Gibson

{Post 59/365: Original Post: What I Want My Children to Know}
Gibson
In old english means "son of Gilbert"
Beautiful spirit
Sweet soul
Other versions are Gib, Gibby, Giblet
Name is strong and unique.

James
A hebrew name to honour your grandfather
Means he who supplants
Earn a good place
Share a strong spirit

Peter
Each Pedro in spanish, Petrov and Pyotr in russian, Pierre in french, and Pieter in Dutch
The greek Petros meaning "stone"
Easily strong and solid spirit
Respect and recognition to your father, you are his namesake

Amberle

{Post 58/365: Original Post: What I Want My Children to Know}
Amberle
Meaning amber, a honey-coloured fossil resin and gemstone
Book character, Amberle Elessedil named from
Elfstones of Shannara (the) by Terry Brooks
Really loved the name
Love the girl named Amberle
Expressive and beautiful

Sarah
A wonderful name meaning princess
Ready to try new things
Able to adapt
Hebrew name
-
Anne
Name meaning grace; favour
Name origin hebrew
Each name combined gives an amber princess of grace

Marcel

{Post 57/365: Original Post: What I Want My Children to Know}
Marcel
A name of french origin
Roman god of war, Mars is the source
Can be Marcellus in latin, Marcelo in spanish, Marcelino and Marciano in Italian
Each version similar meaning
Little warrior.

Gerry
Expressing a part of your father
Reinforcing the theme of warrior
Relevant meaning is spear ruler
You are so strong!

Donovan
Origin is Irish and Gaelic
Name meaning dark, brown-haired chieftain
Oh how appropriate and full of import
Version chosen as honour to mother
A Dawn
Nuances of expression, your names are you!

Goddess Pendant

{Post 56/365: Original Post: I AM a QUEEN}

Do you notice anything about this goddess pendant?

At first I didn't like them.

Mainly because of how I see myself POORLY and inappropriately.

Every woman has a goddess inside her. 

I'm beginning to LOVE this little stone goddess

for being the size and shape she is because she tells me to honour myself.

She tells me to honour the wide hips that are part of the body I birthed four children with.

She tells me to honour my shape as a part of me. She tells me to appreciate and accept ALL the parts of me.

She tells me to love myself.

She tells me to cherish my body.

This is a long hard thing for me to do because there are parts of it I don't love.

But, I am going to purchase that stone goddess pendant,

look at her, hold her, and soak up all the positive vibes she is already trying to send my way.

I hope that having her makes it easier to remember that I am beautiful just as I am.

I am woman after all!

Signatures

{Post 55/365: Original Post: FatCatMomma}

Sig Made FOR Me

Awhile ago I used to design and create signatures in MSN Groups.

I filled requests from many people and I enjoyed it very much.

It was always fun to create something beautiful that was appreciated by others.

One of my fave sigs to make was a dangle like this one.

OR:

The double dangle was also a fun one! ;)

I am also partial to the little bitty critters so I enjoyed making a sig out of them as well.

I'm going to post all the sigs that I have kept , that didn't get lost and that were made BY me or FOR me by someone else so feel free to follow my blog and check them out!

FOR or AGAINST

{Post 54/365: Original Post: Magsmomma}

me is me 
you is you 
together
we are we
and better
FOR
than
AGAINST

GIVE

{Post 53/365: Original Post: MysticLOVEAngel}

John D. Rockefeller, Jr.~
Giving is the secret of a healthy life. Not necessarily money, but whatever a person has of encouragement, sympathy and understanding.

