Something For the Golfer In Your Family

Tuesday, I was blessed, along with some other San Antonio bloggers, to get to go out to the JW Marriott resort here in San Antonio, and take a peek at their San Antonio Golf Championship going on this week.  I grew up going to the golf course, as my grandpa would play in Senior Tournaments every year. I have fond memories of walking the course, picking up acorns, and when we were really lucky, we got to ride along on the back of my grandpa’s golf cart.

As I got older, my dad took up golfing, along with my other grandpa. So I would occasionally go out to the course and walk alongside them while they played.  All that to say, golf makes me feel happy, because it has a lot of warm memories tied up into it.

The TPC course at the JW Marriott is gorgeous. So many of the golfers love it there because of the good condition of the greens. It’s scenery is pristine, with the view of treetops in so many spots. So whether you are playing, or observing, it’s enjoyable.

The San Antonio Championship by AT&T is for the best players in golf over the age of 50.  One of the highlights of the San Antonio Championship is the Pro-Am. This is where amateur golfers can sign up to play alongside a professional golfer! There are no age restrictions on the Pro-Am, so if you have a little budding golfer and they are 7, or 9, or 16 – they have the opportunity to play alongside a pro.  There is a drawing the night before playtime, where each golf group (4 amateurs to 1 pro) gets to see which pro they will be playing with.  I think this is such a neat idea for golfers to be able to do something they enjoy, plus get up-close-and-personal with a pro.  You don’t have to live in San Antonio to sign up for the Pro-Am. You can live in Florida, Oregon, or anywhere…. And just come into San Antonio for the week of the Championship to play! Of course, you can’t do it this year, but definitely look into signing up for next year!

After the Pro-Am, the 81 champion golfers will play in the Championship from Friday-Monday. They are playing for a purse of $1.8 million!!!

This is the 31^st year of the San Antonio Championship and it couldn’t be held at a more stunning resort than the JW Marriott. In addition to the top-notch facilities, the people there are super friendly, highly personable, and ready to go out of their way to see that your needs are met.

I really enjoyed my time there getting to shuttle around to some of the greens and tees.  I highly recommend taking your loved one, or your family out for some beautiful time outdoors, in a great environment watching some golf and enjoying some of the exhibits and vendors they have set up.  You can also catch the pro’s play in the championship on the Golf Channel if you’re not able to go out and attend personally.

But if you can, go out and spend a little time there this weekend. You can get some exercise, enjoy the beautiful sunshine San Antonio is still having, spend some time with your spouse or kids who are interested in golf, and enjoy the beauty of the outdoors at a luxury resort. It’s surprisingly affordable, and fun!

You just might run into me out there, as well.

Parking: http://attchamp.com/parking-information/

Ticket information: http://attchamp.com/tickets/

Tournament history information: http://attchamp.com/tournament-facts/

**I was treated lunch and given some free items as a blogger, but all opinions, thoughts, and words are solely mine.

Letting Nature Tend To My Soul

I’m in love with the sounds. The sounds from my new home in Texas.

Maybe nature wasn’t as abundant in my last home state. Maybe I just wasn’t listening as closely. But here, here, all the animals and insects seem to be happy and cheerful.

I sit on my back patio, and I can hear the doves cooing, the insects chirping, and the birds singing. And I take it all in.

It makes me happy and refreshed. For it’s how I imagine God intended it to be – with all the different animals frolicking about and speaking to one another here and there. Going about their business, living life. Loving who they were created to be. At least, that’s what they sound like to me. They don’t sound like they are unhappy, depressed, or mad about where they live or what they are. The squirrel bounces around and seems perfectly content that he’s a squirrel – and not a bird.

So, why aren’t we, as people, happy with who we are? God made us each differently. We can still interact and relate to one another – accepting who we are, and accepting who others are. We can be happy and cheerful – simply living our lives.

I wonder what our “people” sounds, sound like to the critters? Do we sound happy and joyful, or whiny, angry, and ungrateful? Maybe if we seemed more at peace, the animals would be more drawn to us, as we are to them.

I think that’s why nature is so recharging to a soul. It’s accepting. It’s inspiring and motivational, simply in observing, listening, and letting it attend to our hearts and souls.

It’s healing.

City smog, fast-paced traffic, noisy television sets, ipods, and computers. They can be exciting at times – but they are manufactured distractions. They can’t attend to a soul the way the outdoors can. The way that GOD can.

Maybe that’s the secret the wild animals carry with them.

Maybe we can learn something from them.

The Birds

Birds have never bothered me. I like most of them. Their array of colors and noises. They are fun to watch.  Most of them.

The black birds that are always around in the parking lots of grocery stores or shopping malls? Those, I could do without.

Until now.

As many of you know, we are recent “newbies” to the state of Texas. And every time I go grocery shopping or out running errands, I see the beloved black bird hanging around. They are slightly bigger here in Texas than in the northwest. And they have become one of my favorite things.

You see, when they open their mouths to sing? It sounds so cheerful. So tropical. So cool! I absolutely love it. It makes me smile every time I hear it.

Who knew something so ordinary could have such an extraordinary sound?

