Words of Wisdom – New Year, new you – what is your vision?

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It’s the time of year where people everywhere are creating New Year resolutions. However, some people are forgoing tradition resolutions and instead are creating visions or goals or success.

As I was working on my end of the year task of throwing out clutter, I came across a Success Journal that was buried in a pile of books. Each page of the spiral journal contained quotes by famous people. Each section of the journal was categorized by a theme.

The section that caught my eye was, Vision/Dreams, how appropriate for the upcoming year. Here are a few quotes to propel you forward in creating your vision and living your dream for 2015.

“Success can be defined as the progressive realization of a worthy goal.”  - Earl Nightingale

“It’s time to start living the life you’ve imagined.” – Henry James, American writer and author

“Go confidently in the direction of your dreams. Live the life you have imagined.” – Henry David Thoreau 

Wishing you a happy and prosperous New Year!

 

Muffins with Mom – The True Story of the Wolf and Grandma

I have to admit that I have a fondness for fractured fairy tales. One of my favorite tales is The True Story of the 3 Little Pigs (as told by the wolf). Every now and then I am faced with the need to tell my own version of a fractured fairy tale. Today’s tale is The True Story of the Wolf and Grandma.

In my tale, the wolf is not big and bad, but a teen a boy who knows how to get his way with his Grandma.

On a mid-December chilly day, we went to visit Grandma (my mother), she had a few requests of her little wolf. “Can you fix my T.V. for me?”

“Sure Granny,” he said in a gentle voice.

And that was the beginning of the wolf using his sensitive side to win Grandma’s heart.

After repairing my mother’s TV, my son also took out trash and raked what was left of fallen leaves in the yard.

His reward was coins from Grandma’s coin jar. At Granny’s house there was not a cookie jar with sweet treats that her grandkids loved to dip into. Instead, there was a coin jar filled with loose change that Granny tossed in regularly.

As we prepared to leave Grandma’s house, little wolf embraced his Granny and said, “Do you need me to do anything else before we go?”

Satisfied with the accomplishments of little wolf, Granny kissed her grandchild and said, “No darling, you’ve done enough for Granny today.”

That was not the end of the story.

Upon arriving home, I asked little wolf to put away the dishes. His response was, “I’m too tired.”

And that was the true side of the little wolf.

Do you have a parenting experience that relates to a fairytale?

Feel Good Friday – A box full of kisses

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Below is a poem I discovered while surfing the internet, may it touch you as it did for me.

 

A box full of kisses

Author Unknown

 

The story goes that some time ago, a man punished his 3-year-old daughter for wasting a roll of gold wrapping paper. Money was tight and he became infuriated when the child tried to decorate a box to put under the Christmas tree. Nevertheless, the little girl brought the gift to her father the next morning and said, "This is for you, Daddy."

The man was embarrassed by his earlier overreaction, but his anger flared again when he found out the box was empty. He yelled at her, stating, "Don't you know, when you give someone a present, there is supposed to be something inside? The little girl looked up at him with tears in her eyes and cried, "Oh, Daddy, it's not empty at all. I blew kisses into the box. They're all for you, Daddy."

The father was crushed. He put his arms around his little girl, and he begged for her forgiveness.

Only a short time later, an accident took the life of the child. It is also told that her father kept that gold box by his bed for many years and, whenever he was discouraged, he would take out an imaginary kiss and remember the love of the child who had put it there.

In a very real sense, each one of us, as humans beings, have been given a gold container filled with unconditional love and kisses... from our children, family members, friends, and God. There is simply no other possession, anyone could hold, more precious than this.


...wishing you a box full of kisses!

 

 

Wordless Wednesday - In the spirit of Christmas - Jimmy Fallon, Mariah Carey and Light Displays

 

 

The Tonight Show starring Jimmy Fallon

 

 

 

YouTube Credit: Swindle112
 

What gets you in the spirit of Christmas? 

Wishing you and your family a wonderful Holiday season!

Muffins with Mom – PUSH – Pray Until Something Happens



My disabled vehicle on the shoulder of the highway.

When facing a difficult situation, I’ve heard it said that you have to P.U.S.H. forward – Pray Until Something Happens. Just last week I lived this phrase.

