Mindful Moments in the Messiness of Life
That’s how this blog was started. With the “Messy” thoughts I share to see if other people can relate to them.
Why Being a “Mompreneur” Isn’t Actually a Good Thing
I tried to keep it all neat and tidy, I really did. I work from home during school hours and then put on my “Mom” hat at 2:00 p.m. But of course, life happens and nothing about parenting is neat and tidy. There are sick days, calls from the nurse’s office...
“Help! My Son’s Friend Is Being Mean” – Mindful Tips for Preteens and Teenagers That Every Parent Should Know
This post may contain affiliate links. Please read our disclosure for more info. When my 12-year old was having some challenges with one of his friends, he and I took to google to try to find information on how to handle it. We saw many parents had...
What Everyone Needs to Know About Grief BEFORE Loss
What Illusionist Adam Trent Said That Made Me Cry
This summer we saw Illusionist Adam Trent at the Segerstrom Center for the Arts. If you haven’t been there it’s a huge venue and it was pretty crowded for a “magic show.” The show itself was entertaining, especially for my boys ages 8 and 10. BUT as a parent, this...
Top 5 Surfing and Yoga Retreat Destinations (We’re Dying to See!)
Emily from retreathub has done the work for you to know where to host your next yoga/surf retreat and why in the world you would combine the two! Surfing and yoga as a pair has been growing in popularity for many years and for good reason. Yoga and surfing are both...
The Time My Departed Mom Popped into Yoga
I don’t think anyone was more surprised than I was when my Mom popped into my head in yoga shouting, “It wasn’t sad!” “It wasn’t sad!” I had known she was still around. I had known I could sometimes feel her presence. I had been to a medium and had it...
Is the School System Supporting Our Kids or Failing Them?
I’ve been noticing millennials increasingly voicing that the college/university system isn’t working for them. They are graduating with large debts, high interest rates, low paying entry level jobs that provide marginal increases (see The Impact Of Student Loan Debt...
My Daughter Is Not Going to College and I’m Proud of Her
In all the years I’ve had a Facebook account, I haven’t seen a proud parent post around this time of year that their High School graduate son or daughter isn’t going to college. So in the spirit of rebelling against the system, I am going to be the first....
If You Are Sensitive, Overwhelmed in Crowds or by the News, You May Be Empathic (And How to Support It)
Once I understood I was empathic (the ability to understand and share the feelings of others), I was so relieved because it explained so much! It explained so much of what I was feeling, sensing, FEARING, which did not make sense. It explained why I could become...
Ugh…The Moment I Realized I Was Trying to Get My Son to Go Against Who He Is too Be “Cool”
My seven year old loves a birthday party more than anyone I know. Yes I know all kids love to celebrate their birthdays but in the past he would barely sleep the month before to the point where we were thinking "this kid just cannot handle a party." Even if it's just...
Why Surfers Should Do Yoga and Yogis Should Surf – Guest Post
A lot of people are genuinely surprised that yoga and surfing go well together. They’re two different things and you wouldn’t even think of using them in the same sentence before. If you’re a surfer, did you know that you can benefit from yoga? As a yogi,...
Redefining what it means to be “Strong” for Boys
Redefining what it means to be "Strong" for Boys When I first had my sons, I had this preconceived notion of what it meant to be strong. I thought it was falling down and not crying, not really needing to discuss emotions, being really assertive in sports,...
Supporting My Sensitive Sons Does NOT Make Them Wimpy (nor is it easy!)
I think it can make people really uncomfortable when kids cry. They fall, hurt themselves and the first thing we yell is “you’re okay!” We don’t know if they are okay or not but they are crying in public, sometimes loudly, and should they be? Does that mean they are...
10 Tips to Support Your Sensitive Child Today
Now that I'm aware I have sensitive children (one HIGHLY sensitive), I can recognize it in other kids and want to share the tools that have really helped me to honor their sensitivities and see it as the gift that it is, rather than the disruptive force that it used...
The Unexpected Heart Opener for Grief
When my Mom passed away I was heartbroken. My sister, mom, and I were like a triangle of connection. When you talked to one, the information got to the other. We all knew what was happening in each others lives and how each other was feeling. It was the kind of...
Is This More Challenging than an Actual Yoga Pose?
Yoga is challenging. Any time a pose seems easy for me it turns out I’m doing it wrong. The instructors will say things like, “Um…What happened here?” Or my personal favorite when I thought I finally got a pose down to perfect, “Are you this way because of an injury?”...
Is Bringing This to Yoga (or Any Class) Crossing a Line?
