What is Beautiful Through Your Eyes? ~ Vapour Organic Beauty

This week on the blog I am hosting beauty week. What is beautiful through your eyes?

I want us to talk about beauty, to feel beauty, to be inspired by beauty. Beauty is something that we enjoy with all of our senses. With our hearts. I’ll be asking you to join the conversation over on FB and Twitter. I want to know what is beautiful through your eyes. Each day there will be a giveaway, simply leave a comment to enter to win.

I discovered Vapour and fell happily for every product they have. Gluten-free and cruelty free, so no worries about safety. My dog ate my favorite product from them and he seemed to want more.

I feel beautiful in make-up and I feel beautiful without it. I have found that if I do my hair and put on make-up I am more productive. I say nicer things to myself in my chattering mind. I feel like being seen.

Our outside reflects what is happening on the inside. Ever see a women who has gone through a break up go out and cut all her hair off? Or watch as someone becomes crazy joyful and they start to drop weight and dress with a tad of sparkle? Do you notice that on days you wear jewelry that you carry yourself in a more beautiful fashion?

Beauty is in our soul, our spirit and our physical world. I give you permission to want to look and feel beautifully and dress in a way that shows it off.

If you were part of the summer Joy Up you'll remember one day's soulwork was all about reconnecting to the person you used to be. The one that wore red cowgirl boots or feathers in her hair. The girl who used to put scarves around her neck and collected big earrings. The red lipstick wearing woman who traded her color for chapstick in her diaper bag.

Beauty feels good. When we wear beauty on the outside it transforms our insides.

So if you haven't put on lipstick for a while, hear is a dare to go out and find an outrageously lovely color and smear it on. And take a picture. And love yourself up a bit. Yes, mamas and friends, you are hot!!!!

What is beautiful through your eyes? (from comments on the blog or FB page)

Foggy days, love them! - Liz

The world around me when I am laying in my hammock. - Michelle

Sunlight streaming in the windows and lighting up the fur flying about. - Melissa

Everything I see right now...I can't choose one. My daughter howling and laughing with her monster movie. My houseplants soaking up the last bits of indirect sunlight. The contrast of the tree leaves against the blue blue sky interspersed with cotton clouds. The love and fox bracelets on my wrists, which I've always been fond of. The kindergarten writing on the chalkboard. The table full of family things. The clean kitchen, which I'm about to go cook in. And how GOOD it feels to sit here in this space that reflects me back to me and soak it all in. - Anna

Today beauty is coming across photos of myself from two years ago, taken by someone I don’t know, and thinking, “Oh. Hey. I look beautiful.” I could not have seen that back then. Today is knowing I recognize both my inner AND outer beauty. - Jennifer

today beauty through my eyes is the shit path. the muck and the poo and the dank and dark places. seeing them now, as i am able, from this side of peace, joy, more clarity and love than i’ve ever known, they now possess a certain beauty to me. one wrapped up in surrender. as once i did, surrender that is, it seemed to begin clearing away. - Latisha

For me… today, in this moment… beauty is allowing myself to admit that I’ve lost the beauty I used to find in myself and allowing myself to begin the search for her again. - Amber

Today's giveaway is two shades of lipstick from Vapour Organic Beauty. Thank you Vapour! Hint and Restraint. I love how smooth and silky the lipstick is. It might make giving out a few kisses today much more fun.To enter to win, simply leave a comment below with an answer to this question:

What do you feel called to do to reconnect with the sparkly real-you?

(Winners from the week will be announced on Monday 5-21-2012!)

What is Beautiful Through Your Eyes ~ Jenn Gibson

This week on the blog I am hosting beauty week. What is beautiful through your eyes?

I want us to talk about beauty, to feel beauty, to be inspired by beauty. Beauty is something that we enjoy with all of our senses. With our hearts. I’ll be asking you to join the conversation over on FB and Twitter. I want to know what is beautiful through your eyes. Each day there will be a giveaway, simply leave a comment to enter to win.

Beauty is often elusive to us because our minds are so busy. Busy can include comparisons and trying to keep up with what we think we should be doing and how we think we should be looking. The ever fascinating loop of I am not good enough.

In stillness we learn love and compassion, we quiet our racing competitive minds. Beauty is everywhere inside of stillness.

Jenn Gibson from the popular and adored site Roots of She shares beauty through her eyes today. She is love, love, love.

Her site is sacred space shared by women everywhere. It is my favorite place to go and read and let myself be lost in words and thoughts and prompts. Recently Jenn became a life coach and is feeling the joy and beauty of that expansion into deeper purpose.

Watching her grow into her truth, guided by her mission --which is for you to know you are never alone, reminds us that we are all here for a unique and beautiful purpose.

