My Advent Preparations for Christmas 2018

The season of Advent begins this Sunday.  It is a time of preparing our hearts for the birth of Jesus Christ. As I do each year at this time, I have been thinking and praying on what I shall do for this joyous season.  In the past, I have chosen to read and meditate on what the Bible says for each day of Advent.  This is something I will do again this year.  However, I found myself wanting to do something more hands on (for lack of a bettery way to put it).  On the website of a favorite Church, I found my answer...

                                                    "A Reverse Advent Calendar"

 Her's how it works.  For each day of Advent, you add an item to a food box.  Then on Christmas Eve, you donate the filled box to a local food bank.  I like this.  So many go without during this time of year and it is a small way for me to help.

Happy Thanksgiving 2018 !

The love and support of my God, no matter what kind of person I have been on any given day.  Knowing He still loves me eternally.

The beauty of the Earth in all its forms.  God was on top of His game when He created it.

The continued good health in body, mind and spirit of my family

Memories of a 60+ year life to remember and share.

Watching my children become the adults I knew they would be with good, kind, loving hearts and the courage to chase their dreams.

Parents who taught me about romantic love between soul mates, the strength of a united family who can get through any adversity and the belief that it is what is inside a person that is most important.

The appreciation of the small things in life-- hearing the coo of a morning dove, watching the mares graze in the field, the smell of freshly mowed grass, the taste of hot orange tea in my nanny's teacup on a rainy morning, the touch of my husband's hand when we go for a walk.

Food on the table, a roof over our heads, a comfortable secure retired life.

Time to pursue past times, travel with my husband and just enjoy day to day living.

Books that you hold in your hand, turn the pages and appreciate the beauty of how they look; music of all genres that lifts you up or calms you down and art in all mediums that makes you wish you had just a small percentage of the talent the artists have.

Being a cat mom and a dog grandma.

The ability to appreciate the positives in my life especially on days when there seems to be more negatives.

(This is reprinted from a post of mine in 2016)

I Have Become My Mom.

Me

It has been said to me in the last few years that I am sounding and looking like my mom.  This comes as no surprise because I have noticed it as well.  What really surprised me was how many things I do and say are so like mom.  In fact, there have been many times when I swear I am channeling mom.  So here are some examples of how I have become my mom.

-I put sticky notes everywhere.  They can be found on appliances, mirrors, books, cupboard doors, etc.  Mom thought sticky notes were the best invention and so do I.
-My mom loved lists.  She would make a list for everything and would be devastated if she left the house without her to do list in her purse.  I have started to be a list person. I make a list for grocery shopping, for reminders on things I need to do in the house and when I leave the house, a list on what to pack for a trip.  I even make lists for the other members of my family.
-My mom thought it was a terrible habit to go to bed with dirty dishes in the sink, so no matter the time she always did the dishes before bed.  I now do the same.  Weird.
-I find myself using the same sayings as my mom, so much so that my family will roll their eyes and inform me I am channeling mom again.
-Mom was a sign reader.  She read the signs on the road when we were out in the car, she read them in stores.  She loved to read signs.  I find myself doing that too these days.
-Mom loved to watch people.  She would sit in the back of a movie theatre as well as in church in order to watch people.  She would sit in the middle of the mall and in restaurants facing the door so she could watch people.  Guess what....so do I.

Now, for many reasons, some people would find becoming their mom very disconcerting but for me, I think of it as a compliment.  My mom was an awesome person to me and if I become even half of the kind of woman she was, I will be quite happy.

Mom

Saturday Smiles!

The smiles this past week were harder to find but, in my opinion, that made them more worthwhile.

*I was notified by 2 credit card companies that there were questionable charges on my cards.  After reviewing them, I agreed with the credit card companies and reported them as fraudulent.  I was not held responsible for the charges (thank goodness) and I was issued new cards from both companies. BIG smile at the end of this one!

*My doctor informed me that even though my health numbers are still not good, they haven't gotten any worse.  I can give that a smile.

*Made a new slo cooker recipe for chili and the guys in my family loved it!  I am not a big chili fan but it's great for a Sunday afternoon when the guys are hanging out to watch (or should I say yell at) football on tv.

*This morning woke up to a snow storm but was pleasantly surprised to see a deer eating apples off my tree. Surprise surprise...he had small antlers!  We never see males especially as we are getting close to hunting season here.  What a nice smile in the midst of an icky snowstorm.

Rethinking the direction of my blog...again!

It's that time of year again when I am rethinking where my blog should be and where is it going.  I have made some changes this year.  Some I like and some I don't like.  I am trying to find more of a personal focus for my blog but inspiration is slow at arriving.