Category Archives: Growth

Time To Begin – Monday Morning Tips

Happy Monday Morning!!! I hope everyone’s weekend was filled with fun and happiness and everyone is ready to go out and conquer their week!

To Enthusiastic for a Monday Morning??

Yeahhh…

Mondays are blah aren’t they? I’m almost positive there was a committee at some point in time that said, “this day…this so called Monday, will forever be the blah day of everyone’s week.” Like, rude right!

So how many of us see Mondays as the evil step child of the week? The day you know your not getting anything done, and the day you just wish was over before it began?

Mondays CAN BE blah, but that doesn’t mean they ALSO can’t be productive or reenergizing!

USE MONDAY AS YOUR SET UP DAY!!

Mondays are supposed to be our kick start day! The day you come into the week and get everything set up, you get yourself ready for all that’s going on, and you dive into whatever you got happening!

Below are 5 Easy Tips to help kickstart your Monday morning and help get you set up for your week!!

1. Wake Up and Make Your Bed! – if your not someone who makes their bed every day then this is a great kick start for you! Even if its just this one day of the week, make your bed before you leave the room! Doing this will help set a mental note that you’ve already accomplished something today, you’ve already done one productive action within your first hour of waking up! Go you!

2. Look In Your Mirror and Give Yourself an Affirmation! – Words are important!! Let me go ahead and say this again…WORDS ARE IMPORTANT!!! Write that down and stick it to your mirror or wherever you will see it every single day! How you ever received a complement or had someone say something nice on a bad day or a day you really needed it? Then you know how much words give us strength and help us make it through our days! Use Monday as your word start week. Let the first words you hear and say be words of encouragement and love! Look at yourself and say, “I am loved and I am blessed! I am beautiful and I am strong! I WILL go out and conquer my day and I will do it with peace and kindness in my heart!” Words are important, and how you speak to yourself may be the most important building block of self growth!

3. Grab Something to Eat! – I know it’s supposed to be common knowledge that eating breakfast is the number one thing you need to do, but really how many of us have time to eat breakfast every single day?! If your anything like me then sometimes your just going going going in the mornings that before you know it its already 12 in the afternoon! If you’re like this then just like making your bed let Monday be the one day you stop and eat something! Whatever you got going on make sure to take 10-15 minutes from your morning and eat something. Rather that be a bowl of cereal, some toast, or some eggs with avocado on the side, eat something on Mondays, Your body needs the fuel to go conquer this day!

4. Look at Your Entire Week! – I know, I know! We are focusing on Monday, but taking a second to sit and look at your entire week really does help give you control over your day! Sit down for 5 minutes and look at a calendar, it can be the one on your phone or one on the wall, look at what days are coming up and if you have anything going on. Make yourself aware of what you got going on so you dont over Exhaust yourself this week, and You don’t need to look at the whole month just this week! Looking ahead helps us to have more control over the now cause we feel we already know what’s going to happen! This helps us to feel like today, Mondays, aren’t that overwhelming cause you are in control of your day and whole week now!

5. Take a Moment for You! – I CAN NOT stress this enough!! Your week is just beginning and more in likely you got a lot of stuff going on already or you’ll have stuff pop up or maybe your at home with the kids and have to keep the house running with constantly taking care of bills, kids, chores, groceries, and appointments! Whew…just typing that makes me shiver cause I know it’s stressful love! No, I don’t have kids yet, fingers crossed for the future, but I still work 40+ hours, take care of our new home, shop, clean, keep up with three crazy pups and make sure my husband and I have time for each other… it’s stressful. No one will ever tell you it’s not! That is why this 5 minutes you give yourself is so important! Go sit outside in the sun, go curl up with a book and get a few pages knocked out, go make some coffee and really taste it! Bring it to your noise and smell it, let each sip help your mind find peace! Go hid in your bathroom if you have too and sit on your phone! Girl no one is judging! Do whatever you HAVE too to get that 5 minutes! Let it be the time you mentally make yourself aware of the day and you tell your mind, “do what you can with what you have today.”

