Have you seen previews for the new Jennifer Anniston and Gerald Butler Movie?? Two of my favorite actors in one movie together??!! Can't wait!!!
You can watch Trailer Here.
Thursday, February 11, 2010
Wednesday, February 10, 2010
Reaching.
While perusing on MckMama's blog today, I discovered: This.
I found myself using my break to read this family's story, and just trying to grasp how things like this happen. Death itself is hard to understand, but the Death of a child. Inconsolable.
How people find faith and hope in the midst of such sorrow and despair. I find it so utterly amazing and inspiring. Stories like this one have bothered me for some time. These stories are so gut wrenching, so heart pulling, and so inspiring and so world changing. Death, itself is so hard to grasp, so hard to understand; to fathom a world outside this one. A Heaven of sorts. Is there a Heaven?
I am Catholic, I was raised Catholic. I take the pumpkin to Church every Sunday, except when she is too sick. I have always believed in Heaven. I would like to think there is a Heaven, but what if there isn't? Is that just soemething that was told to us to make us feel better about losing our loved ones? To somehow help us through each day, to each next passing moment in the midst of terrible, barely hanging on, despair.
To me, I have thought about this in the past. And when you are a child, at least to me, sitting at my desk in school girl pigtails and curls, and bows, and knee socks, and school uniform, feet hanging somewhere above the floor, dangling, while they taught us abour Heaven and Earth; I imagined that Heaven was another Earth. Far above the Earth, where everyone walked on clouds and everyone who had passed, wandered around happy, eating ice cream and sitting on benches and jumping on clouds, with puppies and kittens running around, and birds flying all over the place.
Now, realistically, I know that, to me, Heaven is probably more like a psychological state of mind/being, and less of a physical place that exists in another space far above the planet. At least to me, I think we just travel to a dreamlike state of consciousness (or unconsciousness, I wager, as we are deceased).
So, I guess to me, how do you deal with that? Maybe it's better to think that this physical place exists, and that your loved one is living there, at peace, skipping and jumping, playing Hop Scotch on the sidewalk, chasing bunnies and butterflies. I mean, how do you deal with that otherwise.
Good Lord, I pray for these mothers and fathers and families that they may know some kind or peace, some kind of faith and hope in something greater than ourselves to help them through these times of sorrow. And, it makes me think of how blesses my husband and I are to have this life in front of us, to hold Nikolina and kiss her and hug her, and smoosh her, and tickle her, and hear her giggle, and snuggle her, and Love her, and watch her grow before our eyes, and see her smile, and laugh, and learn new things, and experience LIFE with her and through her eyes.
And, it makes me think how I would ever get through an experience like that. Would I? Would I rise through the pain and the sorrow, and make the most of my existing life? Would I turn a child's passing into something magnificent like a starting an orginization in that child's honor to celebrate their life and to work towards campaigns and fundraisers to educate people and make them aware and raise money for a cure? Would I raise money in their honor to build playgrounds?
Or would I wallow in my own pain and sorrow and the "what if's" and "why's." Would I turn inside myself, inside my pain, as in the movie "What Dreams May Come" and head down that dark path toward despair and self pity? To somewhere beyond help, beyond the reach of help. I just don't know. Would I gain faith, would I lose it?
How else do you make it through something like that except through faith? Through a belief that life exists beyond this place. That your loved one is still "living" just on another plane, in anther space. For, you have to believe they are living, if at least somewhere beyond your reach. You have to believe they are safe, that their passing was not in vain. That their life means something. You have to make their life, their presence, however fleeting, mean something. They have to "live" and grow in some way, or how would you deal with each birthday, each D-day, each day, each moment, each second. How would you.
Or would each day just be a normal day, but a little sadder, a litte harder, a little grayer Would each day carry on, except if you caught yourself thinking, caught yourself remembering, and then you have to either push it aside, or rise above it, and learn and grow, and be a better person for it. I won't ever understand the reasoning behind these tragedies, and I don't ever think anyone could justify them for me no matter what the cause. The death of a child is inconsolable to me.
And, I pray, I pray for these failies, and I praise the Lord for our gifts, and I treasure them every day. I treasure that in some way, I can treasure them a little more, becuase people share their stories, their tragedies, their loss. And, I am thankful for their brutal honesty, inspired by their faith, and forever changed by their stories.
