Tag Archives: Mindfulness

What Happens When You Don’t Set Your Intention?

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What do you find yourself doing when you don’t have a plan?

How do you fill your time and space?

I tend to play on my phone, reading Facebook updates, looking at Instagram posts and playing Candy Crush. It fills the gaps and is mindless. This is relaxing to me.

My husband tends to work and as we were relaxing and sitting on the couch, I asked him if his intention was to work tonight. I am curious how we choose to spend our “free” time and wonder if we chose to set an intention before we sat down, would we choose the thing we were doing?  

I tend to make plans for my days but don’t plan anything for my nights and prefer the natural flow of whatever comes my way.  But maybe that’s just because that’s what my family does and everyone is “busy” studying and working. But what if…Hmm… Something else to think about.

Isn’t it cool that there are always things to think about? How could anyone ever possibly be bored?

Hope you have a good and intentional night, doing what you love and desire.

nAMaste

Mindful and Intentional

Posted in Gratitude, Happiness, positive living, simple living by

What if you are intentional and mindful through out your day?  I think you then have SuPeR pOwErS!!

ML reminded me to stay intentional today and to make my list for the day after we got back from our walk.  She said that she liked my blog the other day and was practicing being intentional too and felt so good getting so many things done.  I took her advice and made a list as soon as I walked in the door.  THIS little practice is AMAZING!!

By being intentional with my 2 extra bonus hours, I got so much done and was really efficient, which made me very happy.  I didn’t waste any time and my house was clean, errands were run and dinner was in the crockpot, all before work.

I’ve taught my kids to live in the moment and to enjoy what life brings and to not be too busy to play, despite our workloads. So when I found our missing Spikeball game and had it displayed in our living room when they came home, they decided it was time to go outside and play. I was instructed to log off my computer and to take a break. They’re teaching me what I’ve taught them, which means I think they’re learning. 😉 Of course, I went outside and enjoyed my big kids, thankful that they still want to go outside and play and with me!  After we were done playing, I  went back inside to finish up work for the day. Luckily dinner was ready for them in the crockpot and they’re becoming more and more independent.  I’m liking this new stage of life.

I’ll share one more mindful moment that made my day wonderful. I took a shower later this evening before dinner. The sun was shining perfectly through the window and lit up the bathroom. The lighting was glorious and I remembered my college psychology teacher, telling us to try to be present in the moment and the example of when you’re showering, to be fully present in the shower. She said to feel the water hitting your body. Listen to the water sounds. Feel the warmth and enjoy the entire experience of showering without thinking of anything else. I practiced this and loved it, closing my eyes and seeing the brightness through my closed eyes and feeling grateful. Being mindful and enjoying the present moment in the shower set the tone for the rest of my evening. The stress washed away and made for a great night.

How are you practicing setting intentions and being mindful? You have Super Powers! Are you using them too?

nAMaste and wishing you peace.

 

 

 

 

 

May You Be Intentional

Posted in Happiness, intention, Mindfulness, positive living, simple living by

Project Happiness has a #MayYouBe challenge going on right now and today’s challenge is focused on intention.  I woke up this morning and took the challenge and thought about setting an intention for the day.

This really gave structure and peace to my day because I knew exactly what I wanted to do and I was prepared and the day flowed, just like magic.

Because I was intentional with my thoughts, I created the day I wanted. I made the time for the things that were important to me and I chose to do what was in my head. 

It’s Monday and I wanted to start the week off with an uncluttered house. I began picking up and doing laundry and sweeping the floors. I knew what I was making for dinner and I knew that I wanted to work out and shower before working today. And I wanted straight hair today instead of curly because I like that look a lot more these days. 

Those were my intentions. And guess what? My intentions became my reality and my expectations were in alignment with my day and there weren’t any gaps. THIS is my definition of happiness. I created happiness for me in these simple ways.

I challenge you to wake up and breathe and think about what you want for your day to look like. Then set out and do the work it takes to make your dreams come true, just for tomorrow. And then do it again the next day. It’s magical and oh so simple.

If you want to learn more about Project Happiness, you can check it out here: Project Happiness

🙂

nAMaste

Where Does Your Mind Take You?

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Do you ever think about how powerful your mind is?

Do you ever think about this amazing gift that we’ve all been given and all the choices we get to make?