It was a chilly December evening, yet not cold enough for a winter coat. It was a 20 minute drive to where I was supposed to meet my mom and pick up my oldest son. He had spent the day helping her around the house.

My car stalled before I even left the house, but after giving it a jump with the booster cables, my younger son and I headed to the highway. Having just finished football strength training at school, my son fell asleep in the passenger seat. The car ride was pretty smooth until we reached the halfway point of our journey.

I was driving in the middle lane of the I-94 highway when traffic began to slow down. We had caught up to rush hour traffic, but it was toward the end or rush hour. Going about 40 miles per hour, my car began to coast even slower.

Within seconds everything in the car shut down.  The heat went off, all the dash light wen out. Panic set in as I tried to unlock the car door. My heart rate increased, I pounded on the side window and the sun roof. Snatching my son out of his sleep, I yelled to my son, “I can’t get out.”

I prayed and tried to calm down. There were cars and a semi- truck going around us. My son said, “Ma, unlock the door with your hand.”

I unlocked my door and told my son, “Get out we have to push the car.”

Still a little disoriented after waking from his sleep, my son stood near the front of the car. I told him to get behind the car and push while I pushed and steered from the driver’s side. At first we had trouble changing lanes because everyone was going around us. The hazard lights did not work.

We kept pushing and I eased the car into the right hand lane. Once we made the lane transition, my son began to push faster. I had to yell to him to slow down because I didn’t know if I would be able to stop.

Praying the whole time, we made it to the shoulder of the highway. I had my phone in my pocket and the Bluetooth on my ear. Trying to maintain a steady voice, I called my husband, then 911.

My husband arrived with three fluorescent vests. The 911 dispatcher connected me to the State police who sent out a Department of Transportation vehicle (MDOT). Upon arrival, the driver lit flares behind my car and said he would have highway cameras focused in our direction.

My son and I sat in my husband’s car until the tow truck arrived. While we waited I reflected on all the sayings I’ve heard related to challenging situations –

·         Turn your tests into a testimony

·         Turn your trials into triumphs

·         Make your mess, your message

My message is simple, when you feel yourself in a challenging situation, P.U.S.H - Pray Until Something Happens.

Have you experienced a situation where you had to P.U.S.H. forward?

Fun Friday – A matter of interpretation or misinterpretation

A grocery list - sometimes it's legible, sometimes it isn't

Have you ever experienced a situation where something you did or said was misinterpreted? An item on my grocery list was the target of misinterpretation the other day.

I stopped by the grocery store on the way home from work, once inside the store I realized that I didn’t have my shopping list. Using my semi-sharp memory, I grabbed items that I could recall from the list.

Before leaving the grocery store I called my teen son at home and asked him to read the list to me. He rattled off items, “Milk, cereal, apples, Ritz…”

“I don’t remember Ritz being on the list, you’re just add stuff,” I told him.

“I’m just telling you what I saw on the list,” he said adamantly.

I grabbed a few more items, including a box of Ritz crackers. Although I didn’t believe the crackers were on the list, I got them anyway because I like to snack on them.

After arriving home, my curiosity got the best of me, I had to check out the grocery list. The list was still in its spot, written on a magnetic pad posted on the refrigerator door. The items were – milk, cereal, apples and GRITS not RITZ.

Somebody had not taken their time to write clearly or to read slowly. Either way I was without grits. It was no big loss, I simply created a new list. However, next time I will make a list to remind me to take the list when I leave the house for the day.

What experience have you had with something being misinterpreted?

Words of Wisdom - Quotes from great leaders

YouTube Video Credit: by Sentenn

Muffins with Mom –Home for the Holidays

What do you do when a family member comes home for the Holiday’s? My college son came home for the Holiday’s, but he didn’t really stay home. I believe he is enjoying his freshman year. I’m not sure because his brother dominated the conversation for the first two hours. Then they prepared to hang out with friends.

Before my teens left on their journey to reconnect with old friends, we managed to squeeze in a brief conversation and take a few photos. It wasn’t until the next day that it was my turn to visit with my son a while.

 

After church, the boys and I went shopping for a Christmas gift for their younger cousin. It was out first trip to the toy section of the store in a long time. Having teenage boys, we spend a lot of time in the electronics section of the store.

