Happiness Part 3

1. Afternoon naps
2. Silly Meg Ryan movies
3. Fresh cantelope and watermelon
4. Cooking for my family
5. Planning some down time with family.
6. Planning a trip to a READING leadership conference
7. Hot tamales (the candy)

Happiness cannot be traveled to, owned, earned, worn or consumed. Happiness is the spiritual experience of living every minute with love, grace and gratitude.

- Denis Waitley

Happiness

1. Spending a morning with hubby.
2. Thought provoking quotes
3. Beer Can Chicken
4. Going to the beauty shop.

from the sweeterie

What Makes You Happy?

I'm always drawn to blogs written by really happy people. Those people who find happiness in the simplest things. It makes me feel like I'm missing something big in my life. So today I wondered what makes me happy.

1. Going out with Dan alone (I always have and always will enjoy being with just him)
2. The Boys all together
3. Reading a good book
4. Teaching when it all comes together
5. A clean house

Yet, I think I'm allowing certain things to dominate my outlook on life and rob me of happiness.

1. The failure to be able to lose weight
2. The failure to focus and finish this dissertation
3. The lack of finances

So basically these few things are robbing me of my life. So it is time to do something aggressive.

Everyday Living

These days everyone I know is looking for ways to save money. Yes, we are all thankful to have a job, but  5 months of furlough days are starting to take their toll. We've been told to expect 12 next school year. Makes for hard times to say the least! At my house the only place to cut seems to be in the grocery department, so for days now I've thought of this challenge ove at ALL YOU.

All You is putting forth a challenge to help people come up with creative ways to cut their grocery bills. The challenge involves spending $25 or less per person per week on groceries. I'm intrigued, yet tremble with fear at the mere thought of it!!! Is it possible to feed our family 3 meals per day (summer) on $75 per week. Do I get extra when Matt comes home from college? All very interesting and it does have me thinking!

Now  on $75 per week I don't think we will be drinking Diet Dr. Pepper, or having chips and dip. (Staples at our house). So what do y'all think...is it even possible to eat 3 meals per day at home (no going out) and stay on this budget?

Happy Mother's Day

A mother is the truest friend we have, when trials heavy and sudden, fall upon us; when adversity takes the place of prosperity; when friends who rejoice with us in our sunshine desert us; when trouble thickens around us, still will she cling to us, and endeavor by her kind precepts and counsels to dissipate the clouds of darkness, and cause peace to return to our hearts. ~Washington Irving

Or so it is for most of us. I on the other hand had an extremely young mother. She was 15 when I was born. I remember she worked. We went to the Shriner's Rodeo every year in Ardmore. We went to a huge company picnic every year. Church every Sunday. To my Aunt Lennye's in the big city.

Then I remember at 13 the divorce and at 14 finding out she had cancer. The picture on the left is right before they found the cancer. Things changed. She fought to live and I became her caretaker. I had a part time job and went to school. My grandmother lived next door and was always available. My mom worked on good days, and didn't when times were bad. Yet, she never missed a paycheck (thank you Noble Affiliates or Samedan Oil Company as you were known back then.) As a family we never complained. We got up each morning and we faced the challenges that day delivered. By sheer will she lived till I graduated from high school, then she died.

For a couple of years I blamed God. I thought it was wrong to not have a mother and I went more than a little on the wild side. Yet God protected me and became the one who made sure I persevered.

Life has gone on. Grandchildren have been born who will never know her. Some days I have to search my memory to remember her.

So on Mother's Day what a tribute to a wonderful woman who perhaps gave me the greatest gift...she taught me how to live by showing me how to die.

Meant to be

This morning Dan and I were having a discussion about life in general. The hard times, the good times, the what if times...

I found this poem by Bobette Bryan. It pretty much says it all.

We Were Meant to Be...

We were meant to be

long before we were born,

and we came together

to help each other

find who we really are,

and become all thatwe were destined to be. 

We'll struggle through

the hard times and

grow through them.

We'll overcome

whatever obstacles

life puts before us,

and we'll only get better

with time.

And as the years pass,

our love will grow and blossom,

because we were meant to be!

Tight Times Ahead

Today it finally hit. The pain of our furlough days. There is just more month than money and we only got started. Unexpected expenses of baby showers, wedding showers, and mother's day have depleted the funds. Add to that one in college and one in private school and Help me Jesus. Now our preacher sent out a newsletter wanting us to all dig deeper and come up with $65,000 extra dollars. (While he's been on a week long vacation to Disney World!)

This is where I'm torn. I want to support my church, but with all the cuts in our own paychecks, just taking care of my own family is a struggle. Others in our SS class are in the same boat. Some are losing their second jobs and wondering what to do to make up the differences.

Add to our expenses extra medical bills and we are beyond strapped. Jesus has a plan....I'm looking for it!!!!