Got it right this time - Sarah Palin's quote....

Yesterday I attempted to quote Sarah Palin on my blog post called "Are you stuck in the harbor".  I did state that the quote may may not be exact.  Last night while watching Fox news I heard it again.  Sarah Palin said ... 

"A ship in harbor is safe.  But that's not why the ship was built."

I quoted her as saying, "A ship in harbor is safe but that's not the purpose of the ship."  Both are basically saying the same thing.  It's still all about purpose.  My message yesterday still holds.

Why were you "built"?  What were you created to do?  Were you created to stay in the harbor where it's safe?  Or were you created for much more than that?  Are you ready to set sail for your God given purpose?  Would you like to be?

In the very near future I will be announcing a program that will help you set sail and/or continue the journey you are already sailing.  I urge you to fill out the simple form on this site in order to get the latest updates if you haven't already.  When you do remember that you will receive an email to confirm your request.  Until then you will not officially be on the list ... and trust me you won't want to miss out.

Also, do read yesterday's full post "Are you stuck in the harbor".  Feel free to leave a comment.  I will enjoy hearing from you.

Thank you for reading.  I so appreciate you!!!

Is your ship stuck in the harbor?

Did you catch what she said?  I can't say that I'll quote it exactly but Sarah Palin said something like, "A ship in harbor is safe but that's not the purpose of the ship".  Obviously Sarah meant that in a political sense, but I can't help but to apply that to my personal life ... and I love that thought!

Think about it.  A statement like that causes me to ask the question "Well what is my purpose".  It is so easy for me to play it safe.  However, playing it safe causes me to be stuck.  And when I'm stuck I'm not living out my purpose - "a ship in harbor...".  Right?

I don't want to be stuck in the harbor, do you?  I want to be out sailing where God intended for me to sail.  It is there that I feel the most free, the most content, the most joy.

With that in mind ... ladies ... it's coming!  And I'm excited! I will be unleashing a project that will help you get out of your harbor and on to sailing in clear blue open waters.  You don't want to miss the details.  If you haven't already do register for the updates right here on my blog.

Personal play dates ..... for us grownups??

When we think of playing why is that most of the time we think that playing is for children?  Have you watched a child or a group of children play lately?  They play so naturally, so care free with no judgement.  They can go into a room full of toys and play a little here and there until they land on something that really gives them joy and pleasure. They don't doubt themselves or question whether or not it's the perfect thing for them.  They instinctively know if it's something they enjoy.  Somewhere along the line we tend to lose that ability as we grow up or ... maybe we numb out to it.  There are lots of reasons for that of which I'm not going to focus on in this post.  We'll save that one for another time.

I've been thinking about this because I went out and played yesterday.  It sure renewed my spirit and, oh my gosh, my energy is so high as is the inspiration.  The ideas are flowing like milk and honey.  It's CRAZY!  All I did was have breakfast with friends at my girlfriend's house followed by window shopping at cute little shops in the area.  Oh and my favorite was checking out a new tea room.  It's beautiful and actually in my neck of the woods.  I have great plans for my own play dates and for business.  Excited yes I am!

Personal play dates are so important to renew the spirit.  It's a way of filling up our cup so that in the end we can give to others.  We can't give or we can't give well from an empty cup.  Sometimes we can take a big chunk of time for a personal play date like I did yesterday.  We need to schedule those in.  I do enjoy it when it happens spontaneously but it's not a good idea to wait for that to happen so by all means, schedule something. 

A personal play date is doing whatever brings you joy.  It can be different for everyone.  You can play alone or you can play with a group or just one other person.  No rules .. usually.  More on that later.

The thing is some women are so numbed out in their lives that they have no idea what brings them joy.  Does that describe you?  I was once there.  I started by experimenting with a little of this and a little of that just like children do when they walk into a room full of toys.  The universe is our big playroom.  Allow yourself to explore it!  See what you like.  And by all means don't judge yourself - that is a negative since. 

