This says it all as 2011 winds down and I prepare for a New Year full of adventure, trials and overcoming!
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Thursday, December 29, 2011
Sunday, October 16, 2011
Changes.....
A month ago I dropped one of my sons off to live and work with his Dad for the year. This marked a beginning and an end! Two days prior I had dropped his twin brother off at the airport for his year long adventure in a different province. It was official, my incredible children have all left home (for how long...time will tell).
What a feeling....after twenty five years of raising children I was alone. A weekend away with a few of my children to attend my nephew's wedding was next on the agenda. We traveled together and spent the weekend with extended family. The wedding was beautiful as we witnessed two people who genuinely loved and respected one another commit to a lifetime of serving one another.
I found myself very reflective this weekend as I looked at my extended family, my mother aging with Alzheimers, my father just learning that is last sibling was near death, my brother and his wife in the process of adding a young girl to their family and my children all experiencing milestones in the past 90 days. WOW! So very much to be thankful for and yet so reminders of how temporary this life is. We spend so much time planning events like weddings, post-secondary education and career moves, in search of what?
Choosing to fully engage in the moments I became very aware of how each memory adds to the richness of the experience called life!
So...as a chapter was ending, I shed a few tears and then realized each ending is a new beginning. Just like the bride and groom that have given up their single lives to start a new family unit, I was starting a new adventure.
At the age of 49, with God's help we have raised 5 incredible children that all know who they are. I remembered the conscious decision at 26 to put my children first and now am very thankful for that decision. This stage.....empty nested, I have been set free to pursue what God had in store for me next.
The realization that I've been given gifts that involve people, technology and a love for business led to the start up of Touch Marketing. I am declaring my fiftieth year of life to be one of complete surrender to my faith journey and continue to develop the fruit of the spirit. Discipline...here I come.
My goal this year - Fit at Fifty! Both physically and financially. I am excited to pursue all that God has in store for me as a Grandmother, Business Partner and Woman.
This week's reading - GREATEST SALESMAN IN THE WORLD by OG MANDINO. Time to put into practice The 10 scrolls mentioned in this book.
What a feeling....after twenty five years of raising children I was alone. A weekend away with a few of my children to attend my nephew's wedding was next on the agenda. We traveled together and spent the weekend with extended family. The wedding was beautiful as we witnessed two people who genuinely loved and respected one another commit to a lifetime of serving one another.
I found myself very reflective this weekend as I looked at my extended family, my mother aging with Alzheimers, my father just learning that is last sibling was near death, my brother and his wife in the process of adding a young girl to their family and my children all experiencing milestones in the past 90 days. WOW! So very much to be thankful for and yet so reminders of how temporary this life is. We spend so much time planning events like weddings, post-secondary education and career moves, in search of what?
Choosing to fully engage in the moments I became very aware of how each memory adds to the richness of the experience called life!
So...as a chapter was ending, I shed a few tears and then realized each ending is a new beginning. Just like the bride and groom that have given up their single lives to start a new family unit, I was starting a new adventure.
At the age of 49, with God's help we have raised 5 incredible children that all know who they are. I remembered the conscious decision at 26 to put my children first and now am very thankful for that decision. This stage.....empty nested, I have been set free to pursue what God had in store for me next.
The realization that I've been given gifts that involve people, technology and a love for business led to the start up of Touch Marketing. I am declaring my fiftieth year of life to be one of complete surrender to my faith journey and continue to develop the fruit of the spirit. Discipline...here I come.
My goal this year - Fit at Fifty! Both physically and financially. I am excited to pursue all that God has in store for me as a Grandmother, Business Partner and Woman.
This week's reading - GREATEST SALESMAN IN THE WORLD by OG MANDINO. Time to put into practice The 10 scrolls mentioned in this book.
Monday, August 1, 2011
Really, it's been almost a year since I shared...
What a difference a day makes! That is the understatement of the year for me personally. This has been by far, the busiest year of my life. Being a single Mom, you can imagine the scheduling involved with a large family and a business start up. I have been blessed beyond measure both personally and professionally and think about this blog often; usually when I'm driving and/or stuck in traffic. (Hence the pending move)
We took time out in December 2009 to take a family vacation to Florida and I'm very thankful we did! 2011 brought four of the five kids graduations (2 from university and 2 from high school). That meant...yes....I pause...done the High School phase of our lives! We not only survived the kids are achieved great accomplishments and I couldn't be prouder.
