Happy New Year's Eve!!

A friend sent me this Optimist's Creed by Christian Larson and I am hoping that I can follow it for the coming year.....

PROMISE MYSELF...

~to be so strong that nothing can disturb my peace of mind.
~to talk health and happiness, and prosperity to every person I meet.
~to make all my friends feel that there is something worthwile in them.
~to look at the sunny side of everything and make my optimism come true.
~to think only of the best, to work only for the best and to expect only the best.
~to be just as enthusiastic about the success of others as I am about my own.
~to forget the mistakes of the past and press on to the greater achievements of the future.
~to wear a cheerful expression at all times and give a smile to every living creature that I meet. ~to give so much time to improving myself that I have no time to criticize others.
~to be too large for worry, too noble for anger, too strong for fear, and too happy to permit the presence of trouble.
~to think well of myself and to proclaim this fact to the world, not in loud words, but in great deeds.
~to live in the faith that the whole world is on my side, so long as I am true to the best that is in me.

To all of my friends and family......

I wish you joy, peace and love in the New Year!!!

Two Weeks in HELL

My daughter and her friend are leaving tomorrow and it can't be soon enough for me! I am sorry that my daughter is leaving but I will be so thrilled to see the last of her friend. They have been here for two weeks and I can honestly say that I cannot remember being more uncomfortable with another human being in my life. I feel like he has actually contaminated my house with his negative energy. As soon as they leave, I plan on cleansing my home....just so all of his negative crap leaves with him.

Tonight I took my daughter out to a bar since it was her last night here and she spent her 21st birthday in the emergency room with him. He pitched a fit because he wanted to go and I said NO. I wanted to have ONE night with just the two of us....a girl's night out if you will. So of course, he spent the evening texting her. I wanted to rip the phone out of her hand and smash it into little pieces. Every time she got another text, it was more bullshit and drama about how much he wanted to go out. Then he started sending out twitters about how much fun he's had on this trip and having won us over. BLEH!!! There is nothing in this universe that could help him win us over. He is so fake and melodramatic. Angel keeps saying that I just don't see what she sees but I do not see anything about him that is attractive, or funny, or intelligent. He is so needy and desperate for attention. All of these messages all over the place and he waited for her to get home so she could pack for him. Seriously?????

On Thursday night, we went to the Steeler bar to watch the first pre-season game and many of our friends were there. When Cris arrived, she engaged him in conversation and he was perfectly fine. As soon as she stopped talking to him, he looked around to find no one paying attention to him. Then the twitching and aches and pains started. He was all over the place with his inhalers and all his little "Back ache" exercises. I thought I was going to SCREAM. Who goes out in PUBLIC with ZERO social graces? Who acts like a complete MORON at a BAR? As long as he is the center of attention, he is medically fine. But as soon as he looses that attention, he falls prey to a myriad of physical ailments. It is utterly and completely RIDICULOUS!!! I've pointed these things out to my daughter and I will pray DAILY that she will see the light SOONER rather than LATER. I want her to be with someone who can bring joy and happiness to her life. I want her to be with someone who doesn't need to be the center of attention ALL the time. Occassionally SHE can be the center of attention. I want her needs and wants to be just as important as his are. I want her to be in a partnership as opposed to a relationship of servitude. Truthfully, I just want him as far away from her as he can possibly get. I will definitely be praying that he moves somewhere FAR away with his Dad and Angel moves back home.

Cleaning = well spent vacation day

So I am on vacation and spent the day working with my daughter and my friend to clean my craft room. It desperately needed organizing and I am happy to say that we got a LOT done...not everything but ALOT!!! I wanted to get it to a point where I can actually WORK in there instead of just using it to store my stuff. (And I have a LOT of stuff!!!) I think it helped to be able to see exactly what I have as far as supplies go (which is a little bit of everything) and what I need (which is actually nothing!) I am feeling pretty good about our accomplishments today and I am hoping that I will have time to work on my room again tomorrow. Then it is on to my office/library which desperately needs soom organization and cleaning....not to mention all of the filing I have to do!!! All in all I feel like this was a vacation day well spent!!!

