HOW CAN ANYTHING SO BAD BE SO GOOD!

I can't believe this day 55 years ago I was one day ahead of William and Kate.......As this was the day way back then that was my magic day! Also Margaret Trueman and Grace Kelley were married this day 55 years ago. Grace is dead, I guess Margaret is still married, but after 30 years married here I am single for the past 25 years. As the world turns and we each have our own paths laid out for us to travel we can never know what tomorrow will bring. I loved my wedding day and most of the 30 years of marriage because of three wonderful daughters, but all of the fun and happiness has just continued on through the last 25 years, just without a mate. I do wish the royals a long and happy marriage and look forward to enjoying it on TV tomorrow. Weddings are fun and exciting and every girl should have, at least one, in their lives.......well hopefully just one! Nice today, but snow forecast for tomorrow. Saw "Water for Elephants" today, loved it. Lived through my bridge luncheon here yesterday and enjoyed a cute dance program last night that my third granddaughter was in. Four days till I'm off to Indiana with Pam's family for Nicci's graduation from graduate school. Then she will move to Minneapolis and go to work with General Mills, I am a proud grandmother!

DO YOU HAVE A MILLION TOMORROWS?

Do you have a million tomorrows? When I heard that question asked, it made me stop and think........how long is a million tomorrows. Well, it is more than I have left I'm afraid. If I could push it even 10 m0re years that would only give me 4, 375 more tomorrows, so I am hoping for that at least.

My suggestion is don't be fooled by thinking your tomorrows will go on forever, appreciate every single morning you wake up and can enjoy a day with loved ones. Tomorrow I am having bridge at my house. I get to entertain 7 dear friends for lunch and bridge. Picture is of some of those dear friends......Mae, Jane, Florence, Joan, Margie (who just had a heart attack) missing Bettie and Gloria and Pat. We have been playing bridge for many years. Thank you God for one more tomorrow with dear friends.....and oh yes, a clean house. Having your friends over pushes you to do the windows and the corners! It snowed again today!!!!!! Will it ever be spring? And so happy my little sister got out of the hospital. Life is good...............

HAPPY EASTER

A beautiful sunny Easter Sunday........what more could we wish for? I am off to my oldest daughter's for Easter dinner. Karrie's family, Tiff and Scott will be there. Sherrie's family is in Mexico and I can't help but be a little jealous because Mexico is my favorite place and I have so many fun memories of fun times there. Leslie is in the hospital with pneumonia and won't have a very fun day.....my prayers are with her. I made a "Peep" bouquet to take to the party, it brings back all the fun Easters when my girls were young. I made dozens of Easter dresses, as a new dress was a must. Then baskets full of goodies and the forever Easter egg hunt in the house where you always forgot where you hid all the eggs and one turned up a few weeks later when you were cleaning behind furniture. It is cold today and the poor flowers are trying so hard to open up. A few of our trees are in bloom but they said we have had rain and cold weather 16 our of 21 days in May, not the usually balmy spring weather. I have my bridge party at my house Wednesday and then the 3rd of may I am off to Indiana to see my second grandchild graduate from graduate school. I am ready for a trip! I hope everyone has a nice day.

"AMAZING GRACE"

My Birthday has come and gone and was so much fun. One of my favorite gifts was a fragrance set called "GRACE." Written on the the containers was some fun messages called Philosophy and if I write it down then I will always have it, even after I have used up all the wonderful smells and thrown away the containers. #1. "Philosophy: how you climb up the mountain is just as important as how you get down the mountain, and, so it is with life, which for many of us becomes one big gigantic test followed by one big gigantic lesson, in the end, it all comes down to one word, grace. It's how you accept winning and losing, good luck and bad luck, the darkness and the light." #2.'Philosophy: life is a classroom, we are both student and teacher. Each day is a test, and each day we receive a passing or failing grade in one particular subject......Grace. Grace is compassion, gratitude,surrender, faith, forgiveness, good manners, reverence and the list goes on. It's something money can't buy and credentials rarely produce, being the smartest, the prettiest the most talented, the richest or even the poorest can't help. Being a humble person can, and being a helpful person can guide you through your days with grace and gratitude." I like that word grace and just these wonderful items will contribute to me attaining it..................

