it's not about the bunny. . . .

bunnies are soft and cute.

when they're chocolate, they're yummy, too!

chocolate bunnies. . . .such a fun part of Easter celebrations!

but. . . . .

it's not about the bunny.

He is Risen!

wishing each of you a beautiful, blessed Easter Sunday and a

fresh and lovely Spring:)

be blessed,

Suzanne

Blessed and Thankful..........

confession time.........

i'm not a huge Thanksgiving holiday person.

oh, i love the Fall decor, the side dishes (hate turkey), the pumpkin pie, the family get togethers.

i do believe we have so many things to be thankful for.......

and i hope I am pretty thankful all year long.

i know some think this is the one day to stop and be thankful.

let's face it.......it's the one day to watch parades, football and 

STUFF yourself silly!:)

the day for being thankful is EVERY day.

but.....i do remember fondly those huge family dinners in my grandma's basement.

good times:)

now, i do want to share some little things I am thankful for.

but first, my "blessings".

because more than anything, i am

BLESSED!

i am blessed and thankful that i grew up in a Christian home

 with a loving family.

and i am now blessed with my own beautiful family and friends.

now THAT is something to be thankful for.

so when i don't include the "obvious" in my thankful list,

please know that some things just go without saying.

today, i am going to share a few things i am thankful for

 that aren't the obvious choices.

these are the little every day things that i am blessed with and thankful for

EVERY day.

in no particular order, i am thankful for.......

~~~my life down south

~~~living near the beach/Gulf

~~~sunshine and cool breezes

~~~rainy afternoons

~~~the pure love and loyalty from my 2 dogs

~~~spending every single day with my beautiful girls.

~~~hugs, kisses and i love you's

~~~a husband who works very hard to support his family

~~~morning coffee

~coconut cream for my coffee

~~~seashells and sea glass

~~~twinkle lights

~~~my fluffy slippers

~~~my oversized, cozy fleece tops

~~~finding something COOL at a thrift store

~~~getting "fun" mail

~~~memories.....and photos

~~~banana laffy taffy:)

~~~cupcakes

~~~nice, friendly people

~~~spray tans

~~~a really good book

~~~laughter

~~~double peach hibiscus in my front yard

~~~gardenia bushes

~~~orange blossoms and vanilla.....my favorite scents

~~~warm cookies

~~~a good nights sleep (rare but nice when it happens:)

~~~college football

~~~country music

~~~hallmark movies

~~~italian food

~~~tulle

~~~naps with my dogs!

~~~anything pink or aqua/turquoise

~~~cowboy boots

~~~bling

~~~being a homebody

~~~warm, cozy blankets

~~~down comforters

~~~vacations

~~~really sharp pencils

~~~my glue gun

~~~vintage costume jewelry

~~~charm bracelets and lockets

~~~birthdays

~~~faded, broken in blue jeans

~~~orange cake and moon pies

~~~fresh strawberries and raspberries

~~~a good nights sleep.....did i say that already? haha

~~~my blog.....and the wonderful people who read it!

see a trend here?

the things i'm really thankful for, outside of the important family things,

are just everyday things that i am sooooo thankful for.

every day.

does that mean every day is thanksgiving?

maybe that's exactly what it is.......or what it should be.

so from our family to yours.........

may you have a beautiful, blessed Thanksgiving.

and eat some PIE already.

(ditch the diet for once!;) heehee

xoxoxoxox

Suzanne

a beautiful miracle...

a beautiful miracle......

i bet you thought there was an inspiring story behind this.

no story.....just a few things i've learned.......

or maybe it's more like a way i know i SHOULD live

and strive for daily.

i think we can all influence others and 

leave our "marks" on the world.

some leave great big GIANT marks,

and others of us leave little bitty ones.

but we leave them none the less.

i can truly only speak for myself and say

that i hope to wake up and appreciate every day for the

beautiful miracle it is.

i don't always do that, but i try.

and by doing that,  maybe i leave my mark on the world

 and on others that day.

we all can do this.......

by taking a deep breath of fresh air and thanking God

that we are alive.

by appreciating.....

 the big AND little things.

by noticing.......

every sunset, the birds chirping on a morning walk,

smiling at the clerk in the check out line at the grocery store,

by being grateful........

for what we do have instead of complaining about what we don't have.

wishing you a beautiful, blessed, remarkable week!

XOXOXO

Suzanne

all about "stuff"...

random STUFF...

