Dear Father in heaven,

As we gather here together to celebrate this new year,

May your bountiful blessings come upon our loved ones
and everyone present here in this gathering.

We pray also for those who are not present in our midst.

May you bless them all with peace and happiness.

May all those who suffer in hospital beds feel the soothing balm of your presence.

Photo by Wyscan

May all those in jail houses discern your saving grace.

May all those who are at war, learn your forgiving ways.

May all those who suffer in poverty see the richness of your blessings.

Give them the strength and grace to endure and persevere.

We also pray for “peace on earth and goodwill to all men.”

As we celebrate this new year, we thank you for all blessings.

May we continue meeting our daily challenges with faith in your goodness.

May our lives serve as witnesses to your all-abounding generosity and love.

All these, we ask through Christ , our Lord, Amen.

(You’re free to copy this and use it)

Since I started blogging , I have always wished for a free blog hosting , my own URL , a blogging community which could critique my blogs, and one place where I can download large amounts of pictures, videos, and files without living the site. I have planned to categorize all my articles into poetry, short stories, quotations, lyrics and novels.

I also had plans of using wordpress with one of my blogs to see if I could be more comfortable with it. All of these seem now to be fulfilled with this amazing free blog that is available over the net. It has all the features I have mentioned above, and many more innovative features.

In the future, I would like also to buy a domain name. What better way to continue blogging than to have your own name? I am sure this would enhance my blogging experience.

The Inspirational Book is progressing slowly. I need more 12 articles to make it 20 articles all in all. I am hoping by July, I would be having my 2o articles, so that the target date of August 31, 2009, would be met.

In the meantime, I would have to contend with this great blogging opportunity available in the Internet, because blogging would always be special to me.

Sharing is vital in a marriage because marriage is a partnership. Marriage does not occur unless there are two consenting adults who vow “to have and to hold” each other; marriage does not occur too, unless there are couples who consummate their involvement with each other through a personal and intimate physical union.

This fact alone indicates that sharing is one very important aspect of marriage; that it is a partnership in which each one is expected to have an equal obligation of all things that should be shared.

What are the things that married couples should share? Shared activities of couples include several simple but bond strengthening processes.

One primary activity that should be shared is time. Married couples should find time to spend with each other and share each other’s thoughts, concepts, feelings and what-nots.

One successful couple I know, spent at least one hour everyday with each other. They talk about nothing in particular but just share their thoughts with each other. They share what transpired during the day.

They talk about their plans for the morrow. They talk about the things that they had problems with. They share their visions and their dreams with each other. Couples who do this usually have a long lasting relationship because they get to understand each other more.

Responsibilities should be shared also. They should agree on who takes care of each of the various responsibilities that come with marriage. When responsibilities are shared, there is a sense of belongingness and oneness that would make the marriage stronger.

A financial obligation is one of these. A clear agreement would avoid misunderstandings that could arise from this aspect. There are lots of marriages which have gone sour because of financial disagreements. It should be made clear who pays for this and that bill.

Household chores should also be shared. Who should cook? Who should iron the clothes? Who should wash the dishes? These may seem trivial but when these are coupled with work related stress and pressure, they can be taxing.

Couples should help each other out in this aspect. They would discover the joy of doing the dishes together, of the happiness of being able to cook food together.

Rearing children is a great, shared responsibility – the greatest of all. Since they have willingly consented to procreation and literally “made” their children together, they should also be willing to share in the enormous task of taking care of their children.

What a wonderful family it would be, when the mother and father agrees to commit themselves to share in the upbringing of their kids in an atmosphere of mutual sharing and love.

Photo 1 by viZZZual.com

Photo 2 by Joe Shlabotnik

Photo 3 by chegs

Kindly replay, to listen to the uninterrupted version. It’s a great song!

Here’s a metaphor from Aerosmith from their album entitled:
“A Little South of Sanity”

“Life’s a journey not a destination
And I just can’t tell just what tomorrow brings.”

I have an on-going call for comments at my blog: “A Campaign for Non-Violence on Children’s TV Programs” ,

Wouldn’t it be wonderful to know your thoughts on this? (pros or cons)

Kindly click on the link and contribute your thoughts and win great prizes.

I have an on-going call for comments at my blog: “A Campaign for Non-Violence on Children’s TV Programs” ,

Wouldn’t it be wonderful to know your thoughts on this? (pros or cons)

Kindly click on the link and contribute your thoughts and win great prizes.

