On Friday, I attended a celebration of life for a wonderful woman whose life ended too soon. I met Berty only once; however, I knew of her through her son and my daughter. She was a beautiful woman who lived her life to the fullest. The world lost some of its grace when she left.
With the huge room filled to capacity, it is obvious that many people loved Berty; it showed in her friends that were able to speak at her life-celebration. Although her family and friends will always miss her, my prayer is that the many fond memories will ease the pain of losing her.
My prayer for all of us is that we do not put off that phone call, lunch or note to our loved ones and that we let our friends and family know how much we love them through our words and deeds each day.
AffirMINTion: I express my love to my family and friends each day.
This is Berty and Al with a blanket that she received during one of the times that she was in the hospital. I love the embellishment. It looks like Berty – bright, cheery, warm embellished and happy!
Make it a GREAT day, IF you choose to.
What are you waiting for?
Life is good!
A Mini Minty MoMINT
My mom says… she is taking good care of me because I am under the weather… AND I LIKE IT
My good friend Deb Saunders wrote and published one of my favorite books. I keep it on hand so it is readily available to read. The name of the book is, ‘The Path to the Springs – A Collection of Poems & Reflections on Spiritual Refreshment’ and it delivers on its promise of ‘Spiritual Refreshment’. I am a Christian; however, I do not believe you have to be a Christian to enjoy it and to feel refreshed. The poem titled, ‘Now’ is one of my favorites.
Now
You are special now God has made you in a special way You are special Now is the time to know How special you are. Yes, you are special now. And remember, It is always now.
Boggs Saunders, Debra. “The Path to the Springs: A Collection of Poems & Reflections on Spiritual Refreshment, 2009. Leesburg, Virginia “Excerpt: Book.”
Each one of us is special just as we are right now. We have special gifts and talents that we can share with others. I can tell you at least two of my gifts although one can be annoying to others at times. I have the gift of cheerfulness and positivity. This can be annoying to others when they would rather stay angry or negative. I have a girlfriend who tells me on occasion to put my pink pom poms away! One of my talents is that I am a good student. I love to learn!
My question to you this morning is, “What makes you special?”
AffirMINTion: I know that I am special – Now
Make it a GREAT day, IF you choose to.
What are you waiting for?
Life is good!
PS. Debra’s book is available on Amazon.com – buy one for yourself and one for a Special friend.
Last night I received an e-mail about an amazing man. His name is Ben Witter billed as the Tiger Woods of Trick Shots! His trick shots are incredible; however, the best thing about him is that he is inspiring! You can judge for yourself though. Click on this link http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YZCtbRDlwzU to be inspired! Ben Witter sure knows how to make lemonade out of lemons.
On a personal note and sort of on the same subject, I have a friend whose husband is dealing with a serious cancer. Their attitude astounds me. Although I imagine that, my friend has had her moMINTS; she comes to the office and is cheerful and upbeat yet does not avoid the subject. I admire her so much and this is a good reminder for me to cherish my loved ones and life in general.
I am so grateful to all of you that read my posts. I know some of you very well and some not as well as I would like. I DO appreciate you and value ALL of your responses. To my family and friends: I love you more than I can put into words. Thank you for all of your love.
Today, make sure you tell someone how much you love and value him or her
AffirMINTion: I let my loved ones know how much I love them.
Make it a GREAT day, IF you choose to.
What are you waiting for?
Life is good!
A Mini Minty MoMINT
My mom says… life is precious even ordinary moMINTS… and I LIKE IT!
Life is Minty Fresh!
xoxo
Minty is on the sofa with her pig’s ear watching the Grammys with me – I just love her and we are happy.
Can you believe that today is the last day of August? Even though it is not the official date, I always consider August 31 the last day of summer and September 1, the first day of fall. Anyway, the summer sure has flown by quickly. My Mom used to tell me that the older I get, the faster that time passes. My dad always says that we have 24 hours in a day, how will we use our time.
Last week’s earthquake and hurricane and brought my focus back to how we could have a lot less time in this world then we think. We really need to make the most out of each day. This week a friend landed unexpectedly in the hospital. It shows me how we need to appreciate the people in our lives, and all that we have because we never know if today will be our last day or theirs. I do not mean to be morbid; I just feel this sense of urgency to make the most out of each day. I cannot tell you enough how grateful I am for you, my family and friends, and for my health. I hope that I never take any of you or anything that I have for granted. I am truly blessed.