In the end, we can only do and give what we have. If you start your Monday with nothing then how do you except to be able to go and give your energy this week? Not just this day but the week!

Fuel yourself on Monday with all the love and happiness and strength you have, cause honey, rather you believe me or not, you have it!! You are a strong, beautiful, passionate ball of firing energy that can conquer anything you put your mind too!

Time to begin Monday with a smile! Blessed Be Loves!

Your Practice Doesn’t Have To Be Perfect

This mornings Yoga and workout definitely didn’t go as I had planned, but honestly sometimes those are the best practices!

My sweet Callie decided she wanted a hug right when I was trying to do this move! Bless her!

It doesn’t have to be perfect!

It doesn’t have to go exactly how you think it should! I promise most the time it won’t.

It doesn’t have to be like everyone else’s practice, cause this isn’t Everyone else’s practice, this is yours! Your practice, and your time to come and just be!

The fact you took a moment today to just come and be with yourself. To come and breath in all that the day and world has to offer. The fact that you chose you.

That right there is what I want you to take away!

Your practice doesn’t have to be perfect. It just have to start with you choosing to take a moment for you!

Being Grateful for All That You Have

Good Morning and Blessed Be to all you amazingly wonderful and beautiful people! Today is a day for showing gratitude! No special day besides the fact it is a new day and there is no better time to start or do something new!

So recently I have been in a slump of emotions. I feel like a rollercoaster of high and lows and all the curves are my confusions of whys. What triggered me noticing this was yesterday when I busted out in tears, I know, pretty noticable sign right! It was just one of those moments where sensory overload got me and my mind started to just list out everything that was “going wrong” recently or Everything that’s made me feel “bad”. I have pretty bad anxiety, who doesn’t these days, but I’ve had for so long that when I catch myself in an overload moment I know I have to do something to break it or I’ll go into a straight panic attack and start not breathing and all that good jazz. So THANKFULLY my husband called in that moment for his lunch. Not sure if he just knew I needed him then or fate knew I needed help but he called exactly when I needed to help calm me down.

Y’all will never know how much that man has saved me!

My slump though, that has been due to stress and I know this, it’s one of the few things we all share in emotionally on this Earth, and If you don’t have any stress in your life you seriously need to share that secret cause I promise you could market it and make bank! Oh wait… pretty sure people actually do this already??

Come on though, EVERYONE has stress, everyone has moments that just feels like nothing is going right and you feel like you’ve failed.

And THAT’S OKAY!

Like I Said it’s one of the few things we all share so I promise no one will ever be mad at you for having stress in your life!! You Do What You Can With What You Have!!

Seriously my motto, even got it tattooed on me!

I have found though that in dealing with stress, or sensory overload, or having a crummy day cause your coffee order was wrong, or whatever moment or event that is going on in your life right now that is causing you to doubt yourself or feel small, being Grateful helps!

It truly does!

Taking that moment to realize a bigger picture helps to make that moment of doubt seem insignificant.

Next time you start to feel down, I want you to think of these to help bring you gratefulness:

1. I am grateful for my mornings! – your morning means you made it through yesterday and today is a whole new experience! Use this as a push to always look forward to your morning!

2. I am grateful for the dirtiness of my home! – your home being dirty just means YOU LIVE THERE! You have a roof over your head and four walls to protect you! Be thankful that you have something that gets dirty.

3. I am grateful for my endless questions and the to do list I may have!! – having kids that constantly ask questions or a job you have have so many projects for can be stressful, but know that that child ask you all those questions cause your are their world and to them your the encyclopedia of knowledge! That job ask you questions or gives you work, I hope, cause they believe in your work and they trust you to do a wonderful job. You are needed to them!

4. I am grateful for my mind! – your mind is an astounding organ! Your mind literally has the ability to make you feel any way you want and think any thoughts you want! This is a treasure you have that no one else will EVER know the full depths of! Take advantage and make your mind your discover all that you have to offer this world!

