Living life with a chronic illness is definitely not easy. But I do my best to push through all the barriers this illness puts in front of me! In my heart and mind, I believe maintaining a positive outlook on all situations in life will carry us through to much better times! I hope you find the information that I provide both helpful and inspirational!
It is hard to believe that 2022 is almost over. Today is the final Friday of the year and the last day of the workweek of the year, so hopefully it will be a good one! I hope you have had a good week and you are looking forward to the weekend. Do you have any plans to celebrate the New Year? We do not have anything exciting planned to celebrate the New Year and will probably do the same thing we have done for many years, stay home and watch the ball drop from the warmth and comfort of our home with our sweet three fur babies! We are going this morning to get another COVID booster, so we can be protected from getting sick while we are on vacation celebrating my husband’s birthday.
This is going to be my last Friday post for the year and I wanted to share a quote that I found for the year almost being over. If you are anything like me, you are hard on yourself when something did not go the way you had planned, which is an awful way to be. Anytime I think I have done something wrong or not good enough, I will beat myself up for days, if not weeks. I fail to remember that tomorrow is another day, which is another chance to try again!
I hope you have had a nice week! I am planning to do another post later about the 2nd COVID booster experience, so please stay tuned! I remember the last time we got the booster, I felt awful all weekend and I am hoping this time will be different. In a way, I am glad I reacted to the last booster because it made me believe I was even more protected from getting COVID, but I am not looking forward to going through that again. I do understand people are still getting COVID, even once they are fully vaccinated, but it is preventing hospitalizations and the worst from happening. I know I mentioned a few weeks ago that both my mother and her husband got COVID and they were both fully vaccinated, and did recover quickly without ending up in the hospital.
Thank you for visiting my site today! I hope you have a wonderful day and a safe, and amazing weekend! I hope you enjoyed what I have shared and you found the quote to be as great as I did. I am looking forward to reading your comments and will respond as quickly as I can. Please never forget that I am always sending y’all LOTS of love, comfort, support, and MANY positive vibes!
The Tuesday after a long weekend and a holiday always seems like a Monday on a massive amount of steroids. Of course, work for me has not been all that busy, so I am sure today will not be too bad. The only hard part is going back to the same old work week. It never fails, even on weekends I still wake up at the same time, but at least when it is the weekend I do not have to sit in front of a computer for eight very long hours! I hope you had a wonderful holiday weekend and you enjoyed yourself safely!
Lately, when I can do posts, I have been writing about things that are on my mind and troubling me. The quote I am sharing with you today is in a sense following the same kinds of things that I have written about. It does not matter which country we live in, we are all living in the same world. With that said, we should want a peaceful life without conflicts and violence. There is nothing positive that comes from hate, violence, and conflicts. It is important, to be honest, but it is also extremely important to realize how much our words and actions can harm another person. I have always believed that if I do not have anything nice to say, it is better to stay silent. We cannot take our hurtful words back or the harm we caused another person.
The weather has been slightly crazy and very unpredictable. The past few days have been super cold around the country, which over the holiday weekend caused many some additional challenges. Unfortunately, there were many that had to manage without power in the incredibly chilly temperatures. With as cold as it was, all I wanted was there to be snow. That is something I ALWAYS miss at Christmas because as a child I always had a white Christmas. How have you been dealing with the weather challenges?
Thank you for visiting my site today! I hope you have a wonderful day😊! Try to remember that anything we cannot do tomorrow is another day to try again😊! Instead of thinking about how busy you are today and how much you were not at work, think about your amazing weekend, celebrating the holiday. I look forward to reading your comments and I will respond as quickly as I can. Please never forget that I am always sending y’all LOTS of love, comfort, support, and MANY positive vibes!
I have had a hard time getting in the Christmas spirit for over 20 years because I was accustomed to having a white Christmas. I will never forget my first Christmas in the south because it was so hard for me to celebrate the holidays without snow and family. I sprayed this snow-looking spray all the windows and bought fake snow to sprinkle around my apartment just so I could see something that looked like snow. I know people that live in the south would hate the fact that I always wish for snow because everyone hates snow in the south.
