If I Could.....

If I could...

Travel anywhere, where would it be:  Ireland, England, Scotland are currently at the top of my list.

Meet anyone, who would it be:   This is a really tough one, but if it could be anyone living or dead, I would have to say Princess Diana.  She taught me that no matter how much wealth and power you have, it means nothing if you are not sharing it or helping others with it.

Be anyone for a day, who would it be:  I think this would be a toss up between Celine Dion (because I would totally rock it in Vegas), and Princess Kate (because, in keeping with my princess theme, I would love to be a princess and live in a castle......and, oh her wardrobe!!!)

Get anything for free for the rest of your life, what would it be:  Access to the greatest chefs in the world.....and an unlimited gym membership.

Change one thing about your life, what would it be:  To have the freedom to quit my job and spend my time travelling the world with my family.

Have any superpower, what would it be:  I would love to be able to read people's thoughts.  It would be interesting to see who is truly genuine and who is only nice to your face.

Be any animal for a day, what would it be:  A horse -- beauty, freedom, speed.....that would be awesome.

Change one thing about the world, what would it be:  Ending worldwide abuse of ANY form.

Live in any fictional universe, which would you choose:  OK, now this may be my nerd showing, but I would live in 24th Century Star Trek universe.  Poverty would have been eliminated, money was obsolete....and hello, Holodeck!!

Eliminate one of your human needs, which would you get rid of:  This one is easy -- Sleep.  I already don't do it, and if I could get rid of it altogether, think of how much I could accomplish.

Change one thing about your physical appearance, what would it be:  Ummmm.....six-pack abs!

Change one of your personality traits, what would you choose:  Well, I do tend to procrastinate, a bit.  I would like to have a little more drive to get things done right away!

Be talented at anything instantly, what would you choose:  Athletics -- it might help with my six-pack abs.

Have any hair/skin/eye color, what would you choose:  I've always wanted the strawberry blonde hair and green eyes.

Be any weight/body type, what would you choose:  More athletic.  Less fat, more muscle (I'm working on it)

Live in any country/city, what would you choose:  I'd seriously move back to Denver in a heartbeat. The weather was never too extreme, and mountains!  I loved seeing the mountains everywhere I looked.

Change one law in your country, what would you change:  Zero tolerance for child abuse.  Hurt a kid, go to jail.  Physical, sexual, mental, whatever......no second chance.  Kill a kid, immediate death penalty.  Social workers and the foster/adoption industry would get more money than pro athletes and movie stars.  Our children need to be protected.

Have any job in the world, what would you choose:  If I couldn't be a professional singer, I would want to be a writer or journalist.

Have anything appear in your pocket right now, what would it be: A wallet that always had exactly the amount of money I need.

Have anyone beside you right now, who would it be:  My grandma Court.  No question!

Just STOP

I came across this fantastic article on Facebook, and it really made me stop and think.

It was titled "30 Things to Stop Doing to Yourself", and I, personally found it fascinating.  Maybe it's just the pain meds, but I saw myself, and quite a few of my friends in some of the points and though. "Man, we really kick our own butts sometimes don't we"?  Which is pretty silly if you think about it.

So, I thought I would share share some of the highlights of this post that really hit home to me.

1.  Stop spending time with the wrong people.  -- This would be #1 on my list, and I was happy to see it as #1 on this list as well.  It is such a problem in our culture, and people need to stop wasting time on the people that aren't worth it.  Some people come into our lives and are meant to be there forever.  But some are just pages, chapters, paragraphs, or sentences.  You should surround yourself with people who respect you, treat you with love, and are happy to be in your presence.  Why live a life being with people who don't respect you?  Losing a friend or partner might mean nights are quieter, or that there is less to do, but you won't feel held down by something that isn't meant to be.

15.  Stop trying to compete against everyone else.  -- Everyone wants to keep up with the Jones', but you know what??  I don't think the Jones' care about use in the least.  Going into debt to have the best house, or car, or clothes is just ridiculous.   It is a hole that is hard to get out of once it has been dug.  So what if all your friends were married before you?  So what if you don't own your own home and have a baby 2 years after marriage?  So what if you spend your money carting your kids around to various touraments, productions, and events instead of a lavish vacation in some island destination?  So what if your house isn't Pinterest worthy?  It doesn't make you any less of a person.  Concentrate on yourself and your own happiness instead of what others are doing or thinking.

22.  Stop overlooking the beauty of small moments.  -- To be honest, I never fully began embracing the small moments until I became a mother.  I enjoyed life and all that it was, but never really took the time to embrace the little thing.  The most mundane moments make my heart so happy now.  I try very hard to grab a small moment of joy whenever it comes along.

