Happy Valentine's Day 2017

May you feel loved today 

and always.

finding sweetness

last weekend started out wonderful.

i met with a bunch of high school friends
(old friends Ha!)
we did an ugly sweater 5k in seattle.

it was so much fun, we laughed until we cried.
what a journey we have had through all these years.
we have all had good and bad and our friendship remains
stronger than ever.

i am so very thankful for these ladies and for their
friendship.

a few pictures from the ugly sweater 5k. 12/6/14

i also did a jingle bell 5k with my eldest daughter this past saturday, 12/13/14

to benefit arthritis.

we had a great time. 

they had a great turn out with many from our community who came to run.

we wore antlers and red and white striped knee high socks. :) which made the 5k
all the more fun!

but, the biggest and most blessed thing that happend this week...
i am changed forever because of it.

i mean a giant sweet moment indeed. one i will never forget:
you see, i live in the community that  i went to school in.
so consequently there are many 'old' classmates still around this area.

last friday, i was contacted by an upperclassman of mine from high school.
she wanted to know if i would co-chair with her a project. a simple competition
between her classmates and mine. to give back to our community!

i contacted the district office at the high school and found out that
the school district had a giving tree!

we sponsored that tree and with some fun competition between the
two classes we have fullfilled the WHOLE giving tree. over 35 gifts!

when i found out that twin girls were wearing shoes with duct tape
and then that two of my classmates stepped up to buy these
girls some new boots, well....
i was over-come with emotion.
no other words. just tears of thankfullness.
i could not stop the tears from flowing.

what these two classees accomplished in one short week
is unbelievable.

there are children who are going to have a wonderful christmas!
their wishes are going to come true.

but, when all is said and done,
i am the one who was really, truly
blessed.

this is a christmas
i will never forget!
the loving and giving of a community.
how team work came together and got it done.

my friend said, her heart felt like the grinches at the end of the book/film,
when his heart grows three times bigger.
i agree. totally.

these were sweet moments indeed.

i am thankful.
i am blessed.

may you find something good
something beautiful in
each and every day.

i challenge you to take the time
to find something lovely.
even in the smallest of things.

there is SOMETHING good about each day.

take the time to be still and know.

linking up to sweet saturdays

                                           sweet saturdays

six years?

where in the world 

did the time go?

i remember the day

so very clearly.

my first grandson

was born six years ago

and celebrated his birthday

saturday.

i clearly remember

waiting in the waiting room

to hear the news 

that my grandson 

had arrived.

it wound up being 

an emergency c-section

and the little guy 

was only a little 4 pound 12 oz 

itty bitty peanut.

six years later

you would never

believe

that my grandson

this

sweet, handsome, loving, intelligent, kind and

tender-hearted

boy

started out so tiny!

happy birthday to my

 sweet jack!

your granny loves you 

so very much!!!!

~~~~~~~~

other sweet moments this week:

visiting my mom in law in the health care center.

she had just had her hair freshly done

and i told her she looked beautiful

and could i take a picture with her?

and then last but not least:

i did another 5k.

this one was an ugly sweater 5k in seattle

i ran it with some of my very dearest

friends from high school.

 yes...

that was a VERY long time ago.

some of us

 have been friends since we were

in elementary school!

we call ourselves the YAYAs

i love them and their friendship!

before the race.

and after the 5k!

~~~~~~~~

have a blessed week

may you always find

something in your week that you can treasure
because,

there are sweet moments in each and every day!

join me will you as i link up

my blog post 

HERE

any pictures or a few words

or a sweet moment.

i invite you to join us

and link up to:

SWEET SATURDAYS!

jam-packed.

this last weekend was quite the jam-packed one,
i can tell you that!

my mother in law turned 90 on April 10!

a few of us decided to throw an open house
for her; inviting the community and it was
quite the day!
(my husbands sisters and families
came and stayed with us for the weekend, too)

there were people from all over
who came to wish her a happy day
and it was so nice to see her enjoying herself too!

it was a beautiful day and with teamwork from
some of my husbands siblings we put on
a wonderful affair that i think my mom in law
will treasure. :)

me with my mom in law and hubs

i was pretty tired that evening after cleaning up
the church where we had the open house...
i really wanted to crawl in a corner and take a nap. ha.
but, family was here from oregon and we stayed up
pretty late; even though we all knew i had a BIG day
the following morning. :)

you see, i woke up the next morning at 6
and was out the door by 7 to meet up
with some of my best friends from high school
(yes, H.S. was a VERY LONG time ago)
but, there are a few of us that have kept in VERY close contact
and we decided we were going to do a HALF Marathon together!
We met at one of the parents places, a block from the starting line
and we walked to the event.
We did the 13.1 mile marathon (we all walked it) and we had such
an amazing time, laughing and visiting...
we ALL are excited and
cannot wait to do it together again!

