Finish This! 4th edition...

Beautiful summer sunset view from our back yard

Week 4 already!  I love doing these and I hope you enjoy reading and commenting too.  As always, I participate in this link up through fellow bloggers:

1)  My last growing pain was.....

I'm sure I have had growing pains since this, but the one that sticks out in my mind the most is from 1999.  My Grandmother, who we lived next door to, had a stroke and passed away a week later.  This was a huge growing pain for me.  As my husband and I went in to her house and found her.  It was a very hard time for my whole family.

2)  I grow and nurture......

from reading, writing and listening to music.  I like to read inspirational books to lift me up.  I like to write to nurture my soul, and listening to music lifts me up and nurtures my soul together.

3)  The guilt-free snack I enjoy most....

is a hard boiled egg.  LOL I know that seems strange, but they really are a guilt-free snack.  Loaded with protein and low in calories, I love 'em!

4)  The best reason to stay up all night.....

Is there a good reason?  I don't think so!!  I like to sleep too much.  Besides, there is NO WAY I could stay awake all night anymore.  :)

5)  If I were stranded on a desert island, I'd.....

go crazy.  For reals!  I probably would die from lack of technology, my favorite foods and not having music.  I cringed just thinking about it.  HA!

Join me next week as we explore these questions...

Prompts for WEEK 18 (May 7) are: I feel an adrenaline rush when …
I feel energized when …
I feel small when …
I feel big when …
I feel indestructible when …
I feel stupid when …
I feel smart when …

6 things I have learned from my oldest child....

This is my Heather.  She has many nicknames - Heather-Feather, Hea, Feather, and one from way back, Pookie.  LOL  Her full name is Heather Cherish-Marie Jones.  Yes, her middle name is two names hyphenated!  I know it's weird, but I have good reason!  (BTW, she doesn't really like it but I think it's growing on her)

So the story behind her "two name" middle name starts way back in 1986 or so.  I was dating her Dad and even though we were very young (me 17, him 19), we had picked out our children's names awhile.  For a girl, we picked "Cherish Marie" and for a boy we picked "Christian Daniel".  

The summer before my senior year in high school, my best friend "Heather" was killed in a car accident.  I was devastated, as was our whole group of friends and anyone else who's life she touched.  Heather's Dad knew "Heather" also, so it was a very sad time for all.  We both felt strongly about naming our girl child "Heather" after our friend that had passed away.  But I still loved the name "Cherish Marie" so I decided to use them all.  And that's how Heather Cherish-Marie came about.  :-)

So the point of my post today is to name 6 things I have learned from my Feather over the years.  She has grown in to a beautiful young woman.   Ok, here we go:

1)  Patience.  I was a very young Mom, and her Dad and I split up while she was still a baby.  So being a single (young) Mom was scary to me.  She was such a happy-go-lucky little girl that being patient came easy.  She was easy going and just would go with the flow.  

2)  Unconditional Love.  She has reminded me about this many times through out her life.  Not in words, but by her actions.  

3)  Compassion.  Her love for her family and friends is amazing.  She is also very compassionate towards animals.  We've always had a family dog while she was growing up and she loved them all so very much.

4) To just be yourself.  As far back as I can remember, Heather never fell in to peer pressure (that I'm aware of! lol).  She was always just herself.  Take it or leave it.   Even as she ventures in to her adult life, she just "is" Heather.  I love that about her.

5)  To embrace faith of some kind.  Heather is a very spiritual person.  She believes our deceased loved ones are around us, always.  We share in this together.  We've explored many books and seminars together.   The older she gets, the more I see this in her.

6)  To be a good listener.   Heather is the best listener I know.  I have talked to her about many things over the years and she is there to share tears of sadness or happiness.  She does not judge.  And even if there is nothing to say in return, she'll just give you a big hug till the hurt goes away.  

I love you my Heather-Feather!!!!

