Sunday, March 17, 2013

Thank You

7:28 PM 0 Comments
While today is Saint Patrick's Day, that's not why I've come to write. I know that I've been neglectful of all my sites lately but sometimes, in life, you need to handle life and writing takes a back seat. Today, I came to write about one of the wonderful pieces that have caused me to be away.

Do you see that shamrock over there? Do you know what I love best about it? I love that it's made up of four hearts. It has four hearts with one stem. So does one of the most wonderful pieces of my life right now. You see, I've found family. Oh I know that I've had a birth family and that there are certainly friends in my life who have made up a family of another sort, but this family is different.

This family is made up of three amazing people who didn't have to accept me. In fact, on some levels, it would have been so much easier to completely shut me out. They didn't though and that's just proof of how wonderful they really are. Over the past few weeks, we've gone through our tough times and I'm sure that all of us have wondered if the bruises were worth it. They've shown me though just how strong love can be and how strong they are. They have inspired me to be a better person than I am and to open up myself to each of them.

So today, while some are drinking Guinness and eating corned beef, I'm just here being thankful. Saint Patrick might have brought Christianity to Ireland, but these three people have brought me so much more. They've shown me love, strength and the sheer joy that can come when someone wraps their arms around you. They've shown me what it means to really and truly believe in someone. They've let me in and not only that, but they've wrapped their arms tight around me and asked me to stay. I cannot begin to express what any of this means to me.

We're not together right now and I don't know when we will be but I do know that none of us will ever really be alone again. We all carry a piece of the others, no matter where we are or where we go. I love them..each and every one of them and I carry the knowledge that they love me. So while we are four hearts, we are part of one whole..one family and it's something that I am thankful beyond measure for.
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Thursday, March 14, 2013

Enjoy the First Ray of Sunshine in Spring 2013

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With the sun shining and the weather really starting to heat up, it's time to grab some new sunglasses. You can go for a conservative retro-chic look or something totally wild and colorful. Summer is coming so you will get a little more freedom than usual. Embrace it. Yes, Sunglasses have been a wide application around all groups of people. The main reason is that sunglasses play an important role in UV radiation protection. Indeed, millions of people around the world benefit a lot from the sunglasses. Why not find something not only useful but attractive as well?

In comparison, wraparound sunglasses are a better choice for sunglasses because of their wraparound design. First, they will offer better eye protection by preventing UV rays from more than one angle, the front and the sides. Second, they can shield wind or other fine articles from reaching your eyes and cling firmly to your face. Third, they can make your face look smaller. Fourth, they will protect the skin around your eyes by covering larger parts of your face with their distinct shapes. All and all, these features undoubtedly make wrap round sunglasses an ideal choice for you to enjoy comfort and fashion at the same time.

But for the people who have vision problems, a pair of sunglasses is not enough. In this case, prescription sunglasses can provide an excellent service. Nowadays, prescription sunglasses have attracted more and more people and played an important role in our life. They are specially designed for people with myopia, hyperopia or presbyopia. Stylish prescription sunglasses not only provide you with a clearer vision but more importantly they put you in a position of fashion and vogue. If you have to wear prescription glasses and want to wear sunglasses, stylish prescription sunglasses are the very item you can lay your hands on.

Where will you get sunglasses? Purchasing online may be a better choice. You can buy the high-quality sunglasses at wholesale prices. The latest styles and designs will make you outstanding among the public. Firmoo should be one of your better choices.

Firmoo.com is the world's most popular online eyeglasses store. Years of expertise in optical industry enable Firmoo.com to offer varieties of prescription eyewear to the consuming public in high quality yet at extremely affordable prices. The low prices in Firmoo.com never compromise the quality of eyewear while treating the quality and services to consumers as top priority.

Enjoy fashion & comfort at the same time. Now is the brightest time to buy sunglasses! 


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This is a sponsored post by Firmoo.com -- All comments made within the post are those of the company.
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Sunday, March 10, 2013

Book Review: A Wreath of Snow

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About the book:
Christmas Eve 1894
All Margaret Campbell wants for Christmas is a safe journey home. When her plans for a festive holiday with her family in Stirling crumble beneath the weight of her brother’s bitterness, the young schoolteacher wants nothing more than to return to the students she loves and the town house she calls home.
Then an unexpected detour places her in the path of Gordon Shaw, a handsome newspaperman from Glasgow, who struggles under a burden of remorse and shame.
When the secret of their shared history is revealed, will it leave them tangled in a knot of regret? Or might their past hold the threads that will bind their future together?
As warm as a woolen scarf on a cold winter’s eve, this is a tender story of love and forgiveness, wrapped in a celebration of all things Scottish, all things Victorian, and, especially, all things Christmas.

