Tuesday, April 17, 2012

Tackling ADD One Step At...Hey! Look Over...Wait, What Was I Saying?

If you know me well you might need a moment after reading the title of today's blog...go ahead, collect yourself. We'll be waiting right here...or over there...or...hey who's out there? Do I know you? What was the question again?


If you've just stumbled upon me today well first...Welcome to the crazy train! If you go back through the older blogs or through the links (you can find me here too: http://about.me/NikiNikolopoulos ) and you'll be up to speed in no time! We're just here to have fun because life is WAY to short to be boring! ;o)


I am slowly beginning to realize the oxymoron that is my life. I can be MEGA organized when I need to be and yet I get easily distracted by the littlest...hey, is that a...oh my bad, where were we? Organization! I've tried a daily planner, guess what I'm supposed to be doing according to that right now? Well, it has nothing to do with this computer on my lap!


At the end of the day the important things all get done and the rest gets shuffled around as needed. When you are tackling so many ideas and projects all at once your brain sits on overload much of the time, however you quickly realize what truly is important, where your passions really lie and who will help keep you focused or motivated! 


One of these days I may look back and wonder where I got all the energy to juggle so many irons in the fire and not get burned but life is too short for regrets! I'm a big user of the Life's Too Short mantras, because it is so true! Tomorrow is not a given! Today is called the Present because it is a gift! The rearview mirror is small because what is behind you is not nearly as important as the path ahead of you! Enjoy the journey! Live life to the fullest! Leave a trail of smiles in your wake!!


Thankful Today: to have the honor of reflecting God's love to as many as He puts into my path! Can you see a Light shining in me? I assure you 100% of the good you see in me is ALL Him!
Second Thanks: amazing friends & family who put up with my ADD, my high energy and my zest for all things positive in life! Y'all make my heart smile big!!!


Lessons Learned:
*You can never have too many BFFs! Each serves a purpose and holds a special place in my heart! Each is as unique as our friendship and an equally treasured slice of my soul!
*Age Three is the beginning of the end of sweetness and innocence!
*Kids will surprise you when you least expect it and they make life a precious if not crazy adventure!
*Sometimes we love our friends and 'adopted' family more than blood relatives but there's plenty of room for all in our hearts!
*There truly is a silver lining in every single situation we encounter! Find yours even if you have to dig with your fingertips!

Monday, April 9, 2012

Give It To God!

I know I said that this blog was going to be my informal, just for fun outlet and keep my religious banter to my Niki's Thoughts emails, Google+ and Facebook page but...
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God is on my mind big time today and I can't walk away from that, it means to me that I'm supposed to share. So, please bear with me! No Bible verse quotes but I'm gonna bear my heart a bit, okay?


Today I went to the post office, yes we could all use God when we have to go there! I had a delivery confirmation receipt for my audition video that kept showing me online that it had been delivered to Charlotte, NC. But the destination was California! I waited in the longest line...ever. I tweeted to avoid boredom. I smiled when I got to the front and asked the man behind the counter how his day was. He was not cheerful. I mailed a package to my goddaughter in Chicago. I asked about the delivery confirmation. He told me to step aside to the window while he got his supervisor for me. 


BUZZ! BUZZ! BUZZ! Wow, that was loud! I wait in front of a closed window, feeling the stares of twenty or so people in line. I was tempted to tweet again but I didn't want to get caught red-handed by the supervisor who's help I needed. The window opens, a large man in a bold pink shirt appears and says to me, "How may I not help you?" REALLY? Is your day so bad that you greet people that way? Eeeek! Poor, sad man! Bless his heart!


I told him my story, he told me I should have paid for a signature instead but he'd look and see if he could find anything out. I leaned on the window ledge, I folded my hands, I bowed my head and I prayed my heart out. I waited. I prayed more. I waited more. Finally he reappears holding a full sheet of paper and tells me my package was delivered last week to the correct address in California! YAY!


I skipped back to my car. Smiling from ear to ear. Then it hits me. It's no longer in my hands. I am completely out of control of my fate. But that's life really. "Control is an illusion." God holds us all in His hands. You know what? I am comforted by that powerful fact! I make far too many mistakes to be left on my own out here! So I'm letting go.I refuse to count down the days. I will practice as if I'm in but live as if I'm not. Life is a journey! It's way more fun if we sit back and enjoy the ride. So give it to God y'all! 


