The Importance Of Carrying On
06 Apr 2012 Leave a Comment
in Uncategorized Tags: Carrying on, Perseverance, unexpected joy
Sometimes it takes all of your will and every muscle in your body to just keep going. I’m here to remind you that even when you’re weary, you have to push forward. Feel free to take breaks along the way, but the quicker you move ahead, the faster you’ll meet the unexpected joys that await you.
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You have the power to make it a good one.
01 Jan 2012 3 Comments
There is so much possibility in today--and every day this year.
As many of us clink champagne glasses on New Year’s Eve, we often say “This is going to be a great year!” And in that moment, we are filled with such hope, optimism, and the excitement of either continuing a fab lifestyle or changing our luck because we’ve been granted another year to “make things happen.” I’m always giddy when ringing in a new year, and tend to forget how good or bad the previous one was, and instead start plotting how to make this year the best one yet.
Today, I logged out in my PJs all day and enjoyed a little downtime (finally!) with my family. Instead of zipping around, I just hung out, hugged my kids (and my husband who usually gets the shaft!), ignored my to-do list, and was thankful for a day of rest. I also began to think about some things that I’d like to accomplish this year; nothing that would stress me out, just some goals that I’d like to achieve sometime this year. Right now, so many things seem possible. I’m feeling rejuvenated by 2012′s newness. It’s like a breath of fresh air that I, and I’m sure many of you, desperately needed.
A Christmas gift that'll help us practice what we learn.
For me, this New Year has ushered in a feeling of wanting to improve myself. For the last few years, I’ve been so dedicated to fulfilling my kids’ needs that I had forgotten to tend to my own. Now that they’re getting a bit older (they’re 5 and 2 1/2), I have a little more time to actually think about what I want. For example, I’ve always wanted to learn how to play a musical instrument, but never pursued it. My son will be taking piano lessons this year (thanks to my generous in-laws), and I’ll have the opportunity to learn right alongside him. It’ll be a fun way to bond–a real crankiness crusher, I’m sure–and it’ll fill a hole in my life’s plan that I’ve wanted to address for a while.
Do you have any holes that you’d like to fill this year? Share them here if you’d like. Remember, that you have the power to dig up your dreams and manipulate the earth to make things happen! It’s gonna be a good year, everyone. I can feel it in my bones.
Cheers to 2012!
~Tara
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Rediscovering the Magic of Christmas!
24 Dec 2011 1 Comment
in Uncategorized Tags: A Hopeful Sign, Christmas, Cookies, Family, Holiday, Santa Claus
For the past week, my 5-year-old son has been sprinting into our bedroom right after he wakes up and announcing how many days there are left until Christmas. The wonder and excitement shining in his eyes is contagious. Boy do I wish that I could bottle that feeling for those of us whose stomachs are in knots over our to-do lists before Santa’s impending arrival! Rather than enjoying the merriment of the season, so many of us are feeling stressed and exhausted by thoughts of card sending, gift buying, and present wrapping, which loom like sugar plums over our heads.
When anxiety kicks in, I try my best to take a step back and remember the true spirit of the holiday. This year, it’s my children who have really been shedding light on how magical this time of year is, and reigniting the hyperactive joy that I felt when I was a kid.
From watching classic Christmas movies with my kids to driving around at night checking out our neighbors’ personal Winter Wonderlands, I can feel the magic of Christmas enveloping me. Our eyes are wide as we gaze upon the beautiful Christmas lights, and our spirits are jolly as we belt out the lyrics to Christmas carols, giggling through the words we don’t know.
While being whisked off to “The North Pole” on a holiday train ride, I thoroughly enjoyed listening to my son ruminate over how Santa will get down our chimney and strategizing the best place to put his cookies. My 2 ½ year-old daughter, on the other hand, is still deciding how she feels about the round man in the red and white suit who’s judging her every move, yet she repeats “Santa is my friend” like a mantra.
Their uncontained excitement over the holiday has inspired me to create new family traditions. Over the last few days, we’ve baked and decorated cookies with my cousin and her family and got crafty by designing our own foam Gingerbread boy and girl ornaments. I also bought ornaments that represent what my kids are going gaga over this year; a Cars 2 ornament for my son, and a Tinkerbell one for my daughter. I’ll do this every Christmas, and as the years progress, we’ll see how their interests have changed. It’ll be our own holiday-themed time capsule!
