Star4Laughs

Tuesday, February 4, 2014

An Attitude Of Gratitude!

I have been out of a job for over a month now, & have been job hunting relentlessly. I've gone on a LOT of job interviews. Their are so many people out of work. The waiting is so hard. It's easy (especially for a worrier like me!) to get down & depressed. But as you know my word for 2014 is Hope! And as part of my Year Of Hope I'm choosing to look on the Bright Side. So for the Month of February I've decided to concentrate on what I do have instead of what I don't.

I'm making a list! Everyday of this Month I will write down something I am Grateful for. Because no matter how bad things get, there is Always, Always something to be Grateful for! And after all, February is the month for Love & Gratitude, right?! Some of you may keep a Gratitude Journal & do this regularly. If you don't you could start a list with me, or use a Monthly Calendar & write in everyday 1 thing you are Thankful for. It's early enough in the Month, you could easily catch up.

I think this is a great way to help me keep my mind in the right place! Staying Positive, instead of going negative. Which is sometimes the easiest way to go. Gratitude turns what we have into enough! And I'm starting the Month & my Gratitude list with each of my Family members. And I think as I ad their name to my list each day, I'll make each of them a list where I'll write down all the things I'm grateful for about each of them and give it to them on Valentines Day!

Won't you join me in cultivating an Attitude Of Gratitude?! And start your own list of 28 things you are Grateful for in the month of February!

Monday, February 3, 2014

Superbowl Thoughts!

Now when it comes to the Superbowl, if my teams aren't competing that year, I always go for the team that either hasn't been to the Superbowl before or has won it less times. And this year that team was Seattle Seahawks. And Bonus for me, Seattle itself is one of my most favorite cities! So I chose to root for them!

Inspired by Pinterest, I put together an outfit with Seattle colors that day! :) My team never wins, but this year they did! In a blow out game! (I think I found a new tradition, I'm gonna wear the colors for the team I want to win every year!) Who knew the Lucky Charm was hanging in my closet?! :)

We had a fun little make shift Superbowl Party! (One of the pluses of having a lot of kids is it's always a party when we're all together!) We had John & I, our 4 kids & our son's Girlfriend. I made my Bar B Q cups, we had chips & salsa & a Peanut Butter Cup Ice Cream Cake. Yummy & Easy! Two of my favorite things! :)

But of course, the real reasons I watch the Superbowl is the Half Time Show & the Commercials! :) And this year's Half Time Show was Awesome! Bruno Mars is an amazing performer! And there were some really good commercials this year! Here are some that were my Favorites . . . . .

My 5 Favorite Superbowl Ads of 2014:

I'm a sucker for Nostalgia!

And I loved seeing the "Reunions" of some of my favorite old shows!

1. Greek Yogurt with the Full House guys!

(You know you love Uncle Jesse too!)

2. Seinfeld & George!

(To be honest I don't even remember what the Ad was for.)

3. Radio Shack "The 80's called!"

(You know I Heart the 80's!)

And I just Love Ads that pull at your heart strings!

If they make me cry It's just as great as making me laugh!

4. The Soldier coming home to a surprise Parade!

(If you didn't cry in this one, you just didn't see it!)

And my most favorite Ad of all was:

5. Coke America Is Beautiful!

(Yes it is, and this Ad shows us why!)

I hope you enjoyed the big game, surrounded by Friends & Family you love. And tell me, what were your favorite Superbowl Ads this year? And FYI next years Superbowl is right here in Arizona! Yay!

Wednesday, January 22, 2014

2014 Bookshelf Challenge

The other day I had a stack of Books beside me, trying to decide which Book to read next. One of my most Favorite things to do! :) When my son asked me if I'd heard about the Bookshelf Challenge. I said No, what's that? And he told me that at the beginning of the year, you clear off a Bookshelf, and as you read Books throughout the year, you put them on your emptied shelf, and at the end of the year you can look back & see all you've read this year!

I thought What A Great Idea! I'd love to be able to look back at the end of the year & see what all I've read that year! To sort of relive your year in Books! I'm game! So, lets do it! What do you say?!

I, for one read all year long! I almost always have a Book with me, and can read just about anywhere! For those of you who read on a Kindle or hand held device, maybe there's a virtual shelf you can create to list the Books you read this year! Or if you're on Good Reads, you can create a Bookshelf on there! Check mine out here. And Friend me while you're there! :) We can get Ideas for what to read next from each other's Bookshelves!

I'm on my 3rd Book so far this year! There will be times in the year, that you'll go through Books quickly & other times it will seem like you have no time to read at all. And both are okay! I'll check back through out the year to see how we're all doing, and what our 2014 Bookshelf looks like!