What is beautiful through your eyes?

Beauty looks like wrinkled hands, bifocal glasses and white hair. Beauty looks like a momma nursing her child, and the wonder in a child's eyes.

Beauty looks like the sunrise and sunset and the knowledge that the moon will be rising soon, that the stars are about to come out and play.

Beauty looks like tears and bravery and surrender and joy and reveling in the sacredness that is you.

What I know to be true about beauty is this: We are all beautiful.

With our scars or hair that's growing out, with our round bellies or knobby knees, we are beautiful. With our vulnerable eyes and heart, with our hope and beliefs and dreams, we are beautiful.

Because it's our hearts and minds, our souls and dreams, our desires and hopes that makes us beautiful. It's when we are living our Truths, sinking deep into our integrity and values, acknowledging that yes, we are not only worth this, but so much more.

Jenn is offering one beautiful person a copy of her Metta in Mantras kit: a guided meditation kit includes a 20 minute meditation, a 15 page mini e-book filled with tips and hints on starting out with guided meditation and a set of six printable affirmations. To enter to win, simply leave a comment below with an answer to this question:

How do you find sacred space?

(Winners from the week will be announced on Monday 5-21-2012!)

What is Beautiful Through Your Eyes? ~ Surrendering

This week on the blog I am hosting beauty week. What is beautiful through your eyes?

I want us to talk about beauty, to feel beauty, to be inspired by beauty. Beauty is something that we enjoy with all of our senses. With our hearts. I’ll be asking you to join the conversation over on FB and Twitter. I want to know what is beautiful through your eyes. Each day there will be a giveaway, simply leave a comment to enter to win.

I wondered, would anyone answer yesterday's question (What is beautiful about you?) with a physical attribute?  And some of you did. I felt blissed out about that!

I had a realization last year, that I continue to have about once a week about my belly. When I get dressed I look at my belly. Does the shirt cling and show my wiggly middle? Should I put a scarf or sweater on to hide it?

I never, ever looked at my face. Shirt on --belly. Pants on --belly. Makeup on --belly. (Yes, I could even pull that one off, does this mascara make my belly look big?)

So I started to look at my face. And my legs. And my butt. And my arms. And my ears. I moved my gaze around my entire self. I started to wear bigger earrings and necklaces so I would focus my eyes up around my face. I found shoes I loved so as to glance at my feet.

I surrendered to a new way of viewing beauty. Beauty is not based on my stomach. I repeat, my beauty is not based on my stomach.

Fighting with my body is exhausting. I was doing it for so many years, years where there was very little to actually fight over!

I surrender to my beauty. Yes, my beauty.

Can you imagine your world if you did the same, let your beauty lead you, speak for you, let you be seen? No fight, just pure love.

Surrendering.

What is beautiful through my eyes?

Today beauty looked like my six year old making me tea.

My new striped skirt and tunic with a hot pink, sparkly necklace...beauty!

It looked like a face without makeup.

A moment of remembering my feet in the sand as I look at the gorgeous beach rocks we carried home with us.

It was words from others filling me with love. Wrapping me in love.

Today beauty was sitting in a chair at my Dr.'s and knowing that I was not alone.

Beauty was the way the strawberries sunk into my white sour yogurt.

Watching my little fall to sleep next to me, his chest rising and falling under the cozy blanket.

Drops falling on the roses, this was beauty.

Beauty was peeling off my clothes at the end of the day and breathing into the places where I feel judgement for my body.

Beauty. Yes, I surrender to beauty. The beauty I am. The beauty around me. The beauty I dream of. The beauty yet to come.

Today two spots in Making Space for Surrender are being offered. One from me, one from an angel who is sponsoring one beautiful woman to take the course. To enter to win, simply leave a comment below with an answer to this question, and if your name is drawn and you already paid for the course you will be reimbursed:

 

Do you hear an echo of surrender?

(Winners from the week will be announced on Monday 5-21-2012!)

What is Beautiful Through Your Eyes? ~ Dyamond Robinson-Patlyek

This week on the blog I am hosting beauty week. What is beautiful through your eyes?

I want us to talk about beauty, to feel beauty, to be inspired by beauty. Beauty is something that we enjoy with all of our senses. With our hearts. I’ll be asking you to join the conversation over on FB and Twitter. I want to know what is beautiful through your eyes. Each day there will be a giveaway, simply leave a comment to enter to win.

I am surrounded by beautiful women, some who know their beauty, others just discovering it. My community is rich and layered.

On days when I feel blah, less than, all I need to do is look out to my community, the one that exists with the women who live around me and to my virtual community.

I need to get dressed, out of pajamas and into clothes that make my body feel beautiful. I've been known to wear yoga pants with an outrageously beautiful necklace and a face painted softly with organic make-up.

