Grateful Thoughts

Happy New Year's!

It's funny every year I read and listen to folks mention how bad the previous year has been and how they hope and wish for a better new year.   I wish they find that peace and happiness they are looking for and deserve this year.  Everyone deserves happiness and peace.

Every year is hard, difficult and sad - - yet, there is always positive and so many blessings to be thankful for.  It seems sometime we focus more on the bad because of the emotional impact it has.  But I think if we list all the good, the bad seems to disappear - or at least minimize.

I think, if we start the year off with a mindset of gratefulness, when trouble does happen we can adapt to it a little easier.

I'm grateful for:

• My husband and his journey home.
• My kids and their challenges and successes in their lives.
• My furry friends.
• My new relationships with friends.
• My old relationships with friends that continue to grow.
• My paycheck, food on the table, roof over my head, electricity and the internet.

Sunday Grateful Thoughts

I'm grateful for adventures and new life journeys and new chapters.  I'm heading to Florida tomorrow with mixed emotions.  My dear friend Stacie, has fulfilled one of her dreams to move, work and live in England.  I'm so excited for her, but it saddens me at the same time the next time I visit Florida, she won't be there.

I'm grateful for this new adventure for our friendship and knowing all we have been through in the first 10 years of our friendship will have prepared us for this new long(er) distance relationship.

We met online and then in person 10 years ago this coming week - kinda fitting that we'll be spending the week together as she prepares for her next chapter in life.

While all my friendships are important and valuable, this one has taken the most beating and most growing as two people can go through without being family - - though we are very much sisters at heart.
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I know we'll make the time and effort to continue to communicate and visit each other and knowing she is always a part of my life is one of many things I'm grateful for this Sunday.

Created with flickr slideshow.

Sunday Grateful Thoughts

Another beautiful Fall weekend is passing and with the additional hour of sleep tonight, there is always so much to be grateful for.

My crockpot is the best time saver I have!  It has been very depended on here.  By the time I get home after work, I'm not up to cooking an entire meal for the family.  I take a few minutes before work, stuff my crockpot with something yummy and when I walk in the door after a long day of work, it smells wonderful.  Not to mention how yummy and satisfying it feels to know I don't need to spend an hour in the kitchen on my feet.

I think this is my favorite way of cooking a chicken, but we do eat beans and spilt pea soup a lot as well.  Do you have a favorite crockpot recipe?  I think need some new ones.

So tonight we are having Beans and Corn Bread - - yum.

And as I took this picture, I promptly crashed my glass lid on the floor and it shattered into tons of pieces. . . let me say, I'm very grateful for my husband's new job so I can get a new crockpot (can't get a replacement lid, out of stock) and continue to make dinner the easy way this week.

Sunday Grateful Thoughts

I decided to finally take a leap and learn a new craft.  I felt I was at a point to learn something new and different.  I walked in to a local knitting store and for almost 3 hours, the owner herself spent time teaching me!

I'm grateful this week for teachers who value time to share their knowledge with others.  Who make efforts to help students become successful.  Time is precious and knowing someone took their time to give to me is wonderful.


I'm grateful for this gorgeous tree in my front yard.

What are you grateful for this week?

Sunday Grateful Thoughts

I love Fall, don't you?  Sure, there's the allergies, mold, crazy change in the weather - but I think the scents, colors, sounds and the flavors that come with the changing of this season out weigh all those "nasty" things.

I'm grateful for the changing of seasons and how each time it comes how I take time to evaluate how the seasons effect me.

I'm grateful for pumpkin patches and the day spent with family.
I'm grateful for the shorter days, cool nights and warm toasty quilts.
I'm grateful for the seasonal treats with pumpkins and apples.
I'm grateful for the ever changing scenery and the sounds of the falling leaves.
I'm grateful for the smell of damp leaves and wood pit fires that linger in the neighborhood.

What are you grateful for this Fall?

Grateful Sunday Thoughts

Where to start....it's been an entire month of non-blogging....July was filled to the fullest this year and will share all the pictures over this coming week.  Yet, as I look upon the past year since last July I have many reasons for gratitude.

1. My ever supporting family and husband.  There's no way we could have accomplished so much this past year without each other.  Starting anew has been the best thing for our family.
2. My friends - old and new.  They were there to support me in the beginning and continue to do so.  The new friends don't replace the old ones, but enhance those relationships that I miss dearly.
3. My jobs and bosses.  I can't say enough of the strong women who support me financially, emotionally and professionally.  From Maryland to Tennessee these incredible women have been amazing.
4. My own personal strength and growth.  Being able to be open to change and embracing it and making my own future.

Grateful Sunday Thoughts

This week's Grateful Thoughts are all about my husband.  Today is our 24th Anniversary.  24 years! WoW.  It's amazing to think of spending so much time with one person for so long that it's hard to think of when we weren't together.

  

1987  - 2011 (well taken in Dec 10 - close enough :))

Things I'm Grateful for this week:

1. My husband.  His strength, his willing to financially support his family, his tenderness and his smile.
2. Our marriage.  All the trials, pain, sadness, happy times, successful adventures and the continuing growth of our relationship.
3. Four kids that came out of our marriage.  Being parents, making many mistakes but seeing our kids raise and be successful in their own lives.
4. Flowers from my husband (who hasn't ever sent me flowers before to my work place):

Grateful Sunday Thoughts

This past week has just been painful in many ways.  The more I think about it, the past 4 - 5 weeks have been as well.  I feel I got "lost" somewhere and have given up my control to the wind, flowing along aimlessly and wondering around lost.  I don't like that feeling.  I end up being resentful and angry all the time.

