Be, Do, Have

Most people think the other way, when I have the luxury home and car, executive job, I will then be successful. I say it is the other way, first Be successful in your mind, then do the things so you can have the luxury home and car. You must first be successful in your mind. This goes for anything you want in life. The 'Be'ing comes first. To have a wonderful marriage, you must first BE the perfect partner in you mind.

One of the concepts I got from the book 'Think and Grow Rich' was that nothing in this world just happens, first someone must think about it. You don't just go out and build a house. First there are ideas of what the house should look like, floor plan, etc. Then someone make drawings and plans for building the house. The same goes for your life. First think and be what you want, successful entrepreneur, great marriage, wonderful parent, etc. Then write it down, just thinking is not enough. This is where writing a journal is so helpful. Writing in a journal helps to focus on what your goals and helps to clarify your thoughts. I remember reading somewhere that writing is a mental exercise it helps with getting your thoughts into your subconscious mind. So, writing your thoughts, dreams and goals in a journal will help you to BE what your are striving for.

Polaris Media Group Launches New Line to Assist Entrepreneurs Find Success

Learning to Set Goals, Be Self-Reliant and Persistent Can Help Individuals Achieve Their Dreams.

Amazing company that I am grateful to be in on the ground floor

Book Review: "The Greatest Net worker in the World" by John Milton Fogg

I like instructional books that are written as a story. It seems to make the reading easier. I don't know I am reading and learning. This book is about a network marketer that was about to quit when he meets The Greatest Networker in the World (GNW). He spends the weekend with GNW and learns a lot about himself, and the network marketing business.

One of the things that stood out for me was when GNW talked about how network marketers will put down other network marketing companies. This hurts the whole network marketing industry. People here this and think 'Why would I want to be in network marketing'. I might think that my opportunity is the best in the world, but I will not put down, or insult other companies. One reason is that not every opportunity is the best for everyone. Each individual person needs to decide if the opportunity is right for them, and that might not be mine.

On of the techniques I liked was the 'Movie of my life'. It is a visualization method where you visualize going to a movie that is about myself. I imagine sitting in a theater and watching my accomplishments and adventures on the big screen.

Overall a good book and easy to read. As I said, I like the style of a story for self-help type books.

Grateful for my kids

I am so grateful for my 2 great kids.  I have learned raising them than I ever did in college.  My daughter and husband have a cute son.  I am thankful for my grandson, for all the love and joy he brings to our lives.

My GeoTrax train set

My kids gave me a FisherPrice GeoTrax for Christmas. They think I am 4 and not 45.

Christmas Day 2008

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Self-Care for the Holiday Season by by LaSara W. Firefox, MPNLP

The holidays are upon us.

No matter what your spiritual persuasion, you’re probably going to be finding time within this season of cold days and long nights to gather with family and friends, sit around the feast table, and celebrate some light in the darkness.

What a wonderful thing! But even so, the most joyful season still comes with holiday stress. And, between travel, shopping, parties, and family commitments, many of us don’t take very good care of ourselves in the midst of it all.

During the holidays, most of us eat more – and more poorly. We exercise less. We let our spiritual practices slip. I mean, who has time to meditate? There’s a sale on, and I still have gifts to buy! (Right?)

The result; physical, mental, and emotional exhaustion.

In addition to the basic stressors listed above, the holidays are the loneliest time of the year for many. Depression rates increase in the darker months, and many people experience physical and psychological ills when faced with the prospect of gathering with family. (Ever heard of the Christmas Migraine? It’s a real thing.)

For a change, why not make a pre-New Year’s resolution? Dedicate yourself to defeating the stress and depression many of us associate with this time of year, before it even happens.

Remember your own self-care, and the rest will come easily; pleasure, enjoyment, and a healthful indulgence in the more lovely aspects of the season.

1. Eat with a plan:

The magic of the holidays doesn’t change the exercise/calories ratio. So, as usual, the more you exercise, the more calories you can take in without weight gain.

New studies show that though the amount of weight gained during the holidays is less than was assumed – around 1 pound gained between Thanksgiving the New Years - the weight gain is often long-lasting, if not permanent.

On average, body weight in women increases by 5.2 percent in ten years. How much of that is holiday gain? It’s unclear. But, holiday munching is one culprit you can limit the power of by eating consciously, and entering the season with a plan.

If you’re in relatively good shape, your plan should include healthy eating choices, and balancing exercise with caloric intake. Don’t get neurotic about it, but pay attention.

If your weight is already a health concern, your plan should be more intensive. And again, exercise is key to happy, healthy, guilt-free eating.

2. Exercise

Exercise keeps your weight down, and your heart healthy

As mentioned above, your holiday health plan must include exercise! There are many excellent reasons to include a solid dose of cardio in your regular plans.

One reason, of course, is the exercise/calorie ratio. One pound of weight=3500 calories. So, as you keep track of your intake, you can tally, and exercise as needed to balance the indulgences.

Exercise is also a great treatment for depression, stress, anxiety, and seasonal affective disorder.

According to a study published in the American Journal of Preventive Medicine in 2005, exercise is as effective as antidepressant medication for treating mild to moderate depression. It’s also helpful in the treatment of Seasonal Affective Disorder.

For treatment to be most effective, perform moderately intense cardio – exercise bike, treadmill, or other aerobic activity - for 30 – 35 minutes a day, 3 – 5 days a week.

If you’re on antidepressants, exercise is wonderful as a complimentary measure.

