Oh boy it’s the end of January the first month of the new year and I’ve done it already. I’ve gone and over-extended myself.  Why can’t I just say, no?  I know I should. I know I have a billion and one things to do already but when someone asks me for something or help to get something done I can never say no.

I drive myself nuts and I really wanted to make this the year I don’t over-extend myself and already I’ve blown that one.  Now, what do I do?  Do I just keep traveling down this all too familiar road? How do I get off it?

I find myself working really early in the morning and way too late at night. Which works great as I don’t have to work when the kids get home from school but boy that makes for one tired mommy.  And tired mommy is sometimes a cranky mommy and cranky mommy is no fun.

I’ve got my first Blissdom conference coming up in just a few short weeks and while yes, I’m stressing about what to wear, missing my hubby and kids like crazy, but to be honest with you, I am really looking forward to the break.  Not taking work with me or at least I’m hoping not to.  Just a couple of days for me to recharge.  How about you, do you over extend yourself?  How do you pull yourself out of it?  And how do you recharge if you can?

© 2012, Nanette Gomez. All rights reserved.

I got to spend four and a half hours with my grandma on Sunday.  It was a quick flight in, visit and then back to the airport for my flight home but I feel so much better having seen her for myself and not just relying on others interpretation of how she was.  She’s not great no, but she’s ok and I really believe she’s going to be okay.

Princess, Buggy and hubby wanted to come with me but I just wasn’t sure so they stayed home.  But princess did send grandma a gift.  “Can you take this to great-grandma so she can get better?”  It was this cute little brown and white stuffed puppy:

Isn’t he just adorable? He was my traveling buddy too as this was my first trip away from my kids and hubby even if it was just a day trip. It’s prepping me for next month’s trip to Nashville for Blissdom.

You should have seen grandma’s face when she saw that stuffed puppy.  Her eyes just lit up and she smiled so big.  It was such a kind gesture from my little one and it is bringing my grandma so much joy. She kept stroking it’s soft fur and repositioning it so she could see it’s big black eyes and every look brought another smile to her face.  It was priceless.  What joy from the gift of a child to her great grandma.

It was a wonderful and heartbreaking visit.  So hard to see her hurt and in a strange place.  She seemed to remember me and when asked if she knew who I was she responded that she did.  I showed her our family photos, she smiled and seemed to recognize us in the photo and commented on how pretty we all were.  She’d look up at me and smile, that same smile she always did, with lots of love behind it.  She’s lost a lot of weight and doesn’t exactly look how I remember. The blonde hair is now white.  The strong husky woman is much more fraile and thin now.  All this in just a matter of weeks. But one thing hasn’t changed. She’s always been a strong willed, strong minded, feisty woman and that she still is.  I’m hoping to visit with the family again soon cause seeing the kids would make her happy.

© 2012, Nanette Gomez. All rights reserved.

Got a call last night, my grandma is in the hospital. I’m 300 miles away and I just feel numb. I’m fine for a bit then then lose it and cry then I’m ok again for a little while then I cry some more. I hate being so far away from her especially now.  I’ve been sitting here all day trying to make myself do something, think, get up and move, something, anything but I just can’t. I just want to hold her hand.  She’s afraid and she’s hurt. She doesn’t know who anyone is anymore, what time of day it is or where she is.  She’s just scared being in the hospital. Strangers all around her even though those who love her and wish she could remember are right there by her bed side.  I just want to hold her hand.

I’m so grateful my dad and mom can be there for her. They can hold her hand, they can rub her feet. They can feed her. They can do everything I wish I was there doing. They can tell her how much I love her but it’s not the same. I want to hold her hand. I want to be the one who is there to help calm her fears.  I want to be able to tell her I love her. Will she remember me? Probably not but that’s okay. I just need to be near her. I need to hold her hand.

She needs to be cared for and that means a nursing home after she leaves the hospital in a day or so.  It breaks my heart to know she’ll never return to her home, her safe place. But I know this is best for her well being. She can’t be at home anymore, she just can’t. I worry, will she be able to adjust, will she be taken care of well enough. I can’t be there everyday to go see her. I don’t want her to be alone. I don’t want her to be scared.  I know dad and mom will be there everyday to see her, I know they will but I also know what a toll this will take on them.  Just let her find peace, somewhere in her mind, a time when she was happy and all in her world was peaceful, let her live in that happiness for the rest of her time here with us.

I love you with all my heart grandma. Te amo con todo mi corazon abuelita.

Grandma and I on my wedding day.

© 2012, Nanette Gomez. All rights reserved.

I mentioned before how much I love taking pictures but have been shy about sharing them and how one of my goals for this year is to do a 365 project.  You know the one where you post a photo a day for one full year.  Well, I’ve started it and wanted to give you the link and personally invite you to come over and keep up with what I’m doing and how I’m doing on my 365 project.

Here’s the page for you:  http://www.photographybynan.com  You can even subscribe and get each days’ photo in your inbox or if you are a big facebook fan, there’s a fan page set up too: https://www.facebook.com/pages/Photography-By-Nan/146815078763105

Here’s a sneak peek from one of my favorites from this week.

Stop by and tell me which one you liked from my first week.  I’d love to know what you think. One thing I’ve notice is I really like taking photos at night.

