Personal Post Monday - Life makes me happy!!

For those following my blog - you know that occasionally I post personal posts - because this blog has become such a fun place for me to go back through posts and reminisce.  So I've taken to trying to contain those posts mostly on Mondays - and I give the disclaimer Personal Post Monday - so if you're not interested in my personal life - don't read on - but please come back for future creative posts.

 

So there is a lot going on in my life - my kiddos now in two different states, Paul and I getting ready to retire, listing the house, getting ready to move, transitioning my Stampin' Up! business and just life in general.  Sometimes it can really overwhelm me - but I try to practice thankfulness and joy in all circumstances - and I am so blessed it doesn't take much to find those.  So I wanted to share some simple things that bring me joy.  First - I LOVE COFFEE - I know you all know that - but I just really like saying it.  And I LOVE Coffee mugs - have a ton of them.  This beautiful one is from my only sister, Sharon and it brings a smile to my face every time I use it.

It starts out with the black images in the first picture - but when I add my hot coffee - these are what I get - isn't it lovely.  Just a little "coffee" magic to make me think of my sis -and that makes me HAPPY!

Another thing that really brings me joy is God's creation around me - and clouds are one of my favorite things.  I have soooo many pictures of the sky and clouds and I am sure I will continue to take them.  Here are a couple I took recently from my front porch. 

Love that beauty - just makes me HAPPY!!

And finally today - I'm sharing some of favorite people - not all though as Jenee and her kiddos are in Arizona and I miss them terribly - but I do get to see these four little adorable faces on a regular basis.  This past weekend Papa and I had the four King kids overnight, and pretty much the overnight ritual always includes this big yellow bowl full of popcorn (Papa's and the kids favorite treat).  Just look at my handsome hubby and those beautiful kids - talk about making me HAPPY!

So I leave you today in the midst of my stress, and tiredness, and yes, a bum knee that I get to see the orthopedist about this week - with this thought ~ Look around you and take time to find happiness and joy in the little things!!  Any day with a smile on your face is a good day! Thanks for stopping by - see you soon!! ~Maureen

Fun with the King Kids

A couple weekends ago we got to spend some time with three of our King grandkids.  Started out with Gramma and Zavian heading out for an ice cream treat as a reward for his hard work on potty training.  He absolutely had to have the BLUE ice cream - hmmmmm-

 But guess this smile showed he LOVED it!

Then the three older kiddos spent the night with Gramma and Papa - here they are in heavy concentration building a castle -

 And all smiles with their finished product.

Had a wonderful time -as always - Love you kiddos!!!  ~Gramma

Fun at the park!!

So the last few weeks Paul has had a couple Sunday's off so we wanted to take all the kiddos on a picnic - but the six older ones are hard to transport (no vehicle big enough :)  So we did two picnics!!  First week -the Jones kids!

Zamarah ready to slide!

Gramma with Paisley, Prince and Zamarah.

Paisley and Prince having fun!

Then the next week the King kids!

Kamili, Makai and Zav ready for fun!

Papa rock climbing with the crew.

On reason we went to this park is that they have an old Railroad station there with minature trains - the kids all loved it!

Fun days with our kiddos - glad we got the picnics in before school starts next week.  See you all soon!! ~Maureen

Sleepover with the King Kids

This past weekend Papa and I had a wonderful sleepover night with the King kids.  We LOVE spending time with our grandkids - so whenever they are over it is a special time for us.  Heidi and Aaron had a much deserved evening off to go to dinner and see a movie -

Here's our youngest grandson, Kyan - just look at those big eyes.

He is such a happy baby - full of coos and giggles.  He's probably smiling because he's two months old!  Or maybe because he got lots and lots of Gramma holding and loving.

One of the highlights of sleepovers is Popcorn time - a family fav.  Here are Makai and Papa enjoying the treat.

And Kamili and Zavian full of smiles - think they were having a great time.

We played games, drew pictures, put puzzles together - watched the Very Hungry Caterpillar movie - and of course had popcorn and sparkling lemonade before bed.  This morning eggs, toast, strawberries and OJ.  Yum!!  It was supposed to be a new waffle recipe I got from my sister-in-law when we visited them last week.  It was the best waffles I ever had and you prep the yeast batter the night before.  So around midnight, I soaked the yeast, melted the butter, warmed the milk and was all ready to make the batter when I realized I had NO flour :(  Unbelievable - don't know how I ran out of that.  So waffles will have to wait.  ~Maureen