To give you an idea on where I started, once a week I would lose myself at Starbucks with a good book, a yummy mocha and my journal.  From there I'd go to my favorite store at the time and just nose.  It was a special little store that just by being there nurtured my soul.  I loved the ambiance.  I wouldn't take a lot of time - sometimes just an hour and those particular dates were mandatory to be alone.   These one-hour weekly jaunts taken alone are another type of play date that I highly recommend.  Anyway, that's where it all started for me.  Now it's expanded to lots of other nifty fun adventures some as small as 15 minutes and some over nighters.

Remember, playfulness feeds the spirit and soul allowing for awesome moments of inspiration.

When was the last time you took a personal play date??

Be the first to know!!

I am just soooo excited!  The time has come to actually put into place a program that God laid on my heart two years ago.  Truthfully?  I thought it was just last year but my journal proved to me that it was two whole years ago.  Wow!  Time can sure get away from us.  

I've been pondering this morning if I've been disobedient by not putting this inspired idea into action sooner.  Did the idea, the time and place for this program come and then go?  Is it too late?  My conclusion is no.  This program is meant for me to execute. God may have laid it on my heart two years ago but He knew that I needed time to develop in order to put into action.  "Here am I Lord.  Send me!"

I cannot tell you exactly what this program is yet but, ladies, stay tuned!  It is for you! If I may ask ...

If in just 30 days or less you could be living your life from a full cup

experiencing an inspired life of joy ... would you be interested?

I can tell you that I'm on a mission to make the world a better place one woman at a time.  I'm excited!  I know that once you get the full scoop you will be too.  Until then...

 ...if you are the least bit curious ... let me know.  I'm creating a list right now of women who will be the first to know.

Shock & Awe!!!!

Of all things my hubby posted about my poison ivy on his site www.donnixon.com.  Go figure.  He sometimes finds me humorous (and I don't even try and don't even mean to be humorous!) and wanted to share my antics with his readers.  Glad I could provide him with some material. :)

Some of you know that I've been battling this nasty rash.  After a horrible experience with prescribed prednisone I took matters into my own hands.  I put on my armor and prepared for war!  Yeah!  I did my research, armed myself with all kinds of remedies and went to battle.  Shock and awe baby... shock and awe!  ;)

Seriously though I do want to share some sites I found and information that has been very helpful.  I have decided, though, that for the most part poison ivy has to run it's course.  It's a matter of finding the right remedy to ease the discomfort.

I've tried lots of stuff.  You should see my kitchen table, but I've narrowed it down to a few favorites.

1.  Witch Hazel w/ Rescue Remedy Flower Essence: This has been a life safer!!  I found a small spray bottle, filled it with the witch hazel and added about 8 drops of Rescue Remedy.  Love that.  It's cooling and calming.

2.  Vitamin C:  I bought C-Plus Citrus Bioflavonoid Caps by Twinlab taking 1,000mg by the hour if necessary.  This really helps take the edge off.  I can tell when it's time to take another dose because the itch intensifies.  FYI - when you're body has had enough Vit. C you'll get diarrhea.  If that happens just back off a bit.  

3.  Aveeno Bath Treatment:  This is an oatmeal bath that I found to be ok.  It did feel pretty nice and made my skin very soft.  

4.  Hot Oatmeal Packs:  Ok so I'm still trying to perfect this (as I'm not out of the woods yet).  This really feels good but it's messy.  Basically make oatmeal and smear it on.  Wrap it with plastic wrap or even gauze.  I don't like to let it dry because removing the dried oatmeal flares the itch up.  Leave it on about 20-30 minutes.  When rinsing it off I like to leave some of the starchy residue.  It feels silky and is very calming. 

5.  EFT (Emotional Freedom Technique):  I've been working with this especially this morning and seem to be getting quite a bit of relief.  This will take some studying and/or a practitioner.

