*~Monday's Miracle~*

Finding Miracles in Hard Times


I'm struggling with my miracle Monday this week.  With our Stock market falling 600 points, our troops and Seal Team 6 being shot down in Afghanistan by the evil Taliban, our AAA credit rating being non existent after we were told that was impossible (we didn't even loose that rating during the Great Depression), the shooting that killed eight in Ohio, practically everyone disappointed with our president including his own party, and a black man being run over multiple times just because he was black it is hard to be optimistic.  The truth is though, there are ALWAYS miracles happening around us.  Even with all the bad, you can always find some good.  God is always there.  He is always mindful of us.  He continues to bless us and we know he wins in the end so that gives us all the hope and joy we need.  I am going to do all the random miracles I have seen in the past week just to give you a glimpse into all that has been good and all that God has blessed us with.


-Amazing people willing to put their life on the line to help others. 
     --Him
     --and Them


-My two kids who each had a birthday this week.  They are my miracles


-severely malnourished baby in Somalia is now thriving


-the faith of many of the SEAL team that has passed


- Rick Perry hosting a prayer event


-I have started couponing


-I am trying to save money


-People trying to perform acts of kindness continually


-Kentucky school holds summer school to talk about founding fathers and our nation


-I got to go see my brand new baby niece


-I helped two people go out on two dates and now they both are just about skipping through life

-A friends daughter got kicked in the head by a horse, intensive care, brain swelling, and now she is home safe.

-Have a great idea for a my sons room and the studs are exactly where they need to be for it to work perfectly.

-that my husband can make and do anything and makes me laugh every day.



What are some miracles you've seen in this life this week?

"I believe that tomorrow is another day, and... I believe in miracles." Audrey Hepburn

"I believe in being strong when everything seems to be going wrong. " Audrey Hepburn

Laughter

from "A Vanished Time"

One of my favorite things about my husband and the family I married into is how much they joke around and how much they laugh.  I have grown to love to laugh about anything and everything.  You can make almost any situation funny.  You can make fun of almost any situation.  I love analyzing people and events.  I love to find the humor in many things.  Audrey once said, ""I don’t take my life seriously, but I do take what I do – in my life – seriously."   I think far too many of us take our lives too seriously.  It is always better to laugh at our quirks, to laugh at our past and to laugh about our daily lives.  Sometimes I get so caught up in all the crap around me that I forget to laugh and not take life too seriously.


Audrey also said, "I love people who make me laugh. I honestly think it's the thing I like most, to laugh. It cures a multitude of ills. It's probably the most important thing in a person."  I concur!  I too love people who make me laugh.  Most of my friends and family can make me laugh a lot.  If they can't I just try to make them laugh and then we can have fun.  I don't like it when people are serious all the time.  But even so, you can go home and tell someone else all the awesome jokes you said and the other person just sat there and that in itself is funny.  So serious people themselves can be funny in the end too.  I think everyone should value laughter.  I think everyone should want to laugh and joke and have fun a lot of the time.  

Audrey said,  "I'm half-Irish, half-Dutch, and I was born in Belgium. If I was a dog, I'd be in a hell of a mess!"  “I had a marvelous family with a great sense of humor.”  I think it would be a gigantic compliment to have one of my children say, "I had a family that had a great sense of humor.  We laughed all the time even though everything around us was a big ol' mess."  I would rather have a disheveled home that is laughing all the time than a serious perfectly organized home.  

My husband and I gage how much fun we have by how much we laughed.  Don't get me wrong I love talking about serious stuff too as you can see from this blog, but when I am surrounded by friends and family, I want there to be much laughter.  I think Audrey would agree.  I want to put this quote on my wall.  It is from the late prophet of my church.  ""In all of living, have much fun and laughter. Life is to be enjoyed, not just endured." 

Children are the perfect example of how to laugh.  They definitely don't take life too seriously.  This pretty princess girl thinks it is just hilarious how her daddy is kissing on her cheek.  That is the type of things we should all laugh about. 

So, if you haven't laughed today, think about something that happened today and think about how it could be analyzed and be funny and laugh!

"I believe that laughter is the best calorie burner."  Audrey Hepburn

The Wonder of Chocolate!

"Let's face it, a nice creamy chocolate cake does a lot for a lot of people; it does for me." Audrey Hepburn

 To answer the poll question.  YES you can have chocolate before 9:00.  Who says you can't?  Like Audrey says, it does a lot for a lot of people.  For some it makes them happy, for some it helps to 'regulate' them, for some pure pleasure, for some a feeling of contentment.  The story goes Audrey woke up from her nap every day and had a bite of chocolate.  With a 20 inch waiste it must have only been one bite but she still felt that she needed that.  She ate chocolate every day and I think we all should.  Audrey and I must be related or something because if I take a nap I always wake up and want some kind of chocolate.   So here is a divine chocolate bundt cake recipe that I love.  I have made it for many parties and people always ask for more.  Enjoy!

1 chocolate fudge cake mix with pudding (Betty Crocker)
1 sm. pkg. chocolate pudding mix
1 c. sour cream
4 eggs
1/2 c. warm water
1/2 c. oil
3 tbsp. melted butter
12 oz. pkg. chocolate chips

In bowl, mix well all ingredients in order as listed. Pour batter into a well-greased bundt pan. Bake at 350 degrees for 50-60 minutes. Cool 10 minutes in the pan. You can frost with sifted powdered sugar or an ice glaze.

Have you had your chocolate today?