I often chat a lot of people online.
Some of them are people who want something.  Well actually most of them want SOMETHING.  I have often said, (because I am POOR in money) that if they want to get money or things from me they are definitely SOL but, if they want anything from heart, mind or spirit that is all I have to give and I am perfectly willing to give it.  Usually, I reserve the right to with- hold the deepest giving for people who actually EARN my trust by also giving of themselves.  Then we enter into a healthy, mutually benificial,  relationsip. A connection of heart and mind and spirit.
It is really the only way to bond and trust and grow with a person.
Many of these people come and go like time and season.
Sometimes they learn from me.
Sometimes I learn from them.
Sometimes we both learn from each other.
Whichever kind of relationship we do begin in the beginning, you can be sure by the end one or both of us is better from having had the experience.
I live for that.
I love to learn about you.  Who you are, what you want, what you dream, what you like, what you hate, what you NEED, how you feel, where you think you are going, where you are ACTUALLY going, where you WANT to be going, if you recognize yourself in me, if you recognize yourself in yourself, if you believe in yourself, if you are happy or sad, what would help you be happy or sad and IF I can help with ANY of these things, then I will.  If I can't help, then I offer my heart to feel for you and my ear to hear and listen to you.
If that is not enough then perhaps I am the wrong person for you.
I certainly hope my offer of heart and mind and spirit IS truly enough for it is all I really have to offer.  Except for,  my TIME.  I will offer you my time and I hope that you will never think it a waste of yours.

Mosel Riesling Cat Bottle Wine

{Post 52/365: Original Post: FatCatMomma}
Earlier today I was talking to a friend about my favourite wine and it got me doing a search online so I could tell him the name of it.  It is a German Riesling and comes in a cat shaped bottle.
I am siiting and drinking a lovely glass of it right now as I blog.
It is a Mosel-Saar-Ruwer Riesling.

Searching led me to find the name Moselland and a lovely little story about the origins of the wine and the cat bottle.  Apparently, three wine merchants came to choose a wine and after sampling a variety of barrels had narrowed it down to three.  A black cat jumped up on one of the barrels and would not allow any of them to get close so they decided this must be the best barrel of wine.
Moselland was the first company to market their wine in a black cat shaped bottle.
These bottles became so popular there are now many colours of bottles.
I started collecting these bottles at Christmas time every year and I now have 10 of them and I hope to eventually have them all.

I have a clear bottle, a metallic green bottle, a dark green bottle, a dark purple bottle, 

and a metallic lime green bottle.

AND I also have a metallic silver bottle, a metallic blue bottle, two frosted red bottles 

and a metallic purple bottle.

I am usually picky about wines and generally only like sweeter ones so it's an added bonus that:

I truly enjoy the wine...it's a light fruity flavour and that makes collecting the bottles extra fun!

When a Woman Falls in Love

{Post: 51/365: Original Post: KD Bissonette on Triond}

when a woman
feels
the delicious dance of love
in the depths of her soul
her heart rhythm is a sweet song
the goddess within
opens her heart
she shares the promise
of love forever
soft caress on warm skin
fever and aching passion
whisper of perfume
the tantalizing taste of love's first kiss
smile of joyous bliss

