friends

Life is Better with Friends

by Stacy on July 25, 2011

Life is better with friends

Print from Etsy $15

29 months ago I left behind life as I had come to know it, to embark on a new journey. A journey, I had dreamed of since the moment my first child was born. It was a huge step, one that involved flying across oceans, saying goodbye to friends who had become family, shedding my identity and moving to a place where I knew no one.

Life should have been wonderful, I had everything I had ever wanted. A handsome, albeit absent husband. Three wonderful, very active children. A home I could finally call my own. A colorful city just waiting to be explored. Still, something was missing. A hole that grew bigger and demanded more of my attention than I wanted to give it. A hole, I started to fall in to … sacrificing happiness in other areas of my life for all the time I spent focusing on how large it was becoming.

It’s been a long, slow crawl to get where I am today. It has not been easy. In fact, it has been incredibly lonely. But, I am finally on the edge of something wonderful, peeking in, dipping my toes and testing the waters. I’m so excited to say, the water feels great. I’m this <> close to diving in and all I can say, is ….

Life is certainly better with friends!!!

And you wonderful ladies have been such an important part of this realization, I don’t know what I would have done without you! Please accept this Big GIANT {{{{{{{HUG}}}}}}}}} from me!! And if you’re willing, leave me one of your own in the comments. It’s a love fest y’all and everyone’s invited.

I think I am finally able to cast my worries aside and blog from my heart, finally able to talk to you as if we were the bestest of friends because in my eyes we already are!! and I hope you feel that way too.

Mwah, I love you guys!

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Getting to Know You

by Stacy on February 23, 2010

Ok Ladies, I’ve got a fun little experiment for us today – consider it a “Getting to Know Each Other” exercise. I’ll ask a series of thought provoking questions and provide my own personal answers. Hopefully you’ll be inspired to answer one or all of the questions in return and we’ll all know that much more about each other. OK, here goes …

Are you what you wanted to be when you grew up?

Actually, Yes I am. Growing up I dreamed of being a roller coaster test pilot, a super sleuth, owner of a children’s orphanage and the World’s Greatest Wife. I may not have accomplished all these feats, but I am confident I rock at being the World’s Great Wife. Now, some of you may argue with me on regards to that title but if you were to ask MY husband, I’m sure he would say I’ve earned it and in reality, we only have to be the “World’s Greatest” according to that one very special person. Lucky for me, that one special person is not only my husband, but he’s also my best friend.

wedding

Do you have a true passion?

I’ve never felt more passionate about anything than I have about being a Mother. You hear folks talk about finding their “calling” and I honestly believe I found mine the day I became a Mother. Nothing else in my life has consumed me more, filled me with more joy or felt quite so right. So right, in fact, I felt the need to do it three times. So right, that if given the chance I would gladly do it three more times. And a few more times after that if God was willing. Have you ever seen the movie Cheaper by the Dozen? Well, it’s sort of a dream of mine. Really. For now though, I’m relishing all the moments I have with my knee high trio.

All Together

How do you center yourself?

Very Quickly. Being home with a 9 month old, soon to be 3 year old, and a 4 year old doesn’t leave much time for solitude, quiet time, or meditation. I steal my moments whenever I can. That’s why I do all of my soul searching, chatting with my angels, and spiritual contemplations in the shower. I try very hard to be as eco-conscious as possible and this 15-20 minute extravagance is probably my worst vice in regards to the environment, but for now I think Mother Nature would commiserate with me. I also try to recite this prayer everyday – it has really helped me stay focused and centered on being the woman/wife/Mom/friend/human I want to be.

Are you a prisoner of your possessions?

Proudly, No – I’ll be the first to tell you I’m a horrible pack rat but as you’ll be learning more about very soon, I have greatly downsized my personal belongings (by about 40% actually) but I still have a long ways to go (I’ve got another 30% to purge). It gets easier as time goes by and my “need” for things is diminishing more and more each day (Hurray!) This is something I’m incredibly proud of.

How old do you feel?

Well there’s a trick question. Much of me thinks and acts like a child, but with more wisdom and awareness. My body is more capable than it was in it’s early 20′s, but the Wii says I’m about 34 (what does it know anyway). According to my birth certificate, I’m 31 but it’s already full of spelling errors {Yep, I mean my name – story for another day} so I’m not too sure if I should believe that :-) Guess I’ll go with how I feel, so I must be about … 24! Yeah, that sounds about right.

I hope you think this Q&A was as much fun as I did, if so let me know – maybe we can make this a regular occurrence. If you’ve got a question you’d like me to answer email me and I’ll add it to the next segment.

