School's Out!

Okay, so most kids have been out of school for a week now, but we actually went to school until today!

Today I am incredibly grateful for this school year being OVER! I spent the afternoon with friends at an ice cream social for the kids and look forward to spending the afternoon with some more friends tomorrow celebrating the end of school and the beginning of summer.

I love the summer and can't wait for all the fun we have in store this summer with friends and family. I am blessed (and grateful) to have unbelievable friends and look forward to all the fun we will have over the next few months.

I hope you look ahead at your summer and enjoy every moment...because it does go so fast! Take time to breathe in the ocean air if you are at the beach, notice the beautiful blue sky, the lush green grass (until the August sun hits!), and all those little subtle moments to feel gratitude.

In gratitude,
Deanna

Monday Morning Gratitude

I read a really great article this morning on Gratitude and why it's so special.

We are taught from a young age to say please and thank you when we are given something, when someone helps us, etc. It becomes a habit, an involuntary action. It almost is as if we say it and loose a little of its meaning.

If you sat down and thought about (or better yet wrote down) all the things you are grateful for--your spouse, your pet, your home, and on and on, you would feel very full and realize how much you have in your life. I enjoy the days that are tough and I have to dig deep for the gratitude--such as I'm grateful for my air conditioning on a hot day, the heat on a cold day, being able to drive myself to where I need to go--it goes on. It's on these days that you really dig out those not so obvious things and make a shift.

In the article, I found it really interesting when the author talked about a rainy day. Instead of looking at the rainy day and being miserable because it's wet, damp, and dark--think about what that rain does to the earth, the grass, the trees, etc. and how much will grow after it. What a great way to look at a rainy day!

In gratitude,
Deanna

A Quick Thought for the Day

A quick thought for the day:

Count your blessings. A grateful heart attracts more joy, love and prosperity. --Cheryl Richardson

Enjoy this beautiful day!

In gratitude,
Deanna

P.S. I loved this picture of daffodils. It made me think of my grandmother, who will be 90 next week. It's her favorite flower.

Monday Morning Gratitude

I often speak about how important it is to teach Gratitude to our children. In this fast-paced consumer driven world, it's so easy for these simple principles to get lost. You've seen me write before about things that I do with my daughter. She's constantly learning and we are continually re-inforcing. There is so much stimulus these days--much more than I was ever exposed to--that we have to be consistent.

I got this great little article from a Phillipino newspaper this morning in my in box. It's a very simple article about teaching Gratitude to your kids. Read on and enjoy...

Teach Gratitude to Your Kids
By Trinidad Cayading

DO YOU ever feel like your children continually want and expect more stuff? Perhaps they don't respect or take care of the things they already have.

How do we teach our children to be humble and grateful for what they have? It can be difficult sometimes to convince our children how blessed they really are. One way we can help teach gratitude to our children is by showing gratitude ourselves.

Do you ever find yourself complaining about not having enough or are you continually mindful and grateful for what you do have? Children really notice the way we as parents talk about such things.

One way you can show (and teach) gratitude is by remembering to say "thank you" for the little things to family members and others. Another way to show gratitude is through prayer.

By praying out loud, your children can hear you expressing thanks for your blessings. Be sure to thank God for the blessing of your wonderful children -- and be sure to state each of their names!

Many years ago I heard the phrase: "Have An Attitude of Gratitude!" It stuck with me every since. If we have an "attitude of gratitude," then chances are our children will too. It made up a little game to keep us amused and grateful for our blessings.

As we trudged up this steep slippery hill in the dead of winter to attend our classes, we would say something like (in an exaggerated voice of course) "Boy, I am sure grateful to be getting this wonderful education -- aren't you?" Then whoever responded would have to think of something positive back, and so on. Then one of us would respond, "Yeah and we are so lucky that we get to walk up this big hill every morning -- look at all of the free exercise we are getting!" "Yeah, good thing we don't have a car -- I mean then we would have to drive around in circles looking for a parking place." "Yeah, we sure are lucky aren't we!" It was a silly little game but it kept us smiling and cheerful, and it was entertaining to see who could come up with the best responses.

We can play similar "games" with our children. I recently heard a story about someone who used her creativity to display a positive attitude when things went wrong.