after finishing the race, we all walked to a restaurant
approx. one mile away from our cars and then we all
walked back to our cars again after lunch! LOL

i was pumped and still full of energy! (skipping part of the way to
the restaurant!) still laughing and giggling all the way there and back! :)

4 out of  6 of our YA-YAs

 all

 participated in and finished

the 13.1 miles! 

we are YaYa- STRONG!

missing 2 of the YaYa friends

who had other commitments.

but, we will get them NEXT time!!

hehe

this morning, i woke up fully intending to take the day off;
maybe work in my yard and read...but i woke to a beautiful
sunshiny day (which we don't get a LOT of here in the PNW)
so, i donned my gear and headed outside.
i wanted to enjoy the sunshine and just stretch those muscles a bit
but, i wound up power-walking well over four miles. ha!

so the past weekend was quite the busy one!
we accomplished a lot as well-
family visits along with all of us putting on a huge Open House!

then finishing off the busy weekend by walking in a
half marathon with my YaYa friends!

beautiful. life. is. just. beautiful.
and i am thankful.
oh, so thankful.

again

last september
i walked in my
very first half marathon
and said, "i can check that
off my bucket list"

well, again
i can say it! :)
this time i will be
participating in a local event
with a bunch of my high school friends;
we call ourselves the ya-yas and have
been close friends...some of us
since grade school!

i have promised
to not walk my 'normal' pace
with them
and to take my time and have
fun visiting...i am sure that will not
be a problem. ha.
we never seem to run out
of things to talk about! LOL

so, again...
i will do a half marathon
and am thinking maybe i
will be doing more and more
in the future!!

lookout.
here i come!

here is a picture from
today's instagram.
i love, love, love that my
new workout leggings
remind me of
mystique from x-men!!! :)


have a wonderful week
my friends.

my escape.

via: the book connection on: facebook

i have said it before

and 

i will say it again.

books

are 

my refuge.

a way to escape.

to unwind.

to travel.

to lose myself.

it saved my sanity

when going through

chemotherapy;

when i was reading

i forgot 

that i was:

sick

that i

had cancer

or

that i

 was bald!

i became immersed 

in the characters 

i was reading about.

i lost myself

in

books.

(or maybe i found myself?)

books.

have.

always.

been.

and.

will.

always.

be.

my.

best.

friends!

we did it!

yes.
the bellingham bay marathon
is now under our belt!!

i did this with my husband, our best friend,
his daughter, her husband
and one of her friends
and
we did it!
we made it!
we finished the race!

we walked in the rain;
(yes, remember i live in the PNW)
they were predicting a rain AND windstorm
but, we missed it.
we still had rain, mostly a light sprinkle
and some wind
but, nothing that made it miserable!

we had over 5500 people participate.
i broke my record even though i was
only trying to complete a half marathon
it was my fastest long distance walk,
according to my runkeeper app! :)

yay!

we did it!

now we

can chalk that off

our personal bucket list! ha.

i am not sore at all today
although a bit tired.
today i will take the day to
mend muscles and sit by the fire :)

enjoy your monday!
it is the beginning of a new week.
a fresh start.
a new chance at something wonderful!

smile. shine. see beauty!

we picked up our bib numbers and shirts the day before.

we parked and walked to the starting line.

excited and ready to go!

two grandpa's and one granny. :)

my hubbie and our best friend!

we have been best friends with him (and his wife)

for 23 years!

the 'team'

we met up with 

our friends daughter, son in law and her friend

yes, it was raining as we waited

to get started.

afterwards.

13+ miles later;

we are still able to smile! :)

our medals for completing the course!

screen shot of my 

runkeepers app!

i love how on the bottom it says:

your best time!

mugswap

i entered a mugswap
this year and had so much fun!

first i found out whose name i
had received and a little bit
about her and her likes. :)
i also told the organizer what
i liked and a little bit about me
for the person who would be
sending me a mug.

then it was off to shop for
my pal: Jan
she likes colorful, bright and cheery...
so off to pier 1 i went.
i picked a bright, fun yellow mug with flowers
and off it went to her home.

then i waited patiently for
my mug to come
and to see what they would
pick out for me. :)

it was perfect.
my whole blog theme
is always about life;
how to look for the good
be thankful.
and see beauty each day.
right?