Fab Friday 4/25/14

Welcome to FAB FRIDAY!  No words of wisdom (LOL) from me on Friday's.  I'm going to share a funny quote or inspirational quote.  You'll have to check in each Friday to see what the quote is.

So as the picture says above, HAVE A NICE WEEKEND!


Big shout out to my fellow blogging sistah, Laura, who came up with the "Fab Friday" name for me!  Thanks Laura!  Check out her blog...

Finish This! 3rd edition

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I'm so glad that Spring is finally here!  I can see the trees starting to bud and it makes me very happy!  

It's time for another Finish This!  A link up I participate in by fellow bloggers:

1)  My favorite makeup item is...

AVON tinted moisture - I LOVE this stuff!  It has sunscreen in it, which is very important.  It's very light for summer-time.  I even wear it in the winter I love it so much!  I was so bummed when I heard they do not make this anymore.  I'll have to hunt down a new brand to love when I'm finished with this tube.  booooo!

2)  The best book I've ever read was ______ because....

I can't choose just one.  My favorite author was Sylvia Browne (RIP).  I loved reading all her books.  They just spoke to me.  She passed away a few months ago.  :(

3)  My favorite TV show is....

I know I can't be alone when I say SOA!  (Son's of Anarchy)  OH MAN I love this show!  When I had my gall bladder out in March I totally binged watched Season 1 through 6 while I was off work.  LOL!  Can't wait till it starts back up again in September.

4)  The most spontaneous thing I've ever done is.....

Well, I'm a Capricorn, so spontaneous doesn't really describe us too well!  But if I had to name something, it was signing up to train and run a 1/2 marathon with my best friend.  (Don't have to do THAT again!!)

5)  I prefer dogs/cats because.....

There is no doubt that I am a dog person.  Nothing against cats...guess I'm just not a cat person!  I grew up having dogs and I've had them my whole adult life.  <3

6)  I met my significant other.....

AT WORK!  yuck!  haha!  I was good friends with his cousin and she introduced us.  He moved on to another job, but I am still there 20 some years later.  (what is wrong with me?!?!?)

So, now it's YOUR turn!  How would you answer these questions?

Join me next week when we explore these questions:

My last growing pain was...
I grow and nurture...
The guilt-free snack I enjoy most....
The best reason to stay up all night....
If I were stranded on a desert island, I'd...

Must.Pick.Up.The.Pace!

This was one of my views this morning while walking on a local rail trail.  When the weather get nice I prefer to exercise outside instead of the gym.  This time of year is perfect!  Temperature is just right, not too cold, not too hot.  

So I'm all ready...little wrist weights on, my iHeart radio tuned to my favorite station and I'm doing my warm-up pace.  After that I start to pick up the pace a little.  Finally I'm cruising along at what I thought was a pretty brisk pace. I can feel people approaching me from the side.  I suddenly was passed by two (clearly older than me) people who were also walking.  What the WHAT?!  They just effortlessly zoomed right on past me.  Guess my "brisk pace" wasn't as brisk as I thought!!

Ok, I thought to myself, time to pick it up.  So I push a little faster.  Again, I can feel someone approaching me from the side.  This time I was passed by a (clearly older than me) woman who was RUNNING!  Oh man, I'm feeling a little bad about myself now.  So I decide to wog (a word I like to describe how I RUN - a cross between a "walk" and a "jog").  While doing intervals, my mind starts to drift back to a few years ago when I was training with my BFF for a 1/2 marathon.

We trained many times on this very trail.  It was quite an experience.  I have to say that the training schedule was far worse than the actual 1/2 marathon itself.  It was grueling! While I was able to cross that off my bucket list at 40 years old, I really have no desire to run a 1/2 again.  LOL  I don't mind wogging since it is as good workout; just not for training purposes.  

I am reminded of this quote that I see on Facebook every once and awhile:  

• "If you run, you are a runner. It doesn't matter how fast or how far. It doesn't matter if today is your first day or if you've been running for twenty years. There is no test to pass, no license to earn, no membership card to get. You just run."          --John Bingham

So if you run, then just run!  Or in my case...WOG!  :-)

Finish This...2nd edition!

