Today I am practicing using visuals for my mindfulness. I am specifically focusing on being aware of my breath. It is interesting to observe how my breath changes through different situations.

Sometimes I picture my breathing like a lotus flower, slowly opening and closing in time-lapse. I notice it getting caught like a bug in a web or shallow like a deer paused to listen. Sometimes my breath is held like it wants to build enough pressure to launch a rocket or spit fire like a dragon. And I can pause and choose to let it out in the rhythm of a slow steady rain.

My kids enjoy breathing like there is a cup of hot chocolate in front of them or like a lion needing to roar. We have a whole book on different ways for kids to practice breathing called "Breathe Like a Bear." I enjoy it too. 

So how do you like to breathe? What is your breathing like right now? How has it been at different times today? What would it take to bring it to a slow, deep breath?

I'm grateful to have a vivid imagination. I'm grateful to be able to find small challenges to help me grow each day. I'm grateful to focus on my breath today and see just how much small things can affect it. I'm grateful to notice how deeply it is tied to even subtle emotions. I'm grateful to pause and keep trying to bring it back to a deep, slow breath. 

May we take moments to pause and check in on ourselves and our breath. May we remember even when the day is going sideways we always have the power to control our outlook. Have a beautiful day!

In the busy schedules of the day it is easy to feel like I don't have time. I don't have time to do that one more thing off the list. I don't have time to read one more book to my pleading kid. I don't have time to actually SIT and eat with my family. But mostly this feeling of "not enough time" is not true.

I have been trying to be more conscious of how I am spending my ten minutes. I don't like to be late so often times I arrive ten minutes early. But ten minutes early could have been five minutes early and five minutes of reading a book. So I am observing where I can adjust and where I can use ten minutes in a more productive way. 

We bring books in the car so as we wait in the carpool line, early as always, we can spend the time reading together. When we walk through the store, does it really hurt to stop for those few minutes so my kids can be in awe of the lighting section? Do I really want to model eating on the run or do I want to consciously choose to sit with my kids and slow down? As it turns out, I have plenty of time for ten minutes in my day to connect, to slow down, to be in the moment. Some days I even have time for multiple ten minute adjustments and other days I can add in a handful of two minute adjustments to get to ten by the end.

I'm grateful to give myself these little challenges that help me grow. I'm grateful to see what a difference it makes for all of us when I can take just a few minutes here and there. I'm grateful my girls love to read as much as I do. I'm grateful to keep seeking balance. I'm grateful to recognize my own mindset and bring in the woosah when needed. 

Where could you make ten minutes in your day to consciously connect? How can you add a few minutes here or there to keep your day more balanced?

May we never stop learning and growing. May we choose connection over chaos and always seek balance. Have a beautiful day!

Shh. Just listen for a minute. Do you hear it? It is the sounds of life. Maybe like me you are in a quiet space and can only hear the hum of electronics buzzing... but there is still life. There is the gentle rustle of movement and the breath moving in and out. 

Maybe you are in a busy place that is bustling with noises. Maybe is sounds energizing or maybe those noises feel a bit too much. Either way, you are hearing life. It is all around us in the quiet moments and the loud. 

Try picking out one sound. Can you find a rhythm in it? Now try to sync your breath. If it is a fast rhythm, make your breathing the slow base accompaniment. If it is a slow rhythm, add your breath in step. 

This moment is yours. Creating your own soundtrack of life and breathe from this moment is your gift. It is a gift you can give yourself any time, anywhere. 

Congratulations, you have just taken a moment to be mindful. You've taken a minute to appreciate the beauty of the moment and connect with it. 

I'm grateful to be able to hear. I'm grateful to be able to see and smell. I'm grateful to be able to control my breathing and use it as a tool for harmony. I'm grateful to pause and listen. I'm grateful for the background track of life that plays in different forms every moment. I'm grateful to take a moment to connect and just breathe. I'm grateful to have you join me in this mindful moment.

How can you add this into your day? What other ways can you pause and create?

May today be a beautiful soundtrack. May we find time to pause and play in tune. Have a beautiful day!

I really enjoy knowing. I enjoy having answers and a plan and a plan b. It's comforting even if misleading. It makes me feel like I am in control of at least some things.

In reality there is a lot I don't know. There is more I don't know that I even know I don't know because it hasn't even hit my radar yet. It is not just relegated to topics I haven't studied like Portuguese or heart surgery. 

Every day there are things I don't know. I give my best guess. I try my best solution. It's all we can do, right? 

What if that isn't true? What if our best option is to simply witness and wait? What if the answer is coming in its own time if we sat still long enough to hear it?

