Wordless Wednesday

By far, this is one of my favorite wins. I will be deeply saddened when the shipments come to an end.

You win some, you lose some...

I find myself thinking back, wondering when I realized that losses outweigh wins. Take that as you want. In my year of entering contests, I have lost many more than I've won and no matter what anyone thinks, I'm all right with that.

I understand. I cannot win them all. That is okay.

Of course, there are times when I really wanted to win and I don't. It gets me down for about sixty seconds and I am over it. If I spent my time dwelling on all of my losses, I would never be happy.

I am learning to apply that to other areas of my life. Things will not always be great. I've seen enough "losses" to keep me under but I pick myself up, dust myself off and keep it moving.

I can still survive.

We don't need a resolution

As the new year approached and arrived, people have been asking about my resolutions. I have none. I feel as if I have been saying the same things, year after year. I have. I will continue to do so. My resolutions are more like goals for me.

I am not resolving to lose weight or workout or anything else that puts me on a timetable. Instead, my goal for this year is the same as always. I wish to continue working on being a better me, leaving negativity in the past and spreading love everywhere I am. A smile is infectious is my motto for 2011.

One thing I also wish to work on is how critical I can be of myself. "My only enemy is inside of me" I need to fix that.

Here's to wishing us all a wonderful year achieving our goals!

Take me away from it all *please*

I had an interesting day...
I usually do not share religious thoughts as to avoid offending folks but...

I was invited to a toy giveaway by someone special to me. He was inducted into a biker gang and this was his first mission - giving toys to children in need. Anyways, my kids and I were invited to come and support him on his special day. So we went. Here's where it all went wrong.

Let me outline some of the worst 2 & 1/2 hours of my life:

1. Wrong, wrong, wrong.
We were given a nonexistent address and showed up at the wrong place at the right time. At this point I should have turned around and went home but I thought, NO, it's a puzzle and I will figure it out. What was I thinking?

2. I thought they said 400 kids!
There seemed to be an expectation that 400 children would be there. NOPE! When I found the place, I knew from the line, they definitely overbooked. LOL. Again, I should have turned around...

3. Separation anxiety.
As we entered the building (a church) Kids were ushered to the left and adults to the right. it didn't sit well with me. I don't like to be separated in a crowd so large. It's not natural. I could barely see the in the sea of millions *it seemed*

4. That can't be...
Santa. Huh. He looked like a woman. I don't know. There's not a lot I can say here. It was just weird.

5. The re-enactment
There was a play-like something or another midway through this debacle complete with Mary, Joseph and the birth of Jesus. It was interesting. That's all I can say.

6. Oh no they didn't!
The second re-enactment was of Pontius Pilates soldier forcing Jesus to carry the cross. Now, I attended Catholic school, so this was not far from the norm for me but... The soldier was poking Jesus with his sword and the noises Jesus made were very realistic. Many of the younger children were frightened and began to cry. To make things worst, Jesus climbed the alter and was then nailed to the cross. From my angle, I could see the spokes were under his arms but it was too much for a lot of the kids to bear. An outburst of tears ensued...

7. Why am I still here?
They line the kids up for the toys (Yes, I am leaving things out. There was preaching and "you will all go to hell is you do not accept Jesus Christ as your lord and savior talk" but some things don't need to be mentioned) and of course the rough element all bust to the front to claim a gift. My children, the little angels, sat quietly awaiting their turn to be called up and get a toy. After parental intervention, one received a tiny teddy bear and baby books, another received a spring (fake slinky) and the other a pack of dominoes. Can I say lame?

What did I learn?
I learned that I should never go anywhere without doing research, even for the ones I love. I may not even answer the phone if he ever calls again. LOL. J/K.
I feel like my kids took away some important lessons though. That was definitely a learning experience for them.

We got out of there as quickly as we could and rushed home to wash away the sinful day. Never again, no more.

Holiday Wish List Meme

http://bit.ly/tmwishlist) and http://bit.ly/gamestop10) are giving away a sleighful of gifts this holiday season and to enter I’m sharing this meme with you.

1. What is your holiday wish for your family?

My wish is for us all to be happy, healthy and together.

2. What is your Christmas morning tradition?

We awaken, eat a healthy breakfast and watch holiday cartoons and movies all day.

