LET IT SNOW!!!

The snow is here!!! Come on people, it is inevitable that it was coming. How much more sunshine and warm weather could you handle? Sometimes I just get so sick of the sunshine!!! I'm only kidding, who doesn't love the sunshine. I really look at snow like it is a little touch of sunshine. I absolutely love when everything is beautifully covered in the white stuff. It really isn't the holidays without snow so I think December 1st is the perfect time for it to start flying. Of course many of you know that to me, snow means SNOWBOARDING!!! One of my most favorite things to do. My happiest place is anywhere strapped to my snowboard. Since I could walk, my parents had me on skies (and prior to that, I was in a backpack on their back while they skied). Getting to play in the snow like that from such a young age makes for growing up with a great appreciation for winter. I have 3 brothers and together we were busy-bodies. The 4 of us were born within 5 years (my parents were going for 10 kids, stopped at 4 thank goodness) and my parents would get us involved in things that would wear us out. In the summer we would swim 4-5 times per week and in the winter we would ski 4 days per week out at a little private ski place called Kandahar on Foley Rd. (anyone remember Kandahar?). We would ski Wednesday nights, Friday nights, all day Saturday and Sunday would make for 4 very tired children (they were smart parents). About 14 years ago, I took up snowboarding and have not turned back. In fact, every winter I watch skiers and wonder what it would be like to be going down the hill facing forward with feet strapped to their own planks. It seems like such a strange thing. I am sure I would just pick it right back up, but it has been years and years. Big Sky, Montana is my most favorite place I have been, then Vail, Colorado and Alyeska, Alaska would have to be third. People are happy on the slopes, everyone is in a good mood and some of the world's greatest conversations are had on the chairlift. To me, it is meditative, it is peaceful and the closest thing to flying. I will be hitting up Mt. Holly a little bit this year as well. Maybe I will see you on the slopes. :)
Pictures are me in Colorado last March. First one is at Keystone and the second one is smiling on the chairlift at Vail.

THANKSGIVING

Just two more sleeps until the greatest holiday is the year. I simply love the idea of food, friends, family and fun. I love that there are no presents and it is just about being present. I love the simplicity of joining together to celebrate a day of gratitude. I am going to be spending my day with some of my most favorite people. First off, I will start my day in the hottest way...HOT VINYASA yoga class. I am contemplating a 1 or 2 hour class and am probably going to opt for the 2 hour class. The greatest thing is that both yoga studios that I go to, and probably hundreds more around the nation and world, do classes for donations on those days and then give the money to food banks or charities, etc. It is a great feeling to just be in those classes, however it is even better to know that the place that I participate in is giving back to the community is a powerful way. Then I will probably wander around a bit and find a hot cup of tea somewhere. From there it will be back home to get things put together for dinner at my aunt and uncle's house which is always a lot of fun. My Mom and Dad come from HUGE families and every holiday was filled with tons and people...I am not joking when I say 30-40 was a regular dinner times 2!!! I think this one will be probably about 25 as people have other priorities now that we are grown ups. :) In the evening I will probably head over to another aunt's house for dessert and drinks maybe...then Friday...start the whole thing over again. I will find a yoga class, probably get some decorating done and then head to dinner at my brother's house. The weekend will probably be filled with holiday decorating, probably some shopping, hopefully some left-overs somewhere, a hike or two, maybe a run and some good ol' fashion down time, like curl up on the couch with a cup of tea and listen to Christmas music. ahhhhhhh....the holidays. :) Happy Thanksgiving!!!

JOIN US!!!

HALLOWEEN

The fall has been so wonderful and the end of October marks one of my most favorite holidays, Halloween. This year the Cafe of LIFE was bustling with people on our Trick-or-Treat event with the Chamber of Commerce. The Cafe of LIFE was open on Friday the 29th from 1-6 and we had loads of fun. I want to get some of the pictures up so you can check it out. We probably had around 200 people swing in that day. It was Teri's (one of fabulous massage therapists) birthday and there was a little extra celebration for that. Fun times. I hope yours was safe and fun as well. I will post a few more pictures soon.