STUFF to do...

and just plain STUFFY.

hey there,

back home from a WONDERFUL week in Hawaii...

TRUE Hawaii, that is...

but i'll have to fill you in on that when i get time.

i have TONS to tell you and even MORE photos to share...

LUCKY you:)

but today is a quickie post all about STUFF.

let's get started...

first, something really COOL...

don't ya just LOVE this?

now for some STUFF to say...

~i am using my husband's new desktop mac a lot these days,

and i finally figured out (took the time) to

get my google homepage on it, with all the

links to my favorite blogs front and center...

so HOPEFULLY i'll be a better friend!

~as much as i want to share photos and stuff from the trip,

i'm not sure i'll be doing that right away.

on top of jet lag/wanting to sleep at weird times,

it's a CRAZY week!

 STUFF to do:

~wrap silent auction gift baskets and chocolate favors for the 

Naples Ballet

first annual Ballerina Ball on Thursday.

~figure out what in the heck I'm going to wear!

(i have plenty of long gowns but this one doesn't yet require that so

i have to think of something:)

~dinner with my husband's board members on Friday

~re-FOCUS my girls from surfing to school...

no easy task, let me tell you!

~get Taylor ready to go with her Dad to a HEART ball on Saturday.

(i think we just need accessories since she has a dress picked out)

~clean house (YUK)

~unpack and LAUNDRY

~finalize new landscaping plans for next week

~and mostimportantly, get some SLEEP!

(did i say that already?:)

random STUFF...

~have you watched Duck Dynasty?

that show CRACKS me up:)

~Trader Joe's finally opened by me...and now i get it.

i really get why the parking lot is ALWAYS full!

~beach umbrellas FREAK me out.

ever since being hit in the face by a runaway umbrella 

exactly one year ago,

i'm like the umbrella police.

when we go to the beach, i need to see who has an umbrella,

which way the wind is...and if they look like they have a 

CLUE as to how to put it up securely...

before i lay down near them. 

otherwise, i have to watch their stupid umbrella the whole time.

i need umbrella therapy:)

~okay...enough random stuff.

i'm too tired to think much anyway:)

but i have to say a few words about STUFFY...as in

STUFFY behavior, STUFFY rules and STUFFY people.

being on the north shore of Oahu,

where surf RULES,

i saw a whole other outlook on life.

like i said, i'll write more...WAY more later:)

but one thing that struck me is we are all so STUFFY these days.

so uptight.

it was soooooo relaxing and laid back.

a simple, "unplugged" life.

kind of a daily reminder of what's important, you know?

that life is GOOD.

even my sometimes slightly STUFFYish husband, (wonderful as he is:)

already misses the simple, happy place we lived for a week.

and let me tell you, that says something.

i mean, we're talking Mr. Five Star Hotel here...

and he already wants to be back there.

simple...

the most unexpected thing to come from this trip.

blessings and life lessons aren't always what we think, are they?

now i promise to STOP rambling...

go back to bed for a few...and let you go!

Be Blessed today!

Suzanne

Aloha...Palm Sunday, Bunnies, Bunny Bait and Hawaii

Happy Day, Happy Day...
it's Palm Sunday!

like i said...
HAPPY DAY!

ordinarily, i wouldn't make clog up a Palm Sunday post with
other stuff...
but i'm not sure when i'll be able to post again so here goes...

 we are off to Hawaii tomorrow!

the NorthShore...

surf capitol of the world...

and the place we were married 20 years ago:)

we always promised the girls 

we'd take them back to the place it all began...

so away we go!

we'll do a bit of this...

and this...

(shopping on the north shore:)

and this...

(horseback riding on the beach)

and we will celebrate Easter Sunday morning services on the beach with

North Shore Christian Church.

Our Prayers are with you and your ohana!
May your testimony be sweet praises to God!

you might remember it as Bethany Hamilton's church

in the movie Soul Surfer.

it should be a very special Easter morning!

now, let's talk about BUNNIES...

get ready to say "AWWWWW"

i think SOMEBUNNY has been eating too much

BUNNY BAIT:)

what's bunny bait?

