Smoky Mountain Christmas.

          Here is some beauty to help get you all in the holiday spirit!  This picture was taken standing under a decorated tree in Dollywood, Dolly Parton's theme park in the foothills of the Smoky Mountains in Pigeon Forge, Tennessee.  My entire family rented a Sugar Maple Cabin for a week, and we took my grandpa to the one place he has talked about since I was in diapers.  My grandparents, parents, three sisters, boyfriend, and cousin with his girlfriend all piled onto the front of an old fashioned train for a five mile loop about the theme park.  Surprisingly enough, the three coasters that we rode were awesome!  And this from a girl who grew up going to Cedar Point almost yearly - so that's saying something.

          All of the buildings in the park were wrapped in detailed lights for part of Dollywood's Smoky Mountain Christmas Celebration.  My sister Kay's hand is in the picture above, with another sister Lysi, my mom Connie, grandpa Wes, and grandma Cheryl right in front of her.  

          This is the view of the foothills from one of three balconies in our cabin on Thanksgiving morning.  The kitchen was a little cramped to cook a big dinner in, but the food tasted great, no one got in a fight (the first time EVER), and the whole family was together.  Maybe a trip like this for the holiday can become a tradition...

This is me.

"The greatest thing is, at any moment, to be willing to give up who we are in order to become all that we can be." 

-  Max De Pree

          Who am I?  For years I diligently searched for the answer.  Since childhood we are bombarded with messages telling us to dream big and accomplish amazing things.  Sentimental quotes like Max De Pree's have become everyday fodder for the masses.  Well, I've got news for you, Mr. De Pree... I've spent too much precious time of this life trying to give up on my real self to become my ideal self.  Our cultural view of success has crippled society's humility.  It took me a long time to realize that while I was trying to better myself, I ignored the qualities in me that were the core of my being.  So I present another quote.

"To dream of the person you would like to be, is to waste the person you are."

- Unknown

          So you see, I believe that the answer lies in ourselves, right this instant.  I am who I will always be.  What we want out of life on a higher level, we already have!  Be good, do good, feel good.  It's easy to get caught up in all the petty junk of living, but when are we strong enough to say, "Enough is enough!" ?  And that's where I am today: trying to realize that I am enough, I have enough, and that what I do truly is enough.  Welcome to my life.  This is me.