I AM A RUNNER

Ok, so now I find myself in a serious mind over matter situation once again. I will be running the Detroit Half Marathon this coming Sunday and am not quite sure how that is going to go. I have been running and walking though the summer and the fall and am pretty well trained for the weekend ahead of me. The biggest challenge is that my longest run as of recent is 9 miles. My plan was to get in an 11 mile run 2 weekends ago but I ended up under the weather and couldn't make that happen. So this past weekend, with lungs still compromised, I made a 9 mile happen on Friday and an 8.25 happen on Sunday (Choco did the full 8 with me as well, what a rockstar he is!). I will head down to the expo tomorrow to pick up my number and I am sure at that time my body will start to get into the race mode. They do a great job with the expos for these races and really gets you in the mood. Sunday I will wake up early and head back down to Detroit for a 7am start. Think of me around 8am when you are thinking about getting out of bed as I will be well on my way over the Ambassador Bridge to Canada. Around 9:00am when you are making breakfast, I will head back through the tunnel to the United States and finish hopefully somewhere around 10am. Ever think of doing a Marathon or Half Marathon? Maybe start with a 5K race around the holidays this year. Lots of Turkey Trots and Jingle Jogs happening around the southern Michigan area. So back to this weekend...and not knowing how it is going to go...I guess there is only one way to find out! Wish me luck!

http://www.freepmarathon.com/

MOMS

Over this past weekend, my body was expressing some serious symptoms and I spent most of my time in bed resting. You know those days when stuffiness and congestion takes over and it takes so much energy to do anything? Friday night I was driving back from Rochester and started a sneezing fit and that is where it all began. From that point the coughing started and body aches. I decided to retire early since I had a lot planned for Saturday. When Saturday morning rolled around, I just couldn't imagine doing anything that I had planned. I barely made it out of bed but I figured if I just get up and take a shower, I will feel better...and I did. Then I thought if I just get in my car and drive down to the convention in Dearborn I will feel better...and I did. Then I sat for 4 hours and listened to an amazing lecture and could just barely get myself home I felt so horrible. I retired early again that night with hopes that Sunday I would wake up feeling great...no such luck. I finally dragged myself out of bed around 1pm and got in the shower. The entire weekends meals consisted of dried fruit and nuts, due to lack of energy to do much more, and at one point a can of soup. So after my shower, and in tears, I got myself together and drove out to my mom's house. She met me in the kitchen and made me a great breakfast. It was a simple eggs and toast breakfast with a little bit of pesto and it was probably the best I had ever tasted. Of course I was so hungry and depleted at this time, I instantly snapped out of it and have been feeling better ever since. I don't think there was any healing magic in those eggs and toast, nor the pesto for that matter. It was the whole concept of being taken care of by my Mom that made the difference. Thanks for being there Mom!!! Hopefully I can return the favor, either back to her or pass it on to my children, when I have them someday. Moms...they make all the difference :)

(the picture is taken at my brother's wedding early September as we are all bundled up trying to stay warm in the wind)

BEST CASE SCENARIO

I work with hundreds of people on a regular basis. It is the most wonderful and rewarding work and I feel blessed to be able to serve in the way that I do. At the Cafe of LIFE we see people that are really struggling with their health as well as people that are feeling good and want to remain that way. I learn a lot about people by interacting in the way I do and helping them to express a better them. All kinds of wonderful things come up for people and I love that there are some real break-throughs happening on a daily basis.


I do see a pattern happening that I want to address. I think it is simply a human thing, though I am sure it is largely influenced by our culture. Whether people are starting from a place of feeling really good, or feeling really bad, when something happens, some sort of new symptom or aggravation happens...the human mind goes automatically into "WORSE CASE SCENARIO" mode. Some people have taken very minor things that have been going on for about 2 hours and seriously talked themselves into this may be the end of their lives. I am not sure when we lost the faith in our body's ability to adapt and heal from just about anything, but we did. Instead of saying "Oh this sinus infection has been going on for 2 days, but my body can fight this off and I will be better in the long run for letting my immune system kick in", people are running out for some remedy that will help with the symptom, which almost always compromises the immune system and doesn't allow it to do what it was designed to do. Or "My wrist hurts, but it has only been an hour or so and I am sure my body will handle it" they go to the MD and immediately get it x-rayed to make sure there isn't a tumor. These are just a couple examples to give you the idea of how extreme our thought patterns are.



