Author: annm2705

ACTIONS NOT WORDS

SUNDAY REFLECTIONS

I don’t attend church every Sunday, but when I do, it’s truly because I want to be there and connect with God in a different way, than personally through prayer; it is meaningful to me.  It really seems the discussions are relevant to things happening in my life when I am there too.  So in my thoughts, this is God’s message getting through to me.

THE DRIVE TO CHURCH – DECISIONS

This past Sunday, on the way to church, I was talking to my son about “why I go to church and what happens” and about how sometimes when I’m making decisions I will just “have a feeling inside” about which direction I should go, and truly, it’s not always the easy decision “I want”, but I just have a feeling inside that “I should”do it. Is this God letting me know what I should do, because it’s not always what I want to do? During the service, my son and I looked at each other, because it was really ironic, the things we talked about in the car on the way there were the things that Pastor Greg was talking about, almost as if he heard our conversation.  My son noticed it too.

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From The Crossing- Facebook Page

THE MUSIC – CONNECTING PERSONALLY

Another interesting thing happened, this church has phenomenal music by the way, so that probably explains more of why I connect so well.  Anyway, one musician told us a story of how he and a friend had a falling out after a very long friendship, and that he felt like God was telling him to apologize to his friend, which he did apologize, but didn’t get the response from his friend he was expecting.  Anyway that night at 2 am this melody came into his head and he wrote this song until about 4 am; it was a beautiful song. Here is the link:  Kenny DeShields “That’s When You Love”   Relating to this event, in my own experience, I also seem to get middle of the night ideas or early morning ideas.  Is this God providing guidance or influence?

THE MESSAGE

The bible topic this day was the two most important things we can do: “Love God and Love Your Neighbor” The Pastor went into detail on what it means to “Love your Neighbor” and the relevant scripture passage was the Good Samaritan Parable  I’ve heard this story many times before, but he made it more relevant, by asking questions:  he asked everyone to come up with reasons why the first two people didn’t help the beaten man and the answers were: “no one was looking, they didn’t want to be inconvenienced, it was someone else’s job or duty, didn’t want to get involved, etc.”   It is here where it relates to all of us, those could all be OUR reasons for not helping someone in the present day.  How many times have we thought those things in our heads when we didn’t help someone? 

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The Pastor also made another point, if we were truly starving and we were offered a) bread or b) the recipe for bread?   Which would we want at that point in our life?  Of course, the actual bread more immediately addresses the need.  He related this concept of the bread and recipe to people offering empathy or sympathy in WORDS to others, but not taking ACTIONS.  Wow!  I bet we can all relate to that in our lives!  Have you ever had someone tell you what you “wanted” or
“needed” to hear, but not make the personal effort to truly connect with you or take action?  It really feels like empty words, doesn’t it?  Have we done that to others?

SUMMARY: Loving your neighbor may be inconvenient.

MY LIFE EXAMPLES

This also related to me, personally, with the access we have to technology today, we are always connected.  I made the mistake this weekend of multi-tasking, I was distracted by a message that I hadn’t seen.  The message came in about 4 hours earlier so I was curious what it said and clicked on it when I should have been paying attention to the conversation I was having with the person.  This person is 100% more important to me than the message, but I didn’t show it when I quit paying attention to look at the message.  I wasn’t being present in the moment and I offended the other person and felt terrible about it, but I couldn’t take it back!  I did apologize, but the damage was already done at that point.  Sometimes being there for a person may simply mean being fully present and truly listening –  without distractions.  This situation has happened to me, with roles reversed before and it made me feel like I was unimportant.  An action not words example can simply be actively, truly listening to someone, and hearing what they are saying.  And I blew that this weekend!

When someone gives you their full attention, isn’t that awesome? When this happens, it is not only noticed, but remembered, even years later, because not many people truly listen.  So many people have other things going through their minds and may only capture a fraction of what is said.  I seriously remember specific people who listened attentively, because they stand out from all others.

FRIENDS TAKING ACTION

I also had another example of Actions Not Words, that I will always remember:  Our family was away on vacation and had a death in the family while we were away.  A fairly new neighbor heard about this and took immediate action:  Michelle C. contacted people that she met through me and spread the word. She went grocery shopping and Maria R. provided a meal so when we got home we could focus on family and not have to worry about the food basics.  This completely amazed me, the action she took and the other friends who did as well. Logically people do not have much food in their refrigerators when they leave for vacation, so she and others took care of that for us and we didn’t even have to think what we needed!  By the time we arrived home, it was already in our refrigerator!

So in summary, the next time someone is in need the message was to try for Actions not Words in addressing their situation.

