simple pleasures

Simple Pleasures

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Simple Pleasures
By Bernadette A. Moyer

peaches

Simple pleasures, what are yours?

Just a few of mine include:

• That bowl of fresh peaches sitting on the kitchen counter
• My first cup of coffee in the morning
• Snuggling with my two pooches
• Watching my husband drive up after a long work day
• The look and smells of a freshly cut lawn
• Driving top down on a quiet country road with the music blaring
• Sunsets
• Sunrise
• The innocence of small children
• A clean house
• A clean desk
• Quiet time at home
• Lunch with a friend
• Writing a new blog
• The subtle seasonal changes
• Sitting on the beach
• Praying to God
• Good friends
• Happy people
• My roses opening and in full bloom
• A new book or magazine waiting to be read
• Rabbits running through the yard
• A road trip
• A live concert
• A baseball game
• Long meaningful conversations
• Fresh new paper and stationary
• Birthdays
• Holidays
• Cooking dinner
• Baking treats
• The smell of fresh laundry
• Long lazy weekends
• A tall glass of ice water

And I seriously could go on and on …

What are your simple pleasures? Gratitude is an attitude!

Bernadette on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/bernadetteamoyer

All books by Bernadette A. Moyer on Amazon and Barnes & Noble

Home

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Home
By Bernadette A. Moyer

home

“There is no place like home.” From The 1939 Wizard of Oz is probably one of the most famous movie quotes. But did Dorothy always appreciate her “home” or did it take the loss of her “home” for her to truly appreciate it and all that came along with her home including all the special people, her family.

“The magic thing about home is that it feels good to leave, and it feels even better to come back.” Wendy Wunder

This past holiday season was so special and so calm and so peaceful and the truth is unlike many previous Christmas holiday seasons because we purposefully chose to do very little. For the first time in over 10 years we did not travel but rather we stayed home and enjoyed that entire experience of just being at home. It was also the first Christmas in our 25 years together that my husband and I did not have any of our children with us at home. They are all adults now and out in the world doing what they want to do. Living their adult lives the way that they have chosen to live them.

We didn’t know what to expect living with just ourselves, two adults and our two precious pooches. We decided not to go anywhere but rather to enjoy our “home” we bought very few gifts and made our own food and drink. It was a pretty paired down holiday from so many that we experienced before and yet it was truly special. We appreciate everything so much more as we age. Our next big birthday will arrive in just a few short years when we both turn 60. We’ve never known “home” with just us.

During the holidays several celebrities died that were younger than us and others who were really close to our age, it drives home for us that each and every holiday is a gift and that we have no way of knowing when our time here will end too. How many more Christmas holidays will we share together? And how many more will be shared here in our home?

What made this year so special? It was the combination of complete gratitude and appreciation for all that we have and the peace that we share in the “home” that we created together. There was no family drama, no pressures and just pure bliss. We cooked together, we cleaned up together, we watched movies together, we ate together, we drank together and we prayed together.

Home can be anything that we want it to be just like life; it can be a place of peace and of rest or a place of drama and upsets. Being at peace means that we didn’t need many gifts or big yahoo type celebrations, we had everything we ever needed right here at home. We were together.

And like many kids with their toys, we did have fun playing with our new electronic gifts. It was fun, it was simple, it was peaceful and above all it was Christ centered and filled with love and that special feeling we all know as “home.”

Of course our two precious pooches Happy and Chipper were right there with us and a part of our “home” experience too because with them and for us, there really is “no place like home!”

Oh and because it’s always good to change it up each holiday season, we see you again next year Nashville, Tennessee! We did miss you this year but we were just as happy to be home.”

Bernadette on Facebook at http://www.Facebook.com/bernadetteamoyer

All books by Bernadette A. Moyer on Amazon and Barnes & Noble

The Good Stuff …Another 100 Things to Be Happy About!

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The Good Stuff … Another 100 Things to Be Happy About!
By Bernadette A. Moyer

My first 100 came so easy I thought I’d write another, we all have so much to be happy about! What is on your list?

