I read this quote today on the back of a t-shirt…

“No matter how bad it gets, there’s always someone out there who would love to have your problems.”  -Fort

Remembering this may not make us feel better or make our problems go away.  However, it does give us some great perspective!

Earlier this week I met Hanna Jane.  Where and why is not important; it’s what I learned from her that I hope I remember for the rest of my life! 

Hanna Jane turned to me and very seriously asked “wat yur favrut part tuday?”  Thankfully I am fluent in toddler so I was able to translate that to “what was your favorite part of today?”  I thought for a split second and rambled off some superficial thought.  My answer was sufficient enough for Hanna Jane.  She told me that “playing with the buttons” was her favorite part of the day.  I still am not really certain what that meant.  However, if was her favorite part of the day, it must have been really fun! 

It wasn’t until later that evening when I was lying in bed waiting for sleep to come that Hanna Jane popped into my head again.  I though of her question and really thought about my day.  What was my favorite part about the day?  

Over the past few days I have made it a point to ask myself this question before bed.  It really is a great question to ask yourself.  An amazing thing happens; regardless of what kind of day you had, you start to think of all the good things that happened.  It’s a wonderful way to end the day!  Try it.  Let me know what you think on Facebook!

I know for certain that my favorite part of last Saturday was meeting Hanna Jane.  I will never forget the valuable lesson she taught me!

In the Harmony at Last December newsletter we talked about Christmas cards.  Send them? Don’t send them?  This is probably a debate for the ages.  What is the route cause for sending Christmas cards?  To let people know we are thinking of them; to foster friendships that we don’t want to lose; or because we feel it’s what we are “supposed to do” in December? 

I’m not sure what it is that propels those of us that do send out Christmas cards to do so.  My guess is the reasons are different for everyone.  I got to thinking about this while I was taking down all of the Christmas cards I had received (an entirely different blog subject could be written on what cards should be kept or thrown out). The main idea that kept going thru my head as I was doing this was; “If these people are so important to me, (and I to them) why don’t we keep in touch all year long?”  That’s when I decided to make keeping in touch with the people that are important in my life one of my New Year’s resolutions. 

Everyone gets so busy with what’s going on in their own lives that we often forget that friendships/relationships take fostering.  My plan is to call, send a short email, or quick note to someone each week.  I am interested to see if going out of my way to connect with someone each week this year will bring me more or less cards in December.  Likewise, will I send less or more?  Either way, I have a feeling 2010 will be full of wonderful memories.

How do you keep in touch with friends and family through out the year?  Let us know on the Harmony at Last Facebook page. 

Today was a trying day for me.  Nothing seriously wrong; just busy with life and sometimes things don’t go as we plan.  As I sat in my car at a stop light on my way home, I was aggravated, frustrated, and exhausted from some of the day’s events.  My mind was swirling around what happened in the past instead of looking forward to what waited in my future…. my husband and wonderful children to hug me when I arrived home!
I’m not sure what caused me to glance at the car to my left.  However, it only took a few moments for me to be humbled and reminded that my day was not nearly that bad.  The woman in the car to my left sat motionless, both hands on the wheel; arms fully extended.  She wore a wedding ring on her left ring finger and down her face poured a river of tears.  A child, close to 3, sat sleeping in a car seat in back.  I found myself wondering what had happened to her.  I thought; “now, she had a bad day!” As the light turned green and she pulled away I realized that she may have been having more than a bad day.  On the bumper of her car, pasted to the right of her license plate, was a magnet with the following words; “Half of My Heart is in Iraq.” 
My heart sank for her as I thought about Thanksgiving and her 3 year old son sleeping in back.  I wondered how long her husband had been away and if he would be home for Christmas.  Most importantly, I instantly forgot about whatever it was that had been so upsetting in my day.  And, when I got home, I hugged everyone very tightly.
There are many things to be thankful for every day; sometimes we are just looking too hard!  I am thankful for my family and that we are together for Thanksgiving.  I am also thankful for the woman in the red Subaru and her family.  I hope they are not separated for much longer!

Happy Thanksgiving Everyone!

With Thanksgiving almost here and Christmas looming, I find myself thinking; “I thought I was busy in October!”  With this on my mind, I would like to share an excerpt from Robert Fulghum’s book “All I Really Need to Know I Learned in Kindergarten.”  I hope it will serve to remind us that no one person is perfect!

