If you get tired, learn to rest, not to quit. I love this quote by Maya Angelou. Her words have inspired millions of people around the world. At the age of 60, I have finally realized that rest is an option I have in life. I don't have to finish today. I don't have to start something new today. I just know that rest is part of the process. I'm at a place in life that I feel as if I have quit doing some of the things I enjoy such as quilting, cross stitching, and learning how to use Canva and Printify. But I have other work that I feel to be more important at the moment. And that type of work - changing email addresses for the family's login locations and moving each of our YouTube channels into new channels for each of us because we've changed our internet provider, deep cleaning, removing clutter, writing my book, helping my younger son overcome his struggles  - are high-profile projects for me. So, I haven't quit the type of work I enjoy. There just isn'...

I am sorry to hear that a health insurance CEO lost his life on December 4, 2024. That is so sad. I certainly don't condone murder, but this is proof that people aren't getting the help they need. The killer likely needed some mental health help and was denied. That's where my mind went anyway. And hopefully, the death of Mr. Thompson doesn't lead to higher insurance costs with fewer benefits, which is probably where this is going to go with health insurance companies now considering beefing up security, which will lead to the consumer paying for that as well.  His death should, instead, open our eyes to what is lacking in health insurance - empathy. I have long felt that health insurance is the leading cause of the declining health conditions in our country. By the time we pay for insurance, we have no money left to pay for a doctor's visit. We're going in the wrong direction. The United States should have the healthiest people in the world! I'm still tryin...

 I just discovered that I like being a plant parent. I got Aggie, an Aglaonema Beauty for my birthday and Theri (silent h), an Anthurium for Mother's Day. Yes, I did name them, because they are houseplants and will be with me for a very long time. I looked online to see if other people name their plants. And indeed, they do! As a matter of fact, 800-flowers recommends naming your indoor plants, because it's healthy for both you and your plant.  My older son and his fiancée got these for me from easyplant.com . I will have to say that they are VERY easy to take care of just like they claim on their commercials and website. I'm very pleased, to say the least.  After Aggie arrived, I noticed a shift in my mood. And when Theri arrived, I became more energetic. I'm doing things I haven't done in a while, such as making birthday cakes for the family, making dessert, cleaning the entire house in a day - and very happy to be doing them. Anyway, MK and L told me they didn...

Today, we're going to meditate on gratitude. Being grateful is one of the best things we can do to honor God and to improve our outlook on life . Gratitude helps us to look forward to the days ahead. It relieves stress. It lessens worry. Hopefully, we'll focus more on gratitude instead of grumblings. As Colossians 3:23-24 NIV states, "Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for human masters, since you know that you will receive an inheritance from the Lord as a reward. It is the Lord Christ you are serving. " And also, Psalm118:24 HCSB, " This is the day the Lord has made; let us rejoice and be glad in it."  Listen to meditation 3 . If you haven't done so already, you'll need to gather your journal, water, and tissues. Turn on some relaxing music/sounds if you enjoy that. Find a comfortable seat. Today, we'll overlap our hands and place them on our chest, over our heart. Close your eyes if you want and focu...

Welcome to today's meditation - At Peace in Our Mess. Problems cause worry and anxiety. We should know by now that worrying definitely won't make problems go away. It just makes us sick. Consider, Luke 12:25, when Jesus said, "Can any of you add one moment to his life span by worrying?" Of course, we can't. So, we need to choose to find Joy and Peace in the midst of our problems (a.k.a. our messes) and let God handle everything that is going on. We can ask Him to let us know if we can do anything to make problems better or go away. Then we go on about our daily lives. Sometimes an answer will come; sometimes it won't. Often, problems go away; some won't. But life goes on despite the mess. Let's find that peace we want today. Our Scriptures today come from the Christian Standard Bible. Listen to Meditation 2 . It's time to prepare for our meditation. First, grab your journal and get in your meditation seat. Start your soft,  relaxing music/sounds i...

