I never imagined the COVID-19. I’ve watched the movies and I’ve read the books but never in a million years, did I think this could become our reality. I’ve stared at the news in shock, the videos of the beaches packed with spring breakers, I’ve driven past the playgrounds filled with children, climbing on the jungle gyms as their parents gather together discussing the pandemic…what are they thinking?

I can’t say I’ve barricaded myself behind locked doors with my curtains closed, not yet anyway. I’ve been out a bit, helping a friend whose business is still open, (The salon is closed until the 27, maybe longer) I’m running up and down a million steps hauling cases of product, wiping down counters and cleaning floors. I’m doing what I can to help. I’m blessed because there’s a roof over my head and plenty of food to eat. I have family and friends calling to see if I’m okay and if I need anything. I’m checking on others to see if I can help them too…

But I’m scared. I’m scared for the elderly who may not understand what’s happening. Can you imagine what it’s like for someone with dementia when suddenly no one can visit them and they are shut off from everyone they still remember? I’m scared for the children who want to know why they can’t go play with their friends. I’m scared for the sick, the homeless, the ones who suffer from anxiety. For the hospital staff and the delivery drivers, the sales clerks and the people who are stocking the shelves. I’m scared for ones who are not taking this epidemic seriously.

COVID-19 has no discrimination. It hits the young, the old, every color, every race, every religion and economic background. I get it that it’s hard to stay home. People are scared, they’ve lost jobs and the market is sinking. But jobs reopen and the market rises. Isn’t life more important than things?

I’m glad I have my faith to cling to in times like this. God never promised things would be easy. There will be loss and there will be suffering and hard times but through it all, he is with us. It’s when the hope dies, we are in trouble. We can’t let that happen.

Give yourself a break from the constant mayhem of the news. Open a window or step outside in your yard, breathe in some fresh air, play a game, read a book, finish a project you’ve been putting off, pray and then pray some more. Drop a basket of food off on the doorstep of someone who is shut in. Coloring books and crayons for the kids, loan out some books or DVD’s from your collection. FaceTime, Skype, call, text, e-mail to your family, friends, neighbors…We’re all going a little stir crazy about now and knowing there are people who care about us, about how we’re doing during all of this makes a huge difference.

COVID-19 is going to change every one of us in some way. When this is over, I want to hug people a little longer and a little tighter than before. I want to work harder towards my dreams and desire less in the way of stuff. I never again want to take life as we know it, for granted.

So today I’m praying for patience and calm, for empathy and understanding. While I’m doing that, I’m cleaning out the closets and the drawers and the boxes of stuff I’ve, yet again, accumulated. I’m simplifying and giving that which I don’t need to others who might. It’s going to be rough for a while and helping others is what helps myself. God tells us to come together in tough times. While we can’t do that physically right now, there are ways. Sharing, communicating and the simple act of kindness will go a long way

Wash your hands, sanitize, social distancing and stay home…and above all else…be kind and pray. We’ll make it through this together.

It’s been one hell of a year, don’t you think? I feel like it flew by me in a blur. One minute I was making my list for 2019 and the next?…It’s 2020.

To be honest, I’m ready for 2019 to be over. It’s been a hard year, one of loss, learning the hard way and way too many good-byes. If I’ve learned anything in 2019 it would be don’t waste time. Time refuses to wait for any one of us so don’t waste it. If you have a dream, go for out. Make a plan and start working towards your goal. If you don’t like where you live, move. If your job isn’t doing it for you…get another one. If your tribe doesn’t have your back? FIND A NEW ONE!!! (This last one is a biggie) Surround yourself with people who support you. Life is hard enough and we needs friends in our corner who believe in us. Life isn’t about working ourselves to death, trying to get ahead. I’ve been there. All that does is give us more medical bills because we’re not taking care of ourselves.

Take an honest look at your life…what’s working and what is not. 2020 is the year of letting go, it’s a year of changes. It’s going to take work and it’s going to take time, good things always do…

Self care, kindness, letting go, minimalism and organization, dreams, simplicity, magical… These are just a few of my words for 2020. By downsizing to what is truly important to me, my surroundings, my commitments, my wants and needs…I am gaining a whole new world.

So take care of yourself, live life for you instead of living the life others want you too, fill life with what you love instead of just things and most of all…take a step towards your dreams. Own them and go for it.

2020 is going to be a big year

This time of the year gets really crazy. I work long hours, go crazy trying to clean up every corner of my house, decorate everything in sight, shop for the perfect everything…

Until I reach a point of exhaustion and the holiday season becomes a blur.

Actually, it started the beginning of October when I decided to do the Last 90 Day Challenge. Instead of starting the first of the year, I’m ending my year more organized…or at least I’m trying.

For Thanksgiving, I shopped last weekend, cleaned during the week, (a few leftover dust bunnies are welcome to join the party.) I prepped what I could last night and then curled up with a book.

