Celebration

I am so proud to take the time to celebrate my husband's courage and drive to always want better for himself and his family. He has never given up on himself despite some hard knocks that have really only made him stronger.

On Feb.22 he was offered a new position with the Sheriff program. He called me from work and I could see his smile through the phone. He sounded like a child who was just let loose in a candy store.

I am so proud of you!

The loss of a great Leader!

Our team experienced the loss of one of our own this weekend. Beth was a true inspiration and leader that helped all of us work from home successfully. She dedicated her time to our team and supporting others in being successful. She became a friend, a mentor, a support, and a teacher to many and she will be truly missed.

Beth had a phenomenal attitude towards life and faced her life every day with a "no excuses attitude." As I reflect back on the past two years and the opportunity to get to know her and learn from her, I have started to gather the gold nuggets that she has provided me. I will forever remember her dedication to her partners, her family and her business.

Beth, you will be missed!

Saskatchewan:)

Some of you may say, WHAT?, WHERE?, or WHO? For those of you who are familiar with Saskatchewan you know what I am talking about. For those of you who don't, Saskatchewan is a Canadian province with many wonders to see. I happen to be from Saskatchewan and have returned this week to see family and host a couple of health and wellness workshops.

As we drove in to Grandma's driveway,my 5 year old immediately observed the piles of snow. She commented," Mama, look at the snow, I don't think we will be having a campfire tonight." Campfires are a favorite past time of ours when visiting Grandma's house, just not when there is 3 foot high snow drifts in the driveway. We will just have to return in the summer to enjoy the campfires, the endless skies and the clean fresh air.

For now we will just enjoy the time with Nana and Grandma before we head out tomorrow to see other family. Until next time......

Love is in the air...

Happy Valentines Day to all!

Today is a day we are all reminded to share our love, affection, appreciation, sharing, etc. And for small children it means cards, treats, chocolate and more. The girls and I have been making cookies over the past few days and today they got to decorate them. They had just as much fun making them as they did in eating them. Yes...they taste as good as they look.

Have a great day with those you love!

Catch Up!

Unfortunately, we had to miss our class last night. It was the topic on Parents and In-laws. With no parents or in-laws near by, maybe this was the right class to miss! Anyways, we have the information and will spend some time this weekend doing our homework. All I know is with only one foot functioning and 2 small children it sure would have been nice to have some parents around to help out, even if they don't speak any English. These are the times when you realize that you are far away from family. For those of you who have family close by, when you feel the need to complain about them think of those less fortunate and be grateful for what they do.

Beauty

Winter has returned for us. Despite the cold that it brings it also brings some beautiful pictures. My favorite thing to see in the winter is frost on the trees. I have attached a photo to share the beauty with all of you.

Habits

It is amazing how we form many habits in our lifetime. For example, sitting in the same place all the time. I tested this out recently with my daughter and gave her the task of picking our seats. It was almost instant that she took us to the same spot every time. Why is this?

Some habits are good, like telling my children "te amo" everyday and some are not.

In our search for crutches, my 5 year old commented to me, "mommy, if you have to buy them you can just keep them for the next time you break your leg!" My kind remark to this innocent comment was I do not plan to make a habit of breaking bones.

We can definitely learn from the innocence of children.

Opportunity

Yesturday I had the opportunity to sit in a forum with 3 very interesting men. A Jewish Rabbi, an Islamic Imam, and a Christian pastor. Yes, you read it right. It was the most profound feeling to have a group of individuals who are painted in the media as hating each other sitting in the same room having a discussion. In the end, I came away with many more questions and a lot of realization that most of us want the same thing...to be good honorable people and to have peace in the world.

Why is this so difficult to do????? Why is religion at the foot of so much wrong? Why does the media play on the evil and steer this towards those who want peace. This only paints a bad picture of those who worship. There are many more who want peace than those who hide behind religion to prove a point.

I realized even more that we need to educate ourselves before we judge anyone. And it is important to not believe everything we hear on the news.

I know this topic often draws a lot of conversation/debate and I would be curious to hear what others think.

Forgiveness

The Power of Forgiveness:

I was given great advice prior to marriage: I was told to never go to bed angry. Somedays I am really good at following this advice somedays I am not so good. Why is it so difficult for us to forgive? Is it because the initial reason that made us angry was so petty? Is it because we don't want to admit our fault in the situation? Is it because the truth hurts? Holding on to anger only brings us down and keeps us from moving on.

Make the step to forgive. Nobody is perfect. After all we are human. The following steps were recommended by the marriage course in restoring hurt feelings:

1.Identify the hurt
2.Apologize (this is a big one, especially if we have done wrong)
3.Forgive
4.Start again together(cross out the hurt and move on)

This process may be difficult, but the reward in the end is well worth it.

"Forgetting what lies behind and pressing forward to what lies ahead." Philippians 3:13

Out of Commission

If you have children, do you recall how many times you tell them to be careful on the stairs. If so, do they ask why? or how come? I was able to prove to my children yesturday what happens when you are not exactly careful on the stairs. A misstep on the last step earned me a trip to the emergency, an air cast on a fractured foot and two weeks off work. It's a good thing I also earn a living working from home.

I thought I would share with all of you to be careful on that last step, especially if it is before 7:00am and that first cup of coffee!