Keeping it Simple...

It's been a while and I know I’ve been slacking on keeping up with my blog. It's always in the back of my mind to get online and update my page but then something else comes up and it gets pushed aside. Well, it's has been a LONG few weeks! So much has happened in such a short time. Friendships lost, relationships severed, and some new gained. Back to work and even picked up a second gig. There were moments were I truly wondered "Why? What is going on and what can I do to change it." However, after many nights lying in bed wondering, I realized that it is what it is and there was no need to continue to fret over things that were causing me to lose sleep.

I watched service last Sunday on www.streamingfaith.com and the Bishop discussed Hebrews 11:1 By Faith which begins with; "Now faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see." What this means is that Faith is the substance of things we hope for and the evidence of things unseen… Some of the key points that I took from the sermon were:

•  It isn’t until you start cleaning up some things in your life, when you start noticing what shouldn’t be there.
•  “We walk by Faith and not by sight”
•  God will manifest all the good things to you; however, he will reveal things that will make you think as well.
•  “Don’t stop short of hearing the word of God at Church and not implementing that word in our lives. “
•  You MUST have Faith in GOD!

After hearing the word and taking a moment to reflect on what the Bishop had just said and how it pertained to me and my life, I realize that I was starting to become depressed and there were cracks in my foundation with God. This meant that my Faith at the time was not as strong as it were before which made room for the Devil to come in and start stirring up stuff! Regardless of my trials and tribulations, my Faith in God and my self worth should NEVER fall short! It is only by his grace and mercy that I am a strong woman, mother, and friend. I am not flawless or faultless, however, I am flawed and at fault at times. I forgive, I forget, I let go and I hold on. It all depends on how it is received and perceived that the outcome becomes what it is.

Even after letting go and reclaiming my worth. My best friend tells me to watch a video which she posted of Iyanla Vanzant speaking. She spoke of her falling into a depression and how her good friend comes and takes her to see the Dalai Lama speak. This was 20 years ago and what he had said to her still resonates to this day! After I watched it, I smiled and the only words that left my lips were, I'm keeping it simple! Please take a moment to watch the video below and you'll understand...

Peace & Blessings!

My European experience...

Hey, hey, hey... Currently, I am 10 days into my 14 day European vacation and I must say that I am enjoying myself for the most part. Let me start with my trip to Paris... I spent 5 days in the Captial and largest city in France. The weather was gorgeous and my experience was interesting...  My hotel was situated in the bustling area of the Quartier Latin (Latin Quarter) of Paris which is on the south shore of the Seine River and is known for the cobblestone streets, shops and cafés of St-Germain-des-Près. We were close to EVERYTHING!!! So, if you go... it's not a bad area to try to book your hotel. I'm going to give you my positives and negatives of Paris and again, all of my blogs consist of MY opinion and MY opinion only! Let's start with the positives... On a good note, Paris is FULL of wonderful historical attractions! Here is a list of a few that I got to view and enjoy... (I will be modifying this blog to include photos and commentary on all attractions once I am able to upload all of my photos.)

• The Cathedral of Notre Dame - Gorgeous!
• Louvre Museum - A MUST See!
• Eiffel Tower - Beautiful at night
• Arc de Triomphe - Awesome structure! Smack dab in the middle of the busiest roundabout
• Sacré-Coeur Basilica - Stunning views! A bit hectic to get to and has the most stairs of all the attractions.
• The  Panthéon - Beautiful!
• The Seine - You can see everything by just walking along the river.
• The Arc de Triomphe du Carrousel - Across from the Lourve, beautiful at sunset.

Let me forewarn you by letting you know that Paris is a walking city! The Metro is easily accessible and not hard to manage however, the museums themselves are HUGE! You will definitely get your exercise in if you plan on taking part of climbing to the top of these monuments and checking out the view of Paris! It was great to see the Mona Lisa (up close and personal), some of the finest artwork in the world and to be able to eat fresh bread everyday, all day! Oh yeah... The Parisians LOVE bread! So, if your on a carb diet... FORGET ABOUT IT! Croissants, Baguettes, Crepes, Danishes, bread, bread, bread...

