I love quotes

I have several quote books, like ones i've put together myself, collected over the years.

Here are some recent ones I came across, that i'd like to share.

I'm reading - spiratically - Don't Sweat the Small Stuff. Mom got it for me awhile ago and i've read it a couple times. Its good stuff. And really helps to keep me positive on those days that I just don't think I can handle it. Thanks mom :)
So here are a couple good ones I took from that book.

Don't sweat the small stuff, and its all small stuff. An obvious one, but sometimes its just so hard to keep myself reminded of this. I get so worked up some times, its hard to just stop and say how important is this really. Some times I swear i'm OCD, a little, or something. Like when the kids don't put the dishes away where I like them, I can never find stuff I need. Or when they don't actually clean them, that one drives me nuts, I really don't mind doing them myself, I just wish they were better about not putting so much food in the sink with the dishes, like 1/2 a bowl of oatmeal and spoons of jelly. Now I completely understand why dad use to nag us about rinsing our dishes. I even put up a sign for awhile above my sink, didn't help. Its small stuff I guess. I have to pick and choose my battles. Sometimes I just feel like doing them myself is giving in, I should be the dish Natzi and stand there and make them redo them all until they are perfect. But what fun would that be, and i'm not sure I have that much energy. I don't remember getting the memo about how mentally taxing being a parent is. But very rewarding, especially when that cute little blue eyed 2 yr old says he 'loves me'. there lets end it on a positive note.



Change the things that can be changed, accept those that cannot, and have the wisdom to know the difference. Now that has got to be one of the hardest things to do right. Besides who's definition of what should be changed. I know people who just cant accept that maybe others live different ways of live then they do and that that is perfectly fine. I'm a pretty easy going non judgemental type person, I say if someone is happy then let them be, as long as they are not doing something that any sane person can agree is so wrong like hurting little kids. So, change the things that can be changed, I think that maybe the hardest part right there. I am a complainer, and i'm lazy. I think even if I had no money problems and all my friends family around all the time, anything I wont, I'd be one of those people who just still wasnt content. I working on that-its one of my new years resolutions, being happy, its a hard one for me. Angie my psych friend, explain that one to me, why wont i just let myself be happy. We wont go there, not today. Ok, accept those that cannot, I'd like to say i'm an accepting person, but I think we all judge, judge those that are different, sad. I'm working on that too, being positive! I even have a couple of those 'complaint free world' bracelettes, that are suppose to remind you to not to complain and then when you do you switch it to the other wrist, and i guess if you dont have to switch it for a certain amount of days then you've formed a habbit of being more positive. I didnt get very far. The wisdom to know the difference, where does this wisdom come from, meditation (b/c i dont have the time or the quiteness for this), experience, where the dollar store-b/c i havent seen it there. Anyway i really like this quote.



We cannot do great things on this earth, we can only do small things with great love. Mother Teresa said this.
A wise woman. I'm a believer in this. That the small things are the things that really count. Your kindness towards others. Your love for your children. Its the small things that make me smile daily.

Nothing is more important than your sense of happiness and inner peace and that of your loved ones. Wow. we forget this one so often. I have to remind myself of this one when i'm yelling at the kids about chores not getting done. How hard it is to remember that happiness is so very important, it makes life so much easier.

