I accepted Mom It Forward's"Happiness Headlines" challenge this season to perform random acts of kindness. I chose these two activities that involved my kids in hopes that they would catch the spirit of the season and learn to think more about giving than receiving.
Bake reindeer cookies for neighbor gifts.
Make candy cane notes to thank people for spreading holiday cheer.
This video shows the fun you can have when you involve your kids in creating your neighbor gifts. Nope! I didn't create a nearly 9-minute montage to see how long I could keep your attention :). I purposefully didn't cut it for those of you who 1) Are interested in baking instructions, 2) Want to get to know me and my kids a little better, and/or 3) Want to snack on a virtual cookie or two or three!
Below is a picture of the candy cane thank yous we made. Nope! Your eyes don't deceive you. We kept this project simple, taking hand-written stickers and slapping them on candy canes. We kept these in a bag and took them with us on all of our errands this holiday season. If you don't know Red Rover and Chatterbox, they are both pretty shy. So, at first it was difficult for them to approach and give gifts to strangers. But, one experience seeing the joy it brought to others and they were hooked. They caught the Christmas spirit and started looking for ways to spread the holiday cheer!
Mom It Forward is an online community of women who are changing the world one mom at a time and having a lot of fun doing it. This amazing group focuses on strengthening women with the goal to improve families, better communities, and ultimately and positively impact the world. For more information on becoming part of this community, please visit momitforward.com.
When we think of magic, we think of something appearing out of "nothing." A rabbit from a hat. A bunch of flowers from a shirt sleeve. Or a quarter from an empty hand. We also think of women that give their all—even when their all feels like nothing or they have limited resources—to raise their children—our future leaders, teachers, and our children's future spouses.
This December, HP is redefining magic by making a very big something appear not out of nothing, but out of the goodness of its heart. It has bestowed its magic wand on these amazing bloggers—Firemom from Stop, Drop, and Blog (left), Sugar Jones from Living in Theory (below right) Merlot Mom (below left), and SlashGear (bottom)—for help in spreading a little HP fairy dust, if you will. More specifically, these folks are holding contests and will be awarding one lucky lass or lad each with $6000 worth of amazing HP product. Because this holiday season is all about sharing, Mommy Gossip—GNO would love to take a turn with the Magic wand to sprinkle a little HP fairy dust.
At Mommy Gossip—GNO, our goal is to change the world one mom at a time. Our mission is simple: to help moms improve their lives and achieve personal and professional success so they can, in turn, better their families, better the community around them, and ultimately, better the world. This change can start with just one mom. But why help just one mom when we could help four? Four women in our community—moms with generous hearts, giving spirits, but limited resources and/or significant challenges. Just imagine the ripple effect these women could produce if they had a little magic.
We are dazzled by the magical women in our online community. We see SAHMs, WAHMs, WMs, and every other mom-related acronym balance on the personal/professional tight rope. Many of these women have disabilities, are supporting children with disabilities, have little family and/or financial support, and are facing many other types of challenges. We hear of their struggles to gain an education; give their businesses a go; and do it all while battling infertility, raising their children, and keeping their chins up. We are humbled to watch them line up to volunteer for our fundraisers. We are overcome with their contagious positive attitudes. We are amazed to hear the random acts of kindness they are performing this season to spread holiday cheer. And, we are motivated as we watch them network to find solutions to their situations.
If Mommy Gossip—GNO got to take a turn with the Magic wand, we'd sprinkle a little HP fairy dust on four GNO Gals—women like those you see in the video or like those described above—women in our midst that need a little HP Magic to better themselves so they can, in turn, better their families, and ultimately better their communities and the world. We feel that generations of children impacted by a mother's success would be the most magical miracle of all.
Note: We have chosen not to divulge the names and situations of these women here, because if we win the contest, we'd love the gifts to be a surprise!
My "I Am Thankful for..." series wouldn't be complete without a post related to food. And, since Thanksgiving is only 2 days away, I figured now was the perfect time to share two of my favorite recipes. I don't have pictures to add, so you'll have to imagine the yumminess!
Mix dry ingredients and cut in shortening. Add eggs and bananas. Mix well. Add oats and chocolate chips to taste (one or two cups). Bake for 8-10 minutes at 375 degrees.
These are great frozen! Try it and see. ________________________________________________
Confetti Spread (awesome, colorful appetizer)
2 pkg. croissant rolls (the kind you buy in the a package in the refrigerated section at the grocery store... Pillsbury, etc.) 2 8 ounce pkg. cream cheese 2/3 cup mayonnaise 2-3 carrots (shredded) 3 celery stalks (diced) 1/2 yellow pepper (diced) 1 bunch radishes (shredded) 5-6 green onions (chopped)
Pat croissant dough onto a cookie sheet (jelly roll pan) and bake according to directions. Let cool completely. Beat softened cream cheese and mayonnaise and spread mixture evenly on baked croissant (will be flat). Sprinkle veggies evenly on top of the mixture. Cut into small pieces before cooling. Place in refrigerator and chill 3-4 hours before serving.