We have had a few Christmas that were not completely normal because of COVID and we are finally starting to be able to celebrate the holidays like normal. It is still a little uncomfortable because from what I have been told, COVID is miserable to deal with. I am not sure where you live, but it is incredibly cold where I am. I do not think I have dealt with temperatures this cold since living in the north or when my husband and I go snowboarding. The bitter temperatures have caused many people to lose power, which thankfully, we have not and hope we do not.
Thank you for visiting my site today and for all your continued support with the posts I have been able to do. I hope you and your family have a wonderful and safe Christmas. Christmas seems to have a new meaning to many and it is all about spending money, which is not the true meaning of Christmas. Let’s remember the loved ones that are not with us today and honor them always. Keep those who have recently lost a loved one in your thoughts because today might be a painful day for them. I look forward to reading your comments and I will respond as quickly as I can. Please never forget that I am always sending y’all LOTS of love, comfort, support, and MANY positive vibes!
Today is Christmas eve, but what does this mean to you? Do you have any traditions for this day and if so, what are they? It is the day before Christmas, so do you have all your Christmas shopping, holiday decorations, and everything prepared for tomorrow? For years, I did have specific traditions for both Christmas and Christmas eve, but they have changed for a few reasons. Unfortunately, one of the reasons is due to COVID, which we cannot change. The other reason is that my mother lives several states away, but I do think her move was a good move and I believe she is happy with her husband, which makes me happy😊!
During the holidays, I think we should try to be thankful for our lives. We should not have regrets and should try to focus on what we are grateful for. It is sad to think some so many people do not have a loving family, a roof over their heads, or food on the table. To know so many people are homeless, especially when the temperatures have taken a turn towards bitter cold. It is shocking how quickly the weather has changed and how insanely cold it has become, even in the south where I live. With how cold it is now, the only thing that would make sense is to have snow on the ground and give us a white Christmas!
Whether you are in the United States or another country, I hope your holiday weekend is wonderful and you stay safe because COVID is still around. Thankfully, things are much better with COVID than they have been in the past few years and most people are vaccinated. I may not have left the house much over the past few years, but I am glad that my husband and I have not had to deal with how awful COVID makes people feel. Some people might say that we have been overly cautious, but with a deadly virus infecting and killing so many I do not think you can ever be too cautious. We are planning a snowboarding trip for my husband’s birthday at the beginning of January, so we are planning to get the 2nd COVID booster next week to protect us from the virus.
Thank you for visiting my site today. I hope you and your family have a wonderful Christmas and that you enjoy the weekend! I look forward to reading your comments and I will respond as quickly as I can. If you must drive far to visit with your family, please drive safely because I am sure traffic is going to be crazy. Please never forget that I am always sending y’all LOTS of love, comfort, support, and MANY positive vibes!
The holidays are “supposed” to be a time for joy and happiness, but it tends to make me feel sad. While I know how insane this may sound, I do have my reasons. I think about those who have lost loved ones both recently and not so recently. Unfortunately, most of us have lost someone we cared deeply for and the empty chair at the dinner table during the holidays is another reminder they are gone. It does not matter how long it has been, the loss of someone we loved is a pain that stays with us.
I feel heartbreak for people I have never met that I know who lost someone they loved. Recently, there was a tragic loss for a wife and her children, when Stephen Boss, also known as “Twitch,” took his own life. Another celebrity who recently lost her life was Sonya Eddy who played Epiphany Johnson in the soap opera, General Hospital, which I have watched since I was a child. I think about the families of these two people and how they will get through the holidays without them.
During the holidays, I also think about my late Grandfather and my husband’s late Grandparents. Even though my grandfather and I did not see each other as often as I would have liked because we lived several states away from each other, I do always miss the sound of his voice when we talked on Christmas Day. Since my husband and I have been together, which is now going on twenty years, we always used to spend Christmas Day at his Grandparent’s house before they passed away, which is the house we now live in. The one thing we will all always have, no matter how many years since our loved ones passed away, is amazing memories.
