My heart is FULL. It is such a blessing to be able to share these stories with so many. I am so thankful.
I must say, I’m a little sad about this being the last week of the ‘What is Love?’ series. Sad, sad, sad. I get anxiety all week long, wondering if I’ll be able to find the perfect love stories that I want to share with you. It can’t be just any story about love. It has to inspire me.
For the month of February, every Sunday, I wanted to do a little ‘What is Love’ series; a collection of random stories and videos that exhibit love and inspire us to bring more love into our lives. Yes, we can BRING more love into our lives. We don’t need anyone else to do it for us. Love is there, waiting to be had.
I hope these favorite stories and videos that I found, will help convey the beauty of love, inspire you, and bring a little more light into your life. Enjoy!
If we want to have strong relationships with our children, we HAVE to spend time with them. Not just every once in a while, but research shows that we need to find at least 15 minutes a day to spend with each child on an individual basis. This is uninterupted time where we put our phones and computers and the laundry away and just focus on them. Get down on their level, look into their eyes and really listen to what they say. If you are wondering what you are going to do, sit down together and make a list of all the things that you could do. From baking cookies, to going for a drive, playing a game or just chatting about the day. Then when it is time to be together, you wont waste it trying to figure something out. Pick something on your list and have a good time. Your kids will feel supported, listened to, understood, and you will even see improvements in their behavior. You will find that a little time makes a big difference.
What is Love? Part 2. For the month of February, every Sunday, I wanted to do a little ‘What is Love’ series; a collection of random stories and videos that exhibit love.
I hope these favorite stories and videos that I found, will help convey the beauty of love, inspire you, and bring a little more light into your life.
I wanted to do something a little EXTRA special for Valentine’s Day and this whole month. Something about love and what love really is.
What is love? Love is a feeling of deep devotion, concern, and affection. It’s expressed and felt in many different ways. I hope these favorite stories and videos that I found, will help convey the beauty of love, inspire you, and bring a little more light into your life. Every Sunday this month, you’ll find 3 new inspirational stories about love. Enjoy!
It’s that time of year?? Anyone else still proudly kicking butt at their New Year’s resolutions? I hope so, it’s still January! So, recently I started thinking about all my favorite apps that I use to help me stay on top of things. Then, I asked the gals on Facebook about their favorites. I checked them out and now have some new favorites. Here’s a list of my top 10 productivity apps for helping you keep your goals (or New Year’s resolutions.)
Hey again, it’s Tonii from Blue Skies Ahead. I am so thrilled to be back at Or so She Says…sharing another fun family night idea! I don’t know about you…but I LOVE the start of a new year. A clean slate, a chance to do anything you want and start fresh! I was really excited to do a simple activity with my kids to help them learn about goals and have fun making a visual that we could focus on ALL year long to remember what we want to accomplish in 2014.
First up I made this printable to hang in our home. I love this quote and have found it to be so true in my personal life. There is so much power in simply believing in ourselves!
I remember the first post I did, telling everyone that I’m a Mormon and inviting people to learn more about why I believe what I believe. It was scary! I don’t know why. My readers are the nicest, ever. But, it’s still a little unnerving to put yourself out there and open yourself up for mean comments/emails, and a potential loss of readers and advertisers. But, I knew it was worth it to me. It is because of what I know that I feel so much happiness, hope, and peace, and it feels kinda selfish to not at least offer it to others. So, with much anxiety, I clicked ‘publish,’ and I wasn’t turning back. I was waiting for the rude emails to come in, but they never did. Not once.
Happy Sunday. I wanted to share a lovely video with you. A story of people giving up their time to serve others. And, not just ANY time… they gave up their Christmas. Serving others really is one of the greatest things ever. Not only does it help someone else, but it help you. It’s like magic. It helps you be happier, to love more, love deeper, and it is a perfect gift for Christ.
Happy Sunday!!
I just finished reading a wonderful book to my kids. Have you heard of the book, Wonder by R.J. Palacio? I really had no idea what to expect from it, just that it must be good, with thousands of five-star reviews. Turns out, we loved it too! It’s the story of a young boy, with a serious facial deformity. He has avoided public schools, up until the 5th grade, when he hesitantly decides he’s ready to give it a shot. As expected, there are some rough moments for him, and some moments that are downright horrible. But, the book is filled with tender moments and great examples of love.
One of my favorite things about Utah is being able to experience all four seasons. Every August, I’m completely burned out on summer craziness and just want to chill. Welcome, Fall. It makes me want to stay home, cook yummy food, and just relax. Then I start getting a little overly anxious for Christmas and using the fireplace. Utah is usually pretty happy to dump a pile of beautiful fluffy snow on the ground. For me, Christmas needs snow. But soon enough, the snow starts to turn to slush and everything looks dead, dirty, and depressing… UNTIL the leaves start popping up on the trees, our creek runs higher with the snow run-off, and the birds return to build their nests. I love it! Everything feels fresh and happy in the spring. With the new life all around us, the kids and I start itching to wrap up the school year and play, play, play! And, we do. All. Summer. Long. …and, then I’m tired, longing for structure, and some cooler weather. Repeat, every year. It’s fun. Every season excites me.
I was chatting with Dan about how I needed to come up with my inspirational post, and did he have any lovely thoughts recently that I could possibly write about. No lovely thoughts. As we were checking out of the hotel, we were pulling our luggage down the hall, past a conference room. Inside the room, I saw something that made my heart sing. It was a banquet for Ms. Wheelchair Utah and other girls and women confined to wheelchairs. In the front of the room, there was a gal, in a wheelchair, speaking to all the girls, sharing her story and empowering them. It was awesome!