Slow Down

Our fast pace of living takes its toil.  Anxiety rises as we try to answer all the demands that inundate us each day.  The world bombards us with information from the moment we get up to the moment we go to bed.  Most of our time “sleeping” is spent tossing and turning, running through the day’s events and planning the most efficient agenda for the next day.

Maybe it is time to slow down.  I wonder if we would feel more satisfied if we could spend an hour each day in silence?   Or if we spent a day each week away from the phone, the computer, tv, automobile and newspaper.

Create a cocoon.  Take a walk.  Eat simply.  Read.  Be with your family without distractions.  Be with yourself without distractions.

How difficult would it be to really sink into this quiet place?  Would it be hard to turn off the chatter, the “I should be doing this” in our heads?  Would we be more productive during the week?  Sleep better?  Hear our hearts desires?

I would like to try this as an experiment for three months.  Care to join me?  Even as I put that out there, I am trying to figure out where to squeeze it in.  It will take a conscious effort on my part to clear this space.  Will it be worth it?  Let’s see.

Here is the plan.  Slow down.  Take one day a week and step back.  No work is allowed.  No household chores (other than feeding yourself).  No errands.  No to do list.   Celebrate simplicity and calmness.  Let me know how it goes.

A Little Inspiration from Nature

Dear Santa, my Grown Up Wish List

Dear Santa

I haven’t written you a letter in a long time.  My kids wrote their Santa letters to you tonight, and I thought I should too.  I know you can’t make all my dreams come true, but I hope you take serious consideration of my list.

I wish for:

• My kids health and safety.  They have so much to offer.  Let them have the chance to grow, create and change the world we live in.  They will accomplish great things.
• A cure for cancer.  Enough said.
• Good health for my friends and the rest of my family.  For those that may leave us, I wish them safe travels and an easy journey.
• I would like to wish for world peace, but I don’t believe it will ever happen. Instead, I would like to request world tolerance and understanding.   A world without dissent is a world we probably don’t want to live in.  I wish for good debate and dissent in a manner that doesn’t take people’s lives.
• I wish for shelter and food for all of the world’s children.
• I wish for no regrets.
• I would really like a real vacation, but I would give it up for any of the above.

I know I am asking for a lot.  In return, I promise to:

• Seek out the greater good.
• Do my best to give back.
• Raise my children to be tolerant, to listen to other’s beliefs and to challenge their own.
• Lead by example by being tolerant, listening to other’s beliefs, and to challenge my own.
• Make lots of mistakes, but learn and grown from them.

Love,

Ginger

P.S.  For those of you who are reading this and don’t believe in Santa, perhaps you might take a moment to believe in yourself and your power to change the world we live in.  Eventually baby steps may lead to a marathon.  You have to start somewhere. Make a change in 2010.  You do have the power.

Thanks!

I will keep this short and sweet.

Thanks for -

• My kids
• My hubby
• Estelle
• Ginger
• my family
• new learning experiences
• Mr. Putters
• my awesome friends

Lucky, Grateful and Thankful

I try to be thankful for what I have every day but it can be hard when you are in the middle of it all, paying bills, rushing to work, etc.  I have had a couple of really yucky years to be quite honest.  People often tell me how glamorous my life looks and I look at them like they are crazy.  Oh yes, being a single mom living in the most expensive area in the country working in the most depressed industry around is glamorous.  But anyway.  THAT is another post.

I AM lucky, grateful and thankful. I have two of the most beautiful kids in the world.  Not just physically although they are darn cute.  Their bright smiles brighten my day.  There is nothing better than hearing the words, “I love you mama.” Cherish all the tiny monumental moments with your children.  They truly do make every day worth living.

I am so fortunate to have my parents, my grandmother and my sisters not only in my life, but all living in California less than 2 hours from me.  Yes, I say sister(s).  I adopted one this year (long story).

I am thankful that my dear friend with breast cancer is still here after a nearly 3 year battle from hell.  I don’t talk to her nearly often enough but I sure think of her a lot.  The strength that she has shown under conditions that are unreal is amazing.  She is a true inspiration to me.

I have the most amazing friends.  (You know who you are!)  I could not have survived the last two years without them.  I will admit there were days (or weeks) when I might have be temporarily crazy, weird, moody, cranky and yet they stood by me and supported me through the roller coaster of emotions.  Maybe they are the crazy ones, but I love them for it.