THE CHURCH

If you are looking for a Christian Church, they offer online Live service every week, so you can log in where ever you are located as long as you have internet service. Here is their website:  https://www.wcrossing.org/, they are on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter too.

This is an amazing church in my opinion!  My friend, Michelle C. had encouraged me to check out the church years ago, but I was  a member of another church, so I didn’t. Then another friend of mine Krista K. also encouraged me, and I finally did in December 2015.  It was definitely something I should have done a long time ago and since then, I’ve found many of my friends from all different denominations also attend this church.

Have a Make it Count week!  

by Categories: FAITH, Improvement, MUSICTags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , Leave a comment

“Hat Trick” = Camping, Music, Water!

Yes, we scored:  an incredible experience!  This post is a “Throwback Thursday” kind of post to August 28th 2015. This was an escape from stress at the time, because music usually makes things better!  It was a last minute decision to register for the Annual 93.7 The Bull Float trip, which is how most of the fun usually begins- spontaneously! I happened to be listening to the radio while working one day and heard the lineup, usually we have soccer game commitments every weekend, but that weekend was game free and there were no other commitments.

The Friday night lineup was Gloriana and Michael Ray, and Saturday was Drake White and Joe Nichols. I couldn’t wait to get there, but it was only a week away so I called to check if Ozark Outdoors still had availability, and thankfully, they did, but all that was left was individual inner tubes and a first come first serve campsite, so “let’s go” was my thought, we’ll just make the best of it!  A quick trip to the store to pick up some food, drinks and glow sticks, of course, was all that was needed.

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So Friday we arrived mid-day and the campground facilities were very nice.

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We went in and picked up the t-shirts,wristbands and registration package and were directed to the location of potentially available campsites.

 

 

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As we drove to the camp sites, people were having a pretty good time and hitting it hard, so I was a little nervous how this was going to turn out, because most did not have kids with them.

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We found a nice somewhat private site surrounded by trees amazingly and not too far from where the concerts would be.  As soon as we pitched the tent and got settled, we headed to concert.  We took bag chairs but really they were more of a nuisance because the crowd kept compressing.  These types of situations can either go well or terribly bad based on personalities, so if the personality is easy going, a “go with the flow” kind of person, all is good.

The concert was awesome!  Michael Ray had just released the Album “Michael Ray” which of course I bought the entire album after hearing just one song, and it continues to be one of my favorite albums!  I wasn’t as familiar with Gloriana, but did know a few songs and the show was great!.

Saturday was the float trip: “so wake up and head out!”  Luckily some of the staff noticed us, probably because we were the only ones with kids, and saw that we had individual tubes reserved and had a little empathy!

Fortunately, they worked it out and got a raft for us! Thank God!  That made it so much better!  The beginning of the float was another moment where I was rethinking if I made a mistake because of the kids ages and what is ahead of us on the river, but people were surprisingly very respectful and conscientious, telling the kids how lucky they were to have this experience.  We decided to skip “The Sandbar Stop” thinking we shouldn’t push our luck.  It ended up being a good time on the water.

A few of the water scenes we experienced:

Saturday night was Drake White, who has such a great personality and connected so well with the crowd, I only knew one of his songs at the time: “It Feels Good” and liked it as soon as I heard it because his voice was so different from everyone else and the music was too.  He is such a humble, down to earth, personable guy with great stories during the concert.

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After a long day on the water, camping and then the concerts, by the time Joe Nichols was up, the youngest was getting restless, so we headed back to camp after only a few songs, but could still hear the music from the campsite.  It was probably good that we left the concert when we did as soon as we heard Joe Nichols start singing “Tequila Makes Her Clothes Come Off”, it was the right departure time for us!

A first time experience and the oldest wanted to come back- but with friends next time. 🙂

A beach trip, like this, next time!

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“This Wine is Making Me Awesome” – October Outing Trip

Hermann, MO

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In Missouri, if you like wine and love the outdoors, there is no better place to be than at a winery in October! This year we went to Hermann, MO.  I look forward to this annual weekend trip with friends; the people attending may change from year to year, but it usually ends up with a tag along story that is repeated year after year.

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Herman History 

In 1857, 11,000 acres were purchased by a school teacher, George Bayer, who was the appointed agent of the German Settlement Society of Philadelphia.  When the first settlers arrived, they were surprised by the terrain and rolling hillsides and were faced with a development challenge.  Making the best of this situation, they planted vineyards on the hillsides and 10 year later a steamboat arrived with St. Louis tourist visitors, attending the first Weinfest.

Today the month of October is Oktoberfest and is filled with celebrations, music and entertainment all month long.