well here is what she picked out
for me:

it says:
Make a life worth loving.

how perfect is that???
thank you Aubrey.
i love my mug!

i loved doing this exchange
and look forward to doing it
again!

thank you kim
for the organizing you did!

ps. after i sent my mug
to jan, i got the sweetest note
and we follow each other on instagram
and i have a new found friend,
all because of the swap! :)

simply smile

in the silence
in the stillness
of the morning
i sit;
coffee in hand
with the beginning of
a new day, a new week
stretched out before me.

the to-do list is long
and still i sit;
contemplating on
how i can make a difference
this week.

if i can make a difference to
just one person.

somewhere right now
someone is;
waiting. hoping. wondering.

they wonder;
will someone notice?
will anyone show them they care,
that they even matter at all?

a simple act of kindness

opening a door for the person
who has their hands full.
letting the person go ahead
of you in line, because
they have just a few items.
maybe a quick note to tell someone you care.

smile.
a simple smile.
it doesn't cost you a dime
but, the small act
can mean a million.
in an instant your sweet smile
can light up their life.
maybe they have been sitting in darkness
waiting for someone
to notice.
to care.
to just smile.

look into their eyes
let them see you 'shine' your light.
listen with your heart
and the rest will follow.

will you join me?
be the change this week?

Sunshine & Coffee

it is gorgeous out today;
i can hear birds tweeting up a storm
and the sun is shining through my
windows (that need cleaning!)

i am off to have coffee with a friend
and a possible walk in the sunshine!

it is well with my soul.

happy friday peeps!!

let's show someone a smile
and shine our lights!

a thrifting I did go!

it started out a simple kind of morning.
my daughter was having her oil changed
and asked if i wanted to meet across
the street for coffee this morning.

i said, yes!
my husband and i met our daughter and grandson
at mcdonalds for coffee and the little guy was
able to play in the playland and burn some energy.

next thing you know we are heading to town
to go to two thrift stores!
we were on a mission...a certain book.
(which i did find!)
i scored 5 out of 7 in my series
along with more
dr. seuss books &
a few clifford books
to add to my collection for the boys!
yes, i am one of those girls
who can never have too many books or shoes! ;)

tonight is our small group.
we are meeting at a local restaurant
for fellowship and fun!

i hope tonight finds you all happy & content.

may you be blessed
and have a wonderful thursday!

i choose joy

happy monday!

i woke today with a stiff neck. boo.

but, then i walk by my  calendar for march and this is what i see

staring back at me:

yes, indeed

i will choose 

happiness.

i will choose

joy.

today is a new day.

a new beginning

a day to start fresh

happy monday to us all!

be blessed today.

share your smile & 

share your joy

with someone!

and to share something that brings me GREAT joy?

here is a picture of my friends and i after our four mile walk on saturday.

i am blessed beyond measure.

i am thankful

for each and everyone of these friends.

their friendship brings me much

joy & happiness.

happy weekend

source: foundation for a better life

may you have a blessed friday and a wonderful weekend.

me? i plan to laugh my heart out tomorrow

with a bunch of high school friends!

what are your plans for this weekend?

let's SHINE

 our light this weekend

and show others some kindness!

life

we had a wonderful anniversary.

the day was filled with time together.

we went to:
a coffee shop and sat for awhile.
went to see a matinee just the two of us.
he had some errands to do afterwards
so he dropped me off at the mall and
then picked me up an hour later
and we went to our all time favorite mexican restaurant
and then on our way home we stopped and brought home
my favorite flavor of ice cream. (choc. cherry!)

when we got home
he went to popped the trunk
and presented me with a bouquet of flowers!

yeah, he is a keeper. ;)

i am going to share a few pictures from my phone

which represents life here lately-

our anniversary consisted of 

coffee. ice cream. flowers. dinner & a movie.

olive chillin' in the sun

a day at home

my farmer boy's socks and one of his old wrestling tshirts

(a perfect way to spend a day)

a date with the hubbie

coffee & harry potter. :)

my group of high school friends...

we have named ourselves:

the YA-YAs :)

are all doing a four mile walk/run

this coming weekend together.

the quote on the bottom of the shirt

which didn't show up in the photo reads:

"i have no doubt we will not run out of things to say in 4 miles; not even in 400 miles"

i am SO looking forward to this weekend

when we will all be together.

there is always much laughter and fun.

i cannot wait!

i wish you blessings as you go 

about the rest of your week.

shiny. beautiful. blessed. indeed.