HAPPINESS

We convince ourselves that life will be better after we get married, have a baby, then another. Then we are frustrated that the kids aren't old enough and we'll be more content when they are. After that, we're frustrated that we have teenagers to deal with. We will certainly be happy when they are out of that stage. We tell ourselves that our life will be complete when our spouse gets his or her act together, when we get a nicer car, are able to go on a nice vacation, when we retire. The truth is, there's no better time to be happy than right now. If not now, when?

Your life will always be filled with challenges. It's best to admit this to yourself and decide to be happy anyway. One of my favorite quotes comes from Alfred D. Souza. He said, "For a long time it had seemed to me that life was about to begin - real life. But there was always some obstacle in the way, something to be gotten through first, some unfinished business, time still to be served, or a debt to be paid. Then life would begin. At last it dawned on me that these obstacles were my life". This perspective has helped me to see that there is no way to happiness.

Happiness IS the way.

So, treasure every moment that you have and treasure it more because you shared it with someone special, special enough to spend your time....and remember that time waits for no one. So, stop waiting until you finish school, until you go back to school, until you lose ten pounds, until you gain ten pounds, until you have kids, until your kids leave the house, until you start work, until you retire from work, until you get married, until you get divorced, until Friday night, until Sunday morning, until you get a new car or home, until your car or home is paid off, until spring, until summer, until fall, until winter, until you are off welfare, until the first or fifteenth, until your song comes on, until you've had a drink, until you've sobered up, until you die, until you are born again, to decide that there is no better time than right now to be happy.

Happiness is a journey, not a destination.

-Author--Unknown

(This is a repost from March 2009 because I needed a little pick-me-up today)

HAPPY EASTER!

Last night, like many others, we colored eggs.

It was quite hilarious watching us. There were several egg casualties, thanks to Tim, but we ended up with a wide variety of decorated eggs.

This one is my confused egg. Is it a chick? Is it a bunny? I don't know. I found the template online and thought it was cute. It's by BUNNY-CHICK!


The dyes we bought weren't too great so I ended up getting out food coloring and playing a little. This egg is thanks to the black food coloring I bought for a halloween tombstone cake. My sister says it looks like a rock. It really does!

The Teenager's egg can't be posted because he decided to have a little fun with the crayons and it got a little bit perverted. Bad Teenager! Bad Teenager! (It was funny though)


And so, after the fun Easter Egg Hunt this morning, the darling little eggs became breakfast.

Happy Easter, everyone!

IN THE BEGINNING

God created WebTV.


Yes. That was how I first experienced the internet.

Picture it. 1997. Microsoft comes out with a fantastic way to connect to the internet. It didn't have a hard drive and it used dial up. But back then, that was fantastic!

It came with a wireless keyboard so you could sit back in your favorite comfy chair. The webtv connected to your television so you just aimed the keyboard at the unit and low and behold...magic happened.

The world wide web was right in my living room. It was far from fast though. I could dial up (yes, remember the bings and dongs sounds it made?) and then go make a sandwich and something to drink. By the time I made it back into the living room, I'd either still see this screen:


Or I'd be connected. I could check my email, surf the web, or chat online.


The cost: $14.95 a month. Yep, a far cry from what I pay today. But I spent a lot more time waiting back then. Page load times were astronomical compared to today. Graphics were awful too.

But it introduced me to a world that I would come to love so I'm grateful I had it.

COFFEE

It's widely known around this blog that I love 2 drinks in particular.

Wine is one of my first loves.

Second on the list is coffee.

I'm not a true coffee drinker according to my husband. He says true coffee drinkers drink straight coffee.

I prefer frou-frou coffee. I like my sweetener and milk. I like caramel macchiatos.

But I love to try new coffees. Flavored coffees are ok. I'm really picky about them though.

What I love is River Market Blend made by The Roasterie especially for them.

Last week, though, I discovered they have a new coffee.

Magical Morning.

I don't know what makes it magical but it has a really good, light flavor. It goes really well with a little sugar and some milk or cream. No additional flavorings necessary.

I recommend that if you get the chance, stop down there and grab some. It's a little pricey at $12 a pound but well worth the expense.

If you don't live around here, drop me a line and I could possibly be persuaded to pick some up for you.

CHANGES!

As you can see, I've made some major changes in the past few days. I'm rather proud of myself for managing this enormous feat. Yes, I had help from my technical support (otherwise knows as The Teenager).

You'll begin seeing lots more changes in the coming weeks.

I'm also inviting other moms who want to post. If you have an idea or want to share something that you've posted on your own blog, contact Mommeee at the Other Moms link above.

Stay tuned (I know, it's a hokey term) for lots more to come.

DEATH & TAXES

The date is looming for those of us that are Americans to once again sit down with pen, paper, and Tylenol and do our annual deed: file our taxes.

I always thought that Benjamin Franklin was our source for the phrase "Nothing is certain except death and taxes" but after a little research, I've found that our Mr Franklin actually copied it from someone else!

Benjie's phrase was "In this world nothing can be said to be certain, except death and taxes." He wrote that in a letter to Jean-Baptiste Leroy, 1789, which was re-printed in The Works of Benjamin Franklin, 1817. Yes, he even changed the words up a bit to make us think he thought of it all by himself.

