GIVING CREDIT WHERE CREDIT IS DUE

Good morning.  Tuesday today and all day.  I'm taking a two day break.  No not from you guys!  From life as usual.  I'm off with my husband to Hudson, NY.  We both could use a little R&R.  Even though most people would think I live in the country I like the looks of this beautiful state even further up north.  Needless to say, I'm looking forward to exploring a new destination.

Today's quote, "We make decisions every day - big ones - small ones - important ones - good ones and bad ones - for all decisions made give proper credit to the person who made them, you."  Taking a short break from reality is a small decision.  One that I give myself credit for doing.  One that will make two people very happy.  

It's easy to give yourself credit for something good but what about a bad decision?  Do you own up to your mistakes?  Do you take responsibility when something doesn't turn out the way you want or are you a blamer?  If you are the type of person who finds fault with everyone and everything but themselves then how could you ever move forward?

Listen everyone,  Mistakes are O.K.  We are human and as humans we make mistakes and we make a lot of them but we need to learn from them and not repeat them.  Please give yourself credit for all the wonderful decisions you have made in the past and will make in the future but also recognize the bad decisions you have made as well.

If you are outside at all today, decide to put on sunscreen.  That will be a decision you will not regret!  
Have a wonderful Tuesday everyone! ~Love, Amy

PARENT YOURSELF

Good morning.  Hope your weekend was fun.  It's Monday today.  Onward and forward.  I have a question for everyone this morning. When was the last time you felt guilty about something?  When was the last time you said something nice about yourself or did something nice for yourself?  Why do we always do for others but never ourselves? 

Today's quote, "Nurture yourself as you would a child, bestow love and forgiveness to yourself."   It used to be considered selfish to put yourself on the highest rung of the ladder.  Those days are gone.  More and more we read about the importance of self care.  I don't know why it took so long to finally recognize that you can't be your best self if you are always last on the list.

I want you to understand that self care is not selfish.  It is essential.  There is absolutely nothing wrong with taking care of yourself.  My post today goes beyond the physical but to the emotional.  Treat yourself as your own child.  Even if you don't have children you certainly remember the most important part of childhood was to be loved.  As long as you had love, nothing else mattered.  

Have you made mistakes?  Of course you have.  Who hasn't?  Have you forgiven yourself or belittled yourself.  I'm thinking the latter.  Forgiveness is not just for those you love but for the one who needs your love the most, you!  

Make a promise to not only do something nice for yourself but to say something nice to yourself!  You are worth that and so much more!

Have a wonderful Monday everyone! ~Love, Amy

DEJA VU ALL OVER AGAIN

Good morning.  Friday.  Another summer week gone by.  Slow down I say!  This was such a quiet week.  The fourth fell dead center.  Many people chose to take advantage of the holiday by leaving town and what a good time to leave.  Nothing like a heat wave to start a vacation.  You don't have to be away to have fun so whatever you did and wherever you did it, I hope you had a great time!

Some people vacation in the same place year after year because it was so enjoyable it's what's called a no brainer.  Some of us are just lazy and figure if we had fun why not go back?  Makes total sense.   What doesn't make sense is making the same mistakes again and again.  Unfortunately we revisit those too.

Today's quote, "Question why you make the same mistakes the same poor choices the same bad decisions and question what it is you have not yet learned."   Life is our giant classroom filled with many lessons for us to learn.  When we are in school we learn certain things depending upon our age.  When we have mastered what we are supposed to we move up to the next grade.  

In life we don't move up grades but we move.  If you don't learn certain lessons you will be stuck.  You may date the same person again and again.  You may work for the same boss again and again.  All the people and situations you are trying to get away from will never leave you unless you learn those essential life lessons the Universe has sent you. 

I know what you're thinking.  How does she know?  She must be talking about me?  I'm talking about everyone.  Once again I can speak from experience.  A certain type of person used to find their way into every aspect of my life until I finally learned what I was meant to.  Once that lesson was learned everything changed for the better.  

You see we are all students in this wonderful thing called life and the best part is
you are never too old to learn!

Have a wonderful Friday everyone and a wonderful weekend! ~Love, Amy

KARMA AS OUR TEACHER

Good morning.  Another gorgeous day.  Oh how I love summer.  Poor Mia does not.  I can't imagine walking around in a fur coat all day but that's what she does.  The best thing for her is early morning and late afternoon when the sun is not yet so strong.  Maybe in a past life, she was a wolf in the Tundra and needed all that fur and in this life she is a sweet and gentle dog who never lost her fur.

Today's quote, "Karma is not payback or a punisher - Karma is there to show us what we did wrong and the consequences of these action - it is a teacher there to help us learn but it is up to us to absorb the lesson."  Mia did nothing wrong.  She's just a dog.  We've all heard been told when something bad happens it's Karma.  Or when someone does something we don't like we may think to ourselves, wait till Karma gets them.  

If you still think that way then you have it all wrong.  Karma is defined as action and fate.  It is what we put out in terms of negative or positive energy.  Karma is there to teach us what we haven't yet learned.  What I do know is that we have all been here before and we are here again to learn lessons.  And it isn't just us who have been here before but the people in our lives.  The ones you love and the ones you don't.  We are all each other's teachers helping each other learn needed lessons.

