What a fabulous day!

I was already feeling especially splendid today, with my licensure test being over and all, and then I opened my email and found this lovely treat! The super sweet Melita gifted me with this one lovely blog award! I'm such a newbie blogger and I am so very flattered by this!

Here are six other things I am completely, obnoxiously happy about today:

1. I went to the library this morning to check out books to read for fun!!!! I got Expecting Adam by Martha Beck and The Mermaid Chair by Sue Monk Kidd. So excited for some leisurely reading!

2. After the library, I headed over to my daughter's chorus concert. The kids were awesome (and so cute, even though she hates when I say that) and they even sang "I'm holding out for a hero" from Footloose. Does anyone remember that song? I totally had that album when I was younger and I was about to sing along with them. Such a fun start to the day!

3. My amazon order came today. I sent for two work-related books that I am really looking forward to reading this summer: The Wise Heart by Jack Kornfield and The Healing Path of Yoga by Nischala Joy Devi.

4. The fact that books about yoga and Buddhist Psychology are actually considered work-related in my world!

5. My husband ate the leftover Chinese food for dinner and let me have the leftover Etouffee.

6. The de-cluttering e-course started on Monday, but I haven't had time to dive in yet so I'm making that a priority for tonight!

Here are some lovely blogs that I would like to pass this award onto:

Goddess Guidebook

I Need a Martini Mom

Boho Girl

Jen Lemen

The Whole Self

Penelope Dullaghan

I'm off to enjoy some reading before bed! Good night!

2009 so far...

Things are super busy right now, but mostly in a good way! I'm going through a period of extreme change that brings with it joy, fear, excitement, nerves, and more. I'm doing my best to ride the wave and stay centered (with varying degrees of success depending on the day)...

So amidst all these changes, I took a little break today to reflect on 2009 so far. I can't believe the year is almost half over!

Here is a sampling of things I've done so far...

• completed Pre-Natal Yoga Training
• attended weekly (challenging) yoga class
• started this blog
• took a drawing class
• created a painting
• ran 1st women's wellness circle
• completed the microenterprise program
• opened my 1st business bank account

And things I plan to do by the end of the year...

• close on property for wellness center (on Friday!)
• pass EPPP (hopefully on Tuesday!)
• try yoga dance class
• go to california with my husband to relive our honeymoon
• go back to spinning class
• take goddess leonie's de-cluttering e-course & clear some major clutter
• open a private practice
• take a family vacation to rhode island
• brainstorm new ways to volunteer in my community

What an eventful year so far! Okay, back to work!

Inspiration

Have you heard of this idea of picking a word for the year? Sort of like summing up your New Year's resolution in one word? I'm not sure where I came across this idea; I'm thinking it was probably from Kimberly or Kelly Rae...

Anyhow, my word for the year is inspiration. For me, inspiration means many things: waking everyday feeling excited about what lies ahead of me, delighting in everyday things, feeling the urge to create, and more!

This morning I woke up feeling very inspired! I had an amazing dream about wandering around and adoringly inspecting the soon-to-be home of Living Wellness of Niagara (pictured above). We are scheduled to close on the property next Friday - yay!!!! I feel so at home in this space, even though I've only been inside about five times. It just feels so right! I can't wait to get in there and start painting and picking out furniture and decorations :-)

After my few minutes of blissed out daydreaming, I headed to the gym and then came home to (of course) study. After two hours in front of the computer I was feeling anything but inspired... so I took an inspiration break. After journaling for a few minutes and taking a nice hot shower complete with Mango shower gel, I was feeling better!

Some of the other ways I've sought out inspiration this week are: an hour in Starbucks with a soy chai latte, my journal, and these two books, studying in Panera over a yummy veggie sandwich & salad, signing up for Goddess Leonie's new e-course, and an hour browsing in Barnes & Noble and buying myself this treat.

A few of my other sure fire ways to spark inspiration include:

• yoga


• a walk in the sunshine


• writing


• buying fresh flowers


• reviewing my long-term goals


• some time with a good magazine, really like this one


• getting a massage & facial


• painting, coloring, drawing


• meditation


• eating a fresh fruit salad


• reading


• getting a pedicure


• lighting a candle

Wishing you all a day filled with inspiration!

Musings from the Mat

Went to a grueling/satisfying yoga class tonight. But it was good! More about that in a minute because right now I have got to share with you my own personal epiphany from the mat this evening!

This happens to me a lot in yoga class. I'm on my mat and bam! I get hit with a lesson. I have a moment of so clearly experiencing the metaphor between yoga and life. This is when I start wondering if it would be too disruptive for me to get up and grab a pen and paper from my purse so I can jot down my discovery. Have never actually done that, but I think about it often...

So tonight I'm doing my yoga and the teacher cues us to hold our spinal balance for what feels like forever and I find myself struggling and thinking "I can't, I'm not strong enough" or something similar to that. Then I hear this tiny voice in my head say, "Just push through it!" And I know I can just push through it, because I have done that many times before. But this time something clicks and I think, "but wait...that is the opposite of yoga! Yoga is about staying present, even through the hard stuff." Then of course I realize this is exactly what has been going on for me lately (I tried to describe it here) - I have been pushing through, just trying to get things done, disconnecting from it all. So tonight on my mat I worked to stay present, even through the hard stuff.

