I'm grateful for my sister in laws...

I truly am blessed to have amazing sister in laws. We are all beautiful and amazing in our ways, we are similar yet very different. 

My husband and I both come from blended families, we know it's not easy to mix two families together and say hey we are a family now. 

I've always noticed this divide in our families, both sides. My families gap has closed a lot over the recent years, and now I'm determined to mend the gap on the other side. 

My kids have 7 cousins they could be a whole heck of a lot closer too. I remember growing up my cousins were my best friends, yes we fought but we were always family and family is so important! 

With some help from my sisters we have two family get togethers in the works with  all of the kids and grand kids. I'm so excited! 

 I'm grateful for my sister in law who never left my side during the roughest year of my life. She gave me hope, inspiration and love. She's inspired me in ways she will never know, and I'm so proud of her for her own journey and accomplishments. We have very similar purposes, thought processes, and beliefs, yet we are still very different in our ways. 

I'm grateful for all of my family members, it's just today I'm extra greatful for my sisters! 

Be Grateful. 

Let it go...

I'll be a 100% honest, I frickin love Frozen! I would be lying if I said I didn't know every word to every song and every line in the movie! Yes it gets annoying when you watch and listen to it all the time, but the messages in the movie are inspiring. The power of love can heal anything! 

I will proudly say a few times by myself I have rocked out to Let It Go and sang it at the top of my lungs. It felt soooo good! 

Who would think those three words have so much power behind them? I sure didn't! 

When I learned to let go of everything I had no control over it truly eliminated a ginormous amount of my stress and anxiety. 

I let go of all the hurt and pain from my childhood. I embrace the good memories I do have, and love the family that we are today. 

I let go of the not so great choices I made  in the past. I don't regret them one bit, if I had not been threw it all, I wouldn't be as strong as I am today. 

I let go of all the should have, could haves, and would haves of life. I stopped dreaming about what my life could have been, and embraced gratitude in every aspect of my life, and realized how truly blessed I am. 

I let go of the stress of the future, whatever happens will happen, and I will embrace those challenges as they arise. 

I let go of all the negative self talk. I talk to myself with the same love, kindness and compassion I would expect others to speak to me in. 

I let go of others mistakes that have hurt me. No one is perfect and no one should be expected to be. I forgive myself and I forgive others. 

I let go of my own personal expectation to be able to do it all. I now ask for help and graciously accept it. 

I let go of others problems that I can't  control. I pray for them. 

By letting go off all these negative thoughts and actions, I have made room for more positive, grateful and happy thoughts. I encourage everyone to just let it go!! 

Be Grateful & Let It Go.

Thanks to whomever made this image💖

It's alright if you don't know...

One of the things I used to stress out about was the unknown. It didn't matter what it was, but I was constantly making up scenarios that weren't existing and worrying about them. All of the stressing caused my anxiety to go through the roof! I would get myself all worked up over going places and doing things. I was always worrying about what others were thinking at that very moment. 

I used to stress myself because I didn't know what I wanted to spend the rest of my life doing. I felt like there was something wrong with me because I didn't know, I just plain and simple didn't know. And that scared the life out of me! Literally made me crawl into a deep dark hole of depression that sucked the life right out of me. 

My moms helped me realize I needed to live in the present, in the now. The time to  overcome battles is when they are actually infront of you, not made up scenarios in your head, of all the negative what ifs that could happen. 

It wasn't easy, but after consciously shutting down those negative thoughts, and redirecting my train of thought, I have noticed a huge decrease in my stress and anxiety level. When something happens I deal with it! Life happens, it's about how you handle it. 

I truly believe everything happens for a reason, as hard as that may be to see. We learn so much from our expierences, good and bad, and that makes us who we are. 

Let's not stress about the future, the past, and the uncontrollable. Instead let's embrace the NOW, and make it the best it can be! 

It's valuable to remember that their is only one amazing you! You are the only one who has expierenced your journey. I think it's important we all encourage ourselves and others to imbrace our authentic selfs, and let your let shine bright for everyone to see. We all have something unique to share with the world, it's pure bliss when you figure out! 

Be Grateful. 

Think Before You Speak...

First I would like to give credit to whomever created this picture, I don't know who you are but thank you! 

Second I would like to thank my mom for teaching my this valuable tool! 

I am 100% guilty of never thinking before I spoke, or speaking out of anger and hurt. I'm sure it is a huge reason I don't have many friends from my past. I accept that and I'm moving forward. 