I need to move, to flow inside of yoga and then sit in the stillness of meditation, my Mala in hand.

The beauty of community is that we are never alone, even when we are by ourselves.

We are supported and held.

Dyamond makes Malas and jewelry for rebellious yogis and spiritual rockstars and they are beauty. She is beauty. Honest, real, vulnerable and strong. Dyamond is part of the loving online community that I am a part of.  I am grateful for her presence.

I was on Dyamond's FB page the other day and she had posted this, just one of the reasons being part of a beautiful community who lifts you up is vital.

A Hugging Meditation Practice
by Thich Nhat Hanh

When we hug, our hearts connect and we know that we are not separate beings. Hugging with mindfulness and concentration can bring reconciliation, healing, understanding, and much happiness.

You can practice hugging meditation with a friend, a child, your parents, or even a tree. To practice, first bow to each other and recognize each other's presence. Then, enjoy three deep, conscious breaths to bring yourself fully into the present moment. Next, open your arms and begin hugging, holding each other for three in-and-out-breaths.

With the first breath, become aware that you are present in this very moment and feel happy. With the second breath, become aware that the other person is present in this moment and feel happy as well. With the third breath, become aware that you are here together, right now on this Earth. We can feel deep gratitude and happiness for our togetherness. Finally, release the other person and bow to each other to show your thanks.

What is beautiful through your eyes?

Slender hairy legs and curvy thighs.

Beautiful sunrises and cloudy thundery nights.

The wail of a confused child and joyfully contagious laughter.

 

The smell of fresh oolong leaves, and week old leftovers. 

 

Heartache and newfound love. 

 

The ebb and flow of the universe.

 

The roller coaster of life. 

 

Beauty, is beauty, just because it exists as part of the whole. 

 

I try to see things as part of the natural rhythms of our source. 

 

And when I view the world through this lens, all things are beautiful because there is-

 

Synchronicity.

 

Unity.

 

Oneness.

 

And endless wave of love and emotion. 

 

Those qualities are in all things, we just have to stop looking so hard.

 

Dyamond is giving away a gorgeous Mala to one beautiful person. Oh yes, you will feel so loved in this. To enter to win, simply leave a comment below with an answer to this question:

 

What is beautiful about you?

(Winners from the week will be announced on Monday 5-21-2012!)

What is Beautiful Through Your Eyes? ~ Lori Portka

This week on the blog I am hosting beauty week. What is beautiful through your eyes?

I want us to talk about beauty, to feel beauty, to be inspired by beauty. Beauty is something that we enjoy with all of our senses. With our hearts. I'll be asking you to join the conversation over on FB and Twitter. I want to know what is beautiful through your eyes. Each day there will be a giveaway, simply leave a comment to enter to win.

Lori, my soul-sister is joining us today. Lori has spent the last year working on A Hundred Thank-Yous. When I think of beauty my mind wanders in so many directions. From the smooth glossy surface of my decaf coffee to the new shade of nail polish I found at Anthropologie. And I think about beautiful work. This project, this gift of beauty and gratitude that Lori has created is magic. It has changed her life and if we all pay attention to this, if we let ourselves understand the depth of what gratitude allows, our lives too will be changed.

I will be a guest at Lori's exhibition and I am filled with joy. Beauty. Beautiful work. Beautiful living. Beautiful Lori.

What is beautiful through your eyes?

Beauty looks like forgiveness, kisses on the forehead, Anthropologie dresses, bright colors, green buds after winter.  

Beauty is what makes me tear up with emotion, what touches my heart and brings me into the moment, grateful and happy.

Lori is giving away to one beautiful person, her prayer flags. To enter to win, simply leave a comment below with an answer to this question:

What word will you whisper today in prayer, stillness or meditation?

(Winners from the week will be announced on Monday 5-21-2012!)

Mom Enough

Let's not let a magazine pull us apart -- as though we must take sides as mothers. Let's celebrate Mother's Day in unity, knowing that in our love and the safety we bring to our children that we are mom enough. Getting lost in the details serves no one. We have an opportunity to use social media, our blogs, our words for healing ourselves and our planet. I am mom enough to do all I can to be part of that.

***

I am mom enough to be myself.

I am mom enough to be fearful that I'm screwing up, doing it wrong.

I am mom enough to believe in my choices without making you feel less than about yours.

I am mom enough to love, with my whole heart.

I am mom enough to say "I'm sorry" when I've hurt you.

I am mom enough to cry when I feel like it is all falling apart.

I am mom enough to sometimes let it all fall apart.

I am mom enough to gently pick up the pieces.

I am mom enough to know when I need help.

