Check this out...

This is  AWESOME.

I do not know this woman but I feel like I do.  I have been following her blog for a couple of months now and I think she rocks.

I have blogged about her story previously but I have been waiting, and waiting, and waiting to hear the news.

Libby Ryder was diagnosed with lymphoma and has been getting chemo for the last 6 months.  Libby was 26 when she was diagnosed.  she is married and has a one year old daughter.  The story is heart breaking.

Today Libby found out that she is cancer free!!!!!!!!!!!

Like I said, AWESOME!!!!!!

Check it out -

http://www.libbyryder.blogspot.com/

P.S. Stay tuned for today's Friday Face!  Who will it be...who will it be?!?!?!?

Cheers to Friday - It's been a long one :)

A Little Comparison

The other day I stumbled across this blog and I felt very.....small.

Not that my problems and issues aren't a big deal...because they are to me but in the big picture, the BIG scheme of things, they are very small issues.

The blog is called Don't Waste Your Cancer.  This woman sees her cancer as get this....

A GIFT

That's right, you read it correct. 

Libby Ryder is a 27 year old woman who is married with a little 1 year old daughter named Ava.  

This is an excerpt from her blog:

this blog is going to tell our story of some recent news that changes everything. justin and i were talking about this yesterday...we decided nothing will be the same again, ever. but in the best way possible. we are excited for this new path in our journey as a couple and as individuals. i told him this past week that i was thankful this was all happening now and not in 60 years when we were older and had missed out on loving Jesus this much, or each other this much, and everyone around this much. since we never saw this one coming. i guess that is what you sign up for when you decide to give your life...we are talking your life here...to Jesus Christ. it means trusting him with everything. i thought i did though. but now i know that i didn't. i mean i did a little. but not like i do now. this is our story and since we are not writing it, God is...we have to trust that he wanted this part to be in ours.

 

Libby has Stage 4 lymphoma.  Cancer.  

 

She is less than a year younger than me.  So, while I am worrying about when we can move up to north, get out of debt, have kids, get more money in savings; this woman is worrying about having enough energy to make her daughter's Halloween costume, being able to get out of her own bed to put her daughter to bed, being healthy enough to see her daughter grow up, scheduling her life around chemo treatments and trying to find a cute way to cover up her thinning hair.

 

I have so much.

 

Sometimes it is so easy to take your life for granted, to think of the negative and not the positive, to always want MORE.

 

Today I am thankful for my health.

It shouldn't take a diagnosis of cancer for us to be thankful.

So....think of everything that you have in your life, not what you don't.  We can all have bigger houses, less debt, more savings etc...

That doesn't get you anywhere though.  Things could always be better but let's be thankful for how good things are NOW.

 

So - cheers to a new week and hopefully no more snow!!!!  

 

 

What are you thankful for today?

 

Today I choose

To have a good attitude.

To stop worrying about my future and start living in the present.

To stop trying to be perfect.  It is okay if I don't have a ton of money.  It is okay if I am not at my ideal weight.  It is okay if I am not in love with my job.

To be thankful for all of the people that I have in my life that love me and care about me.

To start finding ways to get back to enjoying the simple things in life.  

Happy Monday to everyone.  I hope that you all have a good week and find happiness in the simple things in life. 

 

 

How to not let life get the best of you

Have you ever seen someone complain about a parking ticket as if it’s the end of the world?

Have you been cut off in traffic and let it ruin your whole day?

How many times have you let your experience at the airport (crying baby, delayed flight, missing luggage) be the first thing you bring up in conversations with friends?

I want you to repeat after me: “these things happen”.

We all have these types of events come up in life, but successful people just go on as if nothing has happened, and unsuccessful people let it derail them.

The next time you feel a surge of anger coming on over an insignificant event in your life, go over these points in your head:

1. You look like an idiot
   There is no polite way to put this. When others around you see you COMPLETELY lose it over the dent in your car door, they aren’t feeling sorry for you and wondering how they can help. They are subconsciously judging you and coming to one inescapable conclusion: you aren’t in control of your life.
   
   
   If something this small throws you off, imagine how you’d react to a REAL problem in life. Overreacting tells the people around you that you can’t be trusted to deal with important issues. You’re not the goto guy (or gal) when they’re in need, because you can’t even take care of yourself.
   
   
2. The only person you’re hurting is yourself
   Did you ever realize that when you get upset at someone who cuts you off in traffic, they generally never even know? Usually they speed off never the wiser to your insults and gestures. By getting angry, you’re doing zero harm to them while simultaneously hurting yourself even more. That doesn’t make much sense, and is a waste of your precious time and energy.
   
   
   Now heres the zinger. What if that person purposely WANTED to upset you (they have some subconscious need to pick on others, they’re parents didn’t love them enough, etc)? Well then they are getting the exact reaction they wanted, and you’re playing right into they hands.
   If you really want to mess with someone who flips you off in traffic, try smiling and waving back, and watch the confused look on their face. With time, you can even learn to appreciate and love these people (bizarre I know) for the important role they serve in life: helping to remind you how NOT to live. Don’t judge them, they are just at a different point in understanding life.
3. Find something to be grateful about
   So you’re sitting there in rush hour traffic about ready to tear your hair out. Train yourself to go right into gratitude, and start listing what you’re grateful for and what good can come from this situation.
   
   
   Maybe its the perfect time to make a phone call to a loved one you’ve been putting off. Maybe you can get some “reading” done on that audio bookyou’re listening to and be grateful for the chance to learn something new. Maybe its just a chance to put things in perspective and marvel at how far technology has come. After all, primitive mankind would have had to walk this distance. You get to SIT in an air conditioned chair barely pushing the accelerator.
   There is something good in every situation, and you can find it. Even if its just that you’re grateful for the chance to practice being grateful.

Unsuccessful people are REACTIVE. They are a leaf blowing in the wind, the world is happening around them, and they are just trying to stay alive. When something bad happens, someone did it TO them and they take it personally. They get caught up in the victim mentality and take every opportunity to let people know it.

Successful people, on the other hand, are PROACTIVE. They make things happen in life and are on a mission. And by golly, they aren’t going to let some silly parking ticket take them off their mission. Instead, they say to themselves “these things happen” and move on to more important tasks.
                                                                                                                                                    - www.startbreakingfree.com

Quote that I really like...

This is a quote that I have posted in my office that I really like!

Watch your thoughts, for they become words.

Watch your words, for they become actions.

Watch your actions, for they become habits.

Watch your habits, for they become character.

Watch your character, for it becomes your destiny.

I think that this is so true.  Basically it is saying that your thoughts become your destiny.  I am going to try this out for awhile!

Hope everyone is having a good day :)