Dreams

Anyone else out there ever struggle with your dreams? I don’t mean the ones that happen while you’re zzz-ing, I’m talking about the ones you have for your life.

The older I get the harder it seems to have dreams, much less chase them. There are so many responsibilities in my plate as a grownup that I keep scootching things around to try to make room for the dream parts.

I think these obstacles, though I tire of them regularly, are good for me as I’m chasing my dreams. If the things I wanted for myself and my family were easy, everyone would have them.

I’m sort of in the middle of a funk/pity party/vent sesh, so you’ll have to excuse me as I work some things out while I write. I’m trying to get through the yuck to remind myself I have so many things to be grateful for despite being inconvenienced or cranky or busy-fied.  

 (photo credit Pinterest)

Apparently I put on the wrong pants today when I was dressing in the dark!

So I’m writing to remind myself more than anything. I’m remembering my blessings. I’m focusing on the positives. I’m redoubling my dream-chasing efforts. 

 (Photo credit BlessedLife)

And I’m not going to let a few obstacles like time or kids or responsibilities or things sometimes not going how I want them to go to stop me. 

 (photo credit Pinterest)

I bet I’m not alone in needing a little encouragement today. Do you need some too? Do you need to be reminded that your dream chasing is important? And that those specific seeds were placed in you because you have a destiny.

You can ignore it or go for it. I’m choosing to go for it today. 

 What are you choosing? Let’s encourage each other to be brave, be thankful, and be on the lookout for opportunity.

Good talk y’all, thanks!

©Copyright Meredith Shafer 2015

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Running Behind

In this Traveling Circus we call family, there are so many rings going at any given time that I can barely keep up. Throw in some technology snafus (like my WordPress app still not working-hey WordPress people, can you hear me? Is anybody out there?), a book deadline, my busy season at work, the end of the summer and hopefully the end of all the wrangling we’ve been doing with the VA to get Mr. Wonderful’s rating sorted out, and truth be told I’m plumb wore out.

I also find that the more I’m writing for my book, the less juice I have to out in the page here. Thus, I’ve been fairly neglectful of story-telling and encouraging and even reading everyone’s blogs. Please catch me up!

How are you? What’s been going on in your worlds blog friends? I’ve missed you and I’m dying for an update!

I swear I’m having so many technology issues I just want to throw my hands up and say fine, you win! I accidentally even posted this already before it’s been finished or proofed or anything. Sorry if you read the incomplete piece and assumed I have gotten stupider over the last few weeks!

I admit it’s possible….

I’m really writing to say I’m still here, I care so much about all y’all and appreciate how you just keep coming back and supporting a hot mess like myself! Please comment updates in case my reader isn’t working again as well!!

Much love and I can’t wait to catch up with you!

(photo credit Meredith Shafer 2015. Don’t worry, we were stopped to eat at a drive thru. They always wear seatbelt a when we’re actually driving!) ©Copyright Meredith Shafer 2015

Regret

The saddest words I’ve ever heard: I wish I had….

Don’t regret inaction. Tomorrow, what will you wish that you had done today? Every day is a blessing; there are no throwaway days. We’re not even promised tomorrow so today is the day to take the risk you’ll regret not having taken tomorrow. Even if you’re not sure of the way, the words, the path.

What reconciliation, risk, leap, jump, conversation, calling, or change are you scared to make? If you’re a little (or a lot) petrified, it might just be the right risk.

You can be scared today or filled with regret tomorrow.

You choose.
#ChaseYourDreams #workhard #success #nevergiveup

(photo credit andersonandgrant.com) ©Copyright Meredith Shafer 2015. I would love to connect with you on Instagram @MyPinkChampagneLife and Twitter @MyPinkChampLife. Swing by and say hi!

We Made It to Wednesday!

Hope your Hump Day is splendiferous!   Do something amazing today, you’ll thank me later😉(Photo credit thebluedollhouse.com)

I would love to connect with you on Facebook and Instagram at My Pink Champagne Life or Twitter @MyPinkChampLife. Swing by and say hello!

MIA

I haven’t been as disciplined at blogging this summer. I’ve been tripping over, uh, spending time with my kids and that sometimes means I’m not writing here.
I’m a little torn because I love this blog world but I know it’s time well spent when I’m memory-making with my munchkins. I’m also spending most of my writing time working on the follow-up to my book, trying my best to make my sophomore effort not suck. 