I keep what I call a little celebration / prayer journal. On one side, I write down three things that made me smile the day before which, actually turns out to be three things that I am grateful. Sometimes, it is a big thing like settling on my new house, and sometimes it is a very small thing, like watching Minty playing with a toy. On the other side, I write my prayers although I always start with, thank you God… It sure is a GREAT way to start my day, to focus on the good in my life, and to remember those that are in need. It is interesting to look back at the things that I was thinking in past years. Yes – years – it has been years since I started this; it seems like yesterday.
What are some of the things that you do to keep you focused and appreciative all that you have in life? I think today, one of the things that I will do is to call my Mom and Dad to say I love you and I am grateful for every moment I have had with you – even when I was a teenager! LOL
AffirMINTion: I appreciate each day and all that it brings
Make it a GREAT day, IF you choose to.
What are you waiting for?
Life is good!
Make it a GREAT day, IF you choose to.
What are you waiting for?
Life is good!
A Mini Minty MoMINT
“Life is short, God’s way of encouraging a big of focus.” – Robert Brault
My mom tells and shows me every day that she loves me… AND I LIKE IT!
Life is Minty Fresh!
xoxo
I am grateful for my cousin, Brandy! This photo was taken when we were just puppies – see how time flies?
Leading a healthy lifestyle is not only the physical; it is also about being healthy in my spirit, mind and my heart. This weekend, I had my fill of all three! It was beautiful – not only did I get to spend it with my two sisters, but also the three of us drove to Richmond to visit GREAT friends and attend their church. It was one of those times where I felt like I was really living my life. .
This weekend filled me up in so many ways. On the way to Richmond, we ran into a torrential rainstorm. The rain came down in sheets! Not only did it slow us down; it showed me the power of Nature, and how little control we have over life. Saturday night we met with our friends for a fabulous dinner. It was great food and even better conversation. Sunday, my sisters and I ‘bloomed’ with coffee and went down for a delicious breakfast. Our friends picked us up for church. The message was on the book of Ruth in the Bible. After church, we our friends took us to their home for a fabulous lunch. Their home was so warm and inviting. I think almost everything in it had special meaning to them. They are truly special themselves. She is a philosopher and a writer. He is a musician and they both work together in real estate.
Laughter and deep conversation filled the car on the way home with my sisters. It was such a precious time for me, and one that I will treasure for years to come. We are very fortunate to have each other. I think we all need be purposeful about taking time out of our busy lives for moMINTS like this. I know that when I am in the throes of work or keeping up with my life, I will have this time to draw on. Can you remember a special time that you have had – a time that you treasure? If not, my strong suggestion is that you take some time out and create your own treasure.
“God gave us memories that we might have roses in December.” ~J.M. Barrie, Courage, 1922
AffirMINTion: I make time for precious moMINTS!
Make it a GREAT day, IF you choose to.
What are you waiting for?
Life is good!
A Mini Minty MoMINT
My ‘uncle’ Bob and his friend Lauren took care of me while my mom was away and even though I missed my mom, I had a GREAT time. My mom says that it is nice to have treasured moMINTs to remember… AND I LIKE IT!
Happy Father’s Day to all the GREAT Fathers in Mintdom,
I know there are some great dads out there and I would love to hear from the sons and daughters about their dads. Please feel free to share your dads with us here. I do not think that Dads get as much recognition as they should get, especially these days. So come on… celebrate your Dads this week!
Of course, I think that I have the BEST dad in the whole world. The top five words that come to my mind when I think of my father are Integrity, Dutiful, Family, Provider, and Courageous.
My dad spent most of his career in the association business. His career allowed my mom to stay home with us (five kids) growing up. I think one of the best things about my dad is that I always knew that he loved his family. Even though he traveled a lot, I never doubted that he was thinking about us. I cannot remember a time that he went on a trip and did not bring us all some little trinket. After attending a convention, he would make us stay out of his room while he spread out all sorts of doodads on the bed and then call us into the room to let us take turns picking things out until they were all gone. It was so much fun!
To be perfectly honest, things were not smooth sailing for my dad and me. We always had family dinners together. Now my dad did not get home until about 7:00 most nights. I do not remember that dad had a lot of time to decompress between work and coming home to five kids, and to be perfectly honest, things were not always smooth sailing at the dinner table when I was a teenager. I can remember many times, my dad saying something sarcastic that would send me flying away from the dinner table in tears, stomping up the stairs and slamming the door to my room. My dad would make me come back to “finish the nice dinner my mom made”. Things eventually evened out at the dinner table, probably because I grew up or maybe it was something that my dad showed me years later when I had my own children. That is when he gave me a book that he said helped him a lot. It was called ‘Between Parent and Child’ by Heim Ginott. As I was leafing through it, I saw paragraphs that my dad marked that talked about how harmful sarcasm could be. There was also a note in pencil that said something like, “I will stop sarcastic remarks”.