YAY!  It's time for another 'finish this' thanks to fellow bloggers:

1) My favorite vacation spot is …

Oh boy, this is an easy one for me to answer!  OBX!  (Outer Banks, NC)  This place is the bombdigity!  If you've never been here and live on the East Coast, I highly recommend it!  Even if you live in the Midwest or West Coast, I recommend it.  My second choice would the Jersey shores.  I grew up going to Sea Isle City and Ocean City, NJ.  Those are great too!

2) If I won a million dollars I would …

First thing probably would be pay off my mortgage and all other debt.  THEN!  I would go on a very LONG vacation <insert favorite vacation spot from above>.  I would quit my day job and volunteer somewhere.  Hubster and I always wanted to go on a Safari trip to Africa to see all those beautiful animals and sites there. 


3) If I could go on a date with ONE celebrity, it would be …

OH MAN!  Well, being that I am a music-freak.  At the moment I'd say Myles Kennedy (lead singer from Alter Bridge).  Not only is he very handsome, he is an amazing vocalist and guitarist.  His vocal range is mind blowing.  

4) If I found a genie in a bottle, my three wishes would be …

I know this sounds sappy and probably everyone says this, but for there to be peace.  Everywhere.  Seriously.  It's craziness and I can hardly stand watching/reading the world and local news anymore.  Next I'd wish for everyone to have enough money in their lives to be able to live comfortably and be able to further educate themselves if they wish.  (Without the burden of having a full-time job and a schedule to keep).  Lastly I'd love to know the answer to this question:  "Is there alien life among us or out there?"  Oh, and when I asked my husband what his answers would be, one was "to know if there would be more 'Back To The Future' movies"  :::eye roll:::  LOL!

5) My favorite clothing item is …

This is an interesting one.  I don't think I have a favorite!  What I can say is because I have to "dress up" for my day job, I totally love being able to wear jeans and a t shirt or sweatshirt.

How would you "finish this"?

Join me next week when we explore these questions:

Prompts for WEEK 16 (April 23) are:
My favorite makeup item is ..
The best book I’ve ever read was ____ because …
My favorite TV show is …
The most spontaneous thing I’ve ever done is …
I prefer DOGS/CATS because …
I met my significant other …

Full moon?! I KNEW IT!

Tomorrow is full moon.  What does that mean really?  Whenever this time comes I’m always reminded by the type of phone calls I get, or how people I work with are reacting to situations.  If you have read my other entries, you know I’m a customer service representative by day.  This puts my full moon radar in overdrive during this time.

Other weird things will happen too.  Like this morning I come in to work and realize my head set is DOA.  Dead. Not happening.  Guess I was in a hurry to get out of here on Friday that it didn’t click back in the charging cradle properly.  Grrrr

And my computer?  Forget about it!  It’s been locking up on me all day so far.  Then there are the off-the-wall questions that start coming in.  Or confusion with emails.  You name it. 

So I’m not sure what it is about the full moon.  It makes weird people even weirder. 

What kinds of things do you notice around full moon?

by Font Meme

Finish this!

Today's blog is 5 "finish this" sentences.  Feel free to put your answers below in the comments.  I'd love to hear how YOU would finish these sentences!

1) On Saturday morning, I usually

I will sleep until our doggies wake us up because they don't realize it's Saturday and we can SLEEP IN!!  After they are taken care of I usually watch the news, check email etc. then get ready for the gym.

2) I feel beautiful when

This question is a tough one for me!  Self-esteem isn't my forte, so I guess I'd have to say when my hair will straighten and lay the way it is suppose to.  :)

3) I wake up every morning

to the sound of my cell phone alarm.  UGH!  It's that time already?!  Sometimes I wake up to the sound of my black lab, Jett snoring.  Then the instant I drift back off to sleep, the alarm is scaring the crap out of me. 

