2014 Resolutions & Goals

Each year I happen to make these lists. Most of the time I am like everyone else... I don't keep up with them. Well, I'll be posting my list here and then on the side of the blog as a reminder for the entire year.

I am praying for happiness, joy, and laughter for the 2014 New Year. This past year included too many tears and sadness.

So, here is my list:

1. Let go of what doesn't contribute to my own happiness. (This includes people who only caused heartache.)

2. Build my relationship with Christ. (This includes daily Bible study and going more to Him in prayer.)

3. Complete my Bible study on Angels.

4. BE ON TIME!! (I am never on time for anything. In 2012 when I got married, I was an hour late for the ceremony. Therefore, I am going to bust my rear end and be on time.)

5. Publish the two books I am in the process of writing.

6. Catch up on my review list of books for my book blog.

7. Spend less time on the internet and more time with my family. (My writing takes a lot of time, but I won't allow it to consume me this year.)

Last on my list... 

I have an old mason jar that I plan on using for the entire year. As the year goes by, anything that I would consider is a blessing... I'll write it down on a piece of paper and add it to the jar. This can include any goals I meet, surprise gifts, "LOL" moments, memories worth saving, etc. All good will be noted and put into the jar. This way at the end of 2014, I can pull out the notes and read at how the Lord blessed me during the year.

What is in your plans for 2014?

Thanksgiving in LeHighton

We made it safely last night to Greg's Moms. She welcomed us with open arms and lots of hugs. She was super excited that I had decided to go on this trip. There for a few weeks, I kept thinking I wasn't going to go because of the feeling of leaving Dakota behind. The trip out was fun. We decided to bring our friend Joe along, and Emma loved that idea. I was a bit worried about the weather since the weather channel was calling for a blizzard (*sarcasm*). We saw a dusting on our way there.

The first day (Thanksgiving Day) was more of a relaxing day. We sat around in the living room while watching Emma and Joe goof around. Then, Greg jumps in and the entire weekend was filled with laughter. Once we all sat down, Emma insisted we prayed (proud Mommy moment) and we enjoyed a delicious dinner.

The entire weekend, I kept seeing different things where I would like to believe it was Dakota telling me she's okay and was with me. Here are a video's from the trip:

Facebook Fan Page

I would love for everyone to hop on over to my facebook page and check it out. You can use this as another means to keep updated on new posts, blog hops, reviews, and awesome giveaways that I find. Please let me know if you have a page as well and I will check it out. I'm always looking for new facebook friends. :)

Check out the page here:

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Cardboard Boxes and Imaginations

This is a continued blog from yesterday. I wanted to share some great memories that I have from my past. I just love how children can find the simplest things in this world to amuse themselves.

When my sister and I were younger, our dad gave us two boxes. We could do whatever we wanted with the boxes. We put our heads together and came up with the idea of making cars. She chose a Bronco and I chose a Tracker. We went to town. We used our scissors, string, and what not... and a few hours later.. we had our Lil box cars. Our dad even went to the extent of adding the final touch to both of our new projects... steering wheels made with plastic lids from ice cream buckets.

As we played, my sister's seemed to have no issues. Mine on the other hand... well...it wasn't so great. The strings that I put on mine to place over my shoulders to hold my Tracker up....kept coming undone... then the steering wheel kept falling off...

All the while, my sister was out in the yard enjoying hers. This mad me mad. I began crying.... and that was it. I yelled that Trackers are junk and walked away.

To this day, we joke of this situation. This was one of many times my younger sister and I played together. We not only helped each other use our imaginations but we also created a memory that has lasted us a life time.

Mud, Fun, And Stupidity

As humans, we love to laugh. Even if it's at the expense of others. You can't deny it.. you've laughed at someone who has done some rather stupid things. Such as trip over a flat surface, fall up the steps, snort while laughing, or jumbling up words as one spoke... I've done pretty much every one of these. I'm a klutz at heart. But there are some things that other's have done that really stick out to me... memories that will last me my life time adding a smile to my face when thinking of them.

Let me share one with you. Maybe it will add a smile to your face. Enjoy!

A few summers ago, I was living with my mom and her husband. It was a beautiful day that followed a rainy one. We lived out in a very spacious area with wooded area's all around. My step dad's best friend owned a four-wheeler. One thing came to our minds on this boring afternoon. We wanted to have some fun. My step-dad called his friend and asked if he minded if we took his four-wheeler out. He said we could. So, I went into my step brother's room, put on some of his old clothes along with his "work" boots. (I didn't have any clothing that I would want to separate with if we did find some mud holes.)