At the High School grad I reflected on the fact that their schedules were now their own! With God's help we made it. There was no hesitation or slowing down however, because 5 days before the graduation we had our next generation join the family. Yes, I got to add Grandmother to my list of relationships! How truly amazing to watch your child bond with their baby. A moment I'll never forget.
Now we are preparing for the next wedding in the family. My second daughter is about to be wed in a few days and I find myself very contemplative about the speed at which life changes. Our family adapts so quickly to welcoming new people into the fold.
This month marks a whole new era for this family. As we gather for the wedding and a few other special occasions (Happy Birthday to my ex - 50! woot), we also prepare to move as we are starting new chapters of our lives. My family is spreading out, the new grandson 17 hours away with his parents, newest couple 2 hours away, my baby girl heading to her own place in Toronto to pursue her passion in cooking school, and my sons, one off to B.C. for a year long leadership course and the other...well maybe, just maybe he'll be moving with me to the big city of Toronto.
Change is.....opportunity. I for one am going to take this opportunity to communicate via my blog a weekly message to all these wonderful young adults because we've been so protected as a family and have so very much to be thankful for that I look forward to seeing them all 'pay it forward' in their own lives. Oh...and that means that special extended child of mine too! (He just became a Dad 2 days ago and I got to hold his precious son today!)
As sojourners on this planet I believe we are called to bring out the best in each other and my devotional reading today rang so very true to my heart:
We took time out in December 2009 to take a family vacation to Florida and I'm very thankful we did! 2011 brought four of the five kids graduations (2 from university and 2 from high school). That meant...yes....I pause...done the High School phase of our lives! We not only survived the kids are achieved great accomplishments and I couldn't be prouder.
At the High School grad I reflected on the fact that their schedules were now their own! With God's help we made it. There was no hesitation or slowing down however, because 5 days before the graduation we had our next generation join the family. Yes, I got to add Grandmother to my list of relationships! How truly amazing to watch your child bond with their baby. A moment I'll never forget.
Now we are preparing for the next wedding in the family. My second daughter is about to be wed in a few days and I find myself very contemplative about the speed at which life changes. Our family adapts so quickly to welcoming new people into the fold.
This month marks a whole new era for this family. As we gather for the wedding and a few other special occasions (Happy Birthday to my ex - 50! woot), we also prepare to move as we are starting new chapters of our lives. My family is spreading out, the new grandson 17 hours away with his parents, newest couple 2 hours away, my baby girl heading to her own place in Toronto to pursue her passion in cooking school, and my sons, one off to B.C. for a year long leadership course and the other...well maybe, just maybe he'll be moving with me to the big city of Toronto.
Change is.....opportunity. I for one am going to take this opportunity to communicate via my blog a weekly message to all these wonderful young adults because we've been so protected as a family and have so very much to be thankful for that I look forward to seeing them all 'pay it forward' in their own lives. Oh...and that means that special extended child of mine too! (He just became a Dad 2 days ago and I got to hold his precious son today!)
As sojourners on this planet I believe we are called to bring out the best in each other and my devotional reading today rang so very true to my heart:
Over and over in Scripture God says things like, ‘Be strong and of good courage, do not…be afraid…for the Lord…goes with you’ (Deuteronomy 31:6 NKJV). Why? To bring out the best in us! The history books are full of stories of gifted people whose talents were overlooked until someone believed in them. Einstein was four years old before he could speak. Isaac Newton did poorly in primary school. A newspaper editor fired Walt Disney because he had ‘no good ideas’. Tolstoy dropped out of college. There’s a lesson here: people develop at different rates. To motivate them you must always be on the outlook for hidden capacities. Your words create an environment in which people not only discover their gifts, but also develop and excel in them. John Erskine, Professor of English at Colombia University, was an educator, concert pianist, author of 60 books, president of the Juilliard School of Music, and a popular and witty lecturer. Writing about that remarkable career, his wife, Helen, attributed it to his ‘defiant optimism’. ‘He was a good teacher,’ she said, ‘because of his own excitement for learning and his trust in the future.’ He would say to her, ‘Let’s tell our young people that the best books are yet to be written; the best paintings have not yet been painted; the best governments are yet to be formed; the best is yet to be done by them.’ Within every human being there is a God-given drive to achieve something. If you tap into that drive and demonstrate that you believe in their future, they’ll do almost anything to live up to your expectations.