I am mom enough to protect you with the fierceness of mama bear.

I am mom enough to allow you to fly with the wisdom of mama owl.

I am mom enough to embrace the shifts that come, each year, month, day, hour, moment.

I am mom enough to play in yoga pants and heels.

I am mom enough to hold your hair when you are sick, laugh at your jokes and say no when you really want to hear yes.

I am mom enough to move past judgements.

I am mom enough to claim my path.

I am mom enough to let you walk yours.

I am mom enough.

I am enough.

I am.

Beautiful Faces. Magical Places.

I am eager for the lists that make their way out on sleepy Friday mornings. Today I am a Decaf Earl Grey, every sip devoured and desired, guiltily grateful my son wanted the pizza hot lunch so I only had to make one lunch and already spent far too much time online this morning (meaning, so has my Lucas) kind of mama.

These are my pay-it-forward lists.

Let's just start right here, with Liz. Feels better now doesn't it?

Then let's glide over to Amber, and go, ahhhh, yes! Damn, I wish exercise was my go-to place also...

Now we can laugh with Jamie, I was the mom who never had anything, always missing something, I probably still am, but always grateful I just know where my kids are!

Tears might fall when you gift yourself time to read this letter from Shawn. Drink in every word.

What does your mom want to know? Tanya shares her memory and the truth of a mother. Her heart is wide open.

There is life inside you, and you and you. And life and love inside of Alicia's heart. Silent blessing to this beautiful mama.

My sweet Stephanie wrote a love note. To her life, her choices, her bravery, her love. To the Universe. And to me and my cookies. xo

Amanda's most beautiful labor of love in book form is out today, so honored and blessed to be a part of her story.

Faith Without Definition

The beautiful and spiritual coach Jennifer Wells-McCullough asked me to share a story about faith as she is launching TODAY a most enchanting ebook about the F- word. I have so many stories I could share but this was a turning point. While I don't share how I got to the place of knowing my abundance, the year of work and chaos that led me to understand it intimately, I hope the story will resonate within you and allow you to remember when Faith has showed up for you, or perhaps it was there all along.

***

Faith showed up on the day we had $18 in the bank. There were no credit cards, we had let go of them as they had given us a false sense of living and safety and we were drowning in debt. There had been weeks of filling up my gas tank with only $5 at a time because that is all I had. Like being a college student, yet with 3 kids and debt, debt, debt.

When we gave up credit cards everything shifted. It is one of the decisions that saved my marriage. Truth heals us. We had to face all the decisions we had ever made around money and some of those decisions were powerfully raw. To pay off the $15,000 in hospital bills for my first miscarriage, we had put it on a credit card. That was the beginning. Looking at the old story meant going back and seeing all the places where together, Patrick and I had started to disconnect. Our marriage became stronger but not before a whole lot of freaking hard work and super-shitty times!

Money is a mirror of where you are and how you are choosing your moments. Money is energy and credit is most often a negative energy, it pulls from you and rarely makes a return. How we feel about money, treat it, look at it, use it, accept it --this is our mirror.

We had been living by making a payment to the credit cards each month and then using the credit cards for things like gas and groceries and lots of things we surely didn’t need. Each month the cycle would repeat. When the credit cards were gone, so was the safety net. We were leaping with no idea if we would make it to the other side or free fall. We owned a house that was bought before the market collapsed. Savings did not exist. My business was just starting the energy exchange of money being made.

$18.00 in the bank. I remember tears on that day that fell from fear, faith and freedom. I was scared about feeding my family, but the fear had changed. I knew that the fear was my old story. The one of lack and disconnect and not understanding how to truly live in abundance. All the work I had been doing for the past year had been about transforming the fear into abundance, loving the life I had, now. And a gift showed up to test that work. $18.00 in the bank. The beautiful work of learning to feel so grateful for now was about to be tested, again.

I looked around and saw all there was. I felt abundant in what already was in my home, of what was just waiting to be transformed into nourishment for us. The most divine feeling of gratitude washed over me for that $18.00 knowing how much abundance each penny truly held.

Magic. Faith. Something much larger than myself wrapped around me and I knew that this $18.00 was going to be transformed into my new understanding of abundance. The phone rang. My aunt offered to send my kids to camp. The mail came. A check from my grandfather with a note, “I remember how expensive raising three kids can be.” An email, my first paid writing gig. All of this moments after this message of faith and truth came to me.
I still get shivers when I think about it. We happen to be so abundant now the oil company keeps sending us a reminder that we have a credit with them. Oh we still have debt. We still have family who offer us breathing space with extra support. We are still ‘under’ when it comes to our house. But we have no lack. Faith didn’t remove the fear, it allowed us to learn from it, to access its message. That fear, oh it had so much to say and so many lessons for us to learn. We let go of so much, and still are. Yes, surrendering to faith without definition or proof.