As we searched for an ideal gift, we also played. Who can go to the toy section without playing with something? My younger teen came over to me and said, “Mom, I want you to be safe.” He plopped a shark or dinosaur bike helmet on top of my head. Both boys took out their phones and said, “I’m putting this on Snap Chat.”

 

Since my boys were exploiting my silliness, I told them to take a photo with my phone too. There must be something about Sunday afternoon shopping that brings out the silly in my family members.

It wasn’t long before we were back in the car and on our way home. My younger son asked me, “What are you going to do when you get old and don’t have kids at home anymore. And you don’t have anything to blog about?”

“I’ll still read and write,” I told him.

“Hmmm, that sounds boring,” he said.

“I can always come and live with you.”

“Reading and writing might not be so bad for you.”

There were no more questions asked of me on the ride home. The next episode of Muffins with Mom will post right after family comes to visit us for pre- Christmas dinner. I’m sure there will be something interesting to share.

I’m feeling like Dorothy for the Wizard of Oz…”there’s no place like home” (for the Holidays).

Has your Holiday season begun yet?

 

Fun Friday – Family funnies

How old is too old to wear a retainer?

What is the funniest thing a family member has shared with you recently? In my household there is rarely a dull moment.

Recently I made the decision to get a retainer to correct one of my teeth. The first day I wore the retainer I don’t think my son noticed my speech was different. It was day two when he starred at my mouth as I was talking, that he noticed something was different.

“What is that in your mouth?” He asked frowning.

“Do you mean my retainer?” I played dumb.

“Why do you have that at your age, won’t you be losing teeth soon?”

I guess I must not have read the age guidelines for wearing a retainer.

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Yesterday it was my mother’s turn to share a story. My mother has her doctorate’s degree and many of her friends introduce her to others as Dr. Adams. Many years ago, she was part of a walking club at the mall.

One day while walking with a woman, mom and the woman stopped to chat with a male club member. The woman introduced my mom by her first name, then ended by saying, “she’s a doctor.”

The man began telling my mother, “You know, I’ve been having trouble with my prostrate. It’s been bothering me about six months.”

Mom never interrupted the man to tell him she wasn’t a medical doctor. She just listened. Knowing my mother, she probably asked the man if he wanted her to pray with him.

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I talked to my college son, a few days before he was scheduled to come home for Christmas break. I asked him what he missed or what he wanted to eat when he arrived. My son said, “A home cooked meal would be good.”

I told him, “Stop playing, you know I don’t cook like that.”

After we finished laughing, I told my son I would make his favorite meal…Belgian waffles and eggs. 

What is the funniest story you have heard lately from a family member?

Wordless Wednesday - Parenting teens - Jeff Allen comedy

 

Muffins with Mom – The loud talker

A quiet section of a library

Do you know anyone who talks loud? No? Hi, my name is Angie and I talk loud. You now know a loud talker. When I talk on my cell phone, my kids say I’m yelling.

“Why do you talk so loud on the phone?” My younger teen asks.

“Sometimes I can barely hear what the other person is saying.”

“So you talk louder?”

“Yep.”

On a recent visit to my local library, I stumbled upon a fellow loud talker by accident.  I was sitting in a semi-quiet section of the library, just a few shelves and a couple of pillars from the active children’s section. The round table that I sat at was just enough room for my laptop and the picture books I was using for research.

It wasn’t long before a middle aged man strolled past me talking on his cell phone. His conversation went something like this…

“Ok, I can hear you now, I was in a loud area of the library.”

I smiled to myself as I thought, so you left the loud area to come to a quiet area and talk loudly? The man planted himself in a cushioned arm chair about ten feet from where I sat. As he continued his conversation, I learned that he had a Facebook page when he said, “A lot of people clicked like on that picture I posted.”

 

The loud talker continued talking and I continued reading, well I took a break to send a text to my son.

I just found someone who talks louden that me, while in a quiet place. This is the second time this has happened to me at the library. Am I being punked?

My son responded back with, LOL.

I finished working on my project and left the library before the loud talker could share any more of his life with me.

Have you ever had an encounter with a loud talker?

 

 

Fun Friday – The lighter side of fitness

You don’t have to be a fitness expert in order to begin a workout regimen, but it helps to have a little knowledge. Over the past year or so, my family has been on a fitness kick. Do we know everything there is to know about being fit? No, but we know how to laugh at ourselves along the way.

