Christmas Crazy

This year I have literally waited till the last minute to do all my Christmas shopping, and let me tell you it was not a good idea. The malls are NUTS right now, every crazy person like me is out, and it just makes for a bad time. Not only did I wait till the last minute, I am also having the worst time brainstorming things to get everyone. Surprisingly enough the only person that I am completely done shopping for is my mom! And let me just tell you that is a major accomplishment. She is literally the hardest person ever to shop for (sorry mom!!!). So while you are laughing at all those crazy people shopping last minute, just remember I am in that crowd!

I was talking the other day with someone I know, and they were talking about planning time this weekend to go to the galleria and watch all the mass chaos. I looked at them and laughed, and said "HA. Good one!" thinking they have got to be kidding. Man was I wrong... They looked at me and said "I am not kidding, every year I do it and I absolutely love it. I am already done with my shopping by then, so all I have to do is watch and laugh!" To me that is still complete torture... I would never want to waste time driving all the way down there, look for a parking spot and then fighting the crowds just to people watch. That is what you call "Christmas Crazy" to me!

The holiday time is so busy around our house! We have my brothers birthday (tomorrow), Christmas, and then my sisters birthday in January (the 12th). This time of year is full of celebration and presents here at The Coleman house. And while it is tons of fun to celebrate for a long period of time, it is also extremely tiring. Come middle of January and I am completely worn out.

I am pretty sure Houston is going "Christmas Crazy" right now with this weather!!! I hate that it is in the 70's and 80's in December. It surely brings down the joy of Christmas. I love nothing more than to be snuggled up in PJS, drinking hot coco and watching a hallmark movie. And though we are still able to do that, it just isn't the same when you are still having to use the air conditioner. I am hoping and praying that by Christmas Day it will be in at least the 50's! But I am not holding my breath!

Tomorrow I have offered to volunteer at an elementary school in Spring with my best friend. We will be making individual ginger bread houses with 25 1st graders!!!!! I am not too sure what I am getting myself into. I hope I make it out alive, and not needing hearing aids. I even took the time tonight to paint my nails red to get into the holiday spirit for this little Christmas party. Nothing better than some red sparkly nails done by yours truly!

I am thinking by the end of January I just might need a vacation! So book me a trip, get someone to take notes for me in school, find someone to watch my little babes, and I will be out of here in no time!!!

Here's to being "Christmas Crazy!"

XOXOXO,

Maggie 

Always Catching Up!

It seems to be that this has become more of a “catch up” blog than anything else. I am finding that time is slipping away from me faster and faster each day. I am always on the go, which leads to no time for blogging. I am sad that I am not able to spend more time blogging, but I at the same time I am thankful that I am able to stay busy and feel perfectly content. Whether I am working, going to school, hanging out with friends and family or just simple sitting down to catch my breath, I am able to find the joy in it all. I love busyness and stillness just about the same, and I feel like I have the best of both worlds when it comes to both of those things.

Last Tuesday I finished my third semester of college. It was a pretty dreadful semester to say the least, and I was more than happy to get it over with. The week prior I spent hours upon hours studying and trying to make sure I was well prepared for each exam. With that though came tiredness. A tiredness that my body had never quite felt before. I was completely worn out. Everyday I reminded myself that Tuesday December 9^th would come faster than I thought, and it did just that.

The last couple days of freedom have been so enjoyable. I feel so refreshed already, and it’s only been a couple days, I can’t even imagine how refreshed I will be at the end of my break. The season is my absolute favorite! I love the joy, love and pure generosity that is spread all around. But there is one thing that often goes unnoticed and it’s that not every person is able to feel that love and generosity like all the others. Some people feel the need to put a mask on to so that no one can see the pain and suffering they are going through. No one should have to feel that they can’t express how they are feeling at any given moment. We are all human and we have have bad days, weeks, months and even years. It’s totally normal and everyone should accept it. We are all dirty, maybe not on the outside where everyone can see, but on the inside. We all have dirt that fills up parts of our heart and life, and that is ok.