Once we were ready, we loaded up the four-wheeler in the back of the Ranger, and went out looking for some mud. My step-dad grew up in the area so he had some spots in mind. His parents lived like 5 Min's down the road and we parked in their driveway. We unloaded and took off. I came to find myself in an old mine area where there were puddles EVERYWHERE!! As we rode, my step-dad didn't take it easy on the mud spots.. but the things is... they weren't doing the job. We needed to find some mud spots where we could get dirty.

As we rounded a corner, there it was. Our spot. The place we were looking for. We were searching for about 20 to 30 mins for this one mud puddle. The puddle took up the entire pathway. All it screamed at me was... FUN!! My step-dad took a U-turn, lined up with this puddle, and hit the gas. The wind was hitting my face so hard... my eyes were tearing up. I had no control... all I did was smile... finally a boring day turned into a fun one... well that was until we hit the middle of the puddle... it turns out... it was deeper than we thought. The four-wheeler bogged out and was stuck. I climbed off to let my step-dad try to use his weight to get it out but all that did was dig the hole deeper.

After a few minutes of him trying, it was really stuck. My step-dad had the idea to walk back to his parents house to get his truck (which was a four wheel drive) to pull it out. We went back, picked up the truck, and went back. When we got back, we realized we didn't have any ropes or anything. My step-dad decided to use a ratchet strep. He hooked it up and went to town. That didn't work. He was afraid the ratchet strap would break if he used it as a rope. All ideas we had failed, the more we tried... without realizing it.. the more the truck sunk into the mud. Once we realized it, the truck was also stuck in the mud.

We gave up trying to get the four wheeler out of the mud and our attention went to the truck. Without the truck, this meant that we had no way back home. After sitting and thinking about what we should do next, we noticed four others in the distance, on top of a hill watching us. They were probably laughing at how our luck wasn't in our favor. They came to try and help. They took the ratchet straps from the back of the truck and hooked them up to both their four-wheelers/truck.

This wasn't getting us anywhere. So, they decided to try to get the other four wheeler out. After some tugging and pulling, the four wheeler came free. Their attention went back to the truck... this time all the four wheelers were used to try to "free" the truck.

Nothing seemed to help. We had no choice but to call Mom. She had a jeep. That surely would be able to help us get the truck free. Let me remind you that the Ranger was a four wheel drive. Just thinking about our day, makes me laugh... but that's not the end of it... my mom came with her Jeep and was mad. She babied her jeep. She hated the idea of using it to pull the truck out because she didn't want anything to happen to it. Now, we had the jeep and all four-wheelers hooked up to the truck, with my step dad in the truck, trying to get it free. After a few attempts, it finally came out. Everyone was covered in mud. (Well, except for my mom. She refused to get out of her jeep.)

After all this was said and done, our fun was over. Mom told us it was time for us to go home. She was still angry. It seems like we were grounded for the remaining part of the day. My step-dad forgot to load up the ramps to put the four wheeler back into the truck. He got the bright idea to just jump the front end of the four wheeler onto the back of the truck.... I had a bad feeling as well as my mom. But he insisted that all would be fine. As the front end came down on the back of the truck, the tail gate was ripped off. (Pure stupidity which we laugh at now) Common sense would have told you that would happen. After a few minutes of thinking and fighting, we were loaded up and went home.

And Boy were we in trouble!!! Mom wouldn't let us in the house covered in mud. She made us clean off with the hose and she had the honor of doing it. She laughed at our discomfort.

But after all of this, I have a wonderful memory of how stupid we were that day.... and it was FUN!!!

Fun things to do while it's raining

As I was sitting this morning drinking my coffee and looking out the window, I began to think. It's been raining here for almost a week. The ground is muddy and the air is damp. Not a good mixture to go out and play in. So, I began to think of some fun things to do around my house with my daughter. Here's the list I came up with:


1.) Cuddle up on the couch and watch your child's favorite show. (This always leaves the memories warm and fuzzy when looking back at them.)

2.) Create something with various objects throughout your house. (We made butterfly's using clothespins, coffee filters, glue, and markers. Since her room is done as a garden, these added in perfectly.)

3.) Play a game. (Games are always a way to make everyone laugh, regardless of the age.)

4.) Bath the dog. (This not only is fun for a young child but the dog enjoys a clean bath too. Everyone wins here.It also teaches responsbility early.)


I still have a lot more idea's to go about doing. But seeing how it's 11 in the morning, and we already did the top four, I will have to add more to my list once we do them. All I can say is that it doesn't matter what my daughter and I do, I just enjoy spending time with her. Watching a child laugh is one of the best sounds/scenes in this world.