For example, if someone cut her off in traffic, instead of becoming angry she would try and come up with the most outlandish story possible about why that driver was driving so fast. She would say something like, "Wow, maybe his wife is about to have a baby any second and they have to hurry and get to the hospital before she delivers in the car..." Then her child might take over and come up with a completely different story about why that driver cut them off. Pretty soon they would all be laughing at each other's stories and forget all about the car that cut them off.

Sometimes it is our kids that teach us these valuable lessons of gratitude. The other day I drove my kids to school as I do every morning and my 10-year-old daughter said, "Thanks mom for driving me to school today!" It was a little thing but it made me feel good!

Then when I started clearing the table after dinner she said: "Thanks for helping us in the kitchen mom!" "WOW -- does she want something," I wondered?

Then today I received a hand-written note that said "Thank you mom for not letting me quit piano..." Was this really my daughter -- the one who complains each and every day about having to practice a measly 30 minutes? Gratitude... maybe there is hope after all...!

In gratitude,
Deanna

P.S. Just remember my saying, "Gratitude is an attitude and attitude is everything."

Happy Father's Day!

Happy Father's Day to all Dad's! What a wonderful weekend to enjoy!

We had the pleasure of going on our annual Strawberry picking excursion yesterday. It's a fun time we typically share with my father-in-law. We all piled in the berry ferry yesterday at Jones' Farm out to the strawberry patch. It was warm and steamy, but not as bad as year's past. We had a fun time as always-Faith and her Papa eating strawberries all along the way. It's always a great memory.

I thought you might enjoy this fun cake recipe that they gave us:

Strawberry Surprise Cake

Oil a 13 x 9 pan. Mix 1-3 oz. pkg. of strawberry jello with 1 pint of thawed sweetened berries. Spread in the pan. Spread 2 cups of mini marshmallows over the strawberries and the jello. Prepare a basic 18 ox. yellow cake mix as directed and pour over the strawberries and marshmallows. Bake as directed. Cool in the pan for 5-10 minutes. Turn upside down on a serving tray. Try other flavors of cake mix--white, lemon, banana--for variations.

I haven't tried this, but gee it looks good!

Enjoy and have a fabulous day!

In gratitude,
Deanna

Guidance

I received an e-mail from a friend this morning with this lovely message that really caught my eye, I'd like to share it with you today:

Dancing With God

When I meditated on the word Guidance,
I kept seeing 'dance' at the end of the word.
I remember reading that doing God's will is a lot like dancing.
When two people try to lead, nothing feels right..
The movement doesn't flow with the music,
and everything is quite uncomfortable and jerky.
When one person realizes that, and lets the other lead,
both bodies begin to flow with the music.
One gives gentle cues, perhaps with a nudge to the back
or by pressing Lightly in one direction or another.
It's as if two become one body, moving beautifully.
The dance takes surrender, willingness,
and attentiveness from one person
and gentle guidance and skill from the other.
My eyes drew back to the word Guidance.
When I saw 'G': I thought of God, followed by 'u' and 'i'.
'God, 'u' and 'i' dance.'
God, you, and I dance.
As I lowered my head, I became willing to trust
that I would get guidance about my life.
Once again, I became willing to let God lead.
My prayer for you today is that God's blessings
and mercies are upon you on this day and every day.
May you abide in God, as God abides in you.
Dance together with God, trusting God to lead
and to guide you through each season of your life.
This prayer is powerful and there is nothing attached.
If God has done anything for you in your life,
please share this message with someone else.
There is no cost but a lot of rewards;
so let's continue to pray for one another.
And I Hope You Dance!

I know we all have different spiritual beliefs and affiliations, but I thought this was very interesting and quite thoughtful.

May you have a fabulous weekend and to all the dad's, have a wonderful Father's Day!

In gratitude,
Deanna

Feel Good Stuff

I recently stumbled upon a fabulous magazine during my time on-line. The magazine is called Guideposts. It's tagline is "true stories of hope and inspiration." It's a wonderful little digest size, quick reading, throw in your bag kind of magazine.

It features real stories of everyday people and usually one prominent or celebrity type of person. I just got my first two issues. The June issue, which features the story of Bobby Flay, has a section called "Pass It On: People Helping People."

One of the stories really resonated with me and I wanted to share it with you:

TWIN GREETINGS

I was an 82-year-old widower trying to cope with changes and new challenges in my life when a family moved into the house across the street from me--a mother and her adorable twin 10-year-old daughters.

