What I've Learned So Far

And now, after talking with a sweet friend I've thought of some other things.  It's a good thing, since I've 50 more to go...
51.  Take what you want and leave the rest.  I don't have to take it all personally and to heart.  Listen, think, then act.
52.  It is always in my best interest to choose my actions rather than react to a situation.
53.  Time spent with my children is never wasted.
54.  I've learned that I LOVE Yoga, and so do my pants.  The yoga pants were very excited by their first trip!  I love that I have learned to shut out the world and just quiet my brain for that hour.  What a gift!
55.  Once upon a time, I was an athlete, with an athlete's body.  That time has passed.
56.  I love to hear my children laugh.  Especially together.
57.  I don't ever want to treat a stranger nicer than I treat my family.
58.  When I listen to KLove - invariably I will hear a song that hits me right where I need to feel it.  God is so good!
59.  I will never be able to stand the smell of Obsession for men by CK.  It makes me physically sick.  There is a truth to that whole smell triggering memories.
60. Rain is good, and we needed it.  Enough for now, so please return the sun to it's previous condition.  Thank you.  Just as a reminder, here is what it looks like:

Continuing Onward...

Took the day off yesterday.  I was crazy busy, but did have time to make a good dinner.  I'm starting to be about as exciting as a facE!book post.  Shall we continue on with my pearls of wisdom?  I know you're just on the edge of your seat with anticipation!

41.  I've learned that my children have a wonderful sense of humor if they let it out.  I'm hoping they got that from me. 
42.  It's good to be able to laugh at yourself.
43.  Being a grown-up is sometimes highly overrated.
44.  I have a better chance of winning the lottery than correctly predicting what kind of mood Jack will be in when coming home at the end of the day.
45.  A cute pair of shoes really doesn't matter.  But it can make the drama more tolerable.
46.  No is a complete sentence.
47.  Exhaling is a great stress reliever.  If you are anxious, do it - it helps.
48.  Eighteen years ago, my baby was 6 months old.  I don't understand how the time passes so quickly.
49.  Remembering your gratitude list - even if it's only 1 thing, and focusing on that, helps in bad times.
50.  On any given day, COPS will probably be on the TV at our house for at least 30 minutes.

Halfway there! 
Have a great spring day.

Back after a Brief Techology Free Weekend

I just spent the weekend free of Technology, and it was so lovely.  It was a beautiful day Friday, and had the day off work so I was pampered!  I no longer have the gray hair that belies my young age...haha.  So now I continue with my 100 listing, and I'll try to do 20 just to be self-disciplined and all...

     21.  While living with an Alcoholic is not something I would wish on anyone, there are still more days of blessings than of curses.  I'm thankful for that.
     22.  There is very often an irony in people's lives that they don't see - case in point - Jack so wants - still at mid-50s - his father's approval.  His father is never going to show it in the way Jack needs to see it.  Every day LT wants Jack's approval.  Jack is never going to show it in the way LT needs to see it.  I hope LT hears me and knows that we love him no matter what - his worth is not based on his performance.
     23.  I still love to garden and am so thankful that we have the space in our yard for flowers and beauty.
     24.  Watching your children grow up is hard.  Much more difficult than being overwhelmed when they were small.  If only you could know that when they are small. 
     25.  I still wonder how two (or more) children can start out with the same 2 parents and come out so completely different, act with completely differing sets of morals and actions.  They experienced the same parenting, yet are wired nothing alike.
     26.  Just when you think winter will never end, spring arrives.  What a relief.
     27.  The unconditional love of a dog is an amazing gift.
     28.  God will work things out in a better way than you can possibly imagine, if you can be patient and trust that He knows what He's doing.  And with the exception of your own actions/reactions, you are not in control.  At All.  Ever.
     29.  There was a time when I thought I could protect my children from any harm.  I was wrong.
     30.  I was also wrong about my ability to change someone else.
     31.  It's awesome to see God working in the everyday.
     32.  Once upon a time, we lived with no television.  It was wonderful.
     33.  It was during that time that my love of reading grew into a passion.
     34.  What you put into your mind definitely affects what you feel in your heart.
     35.  You have to laugh or you will cry.  Laughter is always better.
     36.  "Make hay while the sun's shining" is kind of an ironic saying to me since the only time hay baling is ever done seems to be the hottest, most humid day(s) of the year.
     37.  Why are there Braille letters on a drive-up ATM?
     38.  Naps are wasted on children.  The parents are the ones who need the naps - still.
     39.  Seeing your children performing music is a gift.  Don't take it for granted.
     40.  Knowing how to have a conversation with people face to face seems to be a dying art.  Let's practice it more often.

