Am I nuts or just cookie crazy?

Ok, I'm starting to worry I leaped before I looked with this Girl Scout Leader thingee!! I really want to do this. I want Sara to be involved with a group and learn teamwork and community service. I really think she needs this especially at this point in her life.....a tween, hormones already raging, worrying about how others see her, how she looks......she's the typical egocentric tween and her self-image and self-esteem are taking a nose dive.

I tried to get her into Scouts last year but there is a shortage of Troop Leaders in my area and the school year was half over before they found a spot for her. By that time we were already over-committed so we decided to pass on it. So this year, I decided to make sure she got in by being the Leader myself. Just got my official okey dokey this week!

But I don't know anything about Girl Scouts!! I was a Brownie for 1....maybe 2 years (when MY Mom was a leader!) and that was it! I don't like to camp, I'm not very crafty and I'm crazy busy with a full time job, kids to raise with school and sports and a home to pretend I manage!!

BUT.....I do love teaching others new things, and I love helping others especially young girls find their inner strengths and talents and I love making a difference and helping others do the same.

SO....I guess I'll be okay. Maybe we won't do a ton of camping, maybe we won't make all the SWAPS. But maybe we'll have a great time finding ourselves and growing together and helping others at the same time. And let's not forget they nummy Girl Scout Cookies!!!

Make Suds.....Not War

If only it were this easy.

Time to Check the Girls!!

Mert over at Almost Somewhat Positive came up with this great idea to remind us to do our monthly self breast exams. If you can't seem to remember to do it, just pick a day, put it on your calendar, in your blackberry, post-it note on your mirror. What ever you have to do. Mert calls it Frisk the 15th because you do it the 15th. I LOVE it!!! So it's the 15th.......so go feel your boobies!!!

ETA: I messed up the cool graphic and it's late so I'll fix it later. :)

Silpada Sale--Buy a Pair! Save a Pair!!

As this is Breast Cancer Awareness month, I wanted to share an opportunity. I have my own Silpada Designs sterling silver jewelry business and one of the things I love about my business is being able to use it to make a difference in someone else's life.

My goal is to sell 40 pairs of earrings in 10 days to raise money for SHINE FOR LIFE! Your purchase of ONE pair of earrings will help to save a pair...and a life! 100% of the proceeds from your purchase will be donated to the SHINE FOR LIFE campaign to benefit breast cancer research! Can you help???

My Sister in Silpada, Tara Paulitz is battling cancer....AGAIN!
Tara was diagnosed with stage 4 breast cancer in 2006. Against all odds, Tara's fight brought about remission for two years.

In May this year her cancer returned and she is once again in Treatment. With her faith and spirit, positive attitude and help from God, we know that she will once again be blessed with remission!

I’m sure we ALL have at least one woman in our lives who has fought this same battle. I have several other friends who have beaten or are currently battling breast cancer. My mother in law also fought and beat breast cancer twice. Now I worry…about her, my sister in law, my own daughter and even my husband and son.

Tara began her SHINE FOR LIFE CAMPAIGN with a goal to raise $30,000. She has feared she set her goal too high and wasn't sure she could reach it.... But all things are possible and together we can help Tara reach this goal AND HELP FIND A CURE FOR THIS DEADLY DISEASE... ONE EARRING AT A TIME!

WHAT'S IN IT FOR YOU?
Buy ONE pair of Silpada earrings & your 2nd pair is 30% off!!! Think...holiday gifts, birthdays, anniversaries.. or a treat for YOU!

START DATE: Thursday, October 8th - Sunday, October 18th!

VIEW the jewelry on my website

THEN: Leave me a comment or contact me through my website if you would like to order and I’ll contact you straight away!

Remember your support will help save a pair! Feel free to spread the word!

Together... We can make a difference!

Make Your Own Weather

I've been making changes in my life. I'm making a concerted effort to be more positive--focusing on the things over which I have control--basically ME. I have spent too long listening to the negative voices in my head and their impact on my life and the lives of my family is no longer acceptable. I had let my Faith fall and forgotten to hand it all up to God.

Stephen Covey says you must make your own weather. Each and every day, I have the choice to find the bright spots, the Sunny spots 0r to dwell on the dark things, the Clouds. I've seen how staying positive and in control of my emotions can influence how my day goes with my family, my friends and, well basically everything.

So to celebrate and commit to this new approach to my life where I strive to promote the positive and silence those negative voices, I am changing the name of my blog to Sunny, With a Chance... As we make our own weather, each day has the chance to be a great day and with God's help, it will be.

The Last Lecture

If you haven't heard "The Last Lecture" by Randy Pausch, professor at Carnegie Mellon University, please take some time and watch this. Below is Randy's appearance on Oprah where he gave a condensed version. You can see his full lecture here. Randy was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer in September 2006. He defied the odds and survived much longer than expected. Randy passed away on July 25, 2008. He was 47. He is survived by a wife and three small children. His "last lecture" is really to his children......to teach them all the things he has learned about life and how to live it to it's fullest. I am sure they will know how great a man their father was.

One of my favorite of Randy's quotes is this:

"Brick walls are there for a reason. The brick walls are not there to keep us out. The brick walls are there to show how badly we want something."

My thoughts and prayers go to Randy's family. Rest in Peace, Randy.

Memorial Day

Memorial Day is a day to remember those who have died in our nation's service. It was first called Decoration Day. After the Civil war in May 1866, many people in the North and South decorated graves of fallen soldiers with flowers. Decoration Day was officially proclaimed on May 5, 1868 by General John Logan and was first observed officially on May 30, 1868. In 1882, the name was changed to Memorial Day, and soldiers who had died in other wars were also honored.
In 1971, Memorial Day was declared a national holiday to be held on the last Monday in May.

America remains The Land of the Free and The Home of the Brave because of the ultimate sacrifices our men and women in the armed forces make every single day. So while enjoying our long weekend, having BBQs with friends and hanging out at the pool, let's take the time to remember and honor those who gave their lives to keep us free.

Wag More Bark Less

Pretty much says it all, doesn't it? The perfect philosophy of life. Short. Sweet. Simple. I saw this on a car at work today. It immediately spoke to me. I've been "barking" a lot recently--at work, at home, everywhere--and I don't like it. Gracious, I bark more than Piper, the Hyperdog does! This is going to be my motto, my mantra, whatever you want to call it. It's perfect! See me wagging???

We did it!!

We helped make a difference!!!! Back in October, I posted about a fellow blogger, Kim Klein, who was competing for a blogging scholarship. She is a law student who is also battling breast cancer. Well, with our help (as well as a whole lot of others!!), she won!!!!! Read all about her receipt of her award here. I caught up on her blog and she is finished with her chemo and is doing great!!! Thanks to everyone who helped her out with a vote. We done good!!