5. I am grateful for my body being sore or tired at the end of the day! – at the end of the day when you lay in your bed all sore and tired know this. You accomplished your day! You got up, made what you needed happen, and are able to lay down and let that breath of the day out! Be grateful your body allows you to wake up everyday, carry you around doing everything you need, and allows you to lay, breath and rest it all away for the nexy day.

Being grateful isn’t hard, but it does take self awareness. It does take knowing in any stressful moment that its only a moment and you still everything else you get to do and be! Being grateful is one of the easiest, free, most uplifting activities you can do AND BE!

So today I challenge you.

Write it down!

Take THREE moments from your day and write down what you are grateful for! Even if one of those is being Grateful for someone else, like I was for my husband yesterday! Take three moments and show yourself love and peace by giving love and peace to your world around!

I am so grateful for each and every one of you! Each of you have a purpose and a reasoning for being on this Earth and it is time you accept you are needed! You are needed to bring love to this world. You are needed to help bring peace. You are needed to be grateful and to help show gratefulness to others. Blessed be my loves!

The Road Not Taken – All That Is Needed

You will never see the world till you choose to go out into it.

You will never hear the sound of nature till you stop to listen to it.

You will never smell the sweetness of flowers till you go and find them.

You will never know the beauty of a location till you experience it for yourself.

And you can never truly discover all you have to give till you open up to who you really are.

So choose to discover! Choose to experience all the smells, sounds and sites of the world! Choose to be a part of this world!

You have so much to give and so much this world needs! You are wanted and loved! You are perfect just the way you are, and You are needed for this world to grow!

You need to hear these words, and You need to understand their purpose. You are the only one that can discover new paths and make new roads.

So find the roads not taken and discover the beauty all around you.

Find the roads not taken and share it with others. You never know how much they might need it.

Find the roads not taken and take them. You never know what you will miss till you do! You never know how much you might discover within yourself till you take that first step…

Blank Canvas

Today is a new day!

It doesn’t matter what day of the week it is or what month in the year, today is new and ready to be conquered!

To many times in our life we wait for an “opportune” moment for us to start something. “I’ll start that diet Sunday!” “I’m gonna start saving next month!” “I can always do that project tomorrow!” How many though can say you actually follow through? If you always stick to exactly what you set for yourself then heck yeah Girl!! You are a goal and I give you all props!! On the other hand though, if your like me, then the follow through sometimes doesn’t work out… Now I can’t be the only one that has a whole list of things to do or that I want to do but never actually get to that list! Something “always” comes up, or I “always” dont have time.

Sound familiar?

I put all the small things that would bring me joy on the back burner for the things I “think” HAVE to be done right then.

Why though? Why do we have a hard time following through with plans or projects that would bring us joy and happiness?

So many times we make plans of what we want to do but never follow through with the last step of actually doing. I wonder why? Maybe all the fun is in the planning? No, that doesn’t sound right! Maybe other things are more important? Possibly, but thats just an excuse really, if it’s important to you then it’s important! Maybe I don’t really deserve time for myself? Mhmmm, no I deserve every bit of time for my peace then the next person!

And SO DO YOU!!

I wake up an hour early almost every day so I can just be with myself. I’ll make coffee and either read, or pray, or go ahead and work on here for the future days. I take time for myself to make sure that these small joys don’t get put back. I need them to help fuel me for the day. I need them so that I can continue to give joy to others! You deserve that too! You deserve that peace for even just an hour to go and do things that will fill your joy tank!

So look at your canvas for the day. Lay out all the colors you want to paint with, and then begin. Just one stroke means you started. One stroke means you’re there. You followed through. Then the next day come back to that canvas and add another. Everyday come back and add another! Eventually you will see the picture your life is turning into! Eventually you will see that it isn’t so hard to to add that stroke, so soon you begin to add more! Soon you begin to paint your joys and happiness everywhere you go!

So get out that blank canvas and begin!

Acceptance is Hard!

