Ode to my mother

we all have ‘em…some bake awesome cookies, some play football with you, some sing to you at night, some are artsy, some act irrational and crazy, some pay all your bills for you, some call you all the time, some make you laugh, some let you cry on their shoulder even as a grown up and some make you do the laundry as a kid…BUT all of them love you unconditionally.

my mother ranks very high…to me, she is the best mom out of all the mom’s i know   I seriously feel so lucky when i hear about other mom/daughter relationships.  so, that is how i came to my conclusion.  my mom ROCKS!

my mom is cool, funny, progressive, open minded, supportive, beautiful, non-meddling, and most of all she is my truly my best cheerleader.  I don’t know what i will do without her.  she’s the only parent i have left and i will cling to her as much as i can.

so mom…i raise a glass to you and i want you to know that YOU are 1 super cool mom.  i count my blessings that i am your daughter and i hope that i will be the same mother to jada as you have been to me.  GREAT JOB MOM!!!!

 

the climb

while my mom was here for easter weekend, we took jada to see the new Hannah Montana movie.  jada is a big fan and the movie was actually very good.  i have watched hannah shows with jada and i actually think they are quite clever and entertaining

well, her new hit song, the climb, is in the movie and i have heard it on the radio, but didn’t pay much attention to it.  BUT, during the movie…the lyrics hit me like a ton of bricks.  it was like she was singing EXACTLY what has been on my mind in regards to me and my relationship with my mary kay business.   i have been selling mary kay for 9 years now (it’s my 9th anniversary this week tuesday) and i am not where i thought i would be.  shortly after i signed up, i fell in love with the business…it was after going to an event with Arlene Lenarz and Mary Diem and then a few months after that I went to my first Seminar and i couldn’t believe it..  I was blown away by these very classy and extremely motivational and supportive women.  i couldn’t believe that such an environment existed.  then, event after event, year after year, i became convinced that directorship in Mary Kay wast THE ONLY WAY  to live a life.  it was the key to happiness, the key to freedom, the key to having choices in my life.  i was full of confidence and certain that nothing was going to stand in my way.

well, something DID stand in my way…me.  there is no other way to look at it.  my confidence dwindled, my belief slipped and i even questioned if this was REALLY what i wanted to do.   maybe if it was this hard, it really wasn’t meant for me.  i still believe the business works…but only if YOU work.  i have seen people come in this business and shoot straight to the top.  it works…there is no denying that.

so, if it works, then why isn’t it working for me?  enough analyzing.  my director says i think too much…and i probably do.  i guess i’m always trying to “the answer”…but really, the answer is to ‘JUST WORK’.

anyway…i digress…

the first verse in this song left me stunned and crying in the theatre when we saw the movie.  it’s at the very end of the movie and i was just balling.

For those of you that have ever had a dream and have given up..here is your new mantra.

 

I Gotta Believe…

it’s saturday night…i’m home…working on getting over my cold and getting back to being 100%.  me and jada have been sick for the past week.  well…she started it last sunday and i got it about wednesday nite.  anyway…nothing serious…just annoying.

i wasn’t planning on posting a thought about this video.  but a friend of mine asked me to send her a song that represents me so she can make a playlist on her iPod while she is on vacation and i immediately thought of this one.   i am not into gospel music… and i don’t go to church on the regular…but this song speaks to my heart just in the simple 3 words… ‘I Gotta Believe”.   i first heard this song at one of  my Mary Kay retreat with my national sales director.  one of our director’s, heather julson, did a training or had some closing thoughts and she introduced this song to the crowd and it immediately struck a chord with me and i have never been able to forget it.

for all of you that have dreams and goals…this is the best song for you!

 

what inspiration is to me

this woman, Lisa Madson has inspired thousands of people in the mary kay world.  her belief in herself and in her directors and in the consultants in her area are unmatched.  she breathes belief into those around her and inspires me to be a better person.

i started my Mary Kay business the year lisa became a national.  it was a big deal because she had set many many records in Mary Kay and had become very famous – she still is today.

lisa madson, to most, may lead a fairy tale life.  but she’ll be the first to admit, it was not luck, it was not that she was better than anybody…it was pure belief and dedication to her dreams.  and she wants the same success for everybody around her.  she teaches and lives the mary kay way and THAT is inspiration.

she was at our mary kay meeting tonight…speaking to us, breathing life into us, encouraging us to follow our dreams no matter how big or small and to not get bogged down with all the negativity that our co-workers or the media throws at us.  it’s everywhere and we are just so accostomed to it that we don’t even know any better anymore.  but she reminded me WHY i don’t watch the news, or WHY it’s okay to shut off the TV.

i started mary kay because i wanted more money.  i was tired of living paycheck to paycheck and i was stressed out by the high bills i had.   the bills never go away…but the extra cash i bring home with mary kay is a real/life 2nd job for me.  i’m building my “plan B” for now and when its time, it’ll be my only plan.