Somehow I managed to find a fantastic boyfriend.  He snuck up on me when I least expected him and has stuck by my side despite the chaos in my life.  He makes me laugh, even when I don’t want him to.  He is the calm in my storm.

I started a new business this last year.  I like to think of it as family owned because my partners have become part of my extended family.  Being a new business, we have all kinds of challenges, but we are lucky they are good ones.  My partners challenge me, inspire me and support me.  They are also exceptionally talented at providing comedic relief when needed.

I am thankful technology removes barriers of distance & enables me to keep in touch with my friends & family no matter where they are.  Can you imagine not being able to have unlimited long distance?  Not having skype or text messaging? No twitter?  The horror of it all.

So no, my life isn’t really glamorous, but I sure am lucky.

Why dating sucks

One of my friends is a serial dater. I won’t call her out here but she knows it. She actually enjoys dating. Meeting new people, going to dinner. Maybe I am not good at small talk. I have never liked “dating” for the sake of finding a companion. The awkward beginnings. The bad dinners where the guy spends the entire evening talking about themselves or checking out other women as they walk by.
This video made me fall down on the floor laughing. A huge hat tip to my business partner Hal Lublin for finding this, watching it with me, and providing live commentary. The viking guy kills me. So does the guy naming off the women he doesn’t want, “No fatties, no hamsters,…. no crazies.” Enjoy!

Which was your favorite?

Holiday gift giving during a recession

Here it is once again -Toys R Us has sent out it’s 2009 Toy Book officially heralding the Holiday season.  You might be wondering how to fulfill those wish lists when your credit cards are already reaching their limits.  Well, I have a few ideas that might make the gift giving season a little easier on the bank account.

First of all I recommend eliminating obligatory gift giving.  There may be those whom you tend to exchange gifts with merely because you always have.  If you rarely communicate with these individuals it might be time to re-evaluate your gift giving traditions.  It is relatively painless to make a phone call or write a letter which suggests exchanging holiday cards and photos in lieu of presents.  Chances are your recipients will applaud your ingenuity and gratefully  jump at the chance to shave off a few layers of their own lists.

Once you have gotten your list to a manageable level it’s time to come up with a budget.  I think we all start off with the best intentions when it comes to holiday shopping but somehow lose our way.  The hefty accumulation of receipts tends to go unnoticed until the decorations come down and the credit card bills arrive.  By planning ahead you can welcome the new year with ease and curtail the seasonal blues that often accompany overspending.

Adhering to a budget may prove exceedingly difficult this time of year with the lure of the bargain and the enticement of the sale.   Retail establishments use their creative marketing strategies to draw us in and keep us shopping.  When the mailbox is cluttered with catalogs  I suggest taking them straight to the recycling can.  Catalogs are just added temptation for things that we didn’t know we wanted in the first place.  Perhaps you are one who would benefit from shopping from home.  I prefer online shopping because I can Google exactly what I want with less visual temptation from other sources.  Chloe, however, feels that the internet can be just as dangerous, if not more so. The key to successfully adhering to any budget is demonstrating some serious yet much needed self control.

You don’t need much restraint if you decide to make your holiday gifts rather than venture into the stores.  I realize that there is a relatively small amount of the population willing to put the time or effort into homemade gifts but it is an option.  There are many online tutorials available, many with step-by-step instructions and photos, that will aide you in the completion of your project.  I have recently been educated in the art of tutu design and plan on making some super cute tutus for a few lucky little girls and there is no sewing required!

If homemade gifts are truly not your thing and you want to stay within budget without compromising on the gift then I suggest combining resources with others.  Instead of spending a little to get that finicky adolescent in the family something that they didn’t want in the first place, you can get a group together to buy that I Pod or $100 jacket from Abercrombie.   I think this is a great solution to the overinflated Holiday list; a win win situation for everyone involved.

Welcome the holidays and do not let the  financial aspect overshadow what the season is truly all about.  Your contribution of love and friendship should heavily outweigh any monetary gift and is ultimately more valuable.

