Time Stands Still For No Man...

Time stands still for no man. How true are those words? Time denotes our existence here on earth. It contains a personal history of who we are, how we live, whom we know and what we do with our lives.

Time is filled with memories…memories of love, joy, laughter, pain, sorrow, anger, and forgiveness. All emotions, which are entertained, some internalized, some expressed, and some exploded.

In the midst of our living, time continues on its endless journey. Time is a gift, though we rarely stop and acknowledge it as such. With each day, time is equally allotted to everyone…24 hours, and what we do with that time is completely up to us.

We can spend our time wisely, or worthlessly, we can squander it, or invest it, we can enjoy it, or abuse it, we can live it, or retreat from it, but it moves on…regardless.

Time cannot be contained, only the memories caught within that time can. It is like a capsule of life being caught and preserved by actions and words that unfolds into what essentially makes up our lives and who we are.

Dad, you have been such a wise teacher on time. You have the amazing ability to capture those moments that embody you with love, passion, and peace. You have taught me that time gives us opportunities to make changes within ourselves that would make us to be better human beings. How to seek forgiveness for wrong I’ve incurred, and seek to forgive, to change how I see others, how I view myself, and to how to be an added value to society.

Thank you for taking the time…the time to raise me…the time to tickle and talk to my belly button, to play sunny and squish, and to correct my wrongs. Thank you for taking the time to teach me to be a good person, how to laugh and how to love.

One of the most precious gifts I have ever been given is your time. Happy 80th birthday Daddy. You are my Hero, and I love you.

It's about wanting what you have....

“We often take for granted the very things that most deserve our gratitude.” ~Cynthia Ozick

How often do we pause to appreciate what we have in life?

Today, on Thanksgiving Day, November 24, 2011, this is what I am thankful for…

1. My parents – Without them, I would not be me…in every sense.
Thank you for everything…I love you Mom and Dad!

2. My children – For teaching me what love is all about, I love you Brooklyn, Dominic and Kennedy! I am blessed to have 4 other children in my life that are not of my womb but I love just as much...I love you Courtney, Lexi, Jeremy and Dylan. The 7 of you make up the best Tribe I could ever ask for!

3. For my soul mate – For being the one who understands everything I’m going through and loves me for who I am and without condition.
Thank you for coming into my life Randy Stein! I love you!

4. The gift of sight – For letting me experience the colors of life


5. The gift of hearing - For letting me experience the trickle of rain, the laughter of my children, and the harmonious chords of music


6. The sense of touch - For letting me feel the breeze of the wind and hold the hands of the ones I love.

7. The gift of smell – For letting me be able to smell beautiful flowers.

8. The gift of taste – For letting me savor the sweetness of fruits, the saltiness of seawater, the sourness of pickles and the spiciness of chili


9. For speech – For giving me the outlet to express myself, even if you don’t want to hear what I have to say =)

10. For my heart – For giving me the ability to feel


11. For my mind - For the ability to think, to store memories, and to create new solutions


12. For my good health – For enabling me to do what I want to do and for what I’m going to do in the future


13. For Tears – For helping me express my deepest emotions


14. For Disappointment - So I understand the things that matter to me most


15. For Fears – So I know my opportunities for growth


16. For Pain – So I may become a stronger person


17. Sadness – So I may appreciate the spectrum of human emotions


18. Happiness – So I may soak in the beauty of life


19. For Books – For adding wisdom into my life


20. For my Job – For giving me a source of living and for being a medium where I can add value to the world


21. For the gift of Music - For lifting my spirits when I’m down and for filling my life with more love


22. For my best friends – For being there for me whenever I need them


23. For my enemies – For helping me uncover my blind spots so I can become a better person


24. For my mistakes - For helping me to improve and become better

25. For my Heartbreaks - For helping me mature and become a better person


26. For Laughter - It serenades my life with joy


27. For Love – It lets me feel what it means to truly be alive


28. For my life’s challenges – For helping me grow and become who I am


29. For Life - For giving me the chance to experience all that I’m experiencing, and will be experiencing in time to come

There are so many more things to be thankful for, but last but not least… #30:

For My God – For without Him none of the above , nor anything else would be possible.

I am a Blessed Woman… To all my friends and family, thank you for being who you are and touching the world with your presence. Thank you for giving me the chance to touch your life.

Happy Thanksgiving!!

Can I Drive???

3 little innocent words, “Can I drive?” I have been exposed to the obtaining of a driver’s permit 10 years earlier than I anticipated. In my world, I am the master of the car. I decide when we go, where we go & how dangerously we get there! But today one of our tribal princesses passed her permit test on her very first attempt! Suddenly, every ride to Target may be a death match (kidding) & a quick trip to the store may require a game plan to explain the moves & counter-moves of our opponents in the parking lot. Congratulations Lexi! So proud of you!!

