Sunday, November 21, 2010

Don't Say the "P" Word! Don't Even Spell It!

I've had pets all my life, cats, dogs, goats, bunnies, snakes, guinea pigs, gerbils, hamsters, and even a bird. Never before now have I enjoyed so many hours of entertainment from just watching my pets. 2 dogs and a wild as sin cat. The dogs FAVORITE activity of all time going to the dog park. They also enjoy going swimming at the lake with us and love long walks and jogs. But when we say "Do you want to go to the park?" they jump up and down and bark really loud and non stop. And when I say jump up and down, I mean my 120 lb lab/mix jumps OFF the ground at me and gets about a foot of air...it's SCARY! They enjoy it SOOO much that if we ask EACH OTHER if we want to take the dogs to the park they start jumping up and down and barking as loudly as possible and don't stop until they are in the truck. So even if we were undecided at that point, it don't matter because they have made up their mind once they hear "park"! They are so smart that even after we started spelling "P-A-R-K" they still understand what we are talking about and react the same way as if we had said it out loud. So now we have to be extremely careful even using anything that RHYMES with "park" in a sentence when the dogs are in the room, or else we have to head to the dog park...OR have 2 barking jumping dogs for the rest of the night!

The good part of bringing them to the dog park is that it only takes about 20 min or 1/2 hour of play and we can go home and they are passed out for the rest of the night, right now they are laying next to me snoring. :) Good night.

Monday, November 15, 2010

Wellness

So, the place I work is about the best place to work on the planet. Not only do I love my job and the people I work with, but they also provide a fitness center, fitness staff, and wellness plans that are out of this world.

I found out about a wellness coaching meeting which takes 2 1/2 hours to complete! This "course" takes you through every aspect of you as a person, of your life, to boil down to 3 or 4 simple statements that define YOU at your peek wellness...not what a doctor says or what a personal trainer says, but what YOU SAY is your vision of you at your best wellness. I have to admit, I was a little skeptical that I could be decisive enough to come to this conclusion.

The course with my wellness coach was nothing short of amazing!! I am pretty confident that I am very in tune with myself, my body, my soul, my heart, I would go out on a limb and say FAR more than the average 35 year old female. STILL this activity made me see things so clearly, and dig deep inside to see what is really important to me, and WHY, and which things might not be as important to me.

When speaking of "complete wellness", one cannot avoid the subject of weight and fitness, and fact is I DO want to lose weight (again) and keep it off. There are many other things that fit into MY wellness vision, but I've packed on 40 lbs and it is going to take a hell of a lot of work to get that back off! And when a person is that overweight, it affects every other aspect of life! Work, friends, romance, kids, leisure, ...everything. For me it is a foundation to feel at 100% success in any of those other areas. Otherwise it feels like I am falling short of success, in everything. It is a fact, (not a mood, not a feeling, not depression or lack of self-esteem)...it is a fact.

So, not that earning $500 next year for losing 10% of my weight isn't enough motivation for me (err wait, it wasn't enough last year), now I have much more to look forward to IF I can get there...feeling successful in all that I set out to do, and feeling good about myself when I reach little or big successes. I know what it feels like to have 100% pride of my kids, to feel that for myself...that will be cool.

Thursday, November 11, 2010

No Electronics Day!

I was having a mushy mom moment and started writing a letter to one of my children to let her know how proud I am of her and how very much I love her. When I finished I felt so good inside, it was PRICELESS! I was so stressed out for a long time, and it was better than any therapy I could think of! The letter meant so much to me that I wrote another one for the other 2 kids because I knew I was just as proud of each of them and (of course) loved them just as much. I placed the letters on each of their pillows for them to find when they went to bed. I thought, what a great way to end a day and have in their minds when they go to sleep.

The next day, I found a letter from my youngest child on my pillow! She wrote me back! I would be lying if I said I didn't shed a tear when I read her sweet letter, she always amazes me for being SO SMART at the young age of 8!

So then I was on a mission. (which always scares my partner, and sometimes the children! haha) I knew this was a great stress reliever for me, and a great booster for the recipients, so I had an idea! (now you're a little scared too, aren't you? haha!!) I grabbed 3 notebooks, stuffed each of their letters in the back of each notebook, and wrote another letter in each of them, and placed them carefully in their rooms. (VERY carefully in my 17-year-old's room because it looks like land mines went off in his room and I'm always afraid I will be the next to set another one off!) and I told them this will now be our personal journal between us. (I mean now not so personal since it's broadcasted on the internet! But still personal because you don't know what it says! Plus I thought sharing the idea would be great in case other families want to steal the idea!) But now I can go to their rooms, and write a note to them to say how proud I am, or things I noticed lately that they did very well. And they can write back to me if they have something on their mind that they either can't or haven't had time to say out loud to me. I told them this does not replace verbal communication, but rather just adds to the ways we can show care and love for each other.