The purpose of life isn't to get it all done but to enjoy each step along the way and live a life fille with love. That is all I really want. But i forget it often. I really do want a simpler easier way of life. I dont need constant stimulation, tv, radio... These days things are just so electronic, sometimes all the noise hurts my head. I've gotten use to sleeping with the tv on, its not something I did as a child, we'll I didnt have a tv in my room, i'm glad I didnt. I feel I get a better sleep when its quite. Tim sleeps with the tv on, he comes home in the middle of the night and turns it on, usually waking me. Nadja sleeps with the fan on high, so the girls have that noise and the tv blaring over it. No wonder i can hardly drag lily out of bed in the a.m. Just so much noise, you have that with kids. There is always a tv and or radio on. When we were in jordans room the other day jordan had the cd player on and tim turned on the tv, i could hardly think. I guess i'm getting old. I still like to blare the radio in the car but only when its something I like. And I sure do have to turn it down when the commercials come on or when I have to try and talk to someone. yes i said try to talk to someone. Sometimes tim turns up the radio when i am talking to him.. Angie i need ya again, why do guys (especially mine) like to tune women out when they talk to them, is all they hear is the nagging? Sometimes I just think tim's brain processes on a different level., like he cant think when its quite. He does process kinda slow, he's definitly a martian.
I think i want to move to a little cottage in the country, a foriegn one where i dont have to talk to people b/c i dont speak the language. I could have a garden and be outside all the time, and....who am i kidding i'd miss my internet. ha.



These quotes were in the front of the book im reading.


I keep saying to myself, "What is it? It's something. It can't be nothing! I don't know its name so I call it Magic. . . . Sometimes since I've been in the garden I've looked up through the trees at the sky and I have had a strange feeling of being happy as if something were pushing and drawing in my chest. . . .Magic is always pushing and drawing and making things out of nothing. Everything is made out of magic, leaves and trees, flowers and birds, badgers and foxes and squirrels and people. So it must be all around us. In this garden-in all places. -Frances Hodgson Burnett, The Secret Garden
See why I want a garden. I love this movie! That big house w/ the secret rooms and the secret garden, it was so cool. I haven't read the book yet, but I have it, so soon.
I do believe in magic, and fairys too.


There may be no such thing as the "glittering central mechanism of the universe" to be seen behind a glass wall at the end of the trail. Not machinery but magic may be a better description of the treasure that is waiting. -Astrophysicist John A Wheeler
Sounds good to me.

You must do the thing that you think you cannot do. -Eleanor Roosevelt
Again i'm lazy, unmotivated, a follower not so much a leader. I'm working on the whole do the thing you think you cant. Someday.

From Across the Universe ( i rewatched it recently, i really like that movie, the two leads, i really like them, Evan Rachel Wood, and that hottie, i cant think of his name)

The quote is, Music is the only thing that makes sense anymore, play it loud enough and it keeps the demons at bay.
Good stuff, I love loosing myself in music, I dont do it enough. another thing to add to my new years resolutions.

What is entertaining us lately

We are a family that likes to keep entertained, so I thought I would note on what we are watching, reading, playing etc.

For those of you who don't know me, I love, Love, LOVE to read. Its my little escape from, housework, kids, life. Lately, thanks mainly to Bo's wonderful recommendations, its been alot of fantasy, and/or young adult reading. Last night I started a little book, less than 300 pages-and so easy to read. Its a change from some of the books i've read recently that use big words or ones not so in fashion anymore, makes it slower for me to read. The book is called 'the dream of the stone' and Christina Askounis had me captured after the first chapter. I'll have to let ya know how it goes.
I just finished Dramarama-which was a totally silly young adult book but I really enjoyed it. It was a real quick fun read. The inside cover reads:
Two theater mad, self invented, fabulosition Ohio teenagers,
one boy, one girl. One gay, one straight. One black, one white.
And SUMMER DRAMA CAMP.....
it goes on but you get the picture, it was fun.
Before that I read Interview with a Vampire, which was awesome-i'd seen the movie several times but had never read the book.
Dramarama and 'the dream of the stone' are both books I picked up from the Friends of the Library booksale, last time I went. I love the book sale, you can get so many books for so little money, like a $1. cant beat that, check it out!