© 2012, Nanette Gomez. All rights reserved.

We are just a few short days away from 2012. Wow, can you believe another year has gone by already?  2011 had some bumps in the road and I am really looking forward to 2012 and hoping it will be different. Have you thought about what you want or are planning to work towards in 2012?

I’m all about setting goals, realistic goals I know I can reach even if I have to take them in bite size pieces throughout the year. I’ve come up with a couple of goals so far for me personally. I have others for my business, health, etc that I am working on too.  I want to share my goals with you.  Last year, I made a vision board and it has been hanging over my desk for the past year.  As I look at it today a year later, I see I have reached some of my goals but not all.  This year I think I will be making fewer more direct goals. Not so general this time maybe eve a time frame for reaching them so I can keep myself on track.

I’ve added a personal goal this time, most times  I tend to stick to business and family goals.  I want to share my love of photography this year.  I want to use my digital camera more often if not daily.  That’s my big one for me.  I’m hoping to either add it to this blog or create one just for my photos.  I’ve always loved taking pictures but just haven’t had the courage to share them so once again I’m stepping out of my comfort zone and hoping you’ll help me stay accountable to accomplish this goal of mine this year.

Do you have any personal just for you goals for the coming year?

© 2011, Nanette Gomez. All rights reserved.

I’ve been gone form the blog for awhile and I’m sorry about that. No, it wasn’t just this time of year, it was personal.  My mom had to have surgery.  We got a call one day early in the week and surgery was scheduled for two days later. I couldn’t just sit here 300 miles away while my mom was having surgery. I know, what good was I going to do sitting in the waiting area for hours while she was in pre-op or the time she would be in surgery or the hour or so it would take her to come out from the anaesthesia but I just needed to be there. I needed to be on that other side of the wall. I need her to know whether conscious or not I was there, right there for her.  I know it was frustrating for my husband as he tried to get me go with him and the kids to have some lunch but I just couldn’t.  It’s not that I thought there would be any problems with the surgery, I just needed to be there not for anyone’s benefit but my own I guess.

I know some could stay away and be just fine keeping up with things via phone calls or text messages I just couldn’t. We would take the hit financially, put the kids through 14 hours on the road there and back and I know that wasn’t easy for them.

Fortunately all went well and she was home the very next day but this is what I needed. I needed to hold my momma’s hand and she apparently needed to hold mine. I love you mom.

© 2011, Nanette Gomez. All rights reserved.

Today thanks to OfficeMax and FoundTheMarbles.com I got to make a teacher’s day a little better.  I won a giveaway that FoundTheMarbles was hosting for Office Max and the required entry was to tell what teacher you would thank and why.

I put my entry in thanking Ms. K, my son’s kindergarten teacher because she really impacted his entire life and to me she is the epitome of what the term “teacher” means.  She went above and beyond and changed our lives so much.  Due to her dedication and concern for him he now dreams of going to college.  It’s a long way off I know but he’s already thinking ahead.

So today as I was saying, I caught up with her in the cafeteria and told her about my entry and that it won and she now had a $50 gift card to go buy supplies for her classroom.  Before I could get past the, “I entered the giveaway choosing you to thank” and it was right as I said “thank” that she put her hand on her chest and said, “that means so much to a teacher to hear”.  By the time I got to the part about the $50 card we were both watery eyed and her voice was cracking.  I didn’t want a big scene in the cafeteria with her students there I just wanted her to know how much her hard work meant to me.  And I could tell she appreciated it.  We hugged and went about our day.

I’m sure it brightened her day and knowing I was able to make her feel good for doing her job it certainly brightened mine.

Thanks Office Max and FoundTheMarbles.com for helping me do that.

It doesn’t take money to make someone’s day, sometimes it just takes a few simple words like “thank you“.

© 2011, Nanette Gomez. All rights reserved.

I absolutely love wall art.  What I love best is my photos on canvas. They just brighten up a room and draw your eye to it.  But as much as I love them, I don’t love the price tag attached to them so as soon as I saw this deal on an 11×14 gallery wrapped canvas I just had to tell you about it.

Just think your beautiful, favorite photo hanging on your wall for you to see every single day or maybe even as a gift for a friend or family member!  I’ll bet you’re already thinking of who would love to receive one of your beautiful family photos for their home. Grandma maybe?

Make sure you get this today cause the deal only lasts one day and there are a limited number available. Ok, I know you are dying to know about the deal so here it is!

You can get an 11×14 gallery wrapped canvas usually $83 for only $28 AND it includes free shipping! That’s a huge savings! – 66% off (free shipping is within the continental US only)

Fine print:  Redeemable for one 11×14 gallery wrapped canvas; frame not included. May be applied towards larger size canvases, accessories and photo options. Larger canvases available in 16×16, 16×20, 18×24 and 24×36; additional fees will apply. Redeemable online only; limit one Deal Code per transaction. Additional fees apply for delivery to Canada and Hawaii. Entire value must be used in one transaction. Excludes tax. Please allow 7 days to process your order.

So what are you waiting for? Go grab that deal now before it’s gone!

This post includes my affiliate links.

© 2011, Nanette Gomez. All rights reserved.