I do not know if my dog will recover from another round of pneumonia. All I know is that we are trying and beyond that all I can do is wait. I do not know what has my little one so completely out of character the last couple days. I can keep guessing and finding out I'm wrong again, or I could just witness it and be there for her as we wait for the answer. I do not know what is going through my oldest daughter's head. But maybe if I wait and just witness she may share some of it with me when she is ready. 

I don't know. I really, truly do not know. But what if I just witness the discomfort of not knowing until it maybe isn't so uncomfortable? 

I'm grateful to be taking more time lately to just sit and let my mind wander. I'm grateful for all I know. I'm grateful for the things I don't know that can help me grow. I'm grateful for patience and practice building more. I'm grateful to slow down and just witness with a little less focus on solving. I'm grateful for a little quiet time.

May today remind us we aren't supposed to have all the answers. May we find acceptance and maybe even some ease in not knowing. Have a beautiful day!

Today seems to be calling me to slow down and listen. It is time to push the pause button even as my mind says, "but it's only Tuesday and there is so much we need to get done!" My body is telling me the opposite, rest. And my kids seem to be more in sync with my body, calling for more attention and more cuddles. 

I will pause. Thankfully there are several things I can look over and cross off my to do list while still just sitting. I will also take some time to truly just relax because I'm not defusing bombs; most things on my to do list will be perfectly content there until tomorrow.

I'm grateful to listen to my body. I'm grateful to listen to my kids. I'm grateful to remember that even a couple weeks in we are all still adjusting to this new schedule of school. I'm grateful for salads. I'm grateful for water. I'm grateful to just sit and be, both with myself and with my kids. 

How often do you pause? What is your favorite way to unwind?

May today be just the right speed for what we need. And when it gets moving too fast, may we always remember the power of pausing. Have a beautiful day!

There is a lot going on in the world right now and a lot going on right here in our own backyard. A lot of things seem to be topsy-turvy and the division of beliefs around what we "should" be doing seems to be growing. 

As an energy-sensitive adult it takes diligence in remembering to clear and center. Then I watch my young children who have definitely been affected by the pandemic as well and yet they roll along. Part of me wonders if it is because they are so young that they can adapt to all the upheaval. 

I spoke to a teacher friend of mine. She said this year has been exhausting and harder than any year she has ever taught before. It isn't the students. The students are more than happy to do whatever is asked so they can continue to come to school and see their friends. It is the parents that berate her day in and day out for things out of her control. 

Kids are resilient. Teens are able to find ways to continue their education whether that be online or in-person. They are willing to do what is necessary to move forward. And thank goodness for that! They will be the ones truly having to make major changes and sacrifices to undo all the harm our planet has sustained. They will be the ones who will find ways to make peace no matter what the other side believes because they will know that we are more than just our feelings in the moment. They will know that pandemics end and things move on. 

It is us adults that have some work to do it seems. We can learn a lot from listening to our kids. We can shift a lot from modeling ourselves after them. We can find safe ways to let our emotions out without unleashing them on people just doing their jobs. We can build the resilience with which our children seem to be born. 

And yet we do it for them. We need to make this shift to resilience not just for our own health and sanity but for our children. We need to give them that security in knowing it will be okay. We will get through this pandemic. Any liberties we feel were taken can be argued when we are back to a stable, post-pandemic place. We can have each others' backs no matter what each of us believes. We can choose respect. We can choose hope and that hope will give us the resilience we need.

I'm grateful to witness the resilience in my children every day. I'm grateful to make a conscious effort to center and stay grounded. I'm grateful to seek balance. I'm grateful to wear a mask when it is needed and I'm grateful to know I have a voice when that need fades. I'm grateful for every parent that tries to do what is best for their kids and even more grateful for parents who witness the beauty and strength their own kids can teach them. I'm grateful for everyone who is choosing to use this time to come together in love and respect. 

In what ways are you resilient? Which areas have been a struggle during this pandemic? How do you take time to honor your feelings? How do you take time to honor and respect others'? 

May we be the pillar for our children while being a student of their wisdom in resilience. Have a beautiful day! ​

When it comes to love, most of us have some wounds. Some wounds come from love lost, others come from love never found, and some come from something else posing as love in the most hurtful ways. 

It is easy to understand how walls can be built up. Protection may feel necessary. But the tricky thing about love is that it is best felt by leaning in, not away. 

Last night I had a scare. Everything ended up fine but during that time of not knowing I felt shaken deep in my heart. Yet when everything turned out fine, I found my fear replaced with anger. I was not leaning in. I was walling myself up. 

I don't judge my reaction. I know where it is based and what was stirred up that I needed to process. But pulling myself back from it and observing reminded me why I was scared in the first place. The fear would not have been so deep without deep love and so the anger dissipated and the tears fell, washing the rest away. 