Sunday, February 27, 2011
Tuesday, November 30, 2010
This Week on TV
Scott Peck writes, 'It's only because of problems that we grow mentally and spiritually. It's through the pain of confronting them that we learn.' No matter how bad things seem, every situation holds something positive-look for it."
This Week on TV
Monday, August 16, 2010
Waiting on God
A summer without kids at home full time...
It's hard to believe the summer is nearing end. I started with such great plans...as always! I am amazed yet again at how easily it is to become derailed from fulfilling our God given purpose. I was very excited (once I got over the mini-melt down of having no kids at home this summer) at the opportunity to spend some long over due quiet time with my maker. I had two main goals, to organize my home and my businesses. Yes I own more than one business.
I know my strengths and weaknesses and still I fell into the many distractions set for me. What an amazing journey. I set time aside to attend Kingdom Bound 2010 as well as Joyce Meyer's Toronto Conference and went with an open mind searching for some answers. I landed flat on my face the first day of Kingdom Bound (literally...broke a small bone in my nose and hand - but they are healing now). My fall got my attention. At the end of the week of a lot of great worship and messages I came to the realization that it is in the fire that God does the purifying.
Still trying to apply this message I listened to Joyce Meyer's messages all last week and realized how much I'd been beating myself up. Next enter Charles Stanley and his teaching on The Truth that Sets us Free and I was reminded all over again about choices. So I chose to listen to a couple CDs that I had purchased after hearing Sheila Wray Gregoire speak. I went to bed feeling much better after all those messages over a two week period. I realized I was just focusing too much attention on the things of this world which I never desired to succeed at any way. What a relief!
I am very thankful for my local Bible teaching church (Calvary Pentecostal Assembly) and when I attended yesterday's service our youth Pastor Jamie Nelson shared a great message about the sick man by the water and Jesus asking him did he want to get well? Are we living through a position of hurt or hope? What a great question. As I was coming out of the long....very long tyranny of not enough time with God and far too much time with Kathy I realized I wasn't focused on where my hope came from. Getting an eternal perspective changes everything.
My favourite devotional The Vine reminded me yesterday that I had to choose to get serious about following God and today that means I need to play to my strengths. I read three devotional emails a day, The Vine, K-Love's encouragement of the day and 300 Words a day-thanks Chris Brogan. Each of these help me to keep it simple (as long as I choose to read and apply).
Some times it really is as simple as pausing to hear the messages daily and taking it one day at a time! I woke up at 4 am and had to come listen to this video:
I pray that you know where your strength comes from, that you were born for a purpose and that you are able to sort through the many distractions of this life and know that your days have eternal value.
It's hard to believe the summer is nearing end. I started with such great plans...as always! I am amazed yet again at how easily it is to become derailed from fulfilling our God given purpose. I was very excited (once I got over the mini-melt down of having no kids at home this summer) at the opportunity to spend some long over due quiet time with my maker. I had two main goals, to organize my home and my businesses. Yes I own more than one business.
I know my strengths and weaknesses and still I fell into the many distractions set for me. What an amazing journey. I set time aside to attend Kingdom Bound 2010 as well as Joyce Meyer's Toronto Conference and went with an open mind searching for some answers. I landed flat on my face the first day of Kingdom Bound (literally...broke a small bone in my nose and hand - but they are healing now). My fall got my attention. At the end of the week of a lot of great worship and messages I came to the realization that it is in the fire that God does the purifying.
Still trying to apply this message I listened to Joyce Meyer's messages all last week and realized how much I'd been beating myself up. Next enter Charles Stanley and his teaching on The Truth that Sets us Free and I was reminded all over again about choices. So I chose to listen to a couple CDs that I had purchased after hearing Sheila Wray Gregoire speak. I went to bed feeling much better after all those messages over a two week period. I realized I was just focusing too much attention on the things of this world which I never desired to succeed at any way. What a relief!
I am very thankful for my local Bible teaching church (Calvary Pentecostal Assembly) and when I attended yesterday's service our youth Pastor Jamie Nelson shared a great message about the sick man by the water and Jesus asking him did he want to get well? Are we living through a position of hurt or hope? What a great question. As I was coming out of the long....very long tyranny of not enough time with God and far too much time with Kathy I realized I wasn't focused on where my hope came from. Getting an eternal perspective changes everything.
