Attitude of Gratitude

I hear it said a lot that it's important to have an "attitude of gratitude." Yeah, yeah, whatever... What I've realized lately is that when I do actually allow myself to be grateful for any and every situation, I'm overall a happier, less stressed, and definitely less disappointed person! It has to be a mind-shift though. It's easy to say, "I'm so grateful for all of the wonderful things in my life", but to actually BE grateful, and have a grateful heart is something totally different...and it changes you from the inside out!

Here are some recent examples. I'm a busy woman. I have a career as a Mary Kay Sales Director which is a demanding, yet flexible schedule. I have a toddler, a school-age child, and a teenager (ALL FEMALE), and a husband... for whom my ultimate goal in life is to impress. There is always something that needs to be done! Dishes to wash, lunches to make, dinner to prepare, shopping to do, etc. However, rather than being stressed about the 5 million things that I want to accomplish before 10am today, I've chosen to be grateful that I have those jobs in the first place. I'm so grateful to God that he has blessed me with a beautiful and healthy family. I'm so grateful that I'm able to provide them with meals, which of course requires dish washing! One thing I've started doing that has helped me a lot with my attitude about 'chores' is that when I'm folding the laundry (which I severely dislike) I say a little prayer with each article of clothing I pick up. I pray for the owner of those little bloomers, or that pink Hello Kitty t-shirt, or the work socks with the holes in the toes and heels. That, is how you have an attitude of gratitude!

Now let's face it, as women we sometimes set unrealistic expectations of what our wonderful husbands are capable of. Admit it, you do it too! I married an AMAZING man with a multitude of great qualities. He is ambitious, a great father, hard working, and always willing to help me with things around the house. However, it just so happens that one of the items NOT in his skill set, dishing out praise and affirmation, is MY love language. I thrive off of words of affirmation and a wise woman recently helped me put things into perspective. She asked if he was ever good at giving praise and affirmation. The answer to that is a resounding 'no.' I MUST reiterated that he has MANY amazing qualities and I'm by no means complaining about my Mr. Delicious. I digress...so she simply says, "Well then why do you think he is all of a sudden going to start now?" DUH! What I need to do is look for affirmation from the people who DO dole it out fervently, like my mom (she's my biggest fan), my Mary Kay sisters, and of course my kiddos! In doing this, I'm able to stop resenting my husband for not speaking my love language and start receiving all of the ways that he DOES show me he loves me, appreciates me, and is proud of me.  This is freeing and helps me to have an attitude of gratitude for my wonderful hunk of a man.

So, fellow bloggers, I see a choice every morning;  Do I want to wake up and remain grateful for the life God has entrusted to me, or do I want to spend my day sweating, stressing, and stewing?  Easy choice for me!!!

Weeknight Meal Planning!

Me and Mary Kay

My new favorite nickname is Mom-trepreneur.  Which I was lovingly dubbed by my husband because of my Mary Kay business.  He likes to take some credit for it's success but I guess that's only fair since it was HIS idea.

I have been building my Mary Kay business for 9 months and it began as a way for my husband and I to start a business venture together.  At first, when he came to me with the idea of joining Mary Kay I thought he was off his rocker.  I wasn't sure WHO I would sell it to or HOW to sell it for that matter! Not to mention at the time I had a one month old baby and I was getting ready to go back to my full time job from maternity leave.  There couldn’t have been a worse time.  But those of you who know my husband know that he can be quite persuasive.  He was all, “Babe, we can spend more time together in the evenings working on a business plan instead of watching TV.” And “sweetie, it’ll be great!  We’ll make a couple hundred extra dollars a week for vacations and Mary Kay offers a 90% buy back guarantee so even if it doesn't work out, we’re covered!”  How could I resist his charm??

I also have a full time job as a high school science teacher as well as 3 girls, Sydney (14), Peyton (4), and Arlene (11 months).  I'm a busy mommy to say the least so when we started our Mary Kay adventure it really was just to make a couple hundred extra dollars here and there.  Our plan was to use it for family vacations and home improvement projects.   It has turned into SO MUCH MORE!  I am less than two months away from earning my FIRST FREE CAR!  I'm also bringing in a great supplemental income that is growing every month.

