Feeling My Blessings Today

I want to thank everyone who has visited my blog for the encouraging comments and support. Blogging is my favorite hobby, and I feel very blessed that so many of you have signed up to follow my posts via e-mail or have returned repeatedly despite my haphazard posting schedule. I’ve been distracted by family matters during the last few months, but things are settling down and I’m hoping for a more normal posting pattern in the upcoming year.

Rather than making a New Year’s Resolution post with promises to myself that I probably won’t keep, I’ve decided to list a few of the blessings I’ve received during the past year. Being grateful for what I have and for what I’ve accomplished is more important to me than listing things I wish I could change. So, not necessarily in order of importance, here are the top 10 blessings 2011 brought to me:

I’ve learned to trust that God’s plans are better than my plans.

My husband survived a delicate heart procedure.

My kids have been home to share the good times as well as the tough ones.

I am physically in better shape than I’ve been in several years.

My family and friends have been unwavering in their support through some difficult times.

There is currently nothing I really need that I don’t have or can’t get.

The future looks bright for my 3 children.

My 91-year-old mother is in good health.

I’ve made the decision to focus on the positive in every situation rather than on the negatives, and so far I’ve been able to stick with that decision.

I’ve realized that some things just aren’t important enough to waste my life worrying about.

 

None of these things relate to writing—that’s somewhere farther down my list of blessings. Due to the fact I haven’t been writing anything, I have no accomplishments to list in that area. However, I do still have a passion for the book I was working on last year, and I’m determined to devote more time to writing during 2012.  (That’s not a Resolution! It’s a goal. )

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At Grandmother's house

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What are some of the things you’ve been blessed with during 2011? Do you have some goals for 2012 you’d like to share? Did you have a pleasant holiday season this year?

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Merry Christmas to All!

Just wanted to take time out to wish everyone a wonderful holiday. I’ve been blessed to have my family home to celebrate the season, and we’ve been having a lovely time together. I’ve been slacking off on my blogging as my sons have been using my computer to play games the last couple of weeks, but I hope to be back on a sort of regular schedule in January.

I can’t think of a single writing-related thing to talk about today. My mind is overflowing with thoughts of family and friends, and I am totally happy and at peace with life. I hope you are, too.

Wishing you blessings,

Carol

MERRY CHRISTMAS

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Some Holiday Fun

I had a wonderful Thanksgiving week with my family, but my kids headed back to college last night–so here I am, back to posting.  As this is a busy time of year for me, I’ll only be blogging twice a week (or less) through December, but hopefully more often in the New Year. I’m still checking other blogs regularly even though I may not post a comment each time I visit.

I’m looking forward to celebrating Christmas next month. Our tree is up, along with most of the traditional decorations, and I’m starting on my Christmas cards and shopping. I’ve also created a musical e-card at Jibjab again this year, and am sharing the link here for those of you who might enjoy a bit of holiday silliness. It will be available until 1/11/11. http://elfyourself.jibjab.com/view/wt4g3TiGT3OVrptJXl19

I hope each of you has a wonderful and safe holiday season.

 

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Is your writing schedule affected by holiday busyness, or do you stick to a regular routine no matter what time of year it is? What holiday traditions do you enjoy most? What are you putting on your “wish list” this year?

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Celebrating National Punctuation Day

 

I’ve been looking forward to this day all week. It’s National Punctuation Day, which gives all us grammarians a reason to chat about little things like commas, periods, colons, and exclamation marks, without feeling like nerds.

Last year I celebrated by discussing commas. You can read that post by clicking here.

This year, I did a little research for tidbits of information on punctuation that you might find interesting. Here are my favorites: Did you know that the exclamation mark was originally the letter I placed above the letter O, representing the Latin word io, meaning exclamation of joy? Do you know how many punctuation marks are used in the English language? (14)

For those of you who write poetry, there’s a Haiku contest over at http://nationalpunctuationday.com/ to celebrate this year’s Punctuation Day. Entries must be submitted by September 30, 2010, so check it out today!

 

 

What’s your favorite punctuation mark—or least favorite?  Are you celebrating anything today? 

