Some things that I have learned inmylife . . . a list that is constantly growing

Life isn’t fair and you will never be truly grateful or happy until you recognize, accept, and are grateful that it isn’t.

Cats, dogs, bunnies, and horses are healthy for your heart, body, and soul. An animal is smarter and more intuitive than most of us give them credit for. They know when we are in pain and they love stronger than any human ever could.

Yelling at a child or hitting her will never help her to really understand what she did wrong.

You can love the person that hurt you and forgive him, but you don’t need to let him be a part of your life any longer, and you really shouldn’t either.

Mothers and sisters are more valuable than we ever realize, that is, until we can’t have her at the moment we want or need her most.

Looking at the stars may make you feel small and insignificant, but if you think about it for a while it will also help you see how special and important we are to God. He has created such an amazing and matchless world for us to live in and we often are moving too fast to even notice it.

Doing something you think you can’t do will make you feel invincible, even if just for that second.

Opening up your heart to love someone after it has been broken is the most difficult, most vulnerable, most frightening thing you will ever do in life. By doing so, you are saying that you are willing to let someone hurt you again like you have been hurt before. Being loved by someone who has been hurt should make you feel very special and very powerful. You have the power in your hands to change that person’s life or destroy it. Be sure to take that role as friend or lover seriously because you will surely create irreversible consequences for good or bad.

Every child is an artist, but the world smothers it far too soon. Take every opportunity you are given to stoke the fire of a child's creative confidence. Never criticize.

A good father or a good brother is essential to the development of a confident, loving, strong girl. If a girl's trust or spirit is abused by her father or brother in any way she will never be the same.

You can lie to yourself long enough to actually believe it. This is both good and bad.

If you are ever blessed enough to be given a rock, a dandelion, a piece of driftwood, or a dead leaf from a child, the very best thing you could do for yourself and for that child is to recieve it with more grace than if it were a diamond necklace. You are obviously very special to that child, so special in fact, that he took the time to think about YOU and find the only thing he could and to consider it a special gift. From him, it is more genuine than any gift you will ever receive. Hang the rock or wood on a piece of rope and wear it as a necklace, press the leaf or dandelion, and save it forever in your Bible. Take the time to pull it out every once in a while and remind him how precious his gift was. You won't regret it.

 Standing on the ocean's edge with your feet in the water, as the waves rush in and out as your feet get pushed deeper and deeper into the wet sand by the powerful surf, feels just like flying and there is nothing quite like it. Everyone should experience it sometime in their life.

Hugs are vital to survival. Every day you should hug at least one person; a real person, not a virtual (((hug))). Hugs from four kids or more at once are life changing.

 

Saying “I love you” is important. It is awkward at first, and people may laugh or act weird when you tell them, but if you practice it and tell people it enough you start to realize how true it really is, and they realize it too. If you spend a significant amount of time around children in any way, you should tell them you love them every day, especially the ones who you have a hard time loving. It will change who they are, and it won’t be long before you will see a person who you really do love.

You never know when someone you love will go away, either to another town or to heaven. Cherish every moment, make them meaningful, and let them know how important they are to you.

Music has a spiritual and emotional power, unlike any other thing on Earth, to transform your mood and thoughts. It can bring you closer to God or drive you further from Him, it can quickly become a source of negative thinking or it can almost instantly wash away destructive thoughts. The music you listen to should be fun, but even more it should be, something powerful, soothing, emotionally stimulating, and it should speak something deep to you. There is too much pointless music in our world, and it does nothing except damages our souls and drives us further from our spiritual person, so that we know and understand nothing beyond our skin and carnal passions.

Thankful heart 2012

It's that time of year again. I really enjoy the whole holiday season and the reminder that it provides to reflect on the blessings that I have been given and the things that I am thankful for inmylife. So here I go.


Nov.12: I am grateful for my sisters, my eternal sisters, my forever friends.

Nov. 11: I am thankful for those who are serving, or have served before, in order to protect their fellow Americans, or to forward the cause of freedom and liberty around the world.

 

Nov.10: I am grateful for the color red. It makes me happy.

Nov.9: I am thankful for music, and the power it has - like nothing else- to affect my mood, motivate me, and make my heart dance like a fool.

Nov. 8: I am thankful for friends, old friends and new friends. I am not a real outgoing person like I was as a kid, and I don't socialize too much- even with people I know. There's a lot behind it, but I was grateful for a kind parent who shares a mutual friend with me, who invited me to dinner, along with our mutual friend and her daughters. I got to see her beautiful home, watch her spirited kids run and play together, and chat with some great ladies. ♥

 

Nov.7: I am thankful for the comforting peace that comes through prayer. There is no power like it on Earth. When darkness surrounds me and threatens to swallow me completely I can always turn to the Lord through a quiet prayer and His love engulfs me. Through prayer, I was able to calm my troubled soul and get the rest I needed in order to deal with the fear, frustration, and dismay after the election turnout last night.

Nov.6: I am thankful to live in a country where I have the right to vote for the person who I feel best represents me and my faith, morals, and what I stand for. 

Nov. 5: I am thankful for my beautiful nephew, Jude. I have always felt like we share a special connection. I love being around him and he makes me feel so important and special.

Nov.4: I am thankful for fall, the greatest season of all. I love the colors, the flavors, the smells, the weather, the clothes. 

Nov. 3: I am thankful for the moments of motivation that I occasionally get when I feel so overwhelmed that I think I will never accomplish all the things that my ADHD raddled brain wants to get done. I have spent the past few days finally getting a lot of cleaning done that I should not have put off, but I love how I feel once I get so much done, and I love the feeling of a really clean house.

