Borrowed Time

One of my best friends is on her way to Texas to live.  A farewell get together brought the reality of her leaving to fruition.  She is one of those friends that if you don't speak to each other for long periods of time, you always seem to pick up where you left off.  Its always a never ending conversation of how are you, what have you been doing, and are you okay?  Hows the family? And then, I've missed you.....

This move for her has further solidified the feeling and the knowing, that we are all on borrowed time for one reason or another.  We wake up each morning (or night, depending on your body clock), and know that we are going to eat, drink, breathe another day of existence.....at least for the time at hand.  We never know if "today is the day" I take my last breathe.....you just never know.....

Maybe or maybe not, she'll be back to her home here....time will tell on that.

Happiness can come at any age...

JUST MARRIED

2-19-19

 When you are battling a disease called cancer, you go where the treatment is...for her that is Texas to a very good cancer treatment center, MD Anderson in Houston, Texas....

As long as there is air to breathe, planes still take off and land in Texas,  I will venture down to visit with my pal gal....We wake up everyday on borrowed time.  Have done since we were all born...now that I am older and closer to the end, I realize that time is more precious than ever.  It's true when they say, live the day to its fullest....have no regrets.....live, love, laugh.....dance as if no one is watching....smile big......don't worry about what other people think...do what makes you happy....just be you......we are all living on borrowed time....

JUST....BEING ME....

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Wow!!!

Wow! What more can be said when it comes to the end of 2017 and it's the beginning off 2018.  It was a great year, a bad year, a wonderful year, a wake-up-call year, but not necessarily in that order!

Twenty seventeen will go down in my history book as a year that I did a lot, saw a lot, witnessed a lot, and had a dose of "you are not 25 anymore"..Dammit, when did I become as old as I am.....

I don't make resolutions like some people do.  Why? They get broken.  What I do is wake up and be a better person than I was the day before, laugh a little harder, cry a little less, and just embrace the life I live, one day at a time.  Sure I'd like to be skinner, have less wrinkles on my face.  But for real, I am okay with how I am.  I've earned the wrinkles on my face through worry, sun worshipping, and because I am older than dirt itself it seems on some days and they are my road map of life.   I'm fatter than I care to be, but I'm finding out with a little tweak here and there, the weight is coming off.  This was my wake up call at the end of the year...........Health issues that warrant me to lose the weight, eat better and take care of myself.  I'm learning a new lifestyle that will carry me  throughout the rest of my life......

My plans for this year are more of what I did last year....

Spend  time at my favorite lake.......... Beach, sand, water, and sunshine are natures prescription for better mental & physical health.

Watch the grandkids grow up.  Spend more time with the people I love.......

Take more photographs.....I will never have enough pictures to look at.........

Hope that the hubby retires soon....he works too hard & it's time to play!

These are simple and doable..........

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The eyes of Sarah Smiles: Find your place

The eyes of Sarah Smiles: Find your place: Pieces of my heart are scattered on several beaches in this fine country of ours, but the beach that has claimed the majority of my heart is...

Find your place

Pieces of my heart are scattered on several beaches in this fine country of ours, but the beach that has claimed the majority of my heart is Bear Lake.  I do love ocean front property, so scattering pieces of my heart along the sandy beaches of California, I feel like I own a part of it and that I can go back anytime to see them...

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The sun greets me each day as it peeks over the mountain tops to the east, laying a foundation of sunshine on the water that on most mornings is smooth, looks like glass, and you feel as if you can walk on it....other times the lake can get angry.  White caps, rolling waves...it tells people it's time to find something else to do..........

I enjoy my coffee each morning staring out over the lake regardless of what the weather conditions are.  It's my time, my quiet time.  It's where I literally don't have a care in the world.  My mind will start to wander mindlessly.  I'm not thinking about what I need to get done or where I need to be.  All I am thinking about is  how good my coffee tastes, how alive I feel at that very moment, and how the sunlight captures the beauty that surrounds me.....Mother Nature has taken over and is giving me a chorus of birds singing, water kissing the beach edge, and my soul being filled by the warmth of the sun, the cool crisp air kissing my cheeks, and Charlie the dog looking like she could care less!!!

Summer time is here.   I've returned from one venture to the lake and will soon be heading out for another round in a few weeks time......I only left a small piece of my heart on the sandy beach of Bear Lake as I know I will be back real soon to leave another piece to lay right next to it.  By summers end it will once again have a stronger hold on my heart.

Find your place where life takes a back seat, where you can refuel your soul and inner self.

Let your inner child out to play.......I do...this blog is named after her...Sarah Smiles....

Repeat.........

Dogs, or any kind of animal one has a fondness for, can offer a person much joy and feelings of happiness......They give you unconditional love.  All they ask of you is to nourish them with good food and clean water, give them fresh air, a place to roam freely and safely, and most importantly, to love them back unconditionally..........