It seems like a simple idea, think before you speak, think before you act, when in reality it takes a tremendous amount of self control. 

By resisting to say the first thing that comes to your mind in a negative situation , you are being the bigger person. You are NOT adding fuel to the fire! 

I know when my husband and I were fighting non-stop I would say the first thing that came to my mind, not considering how it would make him feel or how I wouldn't be able to take it back. We both did, there was a lot of honesty behind it all but it was the way we were approaching each other with it. We would hit below the belt way to often. Finally after many of phone calls with my mom she helped me realize what was going on. From then on I didn't respond right away, I would hear what he had to say and then think about my response. Wasn't to long after he was doing the same thing. We were finally speaking with respect and honesty. 

When I was still on Facebook, I witnessed a lot on people hiding behind computer screens not having a care in the world how their criticism was hurting others. I would see struggling mothers asking for advice, and others just blasting her with h*te. This was a huge reason I jumped the Facebook ship, I didn't want to be part of a judgmental, negative community.

Couple weeks ago I was talking with one of my friends, she said they were goin to protest against planned parenthood. All I could come up with was "oh", couple moments of silence and then I said " have a great weekend" and walked inside my house. I didn't want to have a debate about abortion with one of my new friends. I didn't want our different beliefs to put a divide in our friendship. I chose to respect her decision as I would expect her to respect mine. As a woman and a mother, I don't want anyone telling me what I can and can't do with my body. By no means and I turning this into a abortion discussion but my point being had I not thought before I spoke, I would have gone off on an angry rant on my thoughts. 

I've also noticed my road rage has mellowed out a lot, I used to scream, curse, flip off other drivers. (Without my kids!!) I've noticed now I just let it go, keep singing my music and take my foot off the gas a little. Now I'm not saying my road rage is completely gone, but I've definitly got it under control. 

I'm not asking you to filter yourself, and not speak up for yourself! I encourage you all to be your true authentic self, but to do it will kindness, compassion, gratitude and love. Consider it your contribution to making the world a kinder,  happier place! 

Be Grateful. 

I walk my own path...

I'm grateful I know I don't need to be somebody I'm not, and that I don't have to walk down the path my parents did, or my siblings. I believe everyone has their own path they are meant to walk, it may be similar to yours, or you may disagree with another's path but none the less it is their path and their choice. 

For awhile I used to be worried that my moms would be disappointed in me because I got married and had two kids instead of going straight from high school to college like my brothers did. But now I know they are proud of me for who I am and the amazing mom that I am. I remember when my mom found out I was pregnant she emailed me what I would consider "hate mail"  in which I interpreted basically telling me all the ways we weren't ready to be parents. It took few months for her to accept it but I was determined to prove them wrong. I knew I could be a good young mother, and yes we had our financial struggles but who doesn't. Luckly we had an amazing support system to help is through. By the time I was 7 months pregnant they were excited, threw me an amazing baby shower, and helped us get ready for our baby girl. I will say they are the best Mema and Cema my kids could have, all that turmoil is left in the past. 

I am grateful for my path and every one that has crossed it along my journey. I know some people were a blessin and others a lesson, but they are all still important in my journey. 

I am grateful I don't feel the need to compare my journey to anothers, or measure my failures and success next to another. 

I'm grateful I didn't go right to college and spend a bunch of money on an education I wasn't ready for. I'm grateful I trusted my gut and created my own path. 

I am grateful for my two amazing children, they encourage me to grow more and more everyday to make the world a better place for them. 

The best thing about walking your own path is your are in charge! You have a choice! If something isn't making you happy eliminate it! If you are lacking something add it into your busy schedule. You are in control of your destiny, you are the only one that can take charge of your life, and determine what is acceptable and what is not. You set the standards for how others treat you. 

It's so important to speak up for yourself, and I don't mean in a hostile way, but to simple say, "It upsets me when... Or it is not ok to speak to me like that." Speaking up and standing up for yourself are essential parts in loving yourself. If you embrace your self worth you will know that you deserve better. Change takes courage, but happiness is worth it!

I encourage you all to embrace your own unique journey and the path you walk on  and most of all Be Grateful. 

I used to be a bully...

I won't lie, I remember being a bully in middle school, a lot of it was being a bad friend, but I know I said some awful things, and hurt people in the process. I can't exactly pin point why I was so mean and hateful, I'm sure it had to do with my self confidence, rejection issues, lack of love and support, and a lost soul. It seems ironic I hated being bullied yet I still did it, it still doesn't make sense to me. I will say I was not the meanest person in my school, and the girls I bullied were a circle of my friends. It was always three against two or four against one, we were all horrible to each other. 