Now we make decisions that come from abundance, not lack. Faith brought us there. Faith that believing in the powers of the Universe, God, Magic --whatever you call it-- could turn our entire world around. Faith that when you can feel abundant with so little, you realize you have love and joy and peace, as my children would say, ‘times infinity!’

Drinkable Carpet Cleaner + Heart Centered Marketing

Take-aways from my lovely encounter with the drinkable carpet cleaner:

:: Knock gently.

:: I may not need your service. This is important to know. Let me opt out with gentleness.

:: Tell me your story, but not so I feel bad for you, so I feel empowered by you and your choices.

:: Follow through on your promises. If you offer me an ingredient list, please show it to me. If you say you have something in your car and you'll be back later, don't stalk me on my own sidewalk and pull out scary men from big black cars. Ahem.

:: Know your s**t. Seriously, know it. You don't need to know everything, but be the expert in what you say you are.

:: If you tell me it is drinkable you might just need to pull out a shot glass and prove it to me.

Feel free to translate my marketing/sales advice to the Carpet Lady into your own business. Or if you need some support, check out all that Mamacoach Circle has to offer this month. Click right on the pictures to learn more and sign up!

Beautiful Faces. Magical Places.

I am eager for the lists that make their way out on sleepy Friday mornings. Today I am a Om Time Tea in bed, sipped while steaming hot, watching my husband do the morning routine, feeling so much compassion for all that I do and grateful for the man by my side kind of mama. (We should all have more kindness and compassion for ourselves, shouldn't we?)

These are my pay-it-forward lists.

Leaning into my, "I am just love-ness" this poem affirms for me what I know. Thank you once again Karen.

Jennifer reminds us that there is always more to the story, Amen.

The Gratitude Tarot from Teresa, pure joy.

My girl Carmel, always posts the best songs on FB!

Loving this series from Jamie, and Julie's post took my breath away.

My newest book on the side of my bed.

Drinking this tea to help soothe and heal my bladder.

A very special project I'm working on starting with this magenta notebook. Just need to actually put something in it now!

How will you celebrate the powerful full moon tomorrow night?

As our body cries out...

...we may choose to ignore or fight: Or surrender to the truth we hear when we silent our struggle and listen.

They say it takes a woman up to 4 years to be correctly diagnosed with Interstitial Cystitis. This is my story of how it took 14.

I wake up one night in my Seattle home and feel a bit odd, a strong sensation to pee mixed with pressure. I run to the bathroom and after releasing I still need to go, but nothing is there. Pressure continues and after a urine test shows no infection I take home some homeopathy and try to manage the pain.

It is the summer of 1998 and Patrick and I are in the middle of planning our wedding. I make a decision that goes against my heart. I am working a job I both love and dread in the pit of my belly. We are uniting two families who do things very differently, causing friction for both of us. The wedding is taking place in Maine in October. The pain spreads into my lower back. I go to the bathroom a few times an hour.

We rush off to the clinic, Bastyr, where once again, I simply have no infection. I have to pee in a cup each time and it takes forever due to the pain and feeling of urgency mixed with nothing coming out. I tell my sweet doctor who is a student of natural medicine and healing about the decision I made and the wedding. She scolds me sweetly for not telling her sooner, a new homeopathic remedy and a promise that I will speak from my heart -- out the door I go once again.

Within hours the pain starts to subside. I still have extreme pain during sex, I am covered in psoriasis all over my face.

I am diagnosed with Candidiasis (a systemic yeast overgrowth in my body) and I follow the Candida diet to the letter. I feel amazing and whole. I marry my love in October in Maine, holding hands and dreaming of what shall come next in our lives.

In 2000 my first miscarriage leads to a D&C, my body will not release the pregnancy, so after what had been about 6-7 weeks, I agree to the surgery. I cannot pee after. Nothing will come out but I have to go and my bladder is filling. To be released from the hospital I must pee so I sit in the bathroom and squeeze as hard as I can, finally something comes out, I can go home.

I sit on the toilet at home long into the night crying because I still can't release my bladder. I can feel it spasm and in pain. I am so full I feel like I might explode. I turn out the light, sitting only with a candle. I eat catnip. I relax. Finally, I pee.

Living no longer near the clinic that treats with homeopathy and kindness I am thrown into a medical world. Each time my bladder flares up and doesn't show on the urine test as infected, I am sent home with antibiotics (hello systemic yeast overgrowth) because I must have an infection, I show all the signs of it. Being in so much pain I take them, praying that it will help.

Years pass, three children are born. Time floats along and it is 2011.