I found myself using my break to read this family's story, and just trying to grasp how things like this happen. Death itself is hard to understand, but the Death of a child. Inconsolable.
How people find faith and hope in the midst of such sorrow and despair. I find it so utterly amazing and inspiring. Stories like this one have bothered me for some time. These stories are so gut wrenching, so heart pulling, and so inspiring and so world changing. Death, itself is so hard to grasp, so hard to understand; to fathom a world outside this one. A Heaven of sorts. Is there a Heaven?
I am Catholic, I was raised Catholic. I take the pumpkin to Church every Sunday, except when she is too sick. I have always believed in Heaven. I would like to think there is a Heaven, but what if there isn't? Is that just soemething that was told to us to make us feel better about losing our loved ones? To somehow help us through each day, to each next passing moment in the midst of terrible, barely hanging on, despair.
To me, I have thought about this in the past. And when you are a child, at least to me, sitting at my desk in school girl pigtails and curls, and bows, and knee socks, and school uniform, feet hanging somewhere above the floor, dangling, while they taught us abour Heaven and Earth; I imagined that Heaven was another Earth. Far above the Earth, where everyone walked on clouds and everyone who had passed, wandered around happy, eating ice cream and sitting on benches and jumping on clouds, with puppies and kittens running around, and birds flying all over the place.
Now, realistically, I know that, to me, Heaven is probably more like a psychological state of mind/being, and less of a physical place that exists in another space far above the planet. At least to me, I think we just travel to a dreamlike state of consciousness (or unconsciousness, I wager, as we are deceased).
So, I guess to me, how do you deal with that? Maybe it's better to think that this physical place exists, and that your loved one is living there, at peace, skipping and jumping, playing Hop Scotch on the sidewalk, chasing bunnies and butterflies. I mean, how do you deal with that otherwise.
Good Lord, I pray for these mothers and fathers and families that they may know some kind or peace, some kind of faith and hope in something greater than ourselves to help them through these times of sorrow. And, it makes me think of how blesses my husband and I are to have this life in front of us, to hold Nikolina and kiss her and hug her, and smoosh her, and tickle her, and hear her giggle, and snuggle her, and Love her, and watch her grow before our eyes, and see her smile, and laugh, and learn new things, and experience LIFE with her and through her eyes.
And, it makes me think how I would ever get through an experience like that. Would I? Would I rise through the pain and the sorrow, and make the most of my existing life? Would I turn a child's passing into something magnificent like a starting an orginization in that child's honor to celebrate their life and to work towards campaigns and fundraisers to educate people and make them aware and raise money for a cure? Would I raise money in their honor to build playgrounds?
Or would I wallow in my own pain and sorrow and the "what if's" and "why's." Would I turn inside myself, inside my pain, as in the movie "What Dreams May Come" and head down that dark path toward despair and self pity? To somewhere beyond help, beyond the reach of help. I just don't know. Would I gain faith, would I lose it?
How else do you make it through something like that except through faith? Through a belief that life exists beyond this place. That your loved one is still "living" just on another plane, in anther space. For, you have to believe they are living, if at least somewhere beyond your reach. You have to believe they are safe, that their passing was not in vain. That their life means something. You have to make their life, their presence, however fleeting, mean something. They have to "live" and grow in some way, or how would you deal with each birthday, each D-day, each day, each moment, each second. How would you.
Or would each day just be a normal day, but a little sadder, a litte harder, a little grayer Would each day carry on, except if you caught yourself thinking, caught yourself remembering, and then you have to either push it aside, or rise above it, and learn and grow, and be a better person for it. I won't ever understand the reasoning behind these tragedies, and I don't ever think anyone could justify them for me no matter what the cause. The death of a child is inconsolable to me.
And, I pray, I pray for these failies, and I praise the Lord for our gifts, and I treasure them every day. I treasure that in some way, I can treasure them a little more, becuase people share their stories, their tragedies, their loss. And, I am thankful for their brutal honesty, inspired by their faith, and forever changed by their stories.
Tuesday, February 9, 2010
Top Two Dream Jobs.