Accepting yourself. Accepting others. Accepting our world. Its hard sometimes. Unfortunately acceptance is not something that comes naturally to many of us. It’s not something we just do, or that we are. A lot of times it’s something we really work hard at. To be able to accept the commodities around us. To Accept the people around us. To accept ourselves for who we are.

I honestly couldn’t say which is harder.

At what point in our existence did we as humans start to not accept anymore? To turn to a way where all we do is judge another or complain for what we have. Where we put so much expectation on ourselves to be a certian way or live a certian life, all for what? To keep up with this materialistic world we live in? To make sure no one sees our weaknesses or has negative comments to say? To fake a smile at a stranger cause we wish they would give us the same?

Why though? Why is it so hard for us to coexist on this place we call home? To live together on this Earth in total peace.

Why is something that is so easy to do so hard for us? Acceptance is as easy as saying, “okay”. Nothing more, nothing less. Just okay.

If for one day our World could look at its neighbor and say, “I see you are different than I, but that’s okay, we are all one being living on this Earth. We all share one world. We are all together forever.”

If for one day we could all look into the mirror and just smile, because we know that who we are is needed for this World! Who we are was perfectly made for this time now! Who we are at this moment is just the beginning of who we can become!

If for one day we all just accepted.

Imagine it!

Acceptance is hard!

The choice to choose not to accept though, is harder, but it is just a choice!

Your choice, to say “okay” or not.

Life can be hard, but Accepting doesn’t have to be!

Happy Birthday Poem

Dont forget to smile

You have come so far

Don’t forget to smile

You have so much more to go

Don’t forget to smile

Seize each and every day

Don’t forget to smile

Appreciate it at the end

Don’t forget to smile

The world needs more of those

Don’t forget to smile

You’ll never know what it could mean

Don’t forget to smile

Your mirror could use it too

Don’t forget to smile

I heard it’s good for you

Don’t forget to smile

Today is your day

Don’t forget to smile

Happy Birthday

Motivation Is Key To Achieving Goals!

What do you do to push yourself to get motivated? To push the others around you to get motivated? Does it just come naturally or are there steps to take? Can one find motivation even when the act they are doing is no where near what they thought or wanted?

The answer to each of those all depends on the person. It depends on the dedication your willing to put in to get the results you want. It depends on what your goal is and how much you really want it.

We’ve all had those moments where you’re so ready to go somewhere or do something, that others might not be excited about, and you’re just ready! Like pumped up ready! You remember that feeling? You remember wanting something so bad you didn’t care what it took? That’s motivation.

The literal definition of motivation is, “the general desire or willingness of someone to do something.”

The desire or willingness to do something!

Is what you desire worth the dedication it takes to stay motivated for it? Are you willing to put in what’s needed to get what you want?

To say that each of us has motivation inside of us is true, but to say that we all use that motivation…well sometimes that’s a different story right?

So what can you do? What helps people stay motivated? What can you do to make sure you don’t loose what you desire?

1. Write down your goals! Write down what you actually want or desire to have. Review this regularly! You don’t have to constantly remember every goal you have, write them down so when you do come back to that list it will be there. It might just spark some motivation as soon as you see it again!

2. Use what makes you happy! Do you love listening to music? Pump that jam up then! Do you like to chew gum? Girl grab you some of that hubbu bubbu and get to it! Find the small things that make you happy and incorporate them into what you want, or need, so you can get more out of what your doing!

3. Reach out to others! I know, some people feel that if they reach out for help on something then it “doesn’t count” when they do it or finish it. This has to stop! We NEED each other in this world. We all need help at times, and to say you can do it all, all by yourself, is pure insanity. Reach out to a mentor when you need help in your career! Reach out to a couch if you want to work on physically feeling better! Reach out to a teacher if you want to learn something new! Reach out to a friend is you need encouragement! Reaching out doesn’t make you week, it makes it to where when you do get where your going you’ll have a tribe behind you that you know supports you!

