Perspective

I've been thinking lately about perspective. I like to think that - most days - I do a pretty good job maintaining it.

Life can be a challenge sometimes. The thing is, no matter how challenging, there is almost always someone who has it tougher than you. So remember that. I know people who have gone through or are going through very trying circumstances. Oddly enough, they complain less than most other people I know.

It seems like people are always complaining lately. I'm not talking about a little venting. We all need to do that. I'm talking about blatant, constant complaining. Just get a grip. Suck it up. Or do something to fix your situation. 

Seriously, though, if your big complaints are things like being tired or overwhelmed by your kids, just stop. Look at me for one minute. I work. I have a boatload of kids. And just as many bills to go with those kids. So, please. Do me a favor and shut up. I could walk around all day and find things to whine about. Why would I, though? I chose this life for myself. I wanted it. Complaining about it would make me sound miserable. In reality, all of my problems could be fixed with a little extra cash. A few people I know don't have that luxury. They can't bring back lost loved ones or solve their (or their child's) health problems with money. 

So, please. Stop your whining. Get a little perspective. Understand that there are people in the world who have it so much harder than you do. Appreciate the good things in your life. Focus on the positive. Or, put a smile on your face and keep it to yourself. Nobody likes hanging with Debbie Downer.

HEY... If you enjoy the blog, why not become a follower? I'm the one who's telling it like it is. You can also stalk find me on Facebook and Twitter. Like the page and follow me!

---->P.S. Don't forget to vote for me on Top Mommy Blogs. Click that cute little brown button on my sidebar to vote for me...

**And be sure to visit my Zazzle store. Don't you need a new coffee mug or apron??

Tuesday's Tip (#27)

Here's a tip for you:

Buy two coffees.

Because I work at a pilot school, we do more hours of professional development than the other public schools in the district.  Inevitably, I forget to add our long days to my calendar. Which means that I find myself sitting in a two hour meeting after school totally distracted by the fact that my body is slowly dying from caffeine withdrawal. 

Not today! Today, I had the foresight to buy not one, but two, coffees. One for the morning and one for my meeting. I'm going to be so productive!

 

Have a tip to share? Or some cash to add to my Dunkin Donuts card? Feel free to leave a comment below...

...& be sure to check back every Tuesday for a new tip!

Random Thoughts...

On this, the day after Thanksgiving, I have a few random thoughts for you:

• If you need instructions to open a can of cranberry sauce, you should probably put down the can opener and walk away. You're going to hurt yourself.

• If you are the genius who invented this creepy little bastard to lord over our children during the holidays, you are sick. And I love you. And I want to know what you have in the works for the rest of the year.

• If at least one of your students in each class thought the big holiday this week was Black Friday, you should be sad for society. And arrange a meeting between your face and your palm (like I did).

• If you are having fist fights outside H&M over Black Friday deals, you need to rethink life. Half of their stuff is already $8.

• If pumpkin pie followed by stuffing with gravy is not an acceptable breakfast, then I should put my fork down.

• If you don't feel like being a parent on the day after Thanksgiving, just let your kids eat marshmallows for breakfast. They're probably not that much worse than the donuts your husband was going to get, anyway.

• If two of your children want to watch Willy Wonka and two want to watch Charlie Brown, don't ask the 2 year old to be the tie breaker. She will pick Charlie Wonka.

Have a random thought for me today? Share it in the comment section below!

HEY... If you enjoy the blog, why not become a follower? I'm the one who's eating leftovers for breakfast! You can also stalk find me on Facebook and Twitter. Like the page and follow me!

---->P.S. Don't forget to vote for me on Top Mommy Blogs. Click that cute little brown button on my sidebar to vote for me...

**And be sure to visit my Zazzle store. Don't you need a new coffee mug or apron??

Wordless Wednesday - Morning Coffee

Tuesday's Tips (#26)

Here's a tip for you:

Don't put your music on shuffle at the gym.

We happen to have a lot of music in our iTunes library. PJ & I also like all different kinds of music. The problem with that is yesterday, I didn't want to listen to my "running" playlist. So, I just hit shuffle on the songs. Usually, with so many songs in our music library, something good will come up. I may occasionally have to skip to the next song, but, more often than not, I hear something that peps me up during my workout.

Not yesterday. Yesterday, no matter how many times I skipped the song, something came on that just wasn't "workout friendly."

You try jogging while listening to Neil Diamond, Michael Bublé, a lullaby rendition of Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star, or Christmastime is Here from the Charlie Brown Christmas. Shuffle was about to get me off the treadmill and straight into bed.

Have a tip to share? Or song suggestions for my playlist? Feel free to leave a comment below...

...& be sure to check back every Tuesday for a new tip!

I'm A Hoarder - In My Purse

I just realized that my purse weighs almost as much as my youngest child. Every so many months, I either dump out the whole thing or switch to another bag entirely. I don't know what compels me to think that everything needs to be in there, but it probably stems from my need to be prepared. You never know what situation might arise when you're traveling with all these kids in tow.

I finally bit the bullet and cleaned it out today. Here's some of the stuff I found:

• 1 sugar packet
• 9 gift cards with remaining balances ranging from $50 to $0.09.
• 1 admission pass to Walt Disney World. From four years ago (apparently that one made it through multiple purse clean outs).
• 4 tickets to the circus from a month ago
• 24 receipts
• 6 empty check books (because every time I replaced a book of checks, I did it on the fly and never remembered to get rid of the empty ones)
• 8 coupons
• 1 broken set of headphones
• 1 working set of headphones
• 1 empty bottle of hand sanitizer
• 3 lollipops
• 3 maps to the Museum of Science (a place even my kids know like the back of their hands)
• 1 pair of dice
• 2 empty make up containers
• 4 pieces of mail
• 1 marble
• 4 broken crayons
• $1.01 in change, mostly pennies

My purse now weighs what a normal woman's purse might weigh. Unfortunately, I no longer carry around enough paper to start a bonfire or enough pennies to fill a fountain with wishes. Not to mention the fact that I'm sure I could have invented a new children's game that involved crayons, marbles and dice. Oh well. I'm off to go spend my $0.36 at Dunkin Donuts.

Some of the spoils of my purse purging...

Please tell me I'm not the only one who never cleans out their bag!

HEY... If you enjoy the blog, why not become a follower? I'm the one who's purse if finally clean! You can also stalk find me on Facebook and Twitter. Like the page and follow me!

---->P.S. Don't forget to vote for me on Top Mommy Blogs. Click that cute little brown button on my sidebar to vote for me...

**And be sure to visit my Zazzle store. Don't you need a new coffee mug or apron??