I know... weird title! But, right after GNO on Tuesday, I was sitting in front of my computer and the ceiling light came crashing down. As in... the entire fixture came right out of the ceiling. Glass shattered everywhere. The fixture was heavy. It could have caused some serious damage if it had landed on anyone. And, to think I was 1 INCH from where it fell. Nope, not even exaggerating. Felt the wind and everything :). Here are the pics to prove it!
Anyway, this near-death experience (OK, that WAS an exaggeration) got me thinking... My head has been through a lot! It has:
Nearly been hit by a light fixture that escaped from its home in the ceiling.
Had 42 staples and a huge horseshoe-shaped scar (fortunately hidden under my hair).
Three screws in its jaw and a plate in its chin (fortunately hidden inside my mouth).
Had a fractured skull.
Experienced memory loss. What was I just saying? LOL!
Had the typical stitches in its chin that every child gets.
Had braces and retainers and the dreadful headgear. One reason to hate the 80s!
Had its jaw wired shut.
Had an epidural hematoma on its brain.
Lots of fillings and crowns and now, six wonderful veneers after a scary fall and broken teeth.
Epilepsy! (Not that it explains all of the above-listed points, but I knew you were going to ask for explanations!)
So, today's post is a simple bit of gratitude for having a head that has made it through the tough times—that has memory, function, and in spite of two pills a day for life and bad hair days, running make up, or anything else I may consider ugly, still is my head with my eyes, my freckles, my thin, but beautifully colored hair (thanks Meli).
In a very sincere, overwhelming, and humble way, I am thankful that the light is still on, if you know what I mean. Or, in other words, I am thankful for... my head!
Change is inevitable. And, while I am pretty spontaneous and can roll with it most of the time—even thrive on it—I appreciate a degree of consistency throughout the changes. There is something about having certain anchors in the sea when waves come rolling in to keep you stable, right?
Anchors come in various forms, represented by a constant... like family members, religious beliefs or spirituality, passion and conviction for anything really—like politics, a cause, or a specific type of food. I'm telling you that life is better for me when cheese is around.
One of my favorite type of anchors isn't something that happens every day. Rather, it happens maybe once a year or on a less frequent than a daily basis anyway. It is a tradition. Something that has happened over time—perhaps even generations of time—that is so constant that life would seem unfamiliar and even sad without it.
A jar of sauerkraut grown in my mom's garden and canned by her. Mmmmmmm!
Here is my list of favorite traditions I have grown up with or recently started:
Going on a daddy-daughter date before Christmas every year.
Choosing a box from the "Money Tree" at Christmas time.
Eating sauerkraut at all major holiday meals.
Going to San Diego on summer vacations as a child.
Getting a father's blessing on the first day of school every year.
Going for a Sunday drive every Sunday between the ages of 10 and 16 so my dad could teach me how to drive.
Getting together with my Aunt Judy and her family to make Christmas candy every December.
Doing the "12 Days of Christmas" for a family less fortunate than us.
Visiting Strand Bookstore every time I go to New York City.
Playing the Silly Song on the piano and enjoying my kids dancing.
Going to see the witches at Gardner Historic Village during Halloween time (new tradition with my kids).
Celebrating my birthday for the month leading up to it! (And, making my family and friends celebrate it with me LOL!)
Having Christmas Eve with my in laws and their families and acting out the Christmas Story while my FIL reads it from the book of Luke.
Eating my grandma's grape sherbet ice cream.
Going on sister's vacations.
And...
This last tradition isn't one that happens at regular times. It doesn't need a special holiday to make it special. And what you need to know is that I don't like most desserts, including cookies. But, there is something about Banana Cookies that makes everything right in the universe. So my last and favorite tradition is just a batch of banana cookies.
At my grandma's funeral, the church made a delicious meal. We were expecting traditional funeral food, but there was not a dry eye in the room when they brought out my grandma's favorite food—the things she had made for all of us her entire life. And, what made it so memorable were the platters of banana cookies! We didn't know other people that ate them. We brought them to every family event. Aunts and uncles argued over who could make them better. Should they be crisp, doughy? How many chocolate chips was the perfect amount? I loved them soft and then frozen.
My favorite part about traditions? MEMORIES! Whenever I want to feel close to my grandma, all I have to do is make a batch of banana cookies and she may as well be standing right next to me.
This gossiping gal dishes out the delights and the dysfunction of motherhood, chitting and chatting about everything from love to marriage to the baby carriage and beyond. Cozy up for some candid conversation about life's lemons as well as the lemonade. This is one journey that is both sweet and sour, baby! Hope you'll join me for the ride.
(Picture of me, my sisters, my son, and my neice)
Picture courtesy of Kristin from The Sassy Mom Shoppe blog.
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