If I can say a word about the emotional root of poison ivy, the root emotion is fear that can be expressed through guardedness, caution, vulnerability, defenselessness and open for attack.  I have been going over what was going on in my life at the time I broke out with the rash and using EFT to release the emotions.  It certainly is helping - quite amazing!

Ok so these are my top 5 favorite remedies to date.  I've tried a lot of other things including your typical over the counter meds but so far nothing compares.  

If you have a favorite remedy please do share.  

My research included:

Prescription for Nutritional Healing

Discovering Wholeness by Cheryl Townsley

You Can Heal Your Life by Louise Hay

Poison Ivy, Oak, Sumac Information Center

Do-It-Yourself Homemade Remedies

Health911.com: Poison Ivy & Oak

Emotional Freedom Technique

A Summer Spritzer fit for a queen!

Here's some  honesty for ya.  I really enjoy sugary drinks like pops and flavored teas and such.  Oh and don't let me leave out mochas ... frozen or hot. However, given that they are so not good for me I've had to come up with alternatives so that I don't go on some crazy binge out of boredom.  I'm a girl who needs variety in my life ... what I drink is no different.

Let me introduce you to a Summer Spritzer.  I really enjoy this drink and there is not one ounce of guilt in it.  I came up with this one weekend when my guys were gone for the weekend.  When I'm home on a "vacation" like that I've always enjoyed doing special things that often revolved around special foods and usually sugary drinks.  I would set up the atmosphere and create (or buy) foods that I normally wouldn't have, put in a chick flick and/or set up a foot bath .. you get the picture. 

So once I got my eating habits back under control I found myself having a "vacation" weekend and I wanted something special.  I was so tempted to cave but I didn't.  I held out but began to feel down.  Then I realized that I just need to find an alternative.  And I also needed to find things to "do" that felt special and not always to "eat".  That's when I came up with the Summer Spritzer.  It tastes nice, feels very special, and is beautiful to the eye.  On my Every Other Day Diet blog I even described this drink as sexy.  It's true!  That weekend I drank sexy summer spritzers, gave myself foot baths, and watched chick flicks.  I felt like a queen!! :)

Summer Spritzer

1 pretty goblet

Naturally sparkling water

Lemon or lime slice

Fresh berries of any kind

fresh mint

Stevia to taste (I don't like mine real sweet)

Ice

Combine all the ingredients in your goblet and enjoy.  I sometimes will add just a splash of a juice (preferably unsweetened) to give it a little color and a little different flavor.  I also enjoy adding a little infused mint.

You'll feel like a queen drinking this yummy Summer Spritzer!!  Enjoy!

My Neti Pot Experience

I finally brought myself to try it.  It just seemed so .. I don't know .. icky.  However, I got tired of feeling bad so I stuck that little mini tea pot looking thing up to my nose and poured. Yeah.  Can you believe it?  Truth is neti pots have grown in popularity partly due to the crazy thing being featured on the Oprah Show.  I didn't see it but heard about it months later.  " 'Dr. Oz says the device can help clear mucus from your sinuses using warm saltwater. 'It's actually filling up those little nooks and crannies that you have and allowing your body to evacuate that stuff so you can actually begin to function normally.' "  Hmm... "filling up those little nooks and crannies" ... with saltwater?  

Why in the world would anyone do this?  Here.. check out this demo: neti pot. Looks pretty crazy, doesn't it?  Well, I've had a lot of sinus headaches this summer. Headaches and facial puffiness.  After I researched all the benefits I had to give it a try. I've flushed my sinuses every day since ... well ... it's only been a little over a week but so far so good! 

There are many benefits for this kind of practice.  To list it all here will make this post too long.  Suffice it to say that sinus flushing or nasal irrigation can be a natural, inexpensive healing solution for sinus/allergy issues.  And it can help fight off colds and flues.  I read many testimonies that support this.  

(I'll be posting links for more information including benefits shortly.)