My Superhero…My Dad…

We are not bonded by blood, but bonded by something so much stronger….by love.

You’re like the sun to me, a sure thing, always there for me. Constantly beaming light and warmth on my life. Whatever is good in me today, I owe to your wisdom….your patience…your strength and your love. You taught me by example as a role model, how to be my own person and how to believe in myself. Even when we did disagree, you held us together, so our bond was never broken. I understand what you did for me, and I am so grateful that I have you as my solid foundation, my rock. I respect you, I admire you, and I love you!

Now you are a grandfather, a special blessing enriching the life of my children with unique and incomparable joys. You make my children feel safe, warm and content. You are never in a hurry. You always take your time to listen and to help. You are always there for them when they need you. You are never too busy for talks, or walks or stories. You have been placed in a position that you are part parent, part teacher and part best friend. I count on your life experience and your understanding heart to help them understand and get through challenges you’ve already faced. Your strength and your easy, calm confidence will be your legacy to them.

Happy Father’s Day Daddy….I thank God that you chose me! I hope that I can be half the parent that you didn’t have to be!

Wordless Wednesday

39 years of lessons...

It has taken me 39 years to learn from the best...

Daddy...You taught me that I could be anything I set my mind to, to believe in myself, be quick to forgive & that being rich in love was all that mattered.

Mach...You taught me to be an strong, independent woman, to love truly and deeply, & to laugh uncontrollably!

Grandma...You taught me how to pull myself up by my bootstraps...and there is no such thing as feeling sorry for yourself!

To my friends...You taught me how how "hey I have a great idea!" can get us into A LOT of trouble! I'll leave it at that.... (family you know, wink, wink)

Peter....my brotha from another motha....What can I say? You know it all...Love you for everything!

My children...You have taught me what it really means to be strong, to fight for life, the truest meaning of unconditional love & to NEVER regret anything that makes you smile! Because of you, I never take a sunrise for granted and I take a moment every night to gaze at the moon and stars.

Randy...to enjoy the full value of joy you must have somebody to divide it with. I'm the luckiest woman in the world to have found you. I can't wait for what life has in store for us...

Happy Birthday to me!

Life is GREAT and I can see for MILES!!

Yesterday.....

Yesterday....I was told I was pregnant....with triplets, and I cried. I cried for joy after 8 years (and truly cried because I didn't know what the HELL I was going to do with 3 of "them"!)

Yesterday....I brought them home form the hospital, one by one...

Yesterday...I taught them to hold their bottle, eat finger foods and how to sign I love you...

Yesterday...I cried tears of joy when they took their first steps...

Yesterday... I practically threw a party when they were completely potty-trained. (Especially Dominic, who we thought his wife was going to have to give it a try).

But Kindergarten...Kindergarten marked the official beginning of "I’m not a little girl/boy anymore." One day they're writing "I (heart) Mommy"; the next they're writing "I (heart) so-n-so." I have been academically prepping them for this rite of passage since they were 18 months old. But a funny thing happened; the more I got them ready for kindergarten, the more unready I became. That’s when the light bulb went on upstairs: My babies were actually growing up! But yesterday....yesterday I walked them into their first day of kindergarten...and I cried (actually, not really, I was the only parent doing cartwheels back to my car!)

I might as well confess: I sometimes stop what I’m doing just to watch my kids and observe how much they have grown.

When I look at them, I see:

Brooklyn who was almost as bald as Kojak (except her back and she turned that around when I threatened to get her waxed on the way home from the NICU) but who now has thick-as-a-rope hair that’s down her entire back.

Kennedy who was scared of her shadow and didn't make a friend until she was 3 1/2 years old and now is a social Diva.

Dominic whose nickname was grumpy bear because he fit the part. His cry peeled paint off my walls. And now....he sings all day long, his main way of travel is his one sided skip and I think the boy smiles in his sleep.

I see the toddlers that spoke their first words...

I see the kids that used to be so scared of the dark, I used to have to spray their bedroom with water...I mean anti boogie man spray (I believe they called it Aunt Peggy spray....no offense Aunt Peggy). Now when one gets scared, I hear the other tell them....It's ok....Monsters don't live in Corona... (maybe the cows...I dunno).

I’ve had to turn my head away several times during moments like these, because my heart would get so full — and so would my tear ducts.

So, yesterday, I walked them into Kindergarten....and picked them up at the end of the day as 1st graders!