Nov. 2: I am thankful for my little kitty, Lucy. She has saved me. She came along at a time when I was very lonely and still suffering from broken friendships with people who I was very close to. I love when she sleeps with me and crawls right up to my back and lays there. I love how she tags me with both paws as I walk by. I love how much she enjoys just sitting and staring out the window. I never thought I could love a cat as much as I do. She truly is my baby.

Nov. 1: I am thankful for my job and how much fun I get to have every day. I get to make a difference in the lives of so many children and I am so grateful for the love that it has brought to my life. I get hugs, high fives, and "I love yous," every day, and that makes me so grateful for each child I have had in my classroom.

Check out my other blogs

dses3rdgrade.blogspot.com For all the happenings in the classroom
believingisseeing365.blogspot.com For my 365 day photo blog from 2011

I am still alive

Well a lot of things have been happening inmylife, over the past year and a half or so, since I last blogged, but I just have not had time to keep up in the blog world. I spend my time on Facebook, so people keep up with me there, but I feel like I want to keep more of a journal again in the form of a blog. So here I am back on INMYLIFE. So, I guess that is all I have to say. Put me back on your "Reading List" and enjoy reading the adventures of my life as a teacher, a friend, a sister, a daughter, and the best auntie in the world.

BID #4 Yankee Stadium

I love the Yankees, mostly in a historical sense, but I would love to make it to Yankee Stadium sometime inmylife!

Pho sho!

"She's a Pho Pro!"
~ Cousin Jo (that's me, not sure why though)

A. Rogers July 2011

Ok, so I have heard of Pho befo' but I have never had the chance to try it. Pho is a Vietnamese soup with really super long noodles and then different kinds of meat or shrimp, etc. So, Chantelle and Brooklynn love pho, so they had to take me to their favorite pho place, The Bamboo Cafe. Pretty good stuff.

Zuma Beach

SMILE! You're at Zuma!

On Saturday, I started my California vacation off perfectly! My cousin Chantelle and her daughter, Brooklynn (6), along with Chantelle's friend, Cindy, and her little girl, Katie (4), all went out for pedicures early in the morning. Cindy treated us all to mochas and smoothies from Dr. Conkey's coffee and candy. She brought me a super yummy strawberry banana smoothie! Chanti got her toes painted bright pink with little flowers for her anniversary cruise, Brookie and Katie went for a bright gold, Cindy got sparkly blue, and I chose a bright purple with sparkles. There's nothing quite as wonderful to start a summer vacation to the beaches and sunshine, as a perfect pedi!


Shortly after arriving at the beach, we noticed a large, dead jellyfish lying next to the water! I have never seen one before in real life. We made sure to stay back from it, because they can sting you even after they are dead. Some kid decided to go tell a lifeguard and guess what the lifeguard's response was... he said, "So." Seriously? What kind of lifeguard says, "So." Anyways, the jellyfish was quickly washed back to sea where he was given a proper burial closer to his home.

Haha! Look how scared Brooklynn looks!

I was sooooooo excited to see dolphins jumping all over the place not too far out. In fact I could probably have swam out and actually touched them! They were just out a little past where the waves were breaking. I love that I caught this picture of such a great memory.


Brooklynn is such a cutie! She didn't want to get to close to the water at first. She wanted to sit way back from the water and she kept trying, in vain of course, to keep the sand off of her feet, her lounge chair, and her towel.

Brooklynn getting sunscreened. haha. I love her face all scrunched up!

She loves the camera!

I love, love, love the happiness on her face right here.

Such a supermodel!



We also enjoyed flying kites . . .

and building sand castles!

I look forward to going back again sometime soon.

Independence Day- Lake Powell style

On Monday, July 4 and Tuesday, July 5, Mom, Kelly, and I went camping at Wahweap at Lake Powell. I have not been back to Page since I left 6 years ago! I can't believe it. It was very strange to be going back.
When we got there we all worked in the heat to get the tent up. Mom and I both had snazzy cots and Kelly used Mom's awesomely huge air bed. All three of our lovely camp beds fit in the tent nicely and I was glad to have cots, because actually, it provided more room than other times we've camped because we were able to store our bags below the cots. After getting everything set up, we took a trip into Page and went to RD's and enjoyed some amazing hamburgers, corn dogs, and ice cream! A local tradition that is unmatched.
I got a terrible heat headache and when I get these, they are hard to get rid of. We went down to the lake, and it was terribly crowded with locals. We stayed a short time, then went to the resort and went swimming. After that, I was hoping to be rid of my headache, but I wasn't so I slept through dinner. Later, I ate so melon, but that was all. We decided not to go into town to watch the fireworks. It was such a warm night (although very windy) that none of us even needed to use any blankets, but we did get a small sprinkling of rain in the early morning. It felt good with our tent windows open and small drops occasionally slipping through.
On Tuesday, we tried to head out to Antelope Canyon to go on a tour of the slot canyons, but were disappointed to see that we had to pay $6 EACH for parking, even though we were all in the same car (explain that one to me, please) + $25 each (cash only) for the tour! We were very bummed, but went back to the lake and enjoyed the much less crowded beach almost to ourselves.
Wednesday morning, we woke up, tore down camp, and headed back to St. George. It was a short, but wonderful break and fun to get away from town without having to drive too far. I was a bit disappointed to not have the time to see people who I had not seen in a while, but I intend to make another visit sometime in the fall if I can swing it.