Simply Cinderella

My alarm clock went off at 5:00am today. I had a job interview at 6:00am. It's currently 7:00am.   I had planned to go back to bed once I got home, but I found myself as awake as ever.  It might've been the coffee I had on the drive... but I honestly think I would have been just as perky without it. You see, as much as in theory I don't like waking up early, I absolutely love it.  If you find yourself puzzling over the fact that no matter how late you sleep in you still can't find the energy to make it through the day, I was right there with you.  Especially on my days off I wouldn't even set an alarm clock, I just let myself wake up whenever I felt like it.  In the moment it feels like the best thing ever.  But I usually found myself exhausted by 3 in the afternoon.  Was it because the night before I'd stay up until 1am?  I mean, after all, if I was going to sleep until 10 I was still getting 8 hours, right?  Well, it really wasn't the best idea for several

 If you're an Eeyore like me, joy doesn't come so naturally to us.  Anyone who has a stronger melancholic personality knows that even a smile takes a bit of effort, let alone being joyful in all things.  See, we aren't naturally happy a lot of the time, and if we aren't happy, where's the joy in that? But without joy, life just seems to be a bit of a miserable existence, doesn't it? That's why it's so important to be joyful even without happiness. Joy isn't a feeling.  Happiness is an emotion, but joy is a choice,  and a virtue.  It's a fruit of the Holy Spirit, and therefore can be felt even in the darkness of life if you're in a state of grace. But joy isn't always the easiest to achieve when you're stuck in a rut.  Trust me, I've been there more times than 1, or 100.  So how do you overcome your melancholy when it seems to outweigh all the joy buried inside you? Try smiling. Smile at the person you walk by on the street.  Smile

 Put me to work on an art project, and I will be over the moon! And that's exactly what my grandma did when I visited her with my family this summer.  She had an old outdoor statue of Our Lady that was in desperate need of a facelift.  I could tell this statue had once been stunning but was now in so much disrepair only the imagination could tell what it looked like before. When I was asked to complete this project, I was thrilled, but absolutely at a loss as to where I should even start.  I tried searching for how-to's but I wasn't finding exactly what I needed for this specific statue.  The thing with this one is that it had previously been painted: most tutorials were for statues that had not been painted.  I did however use this Wikihow article as a reference for most of the steps I took. I did things a little differently though given my circumstances, so I'm going to share with you my method as well as the things I wish I had known to do, but no one told me... so

 When you were little, in times of trouble, there was always an incomparable comfort found in your mother.  If you fell and scraped your knee, saw something scary, or couldn't sleep... it was almost always an immediate response to run to mom.  Or if you were excited, brought home a picture from school, found a good friend, or saw a pretty butterfly, mom was usually the first to hear about it and help us enjoy the beautiful little celebrations in life.  Christ gave us our mothers as those who would comfort, nurture, and care for us, and one day we too may be mothers and care for our own children. But He also had a mother, one more perfect and loving than other women have been able to be, as she had the special privilege of being the Immaculate Conception.  So who better to turn to in times of trouble, or even joy, than the most Holy mother who is constantly loving us and looking out for us? "Trust in me, my daughter, that I am thy Mother." I just wanted to share with you a

Hello my lovelies! Thank you to Sarah over at  In Cordibus Jesu et Mariae  for nominating me in this bright and cheery tag!!  I love answering questions like these, I find them great ways to get to know more specifically the visuals and thoughts in someone's head, even your own, since they provide opportunity for some self-thought.  Rules: Thank the blogger who nominated you in the blog post and link back to their blog. Answer the 11 questions the blogger asked you. Nominate 11 new blogs to receive the award and write them 11 new questions. List the rules and display the Sunshine Blogger Award logo in your post and/or on your blog. What is your favorite time of the year? What makes it your favorite? I would probably say Autumn. It's the relief after the summer heat, the changing of colors from the bright hues to the soft warm tones, that make it a somewhat magical time for me. It's also when my birthday is so that might be part of the reason.. If you could learn any musi

 For as long as I can remember I've had one instinct that has stood out more so than others. It wasn't to do right, it wasn't to do things my way, it wasn't even to be happy. All I wanted was to be liked. Not loved, just liked.  Approved of, one of the cool kids,  as they say.  If I stood out or felt too different from those around me I became incredibly insecure.  When skinny jeans became the "in" thing, you bet I wanted a pair.  If I didn't know the latest and greatest songs on the radio that my friends knew by heart, I felt left out.  For years I've struggled with this lack of confidence all stemming from the desire to be liked by others.  And it's brought me to a bit of a miserable state, to say the least.  It's too much of a burden, always caring what goes on in the heads of other people.  Especially when you know in your heart, this isn't who you want to be.  Deep down I longed to be able to desire only the approval of Our Lord, but I

Admit it, you sang along to the title of this post. But I'm talking about the zones in a different kind of sea.  You know the saying, " There's plenty of fish in the sea."  I'm talking about that  sea. Honestly, it's become increasingly difficult to understand the differences between the ever so delicate stages that lead to relationships.  Are we just friends?  Are we more than that?  Does he want more than that?  Am I raising false hopes?  The questions never end. So let's simplify it. You and your potentially prospective candidate for lifelong marriage could fit into one of three categories:  The Friendzone, Courtship, and Engagement. For today we'll focus on the first and foremost. The Friend Zone:  Ah yes, the dreaded space where one knows another individual but only to the point that doesn't pass beyond "just good friends".  Here you can enjoy the company of another, usually in groups, so as to keep things on the surface without divi