The Truth About TRUTH and BETRAYAL

{Post 50/365: Original Post: Verisimilitude}
The truth about truth is sometimes it hurts, and the truth about betrayal is that it hurts deeply and sometimes irreparably. So which do you want to tell? Do you want to BE truth? Or betrayal?
Would you trust a liar? Would you trust a cheater? 
Would you trust a person who cannot express or hold to truth at all?
It is important to live a life with truth and integrity. When you give your word to someone, when you make a commitment to do something, KEEP it!
Do what you say you will do and be who you say you are.
The only thing we really have in this life are the relationships and friendships we build.
You can't build a solid, trusting and healthy relationship on lies.
Now, there can always seem to be more than one version of the truth because we each have our own perspective in any given situation of what did or didn't happen. I have always said there are three versions in any story...HIS truth, HER truth and the ACTUAL truth.
The actual truth can sometimes be very surprising because of the many lies we tell ourselves daily.
We always want to be seen in the best possible light even to ourselves, especially to ourselves but, if we can actually dig a little deeper we can find the real truth, acknowledge it and then grow better and brighter and even more REAL as a person.
It isn't always pretty to see every aspect of who we truly are but, it is worth looking and acknowledging and owning our own selves for truth and personal growth.
Try it!
There are many ways of betrayal that we know and understand. For example, we call a person who commits an act of treason or aids an enemy of our country a traitor and betrayer.
Also, we would see violating a trust or agreement in a workplace, friendship or relationship as a betrayal.
If someone is shown as false or disloyal or has gossiped about a secret you asked them to keep then they also have committed a betrayal.
If someone deliberately misleads you, deceives you or leads you astray they have betrayed your trust.
If someone commits to a job and a manner of behaviour related to that job but doesn't keep their word they have betrayed their employers trust.
One of the biggest betrayals in our relationships is when our spouse, who has taken a vow to be faithful decides to have an affair with someone else. We feel disrespected, unloved, unappreciated, and totally betrayed because we promised to love, honour and cherish them and we expect them to keep that same promise in return.
It is important to live a life of honesty and integrity because no one trusts a liar or appreciates being betrayed.
Some people can be terribly damaged from being betrayed and live a broken life, unable to heal their broken hearts.
This not only hurts them but, every person who may be involved with them afterwards especially the next person to try and build an intimate relationship with them.
This person will have double the work load and will need to be extremely patient and loving!
Lies and betrayal spread like ripples in a pond and before you know it many, many people have been affected and damaged in some way by the behaviour. 
An act of betrayal creates a doubt inside the injured party that, while they can decide to forgive they will likely never forget or be able to completely remove from their psyche. They will forever only trust you to a certain point and beyond that will find OTHER people they CAN trust. So you may be able to keep them and repair some of the damage but, not all. While some betrayals can be forgiven and second chances given, some are just too damaging and hurtful for the other person to forgive. Trust is a fragile thing that once broken is very very difficult to repair therefore, it is very wise to choose a life of truth and integrity instead of falsity and betrayal.
Sometimes it may be very difficult to tell the truth especially if it is something that we feel may hurt another person to the point that they will not forgive us. So we tell "little white lies" to save their feelings.
We all do this. I believe it is when NOT telling the truth would cause harm to someone that we have to decide to be strong and take the fallout for the betterment of the friendship or relationship.
If you have a REAL, strong, committed relationship, telling the truth might hurt at first but will be appreciated later because deep down we recognize the truth AS truth and if we are a good person we do eventually embrace the ability to change or improve our relationship or situation.
None of us really want to live in a stagnant relationship or situation.
Sometimes we just don't recognize the truth as it really is UNTIL someone we love and respect and trust mirrors it back to us, or clarifies it for us.
If you have found friendships or relationships like this in your life you are lucky indeed!
In my experience, the truth can hurt but, betrayal can eat you alive from the inside out and damage and scar sometimes forever. Especially if you are a person who has a hard time lettin go of the hurt.
So, because I really don't wish harm or hurt to anyone, I choose to live a life of truth and integrity.
I truly hope that you do too! :)

Pizza

{Post 49/365: Original Post: FatCatMomma's Fave Fare}

In honour of Walter Gibson's (John Cusack) essay "How to Eat Pizza Without Burning the Roof of Your Mouth" from the movie "The Sure Thing"-STILL one of my fave movies ever and truly the reason I fell head over heels in love with John Cusack, PERIOD!  I have decided to write a blog post about...you guessed it! PIZZA!!! lol

So...I'm gonna discuss all OUR fave pizzas including toppings and see if I can't make you feel HUNGRY afterwards! lol

First of all, we live in a small town so the pizzerias here are usually franchise stores like 241 Pizza, Pizaville, or Pizza Pizza. We don't like ALL of them but, we do enjoy some of them.

The best pizza in town comes from Bill's Pizza because it is homemade, filling and delicious!

Just recently we got a Boston Pizza's and we really enjoy their pizza's as well!

