Another beatiful Saturday in Florida! Jim and I have spent most of the day packing our house, and now the fun begins! We are headed to the beach, with a bottle of champagne to celebrate...... the Journey we have made this far - and the Journey before us! It's all so exciting - these wonderful changes in our lives! And there is no better place to celebrate this day than at the beach!

Here's to the Journey!

Tonight Jim and I had dinner with our best friends in Florida. The most perfect dinner, the most perfect wine with the most perfect friends. Life is joyful with good friends! .

Here's to the Journey!

It's Wednesday, and I have made it halfway thru the week. Jim is coming home late tonight after a week in Tennessee and I am looking forward to seeing him, and hearing all the stories about our grandsons and about his search for a house. I have missed him, and it reminds me how much I want us to be close to our family.

Today Jim promised Tucker, Rollin and Fynn that when I get to Tennessee, in just a few weeks, I will bake chocolate chip cookies with them! That's because he knows that I have been vizualizing this for weeks now. I can hardly wait to have all three of them in my kitchen, with hands in the cookie dough and the chocolate chip bag, laughing, giggling, and telling knock knock jokes with me. This is a promise I will savor! And Jenn, if any cookies survive, we will send them along to you!

Here's to the Journey!

This morning the ground was wet from the night's rain, so I walked for just a few minutes and then settled in a comfy wicker chair under the stars for my morning meditation.

It is amazing how calming a morning meditation becomes, and how it sets the tone for the rest of the day. This morning's meditation centered around gratitude, and I could go on for days naming all the things I am grateful for. When I start my "Gratitude List" it always starts the same - I am grateful for my Husband, I am grateful for our two beautiful Daughters, I am grateful for our Son-In-Law, and I am grateful for our three Grandsons!

After this wonderful start, my thoughts flow around so many things that I am grateful for. The stars, my health, the trees, my employment, the grass, beautiful music, my lovely home, moving to Tennessee, books, sunshine, and on and on and on. Then, as I move through my day, I find myself thinking over and over, "Thank you, Thank you, Thank you." I actually wake up thinking "Thank you" and I fall asleep thinking the same. I have made it a habit to feel grateful, yet everytime I go through my "Gratitude List", it feels new again. And now something to add to my list - My Journey of Joy!

Here's to the Journey!

Each morning I eagerly log on to a couple of web sites for daily affirmations. I quickly skip all the news and Hollywood stories and go straight to web sites that make me feel good. Sometimes the affirmation is so right on target I almost fall off my chair. And then sometimes I think "Oh, this would be a good one for Jim, or maybe Jenn and Liz." And then, of course, I have to stop because this affirmation is for Me! I am the the one with the "under construction divine life purpose"

Today's affirmtion was "Joy and happiness are at the center of my world!" I left this up on my screen all day so that each time I walked by I would be reminded - because I tend still to forget! If I will just allow joy and happiness to be the center of my world, I will love without fear, I will give with gladness, and I will laugh often.

Here's to the Journey!

A few years ago I read a very special book titled Sacred Space, by Denise Lynn. This book is about how your home is your haven, and that blessing the home can be a very important ritual in preserving a positive energy within the home. Since reading that book, I have tried to sage my house as often as possible and for some reason, Sunday is my favorite day to sage.

So, here it is, another gorgeous Sunday, and I have the house to myself. After opening all the windows and doors, I saged my house early this morning to the beat of an Aboriginal music CD titled Nomad. This music is so awesome that it vibrates the soul, and it is the perfect music for performing a House Blessing. With the music blaring, I danced from room to room waving the sage and Blessing the House, Blessing Friends and Family, and Blessing our Buyers. Life Is Suppose To Be Joyful!

Here's to the Journey!

I spent the entire day packing and am finally sitting down to relax. The garage is filling up with boxes, and the house is slowly being dismantled.

I believe this process of packing and dismantling is an important step in letting go and moving forward in the next part of my journey. Every time I take something off the wall, or pack a few of my favorate dishes, I realize that this house is just a building. And I detach a little more and a little more. It won't be long now until I will be on my way to Tennessee, and my time in Florida will be a Joyous memory!

But for today, I find Joy in observing the process - observing the journey.
Here's to the Journey!

Today is Friday, and Friday ALWAYS seem more joyful! I know I am wrapping up the week, and I have two wonderful days to spend in my beautiful house.

I have started packing for our move to Tennessee, and I love packing our house! I love touching everything we own! I love remembering the stories of where this or that came from, where we bought this, who gave us that.......everything in our house has a story. And those stories fill me with Joy! Tonight I packed a mouse that Jenn made in second grade, and a dinosaur that Liz made four years later when she was in second grade. I have a heart hand print from Jenn dated 1983 that says she loves me. She was only 5 at the time and Liz was barely one year old. All of these details bring their own Joy.