Top Two hosted by Taylor at Jimmy Choos and A Baby Too!!
You can see Taylor's Top Two picks of the week, and many other Mommas Here:http://benandtay.blogspot.com/!!
Now, my DREAM is to have my own BABY STORE, with Ritzy Baby Clothes, all things Baby. As a shop owner, you can work when you want, and still be involved, but you have flexibility and are not tied to anything or anyone. But, I could still come in and work when I wanted, or needed it for myself, and be surrounded by BABIES and all things BABY. And, yes, there were probably be some HIGHLY overpriced fru fru baby stuff in there, but I would also try and have either really good sales, or have some items such as Mud Pie clothing that is fairly priced!
You can see Taylor's Top Two picks of the week, and many other Mommas Here:http://benandtay.blogspot.com/!!
1. Okay, so this is easy!! My #1. DREAM JOB is to be a SAHM (Stay at Home Mom)!! Every little girl plays with her babies, as a little girl. Bathes them, feeds them, changes them, and pushes them around in their little buggies. We want to be mommies, we want to be just like Mommy. It's innate in us to want to nuture, protect, provide, and give of ourselves. And the rewards are HUGE!!
I thought nothing could top our wedding day, than we found out we were pregnant, and even before that moment, when we suspected we might be pregnant, I loved that little life that might be growing inside me. When we discovered it was true, from that moment, I had a wave of love wash over me, and I knew that I would do anything for that little life growing inside me, and that I could love nothing else like him/her. Most people upon the birth of your child say, "You're a Mommy now!" But, really your're a Mommy from the moment you discover that little life is growing inside of you.
I LOVED being pregnant and felt like there was nothing else in the WORLD like carrying a child, experiencing a child growing inside of you, nuturing, feeding that child, protecting that child. And, I would want nothing more than to be pregnant all the time, and have babe after babe, and have a whole house FULL of little Garretts. That is my dream!! And, I would try and be the BEST Stay at Home Mommy, cooking great meals, baking cookies all the time, making home-made baby food, and using cloth diapers. I think I might even learn to sew! Ha! And as my Hubby says, I would have to handle all the financial aspects of the house, and be our little Accountant.
I would LOVE that. To have children crawling all over me, even screaming and yelling, and going absolutely CRAZY all over the place, and I would LOVE to capture it all on film, and be a REALLY GREAT PHOTOGRAPHER, which...leads me to...
2. Professional Photographer. I have to say, I really have THREE DREAM JOBS, becuase while I would like nothing more (after SAHM) to be a professional photographer, that dream is more for our family &and friends, than the general public. I REALLY want to be able to capture some beautiful shots throughout our families lives, images that will stand the length of time, and be passed on from generation to generationa treasured for years to come I mean, it really is the one thing to me, that stands the test of time. And, to be able to give that gift to future children's children, and families realitives and children, to me, I think that would be an AMAZING legacy and gift that I could bestow upon future generations. To awe, inspire, and to give that gift.
But, while I would love to be a professional photographer, I'm not sure that I woudl want tio meet the demands that that entails. Editing, etc, is a very time involved process, and while you can outsource that to someone, I'm just not really sure how I would feel about that, though I have considered it. But, to me, is it still your finished art, your masterpiece, if someone else edits it? I'm sure most photographers get over that aspect, bc how coudl they possibly edit every single photo themselves and do all the photography sessions they complete.
Also, Photography is life, and life happens every day, every moment. And, as with Real Estate, which I had my hand in a little, to make any money as a phtoogrpaher, you have to be flexible, and be available for sessions to gain clientele and be successful monetarily. And, I'm just not sure that I want to be rushign off to photography sessions every hour of the day, all day, all week.
Also, Photography is life, and life happens every day, every moment. And, as with Real Estate, which I had my hand in a little, to make any money as a phtoogrpaher, you have to be flexible, and be available for sessions to gain clientele and be successful monetarily. And, I'm just not sure that I want to be rushign off to photography sessions every hour of the day, all day, all week.
So, maybe my dream is to be a REALLY TALENTED PHOTOGRAPHER for my family and friends, but not to necessarily make it a career. At least not, a very demanding, all consuming career.
