Sunday, December 31, 2006

And Dreams are Forever.


"All men dream: but not equally. Those who dream by night in the dusty recesses of their minds wake in the day to find that it was vanity: but the dreamers of the day are dangerous men, for they may act their dream with open eyes, to make it possible."
T. E. Lawrence

Romance Staff.


What is your favorite romantic nickname?
1. Baby
2. Sweetie
3. Honey
4. Sweetheart
5. Darling
6. Honey Bunny
7. Pumpkin
8. Love
9. Babe
10. Angel, Boo, Princess

You Make {Me} Wanna La La.


Music has always been an integral part of my life. I have to have it on ALL day long, but the volume has decreased over the years. Today, I turned the volume back up and thoroughly enjoyed taking it in. Loved it!!!

Who Are They.


"They Say It Only Takes a Minute To Find Someone Special, an Hour To Appreciate Them, a Day To Love Them, But yet an Entire Life time to Forget Them."

Just Be...{Me}.





Saturday, December 30, 2006

My {Passion}.


Life Artist
A designer enjoying a craft, an art: of paper and computer, of yesterday, today and tomorrow. Of life, telling everyday stories. Sharing my life. Capturing moments. Keeping it real. I started scrapbooking in February of 2006 as a way of organizing the stuff of life that was cluttering my space and my mind. A way to reflect on my life. It didn’t take long to realize that I had found my passion. The dance between images and words. The emotion. The design. The history. The art.


"Do I like smiles? Yes, but only if they are real and filled with life. And I also like tears. You see, truth is beautiful, no matter what the expression." Randy Bacon

At first I was afraid, I was petrified.


FRIENDS WITH POTENTIAL: What I Like About You

You have this way about you, it’s all to adorable. Your laugh, your smile your confidence. There is nothing fake about you, you're so approachable. You make me feel comfortable with who I am and safe to let it show. It isn’t just because you look good, although I don't mind the physical, but for some reason we go so much deeper. That's what I like about you. What I adore about you. I love it when you laugh and laugh with me. That's what I like about you.

I'm up to Something {BIG}.





NYC...yes I said it....here I come!

{Live} the Pursuit.



Pablo Casals: Each second we live is a new and unique moment of the universe, a moment that will never be again And what do we teach our children? We teach them that two and two make four, and that Paris is the capital of France. When will we also teach them what they are? We should say to each of them: Do you know what you are? You are a marvel. You are unique. In all the years that have passed, there has never been another child like you. Your legs, your arms, your clever fingers, the way you move. You may become a Shakespeare, a Michaelangelo, a Beethoven. You have the capacity for anything. Yes, you are a marvel. And when you grow up, can you then harm another who is, like you, a marvel? You must work, we must all work, to make the world worthy of its children.

I {heart} U.


I feel very blessed to have met this wonderful man. I truly believe that God has somehow played a part in our introduction.  
My eyes have been opened and my heart has never felt touched more than now.

Monday, December 18, 2006

JT Nailed It. What Goes {Around}



Lyrics to Justin Timberlake What Goes Around
Hey girl, is he everything you wanted in a man
You know I gave you the world
You had me in the palm of your hand

So why your love went away
I just can't seem to understand
Thought it was me and you babe
Me and you until the end
But I guess I was wrong

Don't want to think about it
Don't want to talk about it
I'm just so sick about it
Can't believe it's ending this way

Just so confused about it
Feeling the blues about it
I just can't do without ya
Tell me is this fair?

Is this the way it's really going down?
Is this how we say goodbye?
Should've known better when you came around
That you were gonna make me cry
It's breaking my heart to watch you run around
'Cause I know that you're living a lie
That's okay baby 'cause in time you will find...

What goes around, goes around, goes around
Comes all the way back around
What goes around, goes around, goes around
Comes all the way back around
What goes around, goes around, goes around
Comes all the way back around
What goes around, goes around, goes around
Comes all the way back around

Now girl, I remember everything that you claimed
You said that you were moving on now
And maybe I should do the same
Funny thing about that is
I was ready to give you my name
Thought it was me and you, babe
And now, it's all just a shame
And I guess I was wrong

Don't want to think about it
Don't want to talk about it
I'm just so sick about it
Can't believe it's ending this way
Just so confused about it
Feeling the blues about it
I just can't do without ya
Can you tell me is this fair?