I have such an animal in my life.......Charlie the dog.......she is the current resident that provides this human with unconditional love.  She makes me laugh.  She listens to me rattle on with radar ears that go in weird directions as if she's either trying to tune me in or........tune me out!!!  Wish I could read her mind............

A dogs life is simple and easy......sleep, eat, play, poop......repeat..........they can wander for miles upon miles....seeking new smells, seeing new terrain and people......they stop, look, listen.....wag their tails in excitement, growl when somethings not right.  They are excited to see you when you come home and sad when you have to leave them.......and all they ask of you is to come home and love them.....repeat......come home, love them....repeat.........repeat........repeat.........

Regifting a memory....

Each day after this past Christmas, I am finding myself laughing out loud...... a lot.......it was a good Christmas to say the least.

It's been a tradition for many years now to pass out the presents to everyone, then each one of us take turns and opens a gift, we oooh and awwww over it, then the next person selects a gift and opens theirs and so on down the line......we still tear into the paper, wad it up and throw it....that will never change.

I grew up with my Mother telling me to carefully remove the tape from the end of the package and to NOT tear the paper.  She would reuse the paper the following year.  As an adult I can see her point of saving the paper.  Money was tight and reusing anything and everything was the way of our household.  As a child I wanted so badly to rip and tear in to whatever gem was hidden.  I wanted to see what was inside now, not 10 minutes later..........

Saving wrapping paper in this household was never done.......ripping away was the only way to get inside the package.  I did used a lot of scotch tape and ribbon to tie up the packages, that scissors were necessary to open such treasures that they held............it may have been cruel for the kids, but it sure was fun to see them tackle them.......it also drew out the opening of gifts.  Instead of 10 seconds and we're done opening, we could enjoy the gift opening for 30 minutes...tops!!!

Which leads me to what I was really trying to say............Christmas was fun this year.  I missed our youngest boy not being here and sharing in the festivities, so having 2 out of the 3 kids around was fine..........

As we passed out the gifts, I noticed that several of mine were wrapped "differently" and in odd shapes.  I shook the gifts like a little kid to see if they rattled and sure enough, they did.  Upon opening the first gift of unusual proportion, it happened to be one of the plastic bowls I had sent home with this child that had left over food in it.  Inside was my treasure............licorice!!!  I opened another present when it was my turn and sure enough, there was another bowl with another fine gift nestled inside..........the point being..........I am still laughing at the ingenious way he decided to wrap his gifts and "using" something that was mine already.  It really is a kindness to return something that has had food in it to that person with food right back to them.  This he did......it was hilarious that he would give me back my own things........this is regifting taken to the next level........... our middle child nailed it with packaging this year.  He gets the trophy..........

My only regret is I didn't take any pictures to document it.......my bad....oh, well...........I learned a lesson...........


CotySimon@Twitter.com
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Happy, Happy, Joy, Joy

Waking up on Christmas morning when the boys were growing up, it was such a pleasure to see their faces light up when Santa actually nailed the "right" gift.  As they got older, attitudes changed, but it was still fun to see the looks on their faces when they got something that they weren't expecting, or it was a practical joke that made them laugh.

This year Santa nailed it.  I was on pins and needles for the last 3 months hoping that our oldest son would not buy the hottest gift on the Stars Wars market this year.....BB-8.........since September I'd listen to him talk about it and how he "just about" bought it.  Even the weekend before Christmas he came "this close" to buying it........I'm glad he didn't.........

It's been eon's since I've seen the look of surprise on this kids face and the smile that came with it.  Middle son got one, too, so when they both opened the same gift at the same time, I was doubly blessed with grins from ear to ear.........yes, happy, happy, joy, joy.......is all I could feel..........

This leaves son #3 who on Christmas morning was opening presents with his little family in Arizona........

I made up a cookbook for each of the boys this year.  In the recipe book are recipes from me and their two grandmothers......I heard from my baby boy when he opened it, it brought a tear to his eyes.  Sure wish I could have seen that, but I did get to see the surprised look and the "it's about time" look on the two boys I witnessed open the cookbook.............

As we all get older and wiser, shopping for that right gift becomes harder and harder.  Sometimes its not the most expensive gifts that make the heart smile, but the ones that come from the heart that is smiling, is what Christmas is all about.  BB-8 the Stars War toy was indeed a hit, but I think it was the cookbook that brought the most smiles....................

Our three sons who still bring joy to our hearts and a smile to our face......

2015 is almost gone......2016 is on the doorstep.  Resolutions? Nope.....I only break them within hours of the new year.......what I do "resolve" to do, is to always be a better person than I was the day before.  I don't look ahead to the tomorrows.  I have too much to do on my "todays"......I can't be bothered by the yesterdays either.......I live for the "right nows"........nothing more, nothing less, nothing ventured, nothing gained......

Happy New Year.................see you around in 2016.....

CotySimon@twitter.com
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