Piglet sidled up to Pooh from behind. "Pooh!" he whispered. "Yes, Piglet?" "Nothing," said Piglet, taking Pooh's paw. "I just wanted to be sure of you." ~A.A. Milne

Bachelorette Party

Oh boy, my Bachelorette party is in T-2 days! I don't know what to expect, but I'm excited...and scared at the same time. No strippers please :)

Smile

Smiling. That has been my weapon of defense this week. When work is daunting and my stress is boring down on me, I smile. When co-workers come up to me and inform me for the first time that I'm responsible for this and that, and I have no clue what they are talking about, I smile.

I just try to start the day and end it with a smile because I know that once I succumb to the negativity, I'll be lost in it. So, I'm smiling today, and the next day, and the next day, and the next...

"Anyone can carry his burden, however hard, until nightfall. Anyone can do his work, however hard, for one day. Anyone can live sweetly, patiently, lovingly, purely, till the sun goes down. And this is all life really means." ~ Robert Louis Stevenson

I must make these...

after my dress fitting this weekend, of course :)

Red Velvet Cake Balls

I love my fiance

He sends me emails that make me laugh...

Blake: There is a bird that keeps flying into my back door. He has one leg, and has shit all over the deck. I don't understand.

Me: (Laughter followed by response) You should put something in the window like a poster or something so he knows not to fly into it.

Blake: I'm putting this picture up right where he always flies.

Just keep singing, just keep singing!

"Life is a shipwreck but we must not forget to sing in the lifeboats." ~Voltaire

It's one of those days. Trying to keep my head above water, and just stay positive...But, if I could just be negative, for a millisecond...I feel like I'm drowning. Ok, I'm done. Just keep singing, just keep singing, just keep...

Two Trees

There is this older fellow at my new job who loves to talk my ear off. I think he tells me a new story about the University every day. Most of the time, I zone off...I'm a horrible person I know...I don't mean to...I think I might have ADD. BUT, today he actually told me something that I found interesting. The purpose of his story was to tout how long he's been here, but I saw something more in the story...something that got me thinking...

He told me about two trees that were planted in front of the University. The trees were both oak trees and both planted at the same time. The difference between the two trees was that one tree was surrounded by cement, where the other tree was surrounded by grass and flowers. The tree that was surround by cement was small and pathetic looking lacking nutrients compared to the tree surrounded by grass and flowers, which grew tall and its branches were filled with big leaves.

As I stood there looking at the two trees, a wave of gratitude came over me. The fiance and I were discussing the world as we drank wine and cooked dinner last night, which was delicious by the way. Some people are born into families where money and education is lacking. They are forced to continue living in a cycle of poverty and ignorance. Others are born into families where there parents have worked their hearts out striving to provide the best life they can for their children. God has blessed me with a life like the tree in the grass surrounded by flowers. The grass is my foundation (my God and my parents) and the flowers are all the beauties in this life (friends, education, love, etc.).

Then wheels really started turning. My mom always says to "Bloom where your planted," and I do agree that we are not entitled to anything, but instead must work hard to achieve everything. But sometimes people aren't given the nutrients they need to grow and flourish. My new job is for a non-profit institution, and I've realized that if it weren't for the heart of giving from generous people, organizations, companies, etc., alot people would be like the tree in cement...stuck and stunted. I've never been much of a "giver," but as I read the stories of people who didn't have the funds to get an education, but were able to receive scholarships and grants from generous donors, I realize the importance of giving. It gives people nutrients to grow and hope for the future.

So last night, when I was at Hy-Vee, the grocer asked me if I'd like to donate a dollar to help fight diabetes. I normally would blow it off like the cheap ass I am (a dollar for gosh sakes!), but instead, I said "yes"...and I donated in my fiance's name :) haha...pathetic, I know. But I'm poor and its a start.

My "Aha" moment

On a more serious note, I was watching LOST last night, and a commercial came on for Mutual of Omaha. The commercial was about people having life's "Aha" moments. The girl on TV was talking about how she used alcohol in the past to fill the emptiness in her life, but it wasn't till she hit rock bottom and became sober that she realized she had everything she ever wanted.

Commercial or not, the girl's words struck a chord. I don't have an alcohol problem or anything like that, but I have everything I could possibly want/need at the present time, and yet I find myself whining and complaining about anything and everything that goes wrong.

I recently got a new job and moved to the same town as my fiance, and one would think that a girl like me would be ecstatic. And, I was ecstatic, but then of course, life doesn't always play out the way you planned it in your head. My new boss quit on my first day, and I immediately went into extreme, panic, negative mode. Last night, I realized that I've been complaining about anything that doesn't go my way...A little bit of the younger child syndrome acting out in me. But the truth is, I got a new job, I now live in the same town as my fiance, my friend is letting me stay at her house instead of finding a place to live for 2 months, I'm getting married in 39 days (but who's counting), and I will soon be living under the same roof as the love of my life. Life couldn't be any better really, and I am ashamed of myself, especially when I compare my "troubles" to the people in Haiti, or on a smaller scale, to my friends who have been unemployed for months, who recently lost their jobs, who are struggling to get pregnant or who had their heartbroken by a loved one and is now going through the divorce process. My life is awesome, so how will I behave then, when life is actually crappy!? Time to toughen up, put on your big girl pants, and smell the roses, J.

Life lesson #158,503: Life is good, so stop complaining. Appreciate everything God throws your way, the good, the bad and the ugly. To be upset over what you don't have is to waste what you do have.

“We tend to forget that happiness doesn't come as a result of getting something we don't have, but rather of recognizing and appreciating what we do have.”

39 Days

"There is no such cozy combination as man and wife." ~Menander

May 30th is now only 39 days away! Lord Almighty, it is approaching fast!