Letting go of the past~Being hopeful for the future

I am one of those people that tends to dwell on the past and say to myself, "if I hadn't done that" or " I wish I could have changed that." This past year has been a very difficult one (financially) for our family. Partly because of choices we've made and partly for things that were beyond our control. I have dwelt a lot on those choices I made only to become regretful with the things I CAN'T change. There are many things I learned this past year through this trial...You can't buy True Love. You can't buy Friendship. You can't go to Nordstrom and buy what you Believe in. All the money in the world would never pay for the Love I feel for my Children. You can't put a price tag on real Happiness. And you definitely can't buy your way into Heaven. (I knew these things already, but this year made it so clear in my mind that these "things" we need and want are only temporary compared to the things that will last...love, friendship, beliefs, happiness.)

With the New Year approaching I have been thinking a lot about what I can do better at. I don't necessarily like to make "New Years Resolutions". I feel like I'm just setting myself up to fail when I do. I like to look at the past year and evaluate my life. Where I did good and where I need to make changes or improvements...And what I learned and mistakes I made...that I won't make again.
I break them up into categories:
Spiritual, Health, Financial, Marriage, Children, Enjoyment (Vacations, Scrap booking, Decorating, Etc.), & Self.
I then take each of those categories and make a list of things I need to improve on and how I will work to do so. It seems like my list gets longer every year. The good news is, is that I can see the improvement and the growth from the past to the present.
Last year I started running every day with my friend, Larae. I will admit right now that I don't like running. But after I'm done, I feel so good. Physically and Mentally. I have a sense of accomplishment. This year I have made a goal to do a 5K. I thought I would start out with a practical goal and work my way up to a Marathon...Yeah Right. I have no desire to do that. But I am excited for the challenge.
When I look at my goals, I realize that they can all be linked to each other in one way or another. Financial=budget=use a grocery list=make a healthy grocery list=healthy body=more energy to play with my kids=happy me=More like my Savior. I am so grateful for the knowledge I have. I'm so grateful to have the trials I do, to make me stronger.
What are some of your Goals or Resolutions? Do you have any secrets of how to set and accomplish your goals?

"If we did all the things we are capable of doing, we would literally astonish ourselves." Thomas Edison

CHRISTmas 2009~

What a wonderful Holiday season this has been. I was thinking to myself..."I haven't felt much of the holiday spirit this month." But today I took some time to think about the past few weeks and I realized the Spirit was always there. At the beginning of the month we had dear friends ;) over for breakfast and dinner. A little tradition we've started. Then we went with some friends to Winder Dairy Farms for hot chocolate and scones. (I had no idea they did that.) They were yummy! We had church and work parties.

My sister-in-law started a new tradition that I hope continues...we went down to Spanish Fork and meet my other brothers and sisters and had dinner. Then we went and saw the Spanish Fork Light Parade. (I don't know what the official name is.) Then back to my brothers house for White Elephant games and lot of laughs. (Someone needs to inform Karin what "White Elephant" means.) ;) We had the Cordero Party on Dec. 20th. Christmas Eve we had dinner with my parents. (I like the one-on-one time my kids get with their Grandparents.) Then Christmas morning was so fun. I'm usually stressed trying to get the presents under the tree opened fast enough that we can make it on time to my parents house for breakfast.

We also had someone doing the 12 days of Christmas that really brought the Spirit into our home. Each night for 11 nights we'd get a story and one item to go to a Nativity set. On the 12th night, they revealed themselves. I had no idea it would be this sweet family. I am so grateful for the Spirit of CHRISTmas and how it can touch each one of our lives. One of my goals for 2010 is to keep that same Spirit all through the year.

I hope you all had a very Merry Christmas too.

Keni was very excited about her tooth brushes!

Miracles Con't.

Well, life sure got crazy in a matter of a day...

Dec. 17 Miracle: UPS called and put me to work. (And boy did I work!) I was out delivering packages from 10:30 am until 5:30 pm and I was tired at the end of the day. I have a new respect for those people that do that job every day!

Day 18: Another day working, but that night I got to be surrounded by GOOD people. Lots of Laughs!

Day 19: I got all my Christmas shopping D-O-N-E!