By the time we got to high school we all went our seperate ways besides passing each other in the hall or having a class together. After that I kept my head down and started hanging out with people that in the process I ended up making lots of bad choices, trying lots of bad things, and not making school or my future a priority at all.

 When I graduated I bounced town and moved to Colorado as quickly as I could. I knew I would never be happy there and wanted to get as far away from everyone as I possibly could! Even though I loved Colorado and all the friends I made there, it wasn't long before I was on my way back home due to dark choices every where I turned. I then found myself back in NY with a ton of debt and still a lost soul. It was a couple months later I met my husband and our chapter began.

I thought by escaping I was getting away from the bully's, I had a chance to start over where no one knew me. It's heart breaking to see how many adults bully other adults, or can't have conversations with out criticizing the other. This is one of the main reasons I quit Facebook, the amount of hate disgusts me. I love the idea of Facebook but I refuse to involve myself in a place with so much judgment and negativity. I don't even use the word "hate" in my daily life, I will say I don't like instead, I'm pretty sure my daughter thinks it's a bad word because I ask her not to use it. 

Why can't we all just get along? Why do we have to be so divided? Why does it matter if we are black, white, purple, blue or green? Why can't we turn all this negative into positive? WE CAN!! And it starts with YOU! By loving yourself, loving others and spreading kindness and compassion where ever you go, you will inspire at least one other person to do the same. You don't need a wallet full of money to help others, a simple smile in passing, stopping for people to cross the road and wave, helping a stranger for no reason, or volunteering your time are all great acts of kindness, among a million and one other simple little things. 

I challenge you to one small act of kindess today, and everday, it will "fill your bucket and someone elses." Ooooo tomorrow's post!! 

Be Grateful. 

My true few...

Growing up I never had a lot of friends, and the ones I did have either hurt me or I hurt them, or they were friends with me for the wrong reason. From a young age I was trying to find that missing love from my childhood, trying to find someone to give me the love and affection I was lacking from my mother. When I was 15 I discovered a group of friends from the town next to us. I felt like they really loved me for me, and they helped bring me out of my depression. Two of them with brother and sister, and had a mom who welcomed me into their home and took care of me like her own. I felt like they didn't judge me for my past or for my family. I felt like they truly were my best friends. We were together all the time, I actually had a circle of friends. After graduation and moving away, we still stayed in touch, and to this day they are the two out of eight that I still talk to. The best part is I don't feel like our relationships are any different now that we are grown up, we will always be there for each other, wish each other nothing but the best, and communicate once a month or so. 

One of my best friends from about ten years ago, is still like my big sister. We may not talk and hang out all the time but I still look up to her, respect her, and have her back. As we grow older our priorities change, our day to day routines change, and that's ok! That's life, that's part of growing up. I know for me, being a happy wife and mother, taking care of myself and my family is my number one, my true few respect that as I respect their  personal growth and agendas as well. 

I know it may sound silly but my bestest friends are my husband and my wifey. I used to say my husband knows me better than anyone else and in some ways that may still be true, but ultimatly I know myself better than anyone else. None the less he's still my best friend, and amazing daddy. He's been with me through hell and back, and even when we were on complelty opposite pages and at our worst we still tried to be respectful of the other. We aren't perfect and we are ok with that! I couldn't imagine my life without him, and I am forever grateful for all he does for me, our kids, and our family. My wifey is and has been a valuable jewel to me and my family. She is the other mother to our children, a support system, and most of all the bestest of best! I could write a post of all the reasons I love her! And maye one day I will! I try and tell her but she will never know how grateful I truly am to be her wifey. I couldn't imagine going through the past 5 years without her. I know five years might not seem like a long time but it honestly feels like forever, it's like our souls had been friends before our physical beings were. 