Is this the way things are going down?
Is this how we say goodbye?
Should've known better when you came around (should've known better that you were gonna make me cry)
That you were going to make me cry
Now it's breaking my heart to watch you run around
'Cause I know that you're living a lie
That's okay baby 'cause in time you will find

What goes around, goes around, goes around
Comes all the way back around
What goes around, goes around, goes around
Comes all the way back around
What goes around, goes around, goes around
Comes all the way back around
What goes around, goes around, goes around
Comes all the way back around

What goes around comes around
Yeah
What goes around comes around
You should know that
What goes around comes around
Yeah
What goes around comes around
You should know that

Don't want to think about it (no)
Don't want to talk about it
I'm just so sick about it
Can't believe it's ending this way
Just so confused about it
Feeling the blues about it (yeah)
I just can't do without ya
Tell me is this fair?

Is this the way things are going down?
Is this how we say goodbye?
Should've known better when you came around (should've known better that you were gonna make me cry)
That you were going to make me cry
Now it's breaking my heart to watch you run around
'Cause I know that you're living a lie
But that's okay baby 'cause in time you will find

What goes around, goes around, goes around
Comes all the way back around
What goes around, goes around, goes around
Comes all the way back around
What goes around, goes around, goes around
Comes all the way back around
What goes around, goes around, goes around
Comes all the way back around

Let me paint this picture for you, baby

You spend your nights alone
And he never comes home
And every time you call him
All you get's a busy tone
I heard you found out
That he's doing to you
What you did to me
Ain't that the way it goes

You cheated girl
My heart bleeds girl
So it goes without saying that you left me feeling hurt
Just a classic case
A scenario
Tale as old as time
Girl you got what you deserved

And now you want somebody
To cure the lonely nights
You wish you had somebody
That could come and make it right

But girl I ain't somebody with a lot of sympathy
You'll see

(What goes around comes back around)
I thought I told ya, hey
(What goes around comes back around)
I thought I told ya, hey
(What goes around comes back around)
I thought I told ya, hey
(What goes around comes back around)
I thought I told ya, hey

See?
You should've listened to me, baby
Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah
Because
(What goes around comes back around)

Think {Tink}.


When you spot someone that you are meant to spend your life with, you just know(and so does God). It's kind of like an old black and white movie. You spot him, he spots you. It's like two trains collide, head-on. It's the beginning of a soul mate connection that keeps growing stronger everyday. Your eyes see the inner soul of each other.

A realization really has come over me. It's a personal devotion to the other persons happiness is what ultimately leads to internal happiness. This is the point when I will realized I may have found my "soul mate". This is an understanding that works for me, you and your soul mate may likely be different, as it is the reason why not all souls are compatable.

Once we find a suitable mate we stop looking for another, I don't buy into the "needle in the haystack" theory of one and only one "soul mate", compatable souls can be just friends, you meet them ocasionally, even after you find your "soul mate".

So, when will you feel like everything around you stands still and the air thickens. When the both of you are alone even in a room full of people. When will your eyes see into the very depths of their soul. I am not sure if anyone out there has ever had pre-cognative dreams but I also dreamt of this person several times before I met him. I could only see his eyes and I would recap it saying, "I always dream of this man but I don't know who he is..." Well I know now! I think of him everyday and I have seen him since and I know he can feel the kinetic energy still. Another great feeling when you know you met your soul mate is a tender caring that even if you do not end up with this person you are still constantly concerned about their safety and happiness even if it does not directly affect the course of events in your own immediate life. I guess only time will tell if the winds of fate will draw us together. I can only pray.

Embrace Imperfection.


What have I learned about love?
Love is more than just finding that special someone with whom to connect. It begins with self-love. First we have to recognize that God loves each of us unconditionally. We can give ourselves a break and recognize our self-worth. Then we can recognize the worth of all those around us.

Before we can enjoy abiding love, we have to be able to love with pure motives. That means treating all of our associations with others as precious connections, that don't have to eventuate in companionship. We regard each individual as being lovable and unique.

As each of us learns to be more consistent in our love for others, we hope to eventually find that special someone who shares our values. During dating, everyone puts on their best face. Time is a great aid to growing together in common directions. Time also helps in discerning dysfunctional or unloving behaviors that could pose future problems. Taking time is one of the most under-rated aids to building lasting love.
My hope in sharing is that individuals might come to their own catharsis that God's love is a part of true romantic love. He sheds His love abroad through the hearts of the children of men. And He bestows it upon all who are followers of His Son Jesus Christ. He asks us to pray with all the energy of heart to be filled with His love. Loving relationships are the fulfilling aspects of life and growth.