And how all the choices we make build on each other and take us where we are going?

We get to choose over and over again and if we don’t like something, we can change our mind. We can pick a different path. We can be still. We can be consumed. We can be determined. We can let go. 

This amazes me.

Where is your mind taking you? Do you know where you want to go?

nAMaste

(Here) I Am

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This is my new bracelet. I bought it for Jeff to wrap up and give to me for Christmas because I knew it would make us both happy and it did.  He was happy to not have to think about what to buy me and I was happy because it was exactly what I wanted.  Isn’t that a great strategy?

These are called Mantrabands and I am in love with them. I gave a few away for Christmas presents this year and was so excited to have something meaningful to share.  My sister sent me a picture of herself wearing hers yesterday on her birthday and this made me smile.

  
If you were to wear or choose a Mantraband, what would your mantra be? 

If you’d like one, you can order them online here: Mantraband – Love from California  I even like their motto: “Mantrabands are simple, elegant bracelets with a touch of delicate polish and an uplifting message; promoting a lifestyle of optimism, positivity, mindfulness. Wear your Mantraband every day as your daily reminder, affirmation, and inspiration. Made with love.” Oh, and I am not paid to say this nor did they send me any free products! I just love them.

nAMaste

 

The Application Of Happiness Theories

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They work. Seriously, I’m telling you and I’m not even trying to sell you something.

I’m practicing and using some of the theories and I want to keep practicing and getting better at adapting and staying on the path of happily ever after.

Yesterday I wasn’t feeling it, as happiness can be an elusive thing. It’s here and it’s gone and it’s back again. I was just feeling kinda blah in the moment and wanted to snap out of it, especially since I was giving a presentation on happiness tonight. I looked at my notes with the list of 5 things you can do in 21 days to feel happier, and I did the first thing on the list, which was to write down three things I was grateful for that day, kind of as a test.

As I started to write, I started to smile. I felt joy as I sat for a few focused minutes to think about what made me happy yesterday, and started seeing my joys on my screen. Writing down one thing lead to another and another until I had 8 things in less than 5 minutes. And to think that 5 minutes before that, I was feeling dread, with not even a blog topic in my head.  I looked at my list and felt happiness, instantly. A handful of you even took the time to “Like” my post, which made me thankful too. This gratitude practice is a miracle thing that we all can practice. It’s free and doesn’t take much time and puts us on the right path.

Tonight I’m thankful that my Happiness program was well received and I loved the interactive dialogue and sharing and connections that we made. Their big A-HA moment was seeing that no one listed material things on their happiness list.  I loved this!  We learned that most of us experience happiness through shared experiences with family, friends, and being of service to others which makes sense!  The number one predictor of happiness is having good relationships.  We talked a lot about being aware of our expectations and how to focus on our gifts instead of the gaps. We talked about adapting and accepting whatever life gives us and redefining ourselves as we go through life.  I learned a lot tonight and was thankful to be invited to share the Gift of Happiness.

In closing, I’ll share a quote from Lincoln that was shared by one of the ladies tonight, who always heard this from her smart and positive-living mama as she was growing up:

“Folks are usually about as happy as they make their minds up to be.”

So true. Let’s be mindful and choose happiness. Go ahead. You can start right now. 😉

nAMaste

 

nAMaste at the End of the Day

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It’s been killing me to not write tonight. I gave myself permission not to, which is all I needed. I felt free!! And my spark came back.

I was feeling sad today about giving up my creative outlet. I made a really nice dinner and thought my cooking was my creative outlet and I enjoyed being in the moment chopping green beans and slicing flank steak across the grain for the stir fry I was preparing. I felt joy in taking the time to cook for my family and hoped they would appreciate my gift, which they all did.

But the real gift came when sitting with Juliana, eating dinner just the two of us before our evening events.

I told her about my blog post last night and she was shocked and told me that she thought I was making a bad choice. She reminded me about how much I love writing and how it’s been the consistent thing I do every day and how it’s been the common thread since before we moved to Amsterdam. She reminded me that it’s my “nAMaste at the end of the day” and it’s my mindfulness practice and time to reflect. That girl makes me think and my mind is open to her opinion, even when hers is different than mine.  Although, she just brought out the truth I was hiding. She was right. 