I wouldn't be who I am today without the amazing love and support from my parents. Truth be told my mom and I haven't ever had the best relationship until about 4 years ago, thanks to her personal journey and growth we are now in an amazing place. The place I always dreamed of as a child, and I am beyond grateful for that! She has become my mentor in leading a happy and positive life, and encourages my growth and journeys. Both my moms and I now have a great relationship, and I honestly thought that would never happen. I'm grateful my moms, brothers and I are now a big happy family! Again, I never thought I would have that! Better late than never!! For those of you know already know me, I have always been and will always be a daddy's girl. I'm sure I used to be a spoiled brat, but I promise I've grown out of that! For as long as I can remember my daddy has always been my best friend, my rock, my biggest supporter, and no matter how bad I screwed up, he was always there for me! And I am forever grateful that he did everything he possibly could to make me feel loved, wanted and accepted. My daddy has and will always be my best friend. Im grateful he and my husband have a great relationship too. I'm also beyond grateful he has an amazing relationship "poppas babies"! 

I have many relationships with my family and in laws that I'm grateful for as well, in each of their own ways. I'm grateful for each and every person that comes into my life, they are either a blessin or lesson, either way they have all played a part in who I am today. I'm grateful I know I don't need a large quantity of best friends, and that it's about the quality of the ones I do have. I'll always be grateful for my Happier family, even though I've never met a single one of them in person, they are an amazing support system and fantastic group of friends. Remember it's not about what you don't have it's about what you do have! Be Grateful.

My religion is simple...

Let me start by saying I don't believe one God is better than another, or that one religon is superior to the other. I also don't believe you have to be one religon or another. I grew up in a catholic school with religion being forced down my throat.  Both sides of my family are very religious, so I didn't really think I had a choice in what I believed in. I do have some good memories of going to the catholic school, but for the most part I remember the rejection, feeling like an outcast. I felt like I had my mothers sexuality tattooed across my forehead. I remember one parent who would only let her daughter come to my dads house so my moms "gayness" didn't rub off on her. After being with the same 25 kids for five years my family business wasn't a big deal anymore, until we blended into the public school system... It didn't take long for the  hundreds of new kids I was surrounded by to start picking on me in the halls, leaving nasty notes in my locker, harassing me online and anywhere else they saw me. I felt like I was being punished for my moms sexuality. By the time I made it to high school my head was so screwed up, I had no self confidence, no self worth, and felt like no one understood me. From around the age of 11 I had been seeing counselors, unfortunately I had never found one I connected to, and trusted. I can't even tell you how many we tried, I was just constantly telling the same story over and over again. By this time I had completely given up on god and any belief in anything. A couple years ago I tried figuring out what religon I would be a best fit with, which one had the same beliefs I did. As that search became exhausting it hit me, I don't need some one else's religion. I know I have a higher power that I believe in. I know I don't have to fit into a specific religion, I know what matters to me and what I believe in. I know that love, compassion, equality, and gratitude were all my religion needed. If you haven't noticed yet I like to make my own rules, my own ways and my own paths. Even though my family is very religious my husband and I chose not to have our kids baptized catholic like everyone else in the family. We didn't believe in baptizing them in a religon we didn't agree with. That was our choice and we feel good about it. The power to realize you have a choice in every situation is a very strong power, you are allowing yourself to love yourself and not force yourself to do something or be somewhere that doesn't make you feel happy or at peace. I don't carewhat religion anyone chooses to be part of, I encourage everyone to have faith in something whatever it may be, along with faith in yourself, always believe you can and you will! I will continue walking with my love soldiers and maybe one day I'll find a predefined religion I want to be part of, but for now I'm perfectly grateful believing in my higher power. Be Grateful.

How I Shut up the negative voices...

I used to lay in bed at night and stress about everything and anything, especially things I had no control over; A big snow storm, money, all the things I meant to do that day, how horrible would the tourists be at work the next day, holding onto negative comments from other people, or problems in other peoples life's that I couldn't do anything about, except be there for moral support. These voices never stopped all day long, I honestly thought something was wrong with me. Why am I judging everyone? Why are such mean thoughts crossing my mind? Why do I care so much what other people think of me? One day when I was upset and on the phone with my moms looking for support they told me what other people think of you is there problem, not yours. It took me a little while to process and understand that thinking but finally I did. If they want to judge me that is their own problem. 

     It wasn't nearly as hard to shut up the voices as I thought it would be. It only took a couple weeks of consciously kicking them out to where my subconscious was doing it for me. Yes sometimes they come back and I just say, " leave you are not welcome here!" And then i start thinking random happy thoughts, or listing off things I'm grateful for and I'm good! 

     My moms were always talking about affirmations and some of the ones they would show me or that I would find on my own I didn't really understand, I think it was the wording that set me back a little. My mom told me I could make my own affirmations, my own unique positive sayings to repeat to myself, to help me in any situations. Think about it, who knows you better than you? Who knows what you need to hear more than you? I do use bits and pieces of others affirmations to build my own.

