Day 161-164 of gratitude!

Monday 2/15- 

I'm grateful for rest, which resulted in some serious crazy play time and serious "soul work"  time after my babe went to bed. Love full days like this!!! I wrote and I read and made notes, and on fire once again with passion for my purpose. 

Tuesday 2/16-

Love exploring new philosophies and writing. Writing forces deeper understanding and processing, but also possible more exposure. That's terrifying when I've lived most of my life not sharing my internal process or feelings. I'm grateful for this chapter. 

Wednesday 2/17-

I'm grateful for putting new ideas into practice. Being vulnerable...in small degrees rather than the extremely open or closed off I am accustomed to. I'm grateful for loving to cook and finding new tastes and pleasures that also nourish my body. 

Thursday 2/18-

I'm grateful for choosing to move slow as I feel anxiety and stress coming up regarding what direction to move in with writing. To me, that signifies the need to slow down and be even more deliberate about what I'm doing. 

                                            

      

Day 157-160 of gratitude!

Thursday-

I'm grateful my Mom entrusted her feet to my care. Since cutting Alex's toenails and nails I find I'm quite good at doing pedicures and I enjoy helping to ground the body for myself and others. 

Friday-

I'm grateful for good books. I'm current reading Gifts of Imperfection by Brene Brown and Natural Child. 

And for circle play time with the kids this morning. 2 year olds are so fun!!!!!!

Saturday- 

I'm grateful for "me time"- lunches out with new friends and the energetic whirlwind I don't quite understand yet. I am paying attention though. 

Sunday- Valentines Day

I'm grateful for a massage and energy session and for basically being told to just relax and enjoy myself today. I napped off and on most of the day. 

Day 156 of gratitude- Power of Thought

Wednesday-

I'm grateful for the excitement that builds on the brink of creating. Did you know nervous/anxious energy and excitement really come from the same place and can feel similar? The difference is really your thoughts about it....in the former it causes worry and concern and the latter hope and wonder. I'm grateful to be experiencing the hope and wonder more often over these years than the first 30 years of my life.

                        

I'm grateful for this lady and being inspired by her in so many ways! Our conversations melt my heart and she genuinely makes me want to be a more giving person because she gives with her whole heart. She's so rad!!! Thank you, April, for your friendship and thank you to her bodacious husband, Eric,  for connecting us...even if it did take a few years!!! 

Day 150 & 151 of gratitude!

I am grateful everyone in my life is my mirror and I have awareness of that. 

I am grateful for solitude and silence. 

I am grateful for crazy laughter and a lived in house because play and "my work" is more important than cleaning constantly. I'm grateful for that awareness too. 

I'm grateful my life as I knew it 2 years ago has been completely ripped apart and reshaped and nothing is certain. Exciting to know I can create WHATEVER I WANT. That was always true, but when you have the (soul sucking) job that pays well and the house that can only be afforded by the job that pays well. And a lifestyle to match that....it can feel pretty closed in. I am grateful to be free!!!! Time to recreate.....reminds me of last time I felt like this. It was the beginning of my awareness journey.....

Day 149 of gratitude, My Vitamix, Cauliflower Chickpea Tacos

I'm grateful for my Vitamix. Besides making my delicious smoothies daily, it reduces my workload in the kitchen. Over the weekend I made potato pancakes for Alex's party (my Mom's favorite...not that she got to have any, long story). Last time Mom and I made them was 1990 something because we hand grated them, which takes forever if you're making a lot. I managed to make up he batter in about 10 minutes or as long as it took me to peel 1.5 lbs of potatoes. My vitamix did the rest. 

Today, I made slaw for a recipe and did that in about 5 minutes or however long it take to cut up cabbage into chunks. 

Recipe, if you're interested: 

http://www.shelikesfood.com/1/post/2014/08/bbq-cauliflower-chickpea-tacos-creamy-lime-slaw-gfv.html

Day 146, 147, and 148 of gratitude!

Sunday was Alex's 2nd birthday. I'm so grateful he made me a mama. Im grateful he's sweet, gentle, kind, and compassionate. Our lives continue to change because he's a part of it and I wouldn't want it any other way. The love that continues to expand my heart since his birth into this world is indescribable. I am so grateful for his presence. 

I'm grateful I was brave enough (for me....I used to be so afraid of everything, which really was me not trusting myself) to have him at home, no vaccinations, and having a midwife care during my pregnancy. I used to wonder if I'd chicken out IF I ever had kids. No is the answer to that. 

                             

                  

                                    

I'm grateful for Matt. During the times I feel like I'm coming unglued, he helps to hug me back together. We can stay up half the night talking for hours about everything and anything. He makes me laugh and we challenge eachother to open up and take on new experiences. Our relationship has grown so much over the last 13 years and I'm grateful for how much I've grown while being a part of it. 

