Monday Musings

Hosted by Barbara at Candy Hearts and Paper Flowers

One day you finally knew what you had to do, and began . . . ~Mary Oliver

Pretty Bowls and Crystal Glasses

When I asked Am to unload the dishwasher today, she told me how pretty a glass she was unloading was. I told her it was a Princess House Heritage Crystal Glass and she immediately put it down and backed away from it like it was Uranium or something. I asked her what was wrong and she said she was afraid she'd break it, so she better not touch it. I laughed and said don't worry about it, we use them every day. We even break them now and again. Then I asked her to put the beans in the oven and she looked at the bowl and said, “You really want this pretty bowl in the oven”? Again I laughed and said yes. Then I asked her if she had ever heard of Erma Bombeck and she said no. I had to share this with her. See many, no, most of you know me as just a fellow blogger with a positive attitude and generally friendly demeanor. What you don't know is that I too suffer from a terrible debilitating disease that requires constant maintenance, positive attitude and a stress free life as well as a preservative free diet to stay even close to healthy. To look at me you would never know I was sick, but for that all I can say is thank you as I have worked hard to maintain that appearance and attitude, because it wasn't always that way and it was hard work to get this healthy. I also know though how tenuous life is and how quickly it can change so for that reason I post this tribute to Erma Bombeck as a reminder to us all to burn the pink candle, use the pretty bowl and crystal glasses for everyday.

If I Had My Life To Live Over by Erma Bombeck

The following was written by the late Erma Bombeck after she found out she had a fatal disease.

If I had my life to live over, I would have talked less and listened more.

I would have invited friends over to dinner even if the carpet was stained and the sofa faded.

I would have eaten the popcorn in the 'good' living room and worried much less about the dirt when someone wanted to light a fire in the fireplace.

I would have taken the time to listen to my grandfather ramble about his youth.

I would never have insisted the car windows be rolled up on a summer day because my hair had just been teased and sprayed.

I would have burned the pink candle sculpted like a rose before it melted in storage.

I would have sat on the lawn with my children and not worried about grass stains.

I would have cried and laughed less while watching television - and more while watching life.

I would have shared more of the responsibility carried by my husband.

I would have gone to bed when I was sick instead of pretending the earth would go into a holding pattern if I weren't there for the day.

I would never have bought anything just because it was practical, wouldn't show soil or was guaranteed to last a lifetime.

Instead of wishing away nine months of pregnancy, I'd have cherished every moment and realized that the wonderment growing inside me was the only chance in life to assist God in a miracle.

When my kids kissed me impetuously, I would never have said, "Later. Now go get washed up for dinner."

There would have been more "I love you's".. More "I'm sorrys" ...

But mostly, given another shot at life, I would seize every minute... look at it and really see it ... live it...and never give it back.

Monday Musings

Hosted by Barbara at Candy Hearts and Paper Flowers
Do what you feel in your heart to be right.
You'll be criticized anyway.

Eleanor Roosevelt (1884-1962) American columnist, lecturer and humanitarian.

Happy Independence Day!
"Posterity - you will never know how much it
cost my generation to preserve your freedom.
I hope you will make good use of it."
~John Quincy Adams

Thursday 13 quotes for USA Independence Day

1. Those who expect to reap the blessings of freedom, must, like men, undergo the fatigue of supporting it. ~Thomas Paine
2. You have to love a nation that celebrates its independence every July 4, not with a parade of guns, tanks, and soldiers who file by the White House in a show of strength and muscle, but with family picnics where kids throw Frisbees, the potato salad gets iffy, and the flies die from happiness. You may think you have overeaten, but it is patriotism. ~Erma Bombeck
3. This nation will remain the land of the free only so long as it is the home of the brave. ~Elmer Davis
4. In the truest sense, freedom cannot be bestowed; it must be achieved. ~Franklin D. Roosevelt
5. It is easy to take liberty for granted, when you have never had it taken from you. ~Dick Cheney
6. We on this continent should never forget that men first crossed the Atlantic not to find soil for their ploughs but to secure liberty for their souls. ~Robert J. McCracken
7. If our country is worth dying for in time of war let us resolve that it is truly worth living for in time of peace. ~Hamilton Fish
8. My God! How little do my countrymen know what precious blessings they are in possession of, and which no other people on earth enjoy! ~Thomas Jefferson
9. How often we fail to realize our good fortune in living in a country where happiness is more than a lack of tragedy. ~Paul Sweeney
10. What is the essence of America? Finding and maintaining that perfect, delicate balance between freedom "to" and freedom "from." ~Marilyn vos Savant, in Parade
11. And I'm proud to be an American,
    where at least I know I'm free.
    And I won't forget the men who died,
    who gave that right to me.
    ~Lee Greenwood
12. There is nothing wrong with America that cannot be cured by what is right with America. ~William J. Clinton
    
13. One man with courage makes a majority. ~ Andrew Jackson

Monday's Musings

Hosted by Barbara at Candy Hearts and Paper Flowers

DEFINITION OF A VETERAN

A Veteran - whether active duty, retired, national guard, or reserve is someone who, at one point in his or her life, wrote a blank check made payable to The "United States of America", for an amount of "up to and including my life." That is Honor, and there are way too many people in this country who no longer understand it.