I cannot help but think about the many people across this world that will face the upcoming holidays for the first time without their loved ones. So many will deal with pain and sadness over the holidays, and it fills me with sadness. Maybe I am being overly emotional, but I also think about the millions of people that are homeless and do not have the opportunity to enjoy a hot family dinner surrounded by loved ones. Too many people are doing the best they can on the streets, trying to find shelter and food, which should never be the case, no matter why they are in the situations they find themselves in.
I might overthink things too much, but there are so many questions that keep running through my head. Why do some people have to struggle, especially in a country as wealthy as the United States? Why do the ones who are not struggling financially and would not miss a few dollars not offer to help the underprivileged more? There are so many struggling with mental instabilities that cannot find the help they need and why is this? Why do people have to suffer and starve? Why can the world not be fair and provide equal opportunities to everyone? If you saw a young man or woman on the street in the cold, would you try to help them or would you turn your head and walk away? It is not possible that I am the only person who has these thoughts and wants to help.
Thank you for visiting my site today. I know this post was not as uplifting as I normally try to be, but this is how I am feeling and needed to get these feelings out to others and give them something to think about. I feel that sometimes it only takes a few people to think about the bigger problems in life and make small strides to do something to help. I hope you are having a good week and there was something that I have shared in this post that resonated with you. I look forward to reading your comments and I will respond as quickly as I can. Please never forget that I am always sending y’all LOTS of love, comfort, support, and MANY positive vibes!
The holidays for the past few years have been abnormal, to say the least. We had been forced to place family gatherings on hold, with no idea when to reschedule them for. COVID caused holiday celebrations to change drastically and add even more stress to an already stressful time of year. Although COVID is much better than it was a few years ago, the pandemic has not seen its final days yet. The good news is that travel restrictions have been lifted, which is helping make long-distance family gatherings more manageable. Everything seems as though there are promises life will see what we used to consider “normal” again soon.
Even though life is starting to become normal again and COVID stress is decreasing some may still feel increased stress as the holidays approach us. Many have adjusted increasingly well to being at home and isolated from the outside world. Of course, for anyone who naturally enjoys socializing, the ability to interact with others, and to have mindless conversations, the holidays will be a breath of fresh air and excitement.
The low-key, mellow homebody type was thrilled to have a logical excuse to stay at home for the holiday of their dreams. Changing back to the spectacle of talkative relatives, rambunctious children, and loud noises may be a complete shock to their sheltered systems. Human beings do have the ability to acclimate to new environments quickly and adjust to change, which COVID pushed all of us to learn quickly.
Everyone needs to remember that the holidays do not mean we need to make up for all the holidays missed due to COVID in one day. We need to enjoy these times without feeling increased pressure. We can converse and interact with our family and friends, while still protecting our personal space.
For anyone that is an introvert and enjoys the comforts of their home, the following tips might be beneficial to read. I am sure there are many more ideas available, but these are just a few that I came across and wanted to share them.
Take Baby Steps:
Now is a time to take things slow and not push ourselves too far. Many of us might be tempted to try avoiding social gatherings and holiday parties, but we should try to at least make a conscious effort. Avoidance can potentially make things far worse than they truly are.
The best way to readjust and ease back into the “normal” holidays is to take it one manageable event at a time. Remember, to stay true to yourself, if large events and gatherings cause you too much stress and anxiety, choose to attend smaller gatherings until you begin to feel more comfortable and less anxious.
It is crucial to create and maintain time limits. If you know you can only tolerate an hour or two at a family dinner, let this be known so everyone is aware and understands. You could simply say, “I am so excited to celebrate the holiday with everyone, but unfortunately, I must leave by 9 PM.” If you are with your significant other or a friend, establish a code word to let that person know you are ready to head home, so you can begin saying your “goodbyes”.
Envision Success:
During the days leading up to your holiday gathering, try to self-talk. Do not tell yourself, it is going to be an uncomfortable and awful situation. Instead, remind yourself you are going to be surrounded by family who loves and accept you, and everything is going to be fine. The more you tell yourself this, the more that is what your brain will hold onto and remember.
