three little words

Vanilla Latte Pop-Tarts.  Or maybe that's four words. Either way, they are awesome.  They are sweet, almost caramely, with a hint of coffee flavor.  They have that perfect flaky sugar cookie texture with an almost crunchy icing top. My mouth is watering just thinking about tearing open that crinkly foil wrapper.
As a general rule, I avoid eating Pop-Tarts.  It's probably slightly hypocritical of me, because junk food is my main food group and I am by no means on a diet.  It's just a nurse once told me that they are completely devoid of any nutritional value so I feel weird eating them for breakfast, which *should* be the most important meal of the day.  Does that stop me from eating donuts?  Absolutely not. So what's the difference?  Nobody told me not to eat donuts.  Or if they did, I wasn't listening.  But the truth is, I know Pop-Tarts at the very least aren't the best thing I could eat.  They are the epitome of a processed food and I can hear Alex Guarnaschelli gasping in horror at my confession of eating them.  But sometimes I just really crave a Pop-Tart.  In college, I kept a stash of s'more Pop-Tarts behind the seat in my truck, because you should always be prepared.  There was also a collection of green army men back there.  Because, you know, you should always be prepared.
People say moderation is key.  True for some things, not true for others.  True for Pop-Tarts, not true for meth.  I don't crave meth.  I've never tried the stuff.  I have tried vanilla latte Pop-Tarts and since there is no law against consuming or possessing them, I assume they are not as bad for you as meth. And sometimes I crave blackberries. So good.  And so good for you, with all those antioxidants and such.  I might even on any given day rather eat a handful of blackberries over a Pop-Tart.
What do you crave?  A food, a drug, a scroll through social media, a drink?  Is it good?  Is it bad?  Is it okay in moderation?
Pop-Tarts are okay as a treat, but not when I eat them in place of something healthy, like scrambled eggs (are eggs considered healthy today?).  Checking to see what my friends have posted on Facebook is okay, but not when it keeps me from focusing on what friends are saying in person.  And meth is bad.  Always bad.
So eat Pop-Tarts without shame.  Especially vanilla latte ones.  But hurry, they are only here for a limited time.

practice makes possible

Head down.  Knees bent.  But not too bent.  Shoulder in.  Bend at the waist.  Turn your hips.  Swing from your core.  Hands forward.  Slow back.  Slight pause.  Accelerate through.  Shift your weight.  Head down!

How can something so simple as hitting a ball with a club be so complicated?
I want to be a natural.  I want to swing the club effortlessly and tip my cap to the fans watching me on the tour.  But that won't happen.  At least not without a whole lot of practice.
Very rare is the "natural" anything.  We all have talents, but even the very gifted must be very practiced.  Musicians, athletes, artists, surgeons, and the list goes on.
You might have skill and you might have knowledge, but you have to practice both to succeed.  I don't care how many books the doctor has read, I don't want a tonsillectomy unless she's had practice actually removing tonsils.  A drummer knows how to use the sticks, but he won't perform on stage a song he's never played.
I know how to swing a golf club.  I've been told all the steps it takes to successful hit the ball down the fairway.  But that knowledge is useful unless I actually practice.  And it's in the practice where hitting the ball becomes possible.
The same is true for the rest of life.  I want to be a good wife, a good mom, a servant of others.  It takes more than just waking up and thinking those things.  I have to practice.  What do I need to practice today to be a better wife?  The laundry.  Fixing dinner on time.  To be a better mom?  Use detangler.  Be patient.  A better servant?  Return my grocery cart.  Open a door.  Take someone dinner.  Follow through on my promises.
If I try to run through the checklist when I'm at the ball, I'll fail.  I'll forget something crucial.  But if I focus on the details during my practice swing, I will train myself to perform like I practice.  Then I can relax and rely on my training to carry me through.  If I practice correctly, my head will naturally stay down.  My knees stay bent.  My shoulder will stay in.  I will swing back slowly and accelerate through.  My ball will go in the hole.  Hopefully.  Eventually.  That is the goal.
Practice doesn't make perfect.  Practice makes it possible to succeed.