The only reason I’m up this early now is because two puppies love to go outside by 5am and chase the wind.

But I digress, Thanksgiving is a time of reflection for me. A time to look all around me and recognize that my life is very blessed. I am surrounded by love, I love my work at the salon, helping people look and feel beautiful. I’m one of those lucky ones who looks forward to going to work every day. And I’m following my dreams…

This year for the holidays, I not buying…I’m giving. I wanted a chance to make a difference somehow, somewhere.

I’m spoiling a ten year old girly girl who loves make-up and unicorns. Just imagine what I can do with that!!! I’ve never met her but in my heart, I know I will make her Christmas a little better.

Or the toddlers in Texas that I’m knitting soft-squishy teddy bears for. I wish I could hear their giggles when they discover those bears under their tree on Christmas morning.

A single mom out east, struggling to save enough to give her kids a dinner, a family out west who just bought their first house and unexpectedly, both parents were laid off a few weeks ago. I can help make a difference.

I am so blessed in every possible way. I need to share that. Opportunities to give are everywhere.

It isn’t about what we have…things are just things. It’s about what we can give.

Imagine a world where each of us takes the time to make a difference.

Thank You for Giving

XOXOXOXo

There are some things I wish I would have been told when I was young, things that could have made such a difference in life.

Don’t grow up yet… I was always asked what do I want to do when I grow up? What’s your plan? What college? Everything seemed to be about the future, everything. I didn’t even know what I want to do the next day. I just wanted to be a kid and have fun. I changed my mind a hundred times as to what I wanted to do as a grown up. So enjoy being a kid, it’s honestly going to be the best part of your life… and the easiest.

Be your beautiful self…Don’t let anyone put you in a box and label it. You don’t have to be like everyone else. Your dreams don’t need to be organized by someone who knows better. They are yours! No one gets to tell you what to dream, not your parents, your friends, your boyfriend, no one. I heard way too many times, my dreams were dumb, unattainable, crazy… For a long time I listened and I wish I hadn’t. Look in the mirror…YOU ARE BEAUTIFUL and YOU CAN DO ANYTHING YOU SET YOUR MIND ON!!!! It takes time and it takes work. But never let someone tell you it’s impossible.

It’s Okay to start over…Your mistakes do not define you. Mistakes are roadmaps, stepping stones. We all make them. It’s how we grow. Starting over is saying we are strong enough to change direction, open to a new challenge and that we love ourselves enough to give ourselves this gift.

You have to love yourself first and foremost…That is not being selfish! Being guilted by someone in our life is not love. Guilt is destructive and the beginning of the end in a relationship. Listen to your inner self. If something doesn’t feel right? Don’t do it. Believe me, you’ll be thankful later.

You won’t die if someone breaks up with you…You may feel like it for a few days. It’s hard and it’s emotional but it won’t kill you. Healing takes time and believe me, in time, and in every single case, I was grateful later on. Remember the song.’Thank God for Unanswered Prayers’? Ah huh!!!!!!!

AND THE MOST IMPORTANT OF ALL?

YOU ARE BEAUTIFUL, YOU ARE SMART, YOU ARE KIND, YOU ARE ORIGIONAL AND YOU CAN DO IT ALL IF YOU REALLY WANT TOO.

XOXO

Today is a miracle.

Today is a celebration.

Today…Jesus rose again.

We were given a miracle, the gift of forgiveness. Everything in the past has been wiped clean and we are new.

So what are you going to do with your gift?

The world is kind of messed up these days and it’s up to all of us to make a difference.

I think it’s time to spread that forgiveness Because the very best kind of a gift… is a gift that can be shared.

Imagine a world where differences are embraced, where the sick are cared for, the depressed are hugged, the lonely are told they are loved.

Imagine a world in which the children can play outside without fear.

Imagine a world filled with peace.

We all have dreams. Sometimes a dream can be as simple as a day in the sun or walking on a beach somewhere peaceful. Other times, a dream could be of a house or a new car, a dream job, an awesome partner to share your life with. Big or small, we all have them and they are important to us. What’s even more important is what we do about them.

It takes time, perseverance and a lot of work to make some of our dreams become reality.    We save, we work overtime, we learn new skills…When a dream is really important, we find a way to make it happen.

The thing about a dreams? They belong to us. They’re our dreams, no one can take them away.

Dreams can change over time too. My dreams as a child and as a young adult are far different from the dreams I have now. As a little girl, I dreamed of a yellow bike with a basket in the front and of writing fairy tales about far away places, and of a little white puppy to call my own.

As a young adult, I dreamed of becoming a stylist and owning my own salon, of having a family and a house with a swing-set in the back yard, among other things.

Now, I dream of long walks on the beach, spending the cold winter months someplace warm, watching my grandchildren grow and enjoying everything around me, a more simple life.