One day I heard a knock at the door. The twins were standing there on my porch. "We brought you something," one said, smiling at me. It was a little pamphlet of recipes. I thought it was such a nice way of introducing themselves--and since my wife had been the cook in our marriage, I sure could use the recipes! And this wasn't just a one-time gesture.

The holidays came around and the girls brought homemade cookies--and told me just how their mother had made them.

After such a great loss, a blessing came into my life in the form of thoughtful new neighbors.

Now I hope that they will know just how much their good deeds mean to me.

Donald Manley
Lincoln, Nebraska

What a sweet story. I see two lessons here--the first being that you need to be open and you never know who will appear in your life or what they are to teach you--second, what a great example these girls are that something small--just a simple gesture can mean so much.

Enjoy your day!

In gratitude,
Deanna

Monday Morning Gratitude

Grateful for Warm Weather (kind of!?)

Ok, so I'm a summer gal--I love the water and dream of my house on the shore (of course with my hubby's boat tied right to the dock), but how did we go from chilly 50's to off the charts 100 degree days? Too quick even for me!

My town had our first "Oxford Day" event on Saturday. I had a booth and it was great to get out and support the community and see so many people that I know and don't get to see on a regular basis...but boy was I hot! I have never torn down early, but I did on Saturday.

My father-in-law took my daughter to the beach yesterday and then they were back at the pool for a day of swimming--this meant a day for Greg and I to spend together. We've had a crazy year and it was great to have a day to ourselves. We took a ride to the shore and spent the whole day in the area where we rent our summer cottage. We were just so excited looking forward to the summer ahead and grateful for all the days we'll have at the beach.

My girlfriend put in a request on Saturday for a Gratitude tank top--it was so hot--who could look at a hoodie!? I guess that's the next one I need to do!

Stay cool and hydrate! Have a fabulous day.

In gratitude,
Deanna

Grateful for Opportunities

Today is a great day!

It was so exciting to watch the Kim Parrish Collection on HSN today and see Kim and the models wearing the Gratitude Collection.

It was an incredibly rewarding feeling and some great exposure for us!

As I travel on this amazing journey with this brand and its message it is remarkable to me the people that I am meeting and the opportunities that are presenting themselves to me. In a world focused on fast paced non-stop life styles, it is heartwarming to meet people who want to help you. They want to help you succeed and believe in you.

I feel that I am on the edge of so much that is before me. To all my supporters and believers, I say thank you.

Have an amazing day,
Deanna

Gratitude, HSN, and the Kim Parrish Collection

Do you love home shopping channels? If so you may know Kim Parrish an 8 year veteran of one of the leading home shopping channels who now has her own collection on HSN. Kim is also the president of the Miss America's Outstanding Teen Pageant, the little sister to the Miss America's Pageant.

Kim is just fabulous and I'm so excited to share that Kim will be appearing this Thursday morning on HSN at 9am with her collection. She will be wearing Gratitude! Be sure to keep your eyes on the models as well, they will hopefully be wearing some of my collection.

This is exciting news and great exposure for the Gratitude Brand! It makes me really think of the post I wrote a few weeks back about perserverance. It's really about moving up and forward a little at a time. Doors will open when they are ready--it's just a matter of keeping strong and moving along.

In gratitude,
Deanna

Living and Learning

I decided to start my morning off proactively today, so when I was making my morning coffee I sent my two best gals an enouraging text message to start the day. Well, as soon as I put my phone on the counter I had a new message on my phone. One of the girls was sending me a positive message at the same exact time that I was sending mine. Funny how the universe works, huh? It was a great way to start my day and it's been great ever since.

My sister recently saved one of her pages from a tear off calendar. Here's what it said:

"We are a process, and the key to living that process is learning. Mistakes are not proof that we are bad or dumb; they are doors to new learning. The issue is not the mistake. The issue is not learning from it.

Unfortunately, if we don't learn, we will just keep doing the same thing over and over."

I was just talking with my Aunt today who is creating her demo for voice over work. She's very inspiring and encouraging. We talked about how much re-inventing we need to constantly do with ourselves. We make mistakes, we learn, times change, the economy changes, your family changes, you change, you age and on and on. We are constantly changing, learning, and growing in motion.

It's all about living and learning. May you enjoy your journey!

In gratitude,
Deanna