A Day to do Nothing?

Taking a day to do nothing feels so wrong to me. But I have decided that today, besides working on my meetup site and scheduling classes on facebook, and doing laundry I am just not going to rush to do much of anything. I tried to work on my website and Go Daddy is just not working today. Maybe I will get up the motivation to work on my newsletter. Just wish I had a decent picture of my class on Thursday before I did that. We will see.

This cold weather has me in a funk. This usually happens to me, Miss Summer. LOL! Gavin and I had a great time at the shelter on Saturday. We did have an upsetting experience when we got to the lower building though. We were completely mauled by cats when we walked in. I mean they were jumping on us and holding on with all claws. Something was not right. After a few moments of giving them attention then looking around to see the issues...it was apparent that these cats had not been given any water. Gavin turned on the sink and 10 cats jumped in. One cat drank so much water and ended up throwing it all up because she drank too much too fast. I was disappointed that these cats were left this way. Expressing my concerns, I know this matter will be dealt with and right away. If I had more time I would get to the shelter more often to help out. I know how hard it must e to take care of 450 cats. Now if we could only make more people aware of how important it is to spay and neuter their pets!?!?!?! The shelter will do the surgery, get them up to date on shots, and microchip them for only $75. Much cheaper than the vet.


I have to say that I am happy that Halloween is over. I am highly looking forward to Thanksgiving. Not sure how that is panning out yet since Jeremy and my family are both hosting something that they would like us to attend.

I have so much I could write about but do not know where to start. So, I am closing.

What I am thankful for today:

my friends
my children
Shawn
my pets
the shelter
being on the Shelter Cat & Pocket Pet Committee at The Center for Animal Health & Welfare
inspirations
playing games with my kids
pumpkin seeds
my store
hot tea
coffee
twix (ate three this morning)
the gym (see above)
taking classes with Jennifer G
Thankful Thursdays
my Avon Fairy
Thanksgiving
clean laundry
money
hope
faith
laughter
love
church
God
the power of prayer

A Good Day and A Awesome Weekend to Come

Today was such a good day! Makenna was feeling so much better by the early afternoon that Jen and I took her to The Center for Animal Health and Welfare. I love feeding the kittens! They meow like mad when they hear the cans being opened. We cleaned the rabbit cages which was funny because the one rabbit kept jumping back into his cage. Guess he didn't mind it being dirty. There have been lots of adoptions lately and it makes me so thrilled to know that these animals will have forever homes now. It is a bittersweet feeling though because we have established a bond with some of these cats and dogs. While I am happy that Alice and Birdy (two of my favorite felines) are still there, I know they would be happier in a home with someone who loves them. The thought of them leaving does make me sad though.

Tomorrow I am excited to teach a class at my store. It has been a while since I have taught one. I am highly looking forward to my Thankful Thursdays coming up in November. Jess Ballas has 9 people in her class so far!! I am so excited for her! Maybe some of them will stay for Jennifer's layout class!!??

Tomorrow night is what I am really looking forward too. I cannot wait to have most of my friends here with me at home. We are going to play games on the Wii and board games. Jennifer G is bringing calories in hopes that I go back to the gym with her this week...LOL! I have really missed going with Makenna being sick all week. Thankfully she is feeling better.

I am so thankful for my friends, so thankful for my furry friends and so thankful for my children. Makenna and I have had some wonderful bonding time this week. We read books, she helped me clean and cook, we played restaurant, and lots of other stuff. It was great! She really is a good kid, even when she isn't feeling well.

What I am thankful for today:
my friends....God am I lucky!
my kids
my pets
Birdy, Alice, Slipper, Ramona, Squeaky and all my other favorite felines
my health
chocolate
hot showers
fall
Makenna feeling better
Gavin getting good grades
quality time
my stationary bike (came in handy not being able to hit the gym)
an awesome weekend ahead
the parade
my classes
my customers
my store
heat
facebook
faith
loyalty
clean laundry
my home
my jeep
laughter
hope
love
music

Healing Once Again

Just feeling like a huge scab was ripped off my life, I am preparing to heal once again. Why does life have to go the way it does sometimes? Why do we have to hurt others? Why do we have to be hurt? I know that we can only see our furture a few feet at a time. At this moment, I would like just one glimps of the entire picture. Maybe it would help me feel better, maybe it would give me more hope.

