Mother's Day

Wow, I haven't been here since New Year's... after most of last year's posts, it can really only mean that so far, it's been a quiet year.

Today is a wonderful day, the day that we all celebrate the most important woman in our lives - Our Mom!

As I sit here wondering what sort of tribute to moms I could write, I think about the different things I heard and learned over the years:

1. Life is not fair... How many times have we all heard that one?

2. I'm going to give you something to cry about... Really mom, I think I must have already found it.

3. Do you want me to spank you? Seriously, you really didn't just ask that question, did you?

4. I don't care what so-n-so is doing, as long as you live under my roof, you are not going to do that.

5. If your friend jumped off a bridge, would you do it too?

So, I know there are many, many more, but these are the ones that were on the top of the list.

Life isnt' about what I heard from Mom, it's what I've LEARNED from her.

I have learned that Life is not fair, that bad things will happen to good people, but I've also learned that good things happen to good people. When you work hard for something and the goal is reached, there is no better feeling in the world.

I've learned that in life, anything is possible, and if you think it's not, then you aren't trying hard enough.

I've learned that you can never have too many friends, and you never have just ONE best friend. Every friend is a BEST friend, but for a different purpose.

I've learned my MOM has a hard time saying "NO" when it means helping someone out of a bind.

I've learned that if I become half the woman my mom is, I will be one lucky girl.

She has an inner strength that is unbelievable. I know I get that from her. When times seem unbearable, when I feel there's nothing more I can give, I have learned to dig a little deeper and find that strength. She is the strongest lady I know. She raised Sam and I to become the adults we are today. She instills old fashioned values in her grandchildren. She proves to us everyday that a little hard work never hurt anyone.

She is my rock, she is the rock of this family, and I don't know what I would ever do without her. I leave you with a quote... It's either Winnie the Pooh or Christoper Robbins, but it goes like this:

"If you live to be a hundred, I want to live to be 101, so I never have to live a day without you."

I LOVE YOU MOM~

Happy Mother's Day to all you you!

A Toast to the New Year

I wanted to write a cool blog today, my general words of wisdom, but for once, I don't know what to say. I looked back on my posts in 2010, and I cried. Let's face it, we all had a lot to cry about last year. I am not going to relive it in this post because truth be told, we've all relived it everyday for the past 12 months.

You never know what life will bring you, what hides around the next curve of the highway or what one sunset takes and one sunrise brings. In a split second a life can change: for the good and for the bad. Over the last 365 days, I know I have learned not to take one second for granted. Nothing is guaranteed, nothing is owed to any of us. We are all human and at some point, we have to deal with our own mortality.

2011 is a new year, a new beginning. Our lives are what we make of them, our character is created by how we handle what life throws at us. We are stronger than we can imagine being. We are a community that is stronger and closer today than we were 365 days ago. We have always been close, but the year we endured showed the world just how close we are.

My wish for this year is that God watch over each and everyone of my family and friends and keep us all safe and healthy. May we never forget who we are and where we come from.