The Things You Find Along The Way

My friend Colleen and I were on our way to a Scrapbook Party at Kelly's house when we passed two bikes sitting along side of the road with a sign that read "Free" on them. It was dusk and misty so we really couldn't tell the condition they were in but, what we thought we saw were two perfect size bikes, one for Holly and the other for Gabb. We decided to pick them up after the party. However, by time the party was over, the weather had turned for the worse and a thick fog had rolled in along with a heavier mist. Determined, Colleen drove cautiously down the windy country road until we came upon our perfect find. Excitedly, we both jumped out and each grabbed a bike. We were thrilled about our find. I didn't even tell Gabrielle about the surprise until the next morning.

The next day, Matt, who wasn't so thrilled about this "find", moved the bikes into the garage and when he went to grab one, he got this sticky, gooey stuff, all over his hand. When I went to get a closer look, the perfect "find" wasn't so perfect. To make a long story short, the bikes are now sitting at the end of our driveway with the "Free" sign still displayed. Moral of the story; Look beyond the "free" sign because it's usually free for a reason.

Wishing Well Wednesday

I though it would be fun to do a weekly post on making wishes. I'll provide trivia with the words wishing in the questions. First, test your wisdom and then look at the answers. Also, I'll leave my wish for the day and if you have one you'd like to share, then please do so in the comment section. It'll be fun reading everyone's wishes for that week. Once I get a few, I'll post them for everyone to read.

First, let me educate you about wishing wells. According to Wikipedia, wishing well is a term from European folklore to describe wells where it was thought that any spoken wish would be granted. The idea that a wish would be granted came from the idea that water had been placed there as a gift from the gods and was a sacred commodity.

People believed that the guardians of the well would grant them their wish if they paid a price. After uttering the wish, one would drop coins in the well. If the coin were to land 'heads-up,' the wish would be granted. If the coin landed 'heads-down,' the wish would not be granted.

Nowadays, you can find man-made wishing wells or fountains all over. Silly as it may be, it's still exciting for me to throw coins into the "magical waters" while making a wish and hoping that it comes true. I down play it, of course, but I think this ancient idea of making wishes while throwing coins into a fountain of water, sends a thrill through all of us no matter what our age is.

Question for the day: What does Snow White sing into the wishing well?

Answer: The Wishing Well song.......Im wishing for someone to come and find me today......She is wishing for her true love to come and find her

My wish for today is: I wish I had a magical fountain in my yard that people could drop their coins into.

Super Sunday

Since I neglected to post anything new in a few days, I thought it was time to sit down and do that.

Let me start by commenting on how beautiful the day was. I know everyone will agree with me that it was a stellar day. I wish we could squeeze these awesome days into a bottle to save and open on cold, rainy, snowy days. Like in February when all of us are desperately needing some sunshine. This morning, the girls and I headed out to Sunday School and Church. Matt was invited to the Raven's Game with his brother-inlaw so, he was long gone before we even left the house. On our way to church, we past fishing boats and kayak's cruising the calm waters of Lake Marburg. If I had a boat, I probably could have been persuaded to skip church and spend the morning with the rest of the boaters. That's bad. Forgive me God.

Later, we went to The Reynolds for a superb lasagna dinner and to send Dad and Nancy off for their upcoming trip to Cancun. Next weekend, they have a direct flight into Cancun so, they'll be on the beach a couple of hours after take off. NICCCEEE, HUH? If anyone has an upcoming trip that they'd rather not go on, I'd be happy to take that trip for you. I'm sure they'll have a great time, even if we're not there. BOOOO-WHOOOO. As always, Kelly and Hughie continue being wonderful hosts. Their home is so inviting and Hughie always has a cold beer(s) to offer me. YUMO!! Our Sunday was pretty super. A beautiful day spent with family what could be more fulfilling?

Creepy Encounters

Living in a wooded area, you never know what you're going to stumble across. Gabrielle and Matt went out this evening as they do sometimes in the evenings, to look for Mr. Toad. Well, they found Mr. Toad alright being chased by Mr. Snake. Well, I don't know who was more excited; Mr. Snake because we was about to have a scrumptious meal or my husband who loves reptiles. I knew I'd have to grab my camera for this hopefully rare sighting. Matt insisted on picking up the snake and moving it away from the house into the woods. If you ever need assistance identifying or relocating a snake, Matt's your man. He knows his snakes. But then, after being so engrossed with this snake, we spotted a really creepy spider on the side of our house. Moving the flashlight upwards, we saw another creepy spider, and another, and another...OMG I was really freaked out by that point. I am not a fan of spiders and those little critters had practically encased the whole front of our house in web's. CREEPY!!!! You never know what you're going to find lurking in the night...

Snack Helper

Today, I had the opportunity to be the snack helper at Gabrielle's school. Each Mom is on a rotating schedule to be snack helper. Every few weeks you're assigned a day where you provide a snack(s) and drinks to feed approximately 17-20 hungry little mouths. Gabrielle wanted blueberry muffins and orange juice (her favorite). During your time there, you have a chance to observe her and her classmates mingling with one another. There's not too much conversation going on yet, but a lot of independent play.

