Press Pause

It seems that my blog has been on pause as of late. And that is the thing about life and this time of year – we get busy. So busy sometimes that we forget to, or simply don’t have the time to “record” all of our thoughts and happenings.

We get so busy living life that we don’ have a lot of time to record it. And that is not always a bad thing. Sometimes it is a wonderful thing, as is the case here. Life has been so full of projects, family. Love and planning that I have not had too much time to write.

And soon there will be packing, and a move added to the To Do list. As wonderful as it is, it can be a bit overwhelming as I figure out what to do next is the list of to Dos. And there has been some relaxing, lots of laughter, great food, traveling and fun as well. Because no matter how busy you are, if you can add a little fun into the mix, you should. There has been snuggling with the fury babies, waking up slowly, amazing cups of coffee and long conversations about what is coming next. There have been dinners and outings, meeting new friends and catching up with old ones. It is the perfect way to wrap up this year.

Life has been busy, amazing, and exhausting, but also magic. And life is too short for anything short of magic.

Chicken Soup for More than the Soul

Chicken soup for the soul. We have all heard about the series of books, but honestly, when is chicken soup not for the soul? It is amazing comfort food, tastes delicious and is usually made with love. And if you have ever been lucky enough to have some homemade soup made for you, then you are truly blessed.

And indeed, I was blessed this past week with a huge pot of homemade chicken soup.

It is winter and yes, it even gets cold here sometimes too. There is an arctic blast moving through the country and we are getting our share of it. It had been a long week and I wasn’t feeling great. A hectic schedule and little sleep had made me look and feel like a zombie. When I walked in my warm cozy house smelling something close to heaven. It made me smile and made the stress melt away of my weary body.

Homemade. Chicken. Soup. A big pot of it on the stove. Fresh ingredients chopped up and stirred in with love. No one has made me soup since my Mom died in 2016. In June 0f that years, not even a month before she died, Mom made me my favorite taco soup, and froze it for me. I kept those little frozen containers and cherished them as I ate them on special occasions for a little over a year. That soup was love in a bowl and a hug from beyond.

And then this past weekend happened. And I had a moment where I actually sat and cried over a bowl of soup. It is truly the little things in life that add up to all of the big. Comfort food, healing me from the inside out one warm spoonful at a time. After I had been especially grouchy from being so exhausted. Being given Grace in a bowl, I just lost it, because those little things show a tremendous amount of love. And compassion.

There is still some in the fridge and I’ll eat it tonight too as the temperatures continue to dip below freezing. But my heart will be warm.

Life is short. Spend it with those who make you feel loved. Spend it with those who fill your life and your heart with warmth of all the little things. That is what feeds the soul. Love.

The Chew

We are all guilty of +biting off more than we can chew at some point in our lives, sometimes many times in our lives. At first, we think whatever is a great idea. In theory. But in practice we see it in a completely different light. And then what? Well, at that point we have a choice of bailing or seeing it through.

This is where I find myself. In theory signing up for all of this and more seemed like a good idea, even a great idea. And now that things are in full swing, I am wondering if that is true. I am tired and grouchy, or maybe those are more from lack of sleep and PMS (Yes, I said it, I went there).

And really what was I thinking, taking so much on? Juggling jobs, my company, packing and moving, and a social,life, and taking care of a house and….!! I was thinking that I must be Super Woman, able to handle 24 tasks in a half day…

But I think I might just stick it out of r a bit. Because success in life takes hard work, it takes late night sometimes and it takes perseverance. Whatever it is, you have to want it bad enough that failure is not an option. And that has been my motto since birth practically.

We have also heard that everything you want is on the other side of fear, and that you have to get out of your comfort zone because you cannot have an extraordinary life doing ordinary things. And I will never settle for ordinary.

Many times when things get busy it is because we are laying the groundwork for change and growth in our lives. And when that growth is coming, sometimes we must work furiously to make sure that the foundation can support it. But it is worth it. When we can sit back, rest and enjoy that foundation and growth. It is truly a magical moment when we see all we worked so hard for come to fruition.

And indeed, this is a time of tremendous growth in my life, and a strong foundation is needed. There are some things you can skip and skimp on in life but getting a firm foundation for growth and developments in your life is not one of those areas. So, take the time to make sure that everything is solid so that you don’t build a beautiful life on unsettled and unstable ground. You want to bui8ld what lasts, and that means the groundwork must be done first.

Change is coming, so biting off more than I can shew is not an option. Hard work is required to make dreams reality and so it is time to roll up my sleeves.

Life is short. If you find that you have bitten off more than you can chew, take a few steps back to evaluate if it is worth the work. If it’s not, walk away from some of it. If it is, then get to chewing, and maybe ask for help if needed. Building a beautiful life is worth the work.