Paralyzed by Indecision?

In response to The Daily Post’s writing prompt: “Tagline.”

Often, our blogs have taglines. But what if humans did, too? What would your tagline be?

I have trouble choosing a ringtone for my phone, so I am guessing choosing a tagline for my LIFE is not going to go well.  I mean, the possibilities are endless.  How is an over-thinker supposed to choose?

I kind of went through this when naming my blog and everyone can see that I went the simple route there.  Amie Writes.  Stating the obvious much?

But back to the tagline.  Would I choose something funny? Snarky? Sarcastic? Serious? Motivational? Inspirational?

How do you compress someone’s whole life – their whole existence – into a tagline? For my personal twitter account, my profile reads Superwoman.  I guess that’s pretty accurate (wink, wink).  I am a wife, mother, daughter, worker, dreamer, writer, reader, bad car singer … the list goes on.  The more I think about it,  Superwoman is a great fit.

My personality provides plenty of fodder:  Introvert extraordinaire,  OCD queen,  Fueled by Chaos,  Beautiful Mess,  Over-thinker Supreme, Type A+ (and I’m not talking blood type).  But I am so much more than my neuroses.  I am also kind and generous and loving and a whole host of other positive qualities.

I could also find thousands of motivational quotes that would look beautiful, make me look deep and inspire the masses.

I’m sure my husband could think of a few.  Those would likely all fall under the category of snark.

Hmmm…  maybe Paralyzed by Indecision?

What would your tagline be?

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It’s Not All About You

In response to The Daily Post’s writing prompt: “I Walk the Line.”

I have always followed The Golden Rule (treat others as you wish to be treated) and it has served me well.  I strive to be “good” (kind, generous, honest, etc.).

Somewhere along the way, I became a parent and I realized the true importance of character.  Because little eyes are always watching and little ears are always listening.  They soak up everything, good and bad.  And everything they absorb is contributing to the person they are now as well as the person they will grow up to be.

So my latest philosophy has been “It’s Not All About You.”  We need to think less about ourselves and more about others and the community around us.  Think about how your words and actions affect those around you. And I think society these days needs a great big heaping helping of “It’s Not All About You.” Some people need to be knocked upside the head with it.  And helicopter parenting and the “everybody gets a trophy” mentality is breeding an entitled generation that also needs to embrace “It’s Not All About You.”

Conscientious, caring and compassionate … my goal is to be a living, breathing example of this to my kids.

Casual Fridays 3/27/15

It’s Friday! Time for the latest installment of Casual Fridays, my weekly chat post – no structure, no rules, no prompts, anything goes.  And go check out Casual Fridays over at my friend Helen’s blog at Good Woman.

Let’s get random…

All in all, it has been a pretty quiet week in my household.  Quiet weeks are most welcome.  As the weather warms, the kids are starting to get spring fever.  I am loving the longer hours of sunlight.  When I get home from work, the kids are playing outside – riding bikes and scooters and climbing trees and playing with the dog.  My neighbors are actually outside and I chat with them.  It just makes everything feel lighter, like we are casting off the shackles of winter for the freedom of spring.

My husband made this amazing thing this week called “Cincinnati chilli.” Most of you probably know what that is.  I’m not sure how this has escaped me for all these years.  We used to live in Cleveland and I’m sure I drove by Skyline Chilli a million times, never knowing the treasure that was within.  Anyway – in case you are a newb like me – it is this amazing chilli on top of a bed of spaghetti and topped with a mound of cheddar cheese. You can add other toppings as well (like onions) but I am strictly a spaghetti/chilli/cheese girl.  Divine.

Good news – Caitlin  Cate’s little rash did not turn out to be poison ivy.  Thank heavens.  We dodged a bullet there.

I am excited to report that Girl Scout cookie season is almost over.  We have our last cookie booth tomorrow.  We have very few boxes left so I am hoping we sell out quickly so we can put this nightmare to bed for another year.  I mean, I love the cookies but when you lead two troops it is just…. well, a nightmare.

I will leave you with one of my favorite songs at the moment… “Shut Up and Dance” by Walk the Moon.

Have a wonderful weekend, everyone!

Happy World Poetry Day!

March 21 is World Poetry Day, a day to support poetry and poets around the world.  I know, March 21 is almost over.  But I didn’t want this day to go by without acknowledging it.

A favorite verse of mine:

And you can find my poems here.

What are some of your favorite poems or favorite poets?

Casual Fridays 3/20/15

It’s Friday! Time for the latest installment of Casual Fridays, my weekly chat post – no structure, no rules, no prompts, anything goes.  And please also check out my friend, Helen, at Good Woman who also participates in Casual Fridays.