- Author Unknown

Monday's Musings

Hosted by Barbara at Candy Hearts and Paper Flowers

You gain strength, courage, and confidence by each experience in which you really stop to look fear in the face. You are able to say to yourself, “I have lived through this horror. I can take the next thing that comes along.” You must do the thing you think you cannot do.

Eleanor Roosevelt (1884-1962) American columnist, lecturer and humanitarian.

Monday Musings

Hosted by Barbara at Candy Hearts and Paper Flowers

APPLY THIS SIMPLE RULE TO YOUR CONVERSATIONS:
If you wouldn't write it down and sign it, DON'T SAY IT.
~George Wither

Monday Musings

Hosted by Barbara at Candy Hearts and Paper Flowers

"I tend to get tied up in the preparations of life.
I am just learning to find joy in the moment.
It is never too late to be who you might have been.”
~George Eliot

Monday's Musings

Hosted by Barbara at Candy Hearts and Paper Flowers

I think we all know that what I’m really going to do is make all new things
because I am allergic to cooking anything twice.
~Smitten Kitchen

I thought this was a perfect quote for all of us die hard cooks
who can't wait to try something new every single day!

Monday Musings

Hosted by Barbara at Candy Hearts and Paper Flowers

Live every day as if it might be
the last so you'll have no regrets.
~Barbara

Monday's Musings - Kindness

There's a new meme in town.
My good friend Barbara would love to see you and have you join in.
She's made buttons to choose from.
So head on Over to Candy Hearts and Paper Flowers to join the fun.

You cannot do a kindness too soon,
for you never know how soon it will be too late.
~Ralph Waldo Emerson*

*(pg 25) Highlighted in Yellow A short course in living wisely and choosing well by H. Jackson Brown Jr., author of Life's Little Instruction Book and Rochelle Pennington

Monday's Musings ~ Kindness

There's a new meme in town.
My good friend Barbara would love to see you and have you join in.
She made my header and this great button to match.
She's made more buttons to choose from.
So head on Over to Candy Hearts and Paper Flowers to join the fun.

Remember the nicest thing you can do for yourself is to do something nice for someone else.
~George Burns*

*(pg 15) Highlighted in Yellow A short course in living wisely and choosing well by H. Jackson Brown Jr., author of Life's Little Instruction Book and Rochelle Pennington

Monday's Musings ~ Kindness

There's a new meme in town.
My good friend Barbara would love to see you and have you join in.
She's made buttons to choose from.
So head on Over to Candy Hearts and Paper Flowers to join the fun.

Never underestimate the power of a kind word or deed. It takes so little to make people happy - just a touch, if we know how to give it, just a word fitly spoken, or a slight readjustment of some bolt or pin or bearing in the delicate machinery of a human soul.
~Frank Crane*

*(pg 8) Highlighted in Yellow A short course in living wisely and choosing well by H. Jackson Brown Jr., author of Life's Little Instruction Book and Rochelle Pennington

Monday's Musings ~ Kindness

My good friend Barbara gave me a spring makeover last night when she made my new header and then surprised me with this great button to match. So my first few quotes for this meme will be about kindness in hopes of reminding us all how important it is to have kindness in our life and to give kindness to others.

There's a new meme in town.
She would love to see you there and have you join in.
She's made many more fun buttons for you to choose from.
So, head on over to
Candy Hearts and Paper Flowers
to join the fun.

Make it a habit to do nice things for people who'll never find out. That best portion of a man's life, his little, nameless, unremembered acts of kindness and of love.
~William Wordsworth*

*(pg5) Highlighted in Yellow A short course in living wisely and choosing well by H. Jackson Brown Jr., author of Life's Little Instruction Book and Rochelle Pennington

What Cousins are Made of

I found this quote in a magazine earlier tonight and had to share it
because it is exactly how I feel about my cousin, Jenn.

One part love,
One part Friend,
One part Sister,
That's what Cousins
are made of...

There are few more parts I would add to the list though.
Words like: therapist, confidant, survivor, advocate, comedian...
After all without a sense of humor none of the rest of it matters.

If I'm too strong for some people, that's their problem

"If I'm too strong for some people, that's their problem."
~Glenda Jackson, English Actress

Food for Thought

"You grow up the day you have
your first real laugh at yourself."
~Ethel Barrymore, American Actress

Food for thought

I received this email this evening and thought it was so touching that I needed to share it.

As we grow up, we learn that even the one person that wasn't supposed to ever let you down probably will. You will have your heart broken probably more than once and it's harder every time. You'll break hearts too, so remember how it felt when yours was broken. You'll fight with your best friend. You'll blame a new love for things an old one did. You'll cry because time is passing too fast, and you'll eventually lose someone you love. So take too many pictures, laugh too much, and love like you've never been hurt because every sixty seconds you spend upset is a minute of happiness you'll never get back. Don't be afraid that your life will end, be afraid that it will never begin.
~anonymous

Happy ST. Patrick’s Day

May love and laughter light your days,
and warm your heart and home.
May good and faithful friends be yours,
wherever you may roam.
May peace and plenty bless your world
with joy that long endures.
May all life's passing seasons
bring the best to you and yours!