OK.. Enough of the nice stuff, let's move onto what I found to be the negatives! Paris may be full of historical monuments and great museums, however they don't tell you about all of the rubbish littering the streets and sidewalks, all of the rude Parisians (whom are only pleasant if you speak or attempt to speak french!), the food is alright and the traffic is CRAZY! Hm mm, how can I put this? I don't like it!!!!! ! In my mind, Paris was supposed to be this beautiful city, full of romance, great food and spectacular views. If you ever been to Manhattan in NYC, you got Paris! Everyone is damn near on top of one another... All the cafes, bistro, restaurant and metro seating are all narrow and very close to the next person. So, if you like your personal space... NOT GONNA HAPPEN! lol.

Everyone smokes as well... You will be seating next to a family of 4, Mum, Pop and two kids and the adults are smoking away as their chatting it up with the kids sitting right across from them. There is no such thing as a non smoking facility (at least that's how I felt), I quit smoking almost 2 years ago so I was mortified! Temptation EVERYWHERE, however it was so overwhelming that I actually got sick of all the smoke! Your also able to drink in public, so you have people with wine bottles, beer, or a cocktail walking the street drinking and smoking. There are rubbish bins all over the city but I was so surprised by all the bottles and trash scattered around. If you like fast paced, busy city streets and millions of people, Paris is for you!

My next journey has taken me to the United Kingdom... Central London to be exact! I am in the middle of everything and convieniently located across from Victoria station. I am in London for 9 days and staying at the Hesperia London Victoria. This hotel is decent and offers daily, hot buffet breakfast which is a huge perk! Foods not bad either and the staff is friendly. OK... Let me start by saying I LOVE LONDON but I DISLIKE THE WEATHER! It's the end of August and the high is 70 degrees on a good day! It rains often but not for long periods. People are more friendly than Paris and they speak English (Thank Goodness!) Some britians accents are very heavy so you might not understand everything that they say but you get the drift!

London is full of shops, pubs, restaurants, mueums and theaters! The city is bustling with taxis and double decker buses. One thing I love about London is that, it is a busy city however, it's a little less fast paced as most major cities. No one seems to be in a huge rush... The only difficultly is the roads and how everyone drives on the opposite side of the street than in the US. Crossing the street can present a problem if your not looking in the right direction, however, London city streets are conveniently marked "Look Left" or "Look Right" at every crosswalk. It's like crossing streets for dummies! LOL
 

I am in day 5 of my London vacation and have had the pleasure of seeing Big Ben and Parliment, Westminister Abby, Picadilly Circus, Camden town, London Eye and Southbank Centre. I have yet to go to Buckingham Palace or The Tower of London but I have time. London is a place that is full of musicals and theatrics. One downfall of London is that they charge you for EVERYTHING! You can barely get a glass of tap water for free! Our money is worth crap here as well... If you exchange $100 US dollars you will get approximately £61 in British Pounds (a $39 dollar loss!). Everything here is expenisive too... A bus ride cost £2.20 GBP for a one way ride! and the tube (train) cost about £4.00 GBP each way! Look at it this way... For every £1.00 that is $1.64 US dollars which means it's $6.55 for a train ride ONE WAY and $3.60 for a bus ride ONE WAY! Crazy huh?!?

I'm going to end my story at this point and pick it back up later on into my trip... It's hard to focus on having a great vacation when the East Coast is being hit with hurricane Irene and my family and friends are all hoping for the best. I pray for everyone over there and am consistly reading the news for updates. It's difficult not having access to call and check up on everyone. Wishing you all the best!

Until next time...

Road Trip con't...

OK, so I left off complaining about how boring it is traveling to Alabama.. We finally get there, drop off the kids and head 3 more hours to Atlanta. It's been approximately 4 years or so since I've last been to the A. I must say, it's just as beautiful as I remember it. We visited Dr. Martin Luther King Jr's birth home, Ebenezer Church where MLK Sr. & Jr. preached, the Georgia Aquarium, Piedmont Park, Lil 5 Points, Centennial Park and Atlantic Station. All of these places are MUST see attractions.