peer pressure

There's a story about a king who stole his brother's wife and was offended when John the Baptist called him out.  But since he enjoyed listening to everything else the guy had to say, he spared John's life and only had him thrown in prison.  The king's wife, however, was not so quick to forgive.
On the king's birthday, his stepdaughter provided the entertainment and the king was so enchanted by her dancing that he swore to give her anything she asked for.  Now, if a king promised to grant me anything I wanted, I could probably be pressed to come up with a short wish list on my own.  But this chick, coached by her bitter mother, asked for the head of John the Baptist on a platter.  Really?  You could have anything you want and that's what you ask for?  Not a castle, a Ferrari, or weekend trip to France but rather a dead guy's head on plate?  Ewww, gross.
The king was distressed because he really liked the guy, but in order to protect his image in front of his dinner guests, he ordered the girl's request be granted.  John was beheaded and the platter was served to the girl, who I'm sure quickly handed it off to her mother.
So what's the point of this story?  To carry your Christmas list in your pocket so that if you happen to come across a genie in a bottle you'll know what to ask for instead of relying on your mom to come up with something for you?  Not really.  It is important to know what you want in life, but who are you allowing to influence those choices?
There is a Spanish saying that goes, "Dime con quien andas, y te dire quien eres."  Tell me who you walk with, and I will tell you who you are.
King Herod obviously could have used a few more good people to walk with.  Not only did his questionable choice of a wife lead him to kill possibly the only good influence in his life, but he also surrounded himself with party guests who would be more appalled by him breaking his word to answer an evil request than by him murdering an innocent man.
I believe that you should be friends with everyone.  I think we are here for a reason and one purpose is to touch the lives of those around us.  But are the people closest to you in your life helping you reach your highest potential or are they dragging you down?
I want to be a good person.  I want to be a great wife and an excellent mother.  I want to serve Christ by serving others.  I want to write with purpose and have influence enough to encourage people to do better things.  Am I asking the right people to speak into my life in order to make those things happen?
In order to be the person you want to be and to reach your goals in life, you need to surround yourself with people, songs, books and the like that will point you in the right direction and guide you along the way.
Find a mentor, join a support group, start a Bible study.  If you want to lose weight, don't join breakfast club at Denny's, go find friends to run with you.  If you want to write a novel, sign up for literature meetings at the library.  If you want to get out of debt, listen to Dave Ramsey.
A lot of things are out of our control, but we can choose to surround ourselves with people of good influence and put ourselves in situations that give us the best chance at success.

a set of circumstances that makes it possible to do something.

Do you ever feel like you missed your opportunity for success?  There was always that thing you were going to do, but something else got in the way.  Maybe you dropped out of college because you played too much ping pong and now you've been passed over for a promotion.  Maybe you missed the deadline for a contest and feel like that was going to be your big break.  Or maybe you put off calling a friend and now it's been 10 years since you've had a conversation.
Life is full of opportunities and the choice is yours to jump onboard or let it pass you by.  Some opportunities are worth missing but sometimes not taking a chance leads to regret and a bunch of "what ifs" and "if onlys."
What if the next time you see your grandparent you sit down and really listen to their story?  What if you apply for that job even if change is scary?  What if you try something new on the menu?  Pick a new vacation spot?  Sign up for aerobics class?  If it doesn't work out, at least you'll have a story to tell.
It's a new year.  Make the most of it by going with your instinct and making the most of every opportunity that comes your way.
You have a purpose in life that only you can fill and the only way to find it is to open a few doors and take a few chances.

Resolutions

New Year's Eve 2014

So, 2014 was a pretty good year overall.  It had its ups--Taylor's first trip to Florida, breaking ground on our new house, my brother's wedding, the Bucs earning the first overall draft pick in 2015--as well as a few downs--missing my Meme, another Christmas without sugar cookies, the Hartmans becoming Kansans, the Bucs earning the first overall draft pick in 2015...