Pretendships.


I'm always deep in thought about relationships. Mainly because I'm never sure how they exactly work. People who know me consider me socially outgoing. Yet I doubt my own integrity. Do I have what it takes to really be someone's friend?I think I think this way because of the relationship I had with *Drew -- I anaylze over and over again what went wrong. I even go back further to relationships with other old friends a decade or more back -- I'm searching for clues, perhaps in the effort to not make the same mistakes again, stung by nostalgia, and soured a little with the worry that I might be the cause for break-ups. Thing is, I've realized, that it takes two people to be friends, and it takes the same two people to not be friends anymore. I've also come to the realization that I don't believe most people honor their friendships as well as they should. To be a friend is not as important as being family, but it should be just as important because human beings need each other to survive. Looking back on comments I've said and heard from others in the past, I begin to see a pattern emerge, and I think I've pin-pointed the things that draw people away that I have no control over:

1. Change: the biggest killer of friendships. As soon as one person changes, while the other stays relatively the same, difference in circumstances naturally supports estrangement.

2. Physical Distance: besides change, vast physical distances can force a wedge between people. My best friend is no longer living next door, she's in a another suburb, information is exchanged by phone or mail, but the friend is just no longer there. Physical distance can build a barrier that can gradually make a friend less of a support system.

3. Neglect: forgetting to exchange vital information, or taking for granted the availability of a friend by putting off sharing information, can influence a growing-apart and can communicate to your friend that you don't care. This is one thing I've noticed a lot of men are guilty of. Men just seem to have a habit of not talking or sharing as much. Women interpret that as neglect and are less prone to hook-up with a guy friend if he's too stand-offish.

4. Manipulation or Domination: when one friend is the one pushing for doing only what he wants, or neglects to listen to what you have to say, the behavior is read as the beginning of the end of a friendship. When you're more concerned with yourself that you fail to notice what is important to someone else, there's definitely something rotting in Denmark, my friends.

5. Betrayal of Trust: this can happen in so many ways, but as soon as it does happen, it's nearly feels impossible to heal. You may not even realize you've let someone down and they're not likely to forget that either! How does betrayal happen? Here's my list of betrayals big and small:

a. Breaking a promise
b. Not living up to an expectation
c. Sharing a secret or intimate knowledge about your friend with a stranger
d. Using something without the other's permission
e. Forgetting something important or meaningful to the other
f. Using a friend for an ulterior motive
g. No longer keeping a friend in your confidence (a cessation of communication is the same as lying; not telling the truth or keeping something secret from your friend is also a betrayal)

I'm sure many of you out there can find more examples of betrayal, and it is very easy to focus on the negative side of things, but why don't we skip ahead to how can we fix things?

First off, if a friend proves to be toxic there is probably a good reason for them to stay out of your life. For example, after you've suffered a bad break with a friend, and they come back, if you get sick that could be your body telling you that you're not ready to deal with them. Sad to say, the memory of a break-up can come back to haunt you as soon as you see or hear from the ex-friend. If you want to forgive, do so NOT at the other person's bidding. And if you want to be forgiven, give your old pal some appropriate time to heal.

I've found that, after dealing with friends who've hurt me, time and distance does help. But what's best is maintaining a stress-free, friendly, no-high-expectations attitude. This means that, no matter how tempting it is, don't bring up unresolved conflicts from the past up right away. You gotta let your old pal buddy up to you, let him let you sniff them out and determine how boundaries have changed. If you need to resolve something in the past, make sure the friend knows that it's something you need to do in order to move on and that you're not bringing up crap out of some sense of getting them back for what they did. Most of the time I've realized that the other person really didn't have a clue that you were all that hurt. I think that's the hardest thing of all; how some things can be so important to me, yet be of so little importance to someone I love.

I often wonder, how could we let that happen? According to recent surveys, more than half of Americans are not getting married and preferring to, what my mother would call "living in sin." But I digress...

I guess I have issues with just being the perpetual friend. I don't mind being a buddy, but when it comes to other bonds of love, it seems to me that being "just friends" is not what we're told it should be. We choose our friends to be the family we didn't get to choose to have, yet our friends can also prove to be something of a "disposable family" that we can just as easily leave behind or neglect as an abusive parent does to their child. Maybe that's slightly too harsh a way to describe that, but it does harken to how we feel when a friendship ends; there's that deep imprinted sense of abandonment that makes us less prone to seek out new friendships because we don't want to go through that feeling again.

