Inspiring families to find their happy place.

Amaze Yourself & Live Life

February 26, 2012 by 18 Comments

Sun, come get me by wollygrom. Found via Creative Commons on Flickr

The lovely Patti Digh’s book, “Life Is a Verb: 37 Days to Wake Up, Be Mindful, and Live Intentionally,” is written and illustrated beautifully — all to provide one very profound statement.

We could all die at any moment.

It happened to her stepfather: diagnosed with lung cancer he was given only 37 days to live. Life is a Verb is about living life to its fullest, right here, right now.

So what about today?

Are you busy planning life or are you busy  living life? Are you thinking about next week, next month or next year or are you focused on TODAY?

Are you standing around waiting for the perfect moment to take that leap? Are you sitting around gathering all the right details for just the perfect moment to finally make that important decision that may change your life?

Are your children patiently waiting to play tomorrow or this weekend or do they want your attention RIGHT NOW?

Are you happy with what you did today? Is it enough for you?

'Life's Too Short' photo (c) 2007, Seth Anderson - license: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0/

Let’s set this week’s intention together, shall we?

Let’s vow to start doing a whole lotta living. Let’s create memories instead of hoping for them. Let’s make them happen instead of sticking them on some to-do list that gets lost in the shuffle.

Let’s start taking an active, front-seat, wind-in-our-faces role in TODAY.

Let’s do less talk, and more WALK. {Unless talking and connecting is one of those things you need to do more of, of course!}

This weekly intention might manifest itself in different ways for different people. Some are already living more than others, I’m sure. What does it mean to you?

Less Pinning? Less Facebook? Less cleaning? Less worrying? Less doubt? Less fear?

More Yeses, perhaps?

It might mean getting up earlier.

It might mean staying up later.

It may mean packing a pair of extra shoes in the car, so you can’t use your heels as an excuse for why you can’t take that hike today after work.

It may mean slipping away from work for a day. It may mean skipping school, too.

It may mean chasing pink skies.

It may mean coming to a full stop and just enjoying life.

No matter what, I’m pretty sure that on my last day I won’t be wishing I waited around for life to happen more. And, of course, that’s not the idea behind Awesomely Awake. I started this project to LIVE more intentionally. Not just to be intentional. This is why I’ve already taken a personal vow to stop caring too much and start taking action on short-term projects — things that can be easily accomplished and crossed off this year.

Later this week, we’ll offer two posts to help you take hold of this intention with more thought and follow through so that you can make it work for you …

Mary Oliver knows.

[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=16CL6bKVbJQ&w=560&h=315]

Tell me, what memories need to be made in your life right now? What living should be done today? What dreams are sitting on a dark shelf in a dark closet waiting to be dusted off? Share here and set them free …

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Filed Under: Abundant Mamas, Intentional Parenting, Mindful Living Tagged With: , , , , ,

Simple guide to Awake Living

December 29, 2011 by 4 Comments

We all want to have good days. We all strive for happy days, not sad ones. We all desire pleasure and smiles and goodness. We all just want to be seen and honored and respected.

And yet.

And yet we find ourselves wading neck deep in stacks and stacks of to-dos. Just one more thing and I’ll feel as if I’ve accomplished everything! Just one more. Just one more.

We never stop at just one. A lot like potato chips. Or, in my case, truffles.

But the way to stay happy is just to stay awake. Awake to the goodness. Awake, even, to the chaos.

Today could have been a rough morning. I swear my little girls called my name Mommy — for that is one of my names — every 5 seconds over the course of two hours. It was abnormally chaotic. Not a bad day, which we also have from time to time — just one of those days when you try to sweep the crumbs up from breakfast and every two sweeps, someone was tapping your shoulder saying, “Mommy …”

Surrender. Give in. Wake up. Tear up the lists. Throw the broom. Step over the crumbs. Quit trying so hard to be perfect. Give up aiming for perfection. Smile. Breathe. Laugh at the crazy. Be the crazy. Dance. Wiggle. Wear silly glasses.

Remember that these moments are just that, momentary. They are fleeting like thin, sparkling bubbles. They change shape at the blink of an eye. They disappear into thin air like a cloud of dust.

Awake at home, which I strive to be, means saying enough is enough of what I want to do or need to do and forces me to step away and live life to the fullest. Like building really terrible, falling down marble runs. Or being a terrible marshmallow sculpture builder. Motherhood isn’t perfect and neither am I.

Of course, I can say this because I’m writing for the second day in a row on winter break. I have time to stay awake, tackle the to-do list and also do a few things for just me. Most days I have zero minutes for anything other than what has to be done for others, including my boss, my staff at work, my husband and children and my community. Usually, my needs and desires are last on the list.

But, what I’ve learned is that the only real thing I have to do for myself is just Stay Awake.

I’m pretty sure that I have time for that. It’s not always the easiest thing to do. Or the sexiest — like writing a book. Or the most relaxing, like a bath.

But it’s always possible at every moment of every single day of my life. Even as a Mama.

The crumbs did get picked up. The rest of the house, however, is an utter mess.

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Filed Under: Abundant Mamas, Intentional Parenting, Playful Living Tagged With: , , ,