My point being...let's start giving our bodies the benefit of the doubt. The body's ability to heal is much more powerful then anyone (and especially the media) has lead you to believe. We all have within us an inborn, recuperative power that is in charge of proper adaptation and integration of the many stresses we encounter every day. When things come up, let's start thinking BEST CASE SCENARIO and that have a mindset of "my body can probably take care of this" and watch and wait. If you are doing all the right stuff with diet and exercise, getting good rest, keeping a positive attitude, staying away from toxins, and getting regular checks for your spine and nerve system, a large percentage of the time the body will do just that...TAKE CARE OF ITSELF. When the body is given the opportunity to take care of itself, and it does, we are better off than if we continue trying to combat symptoms with drugs and surgery. We only get one chance...let's keep focused on BEST CASE SCENARIO.

BACK TO SCHOOL

Wow the town is buzzing with back to school energy. This is a time that our lives take a major shift and a routine is re-established. Even for those of us who do not have children, the back to school time is still a great time to re-organize. It is a perfect time to set some new health goals, a perfect time to check back in with what resolutions you had set in January this year and have confidence if there are things still left undone from that list...there is still time to take action. 2010 is far from over and no matter how far you may find yourself off track, it just takes one step to get back on it. I have a very wise yoga instructor (and you know who you are) that I go and visit 2-3 times a week and she continually reminds me to come back to my breathe. When life gets crazy (or the class becomes ridiculously challenging) all it takes is one thought of getting back to my breathe to pull me through and bring me back into the current moment. If we stay in the current moment, things are simple. It is memories of the past, and thoughts of the future that make things complicated. So sit for a moment and check in with yourself. Are you at a satisfying place with the goals and resolutions you set for 2010? Did you find success so far or do you need to check back in. Here is an idea...tell someone about your goals. When we put it out there to a friend, something happens in the mind that we become more diligent at working towards them since you have to be a little more accountable. And remember, no matter how far you strayed, it is just one step to get back on track. Make the most out of your days and live an extraordinary life...we only get one chance...

THE WEDDING

It has been a couple weeks since my brother got married, but I still wanted to write about it. This Michigan summer has been a fabulously warm and sunny one...except for that day. The wind was blowing and the temps came close to 63 degrees as a high. The wedding was planned to take place outside and that is exactly what happened. The ceremony was on the small island on Runyan Lake where my parents live. It was a small and short ceremony that was as sweet of a wedding ceremony as I have been to. We all wrapped up in blankets to witness their vows and just as they were completing them, the sun shined through the clouds. The reception followed right after and the wind stopped. There were some big heaters which helped to keep those that weren't dancing, warm. This reception was a party that so many were looking forward to. Not only the bride and groom and family, but the different sides of my family that hadn't seen each other in 10-15 years were also very excited. It was an evening wonderful conversation, reconnecting with family and friends, great food, an awesome DJ, a beautiful setting, and a very happy bride and groom...and Charlei. I look forward to having another sister to share in whatever live brings this family and just making the most of this life...we only get one chance. Congratulations Nate and Rachel!!!

RECYCLING

My dog Choco cracks me up every single day. He has so much personality and he is incredibly expressive. Yesterday at lunch time I sent him back behind my house to do his business. He usually runs back there, does his thing and comes full sprint back to the front of the house. Sometimes he will stop and grab a pine cone along his journey as he is a retriever at his core and has high hopes that I will throw to him for a while. When he came back to the front of the house yesterday, he had picked up an empty plastic water bottle that someone had left back there. He comes bolting back, head held high, as if to say "Hey Mom, is this one of those bottles that can be recycled?" (I am pretty sure he probably wasn't actually thinking that but I like to think he is a bit smarter than he actually is). The recycling bin sits right by his kennel and so I showed him where to drop the bottle and he did it. He is so stinkin' cute. Thanks for being so environmentally conscious Choco! I wish more people would think like you do! We really need to start checking in with ourselves and making sure we are doing as much as we can on a daily basis to help the planet. We were put on this earth for a reason and we only get one chance...