 

 

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Have a Safe and Happy 4th of July

 

I’m headed out for a family picnic. Hope all of my friends in the USA have a wonderful holiday, and those of you living elsewhere have a great weekend.

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Generating New Story Ideas

I didn’t make any resolutions for 2010, but I’ve set a goal of writing and submitting at least one story or article each month this year. That sounds attainable, and it’s a lot more than I submitted last year. I’ve already started thinking of ideas and decided I’d share some of the thought-provoking sites I found so that those of you who struggle for new topics to write about can benefit, too.

I’m fascinated by the variety of celebrations and observances there are to choose from every month. While I haven’t intentionally participated, according to one site I’ve been supporting National Oatmeal Month, Hot Tea Month, Fiber Focus Month, Soup Month, Get Organized Month, Eye Care Month, and Family Fit Lifestyle Month already this year. I’m looking forward to January 20, which is Penguin Awareness Day, and I may try to write a story with penguins for this month’s writing goal.

Though I’ll probably change my mind, I’m considering using the following observances for story ideas to meet my monthly goals:

January: Penguin Awareness Day, or Squirrel Appreciation Day

February: Return Shopping Carts to the Supermarket Month, or Wave Your Fingers Day

March: National Noodle Month

April: National Pet First Aid Awareness Month

May: Hug Your Cat Day, or Return of the Slugs Day (it’s on my birthday!)

June: National Older Americans Month, or Adopt a Shelter Cat Month

July: Dad and Daughter Take a Walk Day

August: National Lighthouse Day

September: Be Late for Something Day

October: Roller Skating Month

November: Native American Heritage Month, or Sandwich Day

December: National Stress-Free Family Holidays Month

Here are some of the sites that generated story or article ideas for me:

http://www.emotionscards.com/locations.html Dates, Info, and Trivia

http://www.sldirectory.com/cal.html  a guide to locating events

http://www.tipton-county.com/Health/National%20Observances.htm National Observances

http://www.wsdot.wa.gov/equalopportunity/Training/DiversityObservances.htm Diversity observances

http://www.healthfinder.gov/nho/nho.asp  Health related observances by month

 

 

Where do you look for new ideas to include in your writing? Do you actually participate in some of the less-known celebrations? If so, which ones do you think are worthy of recognizing?

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Taking Time to Enjoy the Holidays

Like many other people, I’m taking a break from blogging until after Christmas. My kids are home from college for 3 weeks, and our days will be hectic as we celebrate the holidays with family and friends. I’ll be checking in every day or so to respond to any comments, but I won’t have time to write new posts for at least a week.

I hope all of you have a wonderful holiday season, too.

MERRY CHRISTMAS

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Holiday Schedules

The holiday season can be hectic and stressful as we juggle work schedules, shopping, family get-togethers, parties, and other things at this time of year. Finding time to write can be a challenge.

We know it’s important to write regularly, and most of us have works in progress that we’re eager to finish and send out into the world. However, keeping a realistic goal for our writing and other responsibilities in December will help us relax and enjoy the really important things in life. Taking a break or cutting back on our daily word count for a couple of weeks won’t really make a difference in our careers (unless you have a deadline looming).

Try not to stress over the amount of writing you do or don’t do in the next few weeks. Enjoy the true spirit of the holidays, and in January you’ll feel refreshed and ready to attack your project with new energy.

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Do you spend less time writing during the holidays? Do you feel stressed out by the extra activities the season generally brings, or do you know the secret to relaxing and enjoying it all?

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Happy 4th of July

I feel like I should post something special in honor of the 4th, but can’t think of anything more patriotic than a picture of some fireworks. This is from a previous year, when we had a great time watching the multicolored display in our front yard and relaxing after a day spent with loved ones.  Things will be quiet today as we’ve given up the annual picnic in favor of visiting with family members in town.

Here’s hoping all of you have a safe and happy celebration this holiday weekend.

 

 

HAPPY 4th of JULY

 

 

How do you celebrate the 4th of July, or your country’s Independence Day?

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