The Scalloped Easel card is going to my lovely Personal Trainer, Sharon, from Jigsaw Fitness.  I think that Sharon has single-handedly kept me sane over the last 12 months.  Being an ex-nurse, and of similar age, she is very aware of my ‘complex nature’ and has been gently firm with me.  I actually enJOY coming home from personal training because I feel so much better after the workout.  [I do confess to not always being excited about going in the first place!]

And, yesterday, it was Lovely Jenny’s birthday.  We are meeting with the ‘craft girls’ to have brunch at our favourite local restaurant.  I made Jenny the gorgeous Double Pocket Purse which holds a coordinating card and a little gift book (all about JOY!) – it’s like Tracey Old designed the Purse to fit the little book!   

I think that Jenn Picard and Tracey Old are two of my favourite-ist UStamp with Dawn designers.  I find myself gravitating to their projects, each UStamp session (there’s a new one from Jenn, just this last couple of days, which I am hanging out to make) and the end result always brings such JOY.

Thanks, Girls!

Happy Birthday, Sharon & Jenny!

~  the Full Moon shining brightly into a darkened bedroom

~  the smell of Fresh Bread baking in the kitchen

~  appreciating the Full Blown Roses in a vase on the craft display shelf

~  knowing there is Home Made Pumpkin & Vege Soup for lunch

~  being able to support late risers who run out the door and leave lights on and jobs not done (still working to get in alignment with this JOY!)

~  being able to help out with dead car batteries while dealing with early morning car fumes rushing into the house and up my nose

~  indulging in a little “Birthday Magic” while organising gifts and cards

~  receiving fabulously supportive and inspiring emails from lovely friends

~  knowing I can spend the day working in Angel space …

Ahh, JOY.

Actually, Sunday started fine.  I got up and had a fabulous morning coffee and began my Swaps for Lovely Ozzimum’s Team Swap, due next week.  Although challenging, my design turned out ok, in the end.  It was freezing cold when I went outside to the car – oh, my goodness.  Thanks to whomever designed Fingerless Gloves ~ I LOVE them!  I wrapped up my hands in my favourite gloves, popped the heater on, turned on Doreen Virtue and drove off to the Supermarket.  The Deli girl was lovely.  The ideas for meals were being stimulated.  The Butcher created a fabulous Roast Pork meal with easy to follow instructions.  The Checkout Operator was Just Gorgeous! 

And, I realised that I was feeling crappy. 

So, I treated myself to coffee and a magazine, before going home (after all, the temperatures outside were about the equivalent of the inside of my fridge so I figured my frozen goods would be ok for half an hour).  It was wonderful.

And, as I walked out of the bakery, back towards the car, I passed a mother and her small child.  The child was intrigued and filled with wonder at the fountain … it was then that I realised that sometimes, when life is being crappy, you have just got to get off your backside and Notice the “Little” Things.

So I did.

I noticed the Raven as I walked to the coffee shop, chatting away to itself (or that’s what it looked like) then to me.  I noticed the fabulous ‘oldies’ music in the coffee shop, then realised I could sing ALL the words (what does that say about my age??! LOL).  My coffee was just delightful.  My magazine was stimulating.  And … there was what looks to be a fantastic recipe for Rhubarb Muffins!  What a bonus! 

If I hadn’t decided to take myself out for coffee, I wouldn’t have bought the magazine and found a recipe I am excited to try. (Translation: Crappy Energy becomes Happy Energy.)

If I hadn’t rung my nephew for his 3rd birthday, I wouldn’t have spoken to my brother and heard the Happiness in his voice about spending time with his grand-daughter.  (Translation: Feeling Crappy can be counteracted by Chatting with Happy People.)

If I hadn’t had to go grocery shopping alone, I wouldn’t have Noticed all the “Little” Things. (Translation: Be Proactive.  Get off your arse and Find the JOY.)

If I hadn’t decided to start writing the JOY EXPRESS newsletter, years ago, I wouldn’t have known about Noticing the “Little” Things. (Translation: JOY occurs Everywhere, All the Time.  You’ve just got to stop long enough to realise that it’s there and you CAN notice it.)

So, why was I/am I crappy?  I’m crappy because I have spent a whole week not talking to the people I normally talk to (largely because they were sick or their kids were sick or they were stressed with work or they were away) and I haven’t been able to share what’s on my mind.  I have had a sore neck, a sore shoulder, a headache on and off for the week;, life is busy, and full and I have to make all the decisions – usually without any interest from family members and no appreciation for the fact that I do make all the day to day decisions; the weather has been GREY and dull and damp and cold; and I am ready for a holiday/time out/sunshine/peace and harmony.