Which leads me to say, I HAVE to at least mention this as it has been my DREAM since I was a little girl, and that is to own my own store. My mother always wanted it, and among the many things I used to "play" when I was a child, "Shop Owner" was one of them. I used to pretend I owned a Stationary Store (as I had lots of Stationary) and I LOVED girly things. Then for years, I wanted a girly store with all kinds of Knick Knacks (is what I call them), but really it's more like a Ritzy Home Goods type of store, with Decorations for your home, and stationary, etc.
Now, my DREAM is to have my own BABY STORE, with Ritzy Baby Clothes, all things Baby. As a shop owner, you can work when you want, and still be involved, but you have flexibility and are not tied to anything or anyone. But, I could still come in and work when I wanted, or needed it for myself, and be surrounded by BABIES and all things BABY. And, yes, there were probably be some HIGHLY overpriced fru fru baby stuff in there, but I would also try and have either really good sales, or have some items such as Mud Pie clothing that is fairly priced!
Any other Moms feel teh same way??!! Who wouldn't LOVE to be surrounded by Cute Babes, New Mommies, and TONS of ADORABLE BABY GOODS!!
Monday, February 8, 2010
Secret Obsession.
Ok, I have to admit I have a secret obsession for American Idol. Yes, it's true. Don't laugh. Really, let me explain.
Ok, so I have mentioned that the hubs and I don't have cable, so we get 5 channels, and on any one day, all or one, or none can come in (we have rabbit ears in the attic-He he!). But, FOX is usually pretty clear, so we have to like what's on FOX if we want to zone out and watch some TV. You kind of have to like what's on.
Well, my obsession with American Idol is not a complete obsession. I mean, it goes back and forth and up and down. Some years I only watch the Beginning (by far, the best part!!) Sometimes I only catch the end, where it's down to only a few contestants (which I like too!), sometimes I miss a complete season, and sometimes I am failthful and watch it from beginning to end.
But always, and this is the reason for my obsession, always, I am moved by the stories that some of these contestants have, Especially at the fore front, when they have auditions, I love the stories and the backrounds that they contestants and American Idol share with us.
I LOVE how they surprise you and give this outstanding performance after the story build-up, I LOVE how they rush out into the hall and their whole family and friends are waiting, and how they jump up in the air and scream, shout, and yell! You just get those tinglees all over and I just think it's incredible! I LOVE how they slow the film (and seemingly slow time for that momwnt), and how for just that moment, you are enthralled in this person's life, their dream. You get to experience their dreams, their passions, their desires, and witness pure, sheer happiness. Whether they make it to the end or not, in that moment, they are truly happy and hold all the hope in the world, and that to me, is so beautiful.
Hope. Pure, undaunted, simple hope. To witness that, is why I love American Idol. So, I will be watching tomorrow, and can't wait. Yes, they sucked me in, again. Anyone else?
Saturday, February 6, 2010
Giveaways.
Juliana over at A Blonde Walks into a Blog. is hosting a giveaway for a Belle Baby Carrier pictured HERE.
I am LOVING this carrier!! We have the Baby Bjiorn for Nik, and I do LOVE it, but it hurts my back terribly!, and I hate to say that I did not get to use it as much as I would have liked due to this fact, and have since stopped using it. Perhaps bc our babe was always in the 97th percentile in height and weight, but, I would LOVE to be able to carry her around more comfortablly in one of these chic carriers and future babes! I have to say I was torn with which one to get as I really like this one:
But, for a boy, or if the Pooky would want to carry the Babe around, I don't think that he would much appreciate this design. But, it's not all about little ole me, so, I'd have to go with this one as my fav pic:
Which I also actually really like anyway, and it is the same one Angelina Jolie wore on the cover of W!! But, that is not all influencing my decision in picking it, I swear!! Really, it's not!!
So, head on over to Juliana's. and enter to win. I think it's still up for grabs! (I hope!)
and
Happy Saturday!! Have a great Superbowl Sunday!! Looking forward to it, and to the commercials as well!! The pumpkin is sick AGAIN, so I think we'll be laying low!! Boo, hoo!!
Friday, February 5, 2010
Miss you pumpkin...
Wish we were snuggled on the couch together on this cold, snowy winter day!
Happy Friday Everyone!!
Happy Friday Everyone!!
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