The Tiniest Monumental Moments

This morning I woke up to feel a small finger tracing the outline of my nose, across my eyelids, and over my mouth.  A gentle breath on my face, and then a tiny whisper in my ear, “I love you mama.”

I opened my eyes to see the sweet face of my son, who then repeated, “I love you mama.”

So often in our lives, we celebrate the big moments.  Weddings, graduations, the superbowl, the college championship game.  These events are all monumental moments, but we tend to forget the small stuff.

The sweet words of a small child, the teenager who made their bed without asking, the wife who made a delicious dinner, the boyfriend who brought over a bar of chocolate, a brief text message saying BOO, I am thinking of you, or an unexpected phone call just to say hello.

As important as the big picture is, we need to step back, pause and appreciate all of the small moments that bring a tear to our eye, a smile to our face, our make our hearts flutter just a moment.  My best memories from my childhood aren’t about major events.  My best memories are baking sugar cookies with my grandma, doing the hokey pokey with my cousins, or playing disco barbies with my sister.

our lives are made
in these small hours
these little wonders,
these twists & turns of fate
time falls away,
but these small hours,
these small hours still remain

Rob Thomas, Little Wonders

It is always great to keep on eye on the big picture and the long term goal, but if we don’t stop and cherish the small moments, we may have missed out on the entire journey.  Be it professional or personal, take a moment to celebrate the small wins in your day.  It is these moments that carry us through, bring joy to our lives,  and help us reach our ultimate goal.

Survival of the Fittest

The “survival of the fittest” is a term we’ve all heard often enough.It has been used many times and in many different contexts. But what does it mean to us on a daily basis when life is just not going our way? The ability to survive into today’s world takes a lot of guts and quite a bit of courage. The unemployment rate is slowly creeping upwards, the housing market is at a stand-still, and the divorce rate is skyrocketing. People are scared and nervous about the future.

It’s OK to be frightened; we’re human.  It’s a tough time for all of us.  Unfortunately it means that we will have to work harder to achieve success.  Job hunting now requires some serious work.  We are forced to step out of our safety zone and become more pro-active.  If we want that paycheck we are just going to have to get creative and explore our hidden talents.  Hey, we might even be able to add that to our resumes.

It’s amazing how hard we’ll fight for what we truly want.  If your marriage is struggling for survival but you’re not ready to give up then don’t.  Try going to counseling or opening the doors of communication.   People are under tremendous stress and anxiety; that is enough to put a strain on the most solid of relationships, friendships included.  It’s amazing how nice it is to have a shoulder to cry on.

The future may look like a tornado on the horizon but that doesn’t mean we need to run to a shelter and hide. Everyone has that special place or need which fills the gaps and makes the hard stuff not so bad. I know that if I go to the beach I will feel better. I know that being near the ocean and feeling the ebb and flow of nature will put a smile on my face.I know that I can escape in a great book.I am a reader and I believe in the healing power of the imagination; what a wonderful escape!Everyone is different and everyone has that one thing that will make everything ok. Do you love art? Go to a museum and just sit. Do you love to run? Make that time and run. Go out when the sun is peeking up and the air is crisp and clean, take it in and feel it, claim it and don’t give up. Surround yourself with happiness and amazingly it will creep into those holes and fill them. Life’s problems may still be there but you’ll have fulfillment deep inside.

We’ve got to hang on; we’ve got to survive. We can’t let the bad stuff win.

The Passion to Create

I recently rediscovered new joy and satisfaction in the power of creation. Lately I am finding myself driven to create.  A conversation with my daughter sends my imagination on a wild ride or a new idea pops into my head and I obsess about it until I get it down on paper.  It is a powerful feeling and it makes me feel alive.

My free time is limited but I am making a new business happen.   When I find the energy to create, even if it is small and uncomplicated, I find happiness.  Sharing this creativity inspires me further and I shuffle my time  in order to bring my ideas into fruition. Life is so much more satisfying when I am inspired. Inspiration takes on  many forms and the creative possibilities are infinite.

There are so many ways to get inspired. Slow down for a moment,  take a walk on the beach or in the forest and really breathe. Meditation, reading a good book  or surrounding yourself with interesting people can stimulate creativity. Without it, life just becomes mundane and routine. Reconnect with your creative side and discover your passion.  You never know where it might lead.

Next Page »