Happiness is a choice!

The Big Picture, One Step Ahead

I remember standing in my crib and looking out the window and seeing the horses. My dad and uncle Paul owned them. Socks was my dad’s horse. They were beautiful and very  entertaining for a one year old girl. “Horse” was naturally my first word. That was a little disappointing for my mother, but none the less it was my father who had to have been proud that his curly blond little dolly loved horses. My dad has always liked fast things such as horse and motorcycles and me being a daddy’s girl, I did too. I remember climbing up the big barrow pit on my dad’s motorcycle and squealing with delight. Then he traded his motorcycle for a saddle and a young filly named, “Smokey.” It was the perfect name for this young 2 year old horse. She was dark smokey gray and when my dad kicked her in gear all you could see is smoke! I would ride behind him in the saddle and he would run like the wind and she could jump culverts and ditches in one stride. I wasn’t big enough, experienced enough or strong enough to ride her by myself so  I always had

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Puma Princess and the Mountain Lion

Mountain lions have always been a part of my life. I always believed my dad, Dee Cannon,  is a great hunter. When I was 5 years old he shot one of the largest mountain lions in the US.  My dad named him Tom and we grew up with stories of ,”Tom the big daddy mountain lion.” I got a call from my daughter who was camping one half hour from my home in Sugar City, Idaho at 9:45pm on August 12, 2016. She said Kelsi got attacked by a mountain lion and asked me to look up what time a Urgent Care office in Rexburg closed. What the… Who gets a call like that? After a troubled nights sleep, a few conversations with Kera, Gabe, my step son, and I headed  up the mountain to be with our family.  I started to think of sweet names for my grand daughter to make the mood brighter. Together we came up with, “Princess Puma” And so that is what she forever will be called. My little” Puma Princess.” When I got up there my grandkids and nieces and nephews came running to me and started telling me all about it. I wasn’t there when it

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The Dr. says Caffeine is good for you, but beware of synthetic caffeine

People who consume caffeine on a regular basis live longer than people who don’t consume caffeine.  This is according to my cancer doctor who is a specialist at Huntsmans Cancer Instatute in Salt Lake City. But he said to beware of synthetic caffeine.  I gave him the same look you are giving me, what has synthetic caffeine? He mater-of fact told me to stay away from Red Bull or Chinese synthetic caffeine. “We really don’t know how it is made.” What is synthetic caffeine made of. Well one of the ingredients is urea, urea serves an important role in the metabolism of nitrogen-containing compounds by animals, and is the main nitrogen-containing substance in the urine of mammals. That makes me question drinking my diet pepsi. Darn, it tastes so good! The Cancer specialist is very pleased that I am not having depression. This is very common in cancer survivors. Caffeine can be a great boost to mood, and wakes up your brain, up to 250 mg per day isn’t bad but when you cross the line into addiction, you need to take a look at how you use it. There are a lot of opinions on the use of caffeine and

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You don’t need a ‘JOB’ to make $Money$

My heart warmed with hope for the future when one of my newly married sons said to me, ” My job starts in a month, I am not worried about it because I can make more money riding horses than the job. The job is more for my education and my future.” I sat my teenage boys down this morning…wait! How did I get my 3 teenage boys out of bed and up to the table at 10am on a Summers morning? Food. Food is the answer, warm pancakes, ice cream, warm homemade syrup and a yummy breakfast drink. Yup, you want to have any influence on your big boys? Use food. At least in my house and I claim 10 boys as my boys. I may not have given birth to all of them, but I sure love all of them with all my heart. I pray for them, love them and wish them all success in their lives. Disclaimer: To the girls in our family, sometimes chocolate is there calling, but things are a little more complicated with them. I love them dearly, but they just aren’t as simple as their brothers. I used an exercise that my personal life

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Why Succulents?

It was Christmas time and the only present I wanted was to be healed from Cancer. Christmas wishes do come true, I was given a clean bill of health 4 months later. My job was to stay healthy, stay alive and do my best to be happy and comfortable. The out pouring of neighbors and my community was outstanding. They took care of food for my family,( I didn’t care much for food at the time, let alone cooking) and I had plenty of hats to cover my bald head, and many lovely home made blankets to remind me of the world outside and those who were praying for me. Jim gave me the gift of life. I didn’t even know I loved plants so very much until he introduced me to the world of succulents. It was cold outside, but inside the dirt felt alive! Life supports life, the plants, rocks and dirt were breathing life into me. Jim would come home from dinner and the kitchen would be  covered in dirt, rocks, pots and PLANTS! I spent my days supporting life and these little guys supported me. Oh, I killed a few, (so sorry about that) but it

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$Teaching children the value of money. $

When I look at successful families, one defining characteristic stands out: The children know how to work. https://www.deseret.com/2011/4/5/20370972/from-the-homefront-7-secrets-of-successful-parenting-teaching-kids-to-work “I need a credit card,”  As an

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