Christmas novellas are one of my favorite things simply because they're quite often easy reads that you can lose yourself in for just a bit of time and then it's right back to the real world. Sadly, I think this one would have done better written as a full length book. It lacked a certain depth and richness that giving it more would have helped with. Over all though, a story that is certainly worth picking up and checking out for yourself.

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I received a copy of  this book through the Blogging For Books program. All thoughts, comments and opinions are 100% mine.
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Saturday, March 9, 2013

20 Random Facts About Me

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Bonus Fact! This isn't me.

I'm a survivor. I've survived physical abuse, emotional abuse, rape, the loss of a child, the loss of a parent, depression, being suicidal, an eating disorder and maybe more.

Surviving doesn't mean you're not damaged. For me, it means that sometimes I'm held together only by the hugs of those that love me.

I have 4 less permanent teeth than the average adult. I had to have them removed so that I could get braces.

Sometimes I think I'm pretty kick ass. Sometimes I also think that I don't necessarily deserve to be here.

I own more coloring books, crayons and PlayDoh than any other adult I know.

Depression messes with your brain chemicals. There are usually two days a month where hormones trigger the bad chemicals and I have to fight to get through to find the smiles.

I have a teddy bear who travels everywhere with me when I travel away from home. He's flown on airplanes, sat next to me on long car rides and yes, sometimes I talk to him on long car rides.

I've made mistakes. I've also made unpopular decisions. I can't go back. I can only go forward and continue to try to be the person that I truly believe that I can be. I know this one might seem obvious, but it serves as a reminder to myself.

I love the smell of leather. There, I said it. Some women get all gah gah over baby powder scents and what have you..for me, it's leather.

My biggest fear in life is having someone tell me that I'm not worth it. If I close my eyes, I can hear those words repeated over and over...you're not good enough, you ruin everything, you don't deserve good, you're just not worth it. Every day I fight to quiet those voices and hear the ones that tell me that I'm amazing, that I'm smart and funny and beautiful.

Sometimes I wish I could have play dates with my friends. No real grown up stuff allowed.

There is no greater thing in my life than to know someone loves me just how I am. I've been very blessed to have found those people..people who I have been sometimes brutally honest with, even when it makes me look bad...Yet somehow, they look past all that to see that under it all, I'm a wounded little girl who really just needs  someone to love her while she puts her life back together.

I have a thing for cute socks. I may/may not actually own any solid white anymore. I do know that I own zebra, bright stripes and even giraffe spotted ones.

I love people but I can't always be around them. I can and will talk to anyone about anything and be quite happy doing it, but sometimes I just need to be a hermit and only let one or two people into that space.

When I'm happy, I sing. The songs don't always have words, but if I'm happy, there's music in my heart.

I'm rebuilding. I've spent a lot of years just surviving. Now, finally, I am rebuilding. I am rebuilding myself, my home, my family and trying to make my world what I want and need for it to be. This isn't easy and sometimes, it's downright scary. It's about taking risks and chances on things and people. I'm not so good with change but I'm making changes.

If I have a penny to my name, I am far more likely to spend it on someone I care about than ever on myself. It brings me great joy to surprise people with little things. I can't do it very often, but when I can, I pick up little things and send out random happy mail packages. If you get one, please know that it's there simply because I wanted to bring a smile to your face.

I'm just a girl..a sometimes screwed up, sometimes happy go lucky girl who is trying to find her place in this world. I'm not the best and I'm not the worst. I'm just me, trying to be better. I've come to realize that I have some amazing people surrounding me and that it's okay to tell them that I'm not okay and to let them try to help.

I can be really silly, but a lot of the time I'm not. I keep that part locked away because I worry that if people see it, they won't respect me. If I'm being silly around you, know that it's because you've broken past those barriers and I'm completely comfortable with you.

It really is the little things that make me fall in love...the reaching for my hand, the need to touch me for no reason other than to remind us both that we're here, feeding me bits off his plate, spinning me around in a silly dance in the middle of the mall, stroking my hair when we snuggle, random, out of nowhere kisses that start with simply cupping my face and looking into my eyes...yes, those are the things that make me melt...


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