God Bless Organ Donors

Somewhere in the neighborhood of 30 years ago, my Aunt and Godmother was diagnosed with kidney failure, her only kidney. She received a transplant and that kidney saved her life. She got married and now has two grown children that doctors never thought that she would have. That kidney has been good to her all of these years, however just over 2 years ago, her new kidney started to fail. She began dialysis again and went back on the donor list and waited...

Tonight, she received a call that there was once again a kidney for her. It is such a relief and now we wait for word on how it goes.

Back in January 2004, my now mother-in-law was also diagnosed with renal failure. She too went on dialysis and waited for a kidney. She waited a short time. Her wonderful neighbor selflessly offered to be tested to be a match. She thought, "I'm listed as a donor, why wait until I'm dead when I could do good now." Ironically, that neighbor was a match 100% across the board. Only 9 months later, the transplant was complete and that kidney has worked perfectly since then.

So, tonight I can't help but be thankful to all organ donors. Three people have blessed our family with the wonderful gift of life. Their gift has allowed these two women to live and experience things and events that otherwise they may have missed.

My aunt may not have ever met her husband and they never would have had two children that are smart, driven and ambitious and one day, I have no doubt that they will do great things. And now she will be able to see them both graduate college, get married and have kids of their own. And although I am incredibly thankful, I send my condolences out to the family who has lost someone they love. We will never know who you are, but I pray that they find comfort in knowing that the untimely death of their loved one has blessed our family and given us many more years to enjoy together.


And tonight I am equally as thankful to the wonderful woman who gave of herself to help a neighbor. Without that kidney, my mother-in-law may never have lived to be my mother-in-law. She may never have met the grandson that she loves and adores with all her heart.

There is a long list of people just like my aunt and mother-in-law, that wait every day for that same phone call. Organ donation saves lives. Please, check the organ donor box on the back of your license, make sure your family knows your intentions if something were to happen to you. Your own selfless act may save someone else's life.

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Touched by an Angel?

I've been wanting to get back into writing again lately, but didn't want to write a "hey, I'm back" post. I wanted to wait until I had something meaningful to write about. Last night, that blog post found me, as I'm sure, so did my angel.

After dinner, I decided to go grocery shopping, even though it is the last thing I want to do at 7pm. New Jersey was supposed to get some severe thunderstorms, but the sun was out and the sky was relatively clear. The clouds looked anything but threatening. So, I headed off to the store, list in hand. As I made it through the store, I kept looking out the window watching as the sky grew darker and more menacing. I knew I only had a handful of things left to buy and I had a week's worth of shopping done.

As I stood at the deli counter, I could start to hear thunder. My husband called me, very worried about the storm and I was out in it. Not to mention we still had to cart all that stuff up the stairs. I assured him I'd be fine and I only had a few things left to buy. A gentleman standing at the counter must have overheard my conversation and asked me, "what number do you have?". I replied saying 7 (they were on number 5). He proceeded to switch numbers with me saying, "you're husband seems worried and I have nowhere to be". I thanked him and told him how grateful I was because quite honestly, the storm was getting bad. He was an Italian guy, maybe in his mid forties. He wore gym shorts and a t-shirt and had salt and pepper hair. He looked like the type of guy that coached his son's little league team. He was through ordering before I finished and he was gone.

I ran and got the last of my list and went through the register, paid and bagged all my groceries. You could tell I just wanted to get out of there because my normally organized packing took a serious hit. I just wanted to get done and get home.

By this point, the ran was coming down so hard that the parking lot was flooding, it was very windy and the lightening was pretty vicious. I stood outside under the awning with a few other shoppers. I looked around and said out loud, "FML". We all giggled and I decided it was now or never.

Just as I reached the divide between the cement and the asphalt and just when I was about to get soaked, a car pulled up right in front of me with an umbrella hanging out the window. It was the man from the deli counter. He asked me where I was parked and I pointed to my truck just across the way.

