What do you see?
Can you see the red dot? Was that the first thing that you noticed?
Can you see the olive green border? Was that the second thing that you noticed?
Did you think of the white background at all?

Don’t people do the same thing in looking at their lives?
Sometimes people focus on that one spot – that one flaw in their lives that they forget to see the whole picture.
As I’m currently going through some tough times, I have to remind myself that my life is one big white canvas. Sometimes there is that one thing that might get me out of focused or out of “zen”. I just have to remember that as a whole, I am still blessed and fortunate.
The olive border represents my faith and the love of families and friends that keep me together intact and help contain that one red spot!

This week is a reminder that we have to be thankful for the love of our families and friends!












I’m lucky to have the best dad, father-in-law, father of my children and five brothers who are amazing fathers and uncles.

I miss my Mom, my Dad, and my brothers. Family get-togethers are just not the same without them. I have such loving extended family that this day still is a fun and extraordinary day. But boy, I can't wait for the day when we're all together again!






I love Father’s Day because it’s the day the kids get to create their own Hallmark cards. As they get older, you’ll be surprised on how they put their affection into words. Of course, my 8yo, Josh, gave us so much laughter with his adorable insights about his Dad and grandpa.

My 8yo has an audition in NYC today. He loves the adventure of taking the train, talking endlessly, munching on Skittles and just being a kid! I love heading to NYC because it takes my mind off some serious stuff ...

My 8yo rehearsed the song for a few days. (Good thing there’s YouTube!)
(He auditioned for a part in Broadway's South Pacific)

Dites-moi Pourquoi
La vie est belle,
Dies-moi Pourquoi
La vie est gai,
Dites-moi Pourquoi,
Chere Mad'moiselle,
Est-ce que
Parce que Vous m'aimez?

Dites-moi Pourquoi, Chere Mad'moiselle,
Est-ce que Parce que Vous m'aimez?


Tell me why, oh why, my life is beautiful.
Tell me why, oh why, my life is gay.
Tell me why, oh why, my life is wonderful.
Could it be, possibly, you love me?

Today's photographs were taken on my zenwalk with my bestfriend, my husband.
This week marks my 15th week of zenwalk.

As we walked to our neighboring town, Watchung Reservation, I noticed that there's so much to be thankful for in spite of life's twists and turns.

The scene where an old couple were sitting on the bench totally drew my attention. They were holding hands and sleeping quietly (until dh walked over there thinking they were sculptures). I asked their permission to take their photograph, and they gladly said "yes, dear".
The last photograph is a picture of my 8yo and his best gal-buddy. They've known each other since preschool. She's moving to France for a year, and we will surely miss her (and her mom) dearly.
Come and join me every week to go outside and admire the little things that we sometimes take for granted. I hope you post your zenwalk and link this post so we can all share the love!


"Life is full of beauty. Notice it. Notice the bumble bee, the small child and the smiling faces. Smell the rain, and feel the wind. Live your life to the fullest potential and fight for your dreams" - Ashley Smith

As I take these few days to reflect,
Mixed emotions come over me.

Happiness for the love of my family,
Sadness for the hatred of the few,
Guilt for those who can't enjoy the abundance,
Hope for the new beginnings and second chances.

There's beauty in this world,
There's love in everyone,
There's forgiveness for every remorse,
There's compassion for every sorrow.

Thankful, I am every day.
Frustrations push me to try harder.
I cry, I weep, and of course I do.
Faith and Love keep me smiling.

Follow the road that makes you happy,
Follow the footsteps that guide you to your dreams,
There's nothing you can't do
Your life is yours and yours to fight for.

I believe the sun rises in the morning - to remind us of a new day ahead of us;
I believe the sun sets at night - to pause for the day and contemplate;
I believe we have the power - to be what we aim to be;
I believe in YOU and ME.

Last night was one of those nights that reminded me that life is full of challenges
There are incidents in my life that I wish didn’t happen,
but I can’t change time and undo the wrong paths we’ve taken;
Sometimes there seems to be crosses that I have to bear.
At times I question, why us, why them, why me?

Can I blame all that to a greedy lawyer that took hundreds of thousands of dollars, or can the blame be on us for trusting those who gave us false hopes?

Back then, we weren’t google-ing for information that would have prevented such tragedy in our lives.
Life is unfair sometimes… or is it – life is what we made it to be.

I'm definitely stressed out when I woke up because I ate 3 cupcakes, half of the blueberry pound cake, portabella and goat cheese panini and banana bread
(compliments of my daughter's bf's bakery).

I lost my zen last night that prompted my 8yo to ask questions he wouldn't understand the answers for.
When he was asked, "What are you waiting for?"
He answered slowly inunciating every word, "I am waiting for nothing"

And in his 8yo wisdom, he suggested, "Mom, you should write to the Governor.

I can't let my family in the Philippines wait for nothing, so maybe I should do just that.
I don’t know if I can handle such responsibility and last night’s overseas phone call is a reminder of such a hefty task.

Please do pray that my family and I continue to have the faith and strength to get through these challenges.


“Life is inherently risky. There is only one big risk you should avoid at all costs, and that is the risk of doing nothing" - Denis Waitley


When I opened my email Monday morning, I was pleased and surprised by 2 thoughtful bloggers who were sweet enough to share their awards with me.

1) Dee of “A Mom’s Journey”, thank you for the Lovely Blog Award;
2) Ty of “Mama of 3 Munchkin”, thank you for the Kreativ Blog Award;




“Good friends are like stars, you don’t always see them, but you know they are always there.” - Anonymous


"Creativity requires the courage to let go of certainties." – Erich Fromm
"The world is but a canvas to the imagination." - Henry David Thoreau:




There are a few “pals” I’ve made online that have always brightened my day – by their visits, sweet thoughts, witty blogs and always thinking of me by sharing their awards.
I would like to share these awards with them and to new pal-bloggers that will definitely put a smile on your faces and artists that will make you go WOW!
So hope you go take time to visit:

Veronica Lee of Of Mice and Ramen
Tami of Diary of a Mad Woman
Felicia Kramer of Another Bright Idea
Jodi of A Beaded Path Chris of Prayer
Alicia of More Than Words
Paula – A party of six
Leyda of From Mom to Mom
Suzanne of Shabby Chicks
Sandy of Momisodes -
Jennifer of It’s a Beauty Filled Life -
Buckeroomama of Mamahood, Among OtherThings
Nikki of Crazy Times of Being a Mom
Marla of Green Adoptions
Mara of LetKidsPlay -
Pam of Mom’s Mutterings
Brandie of A Journey of 1000 Stitches
Helene of I’m a Living Proof that God Has A Sense of Humor
Deb of Life with Birk -
Anita of Anita McCants
Momica
Lori of When We Listen
Cluck and Tweet
Brown Eyed Gal Steph of Furious Five
Cindy LaFerle
Moderm Mom of How to Survive LIfe In Suburbs
Melinda of Coming Clean: Confessions of an Imperfect Mom
Obnoxious SAHM

Thank you all for making me smile with your sweet thoughts!
Excuse me if I'm not going to be around to visit for a while, I'll be here and remember that you have already made a difference in my life!

Please do take the time to visit these wonderful pals - they made time for me and hopefully you will, too.