Tag Archives: gratitude

“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 […]

Kindness on Purpose Day

Today I heard about one of the coolest ideas ever so I couldn’t help but share it with all of you. In 2012, a woman decided that for her birthday, rather than having anyone give her gifts, she instead challenged all her friends to perform a random act of kindness for someone else on her […]

The difference between the fight you think you’re having and the fight you’re actually having

Several weeks ago I was sitting with a group of male friends who are all married and we were discussing their frustration with not being able to understand women very well.  One of the men had been in a disagreement with his wife and he was explaining to me why his wife’s side of the […]

Don’t Quit

When things go wrong, as they sometimes will, When the road you’re trudging seems all uphill, When the funds are low and the debts are high, And you want to smile, but you have to sigh, When care is pressing you down a bit- Rest if you must, but don’t you quit.   Life is […]

Happy or Sad, Good or Bad, Love It or Hate It, It’s All in How You View It (Forbes Article)

As a business leader, one of the many lessons I learned was that employees often viewed the world around them in ways that were completely different from what was actually going on. I observed time and time again employees who interpreted something one way when the reality was actually totally different. I learned that when […]

One Person Can Make A Difference With a Little Determination and Hope!

I was down sick again today, but I wanted to share a story with you that I came across a few years ago that touched my life in a major way.  I shared the story years ago in a company blog, but I am reposting it again today for all of you to read as […]

We Weren’t Meant To Do It Alone

So as many of you are aware, my 20 year old son is serving a 2 year mission for the LDS church in Mississippi right now.  Each week I get an email from him letting me know how things are going out in the field.  This week he sent an email that had an AMAZING […]

The First Day of the Rest of Your Life

Yesterday was my 42nd birthday, which means that today is the first day of the rest of my life!  And if you think about it, for every one of your reading this blog, today is the first day of the rest of your life as well – and you didn’t even have to have a […]

People Who Add To Your Fun Jar

Today was an exciting, whirlwind of a day.  First I attended my board meeting for the Governor’s Economic Development Board that I serve on for the State of Utah, and then I ran over to attend the Women’s Tech Awards where I was humbled to receive their Impact Award at a large luncheon.  Next I […]

Heroes are Ordinary People Who Do Extraordinary Things

September 11th is always a tough day to write my blog because there is so much emotion when I think back to that day in 2001.  I can remember exactly where I was standing when I saw the news station as it showed the tower that the first airplane had flown into, and I remember […]

When In Doubt Just Add Glitter

You are probably reading the title of today’s blog and thinking – “What the heck is she talking about?  Just add glitter?”   Well for anyone who has ever done an arts and crafts project in life you know that when your craft isn’t turning out exactly the way you hoped you simply add a little […]

Handsome Is As Handsome Does

I first read the saying “Handsome is as handsome does” in a book I was reading during my teenage years.  For some reason the phrase impacted me and stuck with me over the years.  It was a reminder that true beauty is something that emulates from the inside out… To prove this fact one can […]

Being The Best Isn’t About Knowing The Most (Forbes Article)

“The greatest enemy of knowledge is not ignorance, it is the illusion of knowledge.” – Stephen Hawking When an individual believes they know all the answers, they shut themselves down from the possibility that there is more they might learn on a subject. They limit themselves from experiencing personal growth and gaining intelligence. They are […]

Brick to the Face Theory

So those of you up on the daily reading of my blog know I got hurt a few days ago when my face and a board met up at my new construction site.  The sweetest person sent me a really cute email to cheer me up and the story she shared in the email had […]

It’s Just a Bad Day, Not a Bad Life

At least that is what I am telling myself tonight. Today was…well….not the best day.  I was over at our new home construction site meeting with plumbers, electricians, framers, etc doing a walk through when I turned right smack into a huge wood beam that was setup to temporarily hold up one of the walls.  […]

Get Your Sparkle On!

I have a great story to share with you today – it is a story that was shared with me tonight and it totally inspired me to want to GET MY SPARKLE ON!  Hopefully sharing it with you will inspire you to GET YOUR SPARKLE ON too! Going into this school year my daughter set a goal for herself […]

Just because its stormy now doesn’t mean you aren’t headed for sunshine

I am sitting in a chair wrapped up in a blanket and watching an amazing rainstorm through my window.  Lightning is shooting through the sky every few seconds followed by the constant cracking of thunder.  I have to say that there is something really magical about watching a storm like this.  Perhaps it’s the beauty […]

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 […]

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 […]

There’s Nothing A Little Ice Cream Can’t Cure

Growing up at my house, the love of ice cream was an inherited trait.  The entire Rees family, from my father to his father to his father’s father and so on, the love of ice cream was passed from one generation to the next.  The fact was that if you didn’t love ice cream then […]

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 […]

“Don`t Count The Days…Make the Days Count”

All of us have worries and concerns in life. Things we are scared of. Things we are dreading. Worries about what “might” happen or what “might not” happen. It seems that there is a truly endless supply of things to spend our time being worried about. Yet, at the end of the day does the […]

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 […]

“The Happiness of Your Life Depends on the Quality of Your Thoughts”

I have always been a firm believer in the power our thoughts possess.  I believe that our thoughts very much control our feelings.  I also believe that we have total control of our own thoughts.  Therefore, we ultimately have the ability to control our own feelings by controlling our own thoughts. If you depend on […]

“If you find yourself racing through life, slow down long enough to take along some good friends.”

Sometimes we get so busy living our lives that we forget to slow down enough to make time for our friends. I have been guilty of that myself over the years, especially with working such crazy hours for so many years of my life.  Taking time off this summer to spend with my family has […]

When The Cats Away, The Mice Go To The Mall Shopping!

A little retail therapy is sometimes exactly what is needed when the husband goes hiking with the boy scouts and the wife and daughter are left alone for a day.  Today Ashley and I had a fabulous girls day together.  Now don’t get me wrong, we love spending time with my husband too, but every […]

“People Only Rain On Your Parade Because They Are Jealous of Your Sun and Tired of Their Shade”

I would guess that we have all seen the bumper stickers that say “Mean People Suck.”   And the truth is that I couldn’t agree more.  I have little tolerance for mean people.  I just don’t.  I don’t think there is ever a good excuse to be mean or hurtful to another person.  Sure we can […]

Eeny Meeny Miny Moe…

Wouldn’t life be so much easier if we could make all our decisions with a little game of “Eeny, meeny,miny, moe”.  Seriously!  How cool would that be?  And how much less stress would we have throughout our day when decisions have to be made?! Yeah, well it’s too bad life doesn’t work that way if […]

He Is Building A Palace

Life is full of unexpected events, changes, and uncertainty.  Sometimes those changes are exciting and wonderful, and sometimes they are devastating, painful and hard. C.S. Lewis is my favorite author.  I have learned many important life lessons by reading his books.  One of his quotes that has helped me tremendously as I have dealt with […]

Get Up And Dance!

Nothing can lift the spirits of a crowd faster than putting on some great music and having an impromptu dance party!  The last few days I have been attending a Girls Camp for the Young Women in our church group ages 13-17 and after a long, hot, uphill hike, the girls were worn out and […]