Anger is often rooted in fear. Fear can be caused by so many things and yet two things seem to help fear the most; faith and love. Both of these require leaning in. 

I'm grateful to pause and observe. I'm grateful to let the tears fall. I'm grateful to allow my body and mind its process without judgment. I'm grateful to let the anger go. I'm grateful to lean in. I'm grateful to find loving arms waiting when I lean. I'm grateful to continue to work on this beautiful process of learning to lean in.

How do you respond to fear or loss? When do you lean in?

May we always hold on to faith, in whatever form that takes for you. May we remember to lean in to love. Have a beautiful day!

When water flows over a stone it slowly smooths and carves it. It isn't an overnight event. It is something that happens over time. This is what I keep reminding myself as my family navigates a whole new schedule and new routines. 

I love mixing things up but I also love having a baseline routine. Certain times set aside for work, nap, and play help me to be present where I am needed. The routine is still new and in limbo as we try different things to see what helps us all transition most smoothly. But for now it still feels jumbled and a little chaotic.

This is the water from the storm. It is rushing and flowing any which way it can go to keep moving forward. 

Just like the storm water returns to a slow stream, so will my life return to smoother days. Those smoother days will slowly begin to carve a new routine. It will get comfortable.

Sure, there will still be times of storm and rushing water. There will be times the water changes course and has to begin again in smoothing a new path. This is all part of life and I welcome it.

For now I will let it flow in all its chaotic rush. I will take deep breaths and observe. I will watch for places the water seems to flow the smoothest and the routine seems to be working. And I will follow its lead. 

I'm grateful to just pause and focus on nature. I'm grateful to witness the rush feeling and observe it as if it was a river flowing past. I'm grateful to know the waters will smooth and slow again soon. I'm grateful to let it flow as it needs as my whole family adjusts to all the new. I'm grateful to be as calm and steady as possible for my kids in these times of change. I'm grateful to learn from them the art of rolling with it.

Which stage of life is your water flow? Is it rushing and changing? Is it smooth and steady? What visuals do you picture to help yourself stay steady even when life is shifting?

May we be steady as the rock and flowing as the water. May we find comfort in being the observer while still having both feet in the game. Have a beautiful day!

It seems that change happens in waves. Sure, there are some changes that happen nearly every day. But when the big changes come it seems they happen in clusters. 

So here is a toast to all of you out there riding the wave of change. Sometimes it gets crazy and sometimes it is messy, but we can (and will) make it through to ride the next wave. 

Why are I giving you a pep talk? Because it is what I need to hear right now. I have found that most the time people say the words they need to hear. So here it is, You are going to be fine. You are going to be better than fine. This wave is the beginning of a great adventure!

Most of all, during the wave of change, we need patience. No transition is instantaneous. There will be "in the flow" moments and tumbled around moments. Patience is important, especially with ourselves. 

I'm grateful for my little pep talks. I'm grateful to know someone out there needed to hear this too. I'm grateful to make myself stop when I start to get over-wound. I'm grateful to do everything in my power to help my kids move through all these transitions smoothly but I'm also grateful to know that it will not always work out that way and they will still be fine. I'm grateful for nap times. I'm grateful for tax help professionals. I'm grateful for celebrate my dog's birthday! I'm grateful for resilience and I'm grateful for this wave.

How are the waves of change going for you? What do you need to support yourself? Where could you add a pause or a little more patience?

May today bring some balance and ease to whatever wave you are riding. May we always hear the words of support we need, especially from ourselves. Have a beautiful day! 

After a weekend of birthday celebrations for my daughter we are taking some time before a new work week kicks off to just relax and unwind. The guests have all gone home, the dishes have been cleaned and put away, the presents have been unwrapped and used, and the dust is settling. 

My daughter said the weekend was a success and she loved all the gifts and activities. It is always good to hear that all the hard work was enjoyed. And she still has a couple surprises tucked back for her actual birthday next week. 

I'm grateful for everyone that came out to make her birthday special. I'm grateful to keep it small this year and for people understanding. I'm grateful for the cute masks we were able to gift each child that visited. I'm grateful for a cheap bounce house that is always a hit and a homemade volcano that delighted. I'm grateful to go overboard these early years and watch their excitement and wonder. I'm grateful to truly try to cherish this time as they continue to grow up too fast. I'm grateful for quiet moments to just sit and recenter after all the excitement.

Are you someone who needs to decompress after a big social event? Do you enjoy birthday celebrations? Everyone has their own range of what they enjoy and where their comfort level is, now more than ever. It is so nice to surround myself with people who are respectful of individual needs. 

May today remind us to take care of ourselves. May we celebrate and enjoy each moment of life, whether socially or solo. Have a beautiful day!