God I love that! (then again a Gemini always gets a rise out of communication)

Another activity I can chalk up as something to do when I say "NO ELECTRONICS DAY!" at which they all moan because it means no TV, no computer, no texting, no video games, NO ELECTRONICS! (and yes, I have had to clarify that means not only ones that plug in but also ones that require batteries as well!!)

Happy Communicating!
~Prudy

***Making little ripples of happiness will cause a tidal wave of happy people in your life***

Wednesday, November 3, 2010

Volunteering

So it is that time of year again! United Way campaign and all the temptations of signing up for fun volunteer projects! Now I have to decide which one I can commit to so that I can try to stick with my goal of finding balance. They all seem like so much fun though! There's one place that keeps catching my attention though, it's the New Beginnings center for young new mom's. There are so many ways to help: babysitting, helping with activities, donating, being a mentor for one of the mom's. *EEEK* I would just LOVE it!

Then I have to weigh out the possible negatives it could cause: how much time would I spend on this, how much extra do I put on my budget for it, can I involve my kids/family and still avoid them feeling neglected or like their mom is being spread too thin?

Things always seem to boil down to planning. Thinking it all through and deciding which activity (instead of ALL of them), how much time I will commit to per week or per month, how much money I will cap on spending toward it, and then see what happens from there. HOW EXCITING!

Think about volunteering somewhere! Join with a friend even! It gives back to you SO MUCH more...a new network in your life, new friends, gain different experiences, and best of all make a huge difference in someone's life...actually SEVERAL people's lives! How awesome is that? =) <3 Hugs! ~Prudy ***Making little ripples of happiness in your community will cause a tidal wave of happy people!

Tuesday, November 2, 2010

And these are the days of our lives....

I changed the theme of the page a bit, since I feel off track from the last one (hence my randomness. So many people in my life keep telling me to blog what happens in our life because it's been said time and time again "PRUDY!! You're life could be a sitcom!!" and "You should write this stuff down!!" So, laugh, learn, or do what you will with it! =)

The month of October! Oh boy! Where do I start?
I spent an entire Friday night with my 17-yr-old son in the Emergency Room for what was thought to be poisoning. Come to find out he experimented with drugs, a drug called K2 that they sell over the counter in our community! The good that came of this??? I learned about something very important; a dangerous drug that is available to all of my children and anyone in our community. I never would have known about this if this didn't happen, now I know what kinds of signs to look for and to involve my kids with my research about the side effects and the dangers.

Then...I took my 13-year-old to the doctor for a lump on her back where they referred me to Gillette's Children's Hospital for emergency surgery to treat her scoliosis. I paid for a 2nd opinion at a chiropractor within 2 days and they backed the decision to go to the pediatric spine specialists at Gillette. The next week I spent an entire day in the cities where they said surgery wasn't necessary, but casted her torso so a fitted body brace could be made for her that she needs to wear 18-23 hours per day for next year or two. The good?? We caught it early enough to correct, AND she doesn't need back surgery!

Then...one of our cats was having chronic bladder infections and was going to be put down. But it was suggested that maybe she has become very picky about her food and litter box and refuses to share it with the other cat (we have 2 litter boxes, but the other cat uses both of them) so we found a home on the very day she was going to be put down. A VERY nice family (with no other pets) welcomed her with open arms and are going to do whatever possible to fix her bladder issues. Who does that!?

So after a very sitcommy October, not a dull moment EVER, November has begun and I feel very much at peace with how everything ended up. Everything that has happened seems to have a happy new start! Especially for the little pets that are dependent on us for their health and happiness. I love those little creatures! =')

Now Christmas is quickly approaching, and I found out today that we might be adopting a family for Christmas...which means we get to go shopping and buy presents for another family and make their Christmas as special as we possibly can! I am SO EXCITED!!

Sorry this entry is so long - we had to (re)start somewhere!! Please feel free to respond or comment!

Love and hugs to all always,
Prudy

Friday, June 25, 2010

Summer is Here!

So it's been a while since I've logged in, yet my followers are still with me and continue to grow little by little! So...THANK YOU THANK YOU!! Lots has been going on!

We have taken someone into our home for the summer to help her get on her feet. With 6 of us already living in our home, it was a bit of work to clear out some space and make a room available and block it off as privately as we could. But all seems to be working so far so good!

