Welcome to My Circus Has A New Home...

Good morning everyone this is just to let you all know that I have begun a new journey with Welcome to My Circus as I have chosen to self-host my blog. This is a new and exciting chapter in my blogging career and I hope you will all join and follow me in my new venture as an official blog owner! My new web address is:

http://www.welcometomycircus.com

It has been a fun 11 months here at Blogger but the time has come to bid my farewell as the only way to make progress is to move forward in all aspects of life. I look forward to seeing you all at my new site! Thank you for all the love and support you have given to me, for without all of you this blog wouldn't be!

           xx

Lysa

I Finally Did It…

I have debated for a few months now whether I was ready to self host my blog. Well with my 1 Year Blog Birthday just a month away I decided to take the training wheels off. So, I jumped into it feet first the other day and boy was I lost. With many hours spent staring at the computer screen and a dreaded trip to the library to check out a book to help me.

Wordless Wednesday ~ 12/09/14

 You must ask for written permission to use any of the Pictures from Welcome to My Circus as they are all ©/Copyrighted by me. Thank you for your cooperation in this manner. xx Lysa

The Christmas Countdown...

Oh My Heartsie Girls Wordless Wednesday Linky Party

Going live a day early again this week!!!!!!

Welcome to the second week of December and time for another Oh My Heartsie Girls Wordless Wednesday Link Party...I am so excited and honored to be Co-hosting again this week alongside five other fabulous ladies. If you would please take a few moments to follow all of us on social media we'd greatly appreciate it. I, personally, follow everyone back.

Also, the posts you link do not have to be wordless at all. So come share with all of us your latest blog post. If you have some Christmas ideas or motivation for the rest of us please share them with us. For you can link up to two of your posts. 

I can't wait to read what all of you have written this week so hurry up and link up below. Don't forget to read what our lovely host, Karren, has written for all of us first...

xx

Lysa

Would You Like To Be an

Oh My Heartsie Girl & Co-Host in January?

We are looking for bloggers that are interested in Co-Hosting in January. Being a Co-Host means you will have one of the latest posts from your blog listed in our Wordless Wednesday, which includes a backlink to your blog and includes social media links as well as your choice of previous weeks favorite linkup. This Linkup is widely advertised and shared to over 25,000 viewers and growing. We would love to have you join us and I would love to hear from you, if you would be interested in 

Co-Hosting you can read the details and signup here:

 ♥⇒ Sign Up Form ⇐♥

HELP Me Find Gifts For Under $25 For My Sister and Brother's Families...

Every year we buy gifts for the entire family instead of buying for each niece and nephew as the list keeps on growing. It is also supposed to be much easier on us but that is never the case for me. 

I search desperately every year for the perfect family gift for my brother, Ray's family and for my sister, Melissa's family BUT no matter how early I start my search these gifts are always last on my list to be checked off. You see we have all agreed to stick to a budget of $25 or less and that's where the problem lies for me at least.

The Christmas Countdown...

Christmas Countdown...

Blessed ~ Word of the Week ~ December 5, 2014

So many wonderful things happened this week leaving me feeling truly blessed for all that I have in my life. So that is what I chose to be my Word of the Week:

The Christmas Countdown...

Christmas Countdown...

My “Blonde” Problems #5

Welcome to the fifth edition of My “Blonde” Problems. Now before you all start hating on me, I must confess that I am a natural blonde. I colored my hair black several years ago because I wanted to be taken more seriously. As you can probably tell from that statement alone, as soon as I open my mouth to speak I tend to ruin the façade almost immediately! These problems that I speak of are the type of problems that only happen to me…or so it seems. If you are blonde too, you can probably agree. Here are the “Blonde” Problems that have recently occurred:

The Countdown...

Quote of the Day ~ December 2, 2014

The Oh My Heartsie Girl's Wordless Wednesday Link Party

Welcome to Wordless Wednesday, a day early, which isn't very wordless this week. Here it is only Tuesday and there has been so much excitement already. Yesterday I hit a pretty big milestone, or at least I think it was, on my blog, Welcome to My Circus, by publishing my100^th blog post! Woo Hoo and a great big Yay Me! I wanted to do something special for #100 and figured what better way than to share 7 Facts About Me, don't you agree? 

The Countdown...