Preparing for Meditation Home base This post will be home base for all of our meditation. I will link to this post in all meditation posts from this point on so you can refer to the details and prepare your soft music/sounds (if preferred) and other supplies before we begin meditating. These meditations will be Christian based. I invite you to join us for the peace this will provide. They are meant to help release stress, let go of anxieties, and accept life's circumstances. Problems arise, life happens, but we don't have to let these things control our lives.  That being said, though, t h ese meditations are not meant to take the place of medical assistance that you may need.  image courtesy of Daniela Cuevas via Unsplash What you will need First, you need to find a quiet, comfortable place to sit. If on the floor, then be sure you have a comfortable cushion or mat. If on a sofa or chair, it should be comfy as well. You'll need a focal point, such as a candle flame (elect...

God rested on the seventh day (Genesis 2:1-3), and he commanded us to do the same thing in Exodus 20:8-10. So, rest at least 1 day each week. Use this day to reflect on God's goodness and all He has done for you and your family. This day of rest should be to feel God's presence and nearness, draw Him closer, remembering the ultimate sacrifice of Jesus Christ, speaking with the Holy Trinity to find direction in life, seeing the miracles in our lives, and being grateful for God's gifts and interventions that keep us on the right path. On this day, we let our soul rest from daily burdens and worries and soak in God's Divine Love. In other words, we're meditating on God's Word and finding ourselves in His perfect Grace. We don't have to wait until Sunday, though, to find this rest. We can have it every day. Once again, hobbies such as reading, cross stitching, hiking, bird watching, yoga, or gardening can relax the soul. So can listening to calming music, Chris...

I've talked about exercising and eating healthier before. But I want to revisit these 2 topics for the new year. As a matter of fact, everything I have posted and will post these first few days of 2024 are all healthy habits I want to revisit with you. As I mentioned in my first post of this year, "just start somewhere", and make healthy life choices for yourself. Exercise can be in the form of taking a walk outdoors to a deeper experience of walking in place . My family and I do the walk in place exercises at least 3 times a week. The teachers in the videos I have linked to also include upper body workouts with the walk in place exercises, which really gets the heart pumping and strengthens muscles. If you're unable to walk or have balance issues, you can perhaps try some sitting exercises or use a sit-and-cycle system. I have links to plenty of these activities in my Health Talk posts on this site . Eating healthier, to me, means eating less of the unhealthy foods ...

Good morning my sisters in Christ. I hope you're having a lovely day as you read or listen to this post. If you're listening, please click on the linked text in this post to read other related posts on my site.  Continuing with the New Year, let's talk about learning some new practices or habits. Luke 10:27 states, "You must love the LORD your God with all your heart, all your soul, all your strength, and all your mind." And, "Love your neighbor as yourself." In order to be able to do this, we must practice being like Christ. This means that we set aside time with God each day to learn how to be like His Beloved Son - just as a pianist sets aside time to practice her music each day. The more we practice, the better we get at loving God, Jesus, and others the way we should. What does this practice look like? First of all, thank God for another day upon awakening. He has given us the gift of life, and we should be grateful for that. Intentionally breathe ...

Happy New Year to all of my beautiful readers. I've been praying for peace for all of you. I want everyone who reads this post to have a fresh start this new year. First of all, ask God to forgive you for known and unknown sins in the name of His Son, Jesus Christ, who died for our sins. Ask Him for strength to do His will. Doing God's will is a process. It may not happen immediately. But by 2025, you will be able to see your progress. I promise to be here to help you through that process.   image courtesy of  Sincerely Media  via Unsplash Often, change has to occur inside us for change to happen around us. There are so many hurting people in the world. We have to let go of past hurts and forgive those people who have hurt us. Next, we should ask God to forgive those who have hurt us, because that's what Jesus did when He was hanging on the cross. Forgiving doesn't mean returning to a toxic relationship. It just means we aren't holding grudges, and we can move on wi...

