Mother's Day (89/100)

Happy Mother's Day!

Day 89 - It's Mother's Day, make her feel special.  What is it about being a mom that you connect with - I am not a mother but I have people I take care of and nurture.  Care for your nurturing spirit today. 

I made a special effort to contact all the special mothers in my life.  I, of course, started with my own mother and wished her a special day.  I had already sent her a rose plant to let her know that she is very special to me.  I sent her a plant because I know how much she loves them and I know that she will be able to re-pot it and keep it for years to come.  I then called my Grandma, all my aunts and other special mothers in my life.  It was a quite a fulling experience.  I realized it had been too long since I have talked to some of my aunts.  I need to make more time to show my family how much I love them and how they are appreciated. 

I have a very maternal nature and am often looked at as a "mothering" friend.   I value this quality and know that when the time comes, I will cherish being a mother to my own children.  I am a Godmother and it is a joy to know that I have a special place in my godson's life. 

Haiku (73/100)

Day 73 - ok actually, Day 73 was on April 27th, but I liked the challenge so much that I am going to post it and immediately post another entry for today's challenge.

haikus are easy; but sometimes they don't make sense; refridgerator. - unknown

Today unleash your inner poet and write some haikus about the challenge.  Ok here it goes:

Breathe, Blink, Write, Think, Look.
I am made for a purpose.
Believe, Create more

Take time to listen.
Your thoughts talk more that you think.
Each one powerful.

Limits exist here.
Body and mind are stronger.
So, I can do this. 

Admiration (57/100)

Day 57 - To Thine Own Self Be True.  I challenged my beautiful co-creator to think about today what you admire most about yourself.  Brag a little and see your greatness. 

I am willing to also meditate on this same topic. 

What do I admire most about myself?

• I am a good friend (always room for improvement though)
• I listen to others
• I have a great relationship with my parents
• I call my grandma to see how she's doing
• I am kind, thoughtful & considerate
• When I give a hug, I am aiming to truely connect with a person
• I am good natured
• When I love, it's with my whole heart
• I am a big fan of God
• I laugh at my friends' jokes
• I am always willing to be out on the dance floor
• I send out birthday cards to family &; friends
• I made personalized Valentine's this year for my co-workers
• I excelled in school - I am proud to have graduated top 10 in my highschool class and Cum Laude from college
• I give out sincere compliments
• I am a hard worker and represent my place of employment well
• I am loyal
• I encourage myself to dream big
• This year, I took a risk and opened my own business & I am so happy that I did
• I said I would help a dear friend & take this 100 Day Reality Challenge with her

Well, those are some things that initially come to mind... at the end of this 100 day challenge, I know I will be able to add some more things to this list. 

Take Charge of today!  I was at work yesterday and as I was talking with some co-workers, I offered to lend a hand on a small project that needed to get done in the office.  One friend at work said, "This looks like a job for..." and I chimed in, "Super Stacey!"  It got a few laughs and was fun to say.  Another friend said that I should have that on my mirror, "This looks like a day for Super Stacey!"  He was kidding, but as I thought about it more...why not?! 

Today is the perfect day to say...

This looks like a day for Super Stacey!

 

Fresh Start (Day 1/100)

 I am open to the idea of what the next 100 days will bring in my 100 Day Reality Challenge.  I am ready to send out my intentions and take action to bring about a new and empowered self by May 24th!

It's Day 1 - I am up and energized...about to do a whole apt deep cleaning (I always feel better when I am in a clean house, don't you?)

For now I am excited to see where the next 100 days takes me and how I can use the power of positive thought and focus to impact my life...

What a beautiful image - God is there to help us reach our "best" selves.  I am ready to be a brilliant butterfly! 

Easter Season

Tomb, thou shalt not hold Him longer;
Death is strong, but Life is stronger;
Stronger than the dark, the light;
Stronger than the wrong, the right...

~Phillips Brooks, "An Easter Carol"

Solemnity of St. Joseph

Saint Joseph was a just man, a tireless worker, the upright guardian of those entrusted to his care. May he always guard, protect and enlighten familes.

---Pope John Paul II

A Holy Lent

Lent is a time for deep prayerful reflection, fasting and charitable acts of mercy (such as alms giving). May we all focus on keeping this Lent "holy" and with good intentions. What better time than during Lent to refocus our attention to Christ...this time before Easter is especially important and should be treated as such. Remember your neighbors, friends and family this Lent and keep them all close in your heart.

Love Letter

"I am a little pencil in the hand of a writing God, who is sending a love letter to the world."

---Mother Teresa

What a beautiful image. We are created as a little love note to the world from God. May this message brighten your day and help you say your joy with the world. Remember you are important and clearly we all have a purpose.

Spiritual Fire

Fire of Advent

"Advent, like its cousin Lent, is a season for prayer and reformation of our hearts. Since it comes at winter time, fire is a fitting sign to help us celebrate Advent…If Christ is to come more fully into our lives this Christmas, if God is to become really incarnate for us, then fire will have to be present in our prayer. Our worship and devotion will have to stoke the kind of fire in our souls that can truly change our hearts. Ours is a great responsibility not to waste this Advent time."
---Edward Hays, A Pilgrim’s Almanac, p. 187

*Special Thank You to: this site for having the quote

Thankful for Thanksgiving

It is again that time of year when the leaves have changed to a golden yellow, rustic red, or amber orange. Also, the groceries stories are full of shoppers gathering their Thanksgiving Day trimmings. I will be traveling to my parents' house and enjoying a nice dinner with them. I look forward to waking up and watching the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade while my parents' cook the Turkey and all the sides. Then early afternoon we eat a beautiful meal followed by watching "Planes, Trains, and Automobiles." We have watched that movie every year since I can remember!

