TODAY!

In my home I have the sign ...

LIVE This Moment How You Want To Be Remembered

We must ask ourselves.  

What do I want my life to look like?  Then change THIS day to make it look how you have it envisioned.  It doesn't have to a HUGE change.  It can! But we can start small.  Small changes, create vastly different outcomes.  Small habits create our life.

Do you want to live healthy?  Choose the apple instead of candy.  Drink water instead of the soda or energy drink.  Choose a carrot instead of chips.

How do I want to behave?  Behave that way.

The beauty of this life is that we have a choice.

Watch your thoughts, they become your words,
Watch your words, they become your actions,
Watch your actions, they become your habits,
Watch your habits, they become your character,
Watch your character, they become your Destiny.

We get to choose how we will live.

How are you going to live today?

I choose to live today as if it is a miracle.

I am going to choose the healthy food.  I am going to choose kindness.  I am going to choose to live out loud.  I want a home filled with laughter and smiles.  I am going to laugh and smile.  I want a home filled with reading.  I am going to read to my children, and we are going to learn poetry.  I want a spiritual home.  We are going to read scripture.  I want play outside, today we are going outside, and not just to walk to the grocery store.  We are going to see the beauty, hear the wonderful sounds, we are going to PLAY!

I am going to live life as miracle...

Because it is.

Overcoming Bad Attitudes

We want life to be easy and happy.

I want my home to be full of kindness and happy attitudes.  However, we can't control others.  It is easy for me to be in a fabulous mood, all excited for the day.  And then I walk out of my bedroom doors.  Everyday I am faced with a temper tantrum throwing toddler, and grumpy kids because they don't want to do this or that.  They are, of course, not ALWAYS grumpy!  Mostly they are happy, fun, silly, helpful, sweet and thoughtful.  It can be easy to focus on the negative, why is that? Life is so much brighter when we focus on the wonderful!

Every moment, I have a choice: to join in on the grumpy or to rise above and still choose to be happy.

Every person has energy.  We can FEEL someone's energy even before we see them.  Especially when they are angry or super happy.  That energy affects others.  It is easy to decide to choose to be happy, but harder to follow through when we have the intense negative energy of others.

Friday, I woke up in the most happy of moods.  Another miraculous day!  We were going to the mountains to ski.  My toddler's first ski day.

I love his little look out to the distance.  He looks like an explorer, ready to find new!

 WONDERFUL of WONDERFUL!!  About 30 seconds after I woke up, my son started to cry in his crib.  He didn't stop crying for about 45 minutes.  No matter what I did, he was angry.

I went to my phone, turned on fun music and began to dance.

My son was so startled he started to laugh.  It broke his tantrum trance.  He then danced with me and our whole morning was changed.

(It ended up that he was so hungry he was HANGRY!  Beyond reason.  He ate 3 eggs, a slice of french toast, peanut butter and a smoothie for breakfast.)

Sometimes, like Saturday it is not so easy.  My much older daughter, can't be so easily swayed.  Chores were on the menu.  And instead of getting them done first thing in the morning, we had to wait until late afternoon.  Never a good combo.  When the time came to get some work done, after we had run from fun thing to fun thing all day, my girls were not into it.  I stopped, we ate food,  and while they ate I read them a quick inspirational story.  This completely changed the mood in our home.  Afterwards we got our work done.

 Life isn't easy and we are all grumpy sometimes.  But there are things we can do to make it smoother and happier.  Take control.  Take charge. Be responsible for your own happiness.  Be responsible for the energy you are sending out.

Sunday, we even harder for me to eradicate the grumps.  This time was all me.  Everyone else was in a wonderful mood.  I woke up with a serious MSG headache.  I finally got in the shower and took a long break, I prayed and asked for help.  He came to the rescue!  By the time I was showered, dressed and hair done, I was in a happy mood.  Thankfully I stayed that way for the rest of the day!

When the grumps come I am not going to let them rob me of my miraculous life, I'm going to take a moment.  Break the mood with something relaxing, silly, or fun.

Life is too short to live grumpy!

making OUTSIDE happen

I love to be outside.  I love the fresh air and the sounds.  I am a lucky girl and live out in the "country" as some might say.  I live in a subdivision of a tiny town but that will hopefully be changing in the next decade.  I would like to live on some acres outside of a tiny town.

(In order for that to change 4 things need to happen...
1. Buy land.
2. Afford to build a house.
3. Build aforementioned a house.
4. Move in.

Step one is completed!!! 6 acres by the river outside of a tiny town!  Stay tuned for the next 3 steps!)

