QUESTIONS FROM MY KIDS AND HOW I RESPOND

 

Good morning wonderful, amazing, sweet and lovely people. Thank you all for checking out my blog today. I am very happy to be blogging today.

So, this is about having smart, loud, lovely and oversabe(Nigerian experession for "know it all") kids. Have you ever found yourself in a jury but it's really not a real jury trial? I am talking about one where you are sitting peacefully and a group of 5 year olds and 3 year olds come to you uninvited asking you questions they know they answer to? Well, if you haven't, let me tell you about my life then. I only have two kids but I might as well have 10 LOL. My kids are like me and it gets pretty annoying to a point of laughter. Hahah. I am sitting over here eating my rice (yes, I love rice LOL), my oversabe kids come walking to me asking what I am doing. I have now developed a strategy and it is a response that gets them each time. When they ask me what I am doing, I tell them "I am upstairs taking a shower," LOL. They laugh out loud at my response and and Then they add "No mama, you are at the dining room eating rice." After which I add, "you know what I am doing and you are still asking me what I am doing? Next thing they do is say "Mama, you are upstairs taking a shower," and they burst out laughing at the joke too. It baffles me how good of a humor my babies have at these tender ages. Their ability to understand our environment makes me wonder if I was like this when I was their age.

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Of course, I end up laughing with them too and the questions continue. I have also learned to ignore them too. This mama's head has a lot of commitment and planning most days but my kids bring the joy to each moment and I love it. Life is truly fun and joyful with my little ones. 

I hope I made you laugh today.

Don't let anyone steal your joy!

Maryam

I THOUGHT THEY SHUT ME OUT

What’s up wonderful, amazing, sweet and lovely people. How are you all doing today? I hope you’re all having a great day today and are not letting anyone steal your joy. Welcome to maryamsjoyfullife. It’s a beautiful day!

Have you ever felt like you were ganged up against and was not aware of it, in time to plan your response? Well, I have and earlier today felt like it. I was ready to get to work and bring amazing service to my guests but my computer said I didn’t have access to my portal. The old me would have freaked out and wondered what I did wrong. But not this new me. I tried all the steps I knew to try. I also reached out to my business associates to find out if there was a global outage. I did all of this with a calm mind. I kept noticing myself respond in a very composed fashion and it intrigued me. 

While I was waiting for a response, I didn’t  panic or worry myself to death. 

Within a few minutes, I received multiple responses advising of a global tech issue with my company and that made me smile.

I was relieved knowing the issue had nothing to do with me but a global issue.

Here’s a lesson I learned, if you don’t control your mind, circumstances and people will control it for you. There’s always two ways to act if something unexpected happens; react and worry or respond and stay calm. When you choose to respond, you do so with full control over your mind and a wonderful solution is reached.

I could never have developed this ability without meditation.

If you’ve never mediated, try starting because it does wonders.

Have a great weekend!

Don’t let anyone steal your joy!

Maryam

MY FAMILY DINNER AT CARRABBAS ITALIAN GRILL|| RESTAURANT REVIEW

 

Good morning, wonderful, amazing, sweet and lovely people. Today is a beautiful day and life is always working for me even when it rains and I am soaked by it, it is always working for me lol.

Last Sunday, my sweet babies and I went to Carrabbas Italian Grill in Peachtree City, Georgia. I had presented the idea to my babies a few weeks earlier and they were down with it. So we made our trip to Carrabbas after church service last Sunday. I must say that it was an amazing experience. The food and people were amazing. The atmosphere is very family oriented. I loved the booth we were seated. My kids had an amazing time.

 We ordered some steak, mashed potatoes. Meatballs and pasta and some fries. I really enjoyed my meal. My picky eater; Levy, ate his food too. I asked him if he would love to go back, he said yes. When Levy gives his approval, you know it is really good. My Zozo could not wait to dig into her food too. Zozo who is my amazing eater and food reviewer, when she was asked if she approved of Carrabbas, she said yes. 

I would like to encourage you to try them out in your city if you haven't already been and I believe that you too, will enjoy the food and service.

Here's a video of our experience:

Don't let anyone steal your joy!

