Turn Up the Corners of Your Mouth and Smile

My angels and I(and my dear hubby who is behind the camera), just wanted to wish you a very happy Monday. There is always something to smile about, even during times when we might have to dig just a little bit deeper. Try to focus on the smiles, and the difficult things will be a bit more tolerable.

I was excited to learn that I was the winner of a lovely crystal vase from St. George Crystal, today. Patriot, whose site is listed on my "favorite places to visit" list, does a weekly drawing. The companies that are represented are all American based companies which produce wonderful products. Patriot receives nothing in return for doing these drawings except for the satisfaction of having people, "Buy American". Please check out Patriot's wonderful site and click on some of the companies that are listed there. So many great, American made products! Enter Patriot's drawings every week by leaving a comment on her site. You might be the next one to win something special. Thank you, Patriot!

For those of you who might not be familiar with Hallie at The Wonderful World of Weiners, CJ, her very brave, young Airman just began a very difficult portion of his training. Please stop by her site and leave her a kind word of encouragement as she chews her nails to the quick thinking about what her boy is going through. Her site is also listed in my favorites.

Having thought there wasn't going to be a particular "theme" for this post, as often happens, a theme appeared on its own. For those of us who live in America, smiles are frequent and natural. We have so many things to be grateful for. We have so many things to smile about. We can purchase high-quality goods which are produced in quantity by wonderful American entrepreneurs. This is a country which encourages creativity and supports self-starters. Patriot is even going out of her way to let us know where to buy those products.

And most importantly, our country has courageous, young people who are willing to join our military forces, like Airman First Class CJ. Our rights and liberties are protected by young men and women like CJ, who give selflessly of themselves to make our country a free and safe place to live. Amazing...Truly amazing.

Herein lies the theme, which emerged as I sat in front of my laptop, tonight. Smile because you are happy. Smile because you can buy anything that you need, whenever you need it, as long as you can afford it of course! Smile because you are proud of the individuals who care enough to serve our great country, voluntarily. Smile because you can.

May your blessings be many. Before you close your eyes tonight, if you could whisper a prayer of safety for young Airman First Class CJ, I know a family in Maine who would be eternally grateful.