Guess where I'm going...

First a little background as I've not shared any of the particulars except with just a very few before now. I've been consulting on a project for the last year at the request of a very good friend. Part of this project happens to be in area that I'm knowledgeable and she values my input greatly. As things are really beginning to take shape with this *project* my expertise is needed even more than before. Decisions are being made and implemented, decisions that reflect a rather sizable commitment of resources (capital, land, materials, etc). Serious stuff. About a week or so ago another friend whom I especially requested to be connected to the *project* called me asking if we would like to attend a trade show, which in turn would greatly enhance our decision making process. I quickly agreed & put in for the time off work. My friend and I will be headed to Charleston next week where I'll continue to consult and advise her on her *project* It's pretty heady stuff to be sought out and asked for my opinions on a project of this size but to actually see my ideas taking shape and being implemented, well let's just say it's rather humbling. To Our Father be the glory.

a Simple Confession

***edited to add - I'm sorry! I should have mentioned I didn't take those birdy pictures! *smiles*
I have a confession to make, I hope you don't lose all respect for me when I admit this but I'm not a huge fan of exercise. I guess I'm just your basic lazy person. I know all about the health benefits, etc but still I have never managed to establish a regular exercise routine. I have good intentions but rarely follow thru. Once again I'm trying to change that. A dear friend named Tracy recently bought a new piece of exercise equipment and challenged me to matching her in exercise time or atleast matching half of her time. Being a closet competitive person this was just what I needed to get my ever enlarging bee-hind in gear. My dear sweet Mr Darcy cleared out some room in our catch-all enclosed carport for my treadmill and I started using it Monday.

I managed 30+ minutes for three days in a row now and I'm so proud of myself. Despite the bone chilling cold of the uninsulated, unheated carport and seeing my breath I hung in there. Another confession, it wasn't so bad! I could do this regularly but whatever mechanism that's in my brain that stops me from doing it will have to be disconnected first *smiles*


This beauty is what I saw when I happened to glance out the back door while walking

And I saw one of these too along with three others that I can't identify. All were a blessing to me, sort of a little reward for my efforts enduring the cold and overcoming my laziness in order to love myself. That's how I'm looking at it, this exercise business, it's a manifestation of loving myself enough to do what will make me stronger and healthier. A Simple Abundance moment

Blushing

My first awards for 2009 and I still can't believe I got one, let alone two! How cool is that? Especially since we all know I'm blog post and photography challenged! Have ya'll met Tardevil? She's lives in a house divided which she shares the special funny antics of a life lived with opposing college loyalties on her blog "Confessions of a 40 something mama queen"
You definitely should go by and give her a visit, she's a real hoot!

These friendship awards are for bloggers who are not into self-aggrandizement. I confess I wasn't 100% certain of the definition but I had a pretty fair passing idea of what that meant. This award is for bloggers who are more interested in establishing friendships than self promotion. I love sharing ideas and seeing bits of everyone lives, what's meaningful and special to them, sharing our trials and failures, being able to laugh and jump back in with another project. It's just a great big gab fest with your best girlfriends and that's what I love about the bloggers I call friends. They are women who are more interested in sharing and caring than selling, they sometimes deep down wonder why so many people leave comments on their blogs cause they just don't understand truly how sweet and wonderful they are. And they are always ready with with a warm wish of encouragement or a gentle scolding when needed *smiles*
So thank you Tardevil for this very special award and I'm geniunely sorry it took me so long to post and pass it along! And Miz Sweetie of Sweetie's World who gave me the second award which is for the same thing as the first, bloggers who are interested in friendships more than self aggrandizement.
Obviously there's a few people who come to mind when one thinks of friendship in a non self-aggrandizement way and those ladies whom I lovingly pass this award on to are:

The imperfectly wonderful and incomparable Darlene of Darlene's Days whom everyone knows and calls friend!

Miss Linda of Linda n Jake who shares her adventures with her sweet fur baby Jake

Miss Brandee of Very Berry Nice whom you just have to love inspite of her beautifully self decorated home because she is truly just so "very berry nice"

Miz Melissa of Little Things In Life who shares the cutest projects and is a smocker extraordinaire

and of course Miz Daphine of Just Stuff who shares her sweet wonderful adventures as she overcomes her pet related fears and raises her beautiful family

And Miz Rhonda of Scooterblu's Whimsy another beautifully self decorated home but you just love Miz Rhonda cause she's so darn sweet

The above mentioned Tardevil of Confessions of a 40 something Mama Queen

Finally Miz Sweetie of Sweetie's World who is a new friend but truly knows what it means to live, laugh and love every moment of life

I know I missed atleast 10 of friends who deserve these awards as well so please grab it and post it on your blog with love and friendship wishes from me! Please be sure to visit these ladies too and leave a comment cause we all know we live by the comment count on our blogs *smiles* I know I do!