He pulled away and I opened the umbrella and headed to the truck. I was a little nervous about holding an umbrella during a lightening storm, standing in a puddle. But something told me I'd be fine and not to be scared. I quickly loaded all my things into the truck and in the faith of paying it forward, I returned the cart to under the awning.

As I made it back to the truck, the man pulled up again. I folded his umbrella, shook it out and handed it to him through the window. I said, "you were like my angel tonight, thank you so much." He said, "just get home safe" and drove away.

It isn't often that you meet a total stranger that would do that much for another person and I feel truly blessed to have been touched by an angel last night. And even if this man wasn't really an angel, than at the very least my faith in the human race has been slightly restored.

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Goodbye 2011, Hello 2012

I can't say that I am sad to see 2011 be over. It was a pretty tough year, not just for my family, but I think for almost everyone in some way. We battled unemployment twice and have had our share of financial difficulties. We had good times and bad times, but nothing that together we couldn't make it through as a family. As a nation, we saw natural disasters of epic proportions. We've seen unemployment and personal and national debt at all time highs, we've seen icons leave this earth sooner than we would have liked.  But rather than dwell on the bad that 2011 brought us, I want to start the new year on a higher positive note. That is one of the things I love about New Years. It a chance to start over, a chance to reflect on the things that didn't go as planned and make them right in the new year. It's a chance to change your life. And that is precisely what 2012 will be all about.  I have quite the bucket list for 2012. Some are rather redundant. By that I mean, it's the same resolution, year after year; lose weight, save money, become more organized, pay off bills...you get the idea. And every year, I start the year working out and eating right and paying off bills and organizing my home until the tasks become so daunting that I, well, quit, mostly because it's too much change all at once. And really, who said all resolutions need to begin simultaneously at the start of the year? Isn't the object to cross off items on your bucket list as you take your journey through the year?  But this year I'm going to try something different. I am making one single resolution that encompasses all those other resolutions: be a better person. All around a better person. Do things right, make good decisions. Live our life as best as we can with the situations and resources that are put in front of us. Cause really, isn't that all we can do right now? (besides hope to win the lottery). So, as we enjoy ringing in the new year with some of our dearest friends, my family wishes each and every one of you the best that 2012 has to offer; good health, happiness and most of all prosperity. Be kind to one another and be kind to yourself. Follow your dreams... Happy New Year!!! 

Just Like That, It's Over

For the last week, I have been baking cookies, wrapping gifts and putting finishing touches on Christmas. You see, the week before Christmas for me is a busy one. I spend countless hours baking cookies and making tins and the Christmas Eve cookie platter. Each night of the week I make a different cookie, usually in the neighborhood of 7 or 8 dozen each. Every year, I make the same staple cookies; chocolate chip, peanut butter, oatmeal raisin, butter and moon cookies. To make it investing on myself and keep my family guessing, I start scouring the Internet just after Thanksgiving to find a new cookie to add. It isn't until around 2 weeks before Christmas I find the cookie. This year it was the struffoli. came out okay. Every year, I have one cookie the gives me trouble and usually its the first batch or 2 of a new creation. But this year my true nemesis was the butter cookie. Seriously, the butter cookie of all things gave me the hardest time. The first batch I made an attepmt to have our son help. Yes, I, the queen of the Christmas cookie thought it would be best for a 2 1/2 year old to help make cookies. He was very enthusiastic! Mommy, however, was resisting the urge to redecorate each one because they weren't decorated evenly or symetrical. They were his creations, though, and I was happy to have them included in my platter and tins. Until I went to check on the first tray of cookies. FLAT!!! They looked like wafers. This had always been my quickest cookie. It was late, our son needed to get to sleep and so did mommy. As if the wafers weren't bad enough, when I went back to wash everything, neither myself or my hubby could get the cookie press apart. It was as I'd it was glued shut! So, the next day, I borrowed my mom's and tried a new recipe, again...FLAT!!! New press, new recipe, same result. On day three, I went to get a brand new press and tried yet a third recipe. These ones were not like my usual perfect butter cookies, but they we're good enough. I was done at that point. I also was baking a carrot cake and brownies. I was literally baking up until we walked out the door both days. I'm never that far behind. So, I decided that for the sake of the holiday and how totally awesome it would be with my son this year, I disconnected from social media for the better part of Christmas Eve and Christmas day. I had been so busy and hadn't had the chance to spend real quality time with him. I wanted his Christmas to be special and I wanted to remember it for myself and for him. But after all of the prep work, all the stress, it's just done. But today, when I woke up later than any other Monday (I'm on vacation this week) with my son and hubby snuggled in bed with me, I smiled knowing that I still have 6 more days to enjoy my time with them...and I'm so happy for that.