Allow Yourself Breaks:
Whether the holiday gathering is with family or friends, keep your needs in mind. Stay aware of any indicators you are getting overwhelmed, your heart begins racing, you become overheated, etc. If your stress and uncomfortable feelings build up, simply politely excuse yourself to the restroom or step outside for some fresh air. A short and quiet break can help to calm yourself and be ready to socialize more.
The holidays do not need to be stressful, as they are meant to be enjoyable. We still have a few days left before Christmas Day, so try to keep yourself stress free and look forward to spending time with your loved ones. If you are not able to see everyone in your family due to distance, there is nothing wrong with picking up the phone to chat or even chatting on Zoom.
Thank you for visiting my site today. I hope you found the tips I have shared helpful, but if you have others, I will encourage you to share them. I am looking forward to reading your comments and I will respond as quickly as possible. I hope your week is going well and you have a good day! Please never forget that I am always sending y’all LOTS of love, comfort, support, and MANY positive vibes!
Happy Sunday, y’all! I hope you are having a good and relaxing weekend! Can you believe that we only have two weeks left in 2022? It is amazing how quickly time goes by and how much we endure each week. Sometimes, it is hard to believe what we have survived and witnessed because some things are so incredibly unbelievable. No matter what tragic events we have dealt with, it is crucial to remember that each experience is another lesson that is going to help us become better. We need to not think of hard times as a punishment because none of them are, they each continue making us stronger and more resilient.
The past several years have been complicated, to say the least, but what have we learned over the past few years? We have seen so much violence, which “should” have taught us to be kinder and more understanding. But, honestly, has it? I ask this because violence and hatred continue to ravage the world daily. Why do people feel so much hatred? Why can we all not get along and be nice to one another? Is this something we are taught by watching the news, which has made hatred seem normal and okay?
As we approach the holidays, we need to keep a few things in mind. One is, we still need to be practicing safety protocols because COVID is still around. For anyone that is not vaccinated, it is well past time to get vaccinated. Being vaccinated against COVID can be a matter of life and death for ourselves and our families. The other thing we need to remember is, Christmas is NOT a time for receiving gifts, but it is a time to share the love with those around us and be better at practicing kindness and never forgetting what the Golden Rule means!
New Year is only two weeks away, so now is the time to recall the past year and think about what changes we want to make for the next year. Are there new things we want to learn or things we were taught years ago that we want to put back into play? Do we want to make a difference in the world and if so, what difference needs to be made? Do we want to make changes in our day-to-day lives, and if so, what changes do we want to make? I am not asking you to share this now, but I am asking you to put thought into this!
The weekend is nearing its end and I hope you had a nice weekend. Did you do anything special over the weekend? Are you looking forward to the week ahead of us and are you ready for it? We do still have several hours left of the weekend, so I would encourage you to make the best of it. The important things we always need to remember are what we are going to do this next week which is something we will be proud of!
Thank you for visiting my site today. I hope you have enjoyed what I have shared, and it gave you things to think about. I am looking forward to reading your comments and I will be responding as quickly as possible. I am going to continue to try staying on a schedule with my posts, which gets harder once the work week begins, but I am going to try. Please remember that I am always sending y’all LOTS of love, comfort, support, and MANY positive vibes!
Twas the day before Thanksgiving and many are excited to visit with family with COVID numbers decreasing. This time last year many were isolated due to fears of COVID, which caused most to feel sad about not being able to spend a holiday with their families. Unfortunately, last year we were seeing high numbers of COVID, and no one wanted to get sick or cause their loved ones to get sick. Yes, this year the numbers have decreased, and many have been vaccinated so all we can do now is hope for the best😊! I know that I am not the only one that is tired of hearing about COVID, as we dealt with it for far too many years!