4. Exercise! I can hear it now, “Boooooo, no work outs!” Sorry, not sorry though! Exercise is key to physically, emotionally, and mentally feeling better! Just 5 mins! Take 5 mins everyday and do a stretch, go for a jog, go knock out some crunches and abs! Be active! We can’t expect our goals to just come to us we have to chase them down, tackle them, and make them ours! Can you do all that if your not feeling good? If you barley get up and move everyday, how do you except to tackle that desire you have? Exercise just 5 mins a day, if you’re not use to it, and use that drive to push you in your other goals!

5. Reward yourself! No, I don’t mean go eat an entire tub of ice cream after every workout! No, I don’t mean go buy yourself everything in site because you were able to redo your budget and have extra money this month! No, I don’t mean go fly to the Bahamas cause you got an A+ on your test! I mean, if you just did a hard workout, go reward yourself with a nice hot bath and a piece of chocolate! A PIECE of dark chocolate is the best! If you were able to redo your budget and got some extra money, go have a nice lunch with a friend. If you just scored an A+ on that test, hell ya by the way, go celebrate with a nice relaxing night at home where you dont look at books or anything to do with that class! Or go have a nice night out with friends! It’s the little rewards that actually help push us for more!

So what are you going to do to get motivated? What tools will you use to keep yourself accountable for staying on track?

Write it all down! Whatever you think, or know that helps, write it down! Go back to it over and over and over again! Push yourself!

You can achieve everything you desire, you just go to GO FOR IT!

Be the Goddess or God That You Need

As children we are told to look up to our elders and use them as role models. To use the doctors, the firefighters, the people in power, and so many more as our guides for wisdom. Now, while it is true that we need these role models to help set the examples of the good we need in our world and our lives, we don’t realize we’ve had these role models all along. We’ve had guides to help us along on our journey.

When you can find good in someone or something you’ve seen then it becomes easier to spot. It’s easier to become good when you surround yourself with it, and it’s easier to be good when you have something to base the good off of.

So why not use the past as a way to help guide our future? Why not use the stories of our ancestors and all they went through as a guide of where you came from? Why not use the legends of heros to show us there is good in the world? Why not use the stories of the Gods to show us we will always have somewhere to turn?

What if you could turn to multiple role models as guides and mentor’s?

Do you seek wisdom for upcoming decision that needs to be made? Reach out to Athena, the goddess of Wisdom and War. She can help guide you in any upcoming battles you may face.

Do you seek love? Reach out to Freya, the Goddess of Love and Fertility. She can help you reconnect with your inner love and allow you to give and receive it.

Do you need courage and strength to get through your day? Reach out to Kratos, he is the embodiment of strength, and can help you find yours.

Do you seek balance in your life? Reach out to Hecate. She is what balance is. She controls the heavens, the earth, and the seas. She is both maiden, mother, and crown. She is who I reach for in times of need. She can help you find that balance you seek.

You see, there are so many from our past that we can use to help guide us.

When we seek guidance, we can usually find it. It’s up to you though to determine rather its good or bad and if you want to use it or have it in your life. Not all guidance that is given can be helpful, but if we turn it all away then you will never know where you could have gone.

“Be what you seek, and become what others seek.”

Use the past to guide you in all that you do! Seek out good, in yourself, and in others!

Be the Goddess or God that you need in that moment, in that time. Appreciate all that you have been through and overcome. Rejoice in all that is left to experience and gain in life. Then, truly accept that you can be all that you already are and more.

Use your past and the past of our ancestors to lay a way for your path in life.

Walk it with honor and pride, and when you get the chance, share your story with others. Let your stories be a guide for others needing, and those yet to come.

Monday Morning Yoga – Beginners Edition

Good morning, I hope you all had a great weekend and are ready to conquer your Monday Morning! Heck your whole week!!

This morning we are going to look at a few key Yoga pose’s to help open you up for an incredible amount of breath and energy!

And it only takes 5 minutes!