Mother Knows Best

It is rare that we understand our parent's rules and regulations as we are growing up. As we age, we develop a sense of immunity that only belongs to the young. We feel that nothing can touch us or change the way we look at things. Life is a giant adventure that we are about to tme to suit our own needs and desires. We never stop to listen to the advice of the older, more experienced person who has lived more life than we have. We are sure that whatever they have to say has absolutely NOTHING to do with our lives!!! I say all of this only to say that I am super frustrated with my daughter who just turned 21 yesterday. She is dating someone that I do not like and I do not believe that he makes her happy. Her entire personality changes around him and she becomes someone I don't know and that I don't like. Of course, as soon as I try to talk to her, she is in defense mode and will defend him with her life. Me, I remember having a similar conversation with MY Mother about my daughter's father. He was the end all, be all of my world and I was willing to fight for him to the death. Had my Mom not pushed and prodded so much about him, I probably would have realized that he was not the one for me and ended our relationship. Unfortunately, she kept pushing me until I rebelled and married the man. In retrospect, I know that the person that got hurt the most in that situation was ME. I had to pay for the consequences of my actions....not my Mom. It made everyone involved unhappy and there was a LONG period of time where I didn't really talk to my Mom. She was angry....I was angry.....no one was talking!!! I love my daughter more than anything but I cannot condone or approve of this relationship. Unfortunately, she has dug in her heels and is determined to continue whether I like it or not. And I am firmly in the NOT category!!! I know that I am pushing her away by standing my ground but I refuse to LOWER my standards for her....or rather for him. I refuse to be happy about my daughter being with someone who is so self-centered and egotistical. I refuse to accept someone into my life who is a prissy know-it-all who has seen, heard and done EVERYTHING in the world. Everything about their relationship makes me sick to my stomach and I hate seeing her shackle herself to someone who offers her nothing in return and could care less about her well-being. Even knowing that embracing him would allow me to have a close relationship with my daughter, I refuse to betray my beliefs.

Being Human - BBC America

Tonight I watched the premier of BEING HUMAN on BBC America. I actually enjoy British humor so I found that I liked the show. The plot is that a Vampire and a Werewolf end up renting a flat and they find they have a 3rd roommate...the ghost of the previous tenant's fiancee. I will definitely be watching to see if this show develops as well as I think it could. If you enjoy the paranormal, you would probably enjoy this show. I'm sure it is posted somewhere online where you could watch it if you missed the season premiere.

Photos from Vacation

Mike and Kimberly - Pikes Peak

Sign at top of Pikes Peak

Kimberly, Chey and Mike

Outside King Chef Diner

Chey and Dad

I'm too young to be this Damned OLD!!!!

SO, last night I was organizing some photos so I could go scrapbook tonight with some friends and I happened across a photo that was taken on my honeymoon. Now normally, I would flip past that photo and keep going but something made me pull it out and REALLY look at it. I was shocked and appalled to find that in 6 years, I have aged....a lot!!! Okay, truthfully, it is probably that I stopped coloring my hair and I no longer have acrylic nails but I swear I could see the physical changes and they made me incredibly sad. I have always been proud of my gray hair (especially since I earned every one of them!) but now they just make me feel OLD! Yeah, I know....Vanity thy name is WOMAN!!! But seriously, I actually brought the picture to work with me to show my friend! I have never really stressed about my age or worried about gray hair or wrinkles but now I am suddenly consumed with the concept of aging. So I made an appointment to get my hair cut and colored this weekend and an appointment to get my nails done. Hopefully that will help me feel better about aging while I wasn't looking!

Goodbye My Friend....

