Two Steps to Get What You Want & Stay Present

The universe wants us to be happy. Yay!

Everyone seems to be talking lately about staying present.  We are in our heads, either worrying about the past or fretting over the future.  We are being told that we need to “stay present” in order to enjoy our lives and the only moment we have is NOW.  But now that we are aware that we are NOT living fully in the present we can add worrying that we aren’t to our already long list of things we’re not doing right. 

Sometimes the more I learn to enlighten myself just feels like a gigantic burden on how far I have to go.  But don’t fret, wanting to be more present is a worthy endeavor and by simply wanting to do it, we are already on the way to getting there.  Whew!

ASK

The first step is to get into the habit of asking for what we want.  This also is one of the best ways to get into the habit of praying.  If you are like me and didn’t grow up with prayer, then it may seem like a foreign concept.  I wasn’t taught how to pray and I certainly didn’t know who or what I was praying to or what to ask for or if I even had a right to ask for anything.  I felt like a fraud.

How I Stay Healthy

Tips, Tricks, and Tools

If you read my post, “Become a Lean, Mean, CLEAN Machine”, then you know that I have done the “Clean” Cleanse by Dr. Junger twice.  I really believe in this program and recommend the book, and the cleanse as a great way to learn about your body, food and toxicity, take control of your health, and begin a new journey to feeling and looking your best.

Jar salads keep me prepared to eat well.

It’s one thing to do a 21 to 30 day program, but it’s quite another to actually change your lifestyle and have something become a new routine or habit.  I definitely believe in the power of good food and making healthy choices, but I also know how difficult it can be to make these changes and stick with it.  I’m as susceptible as anyone, and can succumb to temptation, laziness and apathy.  Therefore, not only do I have to have my desire to eat healthy, I have to have things in place to ensure that I’ll be successful.

Tips and Tricks:

Edit your kitchen – give your kitchen a make-over; a food make-over.  Go thru your cupboards, pantry and refrigerator and clear out all the junk.  Get rid of as much of the processed foods as you can handle.  Anything in a box is suspect.  My philosophy is, “if it’s not in the kitchen, I can’t eat it”. 

Become a Lean Mean CLEAN Machine

"Clean" is the Cleanse I Recommend

INTRO TO CLEAN

I recently completed a 21-day detox program called “Clean” by Dr. Alexander Junger.  I love this program, and it has jump-started a new way for me of looking at life and eating.  I did it about 4 years ago as well, and loved the results.  I was ready once again to change some of my habits and create a happier healthier me.

Feeling good after "Clean" on the Oregon Coast.

There are a lot of cleanses out there and ways to detoxify your body, and I’ve looked at many.  I believe Clean to be the best-rounded, simplest and user friendly system out there.  I like that you eat real food and you can tailor it to make it workable for you.  I loved Dr. Junger’s own story and experiences as well as his well-researched information on food, toxicity and how our bodies work.  The book itself is an education and well worth the read.  I re-read it prior to beginning the 21-day program for the 2^nd time – it’s that worthwhile.

8 EASY and ECONOMICAL Style Tips 

to Make Getting Dressed Hassle Free

How did getting dressed become such a chore?  Style should be fun or at least not something you dread.  The truth is, we can ALL feel good about how we look. 

Me, following some of my tips!

Why do some women just seem to instinctively know what their style is or how to buy and put together the coolest items?  Do they really have a “style gene” that the rest of us lack?  Or do they just have interest, aptitude and a few trusty style tips they abide by?  That’s what I believe and I also believe that once you have adopted a few of these tips and start feeling a bit more confident and successful; getting dressed starts being more fun and you begin to exert your own individual flair.

Remember, style is for YOU.  If you feel good, and you feel that you look good, then that’s all that matters.

Be a Yes!

Yes is the best!

There was a time in my life when I let fear run my life and I became a NO.  I didn’t go on ski trips or other trips with my friends, I didn’t live with passion or excitement, I didn’t take chances or try new things, I wasn’t bold and I certainly did not “face my fear and do it anyway”.  In fact, I allowed my fear to take center stage and keep me “safe”.  

If I didn’t go anywhere or try anything new; how could I fail?  If I stayed close to home; how could anything bad happen to me?  The problem I later realized, is that I already had failed and something bad had already happened.  I had cut off my life force and was stuck in fear and inertia.  I felt that NO kept me from choosing the wrong thing, but NO was and is a choice with as many outcomes and consequences as YES. 

I Can Do It! (Affirmations, Mantras, and Positivity, OH MY)

I wish I knew this tree's mantra!

Over the years, I’ve dabbled in affirmations.  I’ve read about them.  I’ve written them down.  I believe in them.  I’ve learned to pay attention to what I’m thinking and then change it to something more positive.  I’ve even spent days trying to immerse myself in a positive thought – repeating it over and over like a mantra.  And all of that was helpful and got me further along on the path. 

But something’s missing.  For some reason or another, I always stop practicing them, or I lose interest, or I feel I’m not picking the right one, or I over-think it – (no, not me!).  So now I want to create a system that works for me – something that sticks and rings true, something that I want to do. 

My brain can be as undisciplined as they come.  I used to believe that my brain was just the way it was, like it was designed to do what it does, and think the way it thought and I didn’t have any control over it.  Imagine my delight when I began to learn that I could change my thinking, my patterns; my very brain waves.  I am still intrigued and excited by that, it’s a big reason I do what I do. 

The Pursuit of Happiness…simple ways to get where you want to go while enjoying today

Mother Nature has a way of stopping us in our tracks.

I recently moved back to my hometown.  It’s a beautiful place filled with all the things that I love; mountains, a gorgeous lake, tons of trails and just about every outdoor activity you can think of.  But the thing that it has that I love the most is my sweetheart, who I finally found at the age of 49.  I have known this wonderful man since I was a five year old girl in this same town, and after all these years and full lives apart, we are finally together and happy.  I moved back to this hometown so we could build a life together.  

So this is what I am dealing with; if one of my life goals was to find a true partner with whom I can share my life with, and that goal is now fulfilled, then why can’t I bask in that serenity and joy for a while?  Hey, don’t get me wrong, I DO bask, but in the back of my brain and many times, right in the forefront, I have the reoccurring and nagging pressure to do more, more, more!  In other words, fulfill my “purpose”, or live up to my potential.  As my sister would say, “Sounds exhausting”.  

So there it is, in the “pursuit of happiness”, do we ever get to stop and just BE happy?