Thankful today: for an amazing birthday yesterday, and all y'all that made it epic!
2nd thanks: connecting with new friends! 


Lessons Learned:
*An extra large shirt from HMS is the equivalent of a medium anywhere else!
*You can build real friendships with people you meet online, step cautiously but love freely!
*The smallest gesture can make the biggest impact!
*Skipping like a school girl is an activity that should be partaken of often!
* Everyone needs a least one person in their life that makes them feel cherished! Cherish them back!

Friday, April 6, 2012

Lucky Thirteen?

I got to thinking today about my marriage, we're going to be celebrating thirteen amazing years together later this month. It's been a roller coaster ride! I remember when we met, George had a full out mullet and it was 1998 for heaven's sake! But he had on them cowboy boots and I've always been a sucker for those Mediterranean men!


We had a whirlwind romance I guess you could say! Started dating August of 1998, knew he was 'the one' by October, engaged December and we were married in our very own "Big Fat Greek Wedding" on Sunday, April 25, 1999. Crazy, right? Seems to be a theme in my life!


Our life has been full of its ups and downs. We've had epic fights, we've had amazing memories made, we have been through it all together. So what makes it work? Well, communication is huge! Of course there's love, that's a must, and you can only get so far without respect and trust! It's being ready to fight for your marriage against all odds, it's being open minded and a good listener.


How about you? Are you married? What's working for your success there? Still single? What are you looking for? Do you have an ideal mate in mind? I thought I had and I was wrong, but then I always thought I'd mess up if/when I got married yet here I am thirteen years and counting!


I wasn't looking for love when I found George! In fact, you could maybe say I already thought I had it! I was in a pretty serious relationship with my best friend from HS when George 2-Stepped into my world. Sometimes when we plan, God laughs, right? Good thing my 'fate' is in the hands of Someone a lot smarted than I!


Thankful for: A real marriage that has made it through thick & thin so far!
2nd Thanks: The ups & downs in life that bring us closer to each other!


Lessons Learned:
*My husband will always be my favorite cowboy even if he doesn't ride horses! 
*We can push ourselves into realms we never thought possible while we're not even paying attention!
*God's plans are always better than anything we could dream up!

*Faith is not just about Jesus, it covers the ones we love in our trust as well!
*Life is too short to not appreciate every moment and every individual you're blessed to receive!

Monday, April 2, 2012

Be Real!

I have been overwhelmingly surprised at the new friendships I have been forming over the past month or two. Surprised because I never would have thought I could make so many connections to so many people all over the world. Overwhelmed because I have real feelings of lasting friendships with some amazing people who seem to feel the same way about me!


I am in awe over how technology can bring people together who would have never otherwise connected. I sit back and wonder how over 450 people think I am interesting enough to 'follow' what I'm typing. I try to determine what it is that draws me to follow them back!


I think my conclusion is that I am real and somehow through my little updates my sincerity comes across. I truly and firmly believe that life is too short! Too short to waste even one moment, too short to have regrets, too short to not spend every possible second of it smiling with pure joy! Maybe that's refreshing in a world where "if it bleeds it leads" and war is a passing phrase that barely registers with too many jaded souls?


For the record, I can't stand watching sad, tragic news stories and I pray for all who are fighting for our freedom daily. I do not take that stuff lightly, please do not read my last paragraph that way. I have a love for my fellow man that makes my heart break when I see anyone in pain. It's why I try to make the people around me keep a smile on their face!


So, if you're wondering what to type next, how to sound more interesting, who you should be more like when you put yourself out there...well, I have some advice! In my humble opinion, I say just be real! Be YOU! People can usually tell when you're fake or trying too hard and it just does not go over well. You don't have to make it a tell all but don't hold back who you really are. We want to interact with genuine people, be one of them!


Thankful for: My newest friends, whom I love w/ all my heart! I hope y'all are reading this - you should know who you are!!
Second thanks: The amazing talents God has blessed me with and any opportunity big or small that I have to share them and Him with my little corner of the world!


Lessons Learned:
*Never walk down a dark hallway full speed ahead, you never know what's in your path!
*I have learned to fully embraced my inner klutz and she's just as goofy as the rest of me!!
*We must now learn to share the phone for we are the proud (?) parents of a tween.
*There are endless silver linings if you know where to look...you can hit me up if ya need help finding one!
*The heart has an amazing capacity for love, you can never love too many people...there's plenty to go around!