Watching all of the struggles that people go through and how every bit of inspiration can help give that added strength, I continue to look for ways to inspire others.  (If I am missing something or you can offer some tips....please comment!)

One of my favorite quotes (I have LOTS of them :)....

"Be the change you wish to see in the world" -Gandhi

How true is this?  We can get caught up in the everyday jumble of waiting for someone else to change, but what about us?  Why can't we change our behaviors?  If we did, others may follow and we would feel better about having control of our emotions.

Bead art

Ok...so I'm obsessed with beaded jewlery! Well, atleast I can say that my passion is still surrounding myself with art and creating art!

I found an amazing bead maker from Germany. The bead maker is: Anastasia beads

Amazing willow tree glass beads and ocean scenes. Awesome as a focal point.

I'm in love.....

You know as a woman you struggle so long to find a perfume scent you absolutely love? OMG---I picked up O magazine the other day and in flipping through found that one of the products they loved was by Red Flower. It's called Cardamom amber oil. I looked up the ingredients on line and they are awesome! So anyway---I got it in the mail today. It's the most amazing scent. I'm not a fruity or floral girl...I like the warm spicy scents. I'm in love with it---It's so great. So, you'll have to check them out online http://www.redflower.com/ They are 100% natural, never tested on animals, all aromatherapy AND they are based on Morracan principles.

By the way---Chicago is getting DUMPED on with snow! We are expecting 11 inches by morning! Crazy. Thank goodness for the bottles of Cab and music!

Learning.....

I watched an HBO special today. "Ghosts of Abu Ghraib". Wow---it really struck me. The fact that our "President" decided that since Iraq had not signed the Geneva convention that the US was ok to torture prisoners. The footage was insane from the prison. It made me realize even more how very spoiled Americans are and felt compelled to share another quote:

"You can learn to admit when you are wrong and start building bridges instead of walls. And learn to be thankful and to take comfort in many of the simple things we take for granted, things that millions of people upon the earth can only dream about; a full refrigerator, clean running water, a soft warm bed, a long hot shower.
Slowly, you begin to take responsibility for yourself by yourself, and you make yourself a promise to never betray yourself and to never ever settle for less than your heart's desire. Keep smiling, keep trusting and to stay open to every wonderful possibility."

All time favorite movies...

Ok so.....I'm COMPLETELY a sap! I love love love sappy romantic movies. What are your faves? Mine have to be:

*The Notebook
*The Lake House
*Titanic

I'm reading "Atonement" right now, so I may have to add it to the list later.

I remember sitting in a movie theatre THE DAY "Titanic" came out. I actually waited in line to get a good seat! The whole time in the theatre, my boyfriend was sitting next to me and I was freaking sobbing at the movie and had an epiphany....I want love like that. The kind where you would throw yourself in front of a bus to save them kind of love.
Not too long after that, I found my husband of 9 1/2 years. Now....it hasn't all been like Jack and Rose but, I can honestly say, I wouldn't trade a day of it all to be right where I am now with Willis.
:)

On a coooold day in Chicago!

It's soooo cold in Chicago today that I took them for some indoor fun. It's -20 today! We took a jaunt to the mall---brave for a Saturday afternoon! We had fun riding the Carosel!

My angels were soooo good today!

Intro.....

I read a clip recently called "the awakening" by Denise Carroll. It stated adult just like it is and I feel I need to share a portion of it:

"A time comes in your life when you finally get it. When in the midst of all your fears and insanity you stop dead in your tracks and somewhere the voice inside your head cries out - ENOUGH!
Enough fighting and crying or struggling to hold on. And, like a child quieting down after a blind tantrum, your sobs begin to subside, you shudder one or twice, you blink back your tears and through a mantle of wet lashes you begin to look at the world through new eyes.
You bein to sift through all the crap you've been fed about how you should behave, how you should look and how much you should weigh and what you should wear and where you should shop and what you should drive, how and where you should live and what you should do for a living, who you should sleep with and who you should marry and what you should expect of a marriage, the importance of having and raising children or what you owe your parents.
You learn to open up to new worlds and different points of view. And you begin reassessing and redefining who you are and what you really stand for."

This is my time......right now. I worked in corporate America for a long time and at this point in my life, I think.....was it a dream? a nightmare? Because today, now---I'm more fulfilled than I have ever been. I am comfortable in my own skin and don't fucking care if I don't fit in to a certain "group". I am who I am, am comfortable with sharing my soul with the people that matter to me and I know that those people truly see me for who I am.