Together we can make a difference though, we can show the true reason for the season. It’s not all about the presents and the perfect life. It’s about being humble and expressing our love for our Lord and Savior. This time of year might be busy, but it is never busy enough to not be able to be a kind and generous person. And it is most definitely never too busy for us to not be able to spend time with our Lord and Savior.

So whether you are suffering or full of joy this holiday season, make sure you know that it’s okay to express whatever feelings you are feeling. There is not one single person that lives a perfect life. As always, I encourage any and all of my readers to take that extra minute and pray for others, and compliment a stranger when the time seems right. You might be that one person that truly shows they are loved and do not go unnoticed.

Like I said earlier whether busy or not, I am beyond blessed for the glorious life and time I am given!

XOXOXO,

Maggie 

Happy Thanksgiving!

Today, I am thankful for many things, but there are a few things that I am extra thankful for; a loving family, wonderful friends, and good health! I am so extremely thankful that I get to wake up to the smell of turkey and all the yummy sides that come with it, that my mom always spends all day cooking just so that we have an enjoyable dinner! There are so many things to be thankful for today and everyday.

For some the holiday season brings joy and laughter and for others it brings tears and memories. My prayer for those that are suffering this holiday season is that you take time to reflect on all of your wonderful memories with your loved ones, and that you feel The Lord's presence. And for those that are having a Thanksgiving filled with joy and laughter, my prayer is that you take time to love on each and everyone of those family members, and thank The Lord for blessing you in such a huge way. Thanksgiving is by far my favorite holiday! There are so many things I love about it. I love knowing that I can just celebrate with my family, and not feel any pressure about giving or receiving any gifts. That we can express our love for each other and just relax. This time of year tends to get a little stressful with several different activities approaching, so when Thanksgiving finally rolls around, I can finally feel that little bit of break.

This time last year my brother and dad were living in Oklahoma for their jobs and my mom and I were living in Houston while Lauren lived and went to school in Austin. We were all spread apart, but we made sure to make the best of it! I am happy that is no longer the case and we are all together again under one roof!


Life is so good y'all!!! I am blessed!


Happy Thanksgiving from my family to yours!

XOXOXOXO,

Maggie

God is Good!

My last couple posts have been filled with lots of mixed emotions. Emotions that are both good and bad. Some that I felt like I wasn't quite sure why I was feeling the way I was feeling, and others that were just real life problems. Often times when I am feeling stressed, my go to just like most people is a little pity party! Whether it is with others around pitting with me or just me alone, I find myself doing this every time. I've started to realize though that it doesn't make the situation any better, in fact I think it does the quite opposite. It gets me thinking about my terrible  terribly wonderful life a little more than needed. Don't get me wrong I am not saying don't vent every once and a while, but having a full on pity party that lasts sometimes days is a little overboard. 

This week my heart truly hit rock bottom, to the point that it was torn apart and I am still recovering. And that is when I realized my sweet little problems aren't all that bad. A guy that I know pretty well lost his mom suddenly. She was perfectly healthy and all was well, until Sunday night when she had a stroke. She was in a coma for less than 24 hours before passing on to her heavenly home. I did not know her personally, but I knew both her son and one of her daughters, and that was enough for me to feel deeply saddened. These three kids (she has another daughter) no longer have a mom here on earth. They will continue to grow up without her by their side. I can't even imagine. I have asked God many times in the last two days why? Why did you have to choose her? Why did you not give them any notice? And each time peaceful thoughts fill my head as to why she was the chosen one. Do I think it's fair, no, I don't but do I have a peaceful understanding that God will provide for both her and her family, yes I do! Life is short y'all and at any moment God can call any one of us home. It is terribly scary, but it is so great to know that he is always going to care for us. So while he is "stressed out" and dealing with far greater things than I can ever imagine, I am never aware of those times, because he does not complain, and he always picks up the slack.