And there was some hard stuff! Let me tell you we sat in Hero Pose for the first 15 minutes of the practice and when I finally wiggled my way out of it my feet and legs were completely numb/asleep, which really freaked me out. I felt like I was going to cry. It was not pretty. And this was before my profound realization about staying present! All I was doing was glaring at the teacher wondering why she was punishing us...but once I had my moment in spinal balance a few minutes later I was able to appreciate the challenge :-)

Image from earthspoweryoga.com

Postponing pleasure for the "right time"

"There is no way to happiness. Happiness is the way." ~ The Buddha

I love this quote and I rely on it when I find myself in the kind of place I'm in right now. The place where I feel so focused on a task/deadline that I'm forgetting to just enjoy the process as I get there.

I'm so focused on preparing for my licensure exam on June 16. In a way it feels good. Comforting almost. To just focus on this one thing, day in and day out. I'm the type of person that relieves anxiety by over-preparing. So I'm studying and studying and studying. And I'm feeling pretty good about the test.

But I'm also finding myself skimping on my self-care. I skipped my yoga class last week. I have virtually abandoned my journal. I haven't even been reading my favorite blogs. I just feel very uninspired and it bugs me. I also hear myself thinking/saying everything will be great after June 16 when the test is over. I try to avoid thinking like that because I know there is always some other deadline or task waiting once I finish this one. Also, I don't believe in postponing pleasure until things are "just right" or everything on my to-do list is accomplished. Mostly because there isn't a perfect time for anything. Or a different way of saying it is that it is always the perfect time, including right now. Also, has anyone ever actually experienced an entirely completed to-do list with nothing else needing to be done? Not me.

I'm feeling such a struggle between working toward my goal and just being content in the moment. Deep down I know that taking a break and doing something for myself will actually make me more productive. It is what I try to convey through my work with others, but I still struggle to apply it to myself sometimes.

So what advice would I give to a client? Probably to just do it; just offer loving and joyful acceptance to herself exactly as she is right now, carve out some time to do something she loves (regardless of how jam-packed the schedule seems), and see what happens. I guess I will have to try out my own advice :-)

PS Today is my grandparents 54th Wedding Anniversary! Isn't that amazing? Happy Anniversary Mimi & Papa!!!

blogger guilt

oh my goodness.....i cannot believe it has been 13 days since i last posted!!!! sorry :-(

i am feeling majorly guilty...and like i should have some amazing post to compensate for my lack of posting... ugh...pressure...i'm afraid i don't have anything extraordinary...

how did this happen? i guess i've just been so focused on studying for my licensure exam (have a date now: june 16th at noon, please send good thoughts) and preparing to leave my job at UB.

let's see what else has been going on... i attended my first black-tie event in recent memory (ever?) and donned an up-do crafted by my multi-talented sister! thoroughly enjoyed the fruit and cheese selection, as well as the martini bar (rare indulgence, but i do love me an occasional martini).

last weekend we celebrated my hubby's 30th birthday with a fabulous party - very fun!!! he and i also decided to book a trip back to sonoma, california to relive our honeymoon (yes, we know it was only last year, but it has been an intense year!).

i also "graduated" from my entrepreneur program at NCCC last wednesday. hubby and i celebrated by watching the lost season finale and (of course) enjoying a glass of red wine. there may have been brie involved as well...

what else? i've been teaching adult yoga twice a week and kids yoga once a week. (sidebar: have i mentioned how completely grateful i am that i can write that sentence?) there has been a lot of stepping back and feeling totally in awe and thankful for my life these last few weeks as well. i think the reality is setting in a little that i am actually (as my bff would say) "living the dream!" speaking of, the women's wellness circle is so freaking amazing!!!!! and i don't mean me and the concept or whatever; i mean the women and the process of it all! i feel so honored each time we meet to witness the changes, the openings, the transformations that the women are experiencing and sharing. love it, love it, love it! looking forward to many more :-)

so things have been busy, but good! hope you all have also been doing well!

A Quick Pick-Me-Up

I seem to need a lot of pick-me-up's lately...

My favorite big just-for-me treats are a massage, facial, and/or pedicure; an hour alone in a bookstore or outside or reading; laying on a beach. I could go on, but this post is about quick treats :-)

A quick pick-me-up is something that I can easily do/get without an enormous interruption of my schedule or lots of pre-planning. Here are some of my favorites:

* soy chai latte (never fails to please)
* doing something nice for someone (really does make me feel good)
* catching up on my favorite blogs (too many to name here)
* closing my eyes and taking a deep breath or two
* looking at my wedding pictures (yes, I do this repeatedly)
* taking a 5 minute walk
* spritzing myself with an aromatherapy spray
* doing 1 yoga pose
* reading for 5 minutes (although sometimes it is hard to stop)
* journaling for a few minutes
* emailing a friend
* check in on my family on glubble
* catch up with facebook
* listen to a pick-me-up song ( I am loving I Like Giants by Kimya Dawson)

The little things seriously do mean a lot! So considering taking a few minutes each day for one of your favorite quick pick-me-ups!