i wish...

for a little more peace and a lot less fighting in our world. 

to enjoy each moment and never let the negative get in the way of happiness.

for more time to create and less time to worry.

for miracles.

to relax and slow down.

sending you all lots of love and hugs--hope you have some fabulous weekend plans=)

image found at google images

falling in love

 

falling in love doesn't begin with falling in love with others.  it begins with falling in love with ourselves.   loving ourselves is healthy and as god intended.  learn to deeply and  fully cherish your heart, your soul and your body and, only then, will you understand what it is to truly love another.

-philosophy

Lose Your Little Mind

oh my goodness-thank you julia!!!  this is just what i needed today!!  beautiful!!!!
check out the painted path for so much inspiration.

mondy loves...

 oh, hello monday!!!  wow the weeks go by way to fast.  mondays are always bitter sweet for me.  its my day off all to myself, but the next day is tuesday which means i head back into work mode.  today was filled with a million loads of laundry, the grocery store and getting the kids all ready for the busy week ahead.  i have been focusing on slowing myself down and getting overwhelmed with the "hurrification" of america.  i am in awe of how fast paced life has become.  what is everyone in such a hurry for????

what if everyone stepped back and slowed down???  what if we got up 5 minutes earlier to avoid the mad dash in the morning to eat breakfast and run out the door to school and work.  only to be rushed the entire day by impatient customers and never ending phone calls. 

take time this week to relax, slow down, enjoy the outdoors, and the amazing life we are all given.

i want to introduce you to sweet kellyn.  she is an amazing little 3 year old that has touched our hearts and we are blessed to have her in our  lives.  she is the daughter of our good friends kim and avery and i have so much more to share about kellyn in the months to come.  she is a part of a very special project that i am working on called kenzi lu with my dear friend jessie. 

love and hugs

just one of those days

happiness comes of the capacity to feel deeply, to enjoy simply, to think freely, to risk life, to be needed.

-storm jameson

fill your life with as many moments and experiences of joy and passion as you humanly can.  start with one experience and build on it.

-marci wieder

today was one of those days.  ones of those days where nothing seems to go quite right.  when you feel out of sorts and the only thing that will turn the day around is to go back home and start all over.  today i just couldn't let those little annoying things that usually slide right off go away.  i am so disappointed in myself for letting my day turn out that way.  why did i let the negative get the best of me???  

i guess i can blame it on all sorts of things that bring stress to my life, but ultimately i am responsible for my positive attitude, happy thoughts, and pushing the negative aside. 

tomorrow will be a better day and i will focus on the good things. 

be of good cheer.

-homer

monday loves...my little man

there are souls in this world who have the gift of finding joy everywhere and leaving it behind them when they go.

-frederick william faber

my little man is crazy and fun and full of energy.  he keeps us on our toes and opens up a whole new outlook on life with the balance he brings to our family.

in class he is studying the body.  this was his project last week!!!!

sending you all lots of love on this monday loves.

the arrival of sun

up here the warmth of the sun disappears for way too long. 

so glad to have it back and enjoy the outdoors (without our snow gear) again.  for the last three weeks i have been running outside and given up the treadmill.  one day my friend brenda and i even ran in the rain.  i would always use the rain or snow as an excuse to stay home and not get out, but not anymore.  i am getting outside no matter what. 

so wonderful to wake up to theses beams of sun coming into our bedroom. 

the lounge chair is out and we are soaking up every ounce of sunshine we can

i pulled my fav pair of sandals out of the depths of my closet last weekend and had a little pedicure

monday loves...a little late

loving the little things: a beautiful blue sky

the other morning i had just left the house to take the kids to school when i noticed how beautiful the sky was.  i stopped to take this picture and capture the blue alaska sky.  what a great way to start the day. 

monday loves...makenzi's story...part four

read makenzis story

part one

part two

part three

gus and i have always been very honest with makenzi.  we shared her diagnoses with her and explained everything we knew to her.  we chose to be very private with her diagnoses and only share with family and close friends.  i never wanted her to be labeled, but now i realize that our story will help others become more aware of autism spectrum disorders and not be afraid of a diagnosis. 

it is not easy to be autistic in our society.  we choose to teach our children that different is amazing and wonderful in every way.  we our our daughters advocate and will do whatever we can to help her succeed in life.

we have learned so much over the years and through lots of tears and hope i will share our happiness and heartache through my amazing daughter and her life with autism.

april is autism awareness month.  if you have a free moment check out autism speaks or rent the temple grandin story. 

sending lots of love to you all--thank you for listening to makenzi's story.

our weekend away

sooo, we spent this weekend away at our favorite place in the last frontier, alyeska.  its our place to go as a family and let go of our everyday life back home.  we ski, relax, swim, eat really good room service, and watch movies.  most of all we just spend time together and reconnect. 

love love