Right now Tim and I are watching Rome season 1, recommended by my dad. He gave me season 2 to watch, so I got the first from Netflix. Usually i'm not into the historical war like shows, but Rome is pretty good, i'll probably watch some more after Tyler finishes his Gummybears show. Rome isnt so much kid friendly though lots of nudity and sex. Definitly HBO.
Dad also lent us Heroes which i absolutely loved, I finished the ones he let me borrow and watched all the others online w/ my Netflix, I can't wait for the next season! Hero is my hero! And I just love the name Peter Petrelli. Another one of those premium channel shows I got addicted to was Weeds! Mary-Louise Parker is amazing in the show-its just so insane funny!
I honestly don't watch alot of tv, I usually enjoy renting the whole season instead of tuning in each night-the kids have me on a crazy schedule.
We took all the kids (except Bo-we couldnt get him out of bed) to see Desperio at the dollar theater last weekend. It was cute. Ty isnt so good about sitting through the movies by the end when the candy and popcorn were gone, he kept asking when we were going home :)
I've seen alot of really good movies lately.
Saw Bridewars with Bex and Kasia a couple weeks ago-such a great girlfriend movie. I really love Kate Hudson and Anne Hathaway.
Tim and I saw The Curious Life of Benjamin Button-amazing movie! I cried, at the end of coarse. Its like 3 hrs long. But so so good.
We've been playing alot of the Game of Life lately, the kids and I love that game, I usually win. Which I find totally funny, that I can figure it out in a game and not real life.
Scrabble is always on our current rotation of games, Lily and I play often, helps with her spelling. My smart little girl got all A's and 1 B+ on her report card this semester! Go lily!
Bo taught us to play Risk, not my favorite game b/c i'm not so great at it. Lots of dice rolling, but good times. Bo usually wins that.
We went bowling yesterday, all of us but Nadja, and Kristy and Lucas came too. It was fun. Tyler loves to Bowl! Lucas and Ty crack me up, silly little 2 yr olds, talk all day about hanging out with eachother and then when we get together they act like they dont know eachother. We had a good time, even though the bowling alley was super packed, and at Strikes and Spares the lanes are so close together, I like the older alleys better. But Strikes and Spares has $1 bowling on wednesdays so we try to take the kids. We have to take advantage of those type of things-since we have 7 people in our family. We took the kids to play miniture golf at Megaplay a couple weeks ago. It was fun. Tyler really like it. Its so great that he is getting older and can enjoy more family time stuff with us. We could do anything to persuade him to get into the bouncy castle or the ball pit though. The girls are too big to go in with him anymore and he just wont go alone. We were like almost the only ones at the place. We even did the jousting thing. It was too funny, I beat lily. That sweaty hat thing we put on our heads grossed me out, and the javel things were so heavy, the thing you stood on wobbled it was a work out. Jordan beat Tim, bad! he said he had a sore wrist, but when Jordan knocked him off he would like roll all the way off the bouncy matt and everything we were laughing so hard. I cant remember who won from Vanessa and Nadja, but it was a good time.

...a little side note, naps and i just don't get along. I took one today and I feel groggy the whole rest of the day. mom said i'd given them up at a young age, which she didnt care for because she is a napper. several of my friends are too. i'm just not.
I was semi productive today though, did the mountain of dishes in the sink, I fixed and put back together the desk we bought from a yardsale like a year ago, that was broken, we got some brackets for it. Yeah my dad taught me how to use a drill! I even used it to take apart Jordan's window the other day so that Tim could put in the new piece of glass. I'm not sure how the window ever got broken, but it was broke for a long time. I think it had a bb gun hole in it when we moved in and then just cracked from there. However Tim bought glass forever ago-like a year or something, and it got set behind the door in his room, and one night I was mad and yelling at the girls for not cleaning something up and I slammed the door shut, broke the glass. Sad The project really didnt take long to do, we are the ultimate procrasinaters. And now its warm in Jordans room, he is staying with us now, so its important, that he doesnt freeze. We are so super bad about winterizing the house, this old drafty house is just insane. I wont tell you how much our gas bill was last month, it will make me want to cry. I think i'm done rambling and since ty left i'm turning off the Gummy's and putting in Rome :)