One of the most dramatic moments, I had with my dad was when he sat my brother, Jon and I down one evening and told us that mom had cancer. At that time, just the word cancer meant probable death. He said that she had gone to several expert doctors (one said that he would amputate her arm). The doctor that they chose was going to cut the cancer out. My dad and my mom had five kids at the time and I think that the youngest was only two years old. I could tell that this was serious, but my dad was so reassuring that I did not realize that mom had the worst kind of cancer you could have. He never let on how scared he was. That before the age of 40, he could be a widower with five kids. It turned out that mom had malignant melanoma and she was her doctor’s only surviving patient with that kind of cancer for over ten years. Thank God, my mom is still healthy and happy today!
On a lighter note – I have always felt that I could go to my dad with almost anything. For instance, I went to my dad to ask him what a ‘wet dream’ was. I figured that it happened to boys so he would be the one to ask. I do not know how my dad felt about it, but he barely skipped a beat and just gave me the answer.
My dad shows his love to his family and country. My dad votes every election, he has definite political leanings, yet he allows all of us to share ours. My dad is still active in his 82nd airborne group. He still takes mom on romantic trips to Europe. It is so nice to see them both holding hands and going out on dates together.
Today, dad is out fishing with my cousin all day. I sure hope he catches his limit – he deserves it!
AffirMINTion: I am grateful to have the BEST dad in the world.
Make it a GREAT day, IF you choose to.
What are you waiting for?
Life is good!
A Mini Minty MoMINT
I love my mom’s dad too. He takes me for walks and brings me treats when he is home… AND I LIKE IT!
I have the BEST mom in the world; this is not to negate that you have the BEST mom too! My mom taught me so much over my 58 (yikes) years.
My mom taught me how to hold a baby. I am the first born of five kids (#1 – was then, am now, will always be #1 LOL). When my brother Jon was born, I was 2 1/2 years old – too young to walk around with my new baby brother, but not too young to want to. My mom sat me on the sofa with a pillow in my lap. She instructed me to put my arms on the pillow and she placed my brother in my arms making sure that I “supported his head”. I think it lasted about 30 seconds and I was done and satisfied that I held my new brother!
My mom taught me how to curl my hair. My mom used to curl my hair with sponge rollers until I was about 5 or 6 years old. She would wash my hair over the sink or under the tap in the tub (did we not have a shower?) and then would carefully comb it out and roll it up in the curlers. That is until I was about 5 or 6 years old – THEN – my dad came home one night and told my mom that my YOUNGER cousin, Roxanne, was curling her OWN hair. Jeepers – I decided that I needed to do that too (I had to keep up with my cousin, especially since my parents (dad) thought it was so great) so my mom showed me how to do my own. When I complained about sleeping on rollers, my mom said that we had to suffer for beauty. I took that little instruction to heart because when I was 16 years old, I used to roll my hair up in soup cans (juice cans were too flimsy) and sleep all night on them using my pillow to brace my neck. Thank God for pillows!
My mom taught me how to wash walls. My mom is a GREAT housecleaner! I remember her washing our walls. Do people still wash walls? In case they do, my mom taught me to start at the bottom and work my way up – I am still a little confused as to the reason, but that is how I always did it when I did it! Mom also taught me to wash windows with vinegar and newspapers. It works well and is cheap to boot!
My mom taught me to stay calm in a crisis. My mom lived through serious illness (including her own cancer (the worst kind you can have) during a time when the word ‘cancer’ meant death), accidents (major and minor), divorce, and death. When my son Michael was 2 years old, Patsi was 6 years old and I was 7 months pregnant with Kelly, I drove to Minnesota (without husband) to visit my mom and dad for a month. On the way, I stopped at my aunt and uncle’s house in Wisconsin. Michael sat on a stool as if he was riding a horse and ripped the inside of his thigh with a tack. I was VERY calm when I told my aunt that I thought Michael was going to have to get stitches. We took him to the emergency room where he received 65 stitches! The next day, I still had a four-hour drive to the lake. I will tell you that I was very calm until I arrived at the lake, walked into the cabin, and saw my mom. The moment I saw her, I totally broke down. I was safe! I hope my kids feel that safe with me!
