Spread the Message

I'm sharing this blog post with you today because I believe this message is something worth sharing, and remembering every single day.

Last week, I read this article. Briefly, it is about a man who suffered a brain injury that affected his entire family, and their life for many years, until he fully recovered. They had a booming business that his wife had to take over, and after a while they suffered from many financial hardships. During one of the mans random back-to-normal-mentally streaks, he rented a sign and filled their yard with every one of the family's big ticket items in order to sell them to help his family. An angry neighbor called to yell at him for the gigantic sign, and the man told him what was going on with his family. The neighbor apologized, but felt awful for the things he had said. The moral of the story is not to judge people because we have no idea what they are going through.

I believe this is something every one needs constant work on. It is so easy to judge someone based on what's going on in our life, when in actuality, we know nothing about their specific journey and situation. Even if we are lucky enough to know their situation, we are not them, and have not walked the same journey through life that they have. 

In the article, the author, Melody Ross, states that she wishes people could walk around with signs hanging around their neck telling people what is going on with them. Signs like "I lost my job", "My house is being foreclosed.", or "My husband gambles all our money away."

Because everyone has a story. Because every story is different. Because not all situations are black and white.... We need to be gentle with each other. We need to be kind, and generous. 

After I read this article, Jackson and I read the book Stone Soup, one of my favorite books from my childhood. It shares a similar message about kindness and sharing. In the beginning of the book, the people in the town only work for themselves. They don't share anything, and when three monks come to town, they all shut their doors and refuse to answer. In great efforts to teach the people of the town a lesson, the monks begin to make Stone Soup. They start with just three stones and water. A little girl comes to watch and is eager to help. In turn, all of the towns people come outside to see what's going on, and everyone ends up contributing a little something to make the soup. At the end, they have a hearty Stone Soup to share, and there is a huge feast. The towns people learn that everyone must pull together as a community so they can all reap the benefits. 

(You can click the link above and purchase this amazing book for you and your children to read and discuss together. It is linked to my amazon affiliates account.)

That's what I want for our world. That's what I want for my town, and especially for my children. I want them to grow up helping people, and being generous, but also knowing what it's like for others to do the same for them.

I'm calling all of you, big, and small, old, and young, to make the changes within yourselves to accept people as they are. Love one another always. Be generous, be kind, be gentle, even if someone doesn't deserve it. It is those people who don't deserve it that need it the most.

Please spread this message with everyone you know. We can only benefit from making this change.
Have a lovely day.

A Week at a Glance

We had a good week. A hike in the woods,

 A break while hiking,

Practicing some letters,

A new neighbor friend for Jackson,

Jackson dressed up for a visit to Yiayia and Papou's house. The second outfit was the next day.

Being goofy,

A casino, and game date night with my handsome hubby,

& a Sunday morning spent crafting with my little guy. 

Life couldn't get any better than this. <3 Enjoy your week!

{Our Weekly Family Recap}

We had another great week. We had a lot of adventures and "firsts". 

Earlier in the week we visited the Grand Opera House and saw a showing of Pinocchio. It was Jackson's first trip to the theater, and he loved it. We also visited a local wild life refuge with friends. We had the most perfect weather for it, and we were able to learn some pretty awesome facts.

Kyle's family is very musical, and many of them play instruments. They love getting together to play bluegrass music. Saturday night we had a super fun family gathering that included live music, dancing, singing, laughing, kids running everywhere, and great food.

Even our little Jackson played music. He has a guitar, and he loves to sit in the circle with the other musicians and pretend to play. He actually keeps a pretty good beat. I see lots of music lessons in his future. 

I even played a little. Well, not really, but I tried. {One day I hope to learn to play too, so I can play with the family}

***

Sunday Kyle, Jackson, and I spent a few hours at Lums Pond State Park. We took Jackson on his first paddle boat ride, and we got to watch the zip liners fly across the pond over our heads. 

Kyle also spent some time teaching Jackson the fun of disc golf, a sport his family loves to play. Jackson loved the concept and enjoyed throwing his frisbee while Kyle and I played a few holes. This was Jackson's first disc golf experience of many.

Some more photos of our visit to the state park.

Words can not express the joy I feel when I get to spend time with my family, doing the things we love. It doesn't get any better than the days we had together this first weekend in August. 

Sunshine Sunday- family updates

The countdown to my vacation is down to the final 5 days. I work through Thursday this week and then I'm off for 10 days. To start off my vacation I get an entire girls weekend in Charlottesville,VA with my best friend- kid less! The hubs has the minion to himself all weekend. I've never been away for a weekend, and I'm sooo looking forward to it. We have a lot of amazing things planned for the weekend. I will update when I return :)

My parents went back to Ohio a few days ago, and we are still recovering from spending so much time with them. We miss them so much already, and can't wait to go visit them. {We are anxiously awaiting and counting down until they come home for good in April or May of 2014}.

I am spending my weekend cleaning up the house {to prepare it for a weekend of Daddy and Jackson next weekend}, spending time with family, relaxing, and of course, sewing, sewing, sewing!

In the mean time, I am finishing up the stocking of my shop for launch this Thursday night! Go ahead, be excited! I can't wait to give the grand opening announcement!

{On doing it all}

*Online Shop Update- I think I am only a few days away from launching my online shop! It's coming along!

“It's not always that we need to do more but rather that we need to focus on less.” 
― Nathan W. Morris

//I've been pondering this idea in my own words a lot lately. Since I married my soul mate, Kyle, and since we've had a baby of our own {who is 3 years old already!}, I've been trying to do everything that is included in the roles of wife and mother. I stress when our house is not always tidy. I worry that I'm not doing my job as Mommy the "correct" way. I worry that I'm not doing enough for my family. I work, as a nanny. I go to school part time. I just turned my hobby into a job that I call Hoot & Bumble. I am always doing something. It never ends.

//Lately, I've realized that something has to give. I can't give my 100% to all of those things. So, as I add a new business to my resume, and to our family, I have to reorganize my life. So with that, I have committed to decluttering, and simplifying my life. We had a large yard sale this past weekend with all the treasures we found while organizing the basement after it flooded. We are only keeping what we absolutely need {because it should be easier to keep the house clean with less stuff in it, right?!}

//I am also learning to stop worrying about so many things. I am a worry wart by nature, but the last few months have really taught me that God is in control. I am learning to let go, and let God handle everything. He has a plan for me, and for my family, and everything that is happening is happening for a reason. I cannot stress about the little things in life. Especially not when there are so many others out there with much worse problems than what I have. I have to realize that I {we} are exactly where we are supposed to be at this very moment. Remembering this, is helping me organize my life, and my every day thoughts into simpler motions.

//Thankfully, I have a husband that isn't bothered when he comes home from work and the house is a mess because I've dropped everything to be with our toddler, or do my homework. Or simply because I needed a craft day. Kyle is the perfect person for me, and my personality, and the past almost 8 years with him have taught me so much about myself and our relationship. All he has to do is look at me, and give me a hug, and any worries I may have had are washed away. He's amazingly perfect.

// So, as I learn to simplify my life, let go of my worries, and trust that I am doing everything the best I can, and I am doing a good job at it, I will try to focus less on the little things in life, and more on what really matters = my family, and our goals- both big and small.

//I encourage all of you to do the same.

xxxx
Elizabeth