Two of our daughters have started volunteering at the Nursing home TWO days per week! I am SOOO proud of them! The residents there love their company and smiling faces.

Quite a long time ago I sent out an invitation to the neighborhood kids and parents to start doing little projects together and spread a touch of love to our community and neighbors. The response was very sweet and inspiring just as I thought it would be! So, even with all the weekend festivities going on in our town this weekend, given the storms MIGHT put a damper on some of it, I think some indoor activities with the neighborhood kids might be just about perfect!

I will keep you posted with what we decide to do. Any suggestions or ideas - please post your comment! Thanks!!

Have a wonderful fantastic day!

~ Prudys ramdom self

Monday, May 10, 2010

remember to spread the kind words...

Today is Monday May 10th. What a great day! I have so much to be thankful for, yet I feel sad for how I discover how much I am thankful for because sometimes others aren't as fortunate. That's why we DO random acts of kindness...to make their day, right? But you have to help me to feel like it's doing some good, can you do that? For those who haven't found their happiness, every night I include them in my prayers, asking God to help them, and then I thank Him and my angels for blessing me and my family in so many ways. I have 4 beautiful and wonderful children, a significant other that is 2nd to none, a fantastic career at a company that I am so proud to work at, and wonderful wonderful friends and neighbors. There isn't anything else I need or want to make me happier, the rest are just materials. And that's why I want to give to others. Any random act or gesture I can offer to anyone to share the happiness that I get to feel every day of my life. Maybe they are happy too, so another act of kindness is only going to make it even better!

Today I searched online for more ideas for upcoming outings I am going to make to fulfill my 2010 goals. And I came across so many wonderful wonderful ideas!! One of them I want to share with you!! Gather children in the neighborhood and do various activities like bake cookies together and deliver them in little packages to other neighbors, sick people, or a nursing home, or hold a free neighborhood carnival. So, I created some invitations to form a neighborhood RAoK committee!!! With the neighborhood kids (and parents if they want to) we could really make a great impact! I can't wait! What a GREAT idea for summer activities with the neighborhood kids! And when I'm at work, I'm sure they will be working on some of these projects! I am SOOOOO excited! And I encourage any parents out there to try this in their neighborhoods too! I can share so many fantabulous ideas I found!!! Email me if you want prudy358@yahoo.com subject line RAoK 2010.

Big Hugs everyone!! MUAH!!

~ Prudy

***Making little ripples of kindness will cause a tidal wave of happy people in our community.***

Tuesday, May 4, 2010

My story went in the Gillette Newsletter that I mentioned in a previous post, so be on the lookout for their newsletter!

I made a conscious effort to log in more often and report some more Random Acts. Since last time here are a couple things I've been doing:

At work they started offering 15 min chair massages on Fridays for $10 per spot. When I emailed to reserve a spot they said there is already a waiting list!! Wow! High demand! So I thought to myself, since this is such a hot item right now, would better way to make someone's day than to anonymously reserve a 15 min chair massage? So I did. The person found out today that they are scheduled for a massage at work!! How wonderful!!

A very close and dear person to me was venting about how hard she is working at getting her degree and has many children to care for: hence the reason for her going for her degree! I let her vent and was a good listener. When she was done, I told her lets get in your car and go for a quick ride to the gas station. And I filled her tank with gas. She tried to resist my offer, but I told her she knows I have been randomly helping other people, so what better time than now to randomly help someone who is trying SO hard, doing a fantastic job, and deserves it just as much as the next person does. She was SOOOOO happy and gracefully accepted! It made my day!

More to come!!! I pinkie swear that...

Thursday, February 25, 2010

things are getting exciting!!!

#5

The kids and I, and my sister-in-law Tonya, (THANK YOU TONYA!!!) made out 165 valentines to bring to Good Shepherd Nursing Home. (I know I've been too busy to get on the computer since then to update, sickness in the house, and I've had 2 different viruses since then, so now is the first time I've had the time to sit down at the computer. Some people might think this whole thing is for people who have extra time on their hands...but they can think again, because we are probably one of the most busiest families around!) :0) So, my 2 daughters & I went to the nursing home and spent a couple hours there handing out Valentines, and sugar free candies (so the diabetic people can have some too) and it was so wonderful! At first my girls were a little scared to go into their rooms, and kind of pushed me in first to hand them their treat and valentine. But it didn't take long, and once my girls saw how easy it was to just say "Hi!! We're here just handing out Valentines to you and bringing a little treat." And they would sit up, come to life, and just smile and say "Wow, thank you!" and they would ask what grade they are in or what school they go to, and just loved the company. Soon they were fighting over who got the next room, so I had to give one of them the right side of the hallways, and the other the left side. It was so sweet!! So I joked with them as we were leaving and said, soooooo....since we handed out 165 of those, when I enter my log it could TECHNICALLY be #5 - #170, right?" We giggled, and I think they knew I wouldn't do such a thing!