Another way that I’ve rediscovered the magic of Christmas is by watching my kids interact with Tinsel, our Elf on the Shelf. Christmas has also always been about being nicer to people—and not just because you want to avoid Santa’s “naughty list”. Tinsel has been keeping the wee ones in check since they know he reports back to his big boss Santa about their behavior. Each morning, Tinsel appears in a different location in the house after he 
comes back from the North Pole. Today he showed up in our utensil holder on the kitchen counter! My husband and I love listening to our kids ponder where he could possibly be as their little feet scamper through each room. I chuckle under my breath when I see them presenting their artwork or goodies to the elf or cracking silly jokes in an effort to win him over. And they would never dare touch him, because that know that if they do, he’ll lose his magic. It’s their belief in his magic—and the magic of the holiday—that has me looking at Christmas through my children’s trusting and untainted eyes.
During this festive time, we traditionally swap lots of recipes, especially for Christmas cookies. This year, however, I’d like to switch things up a bit and exchange recipes for rediscovering the magic of Christmas. Here’s mine, inspired by my children, and I’d love for you to share your ingredients as well. Let’s keep our bellies and hearts full of wonder and belief during this special time of year!
Crankiness Crushing Magical Christmas Recipe
Ingredients:
- 2 heaping TBS of wonder
- A stick of faith
- A pint of ho-ho-hope
- ¾ cup of dreams
- 8 fluid ounces of love
- 1 cup of generosity
- A few shakes of sweetness
- A few handfuls of hugs
- A healthy dash of positivity
- And some mistletoe leaves to encourage you to kiss someone you love.
Directions:
Mix it all together and enjoy!
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Llama love.
27 Oct 2011 4 Comments
in Uncategorized Tags: alpacas, animal lover, llamas, petting farm, Sesame Street
When I recently went to the Green Meadows Petting Farm with my family, I was ridiculously excited to be face-to-face with llamas. When I saw them, all I could think about was a catchy tune that I’d heard on “Sesame Street” (like over 30 years ago!) that played while I watched a little girl take her pet llama to the dentist (random, I know!).
Like alpacas (which I ADORE), I consider llamas to be magical creatures that I just want to hug! Well, not only did I get to wrap my arms around two llamas, Muffin and Biscuit, but I also got to give Baby Biscuit a little goodbye kiss. Yes, I know this will gross out some of you, but you animal lovers out there will understand my affection and appreciation for these cuties!
Here’s photographic evidence of my crankiness crusher. Hope it brings a goofy llama-like smile to your face!
Got goals? Think of back-to-school time as back-to-YOU time!
15 Sep 2011 2 Comments
in Uncategorized Tags: A Hopeful Sign, accomplish goals, Back to School, identity, starting over
Today’s crankiness crusher: I was thrilled to write another guest post for the magazine blog, A Hopeful Sign. AHS’s mission is to spread hope through living-learning-leading. If you have time, you should really check out all of the inspirational stories and photos on the site. And I’d LOVE it if you’d check out my latest piece about how you can put the back-to-school energy that’s in the air towards setting and accomplishing your own goals this school year. Life is short, make it count!
Originally posted on A Hopeful Sign on September 11, 2011:
http://ahopefulsign.com/living-to-learn/think-of-back-to-school-time-as-back-to-you-time
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Decades of amusement.
23 Aug 2011 2 Comments
in Uncategorized Tags: Amusement park, kiddie rides, old school fun
In my last blog post, I mentioned that Vlad (my husband) and I took the kids to an amusement park that my brother and I used to go to when we were tots. Here’s proof:
This is my brother Tommy and me on the fire truck kiddie ride at Keansburg Amusement Park circa 1979(ish). Check out our groovy duds!
I wanted to replicate this photo with Colin & Anna, but the fire engines have now been replaced by a train (which you’ll see in the video I took below).
I was happy to see that the amusement park was still clean, and that it provided just as much inexpensive entertainment as it did over three decades ago. Colin enjoyed playing the water gun balloon game and somehow managed to make his pop exponentially faster than my husband. Vlad claims his was broken. Sore loser. 
We had pizza and ice cream (don’t judge–it’s dairy!), and I bought some watermelon slices to ease my conscience about what we were eating. But on a day like this, sometimes you have to let go of all the, “This is what I SHOULD be doing” thoughts and just say to yourself, “What the hell, this is what I WANT to be doing!” When you let yourself chill, others around you can relax more easily, and you leave the day WIDE OPEN for lots of crankiness crushers.
Check out my wee ones chugging around on the choo choo. (Colin is wearing a green shirt and Anna is sitting behind him.) Ignore my brief commentary about it being the same train my brother and I used to ride. I didn’t realize that it was a fire truck until I came home and dug out the old photo!
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The big and little pictures of happiness.