3. If you could ask Santa for one, completely decadent wish for yourself, what would it be?

For myself, I would ask that my children have all that they want and need. I'm a stay at home mom so sometimes they have to go without non necessities. It would be nice to totally indulge just once. I love seeing my children happy.

4. How do you make the holidays special without spending any money?

We spend special time doing things together. Macy's has a Christmas light show and a Dicken's village exhibit we check out every year. It never seems to get old.

5. What games did you play with your family growing up?

Growing up, we played Monopoly, UNO, Life, Clue and Operation. I also loved Hungry, Hungry Hippos when I was young.

6. What holiday tradition have you carried on from your own childhood?

A tradition I hold dearly is having the whole family over for a turkey dinner and passing out practical,inexpensive gifts to all that attend.

7. Where would you go for a Christmas-away-from-home trip?

If we could be anywhere for Christmas, I would love to visit Walt Disney World. As of yet, we have not been and I think it would be an enjoyable experience.

8. Check out GameStop link to: http://bit.ly/gamestop10 and tell us, what are the three top items on your GameStop Wish List this year?

Kinect, A Nintendo DSI and a Play Station 3 are the top three items on my Wish List! I am really hoping to make that happen for the whole family.

My Favorite Road Trip

This takes me back many years to my childhood. When I was ten years old, my grandmother and her sister took my two male cousins and me on a road trip. We took a day long ride on an Amtrak train.

We left from Philadelphia around 8 a.m. on a Friday morning. It was a cloudy day and I remember wishing the sky was much brighter. The train was filled with many people going many places but none in our car were going as far as us.

My cousins and I played card games for the first few hours as we were giddy with excitement. We also played punch buggy while watching the cars trying to keep up with the speeding train.

I remember meeting a man who told us wonderful stories about growing up in the South and how things have changed. He made me feel as if I were there with his colorful words and descriptions. His tales of lying in the sun made me long to be there as well.

For lunch, we headed to the dining car. It was very busy, filled with hungry travelers. We ordered pancakes, bacon and eggs. It's funny that I remember. The pancakes and bacon were delicious. The eggs were runny and horrible. I remember missing my mom's special pancakes and eggs she made during our special time together.
After lunch, I felt a little sad and stared out the window for a while. My cousins noticed my mood and started to name different cars they saw passing. At this stage in my life, cars were my passion. I joined in on the fun.

We had dinner a few hours later. My great aunt packed fried chicken and biscuits. We ate in our seats as we watched the beautiful scenery pass us by. I remember seeing mountains, green grass, sandy dunes. There was so much beauty in nature that I felt I'd never seen before. It was as if I were experiencing them for the very first time.
I was in awe.

As night approached, I was very tired from playing games and gave in to Mr. Sandman. In the morning, I awoke from my slumber to find all new people were in our car. Not many were friendly and wanted us children to be quiet. We were excited to find we were very close to reaching our destination.

We arrived in Fort Lauderdale around 11 a.m. We headed to my grandmother's brother's home to meet his family. He had a granddaughter my age for us to play with. That was the highlight of our trip as most relatives were not happy to be visited by the rambunctious city kids that were my cousins and me.

I'll always remember that train ride and hold it dearly as a fun time spent with my grandmother and cousins.

I wrote this blog post while participating in the TwitterMoms and Discount Tire blogging program, making me eligible to receive a $50 gift card and be entered for a chance to win a prize valued at $1,000. For more information on how you can participate, click here

Play catch up?

It has been a while since I've posted. Needless to say, it's not that my life is boring, I just haven't had time to slow down and put my thoughts into words.

School is back in session and everyone knows that takes the bulk of my attention.
On a stranger note, I received a call the other day from a random ex associate. I m bored with these people's antics. I've invited them to take this issue where it needs to be settled but they insist on playing childish games. I move forward.

I am the proud parent of a 9 year-old. She is no longer my little baby (hasn't been for awhile) and I am not a happy camper. Yes, I'm all for the growing up but I already miss that sweet, chubby faced baby I used to hold in my arms. LOL! I'm a basket case.

Contests have been slowing down, I noticed. It may just be that I am not interested in every little thing. That is fine. It will pick up again soon & that takes up a good deal of my time and attention as well.

The people in my life are doing well, doing okay or on the verge of who knows what on a daily basis. I pray for strength and enlightenment in these trying times.

That's all the info I am willing to share for now. Till next time, take care friends!