Maryam

AT OUR HOTEL GETAWAY THEY WANTED BISCUITS AND SAUSAGES|| FAIRFIELD INN AND SUITES

 

Good evening, wonderful, amazing, sweet and lovely people. Hope this blog meets you well. It's such a pleasure to be able to share another blog with you all on this beautiful Sunday evening in Hampton, Georgia.

Last week, my sweet babies and I took a much needed break from home for a short getaway in Buckhead, Atlanta. I was excited about it and so were my babies. Of course I asked them what they were looking forward to and they said the indoor pool. My kids love the swimming pool and they didn't get that from me. I am from the Sahara dessert okay? Lol... I didn't go near a pool until I was 15 years old. 

f tea. 

The name of the hotel we stayed at is Fairfield Inns and Suites by Marriott in Buckhead, Atlanta. I loved the location of the hotel and the staff were friendly. The kids and I had a blast at the swimming pool. The depth was 3ft deep and it was perfect. My son had a blast. I think one of the best things about the hotel is the indoor pool. The price is fair and worth it also. Loved parking on site and it was only $12 per day. What?! 

Breakfast was complimentary and that's amazing because not every hotel offers that. Here comes what I want to share with you today. So the morning before we checked out, we went to eat breakfast. My kids asked for biscuits and sausages. I advised them that we would have to eat what the hotel had for us, as this  was not our home. I don't think they understood what I was explaining but they kindly accepted it. The hotel's selection of breakfast food was not bad but I wished they had warm eggs, sausages and biscuits. They had some frozen sandwiches but they are not the same as fresh. My kids got to see first hand how different breakfast can be else where, for the first time. They finally settled for breakfast muffins and orange juice. While I ate a little bit of the frozen sandwich and drank a hot cup of deca

If I could suggest one thing for the Fairfield Inn and Suites by Marriot at Buckhead, Atlanta, to improve on, it would be to make warm eggs, biscuits and sausages available for families. Maybe I'm being partial because that's what I make my kids every morning lol. 

Have you ever just taken yourself and family for a short getaway? If not, give it a try. It does wonders.

I felt refreshed to go back to work when we got back from our getaway. Now we are looking forward to another getaway.

Don't let anyone steal your joy!

Maryam

DRAMA UNFORGIVENESS AND RESENTMENT ARE A TRAP

 

Good morning, wonderful, amazing, sweet and lovely people. I hope this blog meets you well. Today is a beautiful day. Thank you all for stopping by today. It is a beautiful Saturday. I am feeling super energized and pomped to get a lot done today.

Hope you are feeling as great as you want to today.

The secret of happiness to me is living a life free of regrets, resentment, drama and unforgiveness. Times when I have entertained these emotions, I couldn't sleep at night and couldn't eat my food. If you have been my follower for a while, you know I love my food. These emotions of unforgiveness, resentment and drama keep you swimming in the mud of negative energy and feelings. Quite honestly, I hate feeling that way. I have always loved the feeling of joy and the energy that I derive from it. That is why I make that decision everyday to focus on the good and cut off every negative cord of hate, drama and unforgiveness connecting me to anyone. 

I love feeling good because feeling good comes from thinking good thoughts. Do you love feeling good? I hope you do. I am constantly filling my mind with good thoughts because feeling good is important to me.

 Here's where you come in, if you are not feeling good in your body right now, I encourage you to replace the thoughts in your mind with something pleasant. If this is hard for you, heres' another suggestion; count your blessings. Gratitude is the fastest way to change your mood. Recall something nice that happened in your life that brought you a lot of joy and capture the feeling. Don't allow your mind to hold the image of the thing because what tends to happen is the feeling that the best days are behind you. Your best days are always ahead of you. 

In the past, whenever I got myself overbooked, overworked and overstressed, I'd to start focusing on what was going wrong around me but now, in stead of letting that to continue, I begin to count my blessings. Counting my blessings raises my vibration every time and changes my mood and I feel lighter.

I hope this inspired you.

Don't let anyone steal you joy!

Maryam

MY LOVE LIFE FAMILY KIDS DAD UPDATE

 Hello wonderful, amazing, sweet and lovely people. Hope this blog meets you well. Today, I wanted to share a little bit of an update with you all. Are you ready?

