"If you want your life to be a magnificent story, then begin by
                                     realizing you are the author and everyday is a new page."
                                                                                                                    Mark Halahan
I really like the above quote.  It give such power to each day and to new beginnings.  I am a person who loves many things and I keep questioning whether this keeps me from being really good at something.  But I have decided that this is who I am and and even if I wanted to change I couldn't, so why worry about it.
I think finding your passion in life is so important.  For me there are many things I am passionate about and that often changes from day to day.  So I guess that is why I was attracted to the above quote.  I want to remember that each day is a new beginning, a new day to learn, a new day to experience life, and a new day to find something that makes my eyes light up with excitement.  So as the author of my life, I want to be passionate about living and experiencing life.   If I can get really good at that, who could ask for more?  Do your passions change?  What excites you most now?  I would love to hear and learn more about what you like to do each day so that the list of things I am learning about can continue to grow. 

PS  As I finished writing this post, I realized exactly what I want to focus on. I want to focus on learning more and more about all the wonderful things in this world that I know nothing about.  Then I want to share that knowledge with others so that the things they are passionate about can also continue to grow.

                        "Instead of giving reasons why I can't, I give myself reasons why I can." 
                                                                                                                     Author Unknown

I was really excited on Wednesday when so many people expressed an interest in an online support group for healthy living.  Living a healthy life is something I strive for and work hard to maintain but for me it is always easier when I am sharing the journey with others who are on the same road.  If you read my About Page, you will learn that 15 years ago I lost a large amount of weight.  I have maintained most of my weight loss but like many people I need to stay viligant in order to keep the weight off.  I am not an expert on weight loss but I do know what worked for me back then and what works for me now.  I'd love to share a little of my experience and learn more about yours.  I hope that this will be a place where we can share our successes, set goals for the upcoming week, talk about what is and is  not working, and most of all help and encourage each other. Please leave a comment and feel free to reply to each other's comments.  I will try to reply to all comments that are left on this post.  I have never done that before but I hope we can keep a conversation going.  If you have any suggestions on a better format, please let me know.
My goal this week is to walk more.  When I initially lost all of my weight I did not exercise while I was losing weight.  If I was going to do it all over again (hopefully I will never need to), I would definitely exercise while I was losing weight.  Right now I lift weights twice a week, practice yoga twice a week, and hardly ever walk.  So my goal for the week is to walk at least five times. I plan to walk first thing in the morning before it gets hot.   I try to make my goals as specific as possible and then visualize myself doing whatever the goal is.  This seems to work for me.
I hope that you will stop by every Sunday and let us know how things are going for you.  I really think it will be fun to meet others who share the same dream.  I know that it would have been very hard for me to lose my weight without the support of lots of people.  I would love to hear about the steps you plan to take this week towards living a healthier life.
Ginny
PS  Ceanne left a comment on Wednesday that www.myfitnesspal.com is a wonderful free tool to have.  Thank you so much Ceanne!!
PPS  I read somewhere this week that when you say no to one thing you are saying yes to something else.  So I am saying NO to eating foods that are not good for me and YES to feeling great!!!

It's the end of the week and time to reflect upon all that happened especially those things that made me happy and smile.  Watching my oldest grandson graduate from preschool definitely brought both a smile to my face and a few tears to my eyes.  He loves music and singing and dancing so being before a live audience made his day.  It also brought back memories of all of the kindergarten classes I taught and how long we had to prepare for each of our performances.  But as I watched the smiles on both the children and parents' faces, I realized once again, how important those special moments were for everyone involved. 
I've also thought alot this week about how nice it is to meet and get to know people who love what they are doing.  A year ago we brought home an adorable white Bichon.  Well, she has turned out to be a challenge.  But recently we met a trainer who loves what he does and has helped us tremendously.  Now, Chloe's behavior is as cute as she is.  This experience has reinforced the belief that I have that I should surround myself with people who not only know what they are doing but are passionate about it as well.  It is so inspiring to share time with people who are passionate about their work and hobbies. They don't have to shout their passion from the rooftops but they do need to be willing to share their love of whatever it is they love to do with the world and especially me.  It is fun to learn new things from people who are excited about what they do each day.
So this week I have had fun watching young children sing and dance, watching small dogs learn how to behave, and meeting people who love what they do.  I've also had fun making this list.  Each week before I start this post I am always a little unsure of what to write.  And then one idea turns into two or three and all of a sudden I realize that my week has been great and that as always I have alot to be thankful for.  And once again I am reminded that it is the simple things that make life great.  What thing, big or small, made you smile this week?