28.  Stop worrying so much.  -- Worrying doesn't help the outcome.  EVER!  It just creates more stress; unnecessary stress and unhappiness.  I used to be a bit of a worried, but know I know that most things are out of my hands, and worrying won't do anything but cause me grief.  When you worry about what MIGHT happen, you stop thinking about the here and now and you stop enjoying what you have.  I think  this point is coupled with #29 -- Stop focussing on what you don't want to happen.  Make the choice to believe that what you want to have happen will.  Positive thinking is much more fun, and far healthier for you than worrying.  

30.  Stop being ungrateful.  -- I feel lucky that my mother taught me from a very early age to be grateful for what I have in life, and not to focus on what I don't have.  Even when life drives me nuts, I choose to look at all the blessings I have instead of dwelling on the problem.  Of course, sometimes I need to be reminded that people have it worse of than me, but I do try to remind myself that my "first world problems" are small in comparison to the plight some others have to bear.  I have also become more aware of how I describe my hardships too, because all too often I think we exaggerate our problems to make ourselves feel better.  Counting my blessings also makes me feel a lot better than dwelling on my problems.  Give it a try.  Trust me; it works!

I walk by faith

I've been thinking a lot about faith lately.  I don't know why, but I have.   I have though about love and about my life.  About my nature and how I've become who I am.  And about who I want to become as well. 

I've never had, nor will I have the faith that Jesus did.  The faith He had in His Father.  The faith that even though He knew He was going to die, He knew it was for a bigger purpose and that His Father would save Him.   Such complete and humbling faith.

I know I don't have the faith that Jesus did.  I know that the scope of my faith may not be what it once was, or ever will be again;  but I hold strong to my faith.  I have faith that God loves me, no matter what, and that no matter how many times I turn away from Him, He will always welcome me back.  I have faith that He will protect those near and dear to me and bless them.

This faith has helped me live my life as an optimist.  I don't 'worry' like many people do.  I mean, yes, I do worry, but usually it is about silly or petty things.  I truly believe I am not as big of a worrier because I have faith that it will work out.  I am not someone that looks for the bad in a situation.  I trust and have faith that the good will come to light.

I have faith in humanity.  Yes, the world is a dark, scary place at times, but it's also made up of beautiful and wonderful people.  I have faith that people won't try to cheat me or ruin my day.  I have faith that no matter how hard things may get, better days are coming, faith that justice will be served to those who need it, faith that even though I have a stressful day, God has granted me blessings that I didn't even take the time to see.

Don't think I kid myself and think that life is all roses, because I know it isn't.  I've suffered my share of hardships, had my own fights with God and lost a bit of my faith at times.  Life has drama and heartache, and they often suck for a long time.  But faith says 'hold on for the better'.  Faith says, 'the sun shines brightest after the rain'.  So have faith, my friends.  Wherever you are in your life, just have a little faith.

Goings On

This school year has gone insanely fast.  I mean, it's over in a month.  That 's so hard do believe.....and due to my procrastinating ways, I'm going to have to dig deep to remember things the boys did, and have done this year.  It's going to be a modge podge of information with not much rhyme or reason, and it may take me more than one post to remember everything....and for that I'm sorry.

Most recently, Andrew has been elected as the Vice President of the student body at his school next year. He's very excited about this.

Ryker has given up soccer in favour of basketball this year, which surprised me a bit, but he seems to really like it.....and has improved quite a bit over his first season.

Max also made his schools basketball team this year, and had a fantastic season.  He improved a ton and is looking forward to playing in high school next year.  He's also decided to take up the cello, and has been studying for a month.  He really likes it.  Last week he competed in his school track meet and got second place in the discus event.

The boys have all grown......Max is almost 6'2"....and he just turned 14.  Crazy.  He's the tallest kid, to Andrew's chagrin.  Drew has decided that if he can't be tallest, at least he can have the most facial hair, and has been sporting a full beard for a few weeks now.

Andrew and I just found out that Lethbridge Musical Theatre will be performing "Guys and Dolls" this year, and we've both decided to audition.  Those are held in a couple of weeks, and I will let you know how it goes.

Where in the World Have I Been???

When I first started this blog, I was living in the States, far away from family and friends.  I took up blogging as a way for family to keep connected and see the goings on and growing up of my kids.  Since we've moved back home, I've really let it slip because.....well, we see everyone a lot more often.

Then it hit me......The boys may be interested in reading back on this one day.  So, I've decided to be a little more vigilant in doing this.....if only for them.  I've got quite a bit to catch up on, so for the next few days I'll try to give each boy a post or two and update what's been happening in their world since the beginning of the school year.

Stay tuned!!