My 100th Blog Post ~ 7 Facts About Me

~ Woo Hoo This Is #100 For Me ~

In honor of this being my 100th blog post I have decided to share with all of you 7 Facts About Me. I got the idea after after Jennifer - The Deliberate Mom was nominated to share seven things about herself in one of those fun games spreading across the blogosphere in which you then nominate seven people to do the same. Well Jennifer decided to leave it up to her reader's whether to participate or not instead of only picking seven of them. I really enjoyed getting to know her better and since I was looking for something fun to do for my 100th post thought maybe all of you would like to get to know me a little better too.

The problem I ran into was that it wasn't as easy as I thought it would be to come up with seven facts about myself. I found that I had been pondering the whole thing for hours but getting absolutely nowhere. I finally decided to ask my husband, Kenny, to help me and I also called my friend, Rebecca to ask for her thoughts on the subject at hand. So thanks to their awesome help I am now ready to share seven things you probably didn't know about me.

An Easy and Inexpensive Way to Keep the Kids Busy During Christmas or Family Gatherings

Are you looking for a way to keep the kiddos busy during your festivities this year? This is an easy to setup, limited supervision, and budget friendly activity to keep the kids entertained not only during the Christmas Season but for any holiday or family gathering where there will be little ones. This is something my family has been doing for years and on Thanksgiving I even took part in the activity. I also incorporated the idea into my wedding reception earlier this year.

Quote of the Day ~ December 1, 2014

The Countdown Has Begun...

Silent Sunday ~ November 30, 2014

Surreal

With all of the different emotions running through me it was rather difficult to chose just one word. But as I pondered the subject and pinched myself, yet again, to ensure I wasn't dreaming the perfect word popped into my head. Finally, I was able to sum up my week with just one word. So without further ado my Word of the Week is: 

What Mom Needs For Christmas! Mommy Reality #24

It's that time again for the bi-weekly Mommy Reality Challenge.  Before we get to the theme for this Mommy Reality I want to thank Jen, Celeste, and Amber, the awesome hosts for the last Mommy Reality Challenge #23 Mom's Pet Peeve, because YAY ME I won!  Not only was I awarded the fabulous meme below but I have been asked to co-host the next challenge with the lovely Jen and Celeste. I must say that I am honored and super, duper excited to be co-hosting with them in a few weeks!

Meme courtesy of the Mommy Reality Gals!

Thank You All For Being A Blessing To Me

~ Blessings brighten our lives even more when we count them ~

I wanted to take this time to thank each and every one of you that read my blog for blessing my life in so many ways. For that I am truly thankful for on this Thanksgiving day. To be honest, without all of your kind and loving words in your comments along with all the support you have given me the past 10 months, Welcome to My Circus probably wouldn't have made it this far.

Wishing all of you and your families a wonderfully blessed Thanksgiving Day!

   Love,

  Lysa, Kenny, Brooklynn, and Kelsey too

  xx

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For My Sunshine...

This morning I read this quote and immediately thought of my Little Sunshine, Jaynee Marie!

Welcome to My Circus...but I truly wouldn't want it any other way!

Wishing you all a bright and cheery day!

Copyright Welcome to My Circus

My “Blonde” Problems #4

Welcome to the fourth edition of My “Blonde” Problems.  Now before you all start hating on me I must admit that I am a natural blonde.  I colored my hair black several years ago because I wanted to be taken more seriously.  As you can probably tell from that statement alone, as soon as I open my mouth to speak I tend to ruin the façade almost immediately! These problems that I speak of are the type of problems that only happen to me…or so it seems.  If you are a blonde too, you can probably agree.  Here are my “blonde” problems from the archives because I didn’t really do anything too terribly "blonde” this week!  Yay Me!!

Silent Sunday ~ November 23, 2014

My “Blonde” Problems #3

Welcome to the third edition, a day late, of My “Blonde” Problems.  Now before you all start hating on me I must admit that I am a natural blonde.  I colored my hair black several years ago because I wanted to be taken more seriously.  As you can probably tell from that statement alone, as soon as I open my mouth to speak I tend to ruin the façade almost immediately! These problems that I speak of are the type of problems that only happen to me…or so it seems.  If you are a blonde too, you can probably agree.  Here is my latest “blonde” problem.

To The Daughter I Wish I Knew…My Missing Child

Not many people know that I have four children, not three.  For the past thirteen and a half years it was easier to just say I had three children rather than having to explain where the missing child was.  However, each time I told that white lie I could not help but feel a twitch of pain in my heart for I knew the truth.  It made me feel as if I was hiding you from the world, which is entirely untrue.  I told this fib as a form of self-protection more than anything else.  You see, the only way I could carry on with my life without you while remaining a functioning person in society and a Mom to your brother and sisters was to keep all of it buried deep inside of my heart and soul only speaking of it and you when absolutely necessary.