See?

Back to feeling crappy.

Where did I find that ‘Happy Energy’?

Oh, that’s right.

It started out with a phone call to my nephew for his 3rd birthday (he was having meatballs for breakfast ) …

Ahhhh.  Being proactive, again.  Happy Energy is filling my awareness.  Noticing the “Little” Things …

Today is the Stampin’ Kids Workshop and our theme is Decorated Containers.  The girls will be bringing jars or bottles or tins to decorate and no doubt we’ll have paper everywhere!  I’ve been collecting coffee jars and milo tins over the last couple of months, in preparation for today, but I confess to being a Bit Inspired and find myself using them for lots of storage items.

I found these little spice jars in our local $2 shop and they are just perfect for buttons, designer hardware and clips.  I added some ribbon and tags using the Cute & Curly Stamp Set with the Curly Label and Oval Punches.  I also used up some more ‘old’ product from my stash … making way for all the new goodies coming out in the new Catalog!  Actually, that’s good decluttering and it allows me to think outside the box, a bit.

A recent project on UStamp got me to thinking and, as is the way of the Universe, when I was out shopping I found this fabulous “Keepsake Pail” which was perfect for the UStamp project by Penny Hanuszak … then I realised that I could use it for the Stampin’ Kids Workshop and decorated it accordingly.  If not for Penny’s fabulous project I wouldn’t have known about these variations on Paint Tins!  Thanks, Penny!  I did buy a smaller one, too, which might end up as the ’spooky luminary’ Penny designed.   The larger one is now the home of all my die cut shapes.

Now, I seem to be in the mindset of seeing a bottle or a jar or a can as a potential “Decorated Wonder” and my stash is ever increasing. LOL.  I have an intimate relationship with the Eucalyptus Oil, too, which is my new best friend for cleaning off that sticky label glue.  I am sure that my day, last week, spent cleaning jars was also GREAT for my Health and Wellbeing!

And, he is often tormented by that same magnificence.  It really is hard work living with such an extrovert personality and larger than life attitude to, well, life.

What I Love about him is his Passion.  He knows what he wants, and what he loves, and he goes out and gets it.  He knows he is Magnificent.

Today, I am off to “Angel World”, my Day of Indulgence at Essence of Isis.  I LOVE being in the shop ~ I love the energy, the space and freedom, hanging out with Suzie, and being given the opportunity and permission to share Angel Readings with clients.  Really, it is my Bliss.

I LOVE feeling that I am Being All That I Can Be … that always happens when I am doing Angel things.  This coming week has lots of Angel Energy with Angel Brunch on Monday ~ a variation on the regular ‘lunch’ session to change things up a bit ~ and workshop preparation for Saturday’s event, Let’s Talk Angels!  Whenever I am indulging in this energy I feel great!  Oh, and it’s the full moon, so I will be making up my next crystal essence.  Woo Hoo!

Often a client comes for a reading because he or she is at a loss and doesn’t know how to move forward from where they are at.  Many people come and have a reading because they want answers.  Answers to all the questions of the Universe but mostly about Love and The Future.  It’s almost the exact opposite of why I used to have readings ~ I only wanted to visit the past, my Past Lifetimes and any previous incarnations I may have shared with people around me.  I guess that was my way of understanding the future … I found out about the past, gained understanding about relationships/choices/decisions then used that knowledge to help make decisions/choices in the here and now.

I began to gather the Pieces of Me and weave them into a tapestry of Michelle.  Which is how I started the journey to Discovering My Magnificence.

Many clients are kind of ‘beaten down’ with life and living and find themselves challenged on the self worth front.  I am there to remind them that they are wonderful, and loved by the Angels, and to reignite their connections with their own magnificence.  When we share that feeling of ‘Champagne Bubbles’, we realise that we really are Magnificent, and the world seems much more manageable.

Life really is all about Remembering Who We Are ~ Magnificent Souls, Magnificent People.

The second Colour Challenge at UStamp was to use Very Vanilla, Chocolate Chip and Basic Gray ~ fabulously stimulating colour combo!  I do struggle when there is no patterned paper which fits the challenge but found a little bit of Au Chocolat left over (from a couple of years ago) and added that to my Bird Punch card.  I am really happy with the end result.