4) A happy home

is a home with tons of dog hair.  Hey I can't help it!  It happens when you have 3 BLACK dogs.  :)  Thank goodness most of our house is hardwood floors so it swiffers up pretty easily.  Otherwise a happy home is full of love & laughter.  

5) When I have down time, I

usually am at the gym.  But as of lately I've been spending a lot of my free time getting the word out about the blog you are reading right now!  I enjoy writing, so it's good for me to do this.

by Font Meme

Join me next week:
Prompts for WEEK 15 (April 16) are:My favorite vacation spot is …
If I won a million dollars I would …
If I could go on a date with ONE celebrity, it would be …
If I found a genie in a bottle, my three wishes would be …
My favorite clothing item is …

How animals can help us

This is Jett!  He is my black Labrador Retriever.   He just turned 9 years old and he is my everything! (besides my kiddos of course!)  

Animals are amazing.  They are intuitive, loving and loyal.  They are part of our families and can be considered our children!  Their personalities crack me up.  Jett has a funny way about him.  He has some anxiety problems, so if something freaks him out or he's nervous he'll give what we call the "side ways glare".  LOL He literally will turn his head and stare at you from the side.  It's almost like he's saying "I'm not looking at you" (but I am!).  

Don't you love how excited they get to see you?  You could have had the most craptastic day ever, and they are waiting there to give you a welcome home kiss (slobber) and lots of wags.  It also cracks me up that you can leave the room and come back 10 minutes later and they are just as excited to see you as they were earlier!  Awesome!

What kind of pets do you have?  And what funny things do they do?

by Font Meme

Just drive!

The open road…….have you ever felt like getting in your car or ride of choice and just drive?  To anywhere?  Maybe with a destination in mind, or perhaps just drive till you end up somewhere?

I get this way sometimes.  Right now is one of them.  It seems sometimes life just gets the better of me and I want to just run.  Nothing life shattering happening, just feel like life catches up to me.

There’s something appealing about the open road and being alone with your favorite music blasting in the car.  I can sing at the top of my lungs because no one will hear me, or I can just sort through my thoughts.  There is a song that comes to mind when I get the urge to drive.  “Brand New Start” by Alter Bridge.  I love this song!

Cast your sorrows to the wind

Let the highway take us in
As we escape the disorder

So if you ever decide to take a drive to sort out your thoughts, take this song with you.  J

As my very wise Mother says “this too shall pass, dear”…yes…yes it will.

Sibling love

This is my sister, Kim and I.  Growing up we took lots of camping trips with our parents.  We had a "pop-up" camper.  What great memories we had!  We had chores to do even while camping as you can see from this photo.  As we grew up, we could even be heard singing "My Sharona" very loudly as it echoed through the camp ground.  Then there is the time that during the night the lower half of my body ended up falling out of the lining and when I woke up I wasn't sure what was going on.  What a sight that must have been for early morning walkers.  :)

Kim is a very special person.  I'm not saying that because she is my sister, but because she really is!  She has more patience than I ever could have.  And I think I'm a pretty patient person.  Her first born son, Benjamin was born with Williams-Syndrome.  Williams-Syndrome is a genetic condition that is present at birth and can affect anyone.  It is characterized by medical problems, including cardiovascular disease, developmental delays, and learning disabilities.  These occur side by side with striking verbal abilities, highly social personalities and an affinity for music (courtesy of http://www.williams-syndrome.org/what-is-williams-syndrome).  This describes Ben in every way!  

Raising Ben has not been an easy task for my sister and her family.  It has been difficult, but she always seems to have a smile on her face and is willing to lend a hand to someone in need.  Not only is she a great Mom, she also has a beautiful singing voice, plays the flute like no one's business and is very crafty!  They went on to have two other great kids, Noah and Lydia.  

We weren't the closest siblings growing up, but we grew closer as we grew older.  I admire my Sister a lot. And I dedicate this blog post to her!  I love you Kim!

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