Wednesday means making wishes with Jamie at Jamie Ridler Studios.  Today's question was, "What do you wish for your health?"  I wish for my health to stay strong and through my efforts get even stronger.  As you age, you realize how very important your health is.  There are things that happen that we have no control over but there are also things we can do everyday to make sure that we stay as healthy as possible.  For me, that means eating right and walking more.  I do believe in the mind, body and spirit connection and I work hard to make sure that all three things are in balance each day.  I don't take my health for granted anymore.  I realize how important it is for me to stay focused on making sure that my body has what it needs to stay healthy.  My mother had all kinds of sayings that when I was young I never paid attention to.  But I have to agree with her when she said, "health is wealth".
So I am going to keep doing everything possible to keep that account full.  How do you stay healthy?

PS  After reading just a few posts I had an idea.  What if we formed online support group?  I would be glad to start this.  If you are interested, just let me know.  
Ginny
PPS  I've already had several people say they thought the idea of a support group would be great.  I already post a quote on Sunday so I thought I would make that the day we could offically support each other with ideas, comments, goals, etc. where we celebrate our accomplisments and set goals for the upcoming week.  I hope that you will join me this Sunday.  Thank you Jamie for another great inspiring Wishcasting Wednesday.

 

 This week I have been thinking alot about accomplishments and what I have accomplished in my life.  I was at a class last week and people were discussing whether or not they had accomplished anything in their life and one person was unsure.  I felt so sorry for her.  She did not realize that everyday we accomplish many many things both large and small.  We are all different so for each of us a list of what we have accomplished in our lifetime will look different but we all have a list.  You don't have to paint a masterpiece, write a best seller, or star in a Broadway play to have accomplished something.  
What I find fascinating is that each stage of life presents us with different challenges and thus different accomplishments.  It is wonderful to look back and celebrate what I have already accomplished and exciting to look forward to new goals and challenges. I don't take my accomplishments for granted nor do I brag about them but I am very very proud of what I have already acccomplished and look forward to adding new things to my list of accomplishments because that means that I am continuing to grow and learn and change.  For me that is the biggest accomplishment of all!  What are you proud of accomplishing?

                   "Great things are accomplished by talented people who believe they will accomplish them."
                                                                                                                      Warren G. Bennis

Well, it is Friday again and time to think about all the things that made me happy this week.  The first thing that definitely came to mind is the award that I received from Ana.  Ana's blog is called The Artistry Collective. The great thing about blogging is that you meet new people and hopefully through your words or pictures or art touch them in some sort of way.  So Ana thank you so much for this award.  When you accept this award you are to share seven things about yourself with your readers.  You are also asked to pass the award on to others which I thought would be fun to do today.  
Here are seven things you may already know about me if you read my blog but that are important to me:

1.  I love spending time with my family.  My grandsons are always teaching me new things.  They make me laugh and smile and remember what it is like to be young.  

2.  Although, I am no longer in the classroom being a teacher is still part of who I am.  I love to learn new things and then share what I have learned with others.  

3.  Since I have retired, I have met many new people who have introduced me to many new things.  I have rediscovered the creative side of my personality and I am enjoying exploring who I am as a creative person.  It is fun acknowledging and sharing your creativity with others. I was creative as a teacher but now I am being creative in a whole new way.

4.  Yoga has opened up a whole new world for me.  I feel stronger, I can move better, I've meet a whole new community of friends, and I think differently.  It is something that has changed my life forever and for the better.

5.  I love making my home comfortable for my husband and I.  I believe less is more and so I decorate simply but with things that have meaning to us.  I am not a person who redecorates often so when I buy something I really love it.  I love soft colors on the wall and accent with bright colors.  I cannot stand clutter so I am always giving things away or throwing them out.  

