Category: Family

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Homemade Memories

Saturday morning at ballet lessons (the girls, not mine) I got a text from my husband, “Let’s go get a new Christmas Tree.  One with the lights already built in and easy to put up.”

“Ok!” I excitedly reply (well I felt excited but only relied that… shopping duh! Something new for the house…Of course!  Husband suggesting spending money… I do not hesitate.)
Two hours at the store looking for just the right tree left us treeless.  No tree at the store was full enough, tall enough or made us think, “That’s the one!” 

That night I sat indian style on the floor with camera in hand.  I was ready to capture a moment.  The girls giggled and gasped as they picked up ornaments from the red, green and pink stripped cloth ornament container. 
“Make sure you spread them out,” I told them.

“You got that one on your first Christmas Olivia,” I reminisced.

“That one was Grandma’s.”

“You made that one last year in pre-school Francine,”  I reminded her.

Each ornament had a story.
Our tree is our story.  

It is beautiful.  It is our hand-me-downed Christmas Tree from my husband’s mom.  It is the tree that hold colored lights like the ones my husband grew up with.  It is the tree that sparkles with garland my mother taught me to hang. It is the tree that hold our ornaments.  It is perfect.

I can not help be filled with warmth as I look at the tree.  It reminds me of my childhood and tells me the holidays are really here. 

So while I was certain I would have nothing to offer for the Just.Be.Enough link up this week, I am again surprised by the impact this group of woman has had on me, my life and my outlook on life.  
The best presents of all are often the simple things in life….a day, an activity, a tree, my family, a story, an ornament…. a feeling! 
 Complete warm your body, make you smile, happiness!






This Post was inspired bythis weeks Just.Be.Enough theme:  “The best present of all…”* 
I am writing, posting and linking up to share my voice.
I am doing my part to carry the weight of
confidence and empowerment.
I am sharing the mission of empower and inspire
to remind women, parents and children
that the time has come to celebrate
themselves…ourselves… myself!

It’s your turn now…

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Hats of a Many Sorts

Today we are joined by an unlikely Adventurer. For months my husband has watched, self-lessly supported my newest adventure and has proudly read every post I have written. Today he has decided he wanted to take a turn and lend his voice to the Kindred Adventure! He is throwing his hat into the ring… (Pun…I know. I couldn’t help myself!)

Have you ever realized how many hats you wear in a given day?  It is no wonder why at the end of long work week we are so tired.

Take my wife for example. When she wakes up in the morning, she is my blushing bride, even though it has been 13 years of marriage. She wears the hat of ‘wife.’

Shortly after waking up and wearing the hat of wife, she is off to get ready for work. At that point it is just her and her thoughts. Planning for the day she wears the hat of ‘herself’.
Now it is downstairs to get dressed and do hair for what will certainly be an adventure at work. But before she dawns on the hat of‘ teacher, ‘mentor’ and ‘friend’ she will wear more hats.
Before work she also wears the hat of ‘mother’ as she makes sure her girls have the clothes they need because she will be gone before theywake.
She wears the hat of ‘concerned citizen’ as she drives towork listen to Chicago’s 720 AM.
She wears the hat of  ‘driver’ as she makes her way down the road to where she will once again touch a child’s heart and mind. Once at work,she wears the hat of ’teacher.’
She endures a long day but fruitful day because the hat of a ‘teacher’ is one that she has longed for her entire life. Does that hat fither, I believe it does!
She is on her way home now, wearing the hat of ‘driver’ again enduring lots of traffic and the wonderful world of construction that Illinois highways always provide.
It doesn’t stop there though. Once home, she becomes the Nascar driver that just won the race, taking pictures with crew and dawning anew hat for each of his sponsors. She is ‘mommy,’ ‘loving daughter,’ ‘lovingwife,’ and when the texting starts, ‘a great friend.’
That’s a lot of hats! It is no wonder why she is so tired at the end of the week! That’s when I have to make sure to wear my hat and stand tall as ‘loving husband.’

Ok so… he’s a keeper huh?! And I’m a lucky gal, but I already knew that!

                                                        Laverne’s
                                                        Hubby
                                                                        (we might just need to come up
                                                                                             with a nick name for him)
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Just.Be.Enough: Happiness

It is MONDAY and time for MY Story…
I am writing, posting and linking up to share my voice.
my part to carry the weight of confidence, empowerment and
sharing the mission of empower, inspire and
remind women, parents and children that
the time has come to celebrate ourselves… myself!
Since I joined the Just.Be.Enough team I have come to look forward to Mondays.  Mondays have become a chance for me to intentionally look forward and make certain I recognize that I Am Enough.  Shirley and I are never short of celebrations.  When it comes to our friendship we just click. It is an unconditional, thoughtful friendship, with a side of  I can read your mind.  Our families keep us busy and motherhood keeps us on our toes,  makes us want to pull out our hair sometimes and keeps life interesting.
This week Olivia started kindergarten. My husband proudly played stay at home dad for the day. I called home during lunch, fighting the tears of pride and terror,  hoping her first day of school  was everything I wanted it to be.  My tears ran down my check as she told me about her great first day of school.

As I entered school, on my first day of school,  new thoughts, unexperienced thoughts, entered my head. Will I connect with this years students like I had so easily in the past?  Would I be able to see their potential and then be able to take them to a version of their future they thought unachievable?   Would this be the year I finally felt teacher burn out?  This would be my 13th year. Wasn’t I supposed to start being done, start not loving my job.

Friday came quickly this week.  I was exhausted.  Lying in bed to watch a movie I was too tired for the #wineparty (yet again).  I fell asleep before the movie title ever made it to the TV screen.

Saturday meant time with my family.  My mom energy was  renewed and my mom game was at its best! I waited for a moment, something, that would spark my Just.Be.Enough feeling.  Nothing!  Then from my unlikely source “Twitter” came Elena.

 
My week was Enough! Enough doesn’t have to come from hardship, trial, hurt or struggle (it most certainly can though). Enough can be life being wonderful.

I locked the door to my classroom on Friday.   A huge smile came over to my face.  I still have it!  I am going to do amazing things this year!  I am in no way near done with this life’s journey.  I am so very happy!  It was a wonderful week!

                                                                                                                        
                                   
Every MONDAY join us… 
Write, Post, Link-Up, share your story and your voice.  
Be part of carrying the weight of confidence, empowerment and share our mission to empower, inspire, and remind 
 women, parents and children
that the time has come to celebrate ourselves! 
 
Bellflower Books will be sponsoring the Be Enough Me Monday link ups for ONE month, starting on August 22nd. For every 20 people that link up with a story of how they lived the Be Enough Me “feeling” that week, Bellflower will donate ONE $75 gift certificate to a family identified by Crickett’s Answer for the creation of a 20-page memory book. We will keep a running total of links over the four Mondays and hope to reach our goal of 120 links,

which would provide TEN Bellflower memory books.

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