As the week comes to a close, I wanted to reflect on the blessings that have enriched my life and being a snack helper was one of them. To watch your child develop and grow each day is so awesome. Being there today for Gabb gave me such a peaceful feeling. When I sat back and glanced around the room, I knew that my life had been enriched with another blessing.

Rememberance of 9/11

On the 7th anniversary of the most horrific tragedy on American soil, I as well as most other Americans, will be tuned into the 9/11 ceremonies taking place today. Still, to this day, I get chocked up when I think about it and how the tragedies unfolded from the Pentagon, to the crash site in Pennsylvania, to the twin towers in New York City. I remember that day so clearly. I couldn't wait to get home from work because I needed a place to go where I felt safe and secure. I wanted to watch the news coverage because it felt surreal and confusing. Days afterwards, I was still in a state of denial and feeling the saddest I've ever felt in my entire life.

A couple of days ago, I was tuned into a program on T.V. called 9/11: Millionaire Widows. It was about the poor windows and how their lives have changed drastically since that awful day. Each person directly affected from the loss of a loved one, received large settlements some in the amounts of millions of dollars. My attention was drawn immediately because I thought I would be hearing stories about how families made donations or established memorials and trust funds in honor of their loved ones who lost their lives. Or, how they used their settlement money to ensure the best for their families in the future. But instead, I listened to stories that seemed pathetic, ungrateful, and down right dumb. It's really sad that when money is involved, people become very greedy and forget the reasons behind receiving it. One woman on the show, was upset and down right pissed because her husband, a New York City Firefighter, left her for another woman who's husband was killed in the attack and was also a NYC Firefighter. She didn't seem to care about what happened on 9/11. She was mad at the world because of what her husband did. The spokesperson from the claims office in NYC shared stories about how some of the women widowers, were almost financially broke because they spent their settlements on plastic surgery, purchasing new homes, ect. Story after story, I couldn't believe how dumb and greedy these people were. How could they possible forget the real reasons behind all of that money? How could they let their focus be on money and not the victims who lost their lives that day? I want to believe that all Americans are compassionate, empathetic, and caring people but, after watching that show, I have my doubts.

2nd Year of Preschool

Yesterday was Gabrielle's first day of her 4 year old preschool. She was so excited and was so looking forward to this day pretty much all summer. Last year, she met a special friend named Emma and by the end of the school year, our family and Emma's family knew all about this friendship they had joined. We would hear about Emma during dinner, in the car, at bedtime. It was so cute how Emma was a special part of Gabrielle's life at this age. This year, Amie (Emma's Mom) and I made sure they were in the same class and I think this was the reason Gabrielle was anxious to start school. As usual, when I picked her up yesterday, her teacher brought her out to the car and Gabb was smiling ear to ear. I knew she would have a story to share about what her and Emma did that day. So far, school agrees with Gabrielle and I hope she continues to enjoy it as the years come. Her imagination and understanding of everything makes me think this will help her do well in school but maybe I'm just boasting because I'm so proud of my little Doodle Bug.

ABBA FANS

A few weeks ago, I had an opportunity to see the motion picture Mamma Mia with my Mother-inlaw and sister-inlaws. WOW! This movie will definitely get you tapping your feet or even busting a move in the aisles of the movie theater.

The movie takes place on a beautiful Greek Island where single mother Donna (Meryl Streep) raises spirited daughter Sophie (Amanda Seyfried), while simultaneously running a successful hotel. Now, at age 20, Sophie is ready to get married and discover the identity of her real father. As she reads her mother's diary she discovers the names of 3 men her mother brought to the island 20 years ago. Sophie knows in her heart that one of them is her father so, to find out, she decides to secretively send each one an invitation to her wedding. When they show up on the island, each are bewildered as to why they are there but soon learn about each other's stories of being there with Donna years ago. Assuming their invitations came from Donna, they fully don't understand the mystery until they meet Sophie. As the story unfolds, Sophie confronts each man as to her motivation behind inviting them to her wedding.

The movie is packed full of surprises and energy. Some parts will pull at your heart strings and other scenes make it hard to resist moving a body part to the beat of the music. If you love ABBA, this is a must see musical and a gotta have DVD to add to your collection. I won't tell you the ending just in case you haven't seen it but for an exciting peak, click below.

First Time For Everything

After a year of reading and enjoying the everyday happenings from other blogs, I decided I wanted to join the band wagon. I have to give credit to my sister and cousin for giving me the inspiration to start writing about my own life experiences.

The other night I laid in bed wondering what I would write about. I wanted to share an experience that everyone could relate to. I wanted to write about something that excited me. Something that gets me going every single day. So, after many sleepless nights (to be honest, it was only probably one) I decided I wanted to write about the wonderful blessings my life has been enriched with. Let me start with the most important one and that is my family. I have two beautiful little girls and a loving and wonderful husband who is my rock and keeps me in check especially on those crazy days. When I'm feeling blue, reflecting on a blessing in my life, helps me to see the day through. I know it's easier said then done but once you train yourself to focus on happy and positive thoughts, those negative ones go right out the door. I'm still in training myself but I know eventually, I'll get to a place where insomnia and stress are no longer a part of my life.

As a novice writer and first time blogger, I hope my experiences and thoughts keep others interested in reflecting on their own blessings. Each day or when time allows, I hope to share new enriching experiences with you and maybe you would like to share yours with me.