“The man next door cleaned his gutters yesterday.  Downspouts too.  He’s done it before.  I saw him last year.  Amazing.  I was forty years old before I even knew that people cleaned gutters and downspouts.  And I haven’t been able to get around to doing it once yet. 
“I live in awe of people who get those jobs done.  The people who live orderly lives.  The ones who always do what needs to be done and do it right.  I know of people who actually balance their checkbooks each month.  I know that’s hardly credible, but I swear it’s so.
“These people also have filing cabinets (not shoe boxes) with neat, up-to-date, relevant files.  They can find things around the house when they need them.  There is order under their sinks, in their closets, and in the trunks of their cars.  They actually change the filter on their furnace once a year.  They put oil and grease on mechanical things.  Their warranties runneth not out.  Not only do their flashlights work, they actually know where the flashlights are!
“When their car was last serviced-they know that too.  The tools in their garage are on the pegboard-right where they are supposed to be.  Their taxes are based on facts, not hunches and prayer.  When they go to sleep at night, their list of Things to Do has a line through every item.  And when they arise in the morning, their bathrobe is right there beside the bed and it is clean and new.  Socks-right there in the drawer, folded into matching pairs.  Yes!  And as they prepare to walk out the door into a new day, they know exactly where their car keys are and are not worried about the state of the car battery or if there is enough gas to get to work.
“There are such people.  Ones who have it all together.  Exmpt from the reign of Chaos and the laws of entropy.  I see them every day all around me.  Calm and easy pillars of society.  They are the people in your high school yearbook you wanted to be.  The ones who made it.
“Well.  I am not one of them.  Out of the frying pan, into the spilt milk is more me.  Most of the time daily life is a lot like an endless chore of chasing chickens in a large pen.  Life is an air-raid drill.  Never mind the details.” -Robert Fulghum

I, for one, would like to meet a person who’s list of Things to Do has a line through every item when they go to bed!  Are you more like Mr. Fulghum, or the fictional super hero he describes? My guess is most of us fall somewhere in between the two. Instead of “never mind the details;” remind yourself during this busy time to “never mind the unimportant details.”  Prioritizing is always the key!

Everyone is always looking for a way to save some money.  Here are two that I thought were worth sharing. 

Have you ever wondered if you could save money by switching phone companies, credit cards, or just using a different gas station?  Well, billshrink.com can help you figure that out.  Visit their website to compare prices for savings accounts and CD’s as well.

After you have done that, program the following number into your cell phone, your kids’ cell phones, and anyone else that will allow you to do so.  1-800-373-3411 or 1800Free411 is a free directory service.  The catch?  You have to listen to a 10 second advertisement in return for the information.  Well worth the $1.75 you will save!  Check it out for yourself at their website.

Do you have any money saving tricks to share?  Let us know on Facebook!

Saw this posted on a friends Facebook page and thought to myself, those are words to live by!

“Never make someone a PRIORITY if they only make you an OPTION!”

What Great advise!

Can you list 5 things you can be happy about right now? If we each sat and thought about it, we could probably come up with more than 5. Here are a few things I am happy about this minute.

A wonderful husband.
Amazing children that teach me something every day.
The beautiful colors of Fall.
Hitting all green lights this morning.
A lunch date with friends.
Warm water. (Not something you usually think about, but you really miss it when it’s gone!)

Its easy to focus on the things that go wrong but we often forget to take notice of the things that go right. So, what about you? What are you happy about today?

“When things calm down, I will have time for…”

Have you ever said this, or maybe thought it?  I hear it commonly, and I will admit to occasionally pushing things off because I feel too busy.  However, the real truth is things are probably always going to be busy.  My kids and husband need things from me, there is always “work” to do, and something is always going to be happening that is outside of my control. 

If we are too busy right now to meet a friend for lunch, go on a family picnic, or visit our parents; when will we have time?  And, when we do have time, will it be too late to do the things we want?  The fact is, our kids will grow up, our friends sometimes move away, and we do not know how long we have before the people we love are taken from us.  

It’s been said that when people look back on their lives they don’t remember work or social obligations; but instead, the memories they made with family and friends.  If work, or other social obligations you have committed yourself to, are keeping you from spending time on the more important things in life , maybe it’s time to reassess whether or not you really need your hands in so many different baskets.  That way if a friend suggests lunch, you can meet at your favorite restaurant!  Oh, when your mom calls next, don’t try to get off the phone so quickly!

Yep, I spelt it correctly.  Zubbles are a new died bubble.  Creator Tim Kehoe spent 15 years figuring out how to create a bubble with a single color that won’t stain when it pops.  15 years!!  Goes to show you should never give up on your goals and dreams.  It’s an amazing story. 

Read about Zubbles and Kehoe.
http://dsc.discovery.com/news/2009/07/10/colored-bubbles.html