Silent Sunday ~ November 16, 2014

Stream of Consciousness ~ Week 20 #SOCSaturday #blogging #freewriting

The following post is for the Stream of Consciousness linky in which I will participate for the first time today.  We are asked to set a timer for five minutes and just free write whatever comes into our minds, then post it on social media so we can link it up to the host.  Okay, I am as ready as I am going to be so here we go 1, 2, and 3!  (This portion was written before I set the timer to explain what in the world is going on below.)

The five minute timer is now set so this would be the beginning…

Happy National Clean Out Your Refrigerator Day!

And NO, I didn't just make that up, it's really a National Holiday that is celebrated every year on November 15. The orgins of this holiday are not entirely clear as one Web site claims it came from an old Whirlpool Ad Campaign, then a few other sites say that it's to prepare for all the food on Thanksgiving Day and the leftovers that always remain.

So, with no other big plans for my day I've decided that I would go ahead and participate.  Wish me luck for we all know that when you clean out your fridge you never know what may be hiding in wait.

I want to know, will you also participate?

A really gross after thought just occured to me...I wonder how many people wait for this holiday and only clean out their fridges anually?  I told you it was gross!

xx

Lysa

© Copyright 2014 Welcome to My Circus

All Rights Reserved 

~ Mom's Pet Peeve ~

It’s Friday and that means time for another Mommy Reality and this week is #23.  In the last challenge Jen and Celeste wanted to know what we ate for breakfast.  This time around they are asking us for our pet peeves.  I had to put some extra thought into this one for there are so many things that happen around here that annoy me to no end.  For instance, leaving clothes in the dryer after they are done drying, not shutting the cupboard doors after each use, messing up my organized cupboards and pantry, NEVER replacing the roll of toilet paper once it has reached the end, and the list goes on and on.  After further thought I realized my biggest pet peeve was when my scissors went missing on me!

Oh the Irony…

Just before family court this morning it was disclosed to me that my ex-husband and his girlfriend are fans of my blog.  As a matter of fact they read it quite frequently.  At first I found this as an invasion of my privacy, but the more I have thought about it I must admit how I find it rather flattering.  Not to mention all the extra traffic I am getting which in the end, little do they know, only benefits me.  Well, I guess that cat is out of the bag now…oopsie! 

My Word of the Week for Friday, November 14, 2014

Being blessed with so many loving and caring people in my life along with Veterans Day this week my word of the week just had to be:

~ What Exactly Is RSD ~

In honor of RSD Awareness Month I am reposting the blog I wrote on RSD...please feel free to comment and share as we strive to raise awareness to find a cure for the most painful disease!

Since I'm asked quite often what RSD (Reflex Sympathetic Dystrophy) is, I decided to write a blog about the disease. The information in this blog post is based on the two plus years of research I have done on RSD. I will include a list of all the websites where I have obtained my facts at the end of this blog.

My hopes are to bring more awareness to this intensely painful, crippling, and deforming disease. The reason I want to create more awareness is because currently there is not a cure for RSD and funding is desperately needed for further research.

For those of you who do not know much about me, my name is Lysa and I was diagnosed with RSD almost three years ago. It took several months and specialists before they could determine what was wrong with me.

A Photo Shoot Just For Me…

My sister, Melissa’s Facebook status reads:  “I did a photo shoot for my sister…just because she is beautiful!  Here are a few of my favorites…”  Although incredibly sweet the truth is that the photo shoot we did Monday afternoon saved me from the depressed state in which I was becoming accustomed to these days.  It forced me to do away with the bun on top of my head and actually style my hair and apply my make-up to my face for the first time in over a month.  It also forced me out of my “comfy” lounging around the house clothes and into a nice sweater and some jeans.  It also gave me a reason to leave the house for once during the day.

My “Blonde” Problems #2

Welcome to the second edition of My "Blonde" Problems.  Now before you all start hating on me I must admit that I am a natural blonde.  I colored my hair black several years ago because I wanted to be taken more seriously.  As you can probably tell from that statement alone, as soon as I open my mouth to speak I tend to ruin the facade almost immediately!  These problems that I speak of are the type of problems that only happen to me...or so it seems.  If you are a blonde too, you can probably agree.  Here are my most recent "blonde" problems:

Happy Veterans Day to All Who Have Served Our Great Nation

Today is Veterans Day, an official, federal holiday here in the United States.  It is a day intended to honor and thank all of the military personnel who have served our great country; these men and women are known as veterans.  Veterans Day originated as a day set aside to remember the anniversary of the end of World War I.  For the battles of World War I formally ended at the 11^th hour of the 11^th day of the 11th month in the year 1918.

