Watch Out~

I have been thinking a lot lately about all the hurdles that I have been jumping to achieve my current goals and I've come to some conclusions!

1) Don't get in your own way. - I'm the worst at this.  I will fret and fuss and worry myself and end up not accomplishing anything.  I need to learn to let go and let things happen the way they are supposed to.  Not be so controlling.

2) Don't expend energy on negatives in your life.  - This includes friends, co-workers and even family.  Even though I work for a newspaper, I try to avoid watching or reading excessive news.  It upsets me and depresses me and that isn't healthy.  Most of it is out of my control so it works better for me to avoid it.  I also try to stay away from negative people or clear their energy if I do have to be around them for extended periods of time.

3) "Don't dip into the past to be miserable in the present moment." quote by Louise Hay.  - I'm just as bad as most people when it comes to looking backwards instead of forward in my life.  I will dredge up old hurts or lacks and focus on them or wallow in them instead of what's important right now.  The past is over.  It can't hurt me anymore than I let it and it shouldn't affect the direction I now want my life to go.

4) Don't make it harder than it has to be. - Making more work for yourself or more drama for yourself isn't productive.  It doesn't do you any good and it doesn't do anything to enhance your life.  Let things flow downstream.  Quit fighting the current!

5) Don't beat yourself up. - Everyone makes mistakes.  We're human.  But correct the mistake and move on.  Dwelling doesn't change the mistake but fixing it or changing the pattern does.

6) Don't over-extend yourself. - Cheryl Richardson suggests that we schedule "breathing room" each day for ourselves.  Learn to say no.  Prioritize your life and make yourself your first priority.

7) Don't think "I can do it all". - Learn to delegate.  This one's hard for me.  I want to do it all.  I think, mistakenly, that I can do it better than anyone else or that it's easier and quicker to do it myself.  But I am depriving myself of shared experiences and depriving others of stepping up and helping.


Do - honor yourself and your space.
Do - eat right and get plenty of sleep.
Do - use your energy for good.
Do - be kind to yourself.
Do - ask for help.
Do - give yourself a break.
Do - be gentle with yourself and your health.
Do - meditate and take a breath.
Do - be your own best friend.
Do - be present in your life.
Do - be happy!

Now go...do it!!  It's joylicious!

Happy Mother's Day

A few weeks ago we celebrated Mother's Day.  I hope all the mother's out there were celebrated by their families and treated to a very special day!  But I think every day should be Mother's Day and every woman should treat herself as special as all mothers are on that annual Sunday.

Are you taking care of yourself and putting yourself first?  I believe that, just like the stewardesses in an airplane advise, you need to put on your own breathing mask first so that you can take care of everyone better in your life and be present for them.  Are you taking time for yourself each day?

I used to burn the candle at both ends.  I used to stay up late and get up early and I would go-go-go the entire day.  Now I take time each day to do some deep breathing.   I still wake up early but many mornings I take a few extra minutes to put on my iPod and listen to a favorite morning meditation.  I lay all warm and snuggly in my bed and listen to the wonderful words as they wash over me and start my day off on just the right note!  I also go to bed earlier these days.  Not because there is less to do but because it's better for my health and well-being to get a good night's sleep.

I also am learning how to set good boundaries.  How to nicely say no when I'm starting to feel overextended.  If I truly don't want to do something or I know that it would be detrimental to my health then I politely say, "let me think about that" or "that just doesn't work with my schedule right now".  Putting my needs first makes me a better and more whole person when I am needed by others.  Sometimes "not working with my schedule" can just mean that I'm going to take this hour to read a good book.  Or that I'm going to take a cat nap or a hot bath.  But I'm babying myself and watching out for my health so that in turn I can watch out for my father's health or my daughter's well-being.

I also try to find reasons to laugh more.  Laughter can strengthen your immune system and promote healing.  It's good for your heart and good for stress.  And why wouldn't anyone not want to laugh?  I recently read a great article on Livestrong.com that was the 12 Reasons to laugh for your health. http://www.livestrong.com/article/14964-12-fun-reasons-to-laugh-for-your-health/   I would think it would be good for many more than 12 reasons but this is an excellent start!

I'm trying to exercise more as well.  Not as much as I should but I think every reason to laugh is also the same reason to exercise.  It's great for stress and it raises your energy level. Especially if you walk outside it is an excellent mood elevator.  I always feel better when I walk outside.  We have several walking paths along creeks around my office.  It makes a nice break in the day to walk along watching the ducks swimming and kids playing in the softball fields instead of eating at my desk and rushing through my day.

And the best part of laughter and exercise is that they are both free!  An easy way to take care of ourselves and neither one of them adds weight or is hard on your pocket book!

So stop and enjoy your life today.  Stop and take a moment.  Take a breath.  And then you can get on to the business of life and, if necessary, caregiving.  Joylicious!!

Spring has Sprung~

I sat outside at lunch today to soak up some sunhine.  It is a balmy 54 degrees and not a cloud in the sky!  I am so excited for spring to get here and eventually summer.  I love that the days are getting longer.  I just wish that we would start to have more sunny days and not such chilly nights.

I read yesterday that many Seattleites are still not wanting to plant their gardens yet as it still gets down to almost freezing each night.  And April was noted as the coldest ever recorded since 1890 something.  I yearn for the warmth on my skin and the breezes of fresh cut grass and flowers.  The apple blossoms blooming got me in the mood and now the tulips and daffodils are just beautiful!

I wore only a tank top and short sleeve shirt today and as I sat huddled on the steps of the building, goose bumps on my arms, it amused me to see other people's reactions to the elusive sun here.  I watched joggers in shorts and tank tops running down the street.  I saw convertibles with the tops down and the drivers wearing coats and caps!  I could hear the frogs from North Creek and see the ducks waddling around looking for food.  There was a group of guys playing soccer in the field across the street.  Their exuberance catching.  We love our sun here.  We don't get enough of it.

They are calling for rain again tomorrow and through next week.  So today I'm going to soak up as much as I can and hope it's only light showers tomorrow and not rain. (Only a Washingtonian would understand that!)  And I'm hopeful it's gone by next Friday as I'm going to the Rhody festival in Port Townsend for the weekend.  But even if it isn't sunny I know there will be a big crowd enjoying ourselves at the fair looking at all the beautiful rhododendrons!  Joylicious fun!!

My Two Cents~

I'm having a hard time today wrapping my head around the death of Osama Bin Laden.  I think it's good that there is one less evil in the world but I personally don't agree that you should ever rejoice in someone's death.  And I worry about retribution from the Taliban.  I see people rejoicing and celebrating in the streets crying, "USA, USA, USA!" and I wonder if the people in the middle east look upon that as we did them when they were rejoicing and shouting "Allah, Allah" after the nightmare of 9/11.

I heard it described on the news very well tonight when someone said, "they cut off the head of the snake but there is still a lot of snake left".  This was said by a father of a soldier killed in Afganistan not some peace loving hippie.  I worry about what could come of these actions of celebration.  I am glad all the Navy Seals are ok.  I'm glad that they recovered as much information from the compound as they did after the fighting.  But I have a real hard time rejoicing over this death and any war of any kind.

Everyone says they have God on their side.  But we are all children of God so how does that make any side right?  Or does that make every side right?  I'm saying a prayer for Bin Laden's soul and a prayer for our country tonight.

Dear Lord, please keep us all safe.  Amen.

ps - Some of the facebook rants and comments have been very disturbing to me too. I'm tempted to cancel my account. I want to read about my family and friends and their happy lives.  I don't want to read about politics, war, or other soap box issues.  Just my two cents...