Okay, back to the suburbs.  I really don't like that we can't run outside and play in the backyard because it is the size of a pea, and therefore we usually are out there for about 3 minutes.  That is just not enough time outside.   Therefore, if I would like to be outside away from cars then I need to drive to a place to make that happen.  Thankfully this drive is not long.  But it does require at least some effort, which sadly has prevented us innumeral times from actually going outside.  Also, it is winter and thus cold outside, I don't like being cold.  SO LAME.  Very sad.  WELL NO LONGER!!

(Side note on the cold thing.  I used to be sick, I was cold ALWAYS, even in the summer I wore a sweater if there was just a slight warm breeze.  Now my temperature is normal! yay!)

It iz a miracle that I can go outside, explore, and breath that wild fresh air.  So yesterday, we did it.  Instead of me spending extra time cleaning (don't panic self, my house was pretty clean at bedtime) we went on an hour long walk along the river with Grammie.  We collected rocks to paint.  My oldest daughter gave her coat to my younger daughter.  My son discovered throwing rocks.  We petted dogs and held hands.  It was lovely.  Just lovely.


AND SOOOOOO EASY!! Easy Peasy!  Easy Street! Laughably simple!!! Getting in the car, which jackets and beanies and warm things, can be a challenge, but it only took 10 minutes.  And I left the house without it being perfectly clean~ huge deal for me!  I am usually late to everything because of this.

Was yesterday perfect? No.  I had children talk back, we had whining and procrastination and obstinance.  I lost my patience.  I was ready for the kids to go to bed at bedtime!

We also did things that we "have" to do which aren't fun.  We cleaned, we did schoolwork, which can be INCREDIBLY, WONDERFULLY FUN, but truthfully it'z usually kind of tedious and sometimes frustrating to do math. We practiced piano, wiped noses and changed 12 poop diapers. (my son is getting through the stomach bug)  This iz real life.

But we had perfect moments.  We did things we have been putting off.

We decorated affirmation journals and WROTE in them.  We worked on memorizing a poem and a scripture.  We sang, I read to my children, we ate breakfast and dinner together, and WENT OUTSIDE. Yesterday was a miraculous day because I can live out loud.  I can live the life I want to live and I DID!!!!

Today iz a miracle too!! What am I going to do?  

Other than math and learning how to read and write....

We, my 3 miraculous children and I, are going to write in those affirmation journals again, we are going to sing, and memorize the poem.  We are going to drink a smoothie.  We are going to the store to buy wonderfully weird herbs and I am going to jump on the trampoline ... after I go pee, of course. 

Today iz a miracle because I can live and I am going to live it!

I have stuff to do.

I used to have Lyme's Disease.

USED to.  I have been cured.  

Not in remission ~ CURED!

I am a Chronic Lyme's Survivor.

I used to be in bed all day.  

I used to be in constant pain, all day and night.

I used to look like death, grey, ashen, frail.

I used to have fevers, chills, migraines, aches, joint pain, chronic fatigue and brain fog.

I used to not be able to remember or even talk sometimes.

I used to put on cartoons for my beautiful daughters and hobble back to my dark room.

I used to walk like a 90 year old woman.

I was told I would be on pain medications and antibiotics for the rest of my miserable life.

I was 28.

NOW!

I am 32.  

I am on ZERO medications!

I can run!

I have color in my skin!

I get up early!

I enjoy my life!

I have ideas and do them!

I PLAY WITH MY CHILDREN!

I can do yoga, ride my bike, snow ski, hike, go on walks, swim, anything I want!!

Every day of my life iz a MIRACLE!  It'z a miracle that I am not living in the tomb of my bedroom but I am living out loud. I am living each day like I have a new start on life.   Because I do.  My life iz an adventure of living.  I have felt for this past year that I could see the world in a brighter way, more vibrant.  Cheesy! I am telling you Cheesy!  But - Oh - So - True! I want to enjoy each moment, explore all, love deeply.  I have lived the other way, in darkness and despair.  I have been officially living without Lyme's Disease for a year now. My doctor told me at that day last February that I was a miracle.  I was in a fog of disbelief and fear.  I didn't believe my test results.  I didn't truly believe it possible.  However, in the last 9 months I have truly felt incredible in my body, I had hope but didn't actually believe that my health would be confirmed, I thought the last test results were a fluke. But last week I had all the tests run again, and they matched how I felt on the outside.  Not only is the Lyme's Disease gone, but my blood work was beautiful, perfect.  I am as healthy on the inside as I physically feel.  Silly that I needed that visual confirmation, it can be hard to trust.  

While at my clinic, an 80 plus year old man was healed of cancer and said, "The doctor told me that I am a miracle, I guess I still have stuff to do in this life." Thank you, John, for that wake up call.

If, John, this sweet, wrinkly man still has "stuff to do in this life" then so do I.

So do I.