I think what I need to do is discover new ways to honor my friends, and to make sure I'm honored as a friend by others. First off, I think we need to define what the state of being a friend is:

1. Friends have a tendency to desire what is best for each other, not what is best for just the one.

2. Sympathy and empathy; a friend doesn't have to be a mind {or a heart} reader, they just have to relate to what you are going through.

3. Friends are honest with each other, and because of this, they can trust each other to speak the truth, even under difficult circumstances.

4. The ability to understand, or, in the act of attempting understanding, a friend proves them self worthy of mutual appreciation.

5. There's also a kind of strange kinship unequaled in other relationships that can bond people closer together than just a mere acquaintence, or even in a lover relationship. Friends relate to each other like they would a sibling, but unlike with a blood relative, they can share things they wouldn't normally do with family.

6. Friends share a sort of affection that is as strong as the emotional love between lovers, but the affection does not come with a sexual longing. Hugging seems to be one type of an emotional exchange, to let the other know you care -- even the holding of a hand can give a physical indication that your friend knows what you are going through, that you are not alone. This, in itself, cannot repair physical and emotional damage caused to you by someone/thing else, but it serves as support.

Sanctified by all religions, friendship is integral to the human experience and is as important as all other major relationships a person has in their life. Yet is it in decline? It's sad to not be able to reach out to a male friend only for him to flinch at your touch when you're trying to support him emotionally. Even worse is the awkwardness between friends who are married to other people!

So how can people be cool to each other? Well, maybe everybody should do as I do: fail to shut-up about it and keep bringing it up as something important to discuss. We may not be living in ancient times, and there are boundaries between people now that you can't avoid, but that shouldn't mean that friends can't make their relationships as sacred as marriage vows.

I just wish the rest of the world would just stop ... & consider it. What would you do to make your friends smile?

I Adore.


Analyzing Myself, I Adore...

My Family
The Smell a Good Cologne
Soulful Voices
Love
Guess Low-rise Jeans
Mac Lip Gloss-All of them
Blow Pops
Diet Dr. Pepper
Pink, glittery Anything
Talking on the Phone
Call Tones
My pink nano..
Sleeping In On A Rainy Day
Text Messages
My ibook G4
My Pink Coach Bag
Men With Good Hearts...
Hugs & I Love Yous
Giving All of Me
Making People Laugh
Making People Smile
Pictures
Friends, Real Friends
Shopping
Lily Belle.............

{Act of Kindness} #1.


Imagine what would happen if you acted on every single thought of generosity that arises spontaneously in your heart. Would you make someone’s life just a little bit better?

Would it make your life better?

Try it, and when you run out of your own ideas, try this {Act of Kindness}. And notice what happens as a result.

It's just a reminder that nobody is going to change the world by hoping somebody else is going to take care of it. Generosity is not about being rich, its about being involved.

Friday, December 15, 2006

I {heart} U.


When you {heart} someone, U CANT GET THAT PERSON OFF UR MIND,HEART AND OUT OF YOUR EMOTIONAL SPHERE......SO GO AHEAD AND LOVE......ITS OK YA KNOW......HEART THE PEOPLE WHO HEART U!AND TELL THE PERSON THAT DOESNT KNOW THAT U HEART THEM THAT U DO!

ah-MAN-dah.


Ask.Find.Enlighten.
What does my name Amanda mean?

Amanda is a popular girl's name. It is pronounced ah-MAN-dah. The name is of Latin origin, and its meaning is "lovable."

Love
Deserving Love
Worthy of Love
Lovable
Precious Thing
One Who is Loved



{Mandy}, my pet form.

Thursday, December 14, 2006

Santa Baby.