I scanned the room and noticed the class was almost full and saw that one of the only spaces available was near the open door. I prefer my yoga on the warmer side, but thankfully the day wasn’t too cold and as I rolled out my mat I wondered how I was going to do with...
Sarah’s Fight Led Me to Ask This One Question Every Morning
Who is Sarah Amento? I don't actually know. I did not know her personally when she started showing up on my Facebook feed because one of my friends was "liking" her "Fighting Cancer with Sarah Amento" posts. After a while the posts caught my attention and I began to...
How a Psychic Medium Can Help with Grief
Almost six years ago, my sister and I were having conversations about whether or not our straight-laced Mom could have taken up smoking pot. She was mentally sharp one minute and completely confused the next. She would call at 2:00 a.m. to talk...
The Best Parenting Advice I Ever Received Was the Simplest
Before we figured out my son's sensitivity to dyes (see our story here) and a better way to parent him, I was at the end of my rope. He was three and most days defiant from morning until night. Every day was a power struggle between us. Each night I would look up...
BEing with Uncomfortable Feelings
On our way out the door for the last day of preschool, my four-year old started crying and saying that he did not want there to be a last day. He apparently loved school so much he thought he could keep it from ending if he refused to go. I had no idea what to do....
Without Focus I Fall
I seem to get a lot of metaphors for life from doing yoga. I have been noticing lately that when I am holding a balance pose (especially if standing on one leg), if my thoughts creep in and I lose focus, I fall out of the pose. Some days I run in after a hectic...
To Pee or Not to Pee?
Our latest trip to Mammoth Lakes, has me wondering at what age, if any, are you too old to pee behind a bush? This question may be different for men than it is for women. For men, peeing in the woods is easy and does not require their naked...
Why Were We Talking About Kale When We Could’ve Been Talking About That?!
I had to laugh. Yesterday I was talking with two other moms while our kids were playing after school. We do this often so they can get their wiggles out before we go home to get dinner ready. We talk about recipes, how to sneak kale into smoothies or spinach into the...
Clepto Roommate? Wait…What?
I was thinking about how what seems normal in your teens and early twenties, is a little far-fetched later in life. Especially when it comes to roommates. When I was nineteen my first roommate situation wasn't working out and I had to find a new place and fast. My...
Who Wrote This? I Suspect the Kids…
I have been seeing this quote all over Pinterest about how good Moms have sticky floors, messy kitchens and happy kids. At first I thought it was a cute saying, but after a month of both kids home everyday for summer--I think it was written by the kids! Lately it...
We Sure Have More Grown Up Problems Than We Used To!
Yesterday I hosted a play date. Not exactly a play date, it was more of a goodbye party for our friend moving out of state. I met these four women 10 years ago at work. Since then, the company downsized but we all stayed friends. We worked together during several life...
Grief…Period?
My yoga teacher said you have to make sure that you do not carry around burdens in life like rocks in a backpack. He said that each one of us knows exactly which burden is the one we are carrying. When I heard this I immediately knew that for me this is the loss of my...
When I’m 90, I Might Need a Pedicure
I had the unexpected treat of not only being able to get a pedicure, but in the middle of the afternoon, on a weekday! It was relatively quiet and I could relax and people watch (which I love to do). As my feet were soaking, I saw an elderly...
DIY Espresso Stain Table Makeover
Transforming a worn-out old table is easy and well worth the time. I had considered buying a new dining room set until I priced them! With two small children, it seemed a much better choice to rescue the one we had and wait until they are older to decide if we want...
“I Can’t Wait All Minute!”
I have been taking the same Tuesday morning yoga class with the same teacher for over two and a half years now. I love the class and it has quite the following. The instructor also teaches a spin class right before it so he runs about two...
The Not-So-Lazy River
When my husband and I were in Las Vegas recently for our wedding anniversary, what we wanted most was a day by the pool. We picked Mandalay Bay because we heard it had a good pool and it turned out to be true. In the morning we laid out on lounge chairs...
Can We Raise Our Kids “Gratefully?”
A few weeks ago we took the kids whale watching. The boat had barely pulled out of the dock and the boys were so animated pointing to all the things they could see. “Look a buoy!” “Look a pelican!” They were just so excited to be on a boat and...
I Prefer a Dull Moment
That expression “Never a Dull Moment” certainly seems to apply to my life over the past several years. My husband travels frequently for work and it seems like if something can go wrong while he is away–it does! Yesterday he was in Connecticut...
Sometimes a Snowflake is More than Just a Snowflake
My five year old kept asking me to make snowflakes to hang from our curtain rod over our kitchen window. After a year we still do not have curtains there and it does look bare. I kept putting it off. Finally, we had lunch, I put my little one down for his nap and I...