As for testimonies, the thing I couldn't find is what people experienced when they first started ... cause I had some crazy things go on.  I searched to see if my experiences were normal.  I found nothing.  So I'm sharing in case someone else experiences the same thing and wants to know if it's normal ... well... I don't know if it was all normal but it was my experience.

First of all, it doesn't hurt like getting water up your nose when you swim.  It's a bit curious when you start pouring and the solution doesn't come out right away.  It takes a few seconds for the "nooks and crannies" to fill.  Once they do then out it comes the other side.

Then, all I can share with you is that I could sure tell I had crud up in my sinuses cause it certainly stirred it up.  I sneezed and coughed (no, I didn't choke!).  My throat and inner ear tickled (I make an absurd noise to take care of that :) ).  It felt like allergies kicking up a bit.  I'd get a short term headache.  Sometimes I'd feel like I was on the edge of catching a cold.  I wondered if I had a dormant virus that I also kicked up.  I don't know but it went away.  It was just crazy the first couple of days.  Since I couldn't find information about my experience I decided that I would just keep going. I want to give it a good 30 days.

Now don't be gettin' all discouraged or scared to try nasal flushing.  It really isn't that bad and, once you get the hang of it, it does feel good.  I've only being at this for just a little over a week and those crazy symptoms have greatly subsided.  I can breath so clean and clearly through my nose. It feels fabulous.  I don't have the facial puffiness as much as I did.  My sinus headaches are already less.  All I can say is that so far I'm a believer.  

For more reading: Nasal Irrigation Can Help Fight Spring Allergies

                              Neti Pot Starter Kit

                              Why Nasal Wash

P.S.  This is not to replace medical care.  If you need to see the doc... do it!

Are you blooming?

At first glance the plant in the picture looks like some kind of green shrub that could maybe use a little weeding.  Doesn't really look all too bad to a passerby.  What one wouldn't know is that this little green shrub is supposed to be a rose bush.  A very special rose bush at that.  A special rose bush that has been ignored for several years.

Today was the day I gave this special plant some tender loving care.  As I did so I couldn't help but think about some life parallels that I thought would be right for beginning this blog.

So you're going along in life doing your thing day in and day out until one day you wake up and wonder what the heck happened.  Who am I?  Who have I become?  Is this really me?  You've become someone you just don't recognize. 

Or maybe you find that you present yourself in a way that in your heart of hearts you know isn't your truth.  You still find yourself asking similar questions of "who am I" and "how do I let the real me come out".

Or it's possible that you've manifested some health problems or on the edge of some serious health problems that has you in shock.  Been there done that myself ... and my questions was ... how did I get here?!

(Actually?  I have found myself at various times in my life in all of these examples asking those exact questions.)

I would imagine that if this pictured plant had a mouth and could speak it would be asking these same kinds of questions.

Today I faced this plant, assessed it, and went to work.  I had to carefully figure out what was the rose bush and what wasn't. There was some kind of vine type of weed that rooted itself deep, growing wildly choking out the beautiful rose.  I pulled, chopped, and cut that weed until all that was left was a scraggly rose bush. Then I had to prune what was left so that it will grow strong and, hopefully, next summer bloom again. 

I couldn't help but think as I was doing this work today that this is exactly what we have to do in life.  I've done it.  I'm still doing it.  Sometimes weeds grow up around us and we don't always realize it until we're nearly choked out.  Once we recognize what's going on we have to get in there and pull and yank, cut, and prune, which can take many forms.  The good news for us is that it doesn't take long to start seeing results.  

Face it, assess it, and get to work.  Simple but not always easy.  Regardless I encourage you to embrace and love yourself right where you are.  My prayer as you visit this blog is that you find encouragement in your journey so that you can bloom into the person you were created to be.  Along the way I'll be sharing techniques that are so nurturing, caring, loving, and even fun that it doesn't always feel like work.  Sometimes all it takes is a little tweaking to sprout and/or bloom.

                                                        

                                                                          Shrub Rose