My mom has a membership to a fitness gym in her area and she workouts a few times a week. I’ve gone with her on a few occasions and observed her workout. She is quite the social butterfly, but manages to get time in on the treadmill between conversations with other members.

When I talked to my mom on the phone the other morning, I asked if she had worked out. Her response was, “I stirred some eggs.” Whisking eggs for breakfast was my mother’s workout that morning. I don’t believe making scrambled eggs counts in the process of elevating your heart rate as part of fitness, but it could be just a matter of perspective.

Speaking of perspective. When my teen son told me he wanted 30 pound dumbbells for Christmas, I discovered I had a different perspective on how he could use the weights. My first thought was okay, dumbbells shouldn’t cost too much, especially compared to the video games he wanted.

I asked my brother how much he thought 30 pound dumbbells would cost. He said about $33.00. I said, “Oh, that’s not a bad price, $33 for two weights?”

“No, that’s for each weight,” he said.

I later told my son the approximate price of the weights and suggested I purchase just one weight. “Can’t you just alternate hands when using the weight?”

“No Mom, that’s not how it works,” he told me.

It appears that I was the dumbbell to think that I would get a set of weights at the low price of $33. What my son may not realize is that I can be resourceful at times.

While my son and I were shopping the other day, I suggested we go over to the fitness section and price the weights that he wanted. The cost was $35 each for a 30 pound weight. My son removed one of the weights from the shelf and began doing arm curls. And that was the moment my resourcefulness kicked into gear.

As I looked over at the treadmills, I shared my idea with my son. “Why don’t we come to the store a couple of times a week and you can use their weights? I will test out the treadmill while you do your repetitions.”

My son said, “Wow, mom. Only you would think of that.”

Of course I would never really do such a thing, but every now and then it doesn’t hurt to think outside the box.

Have you had any funny experiences with fitness?

 

 

Words of Wisdom - Motivation and Success

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"Destiny is not a matter of chance, it is a matter of choice; it is not a thing to be waited for, it is a thing to be achieved." - William Jennings Bryan

Sooner or later, those who win are those who think they can." - Richard Bach

"What you get by achieving your goals is not as important as what you become by achieving your goals." - Zig Ziglar

"It is your decisions and not your conditions that shape the quality of your life." - Anthony Robbins

"Courage is not the absence of fear, but rather the judgment that something else is more important than fear." Ambrose Redmoon

What words of inspiration would you add?

Muffins with Mom – How a teen faces his fear



A teen sending his Mama silly love.

I recently came across two meanings for the acronym F.E.A.R. One of the meanings said, Face Everything And Rise. The other meaning said, Forget Everything And Run. My college freshmen told me about an experience he had over Thanksgiving break. He applied one of these meanings without realizing that was what he was doing.

My son is attending school 600 miles from home, so he didn’t come home for Thanksgiving. Instead, he spent time with relatives who live a couple of hours from his college campus. One of the relatives he visited had a dog. I may have mentioned this in a previous post, but my son does NOT like dogs. I would go so far as to say, he is afraid of dogs.

After being in town a day, I asked my son whether he had a chance to visit many relatives. He said he had been to see a few people, but his most memorable visit was a trip to one of his aunt’s house. He told me about his visit through a text message.

My son said, “Well, I fell a total of 11 times at Aunt CheeChee’s house. I thought I was being chased by this dog by her house, so I ran and tripped like the people in the scary movies. I thought I was about to die, then I realized the dog was on a leash chained to a tree and just running in circles.”

The story continued in part two of my son’s text. “I fell down, then got up with leaves in my hair and my mouth. All I could do was shake my head in laughter.”

I was laughing so hard that I was shaking and couldn’t respond to his text right away. I did manage to ask my son, “Are you homesick yet?”

His response was short and quick, “Yeah.”

I live by the words, if you can’t laugh at yourself, who can you laugh at?

Have you figured out which meaning of the acronym F.E.A.R. my son experienced? Actually he may have applied both meanings. When he saw that dog coming toward him, he didn’t wait to analyze whether he was on a chain. My son took flight and ran.

After dog incident was all over, my son was able to face the situation and rise above it. A part of his rising above this was to allow me to use his challenge as a blog post. And today is his birthday. Happy birthday, Grasshopper!

Has your child had to face a fear?