I'm grateful I somehow managed to make a pesto veggie minestrone in record time today for my babe who has a fever and seemed not to be feeling well (off and on). 

Day 145 of gratitude (1/30) Turtle Dance

I'm grateful for events at our community library and people like "Mr. Matt" who aspire to better the lives of children by introducing them to cool music, being playful, fun, and pulling them out of their shell. Heck, I got pulled out of my shell for a public forum and I have to say I was not alone. Many of the parents were belly laughing through most of the performance. Play  is important no matter what age!!!

Check out the website:  http://www.turtledancemusic.com

Day 144 of gratitude and Young Living

I'm grateful for finding Young Living in my quest to find the best essential oils for myself and my family.  I'm grateful that while they may be a corporation (not usually my cup of tea), they treat me like I'm family. All. The. Time. 

This particular time, they sent out oils in my Essential Rewards order before I'd had a chance to update it to reflect new choices for the month. Not only did they credit me back the funds, but they also asked me to keep the oils they sent in error as a token of their sincerest apologies for the mix up (longer story to it than what I posted here, but bottom line is they are awesome!!). 

One of the oils I received, Norther Lights Black Spruce, happens to be the oil of the month!!!!

Check it out:

What I got for FREE:

I have read these can be used to help support finding purpose and harmony (chamomile) and to help ground (spruce). I'm excited to start working these into my self care and on my clients! 

Day 134 and 135 of gratitude!!!

Yesterday, it came full circle, as far as my awareness of the lesson goes. I'm grateful for all the (there have been 3 over the last 6 years) friends who've walked away because I was "too negative, too angry, too much, too communicative"! It's because of them that I have become the best friend to myself I've always wanted. It's because of them that I have myself walked away from people who weren't serving me, growing me, or "making" me happy (no one can make me feel any which way). And it's because of them that I see red flags way sooner now. So, to the friends who weren't capable , at the time, of holding space for me, thank you for helping me learn! I'm thankful for your presence in my life for the time you were there. 

As for today, I'm grateful the day is over and I stole away some time just for me. I need the recharge often to stay on top of my game. And power naps are under rated. I took a 20 minute one today since I was exhausted from 3 hours of sleep I got last night (teething!!!), and it recharged me to bust out all my afternoon activities in a way I didn't expect. 

Verbosely yours, 

Joanna Rose 😜

                                             

     

                   

   

  

Day 132 and 133 of gratitude and Putting People on Pedastals

Day 132: I'm grateful for the second big purge, which emptied all the stuff that came with us from our old house. We're now down to furniture to either be sold, gifted, or saved (our retro kitchen table and Alex's dresser) and clothing, my cedar chest of pictures and mementos, and books. 

Day 133: I'm grateful for today's daily Om. This has been a lesson that keeps stripping away over the last years. Does it resonate with you?

Putting People on a Pedestal
Allowing Our Loved Ones to Be Human

by Madisyn Taylor 

When you put somebody on a pedestal it is giving away your power and saying you are not good enough.

When we fall in love with someone or make a new friend, we sometimes see that person in a glowing light. Their good qualities dominate the foreground of our perception and their negative qualities. They just don’t seem to have any. This temporary state of grace is commonly known as putting someone on a pedestal. Often times we put spiritual leaders and our gurus on pedestals. We have all done this to someone at one time or another, and as long as we remember that no one is actually “perfect,” the pedestal phase of a relationship can be enjoyed for what it is—a phase. It’s when we actually believe our own projection that troubles arise. 

Everyone has problems, flaws, and blind spots, just as we do. When we entertain the illusion that someone is perfect, we don’t allow them room to be human, so when they make an error in judgment or act in contradiction to our idea of perfection, we become disillusioned. We may get angry or distance ourselves in response. In the end, they are not to blame for the fact that we idealized them. Granted, they may have enjoyed seeing themselves as perfect through our eyes, but we are the ones who chose to believe an illusion. If you go through this process enough times, you learn that no one is perfect. We are all a combination of divine and human qualities and we all struggle. When we treat the people we love with this awareness, we actually allow for a much greater intimacy than when we held them aloft on an airy throne. The moment you see through your idealized projection is the moment you begin to see your loved one as he or she truly is. 

We cannot truly connect with a person when we idealize them. In life, there are no pedestals—we are all walking on the same ground together. When we realize this, we can own our own divinity and our humanity. This is the key to balance and wholeness within ourselves and our relationships.

Day 131 of gratitude!

I'm grateful for places like Irvine Nature Center. My brother and I volunteered there what feels like a lifetime ago (I think I was around 13) and it was just a small place, but even back then they educated people of all ages on all things nature and natural living. Today it's huge and has programs and wonderful free resources for homeschoolers. 

Check them out: http://www.explorenature.org

Alex and his BFF, Emmerson, had so much fun on their huge natural playground.

Day 130 of Gratitude!