#6

I follow the story of Ian Hoy on caring bridge and his mom always talks so wonderful about the Gillette Children's Hospital. So, being my little random self, after reading one of her journal entries, I hopped over to the Gillette website and looked for a donation spot. I couldn't find one so I emailed them and asked for some help. Jenny responded and guided me to a link where I could make an automatic donation every month. She asked if I had been there or have kids that had help there, and I told her, no, I've never been there, and I have been blessed with 3 healthy kids. (knocking on wood) But to know that so many people rave about how wonderful your facility is and how fantastic the staff are to their children and the families, makes me feel 100% sure that I want to contribute to that! Our kids deserve the best care possible and I try to be realistic that, yeah, a day might come that I might end up there with one of my kids or grandkids some day. anyway, long story short, they were so excited about my response that they asked if they could include me in their newsletter and guess what!???? They are including our random acts of kindness blogspot in their newsletter! :) So you are all going to be famous now!!! :) NOW do you want to be followers?????? Ha, I thought so! I'll post the link to the newsletter as soon as I get it!

Big Hugs Tonight!
(¨`·.·´¨)
`·. Prudy

OH ~ and don't forget...Making little ripples of kindness will cause a tidal wave of happy people in our community.

Saturday, February 13, 2010

#4 Post Office Madness

Waiting in line at the Post Office there was a couple and their young son with 2 big boxes of envelopes who purchased many sheets of stamps. They shuffled out of line and moved their supplies to the counter and started applying their stamps. It looked like it would take an hour or longer. I stepped out of the line, jumped in the minivan and ran home to get the kids and told them "gear up! I found a random act!" they all got ready and groaned and grumbled all the way to the Post Office (I ain't gonna lie). So we got there and handed them one of our RAoK cards and explained our mission and they looked at us like we are very odd people (which they are RIGHT, again I ain't gonna lie!) but they let us split up their stack of envelopes with them and we set up a mini-assembly line and got it all done pretty quickly with now 7 people working on it. The man told me he is a college graduate doing a research project and sending hundreds of surveys out to pastors in 3 states. So I told him, "Great! That means both of us are getting a project done today!" Then I remembered to get back into line and pay for my own postage and we went home.

It wasn't much, but it was something anyway. Tomorrow we are working on something very special for Valentine's day! We hope to make 165 special people smile tomorrow - so tune in tomorrow!!!!! :o)

(¨`·.·´¨)
`·. Prudy

Saturday, January 30, 2010

We got started! And my adrenaline is pumpin!

Wow! That was really fun! My girls & I went out on a mission to find some RAoK to do. We walked the entire mall and scoped things out. The kids can't hardly stand it when we are at the mall and they don't get something, so we stopped at Mom's and got them a treat for some energy so we could get started! As we were leaving, a young family walked up with a little toddler pointing at the yummy desserts and picking out a treat. I turned to the mom as we left(sorry to be assumptive, but I think it's a safe guess) and tried to hand her $2 toward her child's treat. At first she seemed hesitant to accept until I broke the awkwardness by saying "you see my daughters & I are out tonight trying to complete our 365 RAoK for 2010 (our New Years Resolution) and I would like to offer this toward your bill and give you this ticket that you can keep as a reminder or you can use it to pass it forward to another stranger." Then she accepted the cash and had a huge smile on her face and said "Wow, Thank you very much!" The look on her face was what made us realize that's what all this is about.

#2 - we walked around some more to spend some quality time with each other. Later while we were walking, my 7 year old daughter, eating her treat from Mom's, jumped and squeeled, "Mommy - there's someone we can help!! Look! Look!" She tugged at my jacket and pulled me in the other direction. I looked down the hall and there was a woman pushing a stroller with 2 babies while trying to pull along another cart with another baby. My daughter asked me if we could help her because she looked like she could use it. We approached her and before I could even say a word my daughter was saying, "Ma'am! Ma'am! Can we help you with those babies?" She smiled so sweetly and said, "No, thank you though! Their mother is in this store so she'll be right out here." I had to speak to her to explain! I explained the same thing I did to people #1 and she said that was so sweet. I said, "You know what? This still made you feel very happy. So I still want to give you one of our tickets for our cause because this was my 7-year-old daughters idea and I don't want it to go unnoticed. So will you still accept our ticket as a Random Act?" She said, SURE! And she seemed to be very pleased!

