its not a matter of believing...

its a matter of realizing!

operation beautiful

today i stumbled upon a site called operationbeautiful.com

if ever there was a day that i needed to find this inspiration - it was today!

this site is a constant reminder that we are all beautiful - just the way we are and that the sooner we realize this and remind others of it - the sooner the world becomes just a little bit better!

with all the things facing women today - i wont pretend like this is an easy task...but if just for a moment - this movement makes you feel, remember or believe that you are truly beautiful, then it is doing a wonderful thing.

i am not happy with the way i look - but then i remember that regardless - i am beautiful and that my spirit and hope and joy and love helps to make other lives brighter -

i put up a post-it note with "you are beautiful...if you think otherwise - stop today!" and the website (operationbeautiful.com) in the women's restroom at work...

i plan on putting 10 post-its with inspirational thoughts including (you have the power to change the world - start today! share your beautiful smile and make someone's day) on lockers at the gym...hopefully it will make someone stop seeing the flaws and start embracing them as true beauty!

whatever it does for you - is personal and none of my business - but i could not let a single minute pass without sharing this with the most beautiful people i know - my friends and the people i have yet to meet!

please - if you have a daughter, a best friend, a mother, a sister, or a co-worker - pass this message on and help to reshape the way women see themselves!

you are beautiful just the way you are - never let anyone tell you different!

RR's

postponed until monday...i can't miss out on el pinto and zinc this weekend while mike's parents are in town.

so much to do...have to go home and clean the entire house as its a mess and i don't want his parents to see it looking like that.

oh well...as is life.

a big congrats to the flacks as they welcome tyler lee flack into the world on 9.1 - that is so wonderful and i can't wait to see more pictures!

moira and gunnar are up next...only a few more weeks! all these babies...sort of makes me want one of our own...but that can wait for a little while.

p.s. the RR's stand for random ramblings...

i have been pretty belly sick as of late...smells make me want to puke and i am getting really bad headaches...i actually thought i might be prego...but two tests conclusively prove that i am in fact not...when i told mike this - he was a little disappointed which was soooo cute. i honestly cant wait to start our family. not that my little four legged furry babies aren't keeping me busy enough but you know what i mean.

back to work!

cheese and love...

for my beautiful and amazing friends abby...

thoughts on life and love from a littleperson in the book who moved my cheese

what would you do if you weren't afraid...

you have already taken the first step and moved out of your comfort zone...don't be afraid of what the world might put in your path


the quicker you let go of old cheese, the sooner you find new cheese...

he is the worst kind of old cheese...stinky, smelly and makes you sick...easier said than done - but you must let go of him to find new (and better) cheese

imagining myself enjoying new cheese even before i find it leads me to it...

it is only after you see that you deserve to be loved and adored as you are will you truly begin to see the new cheese you need in your life...

it is safer to search in the maze than remain in a cheeseless situation...

you are better off now that you are out searching for what makes you happy than staying in the situation you were in - that was not healthy for you or your self esteem.

keep your head up beautiful...

and one day...new cheese will come along and you will realize why it never worked with any other cheese...

i love you my beautiful friend

to be four again...

my friend jilly sent me an email today with some of the responses given by 4-8 year-olds when asked what it means to love someone...

the answers will (pleasantly) surprise you and might even bring a tear to your eye...


'When my grandmother got arthritis, she couldn't bend over and paint her toenails anymore. So my grandfather does it for her all the time, even when his hands got arthritis too. That's love.' - Rebecca- age 8

'When someone loves you, the way they say your name is different. You just know that your name is safe in their mouth.' - Billy - age 4

'Love is when a girl puts on perfume and a boy puts on shaving cologne and they go out and smell each other.' - Karl - age 5

Love is when you go out to eat and give somebody most of your French fries without making them give you any of theirs.' - Chrissy - age 6

'Love is what makes you smile when you're tired.' - Terri - age 4

'Love is when my mommy makes coffee for my daddy and she takes a sip before giving it to him, to make sure the taste is OK.' - Danny - age 7

'Love is when you kiss all the time. Then when you get tired of kissing, you still want to be together and you talk more. My Mommy and Daddy are like that. They look gross when they kiss' - Emily - age 8

'Love is what's in the room with you at Christmas if you stop opening presents and listen.' - Bobby - age 7 (Wow!)

'If you want to learn to love better, you should start with a friend who you hate,' - Nikka - age 6 (we need a few million more Nikka's on this planet)

'Love is when you tell a guy you like his shirt, then he wears it everyday.' - Noelle - age 7

'Love is like a little old woman and a little old man who are still friends even after they know each other so well.' - Tommy - age 6

'During my piano recital, I was on a stage and I was scared. I looked at all the people watching me and saw my daddy waving and smiling. He was the only one doing that. I wasn't scared anymore.' - Cindy - age 8

'My mommy loves me more than anybody...You don't see anyone else kissing me to sleep at night.' - Clare - age 6

'Love is when Mommy gives Daddy the best piece of chicken.' - Elaine-age 5

'Love is when Mommy sees Daddy smelly and sweaty and still says he is handsomer than Robert Redford.' - Chris - age 7

'Love is when your puppy licks your face even after you left him alone all day.' - Mary Ann - age 4

'I know my older sister loves me because she gives me all her old clothes and has to go out and buy new ones.' - Lauren - age 4

'When you love somebody, your eyelashes go up and down and little stars come out of you.' (what an image) - Karen - age 7

'Love is when Mommy sees Daddy on the toilet and she doesn't think it's gross.' - Mark - age 6

'You really shouldn't say 'I love you' unless you mean it. But if you mean it, you should say it a lot. People forget.' - Jessica - age 8

And the final one...The best was a four year old child whose next door neighbor was an elderly gentleman who had recently lost his wife.
Upon seeing the man cry, the little boy went into the old gentleman's yard, climbed onto his lap, and just sat there. When his Mother asked what he had said to the neighbor, the little boy said, 'Nothing, I just helped him cry'

the purity and innocence that exist in a child's eye gives me hope...we should all be so lucky to view the world through the eyes of a child!