 

mini respite

monday 2/9/09

monday’s are a super busy day at work. i have loads of emails to sort through and people have been crafting all weekend and have sent lots of inquiries and warranty questions over the weekend. THEN, after work, i go to my mary kay meeting for some training, some recognition, some girl time…it’s basically my “church”.

when i leave mary kay at about 8:30 pm i get to CT’s house…pick up jada…get her home and into bed and then check MY personal email.

it’s a full day!
BUT, today, i took advantage of a full hour of respite in between Fiskars and Mary Kay. i sat down at our local starbucks, enjoyed a grande mocha with 2% milk AND whipped cream and engulfed myself in the beginnings of the edward and bella saga. i started reading Twilight. i don’t read a lot of books, but i was in the mood for one and there is so much hype about it.

The purple chair at Starbucks was the best!

i’m a happy girl right now.

My Flickr Project 365 site

 

Project {365}

better late than never.  i saw this project idea posted on another blog – Kelly Purkey. Kelly is one of our Fiskars Design Team members and has awesome photography and design skills. i just love her work. i thought it was a cool concept and wanted jump on the bandwagon. the concept is to take a photo a day, as a way to document YOUR history.  i like to take photos…i like to journal…i like to craft…so i thought this was a cool new way to keep me challenged and to think about life beyond pictures of jada and of me and my friends going out. a project to help me step out of the box and to think about putting a story of my life together. so, i started my Flickr account and I will be posting my photos in there…I can’t say it’ll happen daily…but they’ll get in there.

So, here’s to 2009…through Nikki’s eyes!

 

25 Random Things about Me

25 Random Facts about Nikki

1.  my middle name is christine
2. my favorite color is green
3. i studied 5 semesters of spanish in college just because
4.  i have been to almost all 50 US states
5.  i learned to drive in a Camaro Z28 and a black El Camino.  i cannot drive a manual transmission though.
6.  i have my ears pierced, but i hardly wear earrings anymore – laziness and my hair covers them anyway
7.  i sleep with the ceiling fan on everynight…even when it’s below zero outside.
8.  i am not a morning person…10am is the magical hour for me.
9.  i take 2 prescription meds and lots of herbalife vitamins
10.  i wax my own eyebrows
11.  i like chocolate martini’s and key lime pie martini’s at Madison’s Bar and Grill
12.  singing makes me feel better when i’m stressed out
13.  i went to school at UC Boulder but never ONCE ski’d while i was in colorado.
14.  my friend stephanie and i once did a project on the invention of the radio and entered a history day contest.
15.  i had a Lhasa Apso dog while i lived in California…her name was Cinnamon
16.  i had a midwife deliver my daughter
17.  i drink LOTS of crystal light iced tea
18.  my favorite musical artists right now are robin thicke & beyonce
19.  i prefer black men – they just have the lil extra something
20.  i have 1 older sister and my mom lives in tennessee.  my dad passed away in 1997.
21.  i’m sooooooooooooooo happy Obama made it to the white house.  there is a change in the air.  it’s been evident since Nov 5th.  and it’s real.  you don’t have to have X number of years of experience be old to be a president…you just have to have common sense and be able to relate to all types of people and know pick the right people to be your resources.
22.  my favorite candy is reeses peanut butter cups (frozen)
23.  i’m 75% norwegian and 25% italian
24.  i believe that there are two sides to EVERY story…sometimes 3 sides
25.  even though i’m disappointed a lot, i still believe people will do the right thing

 

Viva San Antonio

This past weekend, i was on a little mini vacation to San Antonio!   My friend carissa moved there for her job last July and I just went to visit and for a little respite.  We ate LOTS of tortilla chips, drank LOTS of vodka, watched LOTS of trash TV (first time I saw that Rock of Love show with Brett Michael’s) and laughed a LOT!

*siiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiigh*  Good time…good times

Here is an oldie but goodie picture of me and Carissa

We have taken MANY pics of ourselves…i’ll admit, it’s a little pretentious, but we love to play for the camera.  i love this picture of us together.  this pic was taken after my divorce was final.  carissa came to court with me for moral support that day (aug ‘06) and then we celebrated a little afterwards.

carissa and i met in early jan 06 (or sometime around there) on a Yahoo social site Y360.  I met a lot of people from around the country on that site, but carissa was LOCAL – she lived in Milwaukee.  We met for the first time in Feb 06 and partied with her for Jenny’s birthday and we were instant friends since then.

Carissa is a poet and a deep thinker…she’s smart, has raised intelligent and creative boys, and she is no bullshitter.  That’s what i like about her.  she is who she is and doesn’t need to cover up anything.  she can take the good with the bad and has a very passionate soul.  she TRULY is a friend that can be honest with me and I can be honest with her.  those friendships are rare and precious.

we didn’t talk for a little bit…and i don’t shy away from taking fault.  but thanks to her, she reached out to me before she moved.  yea, my ego did get in the way.  thanks c for being the bigger person

Salute!  Cheers to San Antonio and chips and salsa on every corner!

 

Christmas 2008

7:15 a.m….the day started with little whispers from jada’s room…”mom…where are you?”  This is not how jada normally awakens, but I had slept on the couch because i offered my own bed to my mom and Ray who had not really gotten a good night sleep at “Motel Poast” (my grandpa’s house) since they have been in town…and well, they were coming back over to my place in the morning anyway.

So, jada comes out to view what Santa left and althought she was excited…there were no squeels or other miscellaneous exclamations about what arrived in the middle of the night.  however she did tell me several times that she DID hear jingle bells in the night and asked if i had hear them too.

7:30 a.m….the tearing of presents begins!!!!   First up…. the largest box under the tree – a KARAOKE MACHINE.  YAY!!!!!  This was a present from Santa to Jada & Nikki.  Yes, she’s gonna have to learn to share.  also under the tree: iPod shuffle, hannah montana everything, Fancy Nancy Books, jewelry making kits, barbie stuff, lip gloss and a new caboodle, new markers, High School Musical dolls and DVD.  opening the gifts took about 1 hour…and then each package was distributed to an adult for the ceremonial “destruction” of the package to get to what is inside.  For those of you that HAVE kids…you know what i am talking about.

8:30 a.m…..Nikki starts making breakfast – a hashbrown casserole.  very yummy, but NOT healthy at all!  Papa was not feeling well, so he had a less greasy alternative.

9:30 a.m…..Karaoke machine is up and running and all the nighbors know it.  We’re singing Hannah Montana and Celine Dion’s Christmas and Faith Hill’s new christmas CD, which i downloaded from iTunes this morning for mom.  The karaoke machine takes MP3 players – oh wow – the options are endless now!  Papa was getting QUITE a concert from us girls.

Mom and Ray leave and go back to Grandpa’s and get ready

11:30 a.m.  I BOOK MY FLIGHT TO SAN ANTONIO TEXAS TO SEE CARISSA!  ya know, all the stars and moons must be aligned right…i got money from mom and Ray for xmas/b-day and i got a fare watcher notice from Travelocity saying that flight prices went down for a trip to San Antonio – life is sooooooo about timing!

2:30 p.m. We arrive at my sister’s.  yes, i decided to go.

5:30 p.m…..Jada and i visit her family at her Uncle Bull’s house – this  is CT’s oldest brother who lives in Madison.  CT was there so Jada could visit with her dad.  We stayed for a bit…watched Gray’s Anatomy and then came home

9:30 p .m. one last song on the Karaoke machine and then off to bed.

We had no bad weather…no major catastrophe’s…we got to see our parents and relatives and I chatted with some friends!  All in all…a pretty good Christmas!  I am thankful and I am blessed!

 

I Will Embrace It

Today is a very snowy day!  We are having our first major snowstorm of the season.  I’m still having bad memories of last winter’s 100+ inches and I’m not looking forward to a repeat.  BUT…I really have no control over it…so I might as well embrace it!

Jada has…

Madison public schools closed today…this is a very RARE occurrance…so it must be bad if the Madison schools close.  Normally, I would brave it and take Jada to CTs but CT’s brother Harvey passed away so he is in Racine with the family this week.

The meteorologists are predicting 6-11″.  We probably have something like 8″ right now.  I don’t know.  It’s hard to measure because of the drifts and such.  But in any event…it’s still a LOT.  OH, and there is a sheet of ice underneath. Be careful…you might see a clear path on the sidewalk because the wind blew the snow…but it’s really a sheet of ICE.