Prior to this in 1726, Daniel Defoe in The Political History of the Devil wrote "Things as certain as death and taxes, can be more firmly believed."

Another twist to the phrase was in Gone with the Wind by Margaret Mitchell as our favorite heroine mutters "Death and taxes and childbirth! There's never any convenient time for any of them."

Any way you put it, it's true. Oh so true.

So even though I spent the past 3 hours doing my taxes, I thank God that I wasn't giving birth and I'm still alive!

Kinda makes taxes seem not so bad.

SALAD!

There's nothing better to have with dinner than a nice salad.

I usually grab whatever I have in the fridge and add to the salad just whatever.

This salad is just lettuce, carrots, cheese and radishes. I don't like the big radishes but for some reason, I don't mind if they're cubed really small in a salad.

I like to get fancy with the radishes for Daddeee (because he likes them a lot).

I went for a long time and wouldn't buy radishes for him. When we were first married, he left a container of them in the refridgerator for too long.

I was the lucky one to clean out the fridge and find them hidden in the back.

I was having one of those "what the heck is that smell in the fridge" moments.

Yeah, lucky me. No radishes was his punishment. My mom finally guilted me into buying them again. She said 15 years of punishment was enough.

Anyway, back to salad.

Always keep your favorite dressings (yes, plural because you just never know what your craving might be).

If you're a crouton person, get some of those too. Keep them around. They're not bad as a snack, either.

But add a salad to your meal. They're yummy. Do it right and they're healthy too!

GOOD TIMES!

Last night we went out to celebrate the birthday of one of my best friends.

We had dinner at Cafe Cedar.

We ordered a sampler platter of appetizers.

Daddeee and I both ordered Gyros and the kids order chicken (fabulous BTW!) and burgers.



After dinner, the employees brought out a piece of Baklava with a candle in it and sang to her.

Then the belly dancer came out and entertained us.

She even gave a short lesson to my friend's daughters.

After eating, we took a walk through Parkville and enjoyed the band in the park for a while.

We had a fabulous time and I was exhausted by the time we made it home.

EVEN THE BIG ONES HAVE A SENSE OF HUMOR.

Google TiSP

The Teenager showed me this website and my first thought was, "Oh awesome! I can stop paying our huge monthly internet bill."

Then I read the whole website.

It is absolutely hilarious!

I'm glad to see that even the big boys have a sense of humor.

I wonder how many people fall for it.

I wonder if you leave the lid up if you'll get a faster speed.

If the dog drinks from the toilet, will it affect your upload rate?

Thank you Google for the good laugh!

COULD IT BE?

Could it be that spring may have finally sprung? (I love clichés!)

The weather has been rather nice the last few days. Actually making it possible for evening strolls and short sleeves.

The Teenager had an assignment for his photography class today to go outside and just take pictures.

For me, spring is here when the dogwood trees are in full bloom.


I prefer the pink dogwoods but this was the only one he had access to on the school grounds.

I think he's actually getting pretty good at photography. He took this next shot of some plant that we have no clue what it is.

His focus is fantastic.

But I'm hoping spring is here to stay. I've missed it so much. I'm ready for the flowers to bloom and to be able to spend more time outside with lots of fresh air.

By the way, I had my fingers and toes crossed the entire time I was writing this.

Just in case.

ALL GOOD THINGS MUST END

A big part of where I grew up is getting a major facelift soon. The businesses along Chouteau Trafficway have been closing up the past few weeks to make way for a wider road.

This is Stack's Drive In. I started working there when I was 13 years old. I worked there for 5 years along with many friends and family. At one point, both of my sisters worked there with me.

Stack's is a little burger, fries, and shake place that at one time served the best tenderloins and Italian Steaks around. It was owned by Albert and Lena DiGiovanni. Lena gave me my first job even when I wasn't supposed to be allowed to work since I was only 13. They have both passed away and another family member owns it now.

It is my understanding that they are opening a new location in Independence.

Ahhh, Donut King. This is just across the street from Stack's. They serve the best (I am not exaggerating) donuts around. I crave their long john's filled with whipped topping. They also offer them with Bavarian Cream but I prefer whipped.

They also offer a donut flavor of the month. I've tried key lime donuts, peanut butter donuts, and pumpkin donuts. I haven't found one yet that I didn't like.

Not only are the donuts fantastically delicious but they are affordable too. Less than $10 gets you a dozen of any donut. They don't just limit the dozen to the standard donuts like most places.

They are moving to North Kansas City in the new strip mall that was built a few years ago along 21o highway. I'm so glad because that keeps them still close to home.



I also wanted to include Diamond Joe's. I've never been inside but it's been a big part of that neighborhood since I was a kid. Back when I worked at Stack's it was called The Chouteau Inn. I remember the guys I worked with always wanted to go there to get change for us so they could see the strippers.

I had heard they were going to stay and move the front of the building to the back of the building but it appears they've just closed up.

There's an old church down the street from these that I'll be sad to see go also. I regret that I didn't get a picture of it because it's a classic style old church with the front steps and the classic steeple. It's been a vacant church building for a long time but it's a beautiful building that I'll be sad to see go.

But I look forward to seeing how the area will look when it's all done. That area has been in need of repairs for a long time.