Coming New Moon ~ Knowing What You Want

Namaste'!

The weather men are calling for SUNNY skies and 57 tomorrow, 75 Friday, 78 Saturday, 78 Sunday, and 73 Monday!!!

After all the cold rain we've been getting, I think this weekend will be the weekend that everything explodes into bright green growth. I absolutely ADORE this time of year. It's so clean and fresh and new and perfect. I'm going to be starting my landscaping this weekend. I can't wait to sit outside in the sunshine with dirt on my hands.

I know many of you write new moon checks and the new moon is coming up this Saturday.

Planting in the waxing moon has been shown to be very beneficial to plants, so I'm also looking extra forward to the new moon Saturday.

I've decided to develop a habit of working with a vision board at the new moon. The last 2 times I've poured some focus and creativity into a vision board, I got amazing results. I think I'll carve out some time, maybe Saturday and Sunday morning while I have my coffee, to think about and focus on what I'd like to manifest in the month to come. For me personally, focusing on intentions and goals in the morning works great. My brain isn't all cluttered up with daily activities. It's freshly rested and relaxed and wide open.

That's what it's all about, right? Knowing what you want and being able to actually identify it. We often find it much easier to identify what we don't want. Of course you know what you don't want to happen. It's the first thing we're taught and conditioned to think about.

We even gave it a name. Murphy's Law. If something can go wrong, it will.

Then we're taught to further over think it by planning AROUND what could possibly go wrong, and call it being prepared.

Do yourself a favor. The next time you catch yourself identifying what you don't want to happen, use your brain as the tool it was intended to be and allow the thought about what you don't want, to trigger you to identify it's counter... A.K.A. What you DO want to happen.

Just practicing this will help you reprogram your automatic thoughts. You know the thoughts I'm talking about too.
Eg. *This isn't going to work* *What if I can't do it?* *If that happens, I don't know what I'm going to do*

Even thoughts as normal and everyday as "Ugh, I hate doing laundry!"

This is one that I still slip on. I have to change that thought into what I WANT... cuz what I want sure ain't doing laundry! LOL I started to change this one by changing it to "I love crisp, clean, unwrinkled clothes!". That helped me to be SEEKING something instead of avoiding something. I will even go so far as to say "Today I am blessing my closet with an abundance of delightfully clean clothes!" I "Bless" my home as a whole and in it's parts and pieces often. This angle of thought is something I picked up from http://www.flylady.com/ (been hearing a lot about her lately too, oddly enough ;) By placing your focus happily on your task at hand, you are transferring positive, loving energy onto it. And in doing so, you're "Blessing" everything. It kinda shifts your perception a little and that little can be enough to start you on a roll.

There's always a way to express what you DO want. Your initial "Oh NO!" reaction is just your brain letting you know what you don't want. It's supposed to let you know. It's only doing it's job. You're the awareness behind the thought. You're the one running this show! If you take the brain's warning shots and then turn your focus to what you DO want and forget about what "might" happen, you'll begin to notice much more desirable outcomes. The Universe (A.K.A. God) can only give you what you ask for.

Take advantage of the new moon coming and set the tone for your month to come by thinking about and identifying what you want to see for yourself and in your life. Write a new moon check or work on a vision board or write a list or create new affirmations or whatever YOUR process is. And if you don't follow a practice... then this is the PERFECT time to start! Don't procrastinate! Take control of what shows up in your life by creating a monthly practice of identifying what you want and asking for it. We're in the growing light of spring and entering the growing light of the new moon... the energies around you are very conductive for creativity and growth.

Coming in Saturday's Waxing Edition E-zine:

• Featured Article: Finding Your Vision


• What's in My Recipe Box?: Grrreat for You Grrranola! Yum!


• Blog Spotlight


• Conscious Living Tip!


• Quotable Quotes


• And More!!

A Poem

My Attitude of Gratitude...
By El Baugher

Thank you for the sunshine bright
And night time dark and deep.

Thank you for the ones I love
And all the one's I meet.

Thank you for the leaves in fall
And flowers in the spring.

Thank you for the JOY inside
my heart that makes me sing!

Thank you for each trial I've faced
And all my lessons learned.

Thank you for the chance to love
And have that love returned.

Thank you for the thankfulness
That drives my life to bliss.

I can't imagine any life more wonderful than this.

Easter - Gross Thought - Quick Story Oh My!

~ An Easter Celebration ~

Here in our house, we celebrate Easter.
We don't celebrate the Christian holiday (because we're not Christian) but we DO celebrate "Spring" with Easter eggs and some candy and some new spring outdoor toys.

This year, because my youngest boys are 9 and 6 (turning 7 next Saturday!) I figured this would probably be the final run of the Easter Bunny, so I wanted to try something fun and different. This year, when they find their Easter Baskets, they'll find only a few toys inside. The Easter Bunny will also be leaving an egg shaped, decorated pinata with all the candy in it. We're having an Easter Egg Hunt with some close friends and when that's finished, the kids will get to bash the CRAP out of the Easter Egg Pinata. YAY!

~ A Gross Thought ~

So, I made this pinata myself.

There I was, last night, over blown balloon in my hand, flour/water goop in a bowl, strips of newspaper everywhere.... and it hit me. As I lifted a goop covered strip of wet dripping newspaper out of the bowl and began to smooth it onto the balloon I realized.... PEOPLE EAT THIS CRAP!!!

That thought REALLY grossed me out.

I mean.... I realize this is common knowledge (at least it is in MY world...) and I've seen and heard it all before, but standing there with that sticky, slimy, gritty, white, pasty GOOP on my hands knowing that when I'm finished, its going to harden up to a point that it'll test the strength of the manliest of men, REALLY grossed me out. It's quite literally... concrete...... so eat it....

~ The Quick Story ~

I never thought much of white flour not too long ago. Back in September 2006, I'd been exercising faithfully for 3.5 months by walking/hiking 1 to 3 miles daily and had STILL not lost any weight. I was easily 205 - 210 pounds but it seemed stuck.

In September, I made a decision to join "Curves", a circuit training gym for women. I went 5 days a week, every morning, faithfully for a month. At the end of that month.... and I was REALLY working out.... I was down 2.5 pounds. I was like...... "Are you freaking joking!?!?"

I wasn't ready to give up yet. I felt better. I could tell that my body felt different. I could tell that my body felt HEALTHIER... One morning, I was taking a walk and it struck me. The food! I was watching my calories and everything, but what about the KINDS of food I was eating.

That day I did some research. The next day I went shopping. From then on, there were only whole grains in our house. We eat lots of whole grain brown rice, whole wheat noodles, whole wheat bread etc...

The next month, when I weighed in at Curves, I was down 10 pounds! I leveled off at 6-7 pounds a month after that and in about 6 months time total (Even counting that pesky first month!) I'd lost the 35 pounds I'd set out to lose. It all rolled pretty fast after I stopped clogging my entire interior with chunks of concrete. I also gave up almost ALL granulated sugars which made me feel FANTASTIC... but that's a whole different blog post! LOL

Whole Grain Flour

White Flour

One of the greatest favors you can do for yourself is to stop eating white flour and start eating closer to the way nature intended. I know it definitely made a HUGE difference in my life.