1) Picking up your dogs after their grooming appointment
2) A big bowl of cut up fresh fruits
3) My husband washing and waxing my car because he wants to do it for me
4) An invitation to lunch
5) A perfect sunset
6) Family photos
7) Intelligent people
8) Successful people
9) When the first piece of pie comes out looking great
10) Your first snowball for the summer
11) Your favorite wine is on sale
12) Summer holidays of red, white and blue
13) Christmas shopping in July
14) Long road trips to fun locations
15) Taking the train to New York City
16) Neighborhood newspapers where you find really great community stories
17) The Amish market
18) In season ripe red tomatoes
19) New sneakers
20) Flat screen TV’s
21) Happy Hour at your neighborhood bar
22) The sermon that seems like it was written just for you
23) Connecting with new people
24) Books with hard covers and dust jackets
25) Love letters and cards that you have collected through the years from your spouse and re-reading them
26) A last minute invite and you are free to go
27) Fat juicy steamed crabs and pitchers of ice cold beer
28) Summer nights around the fire pit
29) Letting go and trusting in the universe and seeing just how healthy it is for you
30) Dorney Park
31) Grassy hilled properties with horses on them
32) Warm summer rains when you can walk around in it and be free just like when you were a kid
33) Catching a fish that is a keeper and having it for dinner
34) Picking your own blueberries
35) Growing fresh mint for your iced tea
36) Painting a room and it looks great
37) The smells of breakfast like bacon cooking and coffee brewing
38) My husband’s hugs
39) The old people in the neighborhood that stop by for a chat
40) Being asked to volunteer your time and talents
41) Red sandals
42) French manicures
43) Pretty new pedicures
44) Soft serve ice cream in a cone
45) Unexpected recognition for something that you do because you enjoy it
46) Funny people that make you laugh out loud
47) A direct flight that arrives on time
48) Postcards that arrive unexpectedly from other countries
49) Having your diamond ring steam cleaned
50) A gift and it isn’t even a holiday
51) Someone who makes food for you
52) Friends who can order for you because they remember how you like your steak cooked and how you like your drink prepared
53) Gay guy friends that are like the best girlfriends, fun!
54) Teachers that remember you from way back when
55) Old neighbors that you have kept up with
56) Model homes that are perfectly decorated
57) Pinterest pinning
58) The day you finish your novel and turn it over to your publisher
59) McCormick spices being made and waffling through the air like cinnamon
60) A massage
61) Handmade soaps
62) Long walks on the beach at twilight
63) The big screen movies
64) Hot soft pretzels
65) More gas than you remembered in the gas tank
66) Coin jars after a years of adding your extra change
67) Professional landscaping
68) A new desk chair that is comfy and stylish
69) Clean sidewalks and streets
70) Green full trees
71) Nighttime baseball games under the lights
72) Outdoor live concerts
73) Picnics in the park
74) Hot juicy fried chicken
75) Lunch at a popular restaurant and you know the owner who comes to see you
76) Visiting your former place of employment and people from all departments come to greet you
77) Free bumper stickers that you would have paid for
78) Early mornings when everyone is still in bed but you are accomplishing much
79) Inspirational speakers that leave you elevated
80) Good happy stories that make the news
81) A friends success
82) When good things happen for good people
83) Hydrangeas that are vibrant and bountiful like colored snowballs
84) Early morning walks on the beach when very few people are around
85) Air conditioned shopping on really hot days
86) Crisp clean new sheets
87) Perfectly white fluffy towels
88) Your own signature sangria that people rave about
89) A big pot of homemade soup
90) Stocking up your supply closet and stepping back to appreciate the abundance
91) Brand new appliances
92) Drawing out renovation plans and making something old like new again
93) Feedback that states your home shows “excellent” and is “adorable”
94) That moment when my husband comes home from work, and have missed each other
95) Watching how much the dogs love our son and how great he is with them
96) New makeup and using it for the first time
97) E-mails from friends with great news to share
98) Feeling at peace and really happy with yourself
99) Going to a wedding
100) A day at the beach … a week at the beach!
good-stuff

The Good Stuff … 100 Things to Be Happy About!

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The Good Stuff … 100 Things to Be Happy About!
By Bernadette A. Moyer

Everyone has “good stuff” in their life; here are the first 100 that came to me, my own list of “good stuff” what is on your list of good stuff?

My list of good stuff;