      One morning before the kids got up I had text my mom saying I need an affirmation I can't come up with one. Given what was going on she knew exactly what I needed to hear, she sent me, "my religon is simple, my religon is kindess" inspirational words of the Daili Lama. I added patience onto the end to personalize it more. Another one of my favorites for when I'm feeling overwhelmed is, " I am me, I am here, I am enough, I got this!" I do believe affirmations are powerful ways to channel your thoughts and energy and send them into the universe for your higher power to find. I always get a very happy feeling when I send something to the universe and see it makes it's way back within days. You might be thinking I'm fruity loopy but that's ok! For example the other day when I was clearing my thoughts I said to myself "I wish dean would do this more, but he does work really hard, and I don't mind doing this it would just be nice if he did every once In awhile." And yes I probably should have expressed my feelings to him but I didn't feel like it needed anymore energy on such a silly thing. Well wouldn't you know two days later, he was doing what I hoped he would. He apologized for not doing it more often, and told me how grateful he is that I do it all the time! He made my heart so happy, and I did tell him the thoughts I had, but didn't say anything because I'm grateful for all that he does for us. Point of my story is, I believe the universe and higher power hear my thoughts and prayers and help in anyway they can, because they know I will always pay it forward. I am proud to say that 98% of the time my voices are grateful, positive, and supportive, and that truly makes me happy! 

Be Grateful.

My kind of meditation...

When I used to think about meditating, quiet and calm came to mind, to help bring you balance and peace. That's all fine and dandy but I'm not a quiet person! Which is why my best friend and I have our own way of meditating. Back when we were both dark angry souls we would listen to hip hop, pop, and rap self pity music and scream it as loud as we could. But NOW thanks to my momma for introducing it to us, we rock out to Nimo Patels CD, "Grateful". It has ten uplifting songs that always touch my soul in one way shape or form. His lyrics are full of truth, kindness, and gratitude. I know sitting and reading, or listening to other people preach about happiness and positive thinking can be exhausting, and if that's the case this CD may be just the thing you need. Don't have the extra money to buy it?! That's OK! He's giving it away on his website for FREE!! Who doesn't love free?! Also on his website you can find his story/mission, truly an inspiring story. All the songs are family friendly too! My kids love the CD and I love hearing their precious little voices singing alone. They don't know it but I know it's empowering them at a young age. I wanted to share some of my favorite lyrics with y'all....

"You’re the blessings that exist

The small things that are bliss

The gift to realize that

Everything is a gift"

"Throw your hearts up

Let it fly high

Let your love for all the world

Spread through the skies

Let it drop down

Let it all go

Spreading kindness to every

Single living soul"

"So keep loving,

It’ll change your heart, it’ll change your mind

And then you’ll start to change your eyes

So keep loving

Everything you touch, everyone you see

Will soon become, your family"

These are just a few of my favorite lyrics! I've seen his music help others to start making the change towards positive thinking and gratitude. Give it a chance you have nothing to loose!! Be Grateful. 

http://www.emptyhandsmusic.com/music/

What being happy means to me...

I knew I needed help, but I wasn't sure what kind of help I needed, I didn't really know what was wrong with me, I just knew I wasn't happy. I was having an awful time trying to just pull myself out of bed in the morning, my depression had hit an all time low. I was able to acknowledge I was depressed but still wasn't sure why, I had a husband who loved me with all his heart and soul, I had two beautiful children, a roof over our heads, but I wanted more. I played this horrible game of the grass being greener on the other side. I remember meeting my mom for lunch to talk and I couldn't stop myself from crying, I felt like I had no idea what to do with myself. For years I had been struggling with what degree I should go to college for, but could never make the leap because there wasn't a degree that got my blood pumping, something I thought I would enjoy getting up to go do everday. I love being a stay at home mom but I felt like I needed to have a means of support incase something were to ever happen to my husband and I had to provide for children. I wasn't giving myself the credit I deserved for all I was accomplishing every day, I had no understanding of my self worth. 

Now I know that happiness doesn't come from expensive possessions or lavishing lifestyles. To me it means completely loving yourself, everyone, and everything around you. It means being grateful for every blessing even if it's in disguise. It's about the millions of little things in life that tug at your heart strings. It means knowing this too shall pass and better days will come. It means forgiving yourself and others. It means sharing your heart and soul with others. It means accepting imperfections, flaws, and failure, as they make us the amazing us that we are. Remember there is only one incredible YOU! You are your very own unique mold, you have your own light to shine bright, you have your own story to tell, there will never be another you.  I will leave this at To be Continued, as I continue to grow I know my happiness will too. 

