Monthly Archives: June 2016

Land of the Free and Home of the Brave (Happy Fourth of July!)

In 1776, after the Second Continental Congress adopted the Lee Resolution that “these United Colonies are, and of right ought to be, free and independent,” John Adams wrote the following to his wife: “You will think me transported with enthusiasm, but I am not. I am well aware of the toil and blood and treasure […]

We are responsible for what is inside of us

The Analogy of the Orange If you squeeze an orange you will get orange juice. It doesn’t matter who squeezes it, where or when this is done, or what kind of implement is used. If you squeeze an orange, what comes out is orange juice. The same holds true for each of us. When the […]

Laughter is always the very best medicine

Years ago when my daughter Ashley was in high school she tore her ACL playing basketball and had to have surgery. We rented a hospital bed for her recovery so she could be out in the family room where everyone hung out and watched TV together. One day my husband and I came in the […]

Because That’s Who You Are

“She’s banged up, mentally and emotionally. Literally and metaphorically. But every day she walks outside with a smile on her face because that’s who she is.” I cannot tell you how much that quote has inspired me during times in my life that I have been struggling. Part of the reason I love it is […]

It’s all about relationships

A dear friend of mine received an award this last week and I was able to be there to congratulate him at the event. I knew I was going to have to slip out early and that I might miss his acceptance speech so I asked him to quickly share it with me before we went […]

“All that is necessary for evil to succeed is for good men to do nothing.”

“All that is necessary for evil to succeed is for good men to do nothing.”-Edmund Burke I have been thinking about that quote a lot as of late. I think we sometimes let ourselves think that if we aren’t doing anything bad, that we are therefore, good enough. But in this world where so many […]

You’re Better Than You Think You Are (Forbes Article)

We’ve all experienced times where we’ve had a false sense of security, but we’ve also experienced times were we’ve had a false sense of insecurity…in ourselves. Too often we are our own worst critics. When circumstances of life don’t go the way we hoped for, we often allow them to make us think less of […]

My Lunch with the Dalai Lama

Today I had the experience of attending lunch with the Dalai Lama at the invitation of my dear friends Governor Gary Herbert and his wife Jeanette. (Quick reminder to my fellow Utahns that we all need to vote on June 28th in Utah’s primary election so we can ensure Governor Herbert can continue with the amazing job he does as […]

Music and Memory – an Old School Throwback Jam

Some of the greatest song quotes ever – “It takes two to make a thing go right…it takes two to make it outta sight…” –Rob Base  and “Don’t just stand there bust a move!” -Young MC and “If you gotta problem, yo I’ll solve it….Word to your mother…” -Vanilla Ice Last Saturday night my husband […]

Dads. Our First Love and our Forever Heroes.

Happy Father’s Day to all the Fathers out there! How do we even begin to pay tribute to all the men out there who grew up to be amazing Dads?! I have come to learn that any man can make a baby, but it takes a true man to raise a child. A Dad isn’t defined […]

Get Ready For Father’s Day – a public service reminder

Sunday it will be Father’s Day and so as a public service I thought it would be good for me to remind everyone who has a Father themselves, as well as any Wives who have a Husband of children to GET ON TOP OF IT PEOPLE!! Don’t forget to prepare something to honor those Fathers!!! […]

If you think you are too small to make a difference…

If you have ever felt inferior, or powerless, or like you are simply too small to make a difference in the world, you need to hear this quote: “If you think you are too small to make a difference, try sleeping with a mosquito.”- Dalai Lama Too often we feel like we are just an […]

Do what you can FABULOUSLY

“I realized this week that I just cannot do it all. So I will choose to do what I can FABULOUSLY.” –Clinton Kelly Some weeks you have so much to do that you have to admit to yourself that you are never going to be able to get it all done…so this is me admitting […]

Thank heaven for Guardian Angels

Today when my weekly email arrived from my daughter Ashley who is out serving a mission the subject line “I GOT HIT BY A CAR”. My heart dropped! I opened the email to find that she had been riding her bike with her companion and as she crossed the road an elderly man was entering […]

The Secret of Discipline is Motivation

“The secret of discipline is motivation. When a man is sufficiently motivated, discipline will take care of itself.” – Sir Alexander Paterson Last week I spent the entire week out of town down at Lake Powell with a group of business associates and their families along with my own family. It was gorgeous as always […]

“If people sat outside and looked at the stars each night, I’ll bet they’d live a lot differently.”

“If people sat outside and looked at the stars each night, I’ll bet they’d live a lot differently.” – Bill Waterson I LOVE that quote! My son, who is a huge Calvin and Hobbes fan, sent it to me once right before we were heading on a trip to Lake Powell (our favorite place on earth!), […]

Things happen around us, but it’s what happens within us that matters most

My daughter-in-law came across a story I hadn’t heard before. When I first saw the title of the story I almost didn’t read it because I couldn’t imagine how a story with that title would be interesting, but I am really glad I decided to keep reading because the message it conveys is just plain […]

Change is not a four letter word…

“Change is not a four letter word…but often your reaction to it is!” – Jeffrey Gitomer Change is scary..it’s trading the known for the unknown. It’s leaving something behind without knowing if what lies ahead. It’s wondering “Will I like it as much?” “Will it ever be as good as it was?” “What if it’s […]

Never follow someone else’s path…well, unless you’re lost

“Follow your passion, stay true to yourself, never follow someone else’s path unless you’re in the woods and you’re lost and you see a path then by all means you should follow that.”- Ellen Degeneres First off all Ellen Degeneres cracks me up. Her humor can’t help but make you smile. And I love that […]

The Core of Intelligence

“The ability to speak does not make you intelligent.”- Master Qui-Gon Jin I remember growing up thinking that all adults were so intelligent. After all, they used really big words and they talked with such confidence on so many topics. But then I grew up and started figuring out that just because someone knew a […]

Integrity Isn’t Situational

I recently have been dealing with a situation where I became aware that someone has been doing things under false pretenses in an attempt to get personal gain. When I brought these activities to light to those in authority to rectify the situation the person in charge seemed resistant to confront it. He agreed that […]

The Parable of the Elephant Rope

As a man was passing the elephants, he suddenly stopped, confused by the fact that these huge creatures were being held by only a small rope tied to their front leg. No chains, no cages. It was obvious that the elephants could, at any time, break away from their bonds but for some reason, they […]