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encouragement

Encouragement, Health, Life Is Beautiful

Lists Part 2: Spring Cleaning Attack

In my previous post I discussed my love for and dependency on lists and how I had created two, one for health and one for spring cleaning. Lists allow me to function in a more organized fashion. They also give me a great sense of accomplishment when I can check each item off my list and see in print how much I’ve achieved. It’s quite satisfying for us list lovers.

Our lives are busy, often too busy. We have families, jobs, and homes. We have groceries to purchase, clothes to clean, dishwashers to load, floors to mop, meetings to attend, volunteer duties to fulfill, school conferences, extra-curricular activities, music lessons, and if we’re lucky…regular family time and the occasional date night. I feel like I need a nap simply from compiling this list.

It’s a mountainous challenge to keep up on simple laundry much less deep cleaning an entire house.  So where do we start?

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Encouragement, Life Is Beautiful

Dream Fearlessly

I have three writing submission deadlines for three different places due in the next two weeks.

I love that sentence and I want it to stand alone so I can delight in it a moment. A year ago, having a writing deadline was but a dream for me. I wasn’t even sure exactly what that looked like. Maybe the pieces I’m submitting won’t result in superstardom, but maybe they will turn into something terrific and be published somewhere. The fact that I’m writing with purpose and putting down meaningful words onto paper that I feel good about, is satisfying. Whether anyone else takes particular notice is delicious icing on a rather sweet cake. Continue Reading

Encouragement, Health

How to Help Your Children Cope with Grief

Grief is a challenging, confusing struggle. As adults we wrestle with it, so how much tougher must it be for children? Last week, I wrote about grief over at Defying Shadows. It occurred to me later how differently we face things as adults than children do and that I’d be remiss if I didn’t share what I know about grief and children.  

Children aren’t just “little adults.” In fact, the way they function and process are quite different than how we operate as adults.  When my children lost their father, we were all reeling from the shock and grief. I had lost both my parents by then and was no stranger to grief, but I was very much a stranger to dealing with significant loss as a child. I learned a lot from my children during this process just as I learned a lot about them. That support was absolutely vital to their healing and mine. Continue Reading

Encouragement, Life Is Beautiful

Shiny New Year, Shiny New Dreams

With just a few more clicks of the clock it will be a new year, 2015. A year full of promise and adventure. That’s my new word for 2015: adventure!   

Please come back in the new year where I will offer an abundance of good words and encouragement for you, your life, and the fulfillment of your dreams. God be with you this day and every, and I look forward to a prosperous, healthy, amazing 2015!