Holiday Road - Part 3

Okay, so I know you are wondering where in the world I have been. The truth is, I don’t know! Let’s see, my sister is getting married in less than two weeks. That being said, I vow to never offer free wedding planning services again. Braelyn Bounty Bug is keeping me on my toes – trunk show on the 16th in San Diego, high hopes of new line to launch in the fall, great response to recent media exposure and so much more. Friends are having babies and adopting babies. Summer is here and I can’t let my boys go a single day without hoping that they think it was the “best day of their life”! To top it off, I have been participating in a “Kick Your Butt Camp” (aka “Boot Camp”) at my gym every Monday, Wednesday and Friday morning at 5:45. Whew! I’m exhausted!

Now that I have let the excitement build for over a week, let’s continue with the next life lesson learned on Holiday Road. As previously mentioned, the entire trip was to be built around my husband’s grandmother, Frances, who was turning 90. That Friday night, she was surprised with a private and personal square dancing lesson in which we all partook in the “groove”. Being raised in the “Snoop Dog Era”, I wasn’t too up on my square dancing moves, but it didn’t take me long to catch on…and surprisingly have a great time!

Saturday was the big 90th birthday surprise shindig and my mother-in-law had asked me to write a poem about Frances to be read at the party. As I considered it a privilege, the weight of choosing the right words was heavy. However, God easily guided me and the perfect words filled my paper.

There is a special lady
Who we all know
Sitting here like a present
All she needs is a bow.

Wrapped in strength and honor
Filled with wisdom inside
A gift from our LORD in heaven
In whom he takes much pride.

A warm conversation
You wouldn’t want to miss
Her soft and gentle touch
Is like an angel’s kiss

Her children arise
And daily call her blessed
90 years of life
Has graced our special guest

So Happy Birthday Frances
Today we hope you dance
And know deep down in your heart
It is OUR lives you have enhanced.

With the poem completed, there I was left wondering once again – “What would MY poem say?” Only this time, it wasn’t a poem written by my children. It was a poem written by extended family, friends, acquaintances and business associates. Would it mention the LORD? Do they see the LORD through me? Do they enjoy conversations spent with me? Or am I too busy with my own agenda to have meaningful conversations? “Heather, what are you bringing to the table that MATTERS?”

Frances has lived in North Carolina for two years and in attendance were over 50 friends and family. What a profound statement to have gained that many friendships in such a short period. How many people would show up for my party? Would there be 50 people who felt I was deserving of their time? Would there be 50 people whose life had been enhanced by just knowing me?

What does your poem say? How many people will be square dancing at your party? Don’t you think it’s time to give that old story a new twist?

Holiday Road – Part 2

Okay, back to where I left off…After a cat nap, intended to help me regroup, I came across a motherly eye-opener on my sister-in-law’s refrigerator. It was a Bio Poem that my sister-in-law’s oldest son had written about her. It read:

Bliss
Blissful, excited, firm and funny
Mother of Aubrey and Gage
Lover of my dad, elephants and Jesus
Who feels good, ecstatic and surprised
Who needs chocolate, people, and God's Word
Who gives happiness, light and understanding
Who fears snakes, tornados and the Lord
Who would like to have fun, tell jokes and party
Resident of America
Stowers

Wow! What an eye-opener! It made me think, “If my sons were asked to write a Bio Poem about me, what would it say?” Luckily, my oldest son is three so the vocabulary is limited and I might get a better poem than I deserve. But he won’t be three for long and each and every day he is watching me, taking in each word, reacting to each time I get frustrated, acknowledging when I am sad and realizing when I seem to be too busy. And I’m sure, more often than not, he is wishing I would put down my Blackberry and simply play “cars” just one more time.

Did you notice how many times he mentioned her love of the LORD? He mentioned it three times. Is my love of the LORD that evident to my children? Do I always attempt to show understanding with the grace and love of Jesus? Am I doing all I can do to make sure my children know, love and follow Christ? Would my children mention the LORD in my Bio Poem?