We generally will choose the same pizzas or flavour blends from any of these stores but certain places also make gourmet pizzas or different flavours that we also enjoy. ANY of these with extra cheese sometimes can change the texture also and make an even more enjoyable pizza experience! ;)

So usually we will choose:

#1. pepperoni, mushrooms and green peppers

#2. bacon, gr. beef, and cheddar

#3. hot italian sausage, green olives, and hot peppers

#4. bacon, ham, and pineapple or black olives instead of pineapple

#5. gr. beef, bacon and ham

OCCASIONALLY we'll order a gourmet pizza:

#1. Mexican: gr. beef, onions, sliced tomatoes, jalapenos

#2. Canadian: Bacon, Pepperoni, Mushrooms

#3. Meat Lover's: sausage, ham, gr. beef, bacon, pepperoni

#4. Cheeseburger: bacon, gr. beef, cheddar and mozza cheese

#5. Hawaiian: ham, bacon, pineapple

FROM our fave pizza place Bill's we will order:

bacon, ham, mushrooms, green peppers, pepperoni. and green olives (basically this is our "the works")

AND now, from Boston Pizza we have so many other choices!

We have tried their:

#1. The Pepper: spicy chili pepper sauce, mozza, cheddar, red and green banana peppers, and taco beef

#2. The Spicy Perogy: sour cream, smoky bacon, cactus cut potatoes, mozza and cheddar, and green onion

#3. Bacon Double Cheeseburger: pizza sauce, mozza and cheddar, seasoned gr. beef, smoky bacon, onion, and mushrooms

AND I think once we ordered our usual type of pizza as well. No matter what we do love the Boston Pizza food!

Once in awhile it is really fun to put as many ingredients on the pizza as we can afford to pay for! lol

Sometimes, we even get bored and create something different than the norm entirely. No matter what we do pizza has always been, and will always be one of our favourite foods ever!!

MY absolute fave pizza is hawaiian but hubby and kid don't like it so I have to have a fit once in a blue moon to actually get one...or maybe get them to agree on panzerottis instead! (then I get what I want in it! lol)

Close second to that tho is some kind of pizza with mushrooms and bacon and various other things depending on my mood as well as either exta OR double cheese.

I will pay for eating this much of a pizza so I won't do it often but there is nothing else in the world like one!

Are you hungry yet? I'm not! I already had mine...hence the reason I have pizza on the brain! lmao

It was very tasty...you should go get some too...NOW!! ;) 

Second Chances

{Post 48/365: Original post: I AM LOVE}


There are many second chances in life for many people and many things.
Broken things that have been fixed have a second chance.
Pets who have been abandoned and rescued have a second chance.
A person with cancer that has gone into remission has a second chance.
An alcoholic who has become sober has a second chance.
A person who has lost a job and found a new one has a second chance.
A person that has survived an accident or other tragedy has a second chance.
A person who has been stuck in a dark and dangerous life and left it behind for a new beginning has a second chance.
A cheater who has broken his/her spouses heart, repented and been forgiven has a second chance.
A friend who has betrayed trust and friendship and been forgiven has a second chance.
A drug addict who has gotten clean and straight has a second chance.
A person who has been stuck in an abusive relationship and breaks FREE has a second chance.
A person who has had some kind of organ transplant has a second chance.
A criminal who has paid his debt in prison time has a second chance.
A parent who has not ben the best role model for many reasons can be forgiven and have a second chance.
A child that has made a mistake can learn from it and have a second chance.