My kids are fine and thriving. Why wouldn't they be? They have a mom who puts God in the center of everything and  there's no other way to go but up from here. I am doing great and I also give Glory to God and my never backing down attitude. I am a bull when it comes to going after my goal. If the Bible tells me that victory is already mine, then I have to act like it is. I do that in  how I work and how interested I am in life and also how I carry myself. Although sometimes, I think some people around me expect me to be rude or dumb but I know better than to play out to their expectations.

I really am grateful for the practice of meditation. It just grounds me and gets me in a place of clarity and power. I just know no matter what is going on, I am already a success, it is just a matter of time before it materializes. Why am I telling you all of this? There are people who follow me and think that it is an easy ride for me. In some ways it is, but the reason for my strength is mostly my faith in God. Now, I have to warn you. My faith is not blind or weak. It is faith that declares "There is a way," when there's obviously no way. It is faith that trusts God even in uncertain times. Good news is God ALWAYS SHOWS UP!

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When you trust God, all things work out for you. Don't trust God and then worry yourself to death. Trust God and then go have fun like; walk in nature, read a good book, bless someone with some food or clothes you have not worn in a while. Just do something nice for someone, while you wait for your harvest; whatever that may be for you.

To conclude this, I am looking forward to an amazing life and each day I live it to the fullest!

God is always good!

Don't Let anyone steal you Joy!

Maryam

BEST CHICKEN RECIPE FOR ANYONE|| EASY TO MAKE

Hello wonderful, amazing, sweet and lovely people. I hope this blog meets you well. Today is a beautiful day. Thank you for stopping by today. In today's blog, I want to share the easiest and best chicken recipe I ever tried. It so happens that I came up with it lol...

I used to make complcated chicken strips but never really got the texture or taste I really loved until now. 

What you need:

10 Boneless, skinless chicken strips

Progresso Bread crumbs

Zatarains Creole seaoning

Vegetable oil     

Combining Ingredients

Place 10 skineless, boneless chicken strips

into a mixing bowl

Add a teaspoon of Zatarains seasoning

Mix seasoning until chicken is covered

Add 1/3 cup Progresso bead crumbs and mix

Set chicken aside

Add 1 1/2 cups vegetable oil to a frying pan

Let heat for about 3 minutes at medium high heat

place chicken strips in oil and let side cook for 3 minutes

flip over and let other side cook for another 3 minutes

Lower heat to medium and let cook for another 2 minutes per side

Life chicken out of oil and place on a flat plate

Let cook for 3-5 minutes 

Now you are readty to eat with any dipping sauce of your choice

My baby girl prefers ketchup

I hope this inpired your culinary curiosity. 

Don't let anyone steal your joy!

Maryam

HOW I BECAME STRONGER BY CHANGING WHAT I READ AND WATCH

 

Good morning, wonderful, amazing, sweet and lovely people. Thank you for checking out my blog today. Today is a beautiful day and I am excited to be back with another post.

Whenever I go to bed after watching a show with a lot of drama, that night doesn't go well. I find myself in a drama in my dream and wake up in the morning feeling heavy and tired. So, I experimented with something different the next night. I watched empowering docuseries on how to transcend struggles and master living and when I went to bed, I felt strong and peaceful. When I woke up the next day, I felt happy and light. The best feeling however, comes from a prayer of thanksgiving and meditation the night before. Each time I meditate before going to bed, I feel so powerful and joyful. Here's why I believe this happens: We live in an ocean of negative, fearful, disparing and dark energies. Energies coming from the collective consciousness of those all around us. If we don't elevate our vibration to the frequency of gratitude, love and joy, we will be damned with suffering.

The pull to sink into the mud of negative energies all about us is strong but we are stronger because we have power to choose how we are going to be. So, I have learned and keep learning to practice reading empowering materials, praying and meditation on a daily basis. In essence, what I am trying to say is that I make it my duty to feed my spirit daily. You should try it too. It is very liberating.

Today, I prayed and meditated on the joy, peace and love of God. Then I declared God's blessings over me. God is good and I want to keep growing in my knowledge each and everyday. How about you?