I have an on-going call for comments at my blog: “A Campaign for Non-Violence on Children’s TV Programs” ,

Wouldn’t it be wonderful to know your thoughts on this? (pros or cons)

Kindly click on the link and contribute your thoughts and win great prizes.

Since it’s Christmas, let me digress from the normal posts in this blog. Here’s something for you to read:

How to Plan a Memorable Christmas Party

Christmas will always be one of those memorable times in our lives. This is because it could represent several things for us: family reunion, get-together with friends, long vacation, forgiveness, love, gifts and of course partying till the wee hours of dawn.

Christmas parties; however, are sometimes all the same that we tend to forget about them afterwards. If you are planning to host a Christmas party, then you must plan to make it memorable for all the participants. How could this be done? Below-mentioned are several ways to make your Christmas party apart from all the rest:

1.
Let everyone participate.

If you take active participation in an activity, you would not forget it. Encourage everyone to dance, take part in the games, sing, etc. But do not force anyone who does not want to participate.

Read the rest of the article at Helium.com

MERRY CHRISTMAS AND A HAPPY NEW YEAR!

Photo by KB35

Technology Talks is presently conducting a Free Domain Hosting contest, (this is very generous of Technology Talks, may their tribe increase), and because this friend is a Cabalen, a true blogger through and through, a kind-hearted soul and a good father – I vote for him.

I give my full support for none other than – Roy of The Struggling Blogger. I would like him to win the contest.

If anyone of you, out there, wants to help Roy, a fellow, dedicated blogger to win this free domain hosting; then by all means, kindly post a similar article (with the same links) in your blog, expressing your support for him.

Thanks and happy holidays.

More power to you Roy, and good luck!

Teenagers are very hard to please. You have to be in the same frequency as their brain wavelengths to be able to discern which Christmas gifts they would most appreciate. Here are some gift ideas that could help you decide gifts for your teen girls:

1. Gift certificates

You will never go wrong with these certificates! They could range from as low as $ 50 to $ 1000 or more. With these certificates, they are given the freedom to choose what they would truly want.

Buy the gift certificate from a department store that is large enough to provide her with several options; from gadgets, to make-ups, to stuffed toys, to appliances and many more.

This will also save you the headache of deciding what best to buy for her. The price could also be adjustable according to your available budget.

She would be happy too, that you’re treating her as an adult by allowing her to decide.

2. Cell phones

Teenagers would welcome the latest cell phones available in the market. It would make them “cool” in the eyes of their peers. Remember, this is one of their utmost concerns, to be accepted and looked up to by their friends. Belongingness is vital at this stage of their lives.

3. Dresses in fashion

Teen girls dress up for fashion. They don’t want to be considered nerds or pariahs among their peers. Balance your taste between her comfort and the on-going fashion. If the present fashion does not cater to your taste, don’t worry so much as your fashion several years ago; likewise, does not cater to her taste. Each generation has their own sense of how people should be dressed, so you must respect hers.

by dreamcicle19772006

As long as the dress does not shock your sensibilities and does not show half of her soul, then it would be okay.

4. The latest iPod model

This is assuming that you have enough financial resources to buy this. A teenager usually looks “cool” to her peers when she owns the latest of anything. Of course, you have to make her realize that this is not necessarily the case; that good character is still the genuine factor that makes someone cool.

5. Jewelry

Trendy and fashionable ear rings, necklaces and bracelets, even if they’re not 18 carat gold, are welcomed by teen girls.

In fact, online it is one of the most ordered commodity – tinker bells, juicy couture and many more. You could also order her birthstone. Make it more meaningful by personalizing it with her name engraved on it.

6. Scent collections

A set of scents that would suit her different moods would be good. Teen girls usually want to experiment with scents. If your budget is not enough then opt not for the purse concentrates but the diluted colognes or sprays which are usually cheaper.

Photo by Manassas Cakery

7. Cameras

Digital cameras which are handy are trendy to teenagers. Buy the color that she likes
and personalize it. A teen girl is struggling to establish her identity and adulthood and nothing would beat the exhilarating feeling of knowing that she has full possession of the object.

Whatever you decide to give your teen girl for Christmas, always do it with love.
Love is still the vital factor that would make a Christmas gift complete and meaningful.

Happy holidays!

This article has been published at Helium.com