On a personal note about my dental saga, I'm currently saving $$$ to have it removed by an oral surgeon so please pray for a speedy enlargement to my dental work fund *smiles* For now the antibiotics are working and the pain is lessening which is a blessing. And thanks Miz Darlene for the gentle scolding, now I know beyond a shadow of a doubt that we should be next door neighbors!

Where have I been?

Life in retail can be brutal... After suffering thru 3 months of cranky, rude holiday shoppers I was faced with inventory! Each and every roll of trim, ribbon, cording had to be counted... Every bolt of fabric weighed and recorded. After a week of lots of prep work and counting the inventory team arrived bright and early Saturday morning! We all were so happy to see them! And on my one day off I got to go sit in one of these! Lucky me huh? I feel about dentists the same way I feel about doctors, they are to be avoided! There's just something about having my head lower than my feet while reclining in a chair, having a bright light glaring in my eyes and my mouth open all the while with sharp instruments and someone else's hands in it causing me to lose all ability to communicate clearly that bothers me.... Call me crazy!
Remember my Statesboro trip? I lost what I thought was a filling while eating a very sticky granola bar. I just suffered with it, figuring I'd get things checked out sooner or later. A week ago the pain started and didn't stop but due to inventory at the store I wouldn't leave my post to have it checked. Then I discovered my sweet dentist is no longer seeing patients, gosh had it been that long since my last checkup? I guess so... I found a new one who I'm not afraid of *smiles* but now I'm facing a trip to the oral surgeon!

So that's where I've been this past week, at my store doing lots of inventory type things while suffering from the worst toothache you can imagine, popping Advils like crazy just to survive.
I promise I'll be around to visit and leave comments on everyone's blog just as soon as I can. Until then I keep thinking about all I have to be grateful for... a very understanding family and boss who promises to work with me while I take care of this bothersome problem, a healthy baby kitten who is growing by leaps and bounds, a fast internet connection so I don't feel disconnected from everyone, and plenty of Advil *smiles*

Choose Your Word

I was reminded by a post of Linda's about choosing a word for the year. I've done this before and I really like how it seems to focus my endeavors when I could so easily be distracted.



What am I hoping for this year? What do I feel I need to work on? Where do I want to be in my journey? What word sums it all up?

My word for 2009 that I'd like to share with you is SIMPLIFY

It so happens I've used this word before a few years ago but I feel the need to use it again. Simplify to make simple or simpler: as a: to reduce to basic essentials b: to
diminish in scope or complexity : streamline c: to make more intelligible

I'm known as the organized one in real life, I've made maps of my attic, my spices are alphabetical, all my clothes hang on white hangers in rainbow order, light to dark, with subcategories of short to long sleeves, but still it's not enough! I have to tame this consumer diva inside me that wants more, more, more possessions and things, all that end up cluttering my home and life and leaving me dissatisfied with my blessings I've received. Enough! Time for me to Simplify so I can focus on more important things like spiritual growth, family, friends, creating.

Won't you join me in choosing your own word for the year to help you keep your focus on your goals? Please share your words with me! I'd love to hear them!

SA - Welcome to you!

Have you found your copy of Simple Abundance yet? No worries, here's the beauty of this type of book, each day of the year has a little something written so you can pick up and join in any time! I learned that it's better to skip to the end of the month and read the review first as it sort of outlines the gist of what you're reading that month but you truly can jump in on any day. I'm going to give you a very brief sort of over view in my own words what this book is about.




Basically this is a road map to living a gratitude based life, exploring who you are as a creative being, embracing your caregiver role as wife and mother thru loving your home and creating a warm, inviting environment where you're not bogged down in clutter. It's a road map to learning what's really important in our daily lives and finding your authenticity in your daily round, setting aside time and space to reflect upon our spiritual journey as women. While the author doesn't specifically mention a particular faith you can easily incorporate your own personal faith and beliefs with this. So if you're looking for a scripture specific day to day journey this won't be it but I personally find it goes along nicely with my Bible study.





I'm going to share with you the six Simple Abundance principles so you can get started even if you don't have the book. Those six principles are Gratitude, Simplicity, Order, Harmony, Beauty and Joy. And I found the first week's worth of reading online here: January, Part 1





What I'm going to do is share periodically where I am in my journey towards Simple Abundance and if you happen to blog something related to your Simple Abundance journey I hope you'll title your entry using Simple Abundance or SA so we will know it's a SA post. It's my wish we take this journey as it comes, letting it unfold naturally and incorporating the bits that are meaningful to us and not worrying about the bits that are not.

Welcome to you!