Thank You

Dear Grandchildren:
I just wanted to take the time to say thank you. In today's world, with all it's turmoil and uncertainty, thank you for giving me a reason to just enjoy the moment.

Thank you for helping me still believe in mermaids.

Thank you for helping me believe the good guys still win.

Than you for showing me pure & simple joy each day.

Thank you for taking me along for the ride. I wouldn't miss it for the world!
Love, Grammie

Worry

"If you see ten troubles coming down the road, you can be sure that nine will run into the ditch before they reach you." ~Calvin Coolidge
Worry is a tough thing. We all worry, but some more than others. I am a chronic worrier. I worry for everyone around me ~ my husband, my children, my friends. Nobody assigned me this job. I gave it to myself. It is a tough job to quit. My logical head tells me it is a useless, future-tense emotion. My heart races with the thought of all the possible things that could happen rather than the probable. There is a disconnect between the real and the imagined. In truth, most of what we worry about never comes to be. Again, I know this logically, just not emotionally.
I am finding some relief in changing my thoughts in small ways. Rather than asking the worry-filled question, "What will I do?" I try and ask myself "What can I do?" See how that one little word change makes a huge difference in the question? One is a victim crying out and the other is a person taking charge and working on a solution. There is both power and comfort in being proactive in finding solutions to your worries rather than just stewing about them. Maybe the "what can we do" won't solve the entire dilemma at hand, but it can help us take baby steps to get closer to ideas and answers and further away from worry. Now that sounds like a direction I want to be going!

My Helpers

There is nothing quite like getting to lick the spoon when you are making brownies or cupcakes. These three are masters at it! Between them, they manage to get most every drop before it goes to the sink for a washing. Healthy? Maybe not. A simple pleasure of life? Absolutely! Yes, we all need our health, but a small of dose of simple pleasure may be the best health of all.

Blog Neglect

I think I am guilty of "blog neglect" lately. I have been really busy (excuse) and not very inspired (who's reading it anyways?!) and I have been lagging on my posts. Some days I have so much to say and other days...nothing! I guess my blog is a metaphor for my life....sometimes inspiring and sometimes, downright boring! We all live mostly in ordinary time and I figure, why would anyone want to hear about my ordinary time. I need to write exciting, inspiring, and interesting things. I want to acknowledge the important occurrences, not the bland. Some days I feel my life is better than many. Other days, I think it sucks and don't want to document its suckiness! Maybe, by me acknowledging these two things, I can make you feel okay about your life. Good days or sucky days, we are all in this together. There may lie the true joy...

Numbers

6:30am
22,000 runners
13.1 miles
1 Tiffany necklace

Run, Baby, Run

"I'm a runner, this I know, because the Nike wall tells me so!"
Sunday was the Nike Women's Half Marathon in San Francisco. It is the second time I have run this race. In all honesty, it totally kicked my butt this year! My time was not that great, the hills about killed me and it was so crowded (22,000 runners) that it felt like the 5 freeway at times. That being said ~ I RAN 13.1 MILES!!!!! I told my girlfriend who went with me as moral support that I always feel much better saying "I run." rather than "I am a runner." I don't want to claim something I am not or boast about something that still feels so difficult sometimes. I know I have gotten better in the last two years. I run longer, I (occasionally) run faster, I rarely feel winded, but I still do not take it for granted. I love being great at things and this is something that often feels like a too tight headband or an ill-fitting bra instead of great. That being said ~ I RAN 13.1 MILES!!!! I need to bask in the moment and allow myself to feel good...if only for a moment or two.
I am a runner!! (The Nike wall in Union Square says so!!)

Women's Conference

Anyone who knows me, knows I love to create things. Getting an idea, crafting plans to make it real and finally seeing the results, well, there's nothing better in my book! Since July, I have been working with another gal to produce a women's conference. It's the first time ever doing something of this magnitude and it has been a learning experience. One that I am sure, will continue being a learning experience up to the conference, during the conference and long after the conference. Whether you are in CA or not, I'd love you to check out the link and see what it entails. We just launched it today and already we have sold tickets!! Kinda like giving birth ~ painful, messy, tiring, beautiful & joyful!!!

