Why Did You Spill the Coffee

Why Did You Spill the Coffee?

By: Chandru Gidwani

A great analogy:

*You are holding a cup of coffee when someone comes along and shoves you or shakes your arm, making you spill your coffee everywhere. Why did you spill the coffee?*

"Well because someone bumped into me, of course!"

Wrong answer.

You spilled the coffee because coffee was in the cup.
If tea had been in it, you would have spilled tea.

Whatever is inside the cup is what will come out.

Therefore, when life comes along and shakes you (which will happen), whatever is inside of you will come out. It’s easy to fake it until you get rattled.

So we have to ask ourselves….what’s in my cup?

When life gets tough, what spills over?
Joy, gratefulness, peace and humility?
Or anger, bitterness, harsh words and actions?

*You choose!*

Today let’s work towards filling our cups with gratitude, forgiveness, joy, words of affirmation to yourself and others, kindness, gentleness, and love.

September 11th

Burning Mountain Days Parade

Our children love parades... and so we as a family love parades because our children have so much fun.

Hubby was bear hunting all weekend, but the kids and I went to the Burning Mountain Days parade on Saturday in a nearby town and met some friends there to watch the parade together.

What a great time.

Something I have not written about yet is the fact that I have been potty training the twins now for over a week... and  *knock on wood* things are going really well.

A week a go Saturday was their first afternoon without diapers.  A week ago today (Monday) was their first day in undies.  A week ago tomorrow (Tuesday) was their first outing out of the house in undies -- to dance class.  And last week Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday, they rode to and from school and attended school all day in undies.

Basically, we have been diaper free except nap time and bed time for over a week now -- including at the Burning Mountain Days Parade, which is such a huge accomplishment for our twins... and for me as a mom.  This really feels like an amazing way to start the school year.

 

The Best Pet

Turns out, the best pet to get for your children... is the one that the neighbors get and we get to visit and love it and then leave it to come home.

 

Which Baby?

Can you tell which baby these two are?

 They're both about ten months in the pictures.  They're both loving baths, and they both are happy kids.

Kid Pictures

Our new normal is pretty hectic, but we're getting the hang of things.

That being said, I teach a college class on Tuesday nights.

The kids go to school Wednesdays, Thursdays, and Fridays.

Addallee stays with another mom on those days.

I teach in the schools on those days.

I spend the evenings with the kids, but somehow I seem to forget to take pictures of them what with catching up with them and just soaking in as much time as I can having missed them all day.

That means, when I do my blog on Thursdays and Fridays, I am looking at my phone with no new pictures of my children because I haven't been home with them as much as I am other days of the week.

So, I have to resort to pictures that people have sent me from their time with my kiddos.  Here were some pictures I was sent yesterday:

 

Mrs. Kyle's Message to Nike

I don't think I have written about the NFL disrespectful protests because they are not worth my energy to discuss.  I really enjoy football, but turns out, my life without the NFL is just fine.  I don't really miss it.

But apparently NIKE has decided to feature Kapernick in their newest add... "Believe in something. Even if it means sacrificing everything" featuring Kapernick.  Well, that I do feel is worth addressing,by re-posting what Taya Kyle, Chris Kyle's widow wrote to Nike.

  

*** *** *** *** ***

Nike, I love your gear, but you exhaust my spirit on this one. Your new ad with Colin Kapernick, I get the message, but that sacrificing everything thing…. It just doesn’t play out here. Sacrificing what exactly? A career? I’ve done that both times I chose to stay home and be with my kids instead of continuing my business climb… and it wasn’t sacrificing everything. It was sacrificing one career and some money and it was because of what I believe in and more importantly, who I believe in.

At best, that is all Colin sacrificed… some money and it’s debatable if he really lost his career over it. Maybe he sacrificed the respect of some people while he gained the respect of others. Or maybe he used one career to springboard himself into a different career when the first was waning. I don’t know. What I do know is, he gained popularity and magazine covers he likely wouldn’t have gotten without getting on his knees or as you say, “believing in something.” I’m also thinking the irony is that while I am not privy to the numbers, it’s likely he gained a lucrative Nike contract. So yeah… that whole “sacrificing everything” is insulting to those who really have sacrificed everything.

You want to talk about someone in the NFL sacrificing everything? Pat Tillman. NFL STARTING, not benched, player who left to join the Army and died for it. THAT is sacrificing everything for something you believe in.

How about other warriors? Warriors who will not be on magazine covers, who will not get lucrative contracts and millions of followers from their actions and who have truly sacrificed everything. They did it because they believed in something. Take it from me, when I say they sacrificed everything, they also sacrificed the lives of their loved ones who will never be the same. THAT is sacrificing everything for something they believe in.

Did you get us talking? Yeah, you did. But, your brand recognition was strong enough. Did you teach the next generation of consumers about true grit? Not that I can see.

Taking a stand, or rather a knee, against the flag which has covered the caskets of so many who actually did sacrifice everything for something they believe in, that we all believe in? Well, the irony of your ad..it almost leaves me speechless. Were you trying to be insulting?

Maybe you are banking on the fact we won’t take the time to see your lack of judgement in using words that just don’t fit. Maybe you are also banking on us not seeing Nike as kneeling before the flag. Or maybe you want us to see you exactly that way. I don’t know. All I know is, I was actually in the market for some new kicks and at least for now, I’ve never been more grateful for Under Armour.

Thank you, Mrs. Kyle.  For everything.