3. Take a break:

Take time to slow down. Relax into the rhythm that your body gravitates to in this dark time. Sit in the bathtub. Meditate. Pray. Greet the dark, and let it heal you.

Don’t forget to make time for sleep.

4. Spend time with those closest to you:

In my little family, we plan our relaxation into the calendar, holidays or not. We plan chill time, family movie nights, and my husband and I religiously observe Tuesday evening as our date night.

Find some rituals that make sense to your and yours.

Plan in and enjoy closeness with those near and dear in these coldest and darkest of days and nights. Tell and listen stories. Watch the classic holiday films. Do crafts together.

5. Remember the heart of what’s most important to you about the season:

What’s your favorite thing about the season? Is it friends, family, and gatherings? Who got or gave the greatest gift? Wassail and carols? Feeding the hungry? The lights and trees and sparkly things?

Whatever it is that brings you joy, make sure to keep it front and center. Focus on the delight. Build your holiday around the parts that you, and those you love, find most important. It goes a long way toward keeping your holiday sane, sweet, and meaningful.

About the author:

LaSara Firefox, MPNLP, is a coach, trainer, and author. LaSara helps clients find balance in their lives, and alignment with their personal and family-held values. She teaches and coaches internationally. She’s wife to an outstanding man, and mom to two brilliant girls.

You can find out more about LaSara at http://www.lasarafirefox.com. While you’re there, be sure to check out her December coaching special – the VERY affordable Body, Mind, and Spirit Renewal program.

Funny Story - WalMart Chili

Do not know who wrote this, received it in an email.

---

I went grocery shopping recently while not being altogether sure that said
course of action was a wise one. You see, the previous evening I had prepared
and consumed a massive quantity of my patented 'You're definitely going to
mess yourself' chili. Tasty stuff, albeit hot to the point of being painful,
which comes with a written guarantee from me that if you eat the next day
both of your butt cheeks WILL fall off.

Here's the thing. I had awakened that morning, and even after two cups of
coffee (and all of you know what I mean) nothing happened. No 'Watson's
Movement 2'. Despite habanera peppers swimming their way through my
intestinal tract, I appeared to be unable to create the usual morning
symphony referred to by my next door neighbors as thunder and lightning.

Knowing that a time of reckoning had to come, yet not sure of when, I bravely
set off for the market; a local Wal-Mart grocery store that I often haunt in
search of tasty tidbits.

Upon entering the store at first all seemed normal. I selected a cart and
began pushing it about dropping items in for purchase. It wasn't until I was
at the opposite end of the store from the restrooms that the pain hit me. Oh,
don't look at me like you don't know what I'm talking about. I'm referring to
that 'Uh oh, gotta go' pain that always seems to hit us at the wrong time.
The thing is, this pain was different.

The habaneras in the chili from the night before were staging a revolt. In a
mad rush for freedom they bullied their way through the small intestines,
forcing their way into the large intestines, and before I could take one step
in the direction of the restrooms which would bring sweet relief, it
happened. The peppers fired a warning shot.

There I stood, alone in the spice and baking aisle, suddenly enveloped in a
noxious cloud the likes of which has never before been recorded. I was afraid
to move for fear that more of this vile odor might escape me. Slowly, oh so
slowly, the pressure seemed to leave the lower part of my body, and I
began to move up the aisle and out of it, just as an elderly woman turned
into it.

I don't know what made me do it, but I stopped to see what her reaction would
be to the malodorous effluvium that refused to dissipate, as she walked into
it unsuspecting. Have you ever been torn in two different directions
emotionally? Here's what I mean, and I'm sure some of you at least will be
able to relate.
I could've warned that poor woman but didn't. I simply watched as she walked
into an invisible, and apparently indestructible, wall of odor so terrible
that all she could do before gathering her senses and running, was to stand
there blinking and waving her arms about her head as though trying to ward
off angry bees. This, of course, made me feel terrible, but then made me
laugh. Mistake.

Here's the thing. When you laugh, it's hard to keep things 'clamped down', if
you know what I mean. With each new guffaw an explosive issue burst forth
from my nether region. Some were so loud and echoing that I was later told a
few folks in other aisles had ducked, fearing that someone was robbing the
store and firing off a shotgun.

Suddenly things were no longer funny. IT was coming, and I raced off through
the store towards the restrooms, laying down a cloud the whole way, praying
that I'd make it before the grand mal assplosion took place.

Luck was on my side. Just in the nick of time I got to the john, began the
inevitable 'Oh my God', floating above the toilet seat because my butt is
burning SO BAD, purging. One poor fellow walked in while I was in the middle
of what is the true meaning of 'Shock and Awe'. He made a gagging sound, and
disgustedly said, ' Oh my God!', then quickly left.

Once finished I left the restroom, reacquired my partially filled cart
intending to carry on with my shopping when a store employee approached me
and said, 'Sir, you might want to step outside for a few minutes. It appears
some prankster set off a stink bomb in the store. The manager is going to run
the vent fans on high for a minute or two which ought to take care of the
problem.'

That of course set me off again, causing residual gases to escape me. The
employee took one sniff, jumped back pulling his shirt up to cover his nose
and, pointing at me in an accusing manner shouted, 'IT'S YOU!', then ran off
returning moments later with the manager. I was unceremoniously escorted from
the premises and asked none too kindly not to return.

Home again without having shopped, I realized that there was nothing to eat
but leftover chili, so I consumed two more bowls. The next day I went to shop
at Albertson's. I can't say anymore about that because we are in court over
the whole matter. They claim they're going to have to repaint the store.

Christmas Newsletter

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