One thing I never realized when I first joined this company is that Mary Kay is about so much more than just skincare and cosmetics!  We really are about changing women's lives and financial situations.  It's so amazing to hear from National sales directors who are making millions of dollars a year in this business but when they started they were living in their car, or in a hippy commune, or driving a UPS truck...SERIOUSLY!  What I’ve found so empowering is that Mary Kay is allowing women to break the glass ceiling!  The sky is the limit and I can see so many big things in my future because of this business.  I will be able to pay cash for my kids to go to college because of Mary Kay.  I'll be able to travel the world with my hubby and not pay a cent for it!  In one month I'll say goodbye to car payments for the REST OF MY LIFE!

When someone joins Mary Kay they send her a beautiful starter kit in the mail that is full of everything you could need to start a business.  However, there were also a lot of other things in my starter kit that you might not expect.  In that starter kit I soon found a renewed self confidence that had been a little lost since having kids and working from home.  I mean let's face it, I would rush to get out of my jammies at 5pm so that Jonathan wouldn't know I'd been in them all day...cat's out of the bag now I guess!  In that starter kit there were also so many new friends, some of which have already seen their lives change because I chose to start my Mary Kay business.  There are 3 little girls in my starter kit named Sydney, Peyton, and Arlene that will grow up seeing their mom strive for big goals, fail, get up, try again, and SUCCEED!  Mary Kay will teach them amazing life lessons through me.  Finally, in my starter kit was my husband with a look of pride in his eyes...there is nothing else in the world like it.

Petie-o-potamus

So I picked Peyton up from school yesterday and as I'm signing her out, her teacher says (in a very loving way), "Could you please have a conversation with her about not picking up her friends?  She's a little bigger than the other kids and she's always picking them up."  I had to suppress a giggle as I pictured my little rough-houser sneaking up behind unsuspecting classmates and hoisting them into the air, their legs flailing.  I, of course, had a gentle talk with her and don't expect this to be a problem again.  However, it got me thinking about the little girl we're raising.  She is such an individual and it amazes me every day how she grows more and more into her own person and becomes less and less...us.

One of the things I enjoy so much about her at this age is the hilarity that comes from her mouth.  Last night Jonathan and I had a Mary Kay event to attend so she stayed with her awesome Gran and PopPop (shout out to the G-parents, whoot whoot).  As Jonathan was lifting a half-asleep Peyton from the car, she looked at him with eyes closed and said, "Your breath smells like brussel sprouts."  BAHahaha!

Anyway, my little smart cookie is such a sponge.  I'm amazed by her daily at how much she learns just but observing.  One very exciting new development is READING!  Her mimi (shout out to another G-parent!) started working with her on flashcards and sounding out words.  She can read around 15-20 sight words and I'm such a proud mama for it!

Here is a picture of Pete on her first Friday of the school year.  She's sporting her spirit shirt and a smile!

Let the blogging BEGIN!

One of my New Year's resolutions was to start a blog.  Just 8 months in but at least I'm doing it!  People are always asking me how I do it...how do I juggle all that I have going on.  My answer to them is quite simply, "I have no idea!!!" 

I'm looking forward to keeping this blog to chronicle our crazy beautiful life and all of it's glory.  I'll be sharing recipes, kooky things my kids say, my Mary Kay journey, and my always exciting, never-a-dull moment love life.

So a little about my family:  We have three girls, much to my hubby's chagrin.  Sydney is almost 14 years old and going on 18.  She is an amazing kid and SO smart!  Her 'big sister abilities' never cease to amaze me.

Peyton is the middle child, 4 years old and with enough personality to fill an Olympic-sized swimming pool.  She is the epitome of a strong-willed child and keeps me on my toes (and on the Internet).  LOTS of funny stories come out of that one. 

Arlene is our last born.  She's 10 months old and is currently eating dog food...not even kidding.  Arlene is named after my sweet Nana who passed away while I was pregnant with her.  She is always on the move and a very happy little munchkin.

My husband, Jonathan, is amazing.  He works hard all day and comes home in the evenings to play with the kids and many nights he does it alone because of my Mary Kay business.  He is my 'why'...

So I guess that leaves me.  I'm a mom, a teacher, and a beauty consultant.  I love all three of my jobs!  They stretch me physically, mentally, and emotionally but you can't grow unless you stretch!  I'm a big dreamer and I'm a firm believer that my dreams are a glimpse into God's mind for me.  Keeping this thought in mind helps me to not limit myself to what I think is possible!

Thanks for visiting...more to come!!