This year, I will also stress to my family and friends how thankful I am for them being in my life! It is such a joy and comfort to know that I have people I can depend on and trust to always be there for me. What a blessing! God truly is good!

What are you thankful for?

I want to take this time to say a special prayer for you (the one reading this):

Heavenly Father,
Please bless all who read this. Take each person into the closeness of your heart, and give them your special blessing. May your Thanksgiving be filled with joy, laughter, love and good food. :)

Always share the goodness that is in your heart. Do everything with love.

Patrick Swayze

“I found that dance was key to keeping depression out of my life. When you dance, things just go away, things don't seem so bad. There's no better way to take care of health than through something as joyous and beautiful as dance.”

---Patrick Swayze



In honor of Patrick Swayze's beautiful life, I wanted to post his views on dance. Dance was a passion he had in life that made him happy! :)

Noteworthy Graffiti

This picture if found on the Noland Trail in Newport News, VA.

It illuminates a valid point we all need to address...let's stand out and me true to the beauty that lies within each of us!



Picture is a shout out to http://www.sturdmouth.com/

Saintly Wisdom

"Christ has made my soul beautiful with the jewels of grace and virtue. I belong to Him Whom the Angels serve."

---St. Agnes

"Christ with me, Christ before me, Christ behind me, Christ within me, Christ below me, Christ above me, Christ at my right, Christ at my left, Christ in lying down, Christ in sitting, Christ in rising up, Christ in the heart of every man who thinks of me, Christ in the mouth of every man who speaks to me, Christ in every eye that sees me, Christ in every ear that hears me."

---St. Patrick of Ireland

"In everything, whether it is a thing sensed or a thing known, God Himself is hidden within."

---St. Bonaventure

These quotes came from this site. Thank you

Tis the Season

I attended a wedding this past Saturday and I will be attending another one this upcoming Sunday. Tis the season for weddings!

The wedding that I attended this past Saturday was celebrating the union of my friends Melody and Zach. One of the quotes that they used throughout their wedding slide show was:

Proverbs 12:4
A wife of noble character is her husband's crown...

I absolutely love this section of scripture and I wanted to reflect on it for a moment... What a beautiful image - a wife as a crown. And what another beautiful image that a husband thinks so highly of his wife that he is to wear her proudly as a crown jewel. A wife and husband should compliment each other. I can only hope that my husband will find me worthy of being his crown. :)

Pink Flamingo

I have a little pin that says, "I am the pink flamingo on the lawn of life."

I love pink flamingos and actually my bathroom is decorated with flamingos.

I just wanted to post this to encourage myself and others that at times we need to stand out. Whether it is in a cute way, bright pink way, or annoyingly obnoxious and kind of tacky way is completely up to you.

Go out and have fun and buy a pink flamingo for your lawn!

America

With Independence Day approaching, I wanted to reflect on what it means to live in America.

There's the country of America, which you have to defend, but there's also the idea of America. America is more than just a country, it's an idea. An idea that's supposed to be contagious.

--Bono, Oprah Winfrey Show, 2002

There is nothing wrong with America that the faith, love of freedom, intelligence and energy of her citizens cannot cure.

--Dwight D. Eisenhower (1890 - 1969)

Michael Jackson

“In a world filled with hate, we must still dare to hope. In a world filled with anger, we must still dare to comfort. In a world filled with despair, we must still dare to dream. And in a world filled with distrust, we must still dare to believe.”

-Michael Jackson

He will be missed. He left an impression on my life and I will never forget all the great music he has made.

Good Friday

Without the victory of the resurrection, the death of Jesus would have been in vain. For death by itself is no victory, no matter how well-meaning the sacrificial lamb, no matter how noble the cause. Through His resurrection, Christ broke the power of death once and for all time. Salvation was not completed only because of the cross. It was completed by the victory of the empty tomb. "... Death has been swallowed up in victory. Where, O death, is your victory? Where, O death, is your sting? The sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the law. But thanks be to God! He gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ." 1 Cor 15:54b-57 NIV

Katherine Walden
I Lift My Eyes Web Ministries

Holy Thursday

John 13:1-15

Before the feast of Passover, Jesus knew that his hour had come to pass from this world to the Father. He loved his own in the world and he loved them to the end. The devil had already induced Judas, son of Simon the Iscariot, to hand him over. So, during supper, fully aware that the Father had put everything into his power and that he had come from God and was returning to God, he rose from supper and took off his outer garments. He took a towel and tied it around his waist. Then he poured water into a basin and began to wash the disciples´ feet and dry them with the towel around his waist. He came to Simon Peter, who said to him, "Master, are you going to wash my feet?" Jesus answered and said to him, "What I am doing, you do not understand now, but you will understand later." Peter said to him, "You will never wash my feet." Jesus answered him, "Unless I wash you, you will have no inheritance with me." Simon Peter said to him, "Master, then not only my feet, but my hands and head as well." Jesus said to him, "Whoever has bathed has no need except to have his feet washed, for he is clean all over; so you are clean, but not all." For he knew who would betray him; for this reason, he said, "Not all of you are clean." So when he had washed their feet and put his garments back on and reclined at table again, he said to them, "Do you realize what I have done for you? You call me ´teacher´ and ´master,´ and rightly so, for indeed I am. If I, therefore, the master and teacher, have washed your feet, you ought to wash one another´s feet. I have given you a model to follow, so that as I have done for you, you should also do."

Take time to reflect today on His passion. His love. His sacrifice. His selfless nature. His hope. His journey. His walk. Our cross.