6.  When I go on vacations I like to go to the ocean or the mountains depending on the time of year.  My favorite place is the beach.  Any beach will do but the Jersey shore brings back such great memories that I always love to go there.  Plus, as an added bonus I get to see my family at the same time. 

7.  My friends are very important to me.  I have friends that I have had for years and years and it is so nice to have been able to share so many wonderful times with them.  Recently, I have met so many new people both in person and through my blog.  Meeting new people and learning about their interests and lives helps me to grow.  I have been inspired to continue to learn about all types of things that I didn't even know I had an interest in by hearing about their passions in life.

So those are seven things that hopefully will help you to know me a little better.  As I was writing them, I  realized that they are seven things that are very important to me and that always make me happy.  As I wrote, I was also reminded of how lucky I am that I can enjoy six of the seven things that I listed each and everyday.  (I can't go to the beach or mountains everyday but I can go to the lake ).  So Ana, once again thank you for the award as well as for giving me the opportunity to list seven things about myself that make me happy.

I would like to pass The Versatile Blogger Award on to four very different blogs that I enjoy.  I think you will too!
                                                                Here and Now
                                                                A Sharing Connection
                                                                Erins Art Journal    
                                                                April Cole's Studio

Have a great weekend.  I would love to learn more about what made you happy this week.
                                                                


 

At first I thought this was an easy question that Jamie posed.  We all have dreams and hopes and wishes.  But then I decided to take a minute and really think about what it is that I haven't said to myself or anyone else for a very long time so that this wish could be special.  If I am going to take the time to dream and wish, then I want the wish to be big and meaningful.  I don't dream very often so in my daytime, wide awake dream, I have finished the book that I am now writing.  I have not had a difficult time finding a publisher and my book is in the stores and doing very  well.  I'd like to be modest but if I'm telling the truth in this dream my book is a best seller and I am traveling around the country meeting my fans who just love reading my book and can't wait for the next one.  When I put my dream into words and visualize myself doing all of this, it feels exciting and just right.  So thanks Jamie for asking another great question. I have learned that if you put your dreams out there, they can come true.  So now, I have to end this post so that I can get back to writing my best seller and make all my dreams come true.

Saturday I was fortunate to attend a really great class on poetry writing and self publishing. When I got there at 9am I was the only one in attendance and when I left I walked out the door with the speaker because I was the only one lucky enough (or smart enought) to attend.  When I realized that I would be the only student, I assured the teacher that I would be glad to attend another one of his classes and he quickly assured me that he would be delighted to meet with me one on one.  So that is what we did and I was so fortunate to have gone to meet this author.  He is a self published writer of poetry on cowboys.  I have never written poetry.  I am definitely not knowledgable about cowboys and I have never published anything.  Yet, this class was so interesting not only because the subject matter turned out to be fascinating but because the teacher was so passionate about what he was doing.  He believed in sharing his knowledge and passion and he did that with zeal.  He was also very persistent.  When he wrote his book of poetry he decided to self publish.  He was very honest and told me all of the good and bad points in doing this.  He would do it again despite some problems and he encouraged me to look into this if the time came that I wanted to publish my book. 
I think what impressed me most about this author was his passion for his subject matter.  He loved what he was writing about, had a wealth of knowledge, and could bring his poem alive through the words he used to describe the life of a cowboy.  He inspired me to keep on writing but also to always do something that I am passionate about.  He also inspired me to share that passion with others. 
I often write about transitional times in a woman's life.  My stories always have happy endings with the woman becoming self-reliant and strong!  I want to encourage women of all ages to follow their heart and their dreams.  So often we put everyone else first and my goal is to encourage women to also think of themselves.  This is what I want to be the theme of my stories and hopefully will come through in my paintings as well.  I know I have the passion and now I need to remain true to my vision and keep on creating.  I know by being persistant and never giving up I will reach my goal of living a full exciting creative life that encourages and inspires others to do the same.  What are your passions?  Are you persistent in following your dreams?  I would love to know more about what you love to do.