ARRIVAL

by Car:  There are several ways to arrive at Herman, if driving via Interstate 70 or 44.  In my opinion, the most scenic route is Interstate-44 through Washington, MO on State Highway 100.  This drive is phenomenal for viewing the colorful fall leaves with rolling hillsides and incredible pristine farmlands.  If you often drive through the countryside on road trips, you will likely find a few dilapidated buildings, but I do not recall seeing any on this route!  I have never seen so many beautiful estates, one right after another.  And this highway 100 is simply gorgeous for about a 30- 35-mile stretch.

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by Bus:  If you have a large group, a private bus, is the way to go; we’ve done that in past years and it is a great experience!  This past weekend, I was driving behind a Cavallo bus as an example.

by Train: You can also take the train to get there, here’s a link:  Amtrak.

by-train

WHERE TO STAY

I recommend booking a place early, we ran into a couple who was visiting for the day and the only room that was available cost $500 per night.  There are so many cute bed and breakfast locations all over; you can find them here.

On our trip, we were fortunate enough to be guests at Mom and Papa Pratte’s home nestled into the beautiful countryside nearby; they are not technically a bed and breakfast location but could be with their accommodations and wonderful hospitality they provided us!

It’s best to have a place to stay or a driver after a long day at the winery!

OUR STARTING POINT:  Hermannhof Vineyards 

“Hermannhof’s ten magnificent stone cellars and charming brick superstructure are among the 100 early Hermann buildings placed on the National Register of Historic places by the Federal Government.”  The Dierberg family purchased this property in 1974, the family is known in St. Louis for their Dierberg’s grocery stores.

Second to location, meeting the people is the next best adventure! Who knew we would meet three Aviation Engineers, in St. Louis on business but visiting Hermann and actually from Germany on this trip?

And if you show up in lederhosen you are bound to be in pictures!

SECOND STOP

After an unseasonably warm day hillside, our next stop was the air-conditioned Tin Mill.

tin-mill

LAST STOP

No trip to Hermann is complete without stopping at the Concert Hall and Barrel Bar, for some drinks and appetizers, music and dancing.  Lucky for us, we had Papa Pratte to pick us up at the end of the day!

WINDING DOWN

After safely arriving home to Mom and Papa Pratte’s we are greeted with even more entertainment awaiting: music and a fire, at least for those who could stay awake!  It was a wonderful weekend with friends!

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by Categories: fall travel, Hermann, TRAVELTags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , 1 Comment

$pending Time

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Isn’t that what we really do, “$pend” time?  We receive this gift of time and then we spend it.  There are so many ways to spend our time, and once we spend it, it’s gone.  Understanding that our time is our most important resource and asset, how are we spending it?   Will our contribution make a difference to others?  Will the way we spend our time today help someone, or many others, in the future?

Morning Thoughts

Improvement has been running through my mind frequently.  My most thoughtful moments of the day are when I first wake up.  I don’t remember dreams very often, so I’m not sure if that’s where these thoughts originate, but some days when I wake up, I have specific thoughts that pop into my head and here they are:

Brands and Loyalty – Experience

We all know that we are compelled to associate with certain brands, brands that align with our core values and beliefs in life.  Did you ever meet someone who appeared a certain way, but turned out to be not at all what you originally thought?  (this funny video I recently saw has a great message about appearances delivered in hilarious way) Are we a reflection of our core values and beliefs, or disjointed?  A brand can be a company as well as a person and I completely believe when our brand identity no longer reflects our true core, we lose loyalty of those with whom we connected, personally as well as professionally.  So for this reason, it is truly important: to reflect our brand, don’t waste time trying to be something we are not passionate about.  We accomplish so much more when we are passionate about something, we are driven, nothing stands in our way, we work tirelessly to achieve our goals, we motivate others, others leave happier from their experience with us, this is where customer service excels and the experience is incredible.  (Think of Disney, think of Anheuser Busch- the original company) What if the entire workforce or team we belong to did this?  How amazing would that company or product be?  We all have experiences in customer service and can tell immediately who’s connected and who’s disjointed.  The customer service provided by someone who’s connected is simply amazing and we want to come back!

Honesty- Being True, Real

Isn’t honesty something we all want?  I almost wrote “expect” instead of “want”, but realized I don’t often expect it, but I want it.  Why is it that so many of us get uncomfortable being honest?  I’m betting it has to do with acceptance?  I think we generally want to be accepted by others and being honest really puts us “out there” and vulnerable to acceptance by others, we may not be “liked” for what we say.   I’ve also noticed how dishonesty truly tears apart a person or a company.  How many great companies can you think of that have fallen due to lack of honesty?  Or a more relevant question now, think politics!  Ha ha; I won’t even go there!  Our connection to someone is disrupted when we don’t see honesty.  On the positive side, when someone is honest, we may not agree with them, but don’t you appreciate honesty?  For me, I respect someone more for being honest; that shows me their strength and courage!  It also shows being true to oneself, being real, and who doesn’t love that?