My mind and body got quickly pushed into protective mode. The one person I know would never hurt me, ended up feeling the brunt of my pain. It is like I am on Auto. I automaticly want to push people I care about away before they can hurt me. Shawn quickly reminded me that the fear of that is manifested in my own mind. He reminded me of how strong I am and how I chose to allow the hurt to continue or step on it like a scary spider and not allow it to get the best of me. While this is easier said than done, it is what I am going to try to do, squish it like the hairy, scary spider it is.

God is probably tired of hearing me cry and plead, "Take the pain away, keep me strong, give me the faith that I am lacking." In the middle of sobs I felt as though someone was hugging me, around my back. It was as if there were one or more presences trying to tell me I was not alone. While it made me feel a tiny bit better I was angry, sad, frustrated and still felt very alone. God was with me. I know he was. He was hearing me cry, he was trying to carry me through but I was too upset to let anything go. Here I am a couple of days later, feeling still the sting, but I feel better being reassured that I have tons of people who love and care about me. I have tons of people who would never hurt me, ever. It makes me see the light at the end of the tunnel. I may not have a clear path, but I am definitely ready to take on the challenges. My support is with me every step of the way. God bless my friends and Shawn for they are the glue that holds me together in times like these.

What I am thankful for today:
friends:
Heather
Jamie
Jen R
Erika
Jennifer G
Rachel
Melinda
Diane
Sally
Shelley
my children
Shawn
my health
my strength
creativity
God
hope
faith
the power of prayer
inspiration
laughter
a good time Saturday night
heat
chocolate
time
letting go
healing
energy
being able to run for 3 miles now
my jobs
animals
music
Amy Grant
my church
Linda (Jeremy's Mom)
forgiveness
positivity
love

Family, a Little Bragging, and Little Drops of Water

Today was a great day. I enjoyed being with Jeremy's family so much. Nana's funeral was nice, short and sweet. I feel that is how she would have wanted it. The luncheon was good. My mom helped me get everything out.....thank you mom! Linda's house had a lot of people in it! Nana was there hovering over the dessert trays...I could just feel her. LOL! I love that Jeremy's family still treats me like family. I feel like I will always be a huge part of my family. Linda let me pick out jewelry of Nana's, perfume, whatever I wanted. It really made me feel good that she included me in all of that. Wait until you see the ring I picked.....GORGEOUS!

I haven't bragged about Shawn lately so I am going to now. Ha Ha Ha! In the last two days he has been very huggy, holding my hands constantly, more affectionate that usual. He got up to go smoke a cigarette...something we are working on getting him away from, and I said "Why can't you be addicted to me, I am much more healthy." He smiled and said, "I am addicted, I admit it." Then when he dropped me off at home I asked him if he would be ok without me for an entire day...ya know being addicted and all, and he said, "Maybe for a few hours....but that is all." LOL! He came to visit me at the store on Sunday and surprised me with coffee. I didn't know he was even coming. He got the bird out the window...thank goodness......and told me twice in about 15 minutes that I was beautiful. Can you believe that I have known this man since 2nd grade? Can you believe that we started dating a year ago in July and he is still this way towards me? It is hard for me to digest since I am so used to things wearing off and dying down. It just confirms that we are great together. And that love can conquer all. Enough of the bragging....you are probably ready to puke now.

So, Erika and I have been pondering some awesome ideas. We are planning this fundraiser for Amanda Buss and I have been having major realizations. I realize my purpose in life.....my main purpose. I am definitely here to service people and do God's work but I have figured out in what way. I will continue to volunteer at the animal shelter but my main focus is organizing fundraisers. Erika and I are most likely going to do this together and anyone who wants to help can join us. We are looking into starting a non-profit organization, one that specializes in fundraisers. Of course we are keeping the store. Our name will be Little Drops of Water. And the story behind that is, at church on Sunday Pastor Tricia said that we have to picture ourselves as little drops of water. Each of us has a special talent that if we put our talents together we can make great things happen. So, all of us drops of water together can fill an entire bucket. If you would like to be a drop in our bucket, please let us know. You do not need to commit to every single fundraiser but can help out where you wish. We have yet to pick a date for the fundraiser but will keep you posted. Maybe you should take the time and write a list of all the things you enjoy doing and are good at. This will help you figure out how you can help us.

What I am thankful for today:
Jeremy's family
my mom
my family
my children
my pets
my friends
my church
the animal shelter
making my dreams come alive
the ability to help others
meditation
time
a good nights sleep
The Biggest Loser
getting my tooth fixed tomorrow
taking another aerobics class with Jennifer tomorrow
Nana being at peace
my home
my jeep
the ring Linda gave me
laughter
hope
money
friendship
patience
Shawn
my weight loss
love