Thanksgiving According to Meredith Grey:

"Maybe we’re not supposed to be happy.
Maybe gratitude has nothing to do with joy.
Maybe being grateful means recognizing what you have or what it is.
Appreciating small victories.
Admiring the struggle it takes to simply be human.
Maybe we're thankful for the familiar things we know.
And maybe we’re thankfull for the things we will never know.
At the end of the day, the fact that we still have.

the courage to still be standing is reason enough to celebrate."

A Little about Life

Time passes.
Life happens.
Distance separates.
Children grow up.
Jobs come and go.
Love waxes and wanes.
Men don't call when they say they will.
Hearts break.
Parents die.
Colleagues forget favors.
Careers end.

BUT......... Girlfriends are there, no matter how much time and how many miles are between you. A girlfriend is never farther away than needing her can reach. When you have to walk that lonesome valley and you have to walk it by yourself, your girlfriends will be on the valley's rim, cheering you on, praying for you, pulling for you, intervening on your behalf, and waiting with open arms at the valley's end. Sometimes, they will even break the rules and walk beside you. Or come in and carry you out. Girlfriends, daughters, daughter-in-laws, sisters, sisters-in-law, Mother, aunties, nieces, cousins, and extended family, bless our life!

The world wouldn't be the same without them, and neither would I.

And so it begins again... I am off on my quest to decorate the town with Christmas cheer! I just wanted to take a second to post a picture of one of my favorite jobs. We haven't gotten to my favorite so I will have to post that one next week when we get it all done. I have been working for this company (under both Mooney and Venus Creations) for 5 years now. I have enjoyed every minute of it - even the weeks of 4 hours of sleep a night. I love the people I work with and the huge sense of accomplishment it brings me when we are all done. The mall shown here is in Eden Prairie, MN. It is the second job on our yearly schedule. We always visit Burnsville, MN first and then hit Eden Prairie... heading on to other malls in the area such as Har Mar and Rosedale (not on the schedule this year) or other places like the IDS tower Crystal Court (my favorite), the Bayview Reception Club on Lake Minnetonka, several banking buildings downtown Minneapolis, and the North Memorial Hospital. We have a great time and have really developed a "kick-butt" team that I look forward to losing sleep with one month a year! Happy Holidays Everyone!

Instructions for Life

1. Take into account that great love and great achievements involve great risk.
2. When you lose, don't lose the lesson.
3. Follow the three R's:
> Respect for self
> Respect for other's
> Responsibility for all your actions
4. Remember that not getting what you want is sometimes a wonderful stroke of luck.
5. Learn the rules so you know how to break them properly.
6. Don't let a little dispute injure a great relationship.
7. When you realize you've made a mistake, take immediate steps to correct it.
8. Spend some time alone every day.
9. Open arms to change, but don't let go of your values.
10. Remember that silence is sometimes the best answer.
11. Live a good, honorable life. Then when you get older and think back, you'll be able to enjoy it a second time.
12. A loving atmosphere in your home is the foundation for your life.
13. In disagreements with loved ones, deal only with the current situation. Don't bring up the past.
14. Share your knowledge. It's a way to achieve immorality.
15. Be gentle with the earth.
16. Once a year, go someplace you have never been before.
17. Remember that the best relationship is one in which your love for each other exceeds your need for each other.
18. Judge your success by what you had to give up in order to get it.
19. Approach love and cooking with reckless abandon.