 

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Following a Passion- Happiness

Wouldn’t it be incredible if everyone we knew in our life was following their passion, the vibe would be so positive! Instead of forcing ourselves into a role that doesn’t quite fit, what if we became the best at our talents?  Followed our Passion? Create something amazing?

As an example of this is: I am Christian and have a strong faith, but over time, I’ve realized I don’t fit into a religion and that’s been a struggle for some to understand.  I also was forcing myself to conform, probably for acceptance, but not being honest about it.  I’m not being disrespectful, but I don’t believe “one size fits all” as it relates to a religion; I believe it’s more of a personal connection through prayer.  My life is truly different and better when I pray.  Part of my belief is that God gives us gifts and those who figure out what their gifts are and use them for good excel in life and are the happiest people.

Lifetime of Improvement

I also believe that once we find our passion, that’s not “the end” but rather the beginning, the starting point, because no matter where we find ourselves today, there is always room for improvement, no matter who you are or what you’ve accomplished so far.  Life is like the game of golf, you may get good at it, but you will never master it; there is always room for improvement!  Think of everything in our world that evolves over time:  transportation, technology, housing, businesses, cities, etc. If any of those stopped improving that would be the end.  There is so much that all of us can contribute in life; I hope you seek and realize your passion, explore it, cultivate it and continue to improve because you will be incredible if you do!

Life Events

Events in life can change us forever.  Some experiences are amazing and some we wish to forget. Life is a series of ups and downs, so it’s important to take what life hands you and be strong with it: Turn it into a positive!  This is a quote to keep in mind because it relates to everyone in our social circles: friends, family, and anyone who enters our lives:

Opened book and hand drawing building sketches
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A like-minded friend posted this video recently, great message with a humorous delivery to keep in mind:  Advice

Why do we do what we do?

The answer to this question is the important one; it is our driving force and it’s personal for each of us.  What is your Passion? Driving Force? How are you $pending Time?

It’s Friday, so “Cheers to You” on your journey in life!  I hope today is a great one for you and that you follow your passion and Making It Count- for you and for others in the future! …And have fun doing it!

 

 

 

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Mental vs. Physical Strength?

Tough mudder Missouri -2016

Participating in the Tough Mudder was suggested after our Bootcamp Fitness Group completed the Battlegrounds Mud Run this past May.

 

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May 2015- Battlegrounds Team- Big Mat Attack

 

In a moment of wanting another challenge, I agreed to do this.  I was most skeptical about completing the 10.5 miles, but we had five months to train before the event, so decided to do it.  Over the past five months, the anticipated team dwindled down to two of us, remaining committed to the Tough Mudder:  Beth and me.  But unfortunately the two of us didn’t fit in all the training we intended to do, so we were a little concerned about being able to finish.  There was late talk of canceling, but being so close to the date, the personal challenge and commitment were too strong and over-ruled.  I was thinking: “never give up”- now this is more about having the desire to complete this for many reasons.

TEAM MOTIVATION

Leading up to the date, Beth and I both ended up injuring ourselves. First, Beth injured her shoulder then I ended up with Tennis Elbow overusing it during my recent move and home renovations.  So this was turning into an endurance experiment:  Can the mind push through the physical setbacks and enable us to finish?   In my experience, my mind usually quits before my body does, as soon as it starts getting too tough, I don’t push through, I stop.  This is where “team motivation” comes in and is so important: My friend, Beth, was thinking that she might have to cancel if her shoulder didn’t improve, which I completely understood, because there is a lot of upper body strength required on the obstacles.  Of course I was disappointed when she said that, but understood.  But in this very same conversation, she added, “I’ll still go and run to support you!”  How amazing is that?!   A great example of being a motivating friend!  No one had to convince me to continue!  I was thinking there are people with greater physical challenges than I currently have who do way more amazing things, I need to push through it and just do it! I’ll use my other arm, and won’t let this be a limitation!  So we agreed, we’d give it our best shot and make it fun!

THE DAY OF THE EVENT

We had a 6 am departure with a 3-hour drive ahead and the forecast was sunny and 71 with a low of 46 degrees.  You really learn about a person during a long drive!  I learned that Beth had completed a video as a potential participant for the Survivor show, so I’m thinking heck yeah, I’ve got the right team member here!