Thanksgiving is a time to remember the things that we are thankful for. Of course, we should show how thankful we are daily, but with tomorrow being Thanksgiving this post is going to be about being thankful! What are a few things you are thankful for? Unfortunately, many of us have lost loved ones and we wish they were with us to celebrate, but we can still honor those we have lost by cherishing their memory. Our lost loved ones would want us all to keep living our lives and be happy while still remembering them😊!
Years ago, my husband and I would try to spend Thanksgiving with my mother. It was a nice time to get together and catch up. This year, my mother is living in another state, and it will be a little different. I am beyond thankful that my mother has found love and happiness and is living her best life. We were talking about having her and her husband come to visit us around Christmas, but I am logical about money and thought it would be a less expensive flight to wait until after Christmas for them to come!
I am very thankful that my husband and I are safe and healthy (besides my having Multiple Sclerosis). We have a wonderful life with our three amazing cats that bring us so much joy. We do terribly miss our cat Chloe whom we had for almost 16 years, but the two little cats we adopted are wonderful and all three cats get along so well. We both find it incredible to watch the three cats interact with one another, the bond they have formed, and the unconditional love they have for each other and us.
Another thing that I am thankful for is my husband’s side of the family. They have all been so welcoming since the day he and I met, and they continue to be the best in-laws any girl could ask for. Family can be unusual and unique, but love is consistent and unconditional.
In a very strange way, I am thankful for my job and my work family. I have not met any of my co-workers in person but have built strong relationships with several of them. The few that I have made a strong connection with are my supervisor and a few of my other co-workers that share the same title as I do. One of the girls loves her cats as much as I love mine, and sadly lost two of hers back-to-back a few months ago. We spend more time at work than we do not at work, so it is nice to be able to work with good people!
Too many people in this world forget how to be thankful for what they have in their lives and then take things for granted. I think that is sad because there are so many people, especially in the United States that do not have a roof over their heads, food on the table, or love in their hearts and are unable to have compassion or understanding for anyone else. We all share the world we are living in and it does not matter the color of someone’s skin, who they love, where they are from or anything else, this world is for us to live and grow in!
Thank you for visiting my site today. I hope you enjoyed this post and I look forward to reading your comments and what you are thankful for. I was going to make beef stew for dinner tomorrow, but we are now going to order a turkey dinner to have for Thanksgiving. My husband was looking forward to turkey, so this saves me from cooking! I am still hopeful that everyone around the world can remember what love means and start being kind to everyone! Please never forget that I am always sending y’all LOTS of love, comfort, support, and MANY positive vibes!
Today is the last Monday left in 2021. Can you believe it is almost 2022? It surely has been a long and extremely challenging couple of years. There have been a limited number of improvements and or changes, so I am hesitant to be overly hopeful that 2022 is going to be much different than the past few years. If you think about just the last year alone and think about everything that has happened. Yes, there have been some good moments and we need to be thankful for our life. Not to be negative, but does the good and bad experiences in the past year balance each other?
Of course, the issues with COVID are slightly better, safer, but could still be much better. The positive thing is, there has been a decrease in new cases and fewer deaths. There are still breakthrough cases and even though they are mostly unvaccinated, some fully vaccinated people are still getting COVID. Unfortunately, 815,000 people in the United States lost their life to COVID and more than 4 million worldwide lost their life due to COVID. I am fully aware that there are some that will disagree with me on this, but I do strongly feel that if everyone would get fully vaccinated, we as a world, not individual countries would be in a much better and safer place to be in!
This past weekend was Christmas. After last year when we were all encouraged to stay at home, not participate in large gatherings, and basically survive on house arrest without being officially arrested. Living in fear of a deadly virus was exhausting and insanely frustrating. It was hard on me because not too many people understand what it is like to have a weak immune system, so most cannot comprehend why I do not leave my house often and when I do I wear a mask and sanitize everything! I do hope you were able to enjoy a relaxing, safe, and lovely Christmas with your family!
I do believe December has been one of the most difficult months for me. A lot of this has to do with being laid off from my job and searching for a new job. I was working for a mortgage company when I was laid off and I did know it could happen. The crazy thing is even after this not-so-fun experience, I am looking at other mortgage companies. Most people would probably try finding a job in another industry that is more stable, but I worked with mortgages for many years at two different companies. It is just what I know but I enjoyed what I was doing.