Do You Dream of Being an Entrepreneur?

The difficult economy and unemployment rate have pushed many Americans to follow their dreams and become their own boss, start their own businesses and do what they love. Mothers are opting to work from home in order to help contribute to household income (and saving on exuberant day care costs) while enjoying time with their families. Fathers are starting businesses to create better work/life balance and be there when their families need them.

I, too, have the entrepreneurial spirit and while I work my full time job, I do my best to create the life I choose and start my own business from home. It’s not easy while working a full time job and caring for a family, but you do what you have to do to achieve your dreams.

Friend and Editor-in-Chief of TheGatekeepersPost.com, Jeff Rivera, recently introduced me to Mark Cuban. Mark has been an entrepreneur for over 20 years. I was fortunate enough to interview Mark and ask him a few key questions about becoming a successful entrepreneur. Although Mark’s business is somewhat different than mine, the desire, drive and purpose remain the same. You can read more about Mark here: http://www.diversionbooks.com/authors/mark-cuban

There are many mommies out there that dream of creating their own business

but haven't a clue where to start. What advice do you have for them?

Find something you love to do, can do on your own and doesn’t require

any more capital than you can afford to lose personally. The most

valuable asset you have is your time, talents and ability to

communicate. Focus on those strengths and what you can do rather than

what you can’t do.

There are many young moms who are just beginning their lives and can relate to you when you said you were sharing a small apartment with 6 people and

sleeping on the floor.  How can someone keep their eye on the prize when they’re living on Ramen noodles?

Who cares how you are living today? I loved every minute of living in

that dump. The low rent and utilities and eating Mac n’ Cheese

 all the time allowed me to afford the startup of my business. Instead of

paying myself much, I could put it in to my business.

One part in your book I loved and my heart sank at is when your fiance

lost your $7500 ring.  What's your advice for those moms out there who are distracted by a relationship? How do you balance a real life with your dreams?

I never was able to balance. Each person has to make their own

decisions. But remember, your competitors aren’t sitting by idly

waiting for you to have a nice dinner with your significant other.

They are trying to kick your ass. So choose wisely.

You encourage entrepreneurs not to hire a public relations firm, Mark. How did you get the word out about your eBook?

I tweeted, posted on Facebook, [used] Google Plus and responded to emails. Nothing more.

Where can we get a copy of your eBook, How to Win at the Sport of Business?

Anywhere eBooks are sold: Amazon, BN.com, and sites that support independent bookstores too.

Dear Grandma

Dear Grandma,

It's been 15 years since I wrote you last. Not because I don't love you or miss you, but because I know that you are with me every day, every where I go and you’re watching over everything I do.

I know you were there when I got my license, and have protected me every time I sit behind the wheel. You were there for my high school graduation and my graduation from cosmetology school. You were there for every joy and heartache. You were there when I got married. I could almost see you sitting in the pew as my dad walked me down the aisle. I wish Chris could have met you. I know he would have loved you just as much as I do.

I am thankful every day for the beautiful and amazing son you sent us. Someone that perfect could have only been sent by you. I know you were there the day he was born and you cashed in one of your miracles just for us. You would have adored Brandon and I know he would have adored you just as much as I do. Mom is an amazing grandmother and in many ways she reminds me of you. She takes him shopping and buys him little toys and loves him to the moon and back…just like you loved me.

