We can do no great things

Mother Teresa said "We can do no great things only small things with great love."

I have been wrestling with my career choices over the last few weeks. There are some issues at work that have me considering changing careers ~ A friend told me that God puts certain people in our life as emotional sandpaper - they rub us the wrong way to smooth out our rough spots. Well, God has put my emotional sandpaper in the form of my boss.

Today a coworker stopped by my office and shared her view of the current conflict in our department. The few minutes she spent was a small thing - but it meant touched my heart more than she will ever know - so I created a Thank You note for her using Mary Sunday Sketch Challenge.

My prayer to night is: Father, help me to be sensitive to the goodness in others and to be less critical of those whose priorities differ from mine ~ Amen.

Simply Life

Woo Hoo!!! I did it - I have hit the road running again. It felt difficult at first but then I found my stride and everything started to feel comfortable. The sweat was great...

Next day the legs were sore but a good sore...

Monday is a few hours away and I have a plan. Running three days - yoga one day - maybe some step aerobics one day and a couple of short bike rides.

I am also reading a couple of books - it is refreshing to read for pleasure.

I am dealing with a personal issue that has me considering my involvement with a volunteer group. The overall group is great, the mission of the project focuses on very basic principles of Christianity. The issue is one person - who is always negative and wants to be confrontational all the time.
So - do I allow conforntation to limit my ability to help others???

I guess I could look at this person like a marathon - keep pushing, plan for the unexpected and do not look back...stay on course.

My kids sent me flowers this week the card read "the race is not always to the swift...but to those who keep on running."

I think I will keep on running!!!

Being Ture to My Dream

OK - it has been 25 days since I last posted and very very little running for me. I could name the million other taska I have completed and issues I have fixed - but that list does not change the fact - I have not been true to me.

I did buy a new book on running - the Complete Book of Women's Running. Tomorrow I start the beginner's schedule training for a marathon at 6 AM. Tommorrow afternoon - Yoga at 5 PM.

When I complete my run in the morning - I will spend sometime tomorrow finding a 5K to participate in. Me first - that is my new motto.

Take It and Run Thursday - Findng Time

Carrying over a conversation started in the Runner's Lounge - finding time to run. I do not think about finding time to run - I think about finding time for me.
As a wife, mother (six adults and seven four-legged babies), a nurse, nursing program director, volunteer charitable clinic director, avid scrapbooker, and doctoral student - I have a full calendar.

Since January when we fell victim to an ice storm that resulted in the city being without electricity for a week - I have lost my dedication to me. That week was chaos - and I am just now starting to fell like the chaos is slowing down.

So - around mid-April I decided to focus on me - I am the most important person in my life - without a healthy me I can not accomplish all that I want to do.

I have gone back to using my calendar - setting alarms on my phone - telling others my plans. All of these activities keeps me focused and honest.

Finding time is about being honest - we have to be honest with ourselves - what is important to us? Is being healthy important? Do we like to feel stressed - is that why we do not find time to run? Not me - I am going to be stress free - I am going to make time / balance my life - I am going to run!!!!

Four Months Into 2009

Four months into 2009 and I am no more in control than I was at the beginning of the year. Well maybe that is not true. I am in control - but I am making bad choices.

Do I have time to run - if I wanted to run I would find time to run. Prioritizing what is important in my life is an area that needs work. Instead of getting up to run - I sleep in.
My Dad has always said - you can sleep when you are dead - so why do I sleep in????

Sunday morning is only two hours away - I am going to get up early and run...no excuses.

Scrapbooking - is like running - I enjoy the process but I do not make it a priority. Tomorrow I will clean my scrapbookroom and set out my next project.

No one else is going to put me first - I owe to me!

2009 Goals - Who Is In Control

It has been six months since I blogged - so what have I been doing that is more important than journaling. Running occassionally - life is busy so I have been putting running, scrapbooking, and journaling off. It is easy to make excuses for not running or scrapbooking. To much to do - papers to grade, lectures to develop, dissertation to write, charitable clinic work to do --- see I have real excuses.

Real excuses do not nullify the fact that I have not put me first or even second. I realized recently I am getting older - My husband is getting older. I do not like the path aging is forcing us down - so - who is in control - Me or Life??? Can I control my life?? Can I age gracefully?

I do not believe in New Year Resolutions - I do believe in goals. With life and the aging process pushing me down a path I do not want to go down - I have set a few goals for 2009.

1. Become more organized-

2. Eat Healthier

4. Live each day with less stress.


So how am I going to accomplish my goals. I bought a new calendar today - I will schedule healthy activities among the many other task, meetings, and deadlines. I will journal what I eat.


Eating healthier - I am going to work the Weight Watchers program


Counting my blessing - I am going to journal (here and in paper journal)


Live each day with less stress - I am going to choose my battles carefully. Take on projects that make me happy and ask for help when my plate is full.


I really want to run a 1/2 marathon - can I - I am the one in control!

Another Great Day

Life is great. I completed another class towards my doctorate. I have a week off from class to spend time with my family and four-legged children. I can run, bike or sleep this week ~ Woo Hoo.
Traveling to Texas this weekned to see my Dad -
I heard a bible verse this week:
To those with much - much is expected.
I guess that God is expecting much from me - as I feel blessed with all I have.

A Great Day

What is a Great Day - A 10 mile bike ride with your best friend who just happens to be your husband to Starbucks. A couple of hours in the pool followed by a nap and then a three mile run...and an evening of scrapbooking with friends. Call it a mini-vacation. I need a day like this every week.