I feel nauseous one evening as I go to sleep, a bit light headed. I wake up to the most incredible pains, making labor feel easy (which it wasn't). Patrick takes me to the emergency room where I am put through a cat scan. I show no infection on a urine test. Through my pain I try to explain to the doctor on duty that my bladder infections never show up, that I have flare ups when I'm stressed or sad, that my body reacts to the way my mind is processing, that I...

Patrick holds my hand. He watches the blank face of the doctor who could care less about my stress. He wishes he could take the pain away for me. He doesn't realize he is doing more to heal me by being next to me, loving me, than any emergency room can do.

In my doctor's office the next day, the closest place I have found to a compassionate doctor who listens to me, she tells me that I have a large kidney stone and I do not have UTIs. I have what is called Irritable Bladder, it is brought on by stress or caffeine and if I can stay away from caffeine and manage my stress I can keep it calm. Finally, some answers. I don't think much more of it, but am careful to monitor my caffeine.

In the 14th year, since the first flare up, I have now learned the pattern. I feel nauseous, diarrhea, pressure when I pee, urine cloudy and sometimes lightly bloody, light headed, back pain, chills and waking to pee up to 6 times a night. I know when I've eaten too many foods that cause yeast overgrowth or am in a stressful place, not processing my feelings, that I will need to spend some time resting and flushing my bladder with water and my heart with love.

Another flare up sets in, now 14 years later, though even as a child I remember being the one who always had to stop to pee. I am processing old pain, and feeling ashamed of my body. When it is particularly bad my bladder spasms and I leak urine, yep, pee my pants. I can avoid caffeine, but stress! Ha! I. Am. Trying. We hold pain memory from traumatic times, it can flare up just as the bladder symptoms can.

A friend on FB says, I think you have Interstitial Cystitis. I Google it. Irritable bladder = Interstitial Cystitis. I read everything I can. Holy Shit. 14 years later I understand, as much as I can what is going on. While it is unknown what causes it and there are very few treatments, I finally know I am not alone. I am not broken. This is an auto immune/mind and body connection diagnosis all in one. I am not broken.

I surrender to the truth that this is not something that I can just fix. This is part of my truth. Revealing that my body is not in perfect working order is about as vulnerable as walking down the street naked to me. (Especially the pee in my pants part.)

When I surrendered to the truth that this is part of my whole self, I started to gather the support around me that will make it possible to heal. This too, a lesson I am given from the Universe over and over. Giving is my abundance, but without learning to receive that abundance will never manifest fully.

I will heal from this, because I am no longer fighting against it. I will heal from this because it is not an excuse or a weakness, it is part of my truth. I will heal from this because I see a time when the pain is gone and my bladder is strong and calmed. Waves on the beach. Strong yet soft. Lulling in their sound which is at the heart of our Universe.

I will heal.

I have surrendered to the truth.

I am listening.

Surrender is a vulnerable place to step into. It is the only place where we can see fully the beauty of our lives and the potential of greatness and joy that we are born to be.

I'm surrendering and inviting you with me.

To Be Me

Where we get stuck.

Inside of the belief that we could do that thing, live our dream, if only we were inside the truth of someone else's life.

Where we find flow.

Inside of the faith that we can only do that thing, live our dream, by being joyfully inside of our own life.

Sometimes I like to remind myself. Thought you might need to hear it too.

Beautiful Faces. Magical Places.

I am eager for the lists that make their way out on sleepy Friday mornings. Today I am a red clover tea followed by an egg scramble with turkey sausage and avocado (only sausage and larabars for the kids), crayons and a big box for kids to draw in and a barefoot leap down the block to get the dog who escaped kind of mama.

These are my pay-it-forward lists.

My favorite post by Andrea so far, this has been on my mind a lot.

As I move towards writing with a bit more vulnerability (yikes) Meg reminds me why we must.

Look at how beautifully presented this is, I love a great idea coming to life.

I'll be there!

Lauren filled her shop with such beauty, have a peek.

I always said I wanted to live on a farm, but maybe I just like looking at pictures, we'll see!

Mmmm-Hmmm from Kristin.

If you are local (RI or close) this is a not to be missed event.

Loving my new mascara, worth the trip to the mall and over-stimulation that is Sephora!

What has touched your heart, made you laugh or tear up this week? Any fabulous finds to share? Love to hear all about them, leave a comment down below.

I hear...

...an echo of surrender in all of my groups right now.

My stories of surrender are many. Most recently I have been finding myself in a transformation, the work I do shifting, begging for more clarity and, oh, have I pushed against this change. It can feel fierce and scary. Even when we love what we are doing there can be a push against. That is the thing about surrender, we don't just melt into it, it is a process we learn to flow through.