As we sat and chatted together, Zuma came and parked herself on my lap. This is the cat that doesn’t want to be held and does her own thing and doesn’t want to be bothered. Yet last night and today, she came and sat on me and made me sit still. I wanted to move and do work, yet I stayed and listened to her too. When I tried to take her picture, she hid in my lap and made me smile.  

 Sometimes you need to slow down and just be. So I did.

And tonight when I thought I wasn’t going to write, I saw Cassie’s story circles post on Facebook. She does the same thing that I do every night, except she reflects on her day through art and she does it every night after the house quiets down. It’s her ritual, just like mine. She shows up and takes time for herself, being creative and doing what she loves, even when she’s tired.

So Juliana and Cassie, thank you for inspiring me to keep writing. I’m not ready to stop tonight. Maybe tomorrow. Maybe not. Just knowing that I have the freedom to not write on any given night is a gift. Isn’t it weird how we make up our own rules and change them? I’ll leave you with that thought…

nAMaste at the end of the day.

xo

The Sabbath 

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How did you rest today?

Did you slow down and enjoy a special moment with someone or something you love?

The message for today was not to hurry. I had to think about this one for awhile and wondered what that would look like and feel like to slow down. I always feel like I am in a hurry and juggling several things at once. I want to go, go, go, and don’t want to stop until bed time.

What happens when you don’t hurry?

I decided to practice today, since it was the sabbath, a day of rest.

As we were leaving church today, a gentleman decided he wanted to talk with us. We did not know him, yet his eyes sparkled and he wanted to share his story with us. Since we weren’t in a hurry, we listened. And we listened until everyone around us left. We walked outside and we listened some more. He had a lot to share and was very interesting and friendly. Plus, we weren’t in a hurry and we felt the presence of the moment and just being together in conversation, sharing stories and feeling good.

Juliana and I went shopping after lunch and we took our time. We weren’t in a rush and we were able to find what we were seeking.  I wanted to hurry home and be done, but instead we slowed down. I smiled at people and shared stories. One girl gave me an extra 10% off my order, maybe because I was not in a hurry and was present for a real moment in the check out line with her, asking her personal questions. I was actually enjoying the slower process and talking to people. I saw the workers differently and appreciated their service and hearing their stories too. 

I feel like if we slow down and see people and connect, maybe we can make this world a little less hectic and discover what we have in common and smile and share a laugh.  

Hmm…that’s what happened to me today and I loved it.  How about you? What happens when you slow down?

Change Your Mind

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The mind is so powerful and impressionable. It tells us what we like and how we feel and helps guide us to do what we choose to do and so many other things.  And once we make up our mind, usually we follow the direction we’ve decided.

For example, I used to not like cats. I told myself I didn’t like cats and therefore I didn’t. I didn’t make any effort to like them or enjoy them and didn’t give them a second glance. I  cared very little for their presence.  I was happy for people who had them, but I had no desire or interest to share in their joy.

That is until I decided to like them and let them into my mind. I reluctantly granted my children’s wish and agreed  to have cats at our house. It was a slow process, but I changed my mind and accepted them. 

I decided they were actually cute and fun and allowed myself to enjoy them. I really surprised my husband, my kids and even myself as I find myself sneaking into their room to hold them and let them out. I love watching them play and I love the life they bring to our family. It feels like we have joyful fur babies!! 

Who knew I could change my mind and find joy?  Have you ever changed your mind for the better when you never thought you would?  So curious and very cool!

   
   Aren’t they cute?? Life is good!

Having Fun Just Because We Can

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I had to take Juliana to an appointment today and as we were leaving I noticed this fun sculpture and asked J if she wanted to play on it. 

Her initial reaction was, “right now?” and of course I said, “yes, it’s not like we’re coming back here tomorrow and the moment is now. It’s right in front of us and looks like fun.  Are you in?”

She didn’t hesitate for long and humored me for a little minute.  

   
       

I love this kid in so many ways and love that she’ll still play with me. I loved the sculpture and the trees and the lighting too. 

On to another subject, we had our first successful pasta night and I loved it. I loved having all the kids together and all the parents too.  I loved that everyone brought something to share, especially fresh tulips.  Thank you friends for sharing the night with me and for the wine and goodies.  I love this!!

 
Hope you have a great, relaxing weekend!  NamASTE.