21 Aug 2011 3 Comments
in Uncategorized Tags: appreciate small moments, DisneyStore, Freehold Raceway Mall, look at the big picture
I often talk about the importance of appreciating life’s small moments in my blog posts, but when BIG things work out, there’s even more reason to be thankful. Two people who I’m very close with just got back healthy test results and I couldn’t be more relieved. Whenever I start huffing and puffing over some little annoyance, I take a step back and remember that this miniscule issue pales in comparison to a friend or family member having to battle a terrible disease. Take some time today to savor the short & sweet moments that bring you happiness (like I’m going to do below), but also reflect on the big picture. If most of your life’s major things are in check, then you’re a very lucky person!
Here are a few pics of things that have been my crankiness crushers over the past few days. Hopefully they’ll bring a smile to your face too!
My mother-in-law usually comes over on Thursdays to visit with me and spend some quality time with the kids. She never fails to bring us something thoughtful, delicious, and/or beautiful. This week she baked us a margarita cake and brought me some pretty wild flowers from her garden.
On Friday, my parents treated me to lunch–and I even got to pick the place! I chose Bahrs 
Landing seafood restaurant because it’s on the water and I was having a major craving for shrimp salad (which was thoroughly satisfied). We all decided to order a drink, and I was quite pleased with my frozen vodka lemonade with mint. 
And this is part of the view that I had from my seat. Looking at boats, seagulls, and the bay will never get old for me!
Another crankiness crusher this week was heading to the Disney Store at 
the Freehold Raceway Mall with my husband and two kids. They loved the coloring/craft station which also showed Disney movies as well as playing in the various hiding spots throughout the store (and of course grabbing every stuffed animal they could along the way!). As a girlie-girl, I was fascinated by the miniature sparkling castle that has gilded mirrors for dress-up. Here’s my mini-Rapunzel admiring herself.
Yesterday we went to an amusement park that my brother and I used to go to over 30 years ago. Taking my kids there brought back some wonderful memories–but I’ll save that for another cranky crushin’ blog!
New friends: A reason to practice the art of conversation.
16 Aug 2011 5 Comments
in Uncategorized Tags: Conversation, Rudeness, Smartphone
Have you ever been sitting across from someone–a friend, spouse, colleague, or even your own kid–and then suddenly realize that you missed half the stuff they just said to you? Based on context clues, you can figure out what they’re talking about (thank God!), so it saves you the embarrassment of letting them know that you weren’t really listening.
It’s so easy to become passive when it comes to conversation, especially in a world where fast-paced technology is teaching us how to abbreviate everything we think or say (i.e. texts and Tweets). It’s also this same technology that’s making us so distracted that our mind is never fully in the game.
For example, you can be having a perfectly lovely and interesting discussion with a friend over brunch, but your continuously buzzing smartphones, always within a finger’s reach, are encouraging you to focus on 25 other things besides each other! Granted, you’d only succumb to the temptation of responding to a text or laughing over someone’s Facebook status if you’re truly comfortable with the person you’re with, otherwise you’d seem ridiculously rude. And to be honest, it’s still impolite even if it’s a close friend or relative. Seriously, is it really that hard to put away your phone for an hour so you can devote your undivided attention to someone?
I realize that I’m also guilty of indulging in this rude behavior, and I’m sure that I’d get a slap on the wrist from Miss Manners for doing so. However, I’m feeling somewhat redeemed after realizing that I’m still pretty adept at having an engaging conversation with new people–an art I thought I’d lost based on the toddler-speak that often falls from my lips with the kids and the half-sentences I mutter between doing chores while attempting to catch up with my husband.
This past weekend, my husband and I actually had to practice the art of conversation with a couple we’re getting to know, and it was very rewarding. Our children go to preschool together and we’re starting to develop a friendship outside of school after attending lots of kids’ birthday parties and school functions together. They were recently at our home for my daughter’s second birthday, so they kindly invited us to their house to go in their pool and BBQ together. Because we don’t know each other very well yet, we got to spend hours talking about our backgrounds, political views, goals for ourselves and our children, and even pop culture type stuff like what TV shows we watch. (They now know that we’re huge Sci-Fi geeks.) It was refreshing to be tuned in to everything they were saying because we really wanted to hear their thoughts and views and be able to respond (intelligently) with our own opinions. It’s somewhat rare to make new friends as you get older, but it’s a real crankiness crusher to know that it’s possible and very enriching. You just have to be willing to turn off your stupid smartphone for a little while and connect with the person who’s sitting right in front of you!
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Disappointed? Use that feeling to light a fire under your tush!
10 Aug 2011 8 Comments
in Uncategorized Tags: dealing with disappointment, go for it, motivate yourself
Don’t you hate when disappointing news can ruin a perfectly wonderful day? Happily exhausted from a play date with a few friends and their kids, I was thinking about how lucky I was to be able to enjoy this time with them. But what was making me extra-cheerful was an upcoming job interview with the English Chair at my local community college to be an adjunct writing professor. While I love the flexibility of being a freelance writer so I can stay at home with my little ones, I was thoroughly excited about the prospect of teaching as well as contributing more money to our household.