Clarity is scary for me. I have been in the process of surrendering to the transformation I find myself in and as I accept this I feel clarity presenting itself. I find support around me.

Every time I watch my three year old throw a tantrum I know that a moment will come when he surrenders, when his tears dry and he takes those deep breaths that mean he is coming out of the fight. I watch him, without words as his body becomes lighter and he feels the truth of where he is. Then the moment of change comes, he laughs or asks a question. He gets up and moves around. Acceptance and change.

Surrender.

Let's journey there together and explore this process of surrender into change. I'm so excited to announce Making Space for Surrender, a group program for women who desire support and inspiration around making joyful changes in their lives.

Please join us in this beautiful and gentle program, a gift to yourself, a blessing to your life.

Giving is Abundant - Life Changing - Powerful

My connection to this project is that as soon as I saw the video and felt Erin Giles' passion I was overwhelmed with complete awe and sadness and hope. Tanya introduced me to End Sex Trafficking Day and I donated and have been tweeting, but I couldn't stop feeling as though I could do more.

I am asking all of the beautiful community that is around me to take 5 minutes today and change your life through giving. It is how we claim our own abundance, sharing, giving and loving those we have never seen.

Today with a donation of $5 or $10 or $15 or $50 you can change lives. This is powerful stuff and our community being part of that is another way into our own gorgeous living.

Donate today, come back and leave your email in the comments and I'll send you a coupon code to receive my 10 Day Green Up Ebook  FREE as a thank you. There are over 20 delicious recipes, simple and quick to make -- your favorite foods transformed along with some health coaching guidance from me. Take it at your own pace, enjoy it.

Please, 5 minutes, change lives. We are the reason this world will become whole and beautiful. Not someone else. Us. Now.

This project is fueled with faith and love and I know that you all will understand that as creating joy.

Click here to donate.

Beautiful Faces. Magical Places.

I am eager for the lists that make their way out on sleepy Friday mornings. Today I am a teeny-tiny mug of watered down coffee with coconut milk (yes, missing my decaf quite much) followed by making breakfast smoothies that most did not drink, squeezing in a tiny bit of work, walking the dog, and going to buy a hose so we can water our herbs kind of mama.

These are my pay-it-forward lists. 

Chloe's tomato soup was included in Jodi's Tomato Thursday. Seriously, how cute is Tomato Thursday.

You can feel the energy and release from Jo Anna as she lets good go.

From Ruth, who I adore. So loving this momentum she is creating in her life.

Can't live without this stuff, and I just ran out. Yikes. Thank goodness they are having a sale! (P.S. I'll be doing a giveaway from Vapour next month during Beauty Week!)

Michelle's detox starts this Sunday, focus on new mamas.

You should like this Facebook Page, Daniel is an amazing spirit.

I've been busy, busy with kids home from vacation this week. I can only imagine how much more loveliness is floating around the inter-webs! Link to your favorite post this week in the comments.

With blessings for a gorgeous weekend!

 

Simplicity of Ritual - Mama's Tea

When tea becomes ritual, it takes its place at the heart of our ability to see greatness in small things.

~ Muriel Barbery

Each night I have a ritual of lighting candles just before it gets dark. I place them around the house, one near the lego playing and one in a window sill, a couple near the Buddha head.

This ritual is a signal for our family that we are settling down, that crazy jumping around time is over, meals are served and cleaned up.

On the nights I forget I feel unsettled and the kids soak up my energy. We all feel rushed and as though our rhythm has no gentle transitions. When I fall out of the rhythm I know my path back in. I clean the kitchen, top to bottom. I make a pot of broth and a beautiful soup. I set the table with a little flower and a pitcher of cold water. Then I light my candles.

I sit with Lucas as he falls asleep snuggled under his 'cozy' and head resting on his favorite bird pillow. After he drifts off I fill the electric kettle with cold water and wait for it to click, signalling it is time to pour over my tea bag. Usually I have red raspberry leaf or nettle. Every now and then I indulge in a decaf black tea with honey and milk.

This tea, this ritual, signals to my body that my work of mama has come to rest for the night and I may now go snuggle up with Patrick and share some bits of our days or watch one of our favorite shows together.

This ritual of my nightly tea is like closing the curtains to the day. A deep exhale that stillness has come. I must remind myself to hold it and sip it hot, being present to now.

Explore ritual as transition. Where are your transitions rough and leaving you feeling a bit lost or frazzled? Is there one simple gesture that you can choose to create rhythm inside of your transitions?

(From The April Joy Up)

Beautiful Faces. Magical Places.