WHAT I KNOW FOR SURE....

How do I feel about getting a year older today? I feel very loved! So many, many people have reached out to wish me happy 79th birthday. I feel so lucky to have had so many years with lots of people I love around me. Many people fight getting older and can't accept old age. I hope I am accepting it gracefully. Don't stress about not having that teenage body you use to......I am not a teenager any more and everyone knows it! Lots of grandmothers need to lose 20 pounds. If you are blessed enough to grow old, which is a wonderful way to look at adding birthdays, expect and accept the things going on in your life . Think of the people you knew that won't be so privileged, there is so much wisdom to be gained from people who are celebrating the process with vibrancy and vigor and grace. Don't deny your age. Denial leads to delusion, own who and what you are and step into the fullness of a great life. I do believe that our background and circumstances may have influenced who we are, but, we are responsible for who we become. So today I celebrate my many years. My face book was full of Happy Birthday messages from my extended family of nieces and their children, daughters, granddaughters, even a couple of cruise lines sent me cards........I wonder why???The Christensons surprised me with two dozen red roses, I got two gift cards from a niece and her family. The twins and I birthdayed last week when Sherrie was in town so I have lots of fun things to wear and a new suitcase for my upcoming trip. Lots of phone calls and pretty cards and tonight the Panniers are taking me to dinner so how is getting old affecting me? I'm just looking forward to the next birthday already!

A birth certificate shows that we were born,

A death certificate shows that we died,

Pictures show that we have lived...................

CRAZY WEATHER

I love Bagley's cartoon on "April weather" in Salt Lake City.........so true in 5 minutes you can see it all. It seems to go on and on and every day is different. Some mornings you get up and it is cloudy and rainy, but by evening the sun is out and it has warmed up. Some mornings you get up and it is sunny and warm but by noon it clouds up and rains or snows.......so suck it up cupcake and enjoy, it's April in Utah! Busy weekend, I am baby sitting Izzy and Marley while the Cooks are are in California for spring break. Yesterday went to the Ballet with Pam and Tiffany. Bolero, with Chaconne and Sinfonietta, it was a fun afternoon. THEN the excitement of the weekend was the news my granddaughter Annie made cheer leading, she had been working very hard and we all were on pins and needles. It is so wonderful when your children and grandchildren succeed in things. Cheer leading runs in our family. I was a cheer leader as were all three of my little sisters. One of my daughters was a cheer leader and now a granddaughter, Yes! Busy week ahead, coffee with dear friend Cleon and bridge at Pat Noall's. Then my birthday on Wednesday and dinner with the kids. I need to clean house for Easter Dinner and bridge at my house on Wednesday.......soooo it's all good.

Do you realize: Life is the way you audition for God?

PARTY TIME

This is my favorite party group. Yesterday we met for lunch to celebrate Sherrie and Karrie's birthday day and mine for next week. The girls will be out of town for Spring break for mine so we worked it in with theirs. Pam and Tiff worked us in on their lunch break from work, we missed Nicci and Annie but maybe next time. What a lucky person I am to have so many fun people to go to lunch with. They really spoil me. This week my mood has been less than upbeat. Maybe it is the weather.......it is snowing again this morning. About every other day all month we have had rain and snow. Maybe it is because I have a pretty big birthday coming up next week. I keep reading all these things to brighten your day and feel more optimistic about life so I am working on some of them........research reveals that doing five nice things in a day .....from leaving a bigger tip than usual to holding the door for the shopper behind you......enhances your frame of mind for an entire week! And doing all these good deeds within 24 hours packs a bigger Punch of uplifting self-esteem than doing them out over several days. Isn't that interesting? Instead of saying "Fine" when someone asks how you are say "great". Brain scans show that when the eyes sees something pink, it triggers the brain to release the feel-good chemical serotonin, so you literally feel "in the pink"! I didn't know that.......maybe I need to go shopping for something pink, like maybe a bouquet of pink roses..........if it ever stops snowing!