"Slow down and enjoy life.  It's not only the scenery you miss by going too fast -
                                you also miss the sense of where you are going and why."                   Eddie Cantor

I spent a lot of time thinking about and creating a small space that I could enjoy in my backyard.  I had fun picking out the pillows and the chairs to make it bright and inviting.  I found a painting I loved that matched the color of the small rug that I placed in just the right spot. I could picture myself sitting and reading and enjoying this spot all summer long.  I enjoyed every minute of the process of creating this special place just for me.  And today I realized that I wasn't using it.  My mind has taken me to the next project, the next thing to do.  

Luckily the summer has just begun and the window of opportunity to enjoy this space has not passed.  As I sat there this morning reading and thinking I realized how lucky I was that I took a moment to realize what I was about to miss.  It's too hot to use this space in the middle of the day but it's a perfect place to begin each morning and to end each day.  I write all of the time about the importance of enjoying the process of creating.  But as I reminded myself this morning it is also important to enjoy the completion of a project and not to just move on to the next thing.  

                                                      What would you like to enjoy this week?  

             When you share your dreams and your talent with the world, magic happens.  Let the magic begin!
                                                                                                                                          Ginny

       "Joy does not simply happen to us.  We have to choose joy and keep choosing it every day."                                                                                                                               Henri J.M. Nouwen

Joy is definitely a part of living a creative life. It's important to look for and celebrate each joyous moment that occurs throughout the day.  It's important to take the time to appreciate the little things that you experience as well as the big accomplishments or achievements.  The big moments will come during a lifetime but it is the small things that are there for us to enjoy each day.  For each of us joy looks and feels a little different.  It's personal and does not need to be explained but it's my belief that if we share our joy and joyful moments it's easier for others to do the same.  Sharing a smile with a stranger can bring happiness to both. Taking the time to listen to and then support the dreams of a child can enrich the life of both as well. 

It's only ten o'clock in the morning but the day has already been filled with joy.  Appreciating the flowers on my deck as I ate breakfast filled me with joy and the desire to continue creating a beautiful environment.  Finding an interesting book and being able to have it within ten seconds not only amazed me but brought a feeling of excitement as I prepared to learn something new.  Having the luxury of time to see friends today fills me with joy.  And  knowing that tomorrow and the day after and the day after that there will be moments of joy for me to celebrate if I so choose, fills me with optimism for the future.

If you have stopped feeling the joy in your life, creating a list of things both big and small that make you feel satisfied or hopeful or happy may help to remind you of what you already have or what you need to bring into your life each day. At the end of the day writing down three things that you are grateful for and three things that brought you joy that day opens up a whole new way of thinking and of living life.

Knowing that I have the power to create the life I want to live and that I have the power to choose joy each day are two things that make me smile and bring me happiness and joy.  What brings you joy?

       When you share your dreams and your talent with the world, magic happens.  Let the magic begin! 
                                                                                                                           Ginny

                                                        "The earth laughs in flowers."  Ralph Waldo Emerson

One wonderful Saturday afternoon over twenty years ago my husband and I took a wrong turn coming home from the lake and found the home we had been looking for.  We had patiently waited for over ten years to find the place we wanted and we instantly knew it when we saw it.  It has served us well over the years in ways that we could never have imagined on that sunny afternoon.

Our house does not have a large backyard.  The backyard is shady so we kept it natural and I have several large pots of flowers that I change throughout the seasons.  It's an easy way to garden but it provides me with lots of enjoyment

Greg always loved nature and wood and so he created beautiful window boxes around our back deck for us to enjoy.  They have provided years and years of pleasure for everyone who visits.  Each morning as I eat breakfast I watch the flowers grow and change.  On a cool afternoon I sit outside with a book and feel like I am in my own private sanctuary surrounded by beautiful flowers and trees.  

I am really grateful that we took a wrong turn so many years ago.  I am so glad that we found the house that turned out to be perfect in so many ways.  And I am so thankful that my husband shared with me and the rest of our family his love of nature and all things beautiful. My garden is not big, I cannot tell you the names of most of the flowers because I just buy what I like, but it is rich with memories of special times and special people and that is what makes it so important to me.

Thank you Jamie Ridler for hosting today's Garden Blog Hop.  What a wonderful idea!

