Lessons Learned

This past Sunday, my girls and I went to mall for a girl day! After the hub-bub of Christmas was over, I thought it would be fun to use some of their holiday money and get some new clothes. Typical girl day out. We had so much fun! The girls, now 7 and 4, were like little ladies in their cute outfits and little hats and purses. Seriously, it was a blast.

We went to Target and got clothes, ate popcorn and then had a slushy. Then we got our photos taken in those little photo booths. Sooo hilarious! We walked around Jantzen Beach and then decided to go to Vancouver Mall. My 7 year old had a vision of exactly which dress she wanted to buy with the rest of her money.

So off we went to JCPenney. She knew right where she was going. Thankfully all the dresses she was looking at were on sale! We were having so much fun! She gave Ava and I a fashion show while she tried these dresses on! When we went to leave the dressing room we noticed her purse wasn't there. She was carrying this little pink sequin purse and it had her Dream Book and chapstick in it. Not much to us but meaning a whole lot to her. We couldn't find it anywhere.

She remembered where she hung it - on a dress rack. So we looked on every dress rack in the kids department. We went to customer service, to lost and found....still no purse. I was so sad for her. This wasn't the first time she had left something somewhere and my heart went out to her.

As a mother, I wanted to make it all better. I was hoping that it would just magically show up. Everything would be ok if that little purse just showed up. But it didn't and it wasn't there today when I called lost and found either.

She was very sad and disappointed and so were Ava and I. The lesson obviously for her was: be mindful with your personal belongings when you go out! Not only that but bring what is only necessary for the excursion! What a tough lesson! Heck, I know some adults that don't quite understand that lesson yet!

But what about the lesson for me? I can't fix everything and maybe a little disappointment for them is what teaches them they are responsible for themselves and their things. I'm not always going to be around. How sad I felt when I said that out loud and realized that truth.

What do I tell her? That some mean person took her purse? No - absolutely not. Yoga talks about ahimsa, compassion for all living things. We have compassion for whoever took the purse. Maybe they don't have cute things like that and they wanted it for themselves and they thought it was ok to steal it. Was it right? No - absolutely not. But do we get angry with that person? No. We have compassion for them. We release attachment to the item and move on. Hopefully whoever has her purse and Dream Book is enjoying it and getting the most out of it. It's their karma, not ours. We move on with a light heart.

This is a tough one isn't it? Why? Because our attachments to things is so strong. Because our need to control the outcome is so powerful. Instead, we let go and the Universe will take care of everything.

Thankfully we are blessed with lessons every day. Everyday we are offered the opportunity to see a higer version of our Self. Not always a fun movie to watch but almost always entertaining!

Have a great day!

New Year Detox!

It's that time....the beginning of a new year! Time for New Years Resolutions. How defeating "resolutions" can be! Instead - let's rephrase that to New Years Intentions. Sounds better doesn't it?

So here we go - the beginning of a New Year....what are some of your intentions? Is there a possibility that those intentions can continue on past March? Now that's always a challenge isn't it? I always hear people talk about dieting at the beginning of the New Year.

But instead of trying the newest fad diet - how about trying a cleanse? Pick a cleanse that resonates with you and do it! A cleanse has more substance than a diet - it's meant to cleanse the body and free it from stored up toxins.

My husband and I are doing a variation of the Fat Flush Plan...it's an incredible liver cleanse. Tons of veggies, cranberry juice and water, one serving of protein, one serving of fruit. Get this:

no caffeine, no sugar, no dairy, no starch, no spices, no alchohol, no beans, no nuts....basically nothing but organically grown, from the ground, food.

For me it's much easier to look at challenges like this as a cleanse than a diet. I have no expectations except to clean out my liver...which most of us could probably use! So this New Year, try that instead...cleanse, purge and be free of as many toxins as you can......so when summer and then the holidays roll around again you will feel GREAT!

To all of you dieting right now .... or cleansing ... share any info you have of any cleanses you have done would you? This one may not work for everyone and it would be great to see if what you have to offer does!

Wish me luck! Got through one day without cheating!

Peace and Happy New Year!