Today I received a phone call from one of my friends in San Diego. She was calling to tell me that another friend of mine had died this morning. I was shocked and deeply saddened...especially since my friend, Somber, was only 34! She has had health problems since I've known her (which is just shy of 10 years) and I wouldn't have been shocked to hear that she was ill or even in the hospital. But to hear that she had passed away was just a complete shock for me. She was always such a larger than life personality and she certainly lived her life the way she felt she should. She was a Supersized BBW and she really and truly cared about fat acceptance. She wanted people to be happy (no matter their size) and embrace the fact that you can live your life and not be a stick or a Barbie! She was adamently opposed to weight loss surgery and NEVER afraid to share her opinion with anyone who was considering having the surgery!! Her outspoken and opinionated self was not always easy to take and there were many who turned away from her as a friend but in all honesty, I found that all she really wanted was acceptance and love and I was happy to give those things to her. I did not always agree with everything she had to say but I did respect her right to have an opinion different from my own. I loved the fact that she always had laughter in her soul and you just had to tap into the joyous being that she was. When I first met Somber, she had a lot more mobility than she had recently but it never stopped her from embracing life and enjoying it! Imagine seeing a 400+ pound woman body surfing in the ocean!!! Most people would be afraid but not Somber! She was always ready to push the envelope and try something new. From being a meat-eating vegetarian (don't ask) to hosting coffee events to starting her own little farm in her back yard...nothing stopped Somber from adding joy to her life and trying to share it with others. When we moved to Colorado, Somber spent a week at our house helping us get ready. She helped pack and clean. She helped me with our yard sale. She brought us food and drinks. She helped field phone calls and helped organize our traveling stuff. She was a true godsend and we would not have been able to leave on time without her help! When we returned to San Diego last Thanksgiving, Somber got our friends together at Starbucks so we could all visit! It was fabulous!!

Somber was a true friend over the years and I will miss her. I am sorry that I didn't get a chance to talk to her before she left but I know that she is up there smiling down and laughing at all of the memories we shared. Rest in Peace my beautiful friend! You will be well and truly missed.

Kimberly Vacationpants

OK...so my step-daughter, Cheylynn is visiting from San Diego and I am on vacation until July 6th!! ::doing the happy dance:: She brought her friend Kirby with her and I am hoping that we will be able to do some sightseeing while she is here. The last time she came, it snowed alot so we didn't get to do very much. We spent most of our time watching movies and hanging out!!! Anyway, I am glad she is here and I am looking forward to my vacation!!!

Today's Affirmation

Today’s Affirmation: “My affirmations work for me, whether I believe they do or not!”

Happy 90th Birthday!!!

Today is my Grandmother's 90th Birthday and I am blessed to have such a WONDERFUL role model in my life. I wish I could be there to help you celebrate!! Happy Birthday!!!

I'd like a cigarette....please

So I quit smoking on May 2nd and have been really sick since then. My joke is that the smoking was keeping all of the other illnesses at bay but in reality I am starting to believe that!!! I have developed various stomach pains, acid reflux, horrible coughing, problems breathing and even random phantom pains in my side. I kept thinking that if I quit smoking, I would feel better and have more energy. Instead, I find that I am tired all the time (even though I am taking vitamins!) and I have the energy level of a recliner! I can't remember anything!! I am just falling apart.....

If I have to be miserable, I'd like a cigarette to make me feel better!!!

Reality Check

I just learned not long ago that the son of one of the FedEx VP's was killed over the weekend. He was 18 years old and had just graduated from high school on Friday. What a horrible, tragic event for this family to have to survive. In thinking about this, it made me realize just how uncertain life is for each of us. It made me think about my own daughter who is currently in San Diego and far from me. It made me think of my husband who is out working in the rain. It made me think of my friends that I haven't talked to lately. Have I told these people how important they are to me? Have I left them with the knowledge that I love them and why? Have I shared with them how grateful I am to have someone so fabulous in my life?

Nothing is promised for any of us. Take a minute today to let someone know that you love them. Take a minute to share your thoughts and feelings with someone you are thankful to have in your life. Take a minute to appreciate each and every one of your blessings!