How will you raise your vibration today?

Don't let anyone steal your joy!

Maryam

HOW I LEARNED TO GET OUT OF MY OWN WAY

 

Good morning, wonderful, amazing, sweet and lovely friends. I hope this meets you in good spirits. I am so happy to be posting a blog this morning. Hope you are keeping your heart from negative energy.

Today, I want to share a lesson that I learned with you. I have come to the realization that whenever there is a worthwhile goal you are going after, there will be obstacles all about you that will try to stop you. Obstacles in the form of negative thoughts, people and things. From my experience and keen observation, it has become clear to me that these forces intend to keep you from experiencing growth and fulfilment. The reason I have become aware of it is because I meditate and I watch. I am observant of my energy and the energy all about me. 

Trust me when I say the negativity is everywhere but you are stronger than it. Have you ever tried to do a whole lot of things but felt overwhelmed? But when you broke that whole lot of things to little tasks, you were able to complete it. Then you looked back and wondered why you were overwhelmed in the first place? Well, I have. It is all about perspective. The spirit of fear is what keeps us from achieving what we desire to achieve. We are afraid of failing, rejection, death, people's judgement and just plain afraid of nothing. 

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I go after what I want these days inspite of the fear that tries to cripple me. I get up and do the work I have to do, inspite of the spirit that wants to keep me stuck. The name of the game is MOVE! Get MOVING! When you feel heavy, stand up and get moving. When you are overthinking, get up and get moving. Movement shakes off the rut and clears the way for the good you want, to flow into your life.

Today, I got up and got moving. That's how things get done. Don't get in your own way by overthinking what has to be done. 

Don't let anybody steal your joy and don't you steal your own joy!

Maryam

MY MAC AND CHEESE RECIPE

 

Good mornign wonderful, amazing, sweet and lovely people. Thank you for checking out my blog today. Here is a recipe for you. Enjoy!

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SIMPLE MAC AND CHEESE

Here’s what you will need:

A box of Barilla pasta or any kind you have

1 tbsp of olive oil

1 tsp of salt

3 ½ cups of mild cheddar cheese or American cheese

1 Quart heavy cream or 946ml

3 cups of water

A saucepan

½ tsp ground black pepper

DIRECTIONS:

Set stove at medium high heat

Place saucepan over stove with 3 cups of water

Let water boil

Add olive oil

Add pasta to boiling water

Let cook for 8 minutes

Drain water

Turn stove down to medium heat

Add milk

Add salt and black pepper

Stir until well combined

Add cheese

Stir content until well combined

Cover pot and let cook for 5 minutes or until cheese is melted

Turn off stove

Let cool for 5 minutes and serve!

Don't ley anyone steal your joy!

Maryam

Picture is from https://bakingmischief.com/quick-mac-and-cheese-for-one/

I WAS RUNNING LATE BUT HAD TO GET IT DONE

 Good morning wonderful, amazing, sweet and lovely people. I hope this blog meets you well. Today is a beautiful day. Hope you are not letting anyone steal your joy. Welcome to Maryamsjoyfullife!

So, have you ever felt like your plan would fail? I have. Lol... So, I wanted to have Le'Veon get his haircut by one of two barber's that I like, but after scheduling it, the barber was running late and I was going to be late to work also. I could just feel the energy of disappointment looming around and waiting for me to accept it but I refused to acknowledge it. I had to have Levy's haircut. So, when the barber didn't show up on time, I had to have another plan. So, I asked The Queen of the Barbershop if she could help. The Queen said yes! I was grateful but a little hessitant because I know from experience that a simple thing like a haircut could give someone a heartattack lol; if it is a horrendous haircut.  Can you tell that I've had the experience once with a really bad barber? 

Anyways, the Queen came through and I am happy with how the haircut turned out. Here's the vlog:

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That looming disappointment left me because I was not about to leave without accomplishing my purpose. This is also what happens in our lives. Things we plan may seem like they are not raking shape but we should not give up. Even if the people we had in mind bail on us, God has other plans and we should be open to it. Let's just live joyfully each day. This is my life and I intend to enjoy it!

Don't let anyone steal your joy!

Maryam