Welcome to Sonja's blog

So for those of you who do not know, I love to blog :) Especially when pictures and fun stuff, like cute kids and fun events are involved. It helps me vent and download most of the time. Its a fun little hobby and so I thought I would create a specific blog just for certain people I'd like to keep up to date on what is going on with me and my little-well not so little-family here. I figured it would be a great way to keep in touch with those of you that I just don't get to correspond with on a regular basis. I really don't do anything so its really a wonder why I don't have more time to do these things, ha!
So welcome to my little blog, and hope you enjoy :)

p.s. I love comments and feedback, let me know you were here, and how damn cute my kids are :)

Things that so remind me of growing up in the 80's

I opened a jar of Goober Grape the other day and the smell instantly took me back to being a child. You know before bills, and jobs, and kids, back when you were the kid, and had nothing to worry about. Ah those were the carefree days, I miss them so. Yeah, all that from a jar of Goober Grape. It started me thinking about some of the really great things that remind me of being a kid. Funny how just one smell can take you back to a completely different time in your life. That wonderful jar off Goober Grape inspired this wonderful blog. Some of the things that I instantly thought of may not be things everyone thinks of, like Tiger Balm, that one comes from having a dad seriously into Eastern medicine. Boy does that stuff stink, but it definitly reminds me of growing up with dad. Not that growing up there stunk just that stuff was insane strong, i'm sure dad still has some in the cubbard. Speaking of smells, I came across a container of Vicks vapo rub in my medicine cabinet, which looks like its a 100 yrs old ok, not 100 but maybe 10-20, I was like I said cleaning, and trowing away a ton of expired stuff, and wondered since there was no expiration date-not a good sign that it was recent, if it was still good, and so I opened it up and damn, got a huge wiff of well ya know the smell but that definitly took me back to being 10 yrs old and sleeping w/ the stuff on my chest, and it sure did clean up my stuffy sinuses too.

So lets start with the tasty Goober Grape that started it all, I saw this in my head more as a picture blog w/ captions, b/c the pictures are just too fun. Goober Grape (what a silly name) was one of those things my parents actually bought that I would consider junk food, we were not allowed Chef Boyardee, Doritos, Cheetos, or any of those other tasty MSG filled treats. Looking back, and being a mom now, one who understands healthy from junk, I'm glad we didnt eat Dorito's and McD's everyday. But that yummy Goober Grape was always a special treat.

It was so fun to be the first person to open it and see that fun swirl. I don't remember ever eating it on bread or even toast, the prefered method, not only for me but for everyone in the house I believe was to just dig in with a spoon. What could be better than Saturday morning cartoons and a jar of Goober Grape. Not that we got Saturday morning cartoons very often, that was Kung Fu lessons day. There were however donuts after class, funny donuts but not Cheetos. My kids would be tramatized to here this. John and I still mourn the loss of Saturday morning cartoons.....( i have some great pics for this that will take ya all back to the day, but later, food first!)

Our occasional PB&J treat reminded me of one of my favorite foods as a kid, probably the most favorite. Mac and Cheese. We didnt however by Kraft mac and cheese which is what i prefer these days, and my children eat. We had the generic Mac and Cheese, its just not the same, but back then I sure didn't know the difference, I gobbled it up. Even when dad was around and we only got to put in half the cheese packet. I still till this day do not know what he did, if anything with the other half of the cheese packet. John? Any ideas. I'd hate to think they are still lurking around the kitchen on Taylor St. Watch out Bev! When I googled generic mac and cheese I didnt get what I wanted, I guess we never get exactly what we want anyway right. So what I did find was a picture way too orange, ours was closer to yellow. Yummm, pictures are making me hungry!
I also could not find a picture of Government Cheese! What the heck-I guess I just don't know where to look-I found lots of really weird stuff when I googled government cheese, even some not so PG-13 things. And this really old picture of cheese-which is as close as I could get. I'm not sure I totally remember what it looks like anyway, a big ass block of cheese, and I sure do remember standing in line for it. And i'm not ashamed of that, I sure could use some free cheese, which led me to this pic ha!












