This year, and every year after let's challenge ourselves to make the season more about giving and less about receiving. One random act of kindness can impact someone's life in a miraculous way. A great way to start helping others during the holiday is by listing the top Christmas traditions you enjoy, then finding a manner to share these traditions with someone affected by economic, social, physical or educational disadvantages in the following four areas: education, health, military, and children & family. These are the communities that need most. If you don't know anyone within your own ..read more

Stop worrying about running to the mall to pick up a gift that will probably end up in someone's draw. For those wanderlust, "I want to see the world" loved ones, there is nothing better than the gift of travel. The gift of travel is a sure way to enrich someone's life, and become a part of beautiful memories made. Let's face it. The top 2 reasons people don't travel enough is #1. They don't have the surplus income to do so. #2. They believe they don't have enough time. Don't worry too much about number #2 because once #1 is no longer a problem, somehow they miraculously find the time! What b ..read more

Am I the only one that thinks Google, Expedia and all the other flight search engines are spying on us and strategically raise the prices before we get to book? Now Airline and Online Travel websites typically access your IP address, but they claim to do that in order to provide accurate location-related information like language and currency. Airline flight prices are supposedly not manipulated based on our searches so is this a travel hack or waste of time? Nonetheless, I found it interesting enough that a flight's price changes after searching it a few times in our web browser, and had to t ..read more

As the snow thaws, the crocuses wilt and the lawns are uncovered, I can't help but wonder when the dandelions will surface. That burst of sunflower yellow in deep contrast to the green grass standing upright in it's proud and defiant stance. Letting us know that no matter how hard we try to eradicate them, they will return. After all, they have a very important job. They are the one of the first sources of nourishment for the beloved bees. Their deep, wide spread roots also help to loosen the soil under the grass. In essence they help to aerate and reduce erosion. They are the early farmers of ..read more

The other day, I came across a beautiful post from an insightful woman that evoked deep thoughts of true self love.A love that I typically identified with the love of a mother. That unconditional love irrespective of flaws and mistakes. Unconditional Self Love The kind of love where you feel like there is nothing that can stand in the way of protecting your child, and God bless anyone who tries to hurt them. That nurturing love when they are at their lowest, not well or in danger. The love that doesn’t care whether they have a vicious temper, made the worst mistakes, or committed a crime. Embr ..read more

Broiled Apple Sage Pork Chops Ingredients: 2 Lean Boneless Pork Chops - fat trimmed, about the size of your palm. Juice of One Apple Crisp Apple - You can also put the apple in the blender and smear the apple sauce on both sides of the pork chop. Tablespoon of Balsamic Vinegar Sage Rosemary Himalyan Sea Salt Black Peppercorn Marinate boneless pork chops in apple juice while chopping vegetables for the salad (approximately 15-20 minutes). If you smeared the natural apple sauce on the pork chop, remove the excess prior to seasoning. Pour Balsamic Vinegar over both sides. Season both sides of t ..read more

I often wonder if I was a general in the military in a past life. A futurist who looked at things and saw the art of making the impossible possible without regard for my true self. A warrior flying a fighter plane on autopilot with tunnel vision. Focused on a preconceived vision for the future. Luckily, I paused long enough to realize that I had won the battle and lost the war. I was so busy making sure I was in control, my thoughts were actually controlling me. I was overwhelmed with anxiety brought about by expectations for the future. Many times worrying for no apparent reason. Thoughts Ca ..read more

Playing goes beyond learning, modeling and improving coordination. It's not just for children either. Healing Power In Play Playing is also a natural way to discharge tensions, release energy and disarm ourselves while having fun. Play helps us discover our inner child, can has other healing powers: helps relieve stress, develops & improves social skills, develops focus & improves cognitive brain function, stimulates the mind and boosts creativity, improves relationships and your connections to others, keeps you feeling young and energetic, and helps heal emotional wounds. So use you ..read more

Mother Nature teaches us so much. All we need to do is look at our surroundings, and all that has been created. Stop and look around. Emulate the trees in the quest for growth. They do an extraordinary job of adapting and surviving natural elements. Grow Like The Trees by Ev Sullivan if we learn only one thing in our quest for growth, May it be to uncover that original center. May we dig until we uncover our roots. Strengthening ourselves from the inside out Instead of focusing on our branches, And the beauty of our leaves. Grow like the trees. May we stand tall, strong and unwavering. Knowing ..read more

Can we be honest? Triggers are not always bad. Triggers can help point out we still need to heal after experiencing trauma. In essence, triggers can be a little nudge toward self-reflection and the self-care we need. They can be healing indicators. When we avoid these indicators, what we are doing is avoiding triggers instead of identifying the actions that caused us to fear those triggers. Unfortunately, triggers often frighten us. We tend to avoid people that behave in manners that make us uncomfortable. This avoidance doesn't help us heal. It avoids solving the problem and delays healing. W ..read more