You are a marvel. You are unique.

“Each second we live is a new and unique moment of the universe, a moment that will never be again. And what do we teach our children? We teach them that two and two make four, and that Paris is the capital of France. When will we also teach them what they are? We should say to each of them: Do you know what you are? You are a marvel. You are unique. In all the years that have passed, there has never been another child like you. Your legs, your arms, your clever fingers, the way you move. You may become a Shakespeare, a Michelangelo, a Beethoven. You have the capacity for anything. Yes, you are a marvel. And when you grow up, can you then harm another who is, like you, a marvel? You must work, we must all work, to make the world worthy of its children.”

~Pablo Picasso (Spanish Artist and Painter. 1881-1973)

How can it be a large career to tell other people’s children about the rule of three, and a small career to tell one’s own children about the universe? How can it be broad to be the same thing to everyone, and narrow to be everything to someone? No. A woman’s function is laborious, but because it is gigantic, not because it is minute. I will pity Mrs. Jones for the hugeness of her task; I will never pity her for its smallness.

G.K Chesterton

The work will wait while you show the child the rainbow... but the rainbow won’t wait while you finish the work.

~ Pat Clifford

But even better.... is when you homeschool and can incorporate the rainbow into the work... ;-) 

Washday - n. - the opportunity to learn colors & develop sorting skills! ;-)

Clockwise from bottom left corner: 

Brown/khakis, blues, greens, pink/reds (behind her), black/greys (in basket), and purple

Parenting...

"All parents have good days and bad days, strengths and weaknesses. Lucky children have parents who care enough about them to be willing to grow and change as parents. " (Peaceful Parenting)

Living Life

Life is not a race~ but indeed a journey. Be honest. Work hard. Be choosy. Say "thank you", "I love you", and "great job" to someone each day. Go to church, take time for prayer. The Lord giveth and the Lord taketh. Let your handshake mean more than pen and paper. Love your life and what you've been given, it is not accidental ~ search for your purpose and do it as best you can. Dreaming does matter. It allows you to become that which you aspire to be. Laugh often. Appreciate the little things in life and enjoy them. Some of the best things really are free. Do not worry, less wrinkles are more becoming. Forgive, it frees the soul. Take time for yourself~ plan for longevity. Recognize the people you've been blessed to know. Live for today, enjoy the moment.

 
From a picture my mom received for her birthday - unfortunately, the signature was not legible, in order to give credit to the author...   but after some searching, I believe it was Bonnie Mohr that wrote it.

Got Passion?

courtesy of: herbalextractsplus.com

If there is no passion in your life, then have you really lived? Find your passion, whatever it may be. Become it, and let it become you and you will find great things happen FOR you, TO you and BECAUSE of you.

~ T. Alan Armstrong

Reflections and Goals for 2011

We will open the book. Its pages are blank. We are going to put words on them ourselves. The book is called Opportunity and its first chapter is New Year's Day.  ~ Edith Lovejoy Pierce

Quote: Childhood is like sand in a sieve...

You're a man of high position, esteemed by your peers. And when your little tykes are crying, you haven't time to dry their tears... And see their thankful little faces smiling up at you... 'Cause their dad, he always knows just what to do....  ... You've got to grind, grind, grind at that grindstone... Though childhood slips like sand through a sieve... And all too soon they've up and grown, and then they've flown... And it's too late for you to give...  

~Bert (Mary Poppins)

Say what you mean... mean what you say....

Quote: Follow your ♥

Do what you feel in your heart to be right|
for you'll be criticized anyway.|
You'll be damned if you do,|
and damned if you don't.|

- Eleanor Roosevelt             

Quote: To teach our children...

Our heritage and ideals, our code and standards - the things we live by and teach our children - are preserved or diminished by how freely we exchange ideas and feelings.  ~ Walt Disney

Quote: Music...

"Our music cannot be like the music of the world, because our God is not like their gods. Most of the world’s music reflects the world’s ways, the world’s standards, the world’s attitudes, the world’s gods. To attempt to use such music to reach the world is to lower the gospel in order to spread the gospel. If the world hears that our music is not much different from theirs, it will also be inclined to believe that the Christian way of life is not much different from theirs."  ~ John MacArthur:

In this home....

I love, Love, LOVE this!!! ~ When we get into a home of our own... I WANT this wall decal somewhere in our decor!!  What an amazing reminder!!!

Quote: Breastmilk, a miraculous substance!

"If a multinational company developed a product that was a nutritionally balanced and delicious food, a wonder drug that both prevented and treated disease, cost almost nothing to produce and could be delivered in quantities controlled by the consumers' needs, the very announcement of their find would send their shares rocketing to the top of the stock market. The scientists who developed the product would win prizes and the wealth and influence of everyone involved would increase dramatically. Women have been producing such a miraculous substance, breastmilk, since the beginning of human existence..."

-- Gabrielle Palmer, in The Politics of Breastfeeding,
London: Pandora Press, 1988, page 1.

Quote: A Child's Gardner

I neat quote I came across the other day....
However, I am not sure who originally said it....

Monday musings: What is Life?

Clean up your act...

"As you begin changing your thinking, start immediately to change your behaviour. Begin to act the part of the person you would like to become. Take action on your behaviour. Too many people want to feel, then take action. This never works."

~ John C. Maxwell

thanx for sharing, Moriah!!

To the Anomalous & Aberrant ...

“Here’s to the crazy ones. The misfits. The rebels. The trouble-makers. The round heads in the square holes. The ones who see things differently. They’re not fond of rules, and they have no respect for the status-quo. You can quote them, disagree with them, glorify, or vilify them. But the only thing you can’t do is ignore them. Because they change things. They push the human race forward. And while some may see them as the crazy ones, we see genius. Because the people who are crazy enough to think they can change the world, are the ones who do.”                   

    -Jack Kerouac

Anomalous -adj. - is different from what is usual or expected
Aberrant -adj. - unusual and not socially acceptable

My cousin shared this quote on her Facebook the other day...  totally sounds like somthing Grandma might say, or at least love hearing...

“If ever there is tomorrow when we're not together.. there is something you must always remember. you are braver than you believe, stronger than you seem, and smarter than you think. but the most important thing is, even if we're apart.. I'll always be with you.”  ~ Winnie the Pooh

Husband...

There is a beautiful man in this world. A man who has taken me through this strange world, kicking and screaming at times, only to teach me how to live. God knows I'll never understand him, but i trust he will always lead me home. That person is my husband.

~Voula Michos Cicimurri