I am eager for the lists that make their way out on sleepy Friday mornings. Today I am a mug of decaf black tea followed by making one breakfast of tea and toast, a one egg omelet with cheese and a two egg scramble with capers, packing 2 lunches, loosing my temper at all the fighting from said kids whose breakfasts were made to order, coming home for chicken soup and wishing to crawl back into bed kind of mama.

These are my pay-it-forward lists. And I'm pretty sure as I hit publish it is now the afternoon.

Bernardo. You should know him. Start by watching this.

Amanda is amazing and I vote for her every day.

Wild Sister is all about beauty this month. I wrote about my mirrors and my belly.

I was blessed to be a part of the Luminary Profiles. I just read Aarona's. Loving her.

How blessed am I that Lucas gets to play on these logs once a week!

I have always wanted to read this, so I added it to Patrick's Kindle and am spending a few minutes each day simply reading.

I just ordered 10 of these. Hoping that these are going to be my new go-to for the kids. I have big hopes.

I need to do a whole post on feathers. #obessing

Superstar Guest Post - Please welcome the voice of Lisa

Please welcome Lisa Consiglio-Ryan to Mama Space today. Lisa is one of my Mamacoach superstar clients and I wanted to show her off a bit to you all! Lisa has been working with us for the last 6 months to develop her voice and her business from her heart center. This is who she is, what she loves. Please welcome the voice of Lisa...

Self-love is probably the number one way of boosting your mood and honoring the relationship with yourself.

I know that I get so busy, taking care of the kids, the house and running my own business, I sometimes forget about me. Little ole’ me needs some lovin’ too.

To find love, you must first find it in yourself. Then the whole Universe will mirror it back.

There are tons of ways to love yourself up. You can get a massage, go shopping, read a book, take a short trip, hike in nature or just soak in the tub with a glass of wine.

These all sound amazing, but let’s talk about another way to show your body some love. Practice self-love with food. And not just any food.

Dark leafy greens. (And you thought I would suggest chocolate!)

Spinach, kale, Swiss chard, collards…

These leafy greens will boost your mood, keep emotions steady and ultimately heal you and the world around you. As you eat more and more green goodness, your body will start to go through a transformation. Your cells will begin to change, breathing in the oxygen from all those leafy greens, feeding your blood.

While this is happening, over time, you will notice that your behavior, thoughts and emotions will change. As you pump your body with these whole foods, REAL foods, the more REAL you feel. You start to feel more compassionate towards others, but best of all, you will be compassionate towards yourself.

It all starts with you. Once you treat your body as a temple, a sacred home, your thoughts and actions will shift. This shift will lead to healing and will foster self-love.

The fastest, easiest way to feed your blood with greens is by juicing. By juicing, you are getting all the vital nutrients and minerals into your bloodstream within minutes. Keeping emotions level, your thoughts pure and practicing self-love in the most basic way.

The first step is healing you. As you start to change, your family and friends, see this change and often times mirror you. Others around you take on your gentle demeanor; your kindness and love. This ripple effect can happen. I promise you.

Start with feeding your gorgeous body liquid nutrition.

It changes your cells, and your being which is a gentle way to connect to your body, soul, and to others. Self-love in this form is life-changing.

*Try this juice to boost mood, level out emotions, and to cleanse blood. This juice will have a gorgeous green hue.

Juice = Love

1 handful of spinach

1 handful of parsley

1 celery stalk

1 pear

½ lime

Run through a juicer, put in a pretty glass, and drink up.

***

Lisa Consiglio Ryan is the founder of Whole Health Designs, juicy clean living advocate, Bikram yoga newbie, and mama of two. She provides detox programs for women who desire to embrace clean living. Lisa is also developing her own line of raw juices.

Join Lisa for her popular Spring Renewal 10 Day Detox. Enjoy this gentle food-based cleanse and guidance on taking care of your gorgeous body.

Connect with Lisa on Facebook and Twitter.

What does mommy do anyway?

I found this on my desktop sticky note. Clearly someone is paying attention to what is going on in this beautiful business I am creating. (I've already hired her to work for me in 5 years!)

Once there was a woman. She had a online buisness. But,she saw that she could not type anymore. She was not happy.

She went to Mr.Typen. She asked for help. Mr.Typen agreed to help. He told her to sing the ABCs. So,she did. It did not help.

She then went to Mrs.Hula. She asked for her to help. So,Mrs.Hula told her to say la la la. She did. It did not help.

So,she went to Mrs.Marcotti,her last hope. Mrs.Marcotti told her to take a deep breath and calm down. Then, she told her to do some soulwork with her.

After about 3 months, Mrs.Marcotti did a joy up. The woman(Miss.Suzy) joined. She learned alot. So, Mrs.Suzy did a really good buisness. The buisness was artsy stuff.   THE END

by Chloe Marcotti