Really in life, we are all children making mistakes and learning from them every day. Sometimes it is difficult to get past our own hurts and mistrust to GIVE that second chance to someone who we perceive has wronged us in some way but, perhaps we should just try to think about whether or not we would want THEM to forgive us if we had done the wrong.  We should try to have the courage to FORGIVE them and ourselves and open the door to second chances because maybe a deeper commitment, a deeper understanding, deeper compassion, deeper intimacy, deeper friendship can come from having the strength to BE open and trying to move forward.
Sometimes letting go, moving on and saying goodbye is a second chance also because sometimes we are not strong enough to work through the pain or mistrust to find the deeper meaning of our connection.
People need each other but, many of us need the integrity and trust of a committed and whole...UNBROKEN relationship because sometimes second chances are difficult to GIVE.  For some, being GIVEN a second chance is even difficult because of fearing whether or not we are strong enough to uphold our part in it. Maybe guilt, misunderstanding of ourselves and others, or the belief that we are not good enough or capable of keeping our word leads to the failure of doing so. We believe we don't deserve a second chance therefore we never fully embrace it with the depth and gratitude we should in order to truly appreciate it and honour it.

I BELIEVE in second chances but, I have a very hard time ever giving them to a person I don't think is really sorry for whatever wrong they have done to me. If you are insincere in your repentance I doubt you will be forgiven. I have to know that you understand and truly MEAN the things that you say to me. I have given second chances many times and thirds and more but I have also had to let go and walk away from people too. YOU are the only person who can know whether keeping someone or letting them go is the best thing for YOU.  You only have to search inside your own heart to know this truth but, if you find that giving a second chance might be the answer then just embrace the fact that it may be difficult and is definitely a process but DO it with your whole heart and you may just be rewarded with an even deeper connection to someone who challenges you, engages you, mirrors you, or just makes you better than you were before!

BE an angel!

{Post 48/365: Original Post: MysticLOVEAngel}

If instead of a gem, or even a flower, we should cast the gift of a loving thought into the heart of a friend, that would be giving as the angels give.
George MacDonald

What a beautiful idea! That we could give freely from the love we have in our own heart and plant a seed of love in someone else.

In this way we can ALL be angels to someone else.

We can ALL encourage, support, uplift and LOVE our friends and acquaintances and even strangers and make life better by sharing!

I BELIEVE in this! BE an angel in someone else’s life today! 

Share the love!!

Reflections In MY Muse

{Post 46/365: Original Post: Reading, Writing, & Rocking MY World}

I stand before you

real and raw

and see

the reflection

of

all the better parts

of myself

you are the mirror

through which

I see

a new perception

good

for growth

and change

and acceptance

of the parts of me

that are

loveable

intelligent

capable

beautiful

strong

the mind and spirit and heart

of your reflection

compliment me

and open my eyes

to see myself

with

forgiveness

Happy Valentine's Day!

{Post 45/365: Original Post: I AM LOVE}

Valentines Day Quotes

Awwwww do you remember these Valentine's?

They came in a book and some of them were perforated for easy punching out

and some of them had to be cut out with scissors.

They also came with envelopes that could be cut out, folded and glued together.

I loved these books of Valentine's and I used to buy them for my older children

when they were little too!

Even at other times of the year these books of Valentine's would keep children busy

looking through it, sorting who gets which ones, cutting them out, making the envelopes, and all the happy feel-good feelings that come from sharing the love!

Valentines Day Quotes

Sometimes the passage of time and progression leaves things behind

that we experienced a whole lot of joy and pleasure from. I'm sure the reasons are many and vary but I for one don't always enjoy the progression and expansion of things.

Bigger is not better!

AND I don't subscribe to the notion that things should always be updated, expanded, "improved" or re-designed.

IF it ain't broke, DON'T fix it!

Valentines Day Quotes

Valentine's Day

{Post 44/365: original Post: I AM LOVE}


BREAKING QUESTION of the DAY:
(My friend's group on Facebook-feel free to join the group and the discussion!) 
Who is Valentine, what does he stand for, what is Valentine day to you and how do you feel it 
should be celebrated???