Trust is a big one for me and I know there are certain people in my life to help me learn to trust in this life where previously I could not.  Think about issues you have trouble with such as honesty, fear, loss, abandonment, anger to name a few.  If these issues were not dealt with in the past they will come back.  They will come back not to haunt you, hurt you or punish you but to teach you how to deal with them.  

The next time someone says, "Karma's a bitch,  let them know she is anything but.  Let yourself appreciate tough times as well as good.  Karma is your teacher and until that lesson is absorbed, she will be back again and again.

Have a wonderful Thursday everyone!~Love, Amy

THE POWER THAT EXISTS BENEATH DOUBT

Good morning on this hot hot Wednesday. Drink lots of water everyone.  So important on these really hot days.  I need to listen to my own advice.  I never drink enough.   I don't really like water but I find that when I add organic lemons it goes down easier.

By the way everyone, happy 4th of July!  I hope you all slept in and took it slow this morning.  Nothing like a holiday to force us to relax.  It is moments of quiet and peace that we also reflect.  How many of us reflect on all the great things we have done?  Probably not too many.  We are too busy focusing on our perceived shortcomings.  

Today's quote, "Know your power - rise to find your inner strength - it is there beneath insecurity and doubt."  Yes it is!  Your power center and source of strength comes from your solar plexus.  It is the area of your inner courage.  During my guided meditation classes I focus on different parts of your body, pairing them with the colors of 7 chakras.  

Luminous yellow is the color of your inner strength.  When you feel doubt wash over you, visualize luminous yellow washing over you instead.  It's funny how we could be on top of the world one minute and crash the next.  Sometimes all it takes is one word or one action from someone to bring us from confidence to doubt.  

We don't stop there either.  We begin to doubt everything and when that happens we shrivel up into an insecure mess.  We forget all the good we've accomplished and focus on everything we didn't do and need to.  Well stop!  Right now!  And here's a little secret,  there are those who want to see you fail and delight in opening the door to all your insecurities.

Why?  Envy.  It is unfortunate but not everyone in your life is there to support you.  Support yourself.
Be your champion and allow me to encourage you to help you find your inner strength and courage.  I believe it's there.  You need to believe it too.  Reach down and bring it to the top.  You are more powerful than you realize and stronger than you know. 

Have a wonderful Wednesday everyone and enjoy your day off!~Love, Amy

ENJOY THE RIDE NO MATTER WHAT-

Good morning to you and to Tuesday.  Summer has announced herself loud and clear.  Drink lots of water today as it is going to be a hot one.  Today will be a good day to take it slow.  You may not get to all the things you wanted to.  Mia and this weather do not agree so I will be moving slow along with her.

Today's quote, "You are the driver of your vehicle - the road may not always be smooth - whether there are bumps or detours keep going until your destination is reached."  The heat can easily be a detour as can a number of other things.  Timing, situations, where you are in your life, but these things need not stop you.  That is why I called them bumps and detours.

Things happen all the time.  You are headed in the right direction and then boom.  Road block!  Wherever there is a road block, there is also a sign that says detour.  There are always more ways than one to get to where you need to be.  As the driver you are the one in charge.  You get to decide whether to take the main road or follow those detour signs.  

  

 The destination is the golden carrot but take your time, enjoy the bumps, the detours and the ride. It doesn't matter when you get there, it's knowing that eventually you will. 

Have a wonderful Tuesday everyone! ~Love, Amy

THE SITUATIONS WE CREATE -

Good Morning!  It's Monday.  So I thought I would be sleeping in every day but no, my son had to get a job with a meeting point at 6:30 in the morning.  Guess who has to take him!  Yes, me.  Honestly, I'm happy he has a job that pays him well and teaches him responsibility.  All important things for kids to learn as it will only help him in his future.

There are so many stories of young people getting out of college with no plan for their future and no goals in mind.  Suddenly they are 25, 26 and still living in their bedrooms and I can guarantee you no one is happy with that situation.  Not the parents or the young adult.

Today's quote, " No one owes it to you to make your life wonderful - no one is at fault for creating misery in situations ultimately orchestrated by yourself."  Another good one if I say so myself.  Hey everyone!  Listen up.  We are responsible for ourselves and our lives.  No one else!  Got that!

Blame is the easy way out.  What you can have, what you can't have, what you can do, what you can't do.  It's easy to blame someone or something for absolutely everything.  If you have a miserable boss that lives to make your life miserable when you are outspoken then zip it!  Why be outspoken if you know the result?  Your fault.

Would it be great to leave a job you hate?  Of course it would but for so many reasons you may have to stay but you can still find ways to be happy within that situation.  It's all about looking at the brighter side of things.  Takes practice but worth it!  Creating the life you want takes time.  Nothing happens overnight.  You need to be patient.

It is just as easy to create misery and crap so why not focus on making your life the best it could be.  You are responsible for yourself, not your boss, not your parents, not the world, you!  Your dreams are waiting for you and I support you always!

Have a wonderful Monday everyone! ~Love, Amy