I was already aware that I do not do well with not working because I like to stay busy and have a schedule. A lot of people like not working because they have limitless free time, but free time makes me feel like I am losing my mind. I think the reason is that work occupies my mind and prevents me from thinking too hard about other issues in life.
We have all heard that old saying “When it rains it pours”, right? This could not be truer! My husband and I were on our way home from Christmas dinner, and we had to stop for gas. After my husband filled up the gas tank, he went to start the truck so we could head home, and that darn truck would not start. I am not mechanically inclined, but my husband is so while I went from calm to panic in less than a second, my husband analyzes the possible reasons. I did not know this at the time, but he slides under the truck and hit the fuel pump, got back in the truck, and it started right up. Apparently, I need to get the truck to the shop for a new fuel pump to be installed. Of course, I have to deal with car troubles a little more than two weeks after getting laid off.
Thank you for taking the time to visit my site today! I know this is not one of my typical Motivation Monday posts, but I had so much the has been crowding my mind I had to get some of my thoughts out. Clearing our minds from unnecessary and increased stress is best for Mental Health. I hope you and your family had an amazing holiday and you are ready to tackle the last week of 2021. Please never forget that I am always sending y’all LOTS of love comfort, support, and MANY positive vibes!
It is already December 21st, the Winter Solstice and Christmas is only a few days away. There are several reasons it does not feel like Christmas to me. One reason might sound silly, but I grew up in the north where it was always a white Christmas. Even though I have been in the south for over twenty years, and it rarely snows, I still miss snow blanketing the ground on Christmas day. In a way it is good it does not snow in the southern state I am in because the smallest amount paralyzes the city and has people bombarding the stores for canned goods and leaving the shelves empty.
Another reason it does not feel like Christmas is that I am unemployed. This is not because of anything I did wrong, but due to my company thinking it was a great idea to lay off nearly 300 people two weeks before the holiday. As I already said in a previous post, there is never a good time to be laid off. I cannot help but think about those that had children and lost their job. Parents want to provide their children with a Merry Christmas and not have to consider returning gifts to be able to have a roof over their heads. They might also be deeply concerned about being able to have food on the table for their family.
In previous years, prior to the pandemic, we spent Christmas eve with my family and Christmas day with my husband’s family. Of course, last year we spent the holiday at home with each other and our cats which may have been a little sad. In the past two years, my mother has relocated and lives approximately 1,100 miles away so we will not be going to her home for Christmas eve. If it were not for safety reasons due to COVID, maybe I would have been able to fly to where she lives, but I am not risking my life to get on an airplane. Please understand this though, I think my mother is happy where she is now and the life, she is building is a good one for her, so I am over the mood happy for her.
Considering I am what some would call an overly emotional person, my heart breaks for the many people dealing with the loss of a loved one, a job, their home, or anything else meaningful to them. There has been far too much tragedy around the world. There is too much needless violence that continues to cause massive amounts of devastation. I do not and never will understand violence or selfishness because it does nothing good for anyone. I guess the way I view things is, it is almost 2022 and we should be evolving, but instead, it seems like many are devolving.
I do understand this post was not very positive, but I am just being open and real with you because I feel that is the only way to be. I have been told that I can be too honest and transparent, but I disagree. However, I would like to know what you think. Do you think anyone can ever be too honest? I had a phone interview yesterday, which I think went well. When the interviewer asked me questions, I told him that I am completely transparent and will always be honest anytime I am asked a question. I have told people before if they do not want to know what I think about something or how I feel, do not ask if you do not want an honest answer.
Thank you for taking the time to visit my site today. I do encourage you to leave a comment and I will respond to all comments as quickly as I possibly can. I hope you are doing well and staying safe as you prepare for the upcoming holiday. How are you planning to spend the holiday and are you ready for it to come? Please never forget that I am always sending y’all LOTS of love, comfort, support, and MANY positive vibes!
Fightmsdaily 