---

Saint Valentine is the name of several martyred saints of ancient Rome.
A brief, probably little known history of Valentine's Day is that the Valentine it was based on is relatively unknown except that he was a martyr and buried at the Via Flaminia north of Rome in Italy.
It is also unknown whether the feast of Valentine's was to celebrate him or another of the martyred saints with the same name. 
Valentine was a Roman priest who was martyred during the reign of Claudius II. He was arrested and imprisoned for helping Christians and marrying them which was illegal at the time because they were being persecuted by Claudius.
Many of the current myths and legends about St. Valentine were invented by the writer Geoffrey Chaucer and his circle of friends in England in the fourteenth century. This is when the day first became synonymous with romantic love.

Valentine's to me is a Lover's Day...a day to celebrate the love that you have found and share and maybe a day for those who are less expressive to actually be able to express their love.
Some people who may not express their love in a very strong open, way usually may use the opportunity of Valentine's Day to do something much MORE than they would generally do.
I think maybe that is the true nature of the day.

We have never done anything extremely special on this day. Quite often special for us is just to go out for a nice dinner together and sometimes we exchange a little gift. 
The usual gifts like chocolates, stuffed love animals, cinnamon hearts or other candy are common things we might give each other. Ocassionally we will cook each other a nice dinner and drink some wine and listen to music and just enjoy time with each other. Once in awhile hubby will even buy me a bouquet of flowers to make me happy because I LOVE flowers. This is NOT a usual gift because really hubby thinks flowers are weeds and can never understand why I love something that just dies in a week.
The point for me then is that he doesn't understand, he doesn't care about them but, he loves me enough to know that I do and will buy them for me just to see me smiling and happy.
That is a lovefest in my home! ;)

For me though Valentine's Day was NEVER just for my significant other but, also an opportunity to share with the other special people in my life.
I always enjoyed sending little valentine's to my friends and family as small expressions of my love for them.
I also enjoyed making special Valentine's or love notes for my children and putting them into their lunch bags as a surprise at school. Sometimes I would include a little chocolate heart or some cinnamon heart candies as well.

I am aware that Valentine's Day, like many other holidays is for some people a very sad and depressing day.
Their attention is all focused on the fact that they are alone and don't have a lover to share life with.
I suggest that if that is the state of your life maybe instead of worrying about what you don't have you think about the things you do have or the most important people to you and do something special for THEM.
My best friend did this for me one year and it is my most memorable Valentine's Day and touched me very deeply. I had been married and divorced and it was my first Valentine's alone since being with someone so I was a little sad and depressed myself. So she came over to visit me and brought me a bouquet of yellow sweetheart roses with her. It was so sweet and thoughtful that she was thinking of me that day and it was a very bright spot in a dark period of time for me.
So REALLY, I suggest if you are sad and depressed find someone you care about and SHARE THE LOVE anyway! You NEVER know just how special you might make someone's day! 
Many of us bring our game face, the brave life-is-really-ok-and-I'm-really-ok-too face out into the world on days like this. We don't show how sad or upset or miserable we really feel down deep inside because we don't want to spoil the day for anyone else. Or maybe we don't want to admit that we also care about such a day and would also enjoy the little bits of love and affections that are part of it for so many others.
So...if you know anyone who is alone or lonely I would like to suggest that you share some love with them too.
EVERYONE needs some kind of loving whether it be a hug, a little note of appreciation, or just a smile.
SHARE the LOVE people! Not only will you make someone's day, you might just make your own as well! :)

GREEN is the colour of GROWTH

{Post 43/365: Original Post: HubPages and Verisimilitude}

This is the colour green:

peppers

a field of long grass

rows and rows of green grapes growing healthy

the taste of fresh limes

sweet summer pea pods

the smell of freshly cut grass

tall trees...long standing sentinels of time

lucky four leaf clover found

patches of clover in the grass

vines clinging to trellis, walls and fences

rocks overgrown with brilliant green moss

the taste of fresh sugar snap peas

the aroma of freshly broken herbs

new spring buds on the plants and trees