Will's 14-year-old trip - Our visit to Port Huron

When you get to Michigan, there are several ways to enter Canada. Two are in the Detroit area and the other is about an hour/ hour half north of Detroit in a town called Port Huron. (There are others further north but I'm not going to discuss those.)

While making my plans for the trip, I decided I wanted to go further north. It would have been cool to go through the tunnel and I had already gone over the bridge in Detroit.

Port Huron has a beach that is on Lake Huron. Since neither Will and I had seen Lake Huron, I thought it would be perfect for us to stop at the beach for a short rest stop.

Before we got there though, we went to a Biggby coffee in a suburb of Detroit. While trying to find it, we went past the exit for 8 Mile which reminded me of Eminem's song Lose Yourself from the movie "8 Mile."

That was an adventure in of itself trying to find the Biggby. I wish I had found a different one to go to because my patience was about shot once we got there. Traffic and the ways the roads are set up in the area made it difficult for me to get there. Honestly, it was just off the exit.)

Once we got my coffee and Will's smoothie, we were back on the road to the beach. After we got there, I pulled into the parking lot of the beach and noticed the prices for parking. It would cost me $20. We were only going to be there for about 30 minutes. 

I pulled in and went to pay. I explained my dilemma to the person who was minding the pay booth. She allowed us to go in without paying. I promised her I would be in and out within 30 minutes which is what we did.

Here are some photos from the visit to the beach.

Right after we got done at the beach, we got some gas because it was going to be the last time I would get gas until we were back in the United States.

Then we crossed into Ontario. The border patrol asked us what we were doing in Canada, if we had anything to declare, and if his dad was aware I was taking him across the border. Once we answered all of those questions, we were sent on the way.

Join me next time for our quick visit to Sarnia, Ontario.

Have a magical day,
Traci

How my stubbornness helped me succeed

My zodiac sign is Taurus. Whenever people hear the word Taurus, they usually think of one word and that is stubborn.

So am I stubborn? My friends and family will say, "Yes!" She can be extremely stubborn when she wants to be.

However, what does the word stubborn really mean? 

When I looked it up in the dictionary, here is what I came up with: having or showing dogged determination not to change one's attitude or position on something.

Okay, that is true I can be stubborn about some things. Then I thought about my life. I've been doing a lot of reflecting on how my past has shaped my present.

That is me on the right. I am with Celine, my French roommate from Walt Disney World.

I was 20 years old and on my way to be the first one in my family to get my bachelor's degree. I was not going to allow anyone to be in my way. In that manner, I was stubborn like a Taurus, my zodiac sign.

The next 3.5 years after this photo was taken were difficult. If I hadn't had God on my side, my stubbornness would have killed me. I was working myself way too much with actual work and schooling. 

It was not until I met my husband did I finally slow down a little bit. My stubborn side kept me going though because I was bound and determined to get that degree.

Some am I like my zodiac sign? Yes, I am stubborn which can be viewed as a bad quality when in reality if it is used correctly is a quality that is actually good.

There are also other qualities of a Taurus that I possess - patience, stability, hard-working, love of food, and determination. I possess all of those traits. Today I just wanted to focus on the one that got me where I am today.

Have a magical day,
Traci

Will's 14-year-old trip - Day 1 - The Michigan Welcome Center

I started a tradition with my boys. When they turned 14, we took a trip so we could bond.

Last spring, I asked Will where he wanted to go on his trip. He gave me a tall order. He wanted to go out of the country, the beach, and Disney. Since we aren't made of money, I needed a way to get his wishes fulfilled.

It was decided we would go up to London, Canada and then he decided we would go to Niagara Falls. Once we got to Niagara Falls, we would meet up with my friend for the remainder of the trip.

Here are photos from the first day which was a traveling day. We couldn't do much once we got to London because of thunderstorms. Instead, we hung out in the hotel room.

These first photos are from the welcome center in Michigan. There were Mayflies all over the building. They live for only 24 hours. Seeing a lot of them is a good thing. It meant that Lake Erie was healthy.

The coolest part of the rest area is the playgrounds that are handicapped accessible. So neat and inclusive.