Of course, she taught me so many other things in my life such as how to be a woman, wife (even though it did not last), and mother. My mom taught me to respect others and myself. My mom taught me that you do not have to go to college to be smart – my mom did not finish college, and is the most well read, well rounded, best-informed woman that I know. I love you mom – thank you for teaching me how to be the woman that I am today.
I am sure that you learned those things and others from your mom too. I would love to hear what you learned from your mom. Feel free to post the things that your BEST mom in the world taught you.
AffirMINTion: I love and appreciate my beautiful mom.
Make it a GREAT day, IF you choose to.
What are you waiting for?
Life is good!
PS My dad taught me never to refer to my mom as she. (smile)
“If the whole world were put into one scale, and my mother in the other, the whole world would kick the beam.” ~Lord Langdale (Henry Bickersteth)
A Mini Minty MoMINT
My mom says that her mom taught her how to be a mom… AND my mom would make the world kick the beam too…AND I LIKE IT.
Life is Minty Fresh!
I dedicate this post, with love and prayers, to Bobby who tragically passed away on Sunday at 33 years of age. He will be missed by many. Please keep his family in your thoughts and prayers.
04/05/2011
Good morning, Mintdom
Wow! I have barely come to terms with the year being 2011, and it is already April! My mom used to tell me that the older you get the faster our lives seem to go. Was she ever right! Time really does fly the older I get. I just heard on the news that yesterday was the 43rd anniversary of the assassination of Martin Luther King. (Shaking head) I totally remember that day. I was 13 and at a babysitting job (for 50 cents an hour) when I heard the news. It does not seem like yesterday, but it also does not seem like 43 years ago.
In addition to the Martin Luther King anniversary, I have my 40th class reunion coming up in August. I do not know if I am going to go. I did not have a great high school experience. I skipped many days of my Junior and Senior years. I had an older boyfriend (who later became my husband, now ex-husband) who did not go to my school, hence the skipping school. Our class has a page on Facebook, and I am telling you – they ALL look like adults! I wonder what happened to them. LOL!
“Lost, yesterday, somewhere between Sunrise and Sunset, two golden hours, each set with sixty diamond minutes. No reward is offered, for they are gone forever. ~ Horace Mann
I think what I am trying to say is that life is precious, and I need to relish every moment. I need to appreciate those around me, and take advantage of every moment on this earth. We are all here for just a short time to make a difference.
I want to take a moment to thank you all for all the wonderful things you bring to my life – I am grateful.
AffirMINTion: I make the most out of each day – appreciating and loving those around me.
Make it a GREAT day, IF you choose to.
What are you waiting for?
Life is good!
A Mini Minty MoMINT
My mom says that she loves me every day… AND I LIKE IT!
“People rarely succeed unless they have fun in what they are doing.” – Dale Carnegie
Speaking of fun – this is a GREAT video. www.tinyurl.com/funpianostairs . It is a shame that we cannot have more of these. Exercise IS a lot easier to do if you have fun doing it. I love to dance (cardio) and play with Minty on the floor. What sorts of things do you do to make exercise fun? Feel free to share your answers on www.Mintdom.com – I am sure you all have some fun ideas!
AffirMINTion: Dancing is fun and I like doing it every day
Make it a GREAT day, IF you choose to.
What are you waiting for?
Life is good!
A Mini Minty MoMINT
My mom says that she is succeeding with her exercise because I put the fun into it… and I LIKE IT!
Life is Minty Fresh!
xoxo
PS You know my mom had to give you this www.tinyurl.com/MintyFun PSS AND you can have fun dancing to it! xoxo
01/04/2011 – 10 Minute of Exercise – Spark People Coach Nicole 10 minute cardio – H2O – 8!!!
Bad News / Good News:
Bad News – I had a bad food day yesterday with too many calories
Good News – I knew that I had a bad food day yesterday because I tracked it!
More Good News – I drank 8 glasses of water! Whoo hoo!
Good morning, Mintdom!
I was not going to write this morning because once again I have technical issues with my computer, but I need to be consistent; however, this morning, I am keeping things light and would like to share with you this awesome video. I am taking this little girl’s example and standing in front of the mirror to say my affirMINTions. What a GREAT way to start any day – with an encouragement to myself! Try saying your affirMINTions* for the next 21 days in front of the mirror and let me know if you see a difference in your attitude and self-esteem.
Mintdom 