Just An Everyday Donna

Do not spoil what you have by desiring what you have not; remember that what you now have was once among the things you only hoped for~Epicurus  

 Can  you remember all the things you have wished, hoped or prayed for in your life?  Did they all come true?  No?  I say thank goodness!  How different our lives could or would be if they had.  Think of things you thought you absolutely had to have or do at a particular moment in time.  If all those hopes and wishes had come true, I might not be the mother of my four children, or wife to my husband of 41 years.  Thankfully, the best wishes, hopes and prayers came true.  

Creativity has been my lifelong passion.  Making a home for my family has been a joy.  I love cooking and baking, decorating, sewing, and gardening.  Here is a short resume of some of the jobs I have done outside the home (and promise you won’t laugh.)  My first job out of school was for a nutritional/pharmaceutical company as a medical secretary and transcriptionist.  I am a trained floral designer, balloon artist, had my real estate license and sold real estate, worked in retail, managed offices, managed floral shops, worked in a book store, did direct sales, worked in a photo processing plant, worked as a photographer in a studio, even managed the box office at our local civic theater and did the costuming.  I owned a balloon shop for a while and owned a costume shop where I built mostly theatrical costumes.  The last couple of years I worked in the catering/special events department at a casino as the floral designer.   There is a lot of experience here folks and my plan is to share it with you.  

My husband was a public school teacher for 38 years.  Needless to say, with four children (two daughters, two sons) there was not always a lot of extra money for the “finer” things of life.  Therefore, this Donna had to figure out a way to make things happen…..on the cheap!

Our children didn’t always have all the "things" their friends had, but there was love and laughter and music, lots of music!  They didn’t have their own cars or video games.  Entertainment might be sitting around singing while dad played his guitar.  They were all involved in theatrical productions at their schools and sang in their school choirs.  Music has been very important in our life.  The boys played baseball and basketball.  Our house was always open for all their friends.  Our schedule was crazy.  They had jobs in high school.  They went to college.  They are all creative, talented, wonderful people who are singers, writers, business people, performers.  We are the proud grandparents of 5 rambunctious grandsons, the oldest of whom is seven.  Our "in-loves" as I like to call them are loved as well.  We are blessed.

Everyone is feeling the pinch these days, including us.   My hope is that I can show you how to live your best life without having to have a huge bank account or major Wall Street investments.  There will be ideas for gifts from the heart, ways to decorate a party, shower or wedding reception that won’t break the bank, home cooked meals that are inexpensive, delicious and easy to make.  You know, Rachel Ray says everyone has time for a delicious home cooked meal and she is right!  Ideas for your home and garden will also be included.  Need a costume?  I’ll show you how!  None of this involves extreme couponing.  The Dollar Tree is our friend.

 I am not Martha.  I am just an Everyday Donna who has had to learn to stretch a buck. Together we can make a better life. The grass is not always greener, more is not always better.  Life is good.  Do not spoil what you have by desiring what you do not have.

Things to Remember:

Smile often.  Be grateful. Laugh a lot.  Share what you have.  Be grateful.  Love much. Be kind to all creatures.  Be grateful.  Sing loud.  Dance to the beat.  Be grateful.  Don’t sweat the small stuff.  This too shall pass. Be grateful.

 Looking forward to our adventure together.  

Everyday Donna