Who couldn't use a little free cheese?
Not sure I want the 1950's kind or the kind that comes out of a fountain though.
Now for some really fun stuff, I spent alot of time on google, doing lets say research for this blog...... the I love the 80's website was not as helpful as I thought it would be, however I sure do love that show! The first thing I came across was Now and Later candy, we sure did love these, however I do remember them being a pain in the ass to unwrap they had way too many pieces of paper/plastic in they way of me enjoying sugary, fruity goodness ( I really didnt weigh 300 lbs when I was young, you'd think so from this blog about candy, and govt. cheese, ha!) ( yeah I know i'm a dork, it makes me happy though :)
wow that sure is alot of candy ------------->
I have some Sunburst here, its just not the same, I like Sunburst, just doesnt take me back to hot summer days with bags full of penny candy from Weiser's (or as we called it the little store) up the hill from our house, yes it was up the hill, a good thing too, b/c if we were too lazy to walk up the hill then no candy! The thing I remember the most about Now and Laters was that they seriously stuck to your teeth, it was like dental impressions, ha, i know Ana not really and i'm sure so totally not good for the teeth but oh so important to my childhood. Now Tootsie Roll may just have to be my favorite childhood candy, those commercials sure did get me evertime. With the 'How many licks does it take?" owl and the tootsie train, those were awesome!
I did love those tasty little treats, and they were so easy to unwrap. I like the longer ones were the best. I did however not like the really long ones with the perferations on them, they always hurt my teeth to bite through. I like my candy easy to eat obviously. Now I know you all remember Bubble tape, with all that damn powder and sure didn't seem like the flavor lasted too long. It was the coolest thing though. Seemed like we went through it within an hour of buying it. How about Hubba Bubba, and Bubble Yum, those were some damn suggary gums!! We always had the craziest flavors, like strawberry kiwi. I sure did get boring, I stick to mint for the most these days, maybe a little Mint Mojito Orbit. We loved it! Wow look at the duck with the nose ring!








Smarties were awesome, I could've eaten them all day, probably still could, I actually found some jumbo ones at the store, they just were not the same. Did kids actually crush them up and try to snort them, that had to hurt. Much better when the taste buds get to enjoy, not the nose hairs. Nerds they were the bomb, yeah I said it, I said 'The bomb", now thats old stuff there, anyway, they came in the coolest box, two different flavors, with different layers of flavors, pure sugar! I really loved those boxes, and we use to shake them, there ya go, candy and music!
The only other one I found-not that i couldnt go on all day about candy like snickers bars-yum!-anyway off track again, my last kid candy that totally reminds me of 'the little store' was runts, i really didnt like them so much, but they so are a childhood candy for me, i hatted the bananas but I sure do remember eating them.

Moving on to some fun toys that just arnt the same as those they have today, like the good ol' slinky-I remember spending so much time in the sprinkler, or throwing water ballons, or on the neighbors slip and slide. Those were the summers!
Wow that kid could be John-its not-its some randome kid I got when I googled sprinkler. And the girl on the slip and slide looks kinda like me, bonus. I probably could find a couple pics of us throwing water ballons, but its getting late and the kids are impatient with me trying to finish this, and they'd probably be down right embarrasing to those involved, especially fashion wise.

Ok, how about cartoons-as much as John and I say we were deprived of Saturday morning cartoons, we caught a few. Smurfs being my all time favorite, I so wanted to be a smurf. I still want blue hair. I found the most amazing smurf house on google of coarse (how many times can i use that silly word in my blog). One you can go inside of in the Netherlands, and one that you can buy online for $43, that is insane, I dont love the Smurfs that much. But I sure did think there mushroom houses were cool as hell. Don't be surprised if I ever win the lottery that you find one of these houses in my backyard, he he.