Let’s get random…

When I got home from work tonight, my daughter Caitlin Cate came running up to me.  She rolled up her sleeve and excitedly showed me her forearm.  She said that she has some kind of rash.  Her skin looked a little blotchy but I could also tell that there was cream on it.  So of course I leaned down and looked it over and ran my hand over it to check it out.  Then – after I touched it, mind you –  she proceeded to tell me that grandpa thinks that it’s poison ivy.  I jerked my hand back like her arm was on fire.  Yeah, kid, you should have led with that!

I’m still not sure that it is poison ivy, but now I keep feeling random itchy spots.  I think I am paranoid.

I am currently on Cadbury mini egg bag number 7 for this season. Yes, you read that right. SEVEN.

I filled out my NCAA bracket last night.  I am not sure that I will do well but I did it.   Anyone else fill one out?  Who is your pick to win the championship? (Mine is Kentucky).

I was reading up on the new Walking Dead companion series (technically not a spin-off) today and found out that it is going to air in late summer.  I am so excited.  Season one will be six episodes.  This will be a nice break while I am waiting for season 6 of the Walking Dead to start in October.

I published Home earlier today and I would really love some feedback.  It is a small piece of a larger project that I’m working on.  It is short, please read it and leave a comment 🙂

Happy Friday, everyone! Have a great week!

Home

In response to The Daily Post’s writing prompt: “Places.”

 

He turned his head to look at her.  She was radiant, bathed in moonlight.  Her long, wavy hair was fanned out on the blanket beneath her.  She laid next to him,  quiet and still, gazing at the stars.  His eyes ghosted over her silhouette, overwhelmed by her beauty.  She looked innocent and fragile, but he knew better.  She was intelligent, strong and courageous and she had become a grounding force in his life.  She was his sustenance and he needed her like his lungs needed air.

As he had many times before, he wondered how he had come to this place.  With all of the things that he had done, he did not feel like he deserved her attention, let alone her love.  Yet, against all odds, they were here.

She turned her head and he found himself staring into those familiar blue eyes.  He searched them as if the answers to the universe could be found there.  For him, they could be.  All he ever needed to know was right there in front of him.   He was sure of it.

She smiled and touched his face. “You look lost in thought. What are you thinking about?” She asked.

While he had much on his mind, being in this moment with her quieted all of the noise.  Nothing else mattered.

“You. Always you,” he said.

Rolling on his side, he reached out and placed his hand on the gentle swell of her stomach.  He could feel the growing life within and it gave him hope.  He knew not what was to come but he felt a peace settle over him.  He realized that this place, however he came to be there, was home.

 

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A/N: OK, so I linked this to a daily prompt (a few days late, of course) but this is actually a small piece of a much larger project that I’m working on.  I didn’t have much time to edit, so I  know it’s not perfect (nothing ever is, right?). Feedback is welcomed.

 

 

 

Casual Fridays 3/13/15

It’s that time again! This is Casual Fridays, my weekly chat post – no structure, no rules, no prompts, anything goes.  And check out my friend at Good Woman who is also joining in!

I have kind of lost my writing mojo lately.  I’ve been very busy with the kids and such and just haven’t had as much time to connect with my laptop or writing journals.  As a result, my structured writing has been limited.  I feel like a piece of me is missing.  I have made sure not to miss my weekly Friday post, though, as it at least keeps me connected to my blog once a week.

Spring has sprung! We have had glorious weather this week.  Lots of sun and warm temperatures.  It has elevated my mood greatly.  And thanks to the time change,  it was still light when I got home from work this evening.  Driving with my sunroof open, feeling the sun on my skin, music blaring – ah, it just makes me happy.  After a long day at work it really is an elixir for my soul.

At the moment, I am listening to my James David Carter you tube channel.  This beautiful man’s angelic voice is serenading me through my ear buds.  Yeah, I’m in my happy place.

I absolutely love to sing.  Loudly.  Alone.  In my car.  I have a terrible voice.  Seriously, the worst.  My favorite song to sing loudly in the car right now is “Thinking Out Loud” by Ed Sheeran.  My daughter, Caitlin Cate, rolls her eyes and shakes her head every time I sing it.  She acts all put out and tells me not to sing.  So I sing louder.  This is our little ritual and I love it.

Cate is also obsessed with babies.  She desperately wants me to have another baby.  She’s six so she doesn’t understand that it just isn’t going to happen.  It’s a shame, though, because she would be a rockstar of a big sister.  One of her favorite things to do is ask me questions about what she was like as a baby.  I can’t tell you how much I cherish these talks with her.  I get to reminisce and her little eyes just light up as she listens to the stories.