It is so cool to know that something so big in our minds is actually one of the smallest possible things ever. Sometimes life hands us things that seem like a lot to handle at the time, but we always get through them, and that is because of our lovely K I N G! The lord has really used this week as an example of how precious life truly is, and that we should tell our family and friends we love them every chance we get. We can never love enough no matter how hard we try, but that is okay because The Lord is able to pick up our burdens and love each and everyone of us a little more each and every day. 

My hope is that this sweet family feels the love and prayers from all. That they are able to get through the holidays and know that their mom is now able to celebrate all holidays in Heaven! How cool is that? I bet it is way better than here on earth!! I also hope and pray that they lean on each other during this difficult time. It never gets easier, but eventually they will begin to feel somewhat of a new normal! 

I will leave you with the song I am obsessed with right now!!! 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xoZE2RsthRg

I hope everyone has a fabulous rest of the week!! 

XOXOXO,

Maggie

Life!

Where do I even begin... Life has been nonstop. I feel like I haven't even had time to breath let alone blog. It's like time slows down when you need it to speed up and it speeds up when you can't seem to catch a break. Between going to school full time and working, I am worn out. Flat out TIRED. Any free time I get I just want to spend it snuggled up in bed relaxing. And while busyness is good sometimes it surely isn't good right in the midst of a semester that is coming to an end. I have a paper,project and or test every week from here on out! Can someone scream CRAZY!!!

The other night I was so overwhelmed that I just had a sob and complain fest. And afterwards I felt like a million bucks! It's crazy what one good cry can do for the soul. In the midst of this crazy life  I have still found time to visit with some friends and spend time with my loving family, but it's not enough time. I wish I could just get become a teacher without having to get a degree, could earn money without having to work and just be roaming around doing whatever I wanted to, but alas that is not how this life works and surely if it did, I'd find something about it that I didn't like.

When I started this blog I remember thinking "Oh my goodness I am going to blog everyday and it's going to be great!!" Who was I kidding? I can barely find the time to blog once a month. While I would love to be able to blog at least once a week I know that is not at all possible. With the holiday's approaching and school coming to an end for the semester I am hoping that I will be able to breath a little easier and just do lots of resting and hanging out.

I love everything about the holidays, the weather, the crisp smell of the outdoors, the yummy food, but most of all the family time. It's not everyday that you get to sit around and do nothing with your whole entire family. Between the five of us there is at least one person gone every night, but during the holiday's it doesn't quite seem that way and  I love it.

Alright enough of all this mopey,boring talk about the glorious thing we call life! I shall get back to my stacks upon stacks of homework assignments.

Hopefully next time I will be back with something good to say!

Love and Hugs from the girl who truly does love life and everything in it!!


XOXOXOXO,

Maggie

The End of October

My oh my is it really November?! I just blinked and boom it was almost Christmas time. Well not really, but lets be honest we all wish the weather would get a little colder and the holiday cheer would begin to spread! The last couple weeks have been nothing but crazy busy, but also full of a lot of nothing.

Last Thursday I got sick with a terrible stomach bug! It was the worst I had felt in a REALLY long time. A feeling that I had hoped would not stay long. Sadly it had other plans for me... Friday the 24th I turned 20 and didn't look back! Although I was sick I did not let that stop my celebrations that I had planned. You only turn 20 once right? Why stop all the celebrations then! Friday was filled with lots of love,laughs and good times despite the sickness. The rest of that weekend was just filled with sleep upon sleep. The Monday and Tuesday to follow were again filled with lots of sleep and the absence of school and work. For some that might be really exciting, but for me not so much. I hate having to catch up on things and now I was having to catch up on school and life all at the same time and I just felt so overwhelmed. Actually overwhelmed enough that one night I found myself crying for no reason at all! Just flat out blubbering like a baby because I could! I soon got over that and realized that I needed to move on with my life and that eventually I would be back on track and things would seem to be okay. And what do you know Wednesday I was back at work and school and life seemed normal again. No, I wasn't feeling that great yet, but I was back in my routine and that's all I needed. Finally today (Saturday) I feel 100% better. I was able to run all day and babysit without any problems! Thank you LORD!