Laundered Behind…

When it comes to my children it seems nothing is ever accomplished without a prank being pulled first, an accident occurring, or just plain procrastination being good old number one!  So I should have been surprised when my daughter, Brooklynn, was actually making progress while cleaning her room, as it was definitely too good to be true.  Then it happened…after a short while had passed I heard her scream, “HELP!”

Word of the Week 11/07/14

This past week my life was taken over by my broken cell phone, a computer with issues, and research on self-hosting my blog so my Word of the Week just had to be:

I have been completely out of my league this week as I have been consumed with technology issues and questions.  I have learned a lot about various forms of technology…but have also been reminded of how little patience I truly have.  Windows 8 and I do not get along AT ALL!  From the first day I turned on my new computer I was at a loss.

What's for Breakfast Mom?

Mommy Reality #22

So you want to know what I eat for breakfast...are you sure???  Well, I have never been a breakfast person so when I do eat breakfast it is usually ice cream with cereal sprinkled over it.  I know...HORRIBLE isn't it?  I, on occassion, let the girls eat the same thing.  I figure you need your dairy with your cereal so why not.  My Mom use to let my sister and I eat ice cream for breakfast with Rice Crispies sprinkled over the top!  YUMMY!

My "Blonde" Problems

Welcome to the first edition of My "Blonde" Problems.  Now before you all start hating on me I must admit that I am a natural blonde.  I colored my hair black several years ago because I wanted to be taken more seriously.  As you can probably tell from that statement alone, as soon as I open my mouth to speak I tend to ruin the façade almost immediately!  These problems that I speak of are the type of problems that only happen to me...or so it seems.  If you are a blonde too, you can probably agree.  Here are my most recent "blonde" problems:

"Blonde" Problem #1

Last week I was online planning a little adventure for the following weekend for my husband and me.  Seems fairly simple right?  Not so much so I found out last night.  I reserved a rental car for us to pick up this Friday, November 7, knowing full well that pre-paying for it would not only save us some money but that it also meant the money was non-refundable.  Well last night, four nights later, I discovered a major Blonde “Problem” when I read the confirmation email closer.

To my horror I somehow reserved the rental car for Halloween evening instead of the following Friday.

Mommy Reality #21: Scare Us

This was the only creepy/scary thing I could come up with for this challenge.  My daughter took this picture of Kenny in front of our front door while doing yard work.  We took several pictures after to make sure it wasn't the camera on my phone but those have long disappeared. There is no explanation for the foggy mist around him as we do not have fog in the Phoenix-Metro area.  He was not smoking a cigarette and if you look close enough there is even an orb in the picture.  It scared Brooklynn and I so much that we started to tear up. Of course the only thing Kenny noticed

Not Again…

Back in March I wrote the blog post Don’t Answer the Door EVER about my crazy neighbor.  About a month later she started talking to me again when we both received parking tickets while parked in our driveways.  It is not like we are best friends or anything but briefly chat if we see one another out front.  Well, here we are six months later and she has gone cuckoo for Cocoa Puffs

Word of the Week ~ 10/17/2014

My Word of the Week is:

It should say my word of the past two weeks to be exact.  The changing weather brings changes to my body and the RSD in my feet and the cooling temperatures are not dear friends by any means, but it seems worse this year but it's probably just me.  So unable to walk or bear much weight on either of my feet along with the neurological problems I slept for almost two weeks straight!  I refer to it as my body shutting down for that is how I feel when this occurs.

Well, yesterday I woke up early with my husband and chatted with him as he got ready for work, paid a few bills, caught up on some of my social media stuff, and to my amazement stayed awake and somewhat coherent for the entire day!

The Silent Ones...

Just imagine if you were being abused by your partner and police officers as well as the judicial system would not take you or your claims seriously.  At times even laughing at you or accusing you of being the abuser.  Without shelters to turn to, and very limited access to resources for help.  Well, when most people think of domestic violence

Word of the Week 10/3/14

My word of the week is:

With four birthday celebrations in my family this week there was no other word that came to mind as the week was unusually uneventful.  

The birthday party celebrations kicked off on Saturday when my sister, Melissa, and my niece, (By way of foreign exchange student from Sweden living with my sister and brother-in-law.) Signe, held their milestone birthday parties together.  The BIG 40 and the tender age of 18!  What a blessing to celebrate both with them.  Signe was surprised by her host parents with a