I don't know if it's where I am right now or if something just clicked, but I'm grateful for not having felt stress in at least the last month. I know I was still stressing out about life happenings and taking on too much (I'm still working on finding the best balance and I may be on to it now) a few months ago, but in the last month or so I'm so relaxed I nap with my son almost daily (that's never been me) and falling asleep within minutes of my head hitting the pillow and yet during the day I have boundless energy. 

I'm grateful for visits with fun friends and for all that comes with the territory of being a Mom (even the gross stuff...I won't share TMI). 

Day 128 & 129 of gratitude....Plus update for the RV!!!

I'm grateful for the last two days of flowing through the day with chores, play time, sacred meals and bedtime routines. I'm grateful for belly laughs and chasing after my babe until we're both hysterical and out of breath. I'm grateful for some deep sleep that I haven't experienced in a long time. 

I'm grateful for some time lines finally being in place. We've been living at my Aunt's house while it's being prepared for selling and while we get our RV road worthy. The house will go on the market next Fall, so we have 8 months from now to have the RV ready to go. After all this time of it being talked about and envisioned, we are here....wow!!!! I'm excited to say the least. Let the final purge begin. 

Day 127!!

I love my life! 

I'm grateful to be able to really create the life I want. I'm grateful to take the time to take such good care of myself. I'm grateful I can change my mind about anything at any time!!!

Today I started reading "Overwhelmed: Work, Love, and Play When No One Has the Time and it's really making me appreciate the life I'm living. I'm grateful I took the time today to read while my babe is napping. Granted it's not a fun topic for all (most wouldn't consider it fun), but I love learning about the human condition (lol). 

I'm grateful to be excited about yoga and a walk when Alex wakes up and going about our day presently and joyfully. It's a choice. 

Day 126 of Gratitude!!!

Today I'm grateful to be part of a VIVACIOUS group of women and clothing swaps!!! I'm grateful for pushing on the limits of my comfort zone regularly and intentionally. I'm grateful for being more committed to my journey than the outcome. 

I'm grateful for choosing love (even if it's from a distance) over judgement and being right. 

Day 125 of Gratitude!

Today I'm grateful for my self-given ruins reading, the flock of vultures that visit daily, and clear messages my body gives me for the best way to take loving care of it. I'm grateful for this new feeling of ease and peace that has settled within me. It feels like a switch was flipped and there is a knowing that I have started a new book (not just a chapter). 

I am grateful for trusting myself fully. It's been a long journey getting here. 

❤️

Day 122 of gratitude!

Today I'm grateful for late night talks with Matt, golden beets, and getting tipped off by a friend a while back that you don't need to stand and stir risotto to make it good (I made some tonight and barely messed with it....best ever!!!). It was roasted beet and spinach, btw, in case you love risotto the way I do. Here's where I found the recipe (I eliminated the dairy): 

http://www.practiganic.com/2014/05/golden-beet-spinach-farro-risotto.html

Day 114-121 of Gratitude and checking in.....

Happy 2016!!!!

For those of you who are picking up here and haven't been following me on Facebook, I started a daily gratitude post because I needed to turn things around for myself (body, mind, and spirit) fast after my son was born. Call it post Partum, call it low thyroid, call it old demons coming back to bite me....whatever! I was spiraling and remembered what helped me turn things around years back in my journey. 

So, without further hesitation here are days I missed up through today (mostly because I didn't want to sign on to Facebook and then deal with the barrage of meaningless notifications, etc.)......

I am grateful that no matter where I am on my path I don't look up or down to anyone. Just because I've been at it for as long as I have doesn't mean I don't have work to do. I'm under the impression the inner work never stops and that's great because life "all figured out" would sure be boring!!

I'm grateful I have myself by my side. I'm my own best friend and two very capable hands and feet to take me and do with whatever I choose! What's that Dr. Seuss book? 

I'm grateful for the safe space I give myself. It's not found in a specific place or within relationships to another (though it can manifest that way only once we have it with ourselves). I'm grateful for those relationships where it has and continues to manifest. 

I'm grateful for a very present holiday with all my family-  blood, married, and chosen. All years before Alex I still drank or overate on holidays to compensate for the shit storm going on in my head at family gatherings. Last year my babe took the spotlight (who am I kidding, he's always going to because he's got the personality and light), so that was what I chose to focus on. I was pretty much a basket case last year this time, so this year felt very raw, but I stuck with it. Fuck yes!!!

I'm grateful for whispers of new beginnings. 

I'm grateful for the abundance that continues to bless my life in all ways.

I'm grateful to speak and respond thoroughly and with as many words as I choose because I can and its part of me that I love. 

I'm grateful to love parts of me others and the old me used to find to be a "real turn off".

I'm grateful for taking the time (almost) daily to just be witness to the beauty and light that is my son. 

More later!!!

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