 Continuing my theme of using very old Designer Series Paper in my stash, I created another version of Jenn Picard’s Scalloped Easel Card ~ this really is a super effective card style and can be made up in so many ways.  This one is for a friend’s birthday, next week.

I LOVE UStamp!

George Seaton ~ “Miracle on 34th Street”

This month’s theme at Meditation was “Faith”.  Funnily enough, it was only after the session that I happened to look down at my little “Expect a Miracle” Window Card and noticed that the message was all about the same topic (see above quote)!

Norma guided us through a meditation to visit that energy/space of “Faith” and my experience was most interesting.  I realised that Faith is a belief where no words are possible.  It’s difficult to describe, especially to others, and when visiting that space, I realised that my visualisation was unusual because I didn’t actually get a ‘picture’.  I always get pictures!  This time, all I saw was colour, which changed several times.  The non-dominant hand exercise which we completed after the meditation was hard to record for exactly the same reason – there really was no picture (and I get quite ‘thingy’ about recording what I see accurately, which is pretty hard when using my left hand!).

And I realised that “Faith” really is beyond words.  It just “IS”.

So, I’ve been contemplating this concept, how it fits into my reality and how I see the world.  One thing I have noticed as I’ve got older is that there is only one view on the way things are, and that’s the one which belongs to ME.  I have a perception of how things are which is tempered and influenced by external sources but essentially it’s just mine.  I can only BE all that I can be according to how I see things … not how others would prefer me to see things.  Which, on the whole, isn’t a huge issue until that approach to life – the one which involves Honouring ME – collides with the approach to life which I was brought up with. 

I find the contrast of being a child and being a parent a tricky line to walk.  But, if I adopt the same approach to parenting – that’s the one which honours how I view life – as I do to living my own life, I believe I am honouring my kids as individuals and equals, too.  The only time(s) this gets difficult is when their perception is radically different from mine!  But, eventually, I notice that they are wise, too.  They bring in new perspective, new approaches, fresh knowledge to living, and I benefit from that.

I believe in them.  I believe in ME.  “Faith” is not logical, nor describable.  It’s a belief which allows Me to live the best life I can, be True to Myself in the face of stiff opposition, and to still be JOY-ful.

I’ve been seriously stimulating All Morning!

Which is FABULOUS.  It’s like having caffeine injected straight into my veins (and on days like today a little coffee goes a Really Long Way!) on  a continuous drip!  Woo Hoo!

And, if I happen to shower in the morning, on a day like this, which I did this morning, then the combination of water and massaging my brain following on from my morning cuppa means IDEAS, IDEAS, IDEAS!  (and, I seem to need to write with lots of exclamation marks! LOL)

This tends to mean that I spend a lot of time bouncing around and not feeling very grounded.  Which is ok for a while but not great when I still feel the effects of the first coffee/idea of the day later that evening, or even the next day.

That bodes badly for the next week, or two, or three, because it is a sign that I am about to sleep less and that means I’ll be stressed more.

But, at least I know that!

I am still in Creative Mode ~ thank goodness for the July Creative Challenge Girls: Beverly, Davine and Jenny ~ which I’m thoroughly enJOYing.  I’ve done heaps of variations on a few of the awesome UStamp projects (another one is on the list for today) and I’ve been experiencing some lateral thinking regarding the Stampin’ Kids workshop, this weekend.  Ahh, it’s Very Exciting.

I’ve also enJOYed the stimulation I’ve received from the Creative Mode to try out some different meals …  the Vietnamese Soup was very successful but not quite perfect.  It’s a great excuse to try again!  I LOVE this type of food, especially since having experienced it at the Central Market in Adelaide while away on an amazing weekend with Angel Julie.  Gosh, that brings back fabulous memories!  Isn’t it wonderful when you can revisit food or other experiences which, in their original guise, came with such magickal energy?!  Last night, I made Thai Salmon Cakes from the Jamaica Blue booklet which Kels and I picked up last week, at breakfast.  They were yummy, too!

So, Brain Dumping is the next thing on my agenda – again!  I’ve already ‘dumped’ once, today, and obviously need to do it again.  I AM INSPIRED!  I am inspired to Create Workshops ~ Crystal & Angel & Stamping ~ and Make Fabulous Food ~ tasty and healthy ~ and I’m even inspired to catch up on the chores! 

Ideas, Ideas, Ideas … they are a neverending source of JOY.