So, starting this week off with a peaceful mind and pondering the things I am grateful for and re-centering myself in my own universe:

1. Knowing I can find time for just me.  Alone.  I treasure every second, minute - whether it be in the car on the way to work or before my kids get up in the morning.
2. Enjoyment in simple things.  Hot coffee, a everything bagel with cream cheese, power to run my sewing machines, the humming noises of my computer.
3. A paying job I enjoy.  With freedoms of creativity, socializing, and sharing with others my love for quilting.
4. Interactions with human beings - family, friends, strangers each does have a positive effect on my life daily, though sometimes it might be a hard lesson to see a positive, but in the end always a positive thing.

What are you Sunday Grateful thoughts?

I'm Grateful For. . .

Silence

This last week I was sewing with no kids, no tv, no radio - just the droning sound of my sewing machine and the crackling sound of steam coming from my iron and realized, I really liked it.

I extended the experienment a little further this week by driving my 25 minute work commute with no radio on.  It really allowed me to listen more to the outside noises and listen to the inside voice.  I have such a beautiful drive going souhth towards Knoxville seeing the mountains and the sunrise and returning home seeeing more mountains around Oak Ridge, it made me realize to enjoy the silience and listen to the things that aren't audible. 

I think with all the moving and stress I go through acting as a single parent, I have a hard time finding "quiet" me time.  I'm glad I'm able to find it, savor it and appreciate it.

I'm Grateful For. . .

 Weekends!

I think sometimes I do take them for granted, but this weekend was such a relief as I pondered how wonderful it was to be here again.

I look at each day individually, they each have a set value of scheduling and planning and structure Monday through Friday.  Even Saturday morning with errands and house cleaning is structured.  But once Saturday afternoon hits, it's all about relaxing and taking care of myself.  Whether that be spending time with my family, shopping for furilous wants, sewing all day, or going out to see local scenery - I'm grateful for the weekend to take a break from structure and responsibilities of daily living.

Grateful Thoughts

As I pondered this weekend, I realized I've been here in a new home for another month.  I made a choice last April that involve making life changing events.  In July I moved me and my girls from Maryland to Tenneessee.  In the past 7 months, time has flown by but I realize I have so much to be grateful for.


♥  The strength and confidence in myself to set a plan forth and follow it through.
♥  The faith that the universe will provide my desires to fulfill all my plans/dreams.
♥  Supportive family and friends - old and new - who encourage me and love me.

It's been an amazing seven months and the future I have planned has a lot more amazing things in it!  I can't wait to see it unfold.

Grateful Saturday

I haven't done this in a few weekend's due to holiday busy-ness.  So, that is a good place to start to be Grateful For. . .

1. Holidays seasons that emphasis family and friends.  While we daily, weekly and monthly make the efforts to share our love with our family and friends, it's more fun at these times where we also instill decades of traditions of foods, presents, rituals and routines.  Finding a new balance every year to be less stressful and more fulfilling is a wonderful blessing as we grow and mature with our relationships.

2. New Year routines.  Always feels like a fresh slate.  The holidays noise and bustle has come to a complete calm and you are standing in the stillness.  What's next?  You plan and prepare to do things different and better from lessons learned the year before.  I have never been a morning person, but I thoroughly enjoy watching the sunrise because it symbolizes a new day to start a new!

3. New followers!  I have 43? WOW, when did that happen?  Thank you for taking time out of your busy schedule to browse through my random happenings.  It's nice to know that folks look forward to seeing my posts.

Be sure to share your Grateful Thoughts for this week and visit Maxeabella's site for other Grateful Thoughts.

My Grateful Thoughts for this week

This week has tested everyone in the Eastern Tennessee area with 3" of snow and 1/4" of ice, kids staying home from schools and the finally week before Christmas.  Yet, with all these stressful things, there is always something to be grateful for.

• I'm not all too happy with our heat pump - but at least we have heat and lots of love and quilts to keep us warm.
• Spending "school off" days with my girls.
• Knowing my husband is only a phone call away.
• Knowing my son and his girlfriend in Philly will be here for Christmas.
• Knowing I have all I need to live (and then some).  My wants come in their own time.

What a blessed life I truly live!

Weekly Grateful Thought

I have a lot to share from this past week, being I've missed posting for several days.  Yet, I wanted to be sure I posted my grateful thoughts this week, even if it's a day behind.

This week was filled with everything unexpected.  I had a sick kid home from school for 1/2 the week, I missed 3 days of work, I furbarred on missing a monthly business conference call, my car's check engine light came on and off --and was off at the shop and they couldn't determine there was a problem---of course it has now remained on since I left the shop---grrrrr, and I didn't get to sew anything for me.  **insert big deep breath release**

This week was wonderful in so many other ways! 

I'm grateful for:
1. Being able to work at home.
2. Knowing I have a car and it does run.
3. Having a wonderful husband surprise me with a weekend trip!
4. Watching my eldest daughter perform her Christmas Band Concert.
5. Watching my girls perform and hubby and I enjoying the Oak Ridge city parade.  Creating a new family tradition!

This was a blessed week!

I'm grateful for . . .

This time of year.

This time of year is always filled with colors, family, love, shopping, baking, decorating, smells, mixed emotions and STRESS!

Several things I'm grateful for this week, first is learning to manage my time and my emotional/mental health this season.  It's only taken me 43 years to do it, but I don't feel the burdens of the past.  I'm grateful I have taken care of myself and allowed myself to understand and see the balance of what "needs" to be important this time of year verses the "wants" to be a perfect season.

I'm grateful for accomplishing cards, decorations and baking this past week with no pressure or expectations.  This will be a wonderful holiday season filled with simplicity, love, family and friends.

I'm also grateful for blog giveaways and free patterns.  Be sure to catch up on this Blog Hop hosted by fabric makes Henry Glass.