Day 20: I went to church. I love going to church.

Day 21: I had dinner with my DAD and my sister, Lisa. (Jenni was sick.) We had such a good heart to heart talk. I am truly grateful everyday for my parents and brothers and sisters!!!

I am also grateful for my health. That I can run and jump and play with my kids.

What is a miracle you had today? Share.

~Miracles~

Last week I was having, "one of those days". I received a email from a sweet friend that really cheered me up. She sent me a link to another blog (http://www.5000moms.com/Soul/?p=259&cpage=1#comment-51)
This really made me forget all the days troubles and remember all that I had been blessed with. The site suggested to make a "Miracle List". So I took the advice and got started and I wanted to share a few of my daily Miracles:
Dec. 10-09
-I got to stay home and play with my little girls.
-I had a great talk with my wonderful husband.
-I received Christ-like love and kindness from a friend.

Dec. 11-09
-I got to share my testimony of Jesus Christ with my 10 year old daughter and I think hers grew a little more as well.

Dec. 12-09
-I got to spend quality time with my brothers and sisters and their families.

Dec. 13-09
-Went to church and re-learned how I can protect myself and family in this crazy world.
-Enjoyed dinner and laughs with our good friends the Wybrows.
-Someone has started "The 12 Days of Christmas".

Dec. 14-09
-Thought I was going to work today for UPS...but didn't get a phone call. Even though I need to work, to me this was a miracle because I wanted to stay home with my girls.
-A dear friend offered to help me with some craft projects...I enjoyed her company too.

Dec. 15-09
-Got almost all the Christmas shopping done without getting frustrated at other shoppers or my kids. ;)

***These may seem like very minor things to others, but to me they have all been miracles and blessings in this crazy thing I call "life".***

Take the time to recognize the miracles and blessings in your own life. You might be surprised just how much you have been given.

Christmas Thought~

"Christmas gift suggestions: To your enemy, forgiveness. To an opponent, tolerance. To a friend, your heart. To a customer, service. To all, charity. To every child, a good example. To yourself, respect."-- Oren Arnold

Oh, happy day!

Yesterday I saw a license plate frame that said, "After all...tomorrow is another day." How true is that. This has been just one of those weeks where nothing seems to be going my way. I hired on at UPS as a "Driver-Helper" (yay!) to help with Christmas this year...and some unexpected bills. Well, I was expecting to go to work on Monday, but Kamri came down with strep. So, I stayed home. On Tuesday, UPS never called me to come in. I wasn't too worried because Kamri was still home. But on Wednesday, I was ready. I had my brown uniform already to go out and tackle the cold. Well, by 4:00 pm they still didn't have a route for me. As for today...I'm on my blog and not out on a UPS truck. So, I just keep thinking to myself, tomorrow is another day.
Life has been throwing us "lemons" for about a year now and I am pretty good at making "lemon-aid", figuratively speaking. What else can I do with "Lemons"?

Thanksgiving

What an exciting month. I can't believe Thanksgiving was here and gone. I was so thankful to spend it with mine and Matt's family. On Thanksgiving Eve we went out to dinner with my brother's and sister's and spouses along with our parents to dinner and a movie. We've made it a tradition that I love. We went and saw, "Blindside." Probably one of the best movies I've seen in a long time. It's one of those feel-good movies.

On Thursday Matt's parents and brother Brad and family came to our house for a Thanksgiving feast. I was so happy that we got to spend it with them. (We were going to be spending Thanksgiving all alone.) There was so much to eat. I think I'm still full. ;) I have so much to be thankful for!

I'm grateful for our heritage and for those that paved the way for this Country and our freedoms. I'm grateful to live in Utah. I'm so so grateful for my parents, for Matt's parents and for my grandparents. Truly amazing people. I'm grateful for my brother's and sister's. I love them so much. (I hope they all know that!) I'm grateful for my friends. I am surrounded by so many wonderful people. I can always rely on them. I'm grateful for my children. They teach me something new every day...especially patience. I'm so grateful for Matt. He is the love of my life. He is the sweetest, most thoughtful person I know. I love him. Most of all, I'm grateful to belong to The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter day Saints. I have been so blessed.