It’s the last day of June and I feel like it’s all slipping by so fast! I want to just hang on to every sticky, sun-drenched moment and fill it with sno cones, pool time, lightning bugs. I want the sounds of crickets to be my nighttime lullabye beyond this season. If only it could stay summer and my babies could be these perfect ages and we could ruin our dinner with fro-yo forever.

©Copyright Meredith Shafer 2015

The boys wrestling, it looks like the baby’s winning!

It’s a struggle. I want my new writing and speaking career to go already. But I don’t want to miss a thing with my kids. I don’t know how to have it all but I do know this: I’m not going to quit trying to have my version of “all.” I’m going to keep pushing and shoving when it comes to my writing and personal career satisfaction. And I’m going to keep cramming as many sweet sunshiny memories down my kids’ throats-they’re only under my roof for a short time. 

©Copyright Meredith Shafer 2015

 

It’s all happening now, and I’m doing my best to just hang on and enjoy the ride. 

Blessings, friends!

I would love to connect with you on Facebook and Instagram at My Pink Champagne Life or Twitter @MyPinkChampLife. Swing by and say hello!

What Day Is It?

  

(Photo credit lovethispic.com) ©Copyright Meredith Shafer 2015

I would love to connect with you on Facebook and Instagram at My Pink Champagne Life or Twitter @MyPinkChampLife. Swing by and say hello!

Thanks!

Gratitude is a game changer. It doesn’t matter what kind of day you may be having, if you can be grateful for something it will make a bad day better and a good day great.

Here are just a few of my favorite things…

My daughter doing push-ups with her Daddy this morning

My 19 month old dancing in the toy box

All of you wonderful bloggers who have become friends and encouragers to me

A husband who powers through a rough day

Two big kids who weren’t born from my belly but from my heart

A family of red birds in my backyard

Charlie, the service dog and peace bringer to our family

Music, sno cones and lightning bugs.

Today is a good day!

  
(Photo credit Meredith Shafer) ©Copyright Meredith Shafer 2015

I would love to connect with you on Facebook and Instagram at MyPinkChampagneLife or Twitter @MyPinkChampLife. Swing by and say hello!

Thursday Inspiration

  

What are your secret dreams? What do you wish you were doing today? Who do you want to be?

Don’t let anyone or anything keep you from going full-throttle towards your God-given destiny. Don’t stop, don’t quit, don’t hesitate and don’t look back.

You can do this and today is the perfect day to begin!

(Photo credit bills.com) ©Copyright Meredith Shafer 2015

I would love to connect with you on Facebook and Instagram at My Pink Champagne Life and Twitter @MyPinkChampLife. Swing by and say hello!

Monday Coffee Quote

Yeah, baby!  

(Photo credit vernillionwoodsmoke.etsy.com) ©Meredith Shafer 2015

PTSD Awareness Month

June is PTSD Awareness Month and though we live it 365 days a year, I realize that unless you know someone with this “disorder” you may not know very much about it.

I’m going to try my best to explain in bits and pieces throughout the month what my family goes through on a daily basis; I can only tell our story though. PTSD (I loathe the D for “disorder”-it’s actually a very normal response to trauma and we need to stop making people feel bad about this) is different for each person. 

In our case, Mr. Wonderful came back with his souvenir from fighting in the OEF wartime theater. That’s Operation Enduring Freedom. This means he saw bad things he doesn’t like to talk about, has a certain amount of survivor’s guilt for coming back when some of his buddies didn’t, and had to flail about on his own with no treatment for nearly thirteen years.

PTSD has taken on different forms at various times in our family:

-disconnection and lack of empathy

-rage and misplaced anger

-agoraphobia

-extreme depression 

-isolation

-suicidal thoughts and tendencies

This is just the tip of the PTSD iceberg. There is no cure, no one medicine, nothing that will permanently end Mr. Wonderful’s suffering. 

But we press on. And we press in. To our faith and each other. We work on managing the symptoms as best we can. We attend doctors appointments, do therapy, and try to instill healthy coping mechanisms and lifestyle choices in ourselves and our kids.

We fall down. We get back up. We try to use gratitude a lot: it’s hard for negativity to exist when you’re being glad about something. And we know what works (mostly) and what doesn’t. 

Our journey over the last three years, especially before we got the PTSD diagnosis, has not been easy.

But we have been learning how to celebrate in the midst of the storm, to throw up our hands and dance in the rain and wait for the promised rainbow.

(Photo credit Heathershelpers.org) ©Copyright Meredith Shafer 2015

I would love to connect with you on Facebook and Instagram at My Pink Champagne Life or Twitter @MyPinkChampLife. Swing by and say hello!