This semester has been long, hard, and just very overwhelming for me. I don't know if it's the little bit of my slack, the slack of the professors or both, but I am finding this semester to be so much harder. Don't get me wrong I still work my tail off to get my stuff done, but sometimes I feel like that just isn't enough. I will surely be ready for this semester to end in just a couple months. I am in disbelief that in just about 3 weeks Thanksgiving will be here and then shortly after that we will be dealing with Christmas. For now I am just trying to keep my head above the water so that I can keep swimming.

Although there are times that I feel completely overwhelmed and I just want to give up, I think about all the things that I have been blessed with and keep trucking. My life to some people might seem super challenging, but to others it seems to be the perfect life that they would die to have. So for those people, I commend you for whatever hardship you might be going through, and I want to thank you for showing me what it's like to keep pushing on! Sometimes we take life for granted and in those times we really need to step back and think was that really necessary? Not everyone walks the same path you do, so take a minute and try another path for a day just to see the difference. Change isn't always easy, and fun but it is always possible.

I am grateful and couldn't love life more if I tried! Thanks life for always sticking by my side whether you wanted to or not.



XOXOXOXO,

Maggie 

Momma Bear Protecting Her Cubs!

Today, I had to break out into full on Momma Bear! Ryan and some of his little fifth grade friends met up to go ride on their skateboards. The meeting place as always was Ryan's house! I love having kids running in and out of our house, because I am in charge and I know no "funny"business will be going on. Before they went on their ride around the hood, they were going to stop at one of the boys houses to pick something up. Five minutes after leaving the house, I hear a knock on the door. I quickly go to the door to see one of Ryan's little friends standing there (this boy was not with them originally!). I answer the door, and Ryan's friend asks me if Ryan was home. I said "no Ryan JUST left with a bunch of boys, and they should be at Ben's house." Ryan's little friend looks at me and goes "I just came from Ben's and his mom said they weren't there. I think they ditched me!" OH NO NO NO.... I am not going to let that fly. No one ditches anyone on my watch. I'm sorry. I yell for Sammie up the stairs, quickly put a leash on Roxie and the three of us plus Ryan's friend are out the door. I am on a hunt for Ryan and the rest of the boys, and my first stop is Ben's house.

I walk up to Ben's house and ring the door bell only to have his mom come to the door to tell me " Oh the boys aren't here, I'm not sure where they are?" At this point I'm livid...not only is Ryan not answering his phone, but he is also no where to be found. As soon as I get to the end of the street I see a pack of boys fly on by, and I knew it was them. I walked as fast as I could to catch up to them, and by this point, half of them fled the scene. Clearly because they knew I WAS MAD. Ryan though is smart enough to know that he needed to go home, because he was about to have a little talking to. I am almost to Ryan, and he knew right away that I was not a happy camper. After asking him where he had been, why he wasn't answering my calls, and what all these boys were up to? He confessed that some of the boys were indeed trying to ditch his little friend. Ryan being the sweet boy that he is had started to head home when they started their ditching plan. I was so proud of him, but I still was not going to let these other boys get away with such a thing. So I marched my little self along with Sammie, Ryan and Ryan's little friend to the house that all these boys fled to. I walked right into the backyard, and gave all those boys a piece of my mind. I explained to them that what they were doing was not appropriate, and that if they continued to do it I would no longer allow Ryan to play with them while I am there. They shook their heads and said "YES MA'AM!"

There is just something about little fifth graders ditching people that screams "bullying" to me and I don't stand for that at all. These children might not be mine, and I might not be their nanny or their mom, but I will stand up for every single one of them. My heart was breaking and pumping all at the same time for this precious little soul, who had gotten his feelings hurt. I am not afraid to stand up to anyone who is in the wrong. In the end it's them who needs the adjusting not me. I want everyone to be happy, and I feel like I can help make that happen. And yes I know somethings the boys need to work out on their own, but this was something that I knew needed some Momma Bear!

I am so glad we got it all resolved, and I hope and pray that it never happens again! Not sure my little heart can take anymore of that.

Have a fabulous weekend!!

XOXOXOXO,

Maggie