THIS is bunny bait...

and it is YUMMY!!!!!

according to Sing for my Supper, here is all you do...
Bunny Bait
1 bag popcorn, popped
6 oz. white chocolate candy coating
1 bag Easter M&Ms
pretzel sticks, broken into small pieces (if desired)
colorful sprinkles, (if desired)
Place the popped popcorn in a large bowl with the broken up pretzels and M&Ms. Heat the candy coating in the microwave in 30 second intervals, stirring after each time, until melted and smooth.
Drizzle the candy coating over the popcorn mixture and stir to coat. The pretzels and M&Ms will sink to the bottom, so make sure to get those stirred in and coated with the rest of the popcorn.
Spread out on a large piece of wax paper, top with a few sprinkles (if desired) and let cool. Break into pieces and serve in a large bowl.

(pinterest)


and to make an ADORABLE bunny bum cake...

 go to Betty Crocker for directions.

well friends,
i'm outta here!
have a BLESSED Palm Sunday and Easter...
and be sure to whip up a bunch of that bunny bait:)
God Bless...
Suzanne

Truly Blessed....

so...I celebrated my 48th trip around the sun...

and it doesn't matter one bit if anyone knows my age.

i'm just happy to be living this life:)

and i had an AMAZING birthday!

my family is so special.

they really thought about this one, that's for sure!

at the hospital where my husband works,

they have something called 

"The Garden of Hope and Courage".

it's so pretty and peaceful...

a place to remember or honor special people

and also a calming retreat for patients, visitors or anyone in the community

who wants to enjoy this special place.

WELL, we were going downtown to my favorite little italian

place (for WHITE pizza...YUM)

and we had to meet my husband at the garden.

there he was, sitting on a bench...

he invited me over, scooted to make room for me...

 and then I saw the plaque!

They had donated money to the hospital garden in MY name

and bought me my very own bench!

 can you believe that? 

and did I mention that this garden sits right outside the window area where

i would go should I have a relapse for MS and need IV treatments?

oh my gosh...how special is that!
when it cools off around here, I can't wait to go sit on MY bench:)
see...i'm blessed for sure with this family of mine.

but wait...it's not over.

after our DELICIOUS birthday dinner,

we went home to cake.

My girls made MINI CAKES for me!

 You simply clean out a few cans (from canned peaches, tomatoes...)

and bake the cakes in the cans...

VOILA...mini cakes!

We had vanilla, german chocolate and red velvet!

then...MORE gifts...and treats...

i got yummy candles, pj's, books...to name a few...

and more BIG surprises!

Gift #1...a cowboy hat because the girls knew I always wanted one.

Sweet:)

Gift #2...a cowboy type bling belt...

Cute:)

Gift #3...VIP tickets to see Rascal Flatts in concert the next weekend

in W. Palm Beach, our old stomping grounds.

OMG...are you kidding?  

they're one of my favorites.

so off we went, us three girls in our cowboy hats...

to our first "country" concert.

  and we ALL loved it, including my husband:)

then we went to our old church the next morning which I doubt

I'll ever stop missing, so that was like an added bonus.

we had so much fun and you know what?

i was reminded of how cool it is to give and receive gifts that someone

really took the time to think about, plan and surprise someone with.

i often forget that and just head to the mall but no more!

from now on, I will be a CREATIVE gift giver:)

to my family...thank you so much.

I LOVE YOU!!!

The flu...and the Best Christmas Ever!

First it was Jordie and now it's me...Mrs. Claus. Have you had your flu shots yet? Because let me tell you, it is NOT fun. But hey, at least I'll get it over with before Christmas.

On that note, I do not feel like posting anything and yet I feel bad because this is my favorite month to blog. What to do...

Ah ha...I know! I'm going to link you to my friend Trudy's blog.


Let me tell you something about Trudy. If we hadn't had such a messed up Thanksgiving, my Thanksgiving blog was going to be about things this past year I am grateful for. On that list is my friend Trudy. We "met" this year via blogland and I just love her! She and her husband are expecting their first child together so she is feeling especially blessed. What she probably does not realize is what a blessing she is to others.

Reading Trudy's blog is like reading a daily devotional. She makes me laugh, cry and always makes me think! She is truly a beautiful person. I hope to meet Trudy in person someday but in the meantime, I will continue to get to know her through her blog.

If you have not visited Trudy's blog at Third Time's A Charm, you need to do so...asap!
She wrote a beautiful post today titled "The Best Christmas Ever". It's what is on so many of our minds and hearts these days and Trudy was able to put it into words for us all.
Please visit this beautiful lady while I am sick...and every day after, too!:-) Just click on any of the links or her button/pic and it will take you to her blog.

Hugs, Suzanne