There is a Happier place...

It's been months now since I've retired my Facebook account and I can honestly say I'm much better without. There's too much negativity, bullying and narcissism on there for me. I do however use the awesome Happier app. It is an online gratitude journal to keep track of all your happy moments, along with courses to help you become a happier you. It's similar to Facebook in a couple ways; post moments and pictures for others to see and you have a mini profile. The huge difference is Happier is like a family, a support system, a judgment free zone, full of open hearts, love and compassion. I have friends all over the world now and they are some of the most amazing people I have ever met. If your looking for a fun easy way to start turning your attitude to gratitude and living a happier life, I highly suggest becoming part of the Happier family! Thank you Nataly and super awesome team for continuously making us a Happier place!  

It finally hit me!!

     It was when I stopped trying to figure out what premade mold I was suppose to fit into, that I realized I could create my own. This is the most valuable lesson I have ever taught myself. From the time we were five years old, grownups were asking, “What do you want to be when you grow up?” And our most common responses were, “A police man, a teacher, a doctor, a fireman, or a veterinarian.” Which is because at five years old that’s all we know, now by no means am I saying these jobs aren’t necessary and extremely valuable to the world we live in, but they are not the ONLY important jobs in the world. As a society we shouldn’t be trying to make young children figure out what their exact place is in the world, or what mold/stereotype they fit into. Instead we should be encouraging them to find their own unique self, their own special talents, dreams, hopes, desires and most importantly to love themselves just the way they are. This may be a hard thing for you to do if you don’t truly love and appreciate your own authentic self, which is key to true happiness.

      My life has been far from easy or perfect, from a very young age I was feeling emotions, in which I didn’t even know existed, let alone how to express them. Throughout my blog I will tell all my stories, in hopes to at least inspire one person to believe in themselves, and the power of gratitude, kindness, and compassion. I will not use my past as an excuse for the other dark paths I walked on, or not so happy journeys, instead I will show you how I looked into my past to help understand why I was making the choices I did. I do not regret my past one bit, I have embraced my past and grown from up. If it weren’t for my journey I wouldn’t be the strong person I am today. I went from crying over the smallest thing, to tackling obstacles head on! Looking back on my 5 year old self, or my 15 year old self, heck even my 24 year old self, I never would have imagined I could possibly be as happy and at peace that I am today. When my life was shattering around me, my mom tried teaching me about the powers of positive thinking and gratitude. Honestly I thought she was full it! I couldn’t or didn’t want to grasp onto the idea, it seemed like too much “work”. So I continued being miserable and depressed and my life kept going on without me. My husband and I ended up separating and it was then I realized I lost myself. I didn’t know how to be anything but a mother and a wife anymore. I didn’t know what I was good at, or what made me happy. I wondered if I had truly ever known myself, for as far back as I can remember I never really knew those answers. I knew this was my chance to figure it all out, I wasn’t quite sure how, but I knew something had to change. I discovered the Happier App (Online gratitude journal), I participated in a gratitude course they have, I listened to my mom and accepted what she was telling me. I learned the power of forgiveness for yourself and others. I kicked the negative voices out of my head, and told them not to come back! Yes they are stubborn and do reappear but I automatically shut them down and switch to something happy, no matter how random or silly it may be.
     It only took me a couple weeks to see that the shift in my thoughts had resulted to shifts in my behaviors and my world around me. I’ve come a long way from the lost soul I used to be. My husband and I have a strong, deeper relationship than we ever had, a newfound appreciation and respect for the other. We now truly have a happy home with our beautiful children. Who would have thought that year through hell, would have been one of the best things to happen to us? I guess everything really does happen for a reason, even if it seems impossible to see.
     I was driving home the day after my other moms surprise birthday party and a night with my best friend, it was a beautiful sunny day, blue skies and colorful leaves everywhere. I was rocking out to my Grateful cd, and out of nowhere my purpose shined through. It finally hit me!! Instantly my heart and soul were filling up with possibilities. I was so overwhelmed with joy and excitement! I had never felt so creative before! In one way, shape or form I am going to spread the power of gratitude, kindness, and compassion, and inspire at least one person to find the courage to make a change. I look forward to sharing my life with you, both past and present. Be Grateful.