Moms, Dads, Expecting Mommies and Daddies - How would (or will) your Bio Poem read? After I conclude this post, I am going to place a Post-it on my mirror that says “What does your Bio Poem say?” I hope it will serve as a daily reminder that my sweet little blessings are watching my every move and hearing my every word.

I hope you will continue to ride with me down this Holiday Road. The trip “about” a lifetime will continue with another “Life Lesson” that you don’t want to miss.

Holiday Road – Part 1

I know, I know. No posts in over a week. But I have a good excuse – God sent me on a trip “about” a lifetime. The events that have happened in the past week and a half have put a new perspective on life for me as a wife, mom, sister, daughter, family member and small business owner.

My trip “about” a lifetime all started on Wednesday, June 3 at 9:00 p.m. My handsome hubby, two beautiful boys and myself loaded up in the car for a National Lampoon’s Vacation – a near cross-country drive to North Carolina. Not being one for road trips, I have to admit that I wasn’t looking forward to this “adventure”. BUT, it was a surprise for my husband’s grandmother who was turning 90 and we all wanted to be there.

About 10 hours into the drive I recalled the wise words of Clark Griswold, “THIS IS CRAZY! THIS IS CRAZY! THIS IS CRAZY!” My bottom was numb, the music on my iPod had become redundant, I had played “Where’s the Alphabet” by myself too many times to count, and I was stuck in the Rocky Mountains with no Starbucks in sight. The aforementioned conditions led me to become the “World’s Most Miserable Traveling Partner EVER” with five more hours to go. The only upside I could find was that Aunt Edna wasn’t in my back seat and Dinky wasn’t attached to my back fender.

Finally, after a 15 hour drive, we arrived at my sister-in-law’s home in Winston-Salem, North Carolina. At that very moment, I had complete compassion for the way Clark Griswold reacted when he discovered that Wally World was closed. Praise the Lord that I wasn’t greeted by Marty Moose and a closed amusement park!

After a cat nap intended to help me regroup, I came across a motherly eye-opener on my sister-in-law’s refrigerator. For the better, it completely changed my “Life as Mom” as I knew it. I hope you will take a read with me on my next post – it’s sure to change your “Life as Mom” as well.

(Video Source: YouTube Videos by CappyNJ)

Heigh-ho, Heigh-ho

Hello Out There GlaMOMorous Blogollowers!

Just in case you were wondering what happened to me…I wasn’t watching where I was going and fell off the face of the earth. I’m struggling to find my way back as I get lost in my own backyard, but I am confident that you will hear from me very soon.

The truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth is that I’m working my tail off trying to promote my products – the Prego Planner and Tot Tag. May was a very interesting and opportunistic month for Braelyn Bounty Bug. The Prego Planner was featured in Pregnancy & Newborn Magazine (Hooray!), I had my interview and photo shoot with Life In Chenal Magazine (Go Girl!), we were invited to have a trunk show at a fabulous store by the name of Dressed to the Nines in San Diego, California, (My Fav City) and I received final samples of our new product we hope to launch this fall (You're gonna love it). Soooo…I can’t let the momentum stop.

My average bedtime these days is about 1 a.m. with morning quickly arriving at 5:30 a.m. – well, at least it has for the past three weeks. Everyone (not living in my home) seems to think I am superwoman. However, those living in my home know that superwoman is far from who I really am. These days, with little to no sleep, I am more like the Seven Dwarfs:

Bashful – At a loss for words because I have no energy to speak them.

Doc – However, still able to adequately perform my emergency Doc Mom calls.

Dopey – Warning: Lack of sleep can lead to dim-witted comments and actions.

Grumpy – Do I need to explain?

Happy – Just another part of my “septolarism”.

Sleepy – Once again, do I need to explain?

Sneezy – Randomly caught a summer cold and I blame it on my lack of sleep.

Okay, it’s 11:30 p.m…….heigh-ho, heigh-ho, it’s back to work I go….