Tag Archives: children

Robert Redford and Respect for Nature

Saturday night my husband and I were invited to an event honoring Robert Redford.  The event was called:   “The Governor’s Salute to Robert Redford: A Utah Tribute to an American Icon.” The event kicked off with a group of Native American Indians performing a ceremonial dance in their full attire.  It was incredible!  It was […]

Get Candy, Get Candy, Get Candy!

Happy Halloween Everyone!  I love seeing all the cute little kids in their fun Halloween costumes on Halloween going door to door in search of candy.  And according to a news report I saw on TV this morning those cute little kids should be hiding their candy stashes when they get home tonight – they […]

“Ahhhh, now I get it”

Do you ever have those moments when life’s deepest lessons suddenly click and you say to yourself “Ahhhh, now I get it!”    The older I get the more I seem to have those “Ahhhh…” moments where things I have struggled for years to understand suddenly become completely clear and I think to myself “Dang I […]

Operation Underground Railroad

“It’s the greatest poverty to decide that a child must die so that you may live as you wish.” – Mother Teresa This weekend I was invited to an event and at the event the speaker shared his story that was a sharp reminder to me that we should never forget that there are so […]

My Solution to the Government Shutdown – Send In The Mothers!

“Give a girl the right shoes and she can conquer the world”. -Marilyn Monroe Before I explain the title of today’s blog, let me give you a quick recap of last Friday.  Last Friday I was asked to be a speaker for Senator Hatch’s Women’s Conference.  Senator Hatch has been a long-time friend that I […]

Why It’s So Hard To Trust

“People ask me why it’s so hard to trust people, and I ask them why it is so hard to keep a promise.” Nothing is as frustrating as putting your trust in people who then let you down. Trusting people in the first place is always scary.  But then after you take that leap and […]

Seeking Success In A Finite Number of Hours A Day (Forbes Article)

We all have a finite number of hours in a day – 24 to be exact.  What we choose to do with those hours is of the utmost importance. We can waste our time, or we can use our time to improve ourselves and our lives. I have always felt passionate about the importance of […]

Sometimes You Just Need To Take a Time-Out in the “Happy Chair”

When my kids were little time-out at our house consisted of sending the kids to sit in the “happy chair” where they would have to stay until they were able to be happy again.  Our “happy chair” was a bright yellow chair with a sunshine and happy kids painted on it – all designed to […]

Remember All The Good

No matter what ups and downs we have experienced in our lives, there have always been a million blessings.  Sometimes we forget to acknowledge or even recognize those blessings because there are so many other things to easily get distracted by.  And when you have always had certain blessings in your life, it’s easy to take […]

Make Someone Happy

“Make Just One Someone Happy.  And You Will Be Happy To.” – Jimmy Durante.  I love that song btw.  If you haven’t listened to it in a while you totally should listen to it again. It’s fabulous. This last week I have been so grateful to all of my daughter’s dear friends who have come by […]

Make The Best Of The Way Things Turn Out

As I sit here at the hospital tonight, following my daughters second ACL surgery that took place earlier today, I am trying to reflect on what lessons I have learned in my life today so I can share those thoughts with all of you.  It’s funny how just sitting around in a hospital waiting room […]

Some days you’re the dog, some days you’re the hydrant.

Today felt more like a hydrant day then a dog day!  Building our dream home is quickly starting to feel like more of a nightmare lately.  I won’t bore everyone with the details of all the problems that have happened over this last week other than to say that there comes a point that all […]

Have a Breathtaking Day!

Breathtaking – what a great word!  It’s the best word I can think of when I drive up the road toward my home, set into the side of a beautiful mountain in Utah.  The weather is amazing, the trees are green, the flowers are blooming and all I can think is…breathtaking! We don’t take enough […]

To Have a Mom and To Be a Mom or To Play a Mom

Happy Mother’s Day to all of the mothers, future mothers, grandmothers, mothers-in-law, nannies who play second mother, mothers who don’t or can’t have children of their own but who love children and provide mothering in one way or another, and single fathers who have to play the role of mother and father – so basically […]

Remember the Mothers!

This Sunday will be Mother’s Day, so I wanted to give everyone a reminder a few days early so you can start now picking out a special gift for the Mothers in your life.  This is especially a friendly hint to all the husbands out there whose wives are raising your children :).  Everyone has […]

Ubuntu – I Am Because We Are

“One day, a western anthropologist went to Africa to study the social behavior of an indigenous tribe. He proposed a game to the children and they willingly agreed to be part of it. He put a basket filled with fruits underneath a tree and told the children that whoever would reach the basket first would […]

“The legacy of heroes is the memory of a great name and the inheritance of a great example.”

Today my Grandmother Helen Rees passed away after having a stroke.  She had lived a beautiful and long life full of children, grandchildren, great-grandchildren, and great-great grandchildren.  She had lost her husband many years ago and since then she had longed for the day that she could be together again with him on the other […]

“It’s only by saying “no” that you can concentrate on the things that are really important” – Steve Jobs

One of my biggest weaknesses in this life is being able to say “no” when someone needs me.  I struggle when I see any situation where I know I can be of help to not make time to help someone.  And I know the real reason it is hard for me is because I desperately […]

The Magic of Three Nice Things

When my two children were little kids I came up with the rule that if they ever said anything unkind to each other that the person who said the unkind thing had to immediately stop and say three nice things to the other person.  The three things had to be sincere, and unique, and heartfelt.  […]