Creative Juices ...

Today I signed up for a creativity movement called Mosaic.

My friend created a song writing 5in5, 5 songs in 5 days, and is now challenging us further into the depths of our creative minds.  I stole the following from his blog about the Mosaic Project to explain the process to you.  Several of my long time friends are joining this movement and I look forward to seeing the beautiful picture that our minds bring together from all walks in life and all parts of the world, as well as getting my creative juices flowing a bit too!! Its going to be a beautiful adventure!!


 "Welcome to the M O S A I C project. I am sure most of you have seen a mosaic before (if not just click on the picture above. It is a mosaic of the world made out of apps). Most mosaics are formed by overlapping various broken materials. I like the phrase various broken materials because it is a good description of us all. We are all broken in some way. We all have hurts and imperfections, but when we are in community and share our lives with each other we begin to see a bigger picture take form. We begin to see a *work of beauty under the artful hands of God."

http://danieljohnmusic.com/the-m-o-s-a-i-c-project/


I will be posting on this creative process as it comes about.  The deadline is this coming Wednesday and my final project will be posted in my blog as well as on the link above with the rest of the beautiful works of art that are put together to make ONE bigger picture.

Easy like a Sunday morning ...

Sunday mornings are the best ever in my house.  My husband doesn't have to go to work.  We get to sleep in a little bit together.  Nari (our cat) comes and snuggles with us. And, I make a big breakfast for us.

I get up and let Rich and Nari have the bed to themselves while I sneak away into the kitchen and start creating.  Most days, breakfast consist of a banana on the go, a quick breakfast sandwich, cereal or toast with peanut butter, but on Sundays, its Pancake Day.

I use a whole wheat pancake batter from my favourite grocery store here in Vegas, Fresh and Easy.  It takes milk and eggs, then I whip it up while the pan gets nice and hot.  My husband's pancakes get made first, 1/4 cup of batter into the hot pan, then add a few chocolate chips before turning over, add butter one by one, and when the stack is ready, top with maple syrup.  Next, on to mine, same 1/4 cup of batter, only I use dried cranberries in mine before turning, not so much butter and half the amount of syrup to top mine off.   Add a side of bacon and V8, and you have it!

"Breakfast is ready!", I yell to him, then he emerges from bed and joins me in the kitchen for a yummy breakfast together!! It's a great way to start our day, whether we do something together or he goes out on his own for some much needed alone time on his day off, we love our new tradition of Pancake Day. ;)

Do you have any daily/weekly traditions in the making for you and your family?

Tut Tut, Looks like rain ...

I LOVE days like today!

In a place where the sun shines just about everyday, its the days that are cloudy and gloomy that I appreciate most.  I know that sounds crazy, but these are the days I miss most about the mid-west.  Although, it most likely will not rain today, the overcast cloud cover and 63 degree weather with an added cool breeze, is refreshing.  Its a, stay in the house and read a good book day, or have a cup of hot tea and watch a most loved chick flick day, or even better, snuggle with my beautiful baby Nari cat all day, day.  Whatever I do, it will be relaxing, and I will enjoy it very much.

Here, where the most common day  has a dry, hot, and very sunny climate, the days that make me feel like I am home again, are days like today.  I will still walk to the gym and get my Zumba on (or strength training, not sure which I will do yet), and I will still tidy my house as normal, but to have a calm, quiet, peaceful day outside, even though not normal, makes me warm in my heart and brings my mid-west family and friends to the forefront of my heart/mind.

No matter where you are in life, where you live, what you do on a daily basis, always remember that the little things in life are truly the most important and will always make those things that are most dear to you that much more important.

What little things in your life bring your family, friends, loves, or happy thoughts to the forefront of your heart/mind?

Living in a Desert ...

 Growing up in the mid-west, as far from the desert as one can imagine, I was use to grassy plains, fields of alfalfa and corn, furry creatures running around and amazing summer storms.  The desert is completely opposite, with blooming cactus, desert flowers, no rain and my personal favorite, the Joshua Trees, many things are so different here from the mid-west, but one thing remains the same, Allergies.

Some of you are probably laughing at me right now, as you know the mid-west, especially the part in MO where I grew up, is considered the allergy belt of the United States.  You may be thinking, 'How can a climate that is so dry be the same for allergies as in MO?'  Well, let me tell you a few similarities.

1. The Pollen:  Desert flowers and all the imported trees that bloom here have just as much pollen as the blooming mid-west does.  Yes, it is a different pollen, but pollen is pollen and it still has a way of creeping into my nose, making it drip.

2. The Dust:  In the desert there is a constant layer of dust laying around.  Only, its not your typical "dust", its a desert sand dust, complete with the outside smells and mixed with the outside pollens and dander.  Open your windows on a nice breezy day and be rest assured that you will have to dust at least 3 times to keep it clean and even then, it still manages to come inside. 

3. The Wind:  The wind is the worst thing here in the desert.  Don't get me wrong, I love the breeze and how it has a way of cooling everything off in the heat.  However,  when spring time comes, we get wind advisories, no rain and severe thunder storm warnings here, just wind, and when the wind comes, it blows everything that sat dormant all winter up into the skies, blowing and blowing, making a girl with allergies (that's me) feel as though she were back in the mid-west again.