Georgia Aquarium

The Georgia Aquarium was amazing! I love how every attraction is interactive, the dome (seen in the pic below) gives you a feeling of being under water while all the sharks, fish, etc are surrounding. There are petting areas where you can pet small sharks and sting rays. There is a wonderful dolphin show and if you have the funds to swim and feed the sharks and whales, your able to do that as well.

Piedmont Park

The south is so beautiful... Atlanta did a wonderful job remodeling Piedmont Park (better known as the "gay" park) There are volleyball courts, baseball diamonds,  tennis courts, a swimming pool, and plenty of space to take a nice stroll, ride your bike, roller blade, picnic or just sit by the water. We also visited Ludacris restaurant called Straits located in Midtown. This restaurant was cute, the food was decent. The red head in bed martini (Kettle One Citron, Muddled Strawberries, Riesling and a splash of Sweet and Sour mix) was um mm GOOD! Surprisingly enough, the asparagus was my favorite! Pricey but delicious! Another spot was Gladys Knight Chicken and Waffles. This place had a line down the street before the doors even opened! They don't serve any alcohol but offer up great southern dishes like the famous Midnight Train which is the classic waffle and fried jumbo chicken wings. I had the midnight train with a side of cheese grits and sweet tea... YUMMY!

I was able to spend time with some good people, do a little bit of shopping, eat good food and enjoy the beauty that Atlanta has to offer. Once the weekend was over, it was time to head back to Alabama to get the kiddies. Another 15 hour ride back home... Uggh! We decided to take a different route and go back through Atlanta, then to South Carolina to North Carolina then to Virginia. That was a better trip! We decided to surprise my Dad and Step mom once we were in NC. That was a pleasant trip and made my pops so very happy! Fortunately for me, we didn't kill one another on the journey, it was a LONG ass trip but  overall the trip was a success!

Road Trip...

I remember when hitting the road on a adventure to wherever was so fun! Now that I'm older and my carpool consist of two kids, I'm more interested in just ending up at my destination than I am the journey of getting there!

I'm on my way to Alabama then to Atlanta for a quick 4 day getaway. It sounded ideal, however the ride is BORING! Nothing to see but road and trees. We left Virginia and drive through West Virginia, Tennessee, and now I'm in Alabama. We're almost there... Can't wait to drop the kids off and get to Atlanta where all the fun is!

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21 Things Happy People Make A Habit of Doing

1. Appreciate Life Be thankful that you woke up alive each morning.

2. Choose Friends Wisely Surround yourself with happy, positive people who share your values and goals.

3. Be Considerate Accept others for who they are as well as where they are in life.

4. Learn Continuously Keep up to date with the latest news regarding your career and hobbies.

5. Creative Problem Solving Don’t wallow in self-pity. As soon as you face a challenge get busy finding a solution.

6. Do What They Love Some statistics show that 80% of people dislike their jobs!

7. Enjoy Life Take the time to see the beauty around you. There’s more to life than work.

8. Laugh Don’t take yourself – or life to seriously.

9. Forgive Holding a grudge will hurt no one but you. Forgive others for your own peace of mind.

10. Gratitude Develop an attitude of gratitude. Count your blessings; All of them – even the things that seem trivial. 11. Invest in Relationships Always make sure your loved ones know you love them even in times of conflict.

12. Keep Their Word Honesty is the best policy. Every action and decision you make should be based on honesty.

13. Meditate Meditation gives your very active brain a rest.

14. Mind your own Business Concentrate on creating your life the way you want it.

15. Optimism See the glass as half full. Find the positive side of any given situation. The power of positive thinking is amazing.

16. Love Unconditionally Accept others for who they are. You don’t put limitations on your love.

17. Persistence Never give up. Face each new challenge with the attitude that it will bring you one step closer to your goal.

18. Be Proactive Accept what cannot be changed. Happy people don’t waste energy on circumstances beyond their control.

19. Self-Care Take care of your mind, body and health. Get regular medical checkups. Eat healthy and work out.

20. Self Confidence Don’t try to be someone that you’re not. After all no one likes a phony.

21. Take Responsibility Happy people know and understand that they are 100% responsible for their life.

Most of all: BE TRUE TO YOURSELF.

Change your frequency with the Power of Positive Thinking