Meditation is a great way to relieve stress, empower ourselves, create mindfulness, realize our blessings, energize our day, sleep better. It's an overall peaceful experience . I'm now on 51 straight days of meditation. And I have incorporated meditation into my devotions and prayer time first thing every morning.  Image courtesy of  Sage Friedman via Unsplash God tells us many times in the Bible to meditate on His word. So, that's why I have chosen to meditate during the special time I have already set aside for Him. Sometimes, my prayers are my meditation. Sometimes, I pick out something beautiful from the passage or devotion and meditate on that 1 word or phrase. Sometimes, I listen to a guided meditation. Whichever way I meditate, I use the InsightTimer app on my iPhone to either time or listen to the morning meditation. You can find out more about InsightTimer on their  website . The countdown timer is free, and there are several free guided meditations and peaceful...

I'm happy to report that my foot is almost healthy again. A couple of months ago my hairdresser (of 12 years now) told me about a new Bible she was reading called She Reads Truth, a Christian Standard Bible study, that she is really enjoying, because it helps her understand the Bible more easily. I bought a copy (hard cover) for myself, because it never hurts to have another version of the Bible to study and compare. Right? Anyway, because my bookshelf is full, I have had to resort to putting some of my newer books on top of other books. So, this one goes on top of the other 4 Bibles I have on that particular shelf.  After a morning of studying just over a month ago, I set that Bible on the bottom of the stack of 3 other Bibles I was studying from that same morning. As I picked up the other 3, I accidentally knocked the new CSB version off the China hutch and it fell right onto my foot. The 2 edges (where the book opens) didn't open (what are the chances?), so both edges lande...

Home Remedies for Headaches For over 40 years, I have experienced almost every kind of headache you can think of: migraine, sinus, tension, head congestion, eye strain, and now, cluster headaches. I will begin with cluster headaches, because they are the worst by far, and they occur without any warning at all. And they are the reason I'm late for this week's health post . I started this on Monday, and I wasn't able to finish it until today, after the headaches subsided. Image courtesy of  Robina Weermeijer via Unsplash Cluster Headaches Probably a couple of years ago, I started getting minor headaches in a small section of my head (usually the back or side) with sharp pain every few seconds. Until a week ago, the experience lasted for maybe a day and went away. Within the last week, I've had 2 of these cluster headaches that have lasted for at least 3 days each with only a couple of days of rest between the 2. From my own research, these are called cluster headaches. An...

Sorry for my delay in posting lately. I had scheduled several posts before I started deep cleaning the kitchen 3 weeks ago. No sooner had I finished deep cleaning the kitchen when my family and I came down with a cold or flu. I took 2 Covid tests and my husband took 3, and we tested negative every time. Whatever it was, was rough. At the tail end of this virus, I got 2 transcribing jobs that lasted about a week. So, where does easy does it show up during all this chaos?  Image courtesy of  Kelly Sikkema via Unsplash First of all, I did take my time when I was deep cleaning the kitchen. I cleaned the stove/oven, fridge, and walls on day 1, the top cabinets on day 2, drawers and bottom cabinets on day 3, and vacuumed valances, wiped off blinds, cleaned 3 windows, and scrubbed the floor on day 4. I went to the grocery store the day after I finished cleaning the kitchen. The day after that I did some minor housework. By the end of that day, I was starting to not feel well.  I...

Even after last week's boiled vinegar incident (gross!), I still want to show you how well the vinegar cleaned the grease off of my glass lid that I covered those frying beef patties with (that lingering smell was the reason I tried the boiled water and vinegar).  I use Dawn to wash my dishes in, and it seems to do a good job at cutting through the grease on my pots and pans. But I still have a greasy residue on my glass lids after washing them - and I wash the lids before I wash the pots and pans to try to avoid that smeary mess on them.  It wouldn't be a good idea to spray something like Glass Plus on them to clean that residue off since some of the spray might remain in crevices such as screws or rims. So, I thought I would try spraying pure vinegar on the lids after washing them since vinegar is a food-grade product that is also used as a window cleaner by many people. It did a great job. I sprayed the vinegar on the lid after washing and wiped it off with a paper towel. ...