I packed the case that holds Jim's medals and memorabilia from when he was in Viet Nam, and I feel tremendous Joy that even though I did not know him at the time, he returned safely to love me.

Now I am getting ready to pack up my office. I can hardly bear to put my books away. But, oh, in a few weeks when I finally unpack everything that I have so lovely packed now, I will be amazed at the beautiful things I pull from the boxes as though I had never seen them. And the books will thrill me as I line them on a book shelf some where in Tennessee - with a mouse and dinosaur as beautiful book ends. I can hardly wait!
Here's to the Journey!

My morning sky was amazing again and this time I got to share it with Jim. He left this morning for Tennesse at 4:00 am, and we both paused and gazed at the beautiful starlit sky laid out for our enjoyment. The moment of beauty passes quickly as the sun brightens the day, but I think of the sky often, and even during the day always find myself looking up --at clouds, at perfect blue sky, and sometimes looking into raindrops. But always looking at the expanse of sky with tremendous Joy.

As I was leaving the house for work today, a beautiful black Hawk soared above me. He was so graceful and so powerful as he swooped around the roof, circled the huge oak tree in the front yard, before soaring out of sight. I long to soar like the hawk. And while my feet don't seem to leave the ground, I am aware that my Journey of Joy is giving me wings. I soar with Joy as I look at my beautiful life that today was blessed with seeing that magnificent black bird.
Here's to the Journey!

I am thrilled to be moving to Tennensee to be by my daughter Liz and her family. I believe that a part of my divine purpose in life is to be a wife to Jim, a mother to Jenn and Liz, and to be a Nanna to my three grandsons, Tucker, Rollin and Fynneus. Oh, and a loving mother-in-law to Thadeus! The other part of my divine life purpose is still under construction, so I will write about it in the future.

As I try to align myself with my divine life purpose, I realize that I must release fear to let in the Joy. Fear is the opposite of Joy, yet sometimes fear is more "comfortable" more "cozy". Today, I released the fear and guilt of feeling too happy. You know how you feel so happy some days that you feel like you could just explode - or maybe burst into flames, or just tipp over - well that has been me for the past few days. And then there is a part of me that feels guilty for being happy. Today, my Joy Moment was realizing that I am worthy of happiness. I am worthy of all good things. And I will not let fear and guilt hold back my expression of Joy!
Here's to the Journey!

Today was a beautiful day in Florida. As are most days here. But today was very windy, and I love windy days! I love to stand in the wind and feel it push against my body. And on windy days, I always remember my youngest brother who passed through my life too quickly. When I stand in the wind, I know my brother has watched my journey all these years, and I breathe deeply for both of us! It is with great Joy that I feel the wind, and it is with greater Joy that I know Kenneth is the wind!
Here's to the journey!

I am still ecstatic today! The sale of our house is a huge milestone in my Journey, and I am overflowing with joy. My whole body feels like it is vibrating with joy!

I woke this morning with this wonderful feeling of joy, and my morning became even more thrilling. I start my day very early. I am awake at 4:00 am and up by 4:30. I wake up with such anticipation because I can't wait to go outside. And as always, when I stepped outside today, I was not disappointed. The beauty of the sky and stars took my breath away as I gazed upon the vast array of stars that were laid out just for my morning pleasure. It was so quiet, so peaceful, and these stars, in the glorious expanse of the sky, seem to float like tiny twinkle lights. I am breathless. I am filled with joy to have this moment and this beauty! And, I am already looking forward to tomorrow's morning sky!
Here's to the journey!

Okay - Day 2: Joy - Intense, ecstatic happiness!!!!!! That's me today!!! Because after 3 years on the market, we finally sold our house today!
Joy is loving and caring about family so much you want to live close to them.
Joy is family loving and caring so much about you that they want you to live close by.
Joy is moving to Tennessee!!!!!!
Here's to the Journey!

Beginning My Journey of Joy

Today I begin to track my Jouney of Joy. And it is with more than a little trepidation that I take on this Challenge. The Challenge? To look for and write about Joy in my life every single day.
According to Webster, the definition of Joy is: Intense, ecstatic or exultant happiness. To take great pleasure, to rejoice. The feeling of ecstatic happiness, pleasure or satisfaction. To enjoy.
Joy covers a wide range of emotions, from intense, ecstatic happiness to pleasure, to just simple enjoyment. So while there will be many times of intense, ecstatic happy moments in my life to share, I will also look for the quiet moments too. My blog will be a daily reminder that I will look for and create Moments of Joy through out my day, and in doing so will capture in writing my Life's Journey of Joy!
Here's to the Journey!