I have had the most busy week of Being Creative!  July is the month for all things creative and a couple of girlfriends and I are just ‘creating’ away and sharing our passion and achievements with each other, via email.  This stunning Sweet Treat Flower project is my most recent creation and is based on a project by Lynn Sichky for the current round of UStamp with Dawn and Friends ~ Early Summer Edition.  It was So Much Fun to create!!  I even took the pieces in the car with me to stick together while I waited for Kels to come out of school.   This was my very first time of using the Sweet Treat Cups – Fun, Fun, Fun!

I have also fallen in love with Tracey Old’s Double Pocket Purse.  Ooh La La!  It was really easy to create (once I got my head around the folding directions – sometimes my brain just doesn’t work like other people’s!!)  I have been using and using the fabulously gorgeous Sunny Day Simply Scrappin’ Kit ~ gosh! It’s gone a long way.  What a fabulous investment!! 

I was So Thrilled with Tracey’s project that I created another one which I gave to Josh’s girlfriend for her birthday, this week.  It was the perfect size to pop in a gift card and the birthday card as well as hide a new crystal bookmark and a little glass ornament, in between the pockets!  I also used an old Simply Scrappin’ Kit from my stash – I LOVE the Bright Colours!  In fact, I was excited when I realised that I could use up a couple of different Designer Series Paper Pack Patterned sheets – it’s So Wonderful that Stampin’ Up! coordinates all their product!  The cute little book is just the right size for the pocket in the purse … guess what I will be making for the next round of birthday gifts?!

I have made up more UStamp projects, this round, than I’ve been able to in the last couple of sessions.  Time has been on my side and my ‘need to be creative’ has been in overdrive!  In fact, I gave myself a little talking to, this morning, and suggested that maybe I could make some cards?  LOL.

Maybe it’s the stimulation of creating the Joy-Fold Card using Tempting Turquoise, Real Red and Old Olive that’s got me thinking about creating more cards.  This Colour Challenge is also from UStamp and I got to use even more of my favourite Sunny Day Scrappin’ Kit goodies.  I challenged myself to go a bit further than the rules of the challenge and not use Whisper White … I am pretty excited with the end result and it pushed me out of my comfort zone.  Yippee!

Ahh, Life Is Good with UStamp!  (Check out the next round, if you’re interested, because it’s all about CARDS!)

While being sidetracked on creating cards, chocolate covers, double pocket purses etc, I have been trying to ignore the “5 Year Plan” thoughts … I just don’t know where I’ll be or what I’ll be doing and I am even a bit scared of committing to doing something ‘just in case’ it goes awry.

But, I didn’t realise that those things I mentioned before were even possible in my “10 Year Vision” (this is why it’s great to go and have an Angel or Tarot Reading – it stimulates those otherwise dormant thoughts about what you might like to achieve in life).

I’ve been thinking about what I could set as goals for the next 6 months, what I am likely to achieve between now and the end of the year, and I find myself, yet again, reticent to Make a Commitment.

Why is that?

My artistic/creative side doesn’t like to be ‘locked in’ and it’s influencing my decisions a LOT, at the moment.  I am So Inspired to Be Creative!  Being Practical has been a challenge although I think I am able to ‘convince’ my Creative ME that my Practical ME needs a little time, today … cleaning, and Angel Workshop Preparation, MUST be a priority. LOL. [I can hear Creative ME already: "but, but, but ..."]

So, an easier way to commit myself to something is to think about what life may look like in 5 years time … it’s sufficiently far enough away that I can’t feel threatened by the commitment or the Fear of Success issues I experience or anything else.

In 5 year’s time …

my health will be in Great Shape

I will have a consistent income and be well on my way to being Financially Independent

I will have travelled to all the parts of Australia that I have ever wanted to see

I will be Living My JOY and Sharing that JOY with many people around me

Kels will be close to the end of her schooling and I will be close to the end of my more immediate parenting responsibilities

I will have my own car

My business premises will be organised/arranged and I will be in the process of refining my team of practitioners

I/we will be Giving Back to the Community ~ not sure how, yet

“Expressing JOY” will be my mantra.

Gosh! It still amazes me what comes through when I write these lists of thoughts about life in the future.  I feel they are a bit repetitive but that’s where my life is at, right now.  A lot of my ‘holding back’ comes from having a 12 year old who still needs her mother’s involvement (although not as much as before ) and that will naturally change as time moves forward.

Hmm.

Food for thought.

Maybe I might be able to think about what I want to achieve for the rest of this year now that I have broken down the next 10 years a little bit. 

By the end of the year I will have …