I am back ...

Oh my ... it has been a year since I posted on this blog. So much has happened ... my beautiful daughter received her degree and is now an R.N.. I am so very proud of her ... a single mother of 3 ... a full time working mom of 3 ... a mother's schedule full of school meetings, soccer games, birthday parties, loads of wash and packing lunches ... and a student who graduated Magna Cum Laud ... 3.9 GPA! How does she do it? How does she balance going back to school, working full time and a family all on her own? I shake my head in absolute wonder. She is and always will be my true inspiration.

My eldest granddaughter, her daughter is a senior in HS. I am not ready for her to graduate. My grandmother's heart still wants to cradle her in my arms and read stories forever. She, on the other hand, is ready to tackle the world, see things, go places and move into the realm of independence. Life is calling her ... so many opportunities ... so young, so fresh and so resilient. Memories take me back to a younger age when I saw the world through young, fresh eyes. Ah ... so many times we focus too much on the destination and do not take the time to enjoy the journey. It's the journey my friends that are the puzzle pieces of life, not the picture on the box. It's our life experiences and how they fit together that create the memories ... touch the lives of others ... surround us in love and warmth and laughter ... they are our journey ... our life story. In the end, it is those relationships and our story that comforts us. I tell her ... do not rush through life ... slow down ... take chances to meet new people ... go places ... share your thoughts and ideas ... try new and exciting roads of travel, but never, ever forget the road home. It is your beacon of love ... your refuge in times of need ... your forever and always safe place. When you need recharging, refocusing, or renewal, come visit grandma. She waits with the knowledge that we all have the instinctive desire to reconnect with our childhood memories of  family ... of love ... of honor ... of the belief that there is right and wrong ... that good prevails over evil ... and that God's love triumphs over all. Grandma's love and comfort will always be with you long after she is gone. All you need is to close your eyes, be still and remember ...

To my beautiful daughter ~ October 23, 2011

To my beautiful daughter:

You are going to make it through all this fine and so very happy at the end of of the tunnel.

How do I know you ask:

because God is walking right beside you,

holding your hand when you need Him,

giving you strength on those gut wrenching energy zapping days,

offering you much needed peace when your heart is racing and your breathing is short,

restoring your body when sleep is so short you wonder how you'll make it through the next day,

giving you focus and memory when the hardest test is looming and must be taken,

giving you patience when all the questions and whining comes knocking at your "mommy door"

giving you endurance when you think I can't do all this and quietly showing you that you can with 5 more steps,

placing the right people just where He wants them so they can help you ... let them,

and when He thinks the going is really tough ... if you stop, look and listen to His voice, He is saying, ... "Come my child, you are tired and weary, I will carry you. Trust me, believe in me, give me all your troubles ... I can handle it all."

I know ... because He loves you and is walking right beside you ...
A L W A Y S

Love you Tori with all my heart, mom

To my beautiful daughter ~ October 19, 2011

To my beautiful daughter: I Love You!

I spoke those words to you the day you were born ... softly, sweetly in your ear. What a beautiful baby! You had the most beautiful hair ... you still do. And your eyes captivated me ... held me prisoner ... and I remember wondering what you were thinking. You are one of the most precious gifts I have ever been given. I wish you could have seen the twinkle i...n your father's eyes. He fell in love with you the moment he saw you. A baby girl .. ours ... and our hearts were so full of love for you. Fast forward ... today ... you are a very beautiful woman ... with daughters of your own. Where has all the time gone? Sometimes I still look into those eyes and wonder what you are thinking. And I smile. For just like then ... I still don't always know. Every time I tell you I love you I remember the precious gift you are. So my dear daughter ... our hearts are still full of love for you ... so always remember "I will Love You forever after!"

To my beautiful daughter ~ Octover 17, 2011

"Each morning when I open my eyes I say to myself: I, not events, have the power to make me happy or unhappy today. I can choose which it shall be. Yesterday is dead, tomorrow hasn't arrived yet. I have just one day, today, and I'm going to be happy in it." ~ Groucho Marx

To my beautiful daughter: "The greatest weapon against stress is our ability to choose one thought over another."

I will … I... have … I can … I did … VS … I won’t … I can’t … I didn't

You may encounter many difficulties, but you must not be defeated. Remember that your difficulties do not define you. They simply strengthen your ability to overcome. Act as if what you do makes a difference. It does ... YOU do."
Love ... mom
 

To my beautiful daughter ~ October, 16, 2011

Everything can change in the blink of an eye. But don't worry; God never blinks.

Be still.

Just for a moment.
...
Listen to the world around you. Place your hand on your chest and feel your breath coming in and going out. Listen to your thoughts.

Be at peace with being still.

We are always on, always connected, always thinking, always talking. There is no time for stillness. This comes at a cost: we lose that time for contemplation, for observing and listening. We lose peace. Close your eyes and feel God’s peace. He says don’t worry … all is well.

“Be still, and know that I am God" - Psalm 46:10

For my daughter ~ October 14, 2011

A mother's love for her child is like nothing else in the world. It
knows no law, no pity, it dares all things and crushes down
remorselessly all that stands in its path. ~ Agatha Christie (1890 - 1976)

To my beautiful daughter: It is hard to understand the depth of a mother's love until you cradle that tiny bundle in your arms. Gone are the days of kissing your boo-boos, and the magical band aid that makes everything feel better. But never doubt the depth of my love for you ... the strength of my belief in you ... and the pride in my heart for the strong, beautiful woman you have become. With much love ... mom.

 

For my daughter ~ October 13, 2011

When you get into a tight place and everything goes against you, till it seems as though you could not hang on a minute longer, never give up then, for that is just the place and time that the tide will turn. " ~ Harriet Beecher Stowe

To my beautiful daughter: I've often wondered what I've missed in my life ... those times when I turned around and headed back in the same direction because I thought I did not have the strength to keep going. Now I see all those elusive opportunities that lurked just around the corner. And yet ... 5 more steps and I would have been there. Always remember ... J U S T ... 5 ... M O R E ... S T E P S ... you can do it!! Keep moving. Look around that corner. You're almost there! Love Ya!