 has slept for the last three nights without his bedroom light on… our agreement since he’s ten now… we still leave the hall light on for him though…

It is now after 10pm… time to get everyone to bed… and watch my latest episode of True Blood season 3 and put my laundry away… Back to work tomorrow…

Happy Journaling…