Yoga is a great way to help wake your body up in the mornings and really get your overall energy and health up!

Benefits of Yoga:

⁃ Breathing! It helps to open your chest, and this will help with concentration and focus for your day!

⁃ Increased Energy and Mood! Feel good after knowing you took time for you and it helps your health!

⁃ Reduces stress! Allow yourself to relax! That is what you deserve!

⁃ Physical Strength! Grow your outer and inner strength through balance!

⁃ Mental Health! Don’t take this time for granted, truly come to your mat and just be. Do the moves that bring you energy and strength. Find peace knowing your mind and body are connected together, the way they should be!

⁃ Overall health! – sounds silly when you say but yoga is one of the easiest exercises to help your overall health! You don’t have to do the hour long practices either! Just a good five minute practice every day will help make you feel better, stronger, and with more energy!

Now with benefits like those, and so many more, do you think you too could spare 5 min from your day? Just 5 min to set yourself up for success!

It’s that easy!

Morning Stretch:

⁃ Start with hands by your side and breath in.

⁃ Go into Mountain Pose and make sure you reach as far as you can with your fingertips!

⁃ Grab left hand and pull to the right. This is a sideways stretch and opens the ribs. Do one side and then the other.

⁃ Hands back up to Mountain Pose.

⁃ Next, down to a Forward Fold. If you cant go all the way down that is totally fine! Only go half way, but make sure to breath!

⁃ Hands back up to Mountain, then back to a slight backbend. Release your breath when you go back!

⁃ Come up then go into a Goddess Pose! This is my favorite! Its such an Empowering move and really opens your whole body up!

⁃ Breath! Breath! Breath!

⁃ Stand up to do shoulder stretches. Left then right!

⁃ Take your hands by your side and breath in. Roll your neck to the right. Roll it to the left. Go one side all the way around twice. Then go to the other twice.

⁃ Come back to Mountain Pose!

⁃ Hands down, breath in the out, make noise when you breath out! Use your vocals to really get that last breath out!

⁃ Then, SHAKE IT OFF!

Whoooo! You did it!! See! Wasn’t so bad was it? And now you’re filled with extra breath for your body, your mind, and soul!

Now!!! If you want to push for more, below is an added on sequence to the top that I move through! I love really moving in my practice though! Just do what you feel comfortable with!

⁃ So you just came back to Mountain Pose after your neck rolls!

⁃ Let’s go down to Downward Dog!

⁃ Breath! Take a moment in this.

⁃ Down to all fours. Hands and feet. Make sure you Re-situate yourself!

⁃ Time for some Cat and Cow! Make sure your breath is alined for each. Don’t rush this! When your in Cat, check your shoulders, how do they fill? When your in Cow, hows your lower back? Be aware of your body in each pose!

⁃ Back to Tabletop.

⁃ Come back into a Child’s pose and breath.

⁃ Breath here for three good full breaths.

⁃ Come up and flip around to where you are sitting with legs straight out.

⁃ Stretch down to your feet. If you can’t thats completely okay!!! This takes time, and this is will come!

⁃ Hands up! Reach as far as you can with your hands while sitting!

⁃ Lay back all the way down!

⁃ Breath!

⁃ When your ready! Flip over!

⁃ Flow from plank to Downward Dog in one motion. Breath through this!

⁃ Once in Dog, walk yourself back up to a Forward Fold. (Half way is great too!!)

⁃ Breath in and reach up to Mountain Pose one last time!

⁃ Breath out and bring your hands to your heart!

⁃ Close your eyes and let go. Dont focus on poses or breath or any of it. Just be.

⁃ Open your eyes, take one more big breath in! Breath out and use those Vocals! Make it a breath that you are pushing Everything bad out of your body!

⁃ Then, SHAKE IT OFF!

You did it!!! How do you feel?

The time you take matters! Don’t rush through these just to say you did them. The time you make for yourself is your oasis. Own it, and Grow it.

Happy Mondays Loves! Go forth and make today and each day after YOUR DAY!