I Open Up My Heart

Every morning, my phone starts to sing "I open up my heart. You can love me or not." It's 6 o'clock in the morning and that's my alarm going off.

The song lyric is from P!nk's song "I Am Here." Even though there are few lyrics in the song I disagree with, the majority of the song is positive. When I was at her concerts, it was like we were at a gospel revival when the song was sung.

There are several lyrics that resonate in me when I hear them. They really make me think.

The first lyric is the opening lyric "I open up my heart. You can love me or not." 

Not everyone is going to like you. You might not be their cup of tea which is okay. God has said to be joy and kindness where ever you are in the world. So when I hear those words, it reminds me of the commandment God has issued on my heart and life. It's not up to me to make people to like me. My job is to be his light in the world.

Now the next lyric is questionable because she says there is no such thing as sin. I know there is sin in the world. There has been since the Earth was created by God.

Humans will always ask "Where do we go when we go?" If you have unwavering belief in God, you already know the answer- I'm going to Heaven. However there are times in life, when the Devil will enter your mind and try to tell you that you are not going to go to Heaven. We need to resist the talk from the Devil. When I hear that lyric, I can fully answer, "I'm going Home - Heaven."

The other lyric that resonates through me when I hear the song is "I've already seen the bottom, so there's nothing to fear. I know that I'll be ready when the Devil is near." It reminds me of the 23rd Psalm.

I'm going through a hard time emotionally because of the death of my mom. The Devil has tried weasel his way into my mind. I cannot be fearful because I know God has my back. I will arm myself with scripture for when he tries to take over my mind.


The final lyric that resonates in my heart is "I am HERE!" I don't need a spotlight on me to know I'm doing his work. However, I do need to remind myself that even though life has gotten tough I am still here living. I need to work on God's plan for me even though I don't quite know what his plan is for me.

Have a magical day,

Traci

2020 - The Year of Perservance

Instead of creating resolutions, I come up with words to describe the type of year I would like.

2017 was the year of the bucket list. In August of 2016, I had lost my sister. She was a hermit of sorts not leaving her apartment that much. Tanya had traveled a little and all of it had been with me. I decided in 2017, I needed to cross off items on my bucket list. I traveled to western New York; Charleston, SC, and Pittsburgh, PA during the year. Plus I got my first tattoo during the year.

2018 was the year of getting healthy. I had a health scare at the beginning of November 2017. I needed to make sure I got myself healthy. The health scare ended up being gallstones that needed to be taken out with surgery.

I didn't have a word in 2019. Or at least, I don't recall creating a word. 

2019 ended up being good for the first half of the year. Then the tornadoes rolled through. Even though I was not directly affected, I was indirectly affected because the neighbor I teach in was hit with one of the tornadoes. 

My husband's and my life changed in August of 2019 because he went back to college. 

Then the worse thing possible happened in October. My mom died. I found her on the morning of October 12. She had died probably on the 7th or the 8th.

I went from having a mom and sister in August 2016 to having neither of them by October 2019. Now I'm an orphan. One of my friends has stepped up to be my chosen sister so I'm not totally alone in this world.

I've been through so much in the last 3 years. It's time to get me back. I need to persevere and not only get me back but a better version of myself.

How am I going to do that?

1. I've started to go to Water Aerobics. I need to take care of my body and mental state. Water Aerobics does both for me. (Mom and Tanya died of heart-related conditions. I've always been more active than them but have never really exercised.)

2. Reading the Bible this year. I would like to read through the entire Bible. I'm currently in the middle of Genesis. Plus I follow Sweet Blessing's monthly writing plan. You write a few verses a day based on a theme. The theme for January 2020 is God's timing.

3. Taking care of my mental state. I've started attending a Celebrate Recovery group at a local church. I need to get over my past and the grief I've been feeling in order to persevere. 

4. When I was on my bereavement leave from work, I was sat down by my husband. He told me that I needed to write whether it was to publish or just for myself. So I want to continue to write the book.

My family needs me to take care of me. If I don't then, I can't give them my full self. Instead of being connected to them, I will become isolated.