The one thing I have come to love during the windy season here in this beautiful desert I call home, my Nasopure.  What is a Nasopure you ask?  Have you ever heard of the Neti Pot? Well, a Nasopure is the same concept, without having to tilt your head and hurt your neck to get the salt water solution to run through one side of nose and out the other.  Twice a day, once when I wake up and once when I go to bed, my wonderful Nasopure comes out and makes it all better.  I won't go into detail of the exact thing that happens when using the Nasopure.  It can be slightly gross and I would not want to make you feel queasy reading my blog. ;)

So, where the desert is extremely beautiful and has sunsets that paint the skies and mountains amazing colors, my nose most likely still thinks we are in MO.  Same old sneezing. Same old runny nose.  Same old itchy eyes. 

Jukari, A New Way to Move ...

Jukari is a Cirque Du Soleil inspired aerobic dance class partenered up with Reebok.  There are two differant styles of Jukari, Fly and Fit to Flex.  They unfortunately do not offer the Fly class yet, it uses trapeze, how fun would that be? At this time, there is only ONE place in the entire US that offers these classes and that so happens to be in the city of Las Vegas, where I just happen to live.  Outside of the 24Hr fitness clubs here, it is offered in Canada, where it originated.

When I first heard of this class, I came home and checked it out online to see what in the world Jukari was, as soon as I read "Cirque Du Soleil", I was in!! 

My first time to try it out was this morning, I needed a really good stretch after pilates the other night and thought this would be a great fit.  HA!! Not only did it stretch me, I was sweating profusely 15 minutes into the class!! Jukari gives you the calorie burn of a Zumba class and the balance/flexibility training of yoga/pilates, joining the two together, you get one powerhouse of a workout and feel simply amazing afterwards.

The resistance/stability band is used to 1. give resistance when stretching, 2. help keep you balanced when doing poses such as the Flamingo or Jukari Dancer, and 3. as a part of dance as we sway it through the air or whip it to the ground.

If you live in the Las Vegas area, you must try this class.  24hr fitness offers a Free 7 day membership, if you do not already have one there, you can go online and print the coupon for it.  Or, if you happen to know me and would like to come with me, I can get you in as my guest for the day, either way, this class was a great way to start the day! 

The Lengend of The Raindrop

My husband stumbled across this tiny booklet last nite, it was inside an electric shaver box and must have belonged to my Grandad.  The Legend of The Raindrop is an inspirational poem by Helen Steiner Rice from her book of verses "A Time For Rejoicing".  This little poem was featured on the Lawrence Welk Show and was published as a mini greeting card in Cincinnati, OH.  There is no date present anywhere, but the booklet is worn and has that antique look.  I hope you enjoy this as much as I did.


                The Legend of The Raindrop

The legend of the raindrop has a lesson for us all
As it trembled in the heavens questioning whether is should fall ...

For the glistening raindrop argued to the genie of the sky,
I am beautiful and lovely as I sparkle here on high ...

And hanging here I will become part of the rainbow's hue
And I'll shimmer like a diamond for all the world to view ...

But the genie told the raindrop, "Do not hesitate to go
For you will more beautiful if you fall to earth below.
For you will sink into the soil and be lost a while from sight,
But when you reappear on earth, you'll be looked on with delight.
For you will be the raindrop that quenched the thirsty ground,
And helped the lovely flowers to blossom all around.
And in your resurrection you'll appear in queenly clothes,
With the beauty of the lily and the fragrance of the rose.
Then when you wilt and wither, you'll become part of the earth
And make the soil more fertile and give new flowers birth."

For there is nothing ever lost or eternally neglected
For EVERYTHING God ever made is always resurrected.

So trust God's all wise wisdom and doubt the Father never
For in His Heavenly Kingdom there is nothing lost forever.

"Happy Thoughts" ...

With all the BIG things going on in the world, in your finances, in your health, or even with relationships, the most important thing is to remain happy and be at peace within your own self.  I recently watched the movie Hook, and the only thing that can make you fly, with the help of a little fairy dust of course, are your "Happy Thoughts", something so easy and so small.  Today, I am very happy with all the little things in my life that make me smile.

Here are just a few of my "happy thoughts" for today ... ... ...

This morning, the ground was wet from the rain during the night as we slept, where this may seem normal to those in the midwest or more wet climates, it is not for the desert, and this small thing always makes me smile inside.  I love the smell the rain brings and even though there were grey clouds this morning, the sun has pushed back the grey and left the most beautiful fluffy clouds today. 

My Breakfast this morning! Whole wheat Artisan  English muffins were on sale when I did my grocery shopping this last week and this morning I cut one open, toasted it and spread all natural peanut butter over the it and added a few dried cranberries to top it off.  It was so delicious and I really enjoyed it this morning.

Most of you who read this blog know that my job is the most fun job ever!! Ok, well for me it is anyways! I am an independent jewelry consultant for the growing Lia Sophia jewelry company in direct sales.  I trained my new start this weekend at her first show, which was a HUGE success.  I have the most beautiful jewelry display ever, that was obtained with all my certificate earnings in the past months of working, and today while helping a lady I have never met with an order, I booked her a jewelry shopping spree of her own!! My job makes me smile, and the opportunity it brings women everywhere, makes me very happy!

And last but not least of things making me smile today, a glass of Coke.  Where I do not drink this lovely drink near as often as I use to, some days, it cures all things unhappy or feeling under the weather.  "Have a Coke and a smile" is their slogan, and for me it rings true every time I have one. 

Today if I could find a fairy, and shake her to get some dust on me, I believe I could fly anywhere I wanted.  What things make you smile and are you "Happy Thoughts" in life??