Archive for the ‘#celebratemonday’ Category
Just to Make You Smile
Posted on: September 12, 2016
Sometimes we get so caught up in our own whirlwinds, we forget the whirlwinds of those around us. Thank goodness for Facebook and Twitter! With just a quick tap and a scroll, I can catch a glimpse of what’s happening with everyone else and realize that my issues are, in fact, just a drop in the bucket compared to someone else.
I really love using social media to stay connected with friends and family. In this fast-paced world in which we live, sometimes it’s the only lifeline I have to know when people are hurting or when there’s cause for celebration.
Today was a perfect example of the importance of being connected.
I saw this post on my Facebook feed from a gal I knew in high school (we sang together in show choir):
Oh my goodness! This is serious stuff! It’s incomprehensible to imagine someone my age, that I went to high school with, having to battle such life-changing situations.
However… There is joy in the journey! I love how my friend requested absurd balloons – how funny is THAT?! So awesome!
After work today, I stopped by the Dollar Tree and picked up a few goodies, each with a special meaning. My only purpose was to make my friends smile, so they know they mattered to me. 😊
Yep, that’s right – I bought a Princess balloon for a grown man in his 40’s who I know would rather be mud-bogging than trapped in a hospital bed with a gown that only ties in the back. Princess indeed!
I laughed all the way back to my car!
I got Mountain Dew to jump start that old heart of his with caffeine in case the surgery didn’t work. I added a box of Lifesavers as a last resort for survival. I bought a crazy-faced Pez because, well, you’re never too old to get Pez as a gift! I also bought a pack of Pez refills because NOBODY gets excited by the lemon Pez candies that come with the package. C’mon now Pez makers… Would it be too much to ask for some grape and strawberry?
Then I added two 100 Grand chocolate bars, because both my friend and her husband are worth 100 Grand to me. ❤️
The gift was received with laughter, which made me smile, too. Take time today to reach out to those around you! A quick note, a small surprise, just letting people know you care.
Who knows? Maybe one day you’ll be surprised by a Princess balloon, too. ❤️
Roses for Sandra
Posted on: April 18, 2016
Today was an absolutely gorgeous day! Bright blue skies, warm sunshine, a gentle breeze, with just a hint of summer smiling down on me. After a long, cold winter and weeks of dreary rain, this weather was a gift from above. These are days of joy!
I was reminded of the old adage to “stop and smell the roses.” I took my lunch outside and sat at the patio tables, listening to children laughing around me. I walked around campus the long way instead of rushing from class to class. When my day was done, I decided to pack up and leave the building instead of staying inside the four walls. This day was meant to be cherished in every possible way!
I wanted to do a random act of kindness in memory of a friend’s mom, who passed away a year ago today. Sandra was everything you could want in a mom – loving, kind, and generous. I wanted to do something special to reflect the love she had not only for her daughter, Holly, but for everyone she met.
I went to the store to pick out the most beautiful roses I could find, then had them arranged in a pretty vase to share. I wrote a note and attached it, my heart smiling as I wrote Sandra’s name. Then I drove to a local assisted living facility and asked that the staff give the flowers to someone who needed a little extra joy in their day, maybe someone who didn’t have an opportunity to go outside and enjoy the sunshine. Perhaps these roses could bring sunshine to them instead.
Make sure you take some time today to stop and smell the roses. Each day is a beautiful gift to enjoy!
#CelebrateMonday
Posted on: February 22, 2016
How many of you dread the word “Monday”?
One click of a Google search for “Monday quotes” and you can see the struggle is real:
What if it was possible to actually look forward to Monday? Say what? Yes! I’m serious! What if you could start your week with anticipation of something good instead of something bad.
Impossible? I think not.
For those of you on Twitter, you already know a few hashtags people follow for inspiration. You can now add #celebratemonday to your list. No, I didn’t create the hashtag (even though some of you thought I did!) Those kudos belong to principal Sean Gaillard, a motivating force behind the Monday positivity movement. Check out this article by ISTE, explaining how it all began!
This Monday morning, I woke to find a tweet from Sean giving me a shout-out on Twitter:
When was the last time you had someone give you a shout-out to others? On social media? On a MONDAY MORNING?
My day was made and I hadn’t even left my house.
I was tagged in another tweet from Ashley Hurley, a gal in my virtual PLN:
So inspiring! Already my brain was spinning, thinking of a random act of kindness I could do to #celebratemonday. How fun!
I had to leave school early today to take my middle child to get braces on his bottom teeth (definitely not a RAK in his eyes!) and while I waited in the office for him to gather his belongings from class, I gazed at the beautiful tree painted on the office wall.
Not just any tree. A Giving Tree.
There were only a few leaves left on the tree, but surely I had something I could give. I reached up and removed a leaf to bless a teacher at my son’s school.
While I waited in the orthodontics office for the dental technicians to add brackets and wires to my child’s teeth, I thought about the leaf I pulled. I don’t know Ms. Owens, but I could imagine her purpose for those stress balls. Maybe she’s a SPED teacher and knows how some students need to keep their hands active to refocus their attention. Maybe she’s a P.E. teacher and wants to use the balls as part of a class activity. Perhaps she’s a science teacher and wants to use the balls in an experiment. No matter the reason, she needed the balls and I couldn’t wait to fulfill her wish.
Guess who’s getting 12 new stress balls soon! 🙂
![IMG_4766[1]](https://celebratekindness.files.wordpress.com/2016/02/img_47661.jpg?w=354&h=629)
Later today, I had another friend, Kitty Tripp, tag me in her post about a random act of kindness she completed for a stranger:
So awesome!
If you are looking to be inspired on a Monday morning, check out the hashtag #celebratemonday on Twitter. You might be amazed how good it will make you feel! Share your joys as well – celebrating Mondays inspires everyone!
Have a wonderful week ahead! Feel free to comment below with something good that happened to you today and share with a friend!
celebrate kindness 