So join me on this journey of me persevering and becoming a better version of myself.

Traci

Laughter

As I walk down the hall for the millionth time on this day, I see that the people working in the office are not busy. So, what do I do? I begin to dance. I could never be on Dancing with the Stars. As they say, “white people can’t dance,” well in my case that is a true statement.

The people in the office, who know me, begin to laugh. They are not laughing at me because they know that is my nature to make light of a situation. Meanwhile the student I’m escorting back to their class or to my room is trying to disappear. They don’t want to see a middle-aged teacher dancing especially since she doesn’t have rhythm.

Laughing is the best medicine. God gave us the ability to laugh. He knows that we need to release the stress of being on earth and dealing with earthly problems. So, he gave us that gift. Not many people use his gift and walk through the world with a “chip” on their shoulder. 

In Ecclesiastes 3:4, King Solomon wrote “A time to cry and a time to laugh. A time to grieve and a time to dance.”

This verse reminds me of us going through my mom’s belongings after she died this past October. There were plenty of tears while we went through her items especially when we found birth certificates from my grandparents and my uncle who had passed right before I was born. Then there was the laughter when we found things like a fake key and an expired AARP card in a baggie in the fridge door behind the mustard.

Even though we were grieving, we were able to laugh which made us feel better even though it was a temporary fix. Those memories of us laughing will be imprinted in our minds to be replayed, so when we feel sad, we can laugh.

I wish I could say to my mom, “Really, mom, why do you have these items in the fridge? It doesn’t make any sense.”

          “Thank you, God for giving us the gift of laughter. It helped me through the most difficult moment of my life.”

          Almost six years ago, I spent a few hours with one of my favorite teachers. Ms. Adams taught me not only about world history but also about how to laugh. Many years after my graduation, I realized that she lived around the corner from the building I was assigned to that school year. We had snow squalls one day and the roads were dangerous so I called her and asked her if I could visit with her until the snow had died down and the roads were cleaned off.

          We spent that few hours catching up and just talking. She was suffering from a chronic illness, but her zest for life was still there. That May she wrote on my Facebook wall, “Happy Birthday, teacher friend,” something I’ll always treasure.

A few weeks after my birthday, she died from her illness. When I went to her funeral, I laughed for hours about her antics at school and in her personal life. I will forever say, “It was the funniest funeral I have ever been to.”

In her obituary, it read "Fear is the lock and laughter is the key." One of my most vivid memories of her from high school was during Christmas time in my sophomore year. She decided we needed to learn how to play “Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer” using our nose. Then we went on tour to one of my other favorite teacher’s room for us to serenade that class. Can I remember how to play that song on my nose? No, but anytime I think of Ms. Adams, this vivid memory fills my mind.

She taught us that laughter is the key to living a full life. It's good medicine especially when you have a broken heart. It does not allow the Devil to come into your life.

Another lesson that she indirectly taught me was it is okay to be silly when you are teaching. You don’t always need to be serious for your students to learn. 🤣

Proverbs 17:22

The Devil doesn't like a joyful heart. He wants to take your joy away from you to bring despair. 

Proverbs 31:25 says, "She is clothed with strength and dignity; she can laugh at the days to come."

As I live my life, I need to remember to laugh and not allow myself to be bogged down with the worries of the world. Those worries are often if not always from the Devil. He wants us to feel as though we are powerless so he can take over our minds. I need to resist his hold over my mind and just laugh.

I could say I need to be like Ms. Adams but in reality, I need to be just me - laughing through life because I know God has my back. I know I am one of his dear ones.

These photos were taken in Niagara Falls. I know I looked like a fool in both of them. However, they show my zest for life and show I can laugh and be myself. 

The boy in the second photo is my youngest. He is just rolling his eyes because this is typical of me.

Dear Lord, Bless us so that we can laugh. When life becomes difficult, we need to remember to find time to laugh. It's truly the best medicine and will keep our physical body well. More importantly, it will become our armor against the evil one. Thank you for this special gift.

In Jesus' name, Amen.

Have a blessed day,

Traci