Happy 4th of July.

Happy 4th of July
Every day we have a blessing. Here I sit on the couch a little dog on each side and my buddy - Sir Duke at my feet (picture).

We had friends to our house for lunch - it was fun to cook for others. Cooking is something I have not done for a while. It felt great to be in the kitchen.

I spent time on Thursday scrapbooking after having an emotional day with youngest son. Scrapbooking helps me see life from many views. I can look at a picture and see how much my family loves and supports each other. I can look at a picture and remember the issues going at that moment. No family is without issues at some time or the other - The secret is to focus on the positive and overlook the negative.

DH and I rode bikes this morning - what a great morning to ride the weather was perfect and not much traffic. DH legs were getting tired - I shared my secret for getting through a ride or a run when I feel like I can't finish - I am riding or running because someday I will not be able to - there are many who can not - push a little more and enjoy the pain while you can.... Still trying to talk DH into a 30 mile bike ride.

Refocusing

I start a journal but never find the time to journal everyday. I think about my blog only when I feel the need to journal but do not have the time. Life is unpredictable. I find myself not as driven at work and more focused on myself and family.

So why, is it as we age we realize that we have only a limited amount of redos? If so what would you redo? For me, I would redo only a few things in life. The first redo would be not to work as many hours as I have - until this week I have been a full time insturctor / director of an Associate Degree Nursing Program / part-time consultant online and most recently I accepted the position of director of a chariable health clinic all while working on a doctorate in education. The second would be make sure those you love know how much you love them.

What is important - my family, spending time with those I love. Doing the things that are important to me - running, trout fishing, scrapbooking, gardening and learning. The big yellow dog - is my running buddy. We should take lessons from our four-legged friends on life. He will run as far as I ask him and as hard as I do - simply to spend time with me.

Learning to balance life-
OK - as I am typing this whole balance life sentence - my youngest son calls - new grandbaby on the way. I guess I need to go so I can digest the fact that youngest son (24) was recently laid off and now he has new responsibilites.

Raising a Responsible Citizen

It is late I have been working on an assignment for a class on curriculum development. My grandsons are staying the weekend with us. As I am completing the assignment I can not help but think about the converstaion we had with our five year old grandson tonight -

On the way home from his birthday party (he will be six on Monday) we drove by a housefire. He asked Poppy (his grandfather) was he going home and put on his policemen uniform so he could help the people with the fire. Poppy said no - he was off duty so he could spend time with the boys.

This wonderful little boy said but Poppy - you are a policman you help people - agin Poppy explained there were other policeman at work tonight so he can spend time with his family.

After much thought this very responsible five year old said "but Poppy you are big and strong they might need you to kick the door open or carry someone out - Nanny will be ok with us and we want eat ice cream till you get home"

In his little heart he understands what it means to not be selfish and to be a responsible citizen - He also thinks Poppy walks on water - so does Nanny.

Remembering What is Important

My life is full ~ Teaching, working on a doctorate, working to help establish a charitable clinic, directing a running clinic and spending time with my family. Some people are amazed at how many activities I am involved in. There was a time in my life that I did not have the skills or the resources to accomplish any of the things I do today. I am blessed – and because I am blessed I find myself staying focused on what I can give or do for others.

Scrapbooking is one way to give to others

My scrapbooks give my children a record of their life - smiling faces, frowning faces and silly poses are often forgotten with time - but a quick tour of a family scrapbook reminds us of the strenght of family ties.

Becoming Committed to the Things I Enjoy

Life is short. As a nurse I often see how short life really is ~ In 2008 - I am comitted to doing some of the things I enjoy instead of working all the time. So, what do I enjoy ~ scrapbooking my memories, trout fishing, running, swimming, bike riding with my grandsons, playing fetch with my four-legged babies and every moment I spend with my husband.

You can see from my blog I have not been focused on me. It has been two years since I shared my thoughs on this blog. In the past year and half I have started to foucs on important things in life like my sprital growth and family. I know there are other women out there who have come to the realization that life is precious and short - for those I encourage you to share your thoughts with me and follow your heart to find happiness in the time God has given you.

Scrapbooking and other hobbies

Scrapbooking is my passion, but I often find ways to incorporate scrapbooking into other hobbies such as gardening, geneology, and fishing. I'd like to share with you my garden journal. This is a picture of a journal I put together. In this journal I write about my garden and how my husband and I spend time together in it. Hope this spakes your creativity to scrapbook.

Our newest garden project is planting to attract hummingbirds.

Why I Scrapbook Book

If you love to scrapbook and stamp as much as I do you’ve come to the right place!! I have been scrapbooking for about 5 years. I started after my mother died and my sisters and I were left with boxes and boxes of pictures. I decided that my children would not find smiling faces in shoe boxes, but instead they would have our memories in albums.

Scrapbook Memories and More Blog is where you will learn about Close to My Heart Stampbooking Products.

Close To My Heart has the best quality stamping and scrapbooking supplies around. Our best selling product is the My Acrylix™ stamp sets. Everyone loves these clear stamps because they can see where they are stamping! Close To My Heart also has over 60 colors of rich ink and white cored cardstock and markers to match them all! Close To My Heart has something for every level of scrapbooker. Check out our beautiful level one kits for the beginner. These kits include everything you need to make fast beautiful pages. These kits include 2 memory protectors, 2 sheets of our stickease, and lots of paper. More advanced scrapbookers will enjoy our level 2 kits, stamps, and our variety of embellishments

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