Luckily it was harder to make my list of negatives, but I still managed to come up with a few things that will make 2015 even better.  So, without further ado, my top ten New Year's Resolutions:

• Create--and stick to--a blog calendar.  Don't laugh.
• Submit at least one writing query per month.
• Get Taylor out of the house everyday.  Even if it's just to walk to the neighbor's house.  I have watched Merry Christmas, Charlie Brown a few too many times.  Although, it's still cute every time she dances along.
• Get up early.  It's amazing what you can squeeze in that hour before the kid wakes up, including Bible study and exercise.  
• Don't let my coffee get cold.
• Wait until Thanksgiving before listening to Christmas music.  Except on my birthday.  And if it randomly comes on the radio.  And during any Christmas related activities prior to Thanksgiving including, but not limited to, shopping for holiday gifts, seeing Christmas lights or other decor, and the first day Christmas Tree Cupcakes hit the shelves.  And especially on early snow days.
• Improve my golf game.  Five year plan--get my LPGA card so I can go on tour with my husband.
• Research and stay on top of my fantasy football team.  I will make the playoffs.  I will win more games than the Bucs did this year.  Hopefully.
• Travel to an away football game.  Preferable Buccaneers at New Orleans or Indy.  Will settle for St. Louis if I have to.
• Stop procrastinating.

There you have it, in no particular order.  Now, what are you going to do to make 2015 great?

the right to remain thankful

I was walking in the park the other day with a fellow mom who was venting her frustrations about her child developing an attitude of entitlement.  The entitlement mentality--the belief that one is inherently deserving of privileges or special treatment--is becoming a greater concern in modern times because of our lives of abundance.  It has never been easier to get what we want and deserve without having to work for it.  We deserve a new car and zero percent financing allows us to own it before we can afford it.  Credit cards urge us to purchase those new shoes because we're worth it.
So what's the cure?  We have to adjust our attitude from entitlement to gratitude.  Acknowledge and appreciate the benefits we receive and say thank you.

Who do you need to tell thanks?

I'm thankful to the guy who fixed our leaky roof--especially on a rainy day.  I'm thankful for the dishwasher doing the dishes so I have time to write.  I'm thankful my 18-month-old daughter slept for 12 hours last night.  I'm thankful my husband has a job so I can focus more time on my family.
A thankful heart has no room for entitlement.  I'm honored to receive a service or a gift instead of deserving such special treatment.  Are you entitled to that five-course restaurant dinner or are you grateful for the groceries in your cabinet?  It's not wrong to enjoy luxuries, but it's right to be thankful for what you have instead of feeling you deserve something better.

time theives

Are there really Christmas trees already making appearances in major retail establishments?  As if time didn't tick away fast enough, we have to rush it along by skipping through the seasons.  Does time really fly by or are we so busy looking forward to the next big thing on the schedule, that we forget to realize what's going on right now?  

Schedule high priority events, but leave room for spontaneous adventures.

Church on Sunday, PTA Tuesday, golf league on Thursday, birthday party Friday.  Some things are worth writing in your calendar, but if you have an event planned for every night of the week, you are too busy to allow for a spur of the moment picnic at the park or last-minute tickets to a ballgame.  It's hard when we feel we have so many responsibilities, but you have to allow yourself room to breathe.

Use down time wisely.

Find yourself with an afternoon or evening without anything planned?  Turn off the television or fight the urge to catch up on Facebook and DO something.  Take a walk.  Dust off your tennis racket.  Cook that recipe you pinned two months ago but never have time to fix.  Light a campfire and roast marshmallows.  You're likely to find yourself saying, "I should make time for this more often."

Life is lived offline.  

We are so connected that we forget how we managed before automatic score updates and instant text messages.  Don't turn off your phone--because what if there really is an emergency?  But don't let your device steal your time.  One "Let me check this real quick," leads to another and real life opportunities are missed--chances for real conversation or realizing you've been dealt a winning hand.

Don't ignore the future, but live in the present.

True, there are only 19 Saturdays before Santa Claus arrives, but that's no reason to forget about Labor Day, Fall Festival, Halloween, Veteran's Day and Thanksgiving.  There's something to be said about being prepared, but when we focus on one thing, it's easy to overlook everything else.  Don't be the person always asking "When did that happen?" because you are too distracted by something that's not relevant.  Yet.