#3 - When we first got to the mall there was an adult with 3 small children eating at a table. I told the kids we could offer to take their trays to the garbage for them and that RAoK don't always have to be about spending money. As we approached them we realized they had just started eating so our RAoK would turn into one of those acts we want to avoid...Random Acts of Awkwardness. But at the end of the night as we were leaving the mall they were still there and they had been pretty much done eating. So we approached them, (another adult had joined them), and I told them about our RAoK. They smiled and accepted our offer to clear their tables for them. I added a quick comment a little louder and toward the kids "and it's a great thing to teach the kids, RIGHT?" and winked at the adult.

I think we may have made a great night for a few people tonight. Our adrenaline was pumping when we left the mall and we were so happy!! I am so proud of my kids for doing such a great job!!

Here is what our new tickets say: "You have just been kinded! My goal is to complete 365 Random Acts of Kindness in 2010. Please visit to comment on your experience. Use this ticket to pass it forward to another stranger because "making little ripples of kindness will cause a tidal wave of happy people in our community."

Have a wonderful night everyone! Thank you for coming here to read my blog!!
HUGS,
Prudy

still working on it...

Well, I guess it might be a good thing that I don't have hundreds of followers yet, because I would lose them by now out of them being bored of my infrequency! HA! Sorry - to those who are my loyal first followers, as my start is more of a struggle than I ever thought it would be.

Here is the good news...I have been at least trying. But going out to actually look for RAoK is tougher than I thought it would be. My son and I went to the mall and dedicated some time in looking for some opportunities, but the ideas I had, he said, would be Random Acts of Awkwardness! And that is not my goal! TOO FUNNY!

In talking about this at work, people are asking me how this is going and I've been very honest in saying, especially in winter months, it is difficult. They agreed that summer months should be FAR easier to do a bunch of RAoK at a time, and I can't wait! One suggestion some wonderful girls at work had was to make some kind of item (blankets, scarves, etc) and bring them to a place where people are in need, like a cancer unit, a women's shelter, or some place. That will be fun to do!

Another wonderful thing that has already come of this is that people are talking about it! The simple fact that it is making an impact on some people to do a random act themselves, or coming up with thoughtful ideas is already causing positive energy to spread.

***Making little ripples of kindness in the world is going to cause a tidal wave of happy people.***

Wednesday, January 20, 2010

Off to a slow start...

So, things aren't off to the roaring start I had envisioned. However, I do have 2 RAoK to report, so that's good! The first one was last week when I was listening to CNN at work on my headphones, President Clinton had a broadcast about texting 20222 to donate $10 to the Haiti disaster. So on my next break, I immediately texted it and donated $10. I didn't consider that a RAoK, but someone convinced me that it was random and it was definitely an act of pure kindness, especially in a time where all of us are so strapped for money!

The 2nd one was when I was out hanging some Avon books on door knobs, a neighbor down the street thought I was delivering the shopping news and she started talking to me about how she misses getting the shopping news. I told her we deliver the shopping news in a different area, but that I would be happy to drop one off for her. She said I didn't have to do that for her and "go out of my way" but I quickly reminded her that I only live down the street and it would not be out of my way. But I also gave her the phone number to the St Cloud Times so she could call and ask them to add her to the delivery list for her carrier for the Hot Ticket/Shopping News. After I picked up our papers last night, we stopped by her house and dropped off a paper and one of my "tickets" that let her know she "has been kinded by Prudy's Random Acts of Kindness 2010".

It seems like such a little insignificant thing, but that's what this is all about. Those little insignificant things that someone might do for us (whether a stranger or not) that makes us smile real big on the inside and out, and makes our whole day feel good. If we all did that a couple of times per day, just think what a difference that would make. One of the many reasons I wanted to do 365 RAoK is because I firmly believe that one cannot reach any true success in their life unless they first lift up those around them and help them reach their successes first. And if we make them feel good that day, that is sure to help them want better for themselves, whether in a big or small way.

Thank you to my 2 followers so far! I love you Jeremy and Casey!! MUAH!!!

~Hugs & LOVE~
Prudy

Friday, January 1, 2010

Get Ready, Get Set.....

GO!!!! We just finished creating the 365 tickets we are going to use for the whole year! I am so excited!! My daughter is so excited too! We are going to go out today and get it started! When we get back we will report what we did for our first RAoK!!

CHEERS!!! Happy New Year!!