But just as I was leaving the play date, I checked my voicemail and listened to the English Chair’s assistant cancelling my appointment. She went on to explain why, but I found it hard to concentrate because my heart was sinking with each word she uttered. My disappointment was amplified because I’d also found out that I didn’t make the cut in that Hallmark competition I entered, and almost every editor I’ve contacted regarding freelance assignments over the last few months has pretty much blown me off. I’ll be honest with you, my professional self-esteem is feeling kind of shattered at the moment. It seems like doors are either closing on me or never even opening up in the first place!
I needed a crankiness crusher STAT, and it couldn’t be yet another salted caramel sweet square from Starbucks. Fortunately (for my thighs), I found one in The Digital Mom Handbook. The book is written by two women (Audrey McClelland and Colleen Padilla) who left their swanky careers when they had kids and then turned themselves into super-successful entrepreneurs/mom bloggers. Their success didn’t happen overnight, of course, but I became incredibly inspired by their stories and advice. Instead of wallowing in self-pity and crying over what felt like professional disses, (although admittedly I did break down when I told a friend about my interview being canceled while chatting on the phone with her), I opted to turn off the “Real Housewives of Wherever” that I was watching and curl up on the couch with this book while everyone else in the house slept.
I’d been looking forward to reading it, but wasn’t making time for it, and now I knew that this was just what I needed to give me a swift kick in the you-know-what, as well as offer me something else that I really needed–hope. And these ladies certainly didn’t deny me that! My eyes and fingers raced through the first 100 pages until I finally had to get some shuteye. By the time I hit the sack, I no longer felt as helpless or pouty as I had around dinner time. Instead, I felt empowered to start making sh*t happen and figure out how I can turn my blog and brand into something BIG. It also got me thinking about how to make my children’s book become a reality, and it encouraged me to acknowledge that it’s time to shut the door on disappointment’s face and open it to all of the creativity that’s been waiting to be unleashed and opportunities to be won. Thank you, girls! ♥
Moral of the post? Take your frustration and turn it into motivation! There will always be disappointments in life, but it’s better to use them to your advantage than to sulk in a corner over them while scarfing down a pint of your favorite ice cream. Go for yours and get it done (and try to have fun along the way)!
Life is an everyday special occasion.
07 Aug 2011 3 Comments
in Uncategorized Tags: appreciating the moment, Hallmark contest
Wow! My summer schedule has really thrown me off. I’ve been outside more than I’ve been attached to my computer, which I know is a good thing, but boy have I fallen behind on my blog posts! I hope you haven’t felt neglected. Please keep in mind that if you’re ever in dire need of a crankiness crusher, you can always poke around on my Facebook page . I update it at least twice/day with happy thoughts, songs, videos, quotes, etc., so if you haven’t already, please join our anti-crankiness community there. It’s a fun place to procrastinate.
When you’re not busy procrastinating, though, I hope that you’ve been diving into the sea of life and swimming in its joys. There have been so many moments this summer that have made me stop and relish in how sweet life is: collecting seashells with my kids while walking along the beach, tailgating with my husband at a long-awaited U2 concert, and seeing fireworks unexpectedly while indulging in a slow-paced and sumptuous dinner with an old friend (to name a few). I hope that your soul has been nourished with similar bouts of sunshine, and that you’re being reminded that recognizing—and appreciating—these special moments is an everyday special occasion.
Speaking of any day special occasions, Hallmark was running a contest about just that! They asked for people to fill in the blank about what their everyday special occasion is and to submit a story that captures the magic of one of life’s little moments. I couldn’t resist entering since this is precisely what my blog focuses on, and I find out on Monday whether or not I’m a finalist. Eeeek! I know it’s a long shot, but if I didn’t even bother to take the risk, then I’d be depriving myself of the chance to win, right? And I’m a firm believer in risk-taking. Come to think of it, anything worthwhile that I’ve achieved has started out as a risk. I’m sure that when you reflect on the choices that you’ve made in life, you’ll see that rings true for you too!
Before entering the contest, I naturally checked out the competition and was thoroughly inspired when reading about the tiny moments that bring them the most happiness. Their stories are a total crankiness crusher and a reminder that even when there are petty annoyances that can frustrate you throughout the day, and bigger issues like financial struggles or health concerns that can bring you down, it’s those little snippets of time where everything seems just right that can help carry you when you spirits need to be lifted. I chose to share a story based off of one of my blog posts. If you have a sec, you should check out the others!
Tara Rummell Berson
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