So, who's in? The Challenge is on! Lets read together! And make 2014 a Great year!

Thursday, January 9, 2014

Give Me Five: Life Lessons We Could Learn From Dennis Rodman!

Okay, yes, Dennis Rodman is all over the news right now. And well, I have more time on my hands right now since I'm not working, so why not turn him into a Blog Post?! So I've come up with 5 Life Lessons we all could learn from him! Yeah, you heard me, we can actually learn a thing or two from this character, so hold on to your hats, here we go . . .

Life Lessons we could all learn from Dennis Rodman:

1. It's Okay Not To Look Like Everyone Else!

Always be yourself!

2. If At First You Don't FAIL, Try, Try, Again!

Now for most people it's the opposite,

"If at first you don't succeed" but he did it backwards!

His succes came first . . .

and since then it's been failure

after failure!

3. Never Be Afraid To Try Something New!

Life, after all, should be an Adventure!

Why not? Take the shot!

4. Keep Your Friends Close & Your Enemies Closer!

Okay, so maybe he isn't the best example of Friendship

Nuf said!

5. Always Think Before Your Speak!

If you want to actually be heard & taken seriously:

Think first about what you want to say

and then use diction to actually say it! :)

Okay, so there you have it! 5 Life Lessons we can learn from Dennis Rodman! Numbers 1 & 3 I actually like! :) Your Welcome!

Tuesday, January 7, 2014

My Word For 2014

Have you ever thought of picking a Theme Word for the new year?

A word you'd like to live by throughout that year.

I have!

I remember giving my son "Find a Date in 2008!" ;)

But this year I don't have a catchy slogan,

just 1 word:

Hope has always been one of my favorite words!

When I was pregnant with Twin girls 16 years ago
who were due in mid October

I wrote in my Journal that if they were due closer to Christmas

I would name them Hope & Holly!

When 2013 ended with me loosing my job & my families Health Insurance

as a tried & true Worrier

my first instinct is to crawl into bed & cry!

And just stay there!

But you always have a Choice!

You can look at all the negative & dwell on that

or you can try to see the positive in things!

I always try to be positive, but sometimes it's much harder than it seems.

I've always said: When life hands you Lemons,

throw them at someone!" :)

Just kidding!

but the point is you can always find something positive in every situation!

So, going in to 2014

I'm choosing to have Hope!

Hope that I'll find a better job for me soon!

Hope that my family will be Healthy & Happy!

Hope!

I love the above picture,

I put it as my Twitter Cover Photo at the beginning of the year!

This year, I'm choosing to live on Hope Street! :)

Because when you have Hope you have everything!

So what do you need in your life this year?

What would your word for 2014 be?

Friday, January 3, 2014

2013, The Year In Review

Let's see, what can I say about 2013? It was a Great year! And at the same time it was a not so great year! It began & ended with loss; we lost my Father in Law in March. 1 Year after loosing my Mom! It's always hard to loose people we love, and when you see your kids hurting, it's even worse. Then 2 weeks before Christmas I got "let go" from my job. It is the most stressful job I've ever had in my entire life time, and though the timing was really terrible, it's actually been nice to have time off during the Holidays. We still had a Lovely Christmas! Yes, we had fewer gifts this year, but our kids are older & they understand. And most of our shopping was done before hand. But now that the Holidays are over, I can't afford to be home, so please pray with us, that I find a job quickly. And with loosing my job, we also lost our Health Care, so my new job needs to include that as well. Thanks so much.

But, 2013 brought some really great stuff too . . . Kyle got a new job & a Girlfriend! And is very happy with both! :) Katie is very sweet, she's a Nurse, & seems to be really good for Kyle! He's also very involved in Music & Jr. High Ministries at his Church. Zach and Kendra are still together & going strong, even though she lives 5 hours away! Zach got his Associates Degree and started ASU this year, working towards his Bachelors Degree in Wildlife & Restoration Ecology. He's studying to be a Wildlife Biologist. Erica & Lexi turned Sweet 16!! We had a big Breakfast At Tiffany's themed party! It was so fun! Both girls also got to go to their first Concerts! Erica saw Taylor Swift & Lexi, Paramore! Their Favorites! We went on an Adventure & had a Great Vacation in Durango Colorado. John & I celebrated 26 years of Marriage! He is working Full time at CrossRoads Church, which is a Interim position. So he is also looking for a permanent position as well.

So, as you can see, we are entering the New Year with open arms! We're ready for new, we're ready for change! As 2013 leaves us with all it's great Memories, that we will treasure for ever, we will let all of it's Sadness be washed away, out with the old, in with the new! Here's to a Happy New Year! Looking forward to see what 2014 holds in store!