After several months of planning, we are happy to announce the Expand Your Horizon Women's Conference on January 26, 2012 at The Nixon Library. You can enjoy a morning listening to speakers that will encourage, inspire & teach you. Please click on the link for full details. This event WILL sell out fast so please buy your tickets soon. Consider buying one for a girlfriend for a Christmas present. We can't wait to see you there!! Please help us spread the word by sending the info or link to your friends. It will be a morning to remember!!!

http://bit.ly/expandyourhorizon2012

You can also access the conference by going to www.thedayyourway.com

My Girls

When is a pillowcase, NOT a pillowcase? When some clever person turns it into a dress. I bought these for the girls at last weekend's boutique. Halloween themed and cute as can be. They were both so proud of them. In fact, Abbey insisted on putting it on the next day too! Hey, they say let them win the small battles and I agree!
This may look like dresses, but, for me, it's just more life lessons. Stop moving so fast and look at what's right in front of me = beauty. Simple, small things are really the big things = pillowcase dresses. Their joy = my joy. This is going to pass by so fast = enjoy the ride...every silly, small, loud sticky minute of it!!!

The Power of a Dollar

Jack came home last week and tried to explain a story about his class, brownies he told them I would make & a guinea pig!! The next day, when I dropped him at school, the teacher said "I need to talk to you." She further explained that, yes, they were having a bake sale to raise money for a new guinea pig. Apparently, the one they had for years, met with an untimely death this summer. Now, I know that the pets in the classroom go home with different kids for the weekend or summer. If that had happened on my watch, I would have made a beeline for the nearest pet store and bought a replacement immediately. I also would have probably said nothing. If someone wondered out loud about how they thought the guinea pig had more brown on him, I would pretend to not understand what they were saying!!
The bake sale gave me an idea. The night before the St. Paul's boutique, I made up a box, put a sign and a photo of a guinea pig on it, and placed it on a table at the entrance. All I asked was to "Donate a Dollar". Loads of people did! I am not sure at this time how much is in the box because Jack is going to take it school tomorrow and he and his classmates are all going to open it together and count out the dollars (math lesson). I am sure that the teachers will also use it as an opportunity for a lesson on generosity and giving.
I am humbled by the thought that one dollar, multiplied by many kind people, will have such an effect on these children. Never think what you have to offer is too small and won't matter, because it does.
And I don't even like guinea pigs ~ but I adore my grandson!!

Happy Birthday

Seven years...gone so fast...so many fun memories...so much more to look forward to with you, our FIRST Angel Bug!!!
Life was good...then there was you...now it is great!! Who knew?? Lucky us!!

Pumpkin Seeds

I had to laugh when I found this picture of the "puking pumpkin"! It really is a rather clever display for Halloween night, if not a little "barfy"!
One of our favorite traditions of the season is roasting the seeds we find when we cut open the pumpkins. We have tried a few variations of the recipe over the years, but why mess with perfect?? We love them salty and crispy. Here's our simple, yet satisfying recipe for you to try:

Ingredients

• 1 1/2 cups raw whole pumpkin seeds (or however many you are lucky enough to find inside)
  
• 2 teaspoons butter, melted
• 1 pinch salt - or more to taste
  

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 300 degrees F (150 degrees C).
2. Toss seeds in a bowl with the melted butter and salt. Spread the seeds in a single layer on a baking sheet and bake for about 45 minutes or until golden brown; stir occasionally.

The trick is to get them before everyone else does!! Enjoy!!

Inspiration

Today was Soccer Saturday and I attended both grand kid's games. Although the calendar reads October 1st, nobody told Mother Nature to tone it down a little and the temps were in the high 80s. Blah ~ no feeling of fall in sight! Seeking refuge under a tree to find any spot of shade, I sat and watched the game. While sitting there, I looked around and noticed many, tiny fallen twigs on the ground. That's all it took for inspiration to hit me! I gathered them up and held them tightly, knowing exactly what I was going to do with them when I got home.
A little ribbon, a silk leaf and flower and my ever-ready glue gun and ~ PRESTO! ~ a place card setting is born. I can see them all adorning the Thanksgiving table now. Who knew soccer could be so inspiring!