I was thinking about my dreams the other day. It’s been a lot of work and a lot of sacrifice at times but… I still have that yellow bike hanging in my garage, (the basket fell apart years ago.), I am the proud owner of two little white rescue puppies who love to cuddle every day. I have the most amazing daughter, along with two beautiful grandkids and a son-in-law who I wouldn’t trade for the world. I have my house and my gardens, I had the business which I sold because it was time for a new dream. I’ve traveled, I’ve loved, and I’ve written it all down. It feels wonderful.

Dreams are stepping stones in life. Each one you accomplish brings a new one into your heart. It’s how we grow. Dreams keep us moving forward, they keep us alive, and they give us hope.

Oh, and that fairy tale I wanted to write as a child? It’s called Shattered Pearls and it will be available April 3.

Dreams really do come true

Today is a year since the tragic death of a beautiful young woman I knew and loved.

She was a mom, a wife, a daughter, a friend…

Her life ended on a busy country road up north because of a man who made a really bad decision, to drive a car under the influence.

His choice.

By the grace of God, her three children, who were buckled in the back seat, survived the accident. But their mother did not.

She left an amazing legacy behind…her family…Those beautiful children, her husband, her sisters and parents and so many friends who loved her and miss her everyday.

So here is what I want to say… Live each day. Live it, Love it, Make a difference.

Each day we have is a gift. Life can be cut short in an instant so don’t waste it. Don’t throw away this precious gift by saying tomorrow or someday.

Find a balance in your life. Find what it is you love and do it.

I read a paragraph in a book years ago by James Patterson. Suzanne’s Diary for Nicholas. The words have stayed with me. If you’ve never read the book, I highly recommend it.

‘Imagine life is a game in which you are juggling five balls. The balls are called work, family, health, friends, and integrity. And you are keeping all of them in the air. One day you finally come to understand that work is a rubber ball. If you drop it, it will bounce back. The other four balls are made of glass. Drop one of those and you may irrevocably shatter it.’

Your job does not define you. Who you are …what you feel…how you act… What you do…defines you

Be safe…everything you do is your choice, no excuses

Be kind…make a difference

Be amazing…life is meant to be lived, not just worked…be amazing because you are!!!!

It hit me at around 4:30 am this morning that it’s New Years Eve. I have been so darn busy that I kind of forgot. Then I remembered… I wasn’t going to do that anymore…Be that busy. Be so busy I would forget the important things. My excuse?… I got busy.

Out comes the white boards and my journal. It’s time to make a plan, set some goals, decide what I really want in life, What is and is not important. I think that’s the big one right there… What is important.

For me it’s family, those I love. It’s peace of mind, it’s knowing no matter what I’m trying to do, I give it my all and I believe in what I’m doing. It’s making a difference.

What isn’t important is wasting time. Wasting time on worrying about what should have been or what hasn’t even happened yet. It’s wasting time on people who try to trip you up, put you down, create drama and just plain make you feel bad. It’s saying tomorrow… someday… if only… I can’t…

The two greater words in any language are Yes and No

Yes… Yes I can do it, I can accomplish anything I set out to do

And

No…No I’m not going to take it any more.

You can start over any day or any minute you choose. It’s up to you.

For myself, it was at 4:30 this morning. I made a plan.

So goodbye to wasted time and the people who say I CAN’T

Good morning to a beautiful new life.

I got this!!!!!

Happy 2018

I love the words to John Lennon’s song, And So Happy Christmas…..So this is Christmas…And what have you done…Another year over…And a new one just begun

As I watched my family eating dinner, laughing together, opening gifts and simply enjoying the evening with one another, it makes me reflect back.

I thought of all the Christmas’s past and the people that were a part of them. The loved ones who have died and friends who have come and gone, leaving imprints upon our hearts. I think of the struggles they’ve been through, the pain, the depression. I think of the joy and the love they’ve experienced, the way they have all grown into who they are now .

Christmas is a beautiful time of year for most of us. But for some it’s a lonely time.

I think of how I’ve been able to help those around me and how I can do more, how I can make a bigger difference in the days ahead. I want the holidays to be a wonderful time for everyone. That may be an impossibility but it’s my dream.

So this is Christmas…And what have you done…

I’m reaching out for change, starting with me. I’m doing what I can to make difference for those around me. I’m believing good shall prevail over the evil and I believe there are enough of us out there feeling the same way.

And together, we can make a difference.

Another Year over…And a new one just begun…

I’m letting go of that which does not work and those who are not meant to be in my life. I’m letting go of hurt and anger and pain. I’m remembering the yesterdays with love and acceptance. I’m walking forward, one step at a time. Tomorrow is a gift, it’s a promise of a new day. Imagine all that it can be.

So….HAPPY CHRISTMAS