My favourite devotional The Vine reminded me yesterday that I had to choose to get serious about following God and today that means I need to play to my strengths. I read three devotional emails a day, The Vine, K-Love's encouragement of the day and 300 Words a day-thanks Chris Brogan. Each of these help me to keep it simple (as long as I choose to read and apply).
Some times it really is as simple as pausing to hear the messages daily and taking it one day at a time! I woke up at 4 am and had to come listen to this video:
I pray that you know where your strength comes from, that you were born for a purpose and that you are able to sort through the many distractions of this life and know that your days have eternal value.
Sunday, June 27, 2010
Julie/Julia
Funny...how busy life is. I saw this title in my drafts and realize how appropriate that I found this today. I watched this movie with my wonderful daughter on Jan 24, 2010. Need I say more about being too busy!
Busy is not a badge I wear proudly; in fact I'd much rather be fruitful than busy. My amazing daughter (that loves to cook, as I did) has now graduated High School and tomorrow starts off on her new adventure. A new city, a job in a restaurant to investigate further whether cooking or restaurant management will be her career choice.
This plan has been in the works for a while and it hit me like a ton of bricks last weekend. The fact that this era of our lives is over. I've had two other daughter's graduate high school and pursue their choices so why is this so different? This daughter is my baby girl...really is that it?
Her twin brother's are a grade behind....mhmmm I think we are getting closer to the truth. It is amazing how we focus on our futures, our plans, hopes and ambitions and then one day wake up and realize the future is NOW! I've had the philosophy that my privilege as a mother is to raise each unique child towards their strengths. It's been my goal to take them from dependent infants to 18 year old's that know who they are and are ready to stand on their own.
The letting go is just as important as the initial bonding of the child. The knowledge that we've imparted life's important messages and grounded them in faith. Then setting them free to explore, fall down, get back up and begin their own journey.
She's off tomorrow...I'll adjust the groceries, visit her room from time to time and be very thankful for technology and instant communication and pray that as she embarks on writing the next chapter of her life; I'll remain the constant cheerleader!
I'll remember how friendly this daughter was as a little girl. She excelled at swimming! She is poetry in motion in a the water. This beautiful, independent, creative, fun, spontaneous, insightful girl made friends wherever she went. She took over my kitchen almost two years ago and helped this family out with meals and driving. Thanks Baby Doll!
As I write this I'm listening to one of my favourite speakers; aptly Charles Stanley's message this week is called "Holding Too Tightly". Thank you God for the reminder; another one set free with love, prayer and blessing.
Busy is not a badge I wear proudly; in fact I'd much rather be fruitful than busy. My amazing daughter (that loves to cook, as I did) has now graduated High School and tomorrow starts off on her new adventure. A new city, a job in a restaurant to investigate further whether cooking or restaurant management will be her career choice.
This plan has been in the works for a while and it hit me like a ton of bricks last weekend. The fact that this era of our lives is over. I've had two other daughter's graduate high school and pursue their choices so why is this so different? This daughter is my baby girl...really is that it?
Her twin brother's are a grade behind....mhmmm I think we are getting closer to the truth. It is amazing how we focus on our futures, our plans, hopes and ambitions and then one day wake up and realize the future is NOW! I've had the philosophy that my privilege as a mother is to raise each unique child towards their strengths. It's been my goal to take them from dependent infants to 18 year old's that know who they are and are ready to stand on their own.
The letting go is just as important as the initial bonding of the child. The knowledge that we've imparted life's important messages and grounded them in faith. Then setting them free to explore, fall down, get back up and begin their own journey.
She's off tomorrow...I'll adjust the groceries, visit her room from time to time and be very thankful for technology and instant communication and pray that as she embarks on writing the next chapter of her life; I'll remain the constant cheerleader!
I'll remember how friendly this daughter was as a little girl. She excelled at swimming! She is poetry in motion in a the water. This beautiful, independent, creative, fun, spontaneous, insightful girl made friends wherever she went. She took over my kitchen almost two years ago and helped this family out with meals and driving. Thanks Baby Doll!
As I write this I'm listening to one of my favourite speakers; aptly Charles Stanley's message this week is called "Holding Too Tightly". Thank you God for the reminder; another one set free with love, prayer and blessing.
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