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Traveling, I learned that Beth hasn’t kicked that Mountain Dew Habit! haha

The weather was absolutely gorgeous; we were so lucky!

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Pre-race:  Head Down Eyes Up- HDEU

The adrenaline started in the warm up zone with a very energetic DJ who motivated and entertained us doing the running man and had a few dance offs with some of the participants. We were all laughing.    At this event you will meet all kinds of people, the serious, the scared first timers, and those who plan to have the most fun: men dressed as women, spiderman, teenage mutant ninja turtles and on, hilarious.  Our wave time had some really fun people which made the day even better.  This event really emphasizes:  the race is not about time, it’s about teamwork.  And it certainly was!  Each person was challenged to give back in some way along the course, and we did.  We were limited in helping due to our upper body injuries, but we did wall squats and let people climb up us to get to the higher walls. They helped pull us up many mud walls!  The team attitude is amazing and a moving experience.  If you enjoy athletic challenges, this is a must do event!

THE OBSTACLES

Unfortunately, we didn’t have cameras with us for the obstacles because those would be fun to see, they did have photographers stationed so I’m hoping to get some later.  Here is a link to the obstacles. I think pictures and videos do more justice than any description I can give!

The last 4 obstacles occurred in the last 2 miles and were very noteworthy.  I didn’t count, but we had several mud hills with pits of water. Teamwork happened when someone would give your foot a boost at the bottom and another would grab your arm at the top and drag you up the muddy wall, then it was your turn to pull someone else up or give a boost.  We gave boosts, then helped hold the stronger guys’ legs as they pulled people up the wall.  There was once where I nearly slid face first back down into the water while holding someone’s leg, we were lifting a big guy but luckily he got a grip before the two of us plunged into the muddy water head first.  The most challenging were the last two:  The Arctic Enema and the Electric Shock.  By this time, I was cold and weak and the Arctic Enema challenge is to slide into an ice filled container of mud water then over two fences to get out with water up to your chin.  I’ve never felt so frozen! The last obstacle before getting the headband was the Electric Shock, that is intense!  The challenge is to run through water and over straw bales with electrical wires hanging from above. We were told as first timers to cover our heads with our arms, which we did.  I didn’t run, I tried to dodge the wires and crawl low, which might have been the wrong choice as I was popped four times.  The one that hurt the most was on the back of the head, which blew me forward and I screamed!  But I made it through to earn the orange head band and t-shirt!

THE AFTER PARTY

For me, just after getting shocked, mud from head to toe and freezing cold, with my teeth chattering uncontrollably, all I wanted was to get warm!  The event has rinse off areas consisting of hoses with spray nozzles.  I did the best I could to get the mud off, but couldn’t stop shivering so I just quit trying and went to get my clothes, my muscles were cramping so badly.  Finally, warm!  After changing we headed out for that beer, some photos, the DJ music and watching others go through the electric shock zone.  We had a blast and enjoyed the crazy fun people we met throughout the day.

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some photos,

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the DJ music and watching others go through the electric shock zone.  We had a blast and enjoyed the crazy fun people we met throughout the day.

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These were the crazy guys from our wave time, they called themselves “The Attention Whores”

So getting back to the question of physical vs mental, probably mental motivation as it relates to teamwork is the most important factor to finish this course.  The people you meet just make it awesome, the best team environment I’ve been in, helping one another. It was an incredible experience and one that I will remember forever!  Just do it someday, you won’t regret it!

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October Outings

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Hermannhof Winery- Herman, MO 2014 photo

October ranks near the top on my list of favorite months for getting outdoors in Missouri! The scenery and weather is so gorgeous, and there is so much to see and do, the month never seems long enough to fit it all in!  I love finding new things to do, places to visit and sharing great experiences. Today I visited www.visitmo.com and saw they do not have an Instagram (IG) account surprisingly, so I contacted the state and told them I’d like to help them promote Missouri, as a volunteer, because I’m passionate about the outdoors and Missouri has a lot to offer!

Castlewood State Park
Castlewood State Park
Castlewood State Park
Castlewood State Park
Castlewood State Park
Castlewood State Park
Castlewood State Park

Castlewood State Park 2015 photos

IG COLLABORATION OPPORTUNITY

This is a community collaboration opportunity, so if you love Missouri outdoors and want to help promote our state tourism, tag your awesome outdoor photos with #exploreMO (I didn’t find this tag being used yet on IG right now) and let everyone know where it’s located and what’s special about it.  Then the state will have sources for reposting and promoting.  I’ve just started this blog and don’t have many followers, so if you share this with others on social media, that would be awesome!  Happy Fall y’all!

 

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