Totally Random Tuesday: Laugh yourself well

My family seems to be laughing together more and more these days and I love it! I mean we've been laughing so much more than before that I actually noticed it, that alone should be a good measure.


I'm not sure why but I started analyzing it. It seems we laugh the most in the car, and if you know us, we are in the car a lot, always on the go. Now, many people don't want to be on the go like we are, but it is just a way of life for us right now living in one town, working in another, going to church in another. 

Here's the secret: we have less distractions in the car, no tv, no computer, no texting. The only entertainment we have in that car is the radio and each other! So, if we're not talking and laughing, we're singing and that can be pretty funny too. We also laugh a lot at the dinner table, which we try to sit at together most nights, especially when all three of us are together.  (For those who don't know, we have a blended family with one teenager at home 50% of the time and 2 adult children who live on their own.)

What's so funny?  Good question. Truth is we are usually just laughing at each other's random comments, feeding off of them as we continue to laugh.  Sometimes we remember the last things we laughed about and we laugh again.  I wish I could tell you specifically, but I don't want to spoil the fun for my family who might not appreciate me telling you all of their funny secrets and besides, it probably wouldn't be funny to you anyway.


What you need to know is that laughter is amazing therapy.  If you're not laughing enough to notice it, I would urge you to start working on fixing that right away. Laughter has the power to heal and renew.  It is an immediate cure for stress, pain and conflict and has physical, mental and social benefits.

Here are 8 ways to start laughing now:

1. Watch a funny movie or TV show.
2. Seek out funny people.
3. Share a good joke or a funny story.
4. Host game night with friends.
5. Play with a pet.
6. Goof around with children.
7. Do something silly.
8. Make time for fun activities (e.g. bowling, miniature golfing, karaoke).

What makes you laugh?  Share some funny stories here and help someone else laugh!

A family that eats together...

...is just plain healthier

Well, its that time of year again, we'll all be heading back to school in the next couple of weeks.  You may be headed into a whirl-wind of driving here and there, homework, science projects, football games and more. With the back-to-school hustle and bustle of extra-curricular activities, it can be difficult to squeeze it all in, much less think about having a healthy dinner together as a family.

It's important to realize that family dinners make families healthy. According to a new Columbia University survey, teenagers who eat with their families at least five times a week are more likely to get better grades in school and much less likely to have substance abuse problems.The same study also found that having family dinners five or more times a week meant teens were 42 percent less likely to drink alcohol, 59 percent less likely to smoke cigarettes, and 66 percent less likely to try marijuana. Other studies indicate that children who have structured dinners with their families at least 3 times per week are 25 percent less likely to struggle with obesity.

The most important key to having family dinners even on school nights is having a meal plan. This will simplify both food shopping and meal preparation, and help save money too.  Go a step further by cooking large batches and then freezing them for future use.  This makes the most of time spent in the kitchen.   For instance, Tuesday is always spaghetti night at our house. I make enough for at least 2 or 3 weeks when I'm in the kitchen and freeze part for the next week.  I do the same with meat loaf and chili.

Family dinners don't have to be home-cooked 3 course meals.  Having take-out at home and sitting down at the table together for 20-30 minutes can make a difference. On Wednesday nights, we typically have our family dinner at Subway on the way home from church. We go in and sit down to eat and usually have a lot of laughs. There is always benefit to having a structured schedule on school nights.

Start the year off right, plan ahead and stay healthy! 

24,746 things on my to-do list...

...for 2011

In the spirit of "making a list", I thought I'd get a head start on the annual tradition of New Year's resolutions. But instead of dwelling on what I'm not doing well, I thought I'd make a list of all the things I could do to be a better me in 2011. While 24,746 things may seem like a lot, once you read the list I think you'll get that its not going to be too overwhelming! ;)

I guess you could say I'm resolving to take more time for myself, my husband, my family and my community. I have other things I want to focus on too, but this is the fun stuff!

1 5k
4 facials
4 trips to the beach
12 bottles of wine
12 girls days out
12 haircuts
12 massages
12 new outfits
15 pedicures and manicures
26 family nights
52 date nights
52 memory verses
52 yoga classes
52 Zumba classes
156 workouts
200 bare-feet covered
300 meals for strangers
365 hours alone with God
23,360 ounces of water

Just to clarify, these are all minimums! As far as this list is concerned, 'more is more'! ;) Don't worry I will be setting some limits for myself in other areas!

Cathing Up: Family Vacation @ Lake Nantahala

To everything there is a season - Ecclesiastes 1:4

12 hours after I returned home from Honduras, we were on the road to Lake Nantahala for our annual family vacation. This is a tradition that started when Jason and I got married. For 5 years now we have been taking a week off to relax in the mountains each summer with our extended family.

We rented a nice place on Lake Nantahala on the Andrews, NC side. Most years we have outings planned for each day, but this year, we just sat back and enjoyed the lake.

It was truly a week to relax and renew! That combined with "family time" is something I needed more than anything else. The kids played and fished in the lake almost every day. I slept in everyday, started studying women of the Bible and started reading the 3rd book in the Yada Yada Prayer Group series. We watched movies and I even got a little sun!!

We did make a couple of jaunts here and there.

The first on Tuesday to fulfill another family tradition at The Fun Factory in Franklin, NC, putt-putt and go-karts are a must for our family. We also stopped in at a great Christian Bookstore.


Wednesday, we went back to Franklin for a Back 2 School concert with Shane & Shane and Mark Cahill. It was awesome! Did you know that every second 2 people die? Are you ready for eternity?


When we returned to the house Wednesday night, the electricity went out! We had been warned by the owner that is goes out briefly from time to time. Well, it was still out at 11:00 am on Thursday! Luckily the highs were in the 80s up there. But this served as an excuse for us to wander into Andrews, just the three of us (Jason, Rachel and me). We stopped at a local coffee shop with the cutest little bookstore inside. Then made our way to the local winery. Perfect little family outing. I love that my family can delight in such simple things!!



Friday, we celebrated Pop's 70th Birthday!



It was a great week, but it was great to finally get home too...