It reminds me of how we judge each other by our outward appearance. Some of us aren’t colorful or darling on the outside. We are (by our own assessment) boring, normal, or even ugly.  But God has given us each a gift. It’s our song. And when we live within that gift and use it to the best of our abilities – a beautiful thing happens. We are transformed. Our voice becomes something of joy and beauty. Our appearance is changed and others are drawn to us.

Just like I am with these black birds.

Never underestimate yourself. Never belittle who you are. Something beautiful lives inside of you. You just need to find it and then sing it out for all the world to hear.  “This is me!” This is me!” And I promise, it will be beautiful.

Inspiration Can Never Be Rushed

Sometimes the inspiration just won’t come. I look for it, I seek it out, and I just can’t seem to touch it.

I hate those times.

I don’t understand why I can’t seem to catch just a glimmer of inspiration in those seasons. For I know it’s all around me. Inspiration is in the beauty on my children’s faces and the smell of my husband’s cologne. It’s in the vastness of the sky, and the wind that blows the trees. Inspiration is in the smell of a delicious meal, and the grip of a tiny newborn’s hand.

It’s all around us. It’s IN us. It’s before, and behind us. God uses us to inspire one another and He uses His creation.

So why does it elude us at times? Why do we fail to feel what we know is all around us?

Is it because we have saturated ourselves with so much noise, busyness, and frenzy that we can’t sit still, be still, and just KNOW that He is God? That He is good?

Is it because we need to feel adrenaline race in our veins and have forgotten how to feel the small whispers and tender caresses of love, faithfulness, honesty, and integrity?

Perhaps we look for inspiration simply to get a job done. A task achieved. A check marked off of our list. Instead of getting inspiration in our heart and lives to be INSPIRED. To feel JOY. To feel alive, beautiful, loveable, and loved?

To be inspired is to see what is often unseen by the world. To feel what doesn’t need to be expressed. To understand without using words. To create with the heart.

It IS there. It is everywhere. We just need to slow, pause, feel, and let it overcome us. Let it teach us. Show us. And lead us.

For inspiration can never be rushed.

The Beauty of England, Scotland, and Ireland

Our family recently got to travel overseas for a brief stint. I am so thankful for the opportunities I’ve been given to see God’s world. It never fails to amaze me. It is so beautiful.

I find big cities beautiful. I find the countryside beautiful. I find people with their differing customs, accents, and way of living… beautiful.

And I just wanted to share a little slice of it with you.

Sing Like a Bird

One of my favorite things in the summertime is to wake up with an open window and hear the birds outside chirping and singing away. I love it so. It lends a whole cheer and tone to my day from the very beginning.

I don’t think I’ve ever heard a “sad” bird song. They always seem to have melody in their voices and a smile in their song. I like that. I think we could learn from that.

When we wake up and start each day, it is a gift. After all – God sustained us through the night and saw fit to let us live another day. That is one reason to wake up smiling and singing.  We also have the chance to live each new day “right.” We have another chance to say the right thing, think the right thing, act in the right circumstance and do it with the right heart and motivation… and love from a heart that is right with God.

Each new day is a fresh start. A new beginning. Another chance to be who we want to be. That is cause to sing is it not?

They say you can wake up on the wrong side of the bed. I think that’s true. But I don’t think I’ve seen a bird do that. They seem to wake up with a song in their heart. They are focused on the day and the job with which they are set out to do. Whether that’s building a nest, guarding eggs, bringing food to their young – whatever. They do it with cheer and focus.

If we have the right intentions and motivation, we too, can feel happy each morning that we wake up. We can have a song on our tongue, a smile on our lips, and cheer in our heart. Just like the birds.

Sit Outside

The sun is out and the warm weather is here. I can’t tell you what that does for my whole mood! I am more motivated, my attitude is better, and I feel more energized.

It is so nice to eat dinner outside on the patio table. It’s so nice to bring my laptop outside instead of sitting in my office with a space heater blowing on me to keep me warmed up.

But it’s more than that. It’s nature itself that renews, revives, and restores. I can close the lid of my laptop and look at the blue sky. I can watch a bird fly in the distance and close my eyes and hear all of the cheerful chirping.

No tv noise. Just the sounds of life.

And I’m reminded how my soul needs it. How it helps me clear my head and think.  How it calms my heart. How I somehow am able to make better decisions and choices.

Just by sitting outside. By taking in life and letting it fall over me, in me, and through me.

When warm weather sets in after winter, most people are out and about. But by the end of summer, it seems that spirit has faded somewhat. Not as many people want to be outside. They are tired of the sunshine. Bored with the warmth. They move back inside again.

Not me. I cling to what I know will be gone for many many months.  I soak in whatever last drop of gentle breeze, cheerful chirp, and warmth on my skin that I can get.

For I know the hidden secret. I know what looking at a tree and puffy clouds in the distance can do for me. I know what smelling the aromas of flowers blooming and fresh grass clipped does for my senses.

It gives me hope. Joy. Compassion. Love. And Life. Everything I need to face what hits me every day.

Sit outside. Try it. Close your eyes and take it in. And you’ll feel it too.