You’ve missed grandchildren, weddings, and even great-grandchildren, but we always knew you were there. And we’ve taken comfort over the years knowing that even though you could not be here physically, you were with each and every one of us every step of the way; watching from above. You’re in my heart and I can take you where ever I go. Sometimes I see or meet someone that reminds me of you and I know that’s your way of reminding me that you are still here and haven’t gone anywhere. All I have to do is think of you and you’re there. I can feel your warmth in the sun and hear your voice in the wind.

I think about you often and draw on your amazing strength when times are tough. I can almost feel your arms wrapped around me telling me it will all be okay. Just like when you used to kiss my booboos. The pain always went away.

I miss you, Grandma. I love you, then, now and always.

The Big Boy Bed

When we moved into our new place a few months ago, I had the best of intentions to convert Brandon’s crib to a big boy bed. My first task at hand though was getting him adjusted to his own room and out of our bed. When I realized that was happening slower than we cared it to, I thought maybe giving him a big boy bed would entice him to sleep in his own room, in his own bed. And this is where the saga begins…

The first time we made an attempt to convert the crib, I took it apart only to realize that I misplaced the metal pins that hold the front rail on. You see, in the old apartment I had all of the bolts, pins and assorted hardware in a Ziplock bag. That Ziplock bag was then taped to the bed rail and the instructions were stored underneath the crib mattress. When we moved, I needed the tools and instructions to take apart the crib and put it back together. This is where it all went sour. So, I contacted Simmons Kids and the customer service woman was so nice that she sent me the pins…free of charge. I had them within days.

Time past and I went back to work and converting the crib was no longer a priority…until about 2 weeks ago. Chris took Brandon out for a few hours so I had the chance to convert the crib and straighten out his room without him there. I grabbed the pins, which I put away in a place I new I’d find them and went hunting for the instructions. GONE!!! They were nowhere and I distinctly remember putting them somewhere and saying, “Ill put them here so I don’t lose them.” Right. So, again, converting the crib had to wait because, of course, Simmons customer service is not open on the weekends. But I did make sure to note the model number so I could get the right instructions sent to me.

Monday morning came, I called Simmons and the customer service representative promptly emailed me a PDF version of the instructions. No chance I can lose them now!!! I had them electronic AND hardcopy. Awesome!!!

So last Saturday, with Brandon home, Chris and I decided to finally take the plunge and convert the crib. We got all of our pieces together and took the front of the crib off. All while Brandon is trying to “help”. Awe. We inserted the pins into the rail, the rail into the crib and went to screw the bolts in to secure the rail. FAIL! The bolts apparently are different from the ones we removed from the crib, and are the ones that I still have not been able to locate.

I was not about to get Brandon all excited for his big boy bed and stick him back in a crib, nor did I want to put it back together again. I threw caution to the wind and wire tied the rail to the metal frame that holds the mattress. In all reality, the rail only prevents the mattress from moving forward. It’s been a few days and it’s just fine.

So, Monday I make another call to Simmons to request the bolts I need and to inquire about the cost of the guard (that of course is sold separately). I was told that they could send me the bolts for a $1.80 or so a piece and $10 flat rate shipping. TEN DOLLARS!!!! Are they crazy? This was totally shocking given the amazing service and help I have received up to this point. When I inquired about the ridiculous shipping cost I was told it’s the standard. My inner bitch came out and I told her no thank you, I’d look for them at the Home Depot.

But instead, I called again yesterday and got a lovely woman on the phone. I didn’t reference my previous call and asked her if they could send me the bolts I needed. She offered to send them to me free of charge. No cost for the bolts, no cost for the shipping. Hmmm, interesting. She also let me know that the rail was $60. Uh, no. He hasn’t fallen out of bed yet, so it’s not on the priority list.

Needless to say, the bolts are on their way and we have a big boy in his big boy bed. Now if we can teach him how to make the bed, we’d be all set.