Santa baby, slip a sable under the tree, for me
I've been an awful good girl
Santa baby, and hurry down the chimney tonight
Santa baby, an out-of-space convertible too, light blue
I'll wait up for you dear
Santa baby, and hurry down the chimney tonight
Think of all the fun I've missed
Think of all the fellas that I haven't kissed
Next year I could be oh so good
If you'd check off my Christmas list
Boo doo bee doo
Santa honey, I wanna yacht and really that's
Not a lot
I've been an angel all year
Santa baby, and hurry down the chimney tonight
Santa cutie, there's one thing I really do need, the deed
To a platinum mine
Santa cutie
, and hurry down the chimney tonight
Santa baby, I'm filling my stocking with a duplex, and checks
Sign your 'X' on the line
Santa baby, and hurry down the chimney tonight
Come and trim my Christmas tree
With some decorations bought at Tiffany's
I really do believe in you
Let's see if you believe in me
Boo doo bee doo
Santa baby, forgot to mention one little thing, a ring
I don't mean a phone
Santa baby, and hurry down the chimney tonight
Hurry down the chimney tonight
Hurry down the chimney tonight

Get Your Kodak On.



{me}


A: likes to flirt.
M: Makes dating fun
A: likes to flirt.
N: Dead sexy.
D: Has the best Personality ever
A: likes to flirt.

Pampered Pouch.



Dogs are not our whole life, but they make our lives whole.
Whoever said you can't buy happiness forgot little puppies.

{secrets}


12 Secrets of Highly Creative Women

Acknowledge Your Creative Self
Honor Your Inspirations
Follow Your Fascinations
Surrender to Creative Cycles
Commit to Self Focus
Conquer Saboteurs
Consult with Guides
Select Empowering Partnerships
Transcend Rejections and Roadblocks
Live in Abundance with Positive Priorities
Subtract Serenity Stealers
Plan to Achieve Your Goals

Peek {into my life}


In my purse
1. my MAC lipstick
2. my wet wipes
3. my cell phone
4. keys
5. wallet
6. my sunglasses
7. tylenol rapid release
8. eclipe winterfresh gum
9. pink gap lotion
10. purple pen
11. post -its

The Journey.


Sometimes when you finish a journey, you arrive at a place that looks very different from what you thought it was going to look like. Recently, I've had a change of heart..."feelings of wrongness," even when nothing was wrong in a relationship with a friend. So after much sharing and prayer, I've decided to move on. I've been told about a million times, that I have the gift of seeing the best in people and I'm kind and caring to those who need my help. Maybe that is why I met this person, to help and see his best, what is really in his heart. Maybe to heal.

"The way to handle a woman is to love her…simply love her."
-Camelot

Learn.Grow.Repeat.


Often when a romance turns sour, people turn around and want to destroy each other. Some people, who have lost their faith, turn against gospel principles or use their energy to attack. Jealousy is usually disguised as righteous indignation. The jealous person will justify his judgments, thinking himself in a superior position. The cure for envy, as with several other character flaws, is humility. Christ taught us to humble ourselves as a little child. One of the sterling qualities of very young children is that they have no prejudgments of others. They grow to love parents regardless of their elders' flaws. In love relationships, it is ideal if we can celebrate each individual for all of his or her strengths and values. Learning love takes some re-education and reorienting of our style of thinking. It also takes some practice and real effort. But as we grow in Christ's love, we may become more like Him.

Thanks.


This week, month, year, I have learned so much about relationships. Seriouly. Someone told me, recently, 'If it walks like a duck, and quacks like a duck well then......you get it. Thanks for that advice girl. All the better to find it out now then 6 months down the road.....your words,really, were something. I will sleep really well tonight in my Ralph 600 count sheets...thanks Ralph!

Cute Overlaod.


At Cute Overload™, we scour the Web for only the finest in Cute Imagery. Imagery that is Worth Your Internet Browsing Time. We offer an overwhelming amount of cuteness to fill your daily visual allowance. Drink it in!

Girly. Girl.


Reasons I {heart} being a girl:
A. I can be both soft & strong and not be ridiculed for it.
B. A bat of my pretty little eyes can get me out of a speeding ticket faster than 90mph.
C. Sisterhood- a bond like no other.
D. My SMILE is killer!
E. Motherhood- 9 months of shared life.

YES! Exactly!


Steve Jobs: Your time is limited, so don't waste it living someone else's life. Don't be trapped by dogma - which is living with the results of other people's thinking. Don't let the noise of other's opinions drown out your own inner voice. And most important, have the courage to follow your heart and intuition. They somehow already know what you truly want to become. Everything else is secondary.

Can't Live Without.


My pink ipod nano.
My shoes (all of them).
My ibook G4.
My mac lip gloss.
My coach purses.
My cell phone.
My pink Guess Sunglassess.
My Silpada.
My Lily Belle.