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Thinking Out Loud

by Stacy on January 7, 2010

Dearest Readers,

I have a bit of a confession to make …..

Something that’s been troubling me for quite some time now ….

I haven’t been entirely open with you.

In fact, you might even say I’ve been holding back on you – keeping all my best thoughts and ideas to myself.

I feel like I owe you an apology. I’m sorry – sorry I haven’t put all my efforts and passions in to this site. You see, I started KSW eighteen months ago, with BIG plans and HUGE intentions. It was going to be something fun, something fresh, something personal, something wonderful. Together we were going to try new things, share our stories, and make a difference in our lives and the lives of those around us. But I let my inhibitions and fear of making mistakes get the best of me. I resisted sharing too much. Sure, I tested the waters, I dipped my feet, I tried ever so slightly to get a sense of what it would be like if I were to go all the way.

But the truth is, I’m a bit shy about putting myself out there, wearing my heart on my sleeve for each of you to see. I’m also afraid. Afraid, my ideas will not be good enough, my crafts will not be cute enough, my posts will not be witty enough, my pictures will not be creative enough.

I guess I’ve just been afraid of letting you get to know Me. For those of you who’ve followed for some time you may have noticed a change in the posts over the last two months. Slowly, they are becoming more personal. I credit this to the wonderful friendships I’ve made with many of you. I found a quote tonight, Friends are those with whom we feel comfortable enough to ‘think out loud‘. And I think it sums it up perfectly. The more I get to know you, the more we become friends instead of strangers the more comfortable I feel with each of you and the more I want to share with you.

From now on, I’m going to Think Out Loud. I’m going to fill my posts with my thoughts, my passions, my fears, my loves, my crazy ideas {CAUTION: I have tons of them}, all of it. And just see how it goes. It might not be perfect, it may not always be beautiful, but it will be Me.

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Get yourself pampered, in the name of Nie!

by Stacy on November 8, 2008

Nie Nie DayIt is with great joy that I pass along the news of this next fundraising event for Stephanie Nielson and her family. The fact that Kids Stuff World was contacted to promote this event for such a wonderful cause/family is a great honor. So without further ado …

Emily, Bethanee, and Jolleen will be hosting a “Nie Nie Day Party” event/fundraiser in Mesa, Az on Nov. 22. These fabulous ladies from the Habit Salon are offering a full day of pampering at great prices so this really is a win-win situation. Get a great new style and give to a great cause just in time to look fabulous for Thanksgiving with your family and friends – what could be better. This event is sure to be a huge success as the last two fundraisers have raised over $10,000! Congratulations ladies, that’s quite an accomplishment.

Here’s the excerpt from their flyer:

We all want to GIVE. GIVE of ourselves. GIVE to those in need. We also have been taught that when we, as woman/wives/mothers, TAKE CARE of ourselves, we have MORE to GIVE to others. Here is the perfect way to PAMPER yourself AND GIVE to NIE, at the same time!

The owners of Habit Salon, Chrissy and Rich Rasmussen, and their wonderful staff of stylists and astiticians, have generously donated Habit Salon and their services for an entire Saturday! 100% of the donations made will go to the NIE RECOVERY FUND.

There will also be a variety of handmade bracelets and barrettes, homemade baked goods and Nie T-Shirts to add to the ways you can treat yourself and help the Nielsons.

Click HERE to go to HABIT SALON’S BLOG and pick your appointment time and services. This will secure your time with one of Habit’s Stylists and your chance to participate in a heartwarming and uplifting event. It’s that easy!

We have suggested donation amounts for the services, which are just that suggestions. Donate all you can, whether it be a little less or more. Items created for the event and raffle tickets will have a set price.

Habit Salon’s fabulous variety of hair and skin product will be available, with 25% of the purchase price going to the Nielsons.

Walk-ins are welcome but you will have to wait for the next available stylist. Please come and visit with other NIE Supporters, buy some treats for yourself and as holiday gifts and leave infused with the LOVE OF LIFE.

Mark SATURDAY, NOVEMBER 22 on your calendar – It’s NIE DAY!

* Can’t make it yourself but still want to help out ? No problem, just pass this info along on your own blog/webpage or even by email. The more folks that know about the event the better. Thanks for your help.

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Flower Power

by Stacy on October 15, 2008

Flower Costumes

Here’s a no-sew costume idea brought to us by lovely Martha. This one can be ready in minutes and incorporates clothing you already have on hand. All you need is some felt, fusible webbing, a little trim, a colorful dress or tunic, and some bright tights. Add the cute pollen headband for even more pizazz, as always leave it to Martha. We’ve got a few more costumes only Martha could come up with heading your way…

Link to post here

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