My older daughter, Kiera, just turned 11.  Despite the whole tween thing, this is a great age.  She is such a sweet and kind-hearted girl.  And an old soul, so conscientious and responsible.  She is learning so much and developing her own interests and opinions.  We had an event this week and I just couldn’t stop looking at her, my heart so full of pride.  Often as a parent, I have felt blind, trying to feel my way around in the dark.  I have questioned myself, agonized over decisions.  It is so much pressure raising a little person to be a good adult.  But lately, she has really made me feel like I am doing something right.  I know this is probably the calm before the storm – the teen years are coming – but I am embracing this time because it is pretty darn good.

The St. Louis Rams traded Sam Bradford this week.  As far as I’m concerned, Los Angeles can have them back.  Good riddance.  Sayonara.  In other news,  baseball season is getting closer.  STL is buzzing with excitement.  The boys of summer will be back soon.

Have a great weekend and week, everyone!

Casual Fridays 3/6/15

It’s Friday again! Time for the latest installment of Casual Fridays, my weekly chat post – no structure, no rules, no prompts, anything goes.  Please join in!  And please check out my friend over at Good Woman who has joined me on this endeavor.

We got another wave of snow/sleet and I have been cooped up in the house with my kids for 2 days.  This is my first day out of the house since Tuesday and it is glorious.  I’ve been studying the extended forecast and it looks like maybe  – just maybe – winter is almost behind us.  I hate to actually type that because I’ve probably just doomed us to a freak late-season blizzard but I feel like shouting from the rooftops.  Death to winter!

We took both our cat and our dog to the vet this week for check-ups, shots and minor issues.  We adopted our dog, Rusty, last year when his owner passed away very suddenly and unexpectedly.  He was up to date at that time, so this was our first time taking Rusty to the vet.  Given his owner’s sudden demise, we didn’t have Rusty’s full history.  We learned on Tuesday that his old owner took him to the same vet that we use, so we now have much more information.  Small world, right?  Well, we live in a small town so it’s not that amazing, but it was a nice surprise all the same.  He got a clean bill of health and we found out that he has only gained 6 pounds since coming to our home, which was a surprise to me because he is starting to look like a chunky monkey!

My 6 year-old daughter, Caitlin, is a spitfire.  She truly is a free spirit, charming, lively and witty.  She woke up yesterday morning and announced that she was going to be “as ornery as possible all day.”  I’m not sure what prompted that, other than she loves to be ornery.  She was pretty spirited yesterday, but I’ve certainly seen her worse.  She also told me that her name is no longer  Caitlin and that she is now “Cate.”  I was told that I am to call her  Cate “for the rest of her life.” She also suggested that I go to the courthouse and change her name.  I’m not sure how she even knew about that.  Very clever that one.

OK, I have a busy day so I guess that is all for this week.  I am hoping to report much nicer weather next time!

Circle of Five (Maybe)

In response to The Daily Post’s writing prompt: “Circle of Five.”

A writer once said, “You are the average of the five people you spend the most time with.” If this is true, which five people would you like to spend your time with?

Sometimes it is hard to take these prompts seriously.  Here are my top three thoughts after reading this prompt:

1.  Can Norman Reedus be in my circle of five?  Actually, we could just make a circle of two.  I kid, I kid.  Kind of.

2.  Two of the people I spend the most time with are children and the third is a man-child.  What does this say about me?

3.  I am mentally transported back to elementary or middle school days in P.E. where we had to choose teams for kickball or dodgeball or some other equally horrifying game with balls.  Two team captains would alternate picking kids in a glorified popularity contest until the smallest/weakest/least popular kid was left.  The whole time, every kid is chanting “pick me, pick meeee!” in their heads because NO ONE wants to be last.  And remember when your best friend was chosen as a captain and you did a mental fist pump because you knew you would be picked FIRST?!  Fun times.  Where was I?  Oh, yes, the daily prompt.  Right.  I am envisioning myself as the team captain and everyone I know is vying for a position on my Dream Team of Five like a bunch of school kids. Who will make the cut?  Who will be snubbed?  Will the introvert just say “screw it” and decide to forgo the circle and have some “me time?”  Thank you, Word Press, for that mental picture.  Funny stuff.

Live

In response to The Daily Post’s writing prompt: “In Loving Memory.”

Today Word Press asks me to write my own obituary.

Today is my birthday.  While I am not old, I am getting older.  I am tired and I have aches and pains.  My metabolism is slowing down.  My body is starting to betray me.  But I have a lot of life left to live (or so I hope).

But today –  on my 41st birthday – Word Press has decided to throw me in the grave and start piling on the dirt.  Not today, Word Press.  Not today.

In the last several years, I have seen way too many loved ones taken before their time.  Cancer.  Chronic illness.  Accidents.  I refuse to dwell on death.

To me, it doesn’t matter what pretty words are in the obituary.  What does matter are the feelings and memories that are left in the hearts of the people we leave behind.

So go out today and love.  Make memories.  Live.  That’s what I will be doing.