1) Getting to the bakery just when the Italian bread is coming out of the oven
2) Putting on last year’s white Capri pants and finding a $5 bill
3) Driving around the parking lot over and over and then happening on the very first parking spot
4) Arriving at the drycleaner in time to get same day service and there is no waiting in line
5) Waiting in the grocery line and you are three deep when the checker comes to get you and starts a new lane
6) Finding a dozen roses laying across your bed
7) Having a friend buy you a present that you always wanted but never would have afforded yourself
8) When your kids have grown up and they want to treat you to lunch and a movie
9) Running into an old friend you haven’t seen in years and they are just as happy to see you as you are to see them
10) Having a complete stranger open a door for you with a smile
11) When you least expect it and your husband wants to be with you doing normal everyday things like shopping and running errands
12) A friend from high school finds you on Facebook and you re-connect after more than 30 years
13) The checker at the grocery store says, “Whose mom are you? Because you are hot!”
14) Your favorite magazine arrives on the day you are looking for something new and fresh to read
15) Working toward a goal of 10,000 and immediately passing it by 700 more
16) Thinking about someone and they call you
17) Getting an interview and acing it
18) Old friends
19) New friends
20) Planning your vacation and the weather is absolutely perfect for all that you have planned
21) Making a chocolate cake and having everyone rave about how good it is
22) The greeting from your dog when you have been away all day long
23) When the people in your life tell you how much you mean to them
24) Getting a grant that will fund your novel
25) Having your teenager make your bed
26) Guessing at the frame size necessary for framing a piece of art and getting it right
27) Ordering a drink and it is better than you expected
28) Buying a new car
29) Buying a new car for less than the blue book value
30) Selling your home for three times what you purchased it for
31) Getting promoted when you never even asked for it
32) Being the top salesperson without really trying
33) Writing without interruptions
34) Having lunch with family you haven’t seen in years and it goes really well
35) A person who knows you well and defends you when you never even asked them to do it
36) Mentoring a young person and watching them become really successful
37) Buying a gift and the receiver absolutely loves it
38) Cooking filet mignon on the grill and it is cooked perfectly
39) Going back to school and getting all A’s in your classes
40) Buying a bathing suit that makes you look like you have lost 10 lbs.
41) The feeling of wearing the most comfortable yet stylish shoes
42) That online dress purchase that turns out to be a perfect fit and looks great on you
43) Pulling the lasagna out of the oven just when unexpected company arrives
44) A letter of recommendation that far exceeds your expectations
45) Having your manuscript purchased by a New York publishing house
46) That scratch off ticket that just put $100 in your pocket
47) Expecting to have lost 2 or 3 pounds and you lost 5 pounds
48) Little kids that just follow you around
49) A cute guy who gives you a big smile
50) Old people that give you the thumbs up from across the restaurant
51) Anyone who tells you that you are beautiful
52) Arriving at the party at the perfect time when just the right amount of people are there and yet you haven’t missed anything
53) When the pool is crystal clear and just warm/cool enough that you want to jump in
54) Seeing your pumpkins and tomatoes grow from flowers to full fruits and vegetables
55) The farmers market on Sunday morning
56) The right seat at church is available for you when you are at a resort location
57) Getting the concert tickets and they are front row seats
58) Meeting a magazine editor on the train to New York and developing a lasting friendship
59) Buying a new outfit that looks like it was made to fit you
60) A spa day
61) A new haircut that flatters you
62) Belgium waffles with fresh strawberries and whipped cream
63) Riding your bike and having a breeze run through your hair
64) Female friends that lift you up
65) Getting to the cash register with a sale item that you believe it a great deal and finding out it is discounted another 40%
66) An iPad 3
67) Writing a piece and dozens of people give you the thumbs up
68) Having your blogs re-tweeted to over 5,000 people
69) Receiving a good driver discount
70) Making pies and eating pies
71) A dreaded doctor visit that goes really well
72) Your husband’s love and respect
73) Your kid’s love and respect
74) Your friends and family’s love and respect
75) A new toy
76) Riding the Ferris wheel at the fair with a bag of pink cotton candy in hand and you are over 50 years old ; p
77) Long slow kisses …
78) The smell of dinner in the crockpot
79) The sounds of the ocean slapping up against the sand
80) Seeing last year’s lilies come up even prettier this year
81) Remembering a special day and reflecting upon it
82) New colored pencils and magic markers
83) A handwritten card or note that arrives in the mail
84) Getting upgraded to first class without the extra fees
85) A cold beer on a really hot day
86) Great seats for the game and your team wins
87) The smell of fresh laundry
88) Finding an old piece of jewelry and wearing it like it is brand new again
89) Shopping and NOT buying anything because you already have all that you really want
90) Your favorite artist song comes on the radio
91) Photographs that turn out better than you thought they would
92) A cup of coffee made just how you like it
93) The smell of freshly cut grass
94) Your favorite champagne as a gift to you
95) Raspberries, blueberries and peaches in season and in abundance
96) Cut watermelon
97) Time to read that book you set aside
98) A bubble bath
99) Cutting your own flower bouquet from your own garden
100) Living and loving and being happy with where you are and with whom you have become!

Bernadette on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/bernadetteamoyer

New Book! Along The Way available on Amazon and Barnes & Noble
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