I am kinda drawing a blank on the cartoon front, even though they sure do have all them back (except, i havent seen enough smurfs) but Strawberry shortcake-I had one, they smelled so good, and my little pony! Us girls would brush their hair like all day long, until they got left in the tub w/ the barbies and their hair was all ratty, then they were neglected. And I love, love, love carebears, but don't think I remember a show, but I do remember mom or an aunt making me a cake one year for a b-day with carebears around it, I actually still have one of them-the grumpy/rainy one I think. I did see a new show on tv recently and it just couldnt match my memories. Mighty Mouse however, I loved that song! I remember it being on cable and us having cable for like a minute and it was so exciting for us! Cabbage Patch Kids (remember there butts said Xavier Roberts, that was odd, but the carebears had hearts on theres, so it could be worse, I actually saw a tattoo online when I tried to find out how to spell Xavier, you know where that tat was) and Raggedy Ann were there of coarse too, toy wise. I remember Garbage Pale Kids stickers on our back door forever! Wow I forgot how gross they were. Gummybears, I probably wouldnt have said I remember if John hadnt gotten me the first couple seasons on dvd one year for my b-day-or was it Christmas? but watching them with Tyler (who loves! them) brings it all back, that was a really awesome show!
Ok, I actually saw gift cards somewhere the other day that were slap braclettes! crazy! I dont remember were, but I do remember the braclettes, and I remember when the fabric came off and they were just metal. Those things were too fun! Oh yeah, i had the animal print ones! Ha!!! I couldn't resist sharing this cartoon I found!! More fun toys-Slinky-down the stairs at grandmas-the metal ones not those lame plastic ones they have these days-that the kids always break. Simon Says I remember john being so much better at this than me! That was like hightech back then right? Almost as cool as Ninetendo, I cant think of the good ol days with out picturing john in front of the tv with controller in hand, with his legs bent in a way I never could, i dont even know what to call it. Mario Brothers and Zelda were the two that I remember the most, and I loved Dr. Mario too! I remember dad getting really into wanting to draw the maps for the Zelda game out, with graph paper and different colored pens and all, I wonder what ever happen to those maps, they could be hidden among the treasures on taylor st, next to those cheese packets. I never was any good at Zelda, or Mario, I just didnt log enough hours I guess.
Movie time. The first movie I ever remember watching(other than Barbarian Queen, when we got our fancy VCR player, was Legend with Tom Cruise when he was oh so young, and not so crazy yet, pre Katie Holmes, preprozac. Still love that movie. My daughter, Lily, was named after that lady in the movie. Dirty Dancing, I think Brook and I watched that movie like a million and one times one summer-and even tried to do some of the dance steps in the living room. Who doesnt know the all time best line 'No one puts baby in the corner'. Big Trouble Little China-that movie was crazy! And that one guy super creapy! One other I know we watched more than once was some crazy Throw Mama From The Train movie. It was totally weird and had that short guy-Danny Devito in it.
Neverending Story-can't beat that-not for a fantasy buff like myself, Who didn't want a luck dragon after watching that movie! The second one just wasn't the same, I think there is even a 3rd and I havent seen it if there is. Can't beat rock eaters, and flying dragons, and the pretty little helpless princess, and of coarse the cute Indian looking fella w/ the horse and how sad he was when the horse sunk in the mudd, that sucked but him w/ the sneezing turtle hill, was too funny! By the way I know most of you grew up with the phrase "Indian style" for crossing your legs when you sit on the floor. My daughter has informed me they do not use this phrase anymore in school, I guess its not PC, they say 'Chris Cross Applesauce' WHATEVER! Reminds me of a book I read in highschool "10 little Indians" also titled "And then there were none" Some of us got books w/ the old title some with the new it was the weirdest thing. I remember having a black woman who was like 80! for english class that year and her explaining the who situation and why it was changed.

Ok the only other thing I actually have in my photo blog ( b/c I could probably keep going on and on but my back is actually starting to hurt from sitting at the desk and typing and i'm getting tired. Gots to get up and get those kiddos to school tomorrow. But ALF is my last pic, you remember the Alien Life Form, right, he was always trying to eat the damn cat! He sure was a funny looking thing!

So send me some notes and or pics on some of the stuff I know I missed b/c if there is one thing I like its memories and thinking back on quiter more simple times, or at least when I wasnt so damn stressed out, yes it is time for more yoga!