With grace and gratitude everyday, not just today.

Grace-a state of sanctification enjoyed through divine grace

Gratitude-a feeling of appreciation or thanks

“Happiness cannot be traveled to, owned, earned, worn or consumed.
Happiness is the spiritual experience
of living every minute with love,
grace and gratitude.” Denis Waitley

This is how I feel about my life everyday, not just today on Thanksgiving.

This thanksgiving break I've immersed myself in spiritual enlightenment, watching documentaries, like Happy, by Roco Belic, reading One Thousand Gifts, by Ann Voskamp, listening to Buddhism for Beginners on Audible, by Thubten Chodron and watching one of my favorite films, Eat, Pray, Love.
What am I in search of you might ask? Nothing in particular, except a little reassurance that I'm living my life to the fullest, embracing each moment, savoring the gifts I encounter daily, loving life with all my being. It's with this grace and gratitude that my heart and soul find peace and love. I am seeking ways to assure myself, that this path I'm on, is the right one for myself and my family. I want to be sure that this ordinary life of mine is truly an extraordinary one for real, not just in blogland or on social media.

Moments of grace and gratitude fill my photo stream too...of course! ;)
November moments:

Halloween 2015

Jonas' 10th birthday...

Field trip with Lorelei to the zoo...

Family Consumer Science Food Truck competition for Savannah. Superior Rating!

Birthday sleepover with friends...

UTSA football with Bailey!

Thanksgiving break...time together (can you find Lorelei?).

Helping prep at Nana's for today's feast of gratitude!

Multiple moments from today...

To my friends, family and readers unknown...may you find love, grace, and gratitude today and everyday, so you too can experience a life full of happiness.

Happy Thanksgiving!

Much Love...The Boyen Bunch

Comments

Nothing can bring you peace...

...but yourself. I read the most amazing quote last night in a book I've been reading by Lori Gottlieb, Maybe You Should Talk to Someone. "Peace. It does not mean to be in a place where there is no noise, trouble, or hard work. It means to be in the midst of those things and still be calm in your heart." I wrote the following paragraph two weeks ago, before ever reading the quote above. In 2026, my 53rd year, I'm focusing on peace. I want to find my peace, protect my peace, cultivate my peace. This year's word of the year has strong ties to last year's word, relax. Relax is more of a temporary state of being or an activity that reduces stress. I did an okay job of being more relaxed last year, but I still found myself feeling anxious and worried about the little and big things, more than I liked. Peace, on the other hand, is more of a state of being. I hope to embrace peace in my heart and mind. Peace can be deep, stable, and persistent. That even if th...

Dinner...

Would two posts in one day be too much?! Well I am going for it! Dinner tonight was fast and fabulous, so I had to share. I guess I'll call it Tortelinni with chicken, broccoli and bacon cream sauce. Only I didn't actually use cream! It was Macaroni Grill delish! And the kids gobbled it up! Recipe: Ingredients: Two large chicken breast cubed Frozen or dried tortelinni Small onion diced Large clove of garlic chopped Handful of mushrooms chopped Applewood smoked bacon-about 5 slices chopped Cup of cooked broccoli 3/4 cup of milk 3 tablespoons of butter 1 tablespoon of flour Olive oil Salt and pepper Parmesan cheese On medium heat in a sautée pan, melt 1 tblsp of butter with some olive oil. Boil some water for the tortelinni. Sautée the onion and garlic till translucent. Add bacon. After a few minutes add the chopped chicken. Season with salt and pepper. Cook till slightly browned. Add the other 2 tablespoons of butter. Sprinkle with flour. Toss an...

Ziplining!

Helotes Hill Country Zipline ...did you even know this place existed? I know I have driven past the sign on Bandera Road, but honestly never paid much attention. Because really, how awesome of a place can it be just two miles from my house? I realize my house is on a hill and I know there are several large hills in our area, but I didn't realize what was literally in my own back yard. A sweet boy from Savannah's 8th grade Science class has been persistently pestering her to go ziplining with him. She tried to say no a dozen times, in a dozen different ways. She finally agreed last minute when she asked if she could bring someone. After a few tries of different friends, she settled on her daddy! He's an adventure junky, and honestly in the last 10 years, hasn't had a whole lot of adventure. Lorelei and I went along to take pictures and watch. It looked exhilarating and breathtaking, but with my fear of heights, I said a polite, ...

The Extraordinary Life of an Ordinary Mother

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