Okay, that's all I've got for today.  In case you're wondering, that leaves 60 more bits of knowledge left for me to impart.  It's like I'm some kind of oracle.  Ha ha ha ha.
Have a great Monday.

90 more to go

With my 100th post celebration yesterday, I may have gotten a little carried away with thinking I have 100 "pearls of wisdom" to share with the world.  But I am feeling spunky, so onward we go.  In the interest of linking up to Pour Your Heart Out on Things I Can't Say, I'm reaching back to some things I learned long ago, about my kids.

• 11.  While the two sets of genes that started out together are the same, the way they get rearranged into a child are NEVER the same.  Siblings may start from the same parents, but oh how differently they can come out.
• 12.  Sharpie will eventually come off the side of a portable dishwasher.  And also a 2 year old's arm.  Eventually.
• 13.  Never leave your *e-bay account logged in with a 4 year old around.  He can and may purchase an electric train for himself.  How he can find that when he can't spell is still a mystery to me.  I mean theoretically speaking, of course.
• 14.  The look of your first born when he first meets his baby sister may break your heart all over again as he wonders who is in HIS spot - there in your arms.
• 15.  Once in a lifetime, birthday cake for breakfast is okay.
• 16.  Have someone else take a picture of you with your children when they are young.  If you are always holding the camera, you will never have a photo of yourself with your babies (although this may be slightly showing my age, in the era of the "selfie").
• 17.  Never underestimate the power of Thomas the Tank Engine.
• 18.  After learning something in pre-school, it's always good to test it out in practice.  Say you learned about first-responders in class.  You wonder if you dial 911, do they really come?  They will come to check on you if you hang up.  Really.  
• 19.  It does take a village to raise caring children.
• 20.  The best memories never involved my phone or a text.

Please take a minute and check out what others are saying.  

100th Post!! Who would have thought?

Wow - this is my 100th Post!!  I can't believe it.  I don't write nearly as often as I think of things, nor as often as I'd like to, but here it is, my 100th post.  Most times, it seems that when a blogger reaches 100 posts, they do a give-away or something.  I wonder if I should do that.  Unless you like a knit hat or a baby blanket or something, you'd probably just as soon that I not give away stuff.  I think I'll just do a list of 100 random thoughts.  With numbers, and it may take me a few days, but here we go.

1. There are amazing people in the world who we can "meet" without ever seeing each other.  Interwebs - amazing!
2. It's sometimes easier to reveal yourself to complete strangers than your own family.  My reader(s) are an especially kind and caring bunch.
3. When you look for bad stuff in your life you find it.  And it drags you down.
4. When you look for God's miracles in your life - you see them!  And it gives you hope for another hour or day or minute.
5. When you don't share your thoughts with a caring someone, you continue to believe the lies that bang about inside your head.
6. We treat each other much better than we treat ourselves.  We offer grace, compassion, understanding, forgiveness to neighbors, friends, loved ones.  We often beat ourselves up over our mistakes, shortcomings, choices.  Love yourself as you love your neighbor - that goes both ways!
7. While we are so busy getting through the day, years are blowing by, and with them, children grow up, parents grow older, and we don't recognize it until something stops us in our tracks.  We need to be present in the moment.
8. God is not done with me yet.  I'm not as bad as my last mistake nor am I as good as my last accomplishment.  There's always room for improvement.
9. Trying to fill your heart with stuff, people, things, food, anything other than the God of my understanding will always end in disappointment, and that empty feeling that doesn't go away.
10. When you stop for just a moment, there is beauty - just look!

 

Bleeding Heart 2014 - my very own garden

More to come.....and thank you for reading just this post - or all 100!