       When you share your dreams and your talent with the world magic happens,  Let the magic begin!
                                                                                                                                Ginny

    "We learn how to crawl before we walk, we must also learn to imagine before we create."  
                                                                                                                     Tanner Christiansen 

Use your imagination and think outside of the box are terms we have all heard at one time or another. I have friends who can do this easily. Ideas come pouring forth faster than I can keep up with; while others have a harder time. I am learning that the more I close my eyes and just imagine something; the more chance I have of making that dream become a reality.  
As I work on building my coaching practice, someone asked me today what a perfect day would look like.  I've imagined it so many times that it was easy to describe.  It will take a lot of hard work to reach my ultimate goal; but the feeling I get as I picture it is that it will happen.  It is funny because as I share my idea with others I see the look of disbelief on their faces. But as I share my enthusiasm and dream, they become excited as well.  I surround myself with people who believe in my dreams, just as I believe in theirs.

 Sharing my dream, sharing what I want to create, sharing my vision, and sharing my enthusiasm helps to create the support I need to continue to imagine and then to create.  If you've stopped using your imagination or have stopped dreaming, maybe today is the day to begin again.  Close your eyes.  What do you see?   What do you feel?  Where are you?  What are you doing?  Take a few minutes to paint a picture or create a collage of what you imagined.  Get out your journal and record your experience. Keep your picture or your collage where you can see it.  Read and reread your journal entry to remind yourself of what you want to create.  And then begin. Take the first step.  Dreams do come true when we first imagine what we want and then take the steps to create it.

           When you share your dreams and your talent with the world, magic happens.  Let the magic begin! 
                                                                                                                                     Ginny


 I have worked with many women who live very busy lives and have often forgotten about their dreams. It is never too late to begin to dream again.  It is never too late to take that first step towards making your dreams come true. If working with a coach is something you have thought about,  contact me today?  Let's use our imaginations to begin to turn your dreams into reality.  ginny.lennox@comcast.net

I can't believe it's Wednesday again. There have been times this week that I have gotten caught up in the to do list and began to feel a little overwhelmed.  I started to ask myself, "How will I get it all done?  Where did the time go?  What am I going to do?"  Just writing that makes me feel anxious and jumpy.  I have learned that if I continue down this way of thinking any possible happiness that I may experience will disappear.  

When this happens I stop, take a deep breath, and listen to the silence.  I sit in my favorite chair, close my eyes and just relax.  And the calm begins to return.  The questions are asked but without the frantic tone.  I look for ways to simplify what needs to get done.  I ask for help when I need it.  I celebrate the tiniest of accomplishments with positive thoughts and words.  And a feeling of well-being and happiness returns.  

Knowing that I am creating my life and my reality brings me great happiness.  Knowing that I have the power to react to situations in a way that either brings stress and worry or calm and peace helps to bring happiness. We all have the power to create our own happiness.  For me it is all about slowing down and enjoying the moment! 

                                           What do you do to create happiness in your life each day?  

           When you share your dreams and your talent with the world, magic happens.  Let the magic begin!
                                                                                                                   Ginny

                           "Gratitude is not only the greatest of virtues, but the parent of all others."         
                                                                                                                        Marcus Tullius Cicero

As I move through the alphabet it becomes easier and easier to see the components of living not only a creative life but one filled with joy.  Gratitude is a huge part of living a creative and joyful life.  As Brene Brown says "It is not joy that brings gratitude but gratitude that brings joy."  When I heard her words it made such perfect sense.  As I practice gratitude, and it is a practice that grows stronger with time, I experience a feeling of inner peace and joy.  When I take the time to write down each day what I am grateful for I begin to see more and more things to add to my list.
 
 Many days I do write the same thing but that is just a reminder of what is most important to me.  The 47 years I was able to spend with my husband will always be on the list.  The support I receive from my son is a constant source of joy.  My daughter-in-law and my three grandchildren share so many special moments with me for which I am grateful.  I carry with me each day the image of my youngest grandson sitting in his car seat telling me that when he gets big he will drive me to the store or running to me with open arms as I picked him up from school with his mom just like I do for his big brothers. I am so grateful that I have the time to experience such special moments.

We all have different things to be grateful for.  At the same time there are experiences we all can share no matter where we live or what we do. The beauty of nature is all around us and something that we can be grateful for each day. Our ability to create, to dream, and to share is something that we should never take for granted. 

Living a creative life means being aware.  It's noticing the sounds that you hear, watching the beauty that surrounds you and opening your heart to whatever experiences life brings your way. Gratitude is something special.  It has brought joy into my life and for that I am very grateful.

I hope that each day you will take time to notice what you are grateful for.  Writing down at least three things that you are grateful for daily is a simple but powerful way to change not only the way you feel but the way you act.
I would love to know what three things you are grateful for today.

               When you share your dreams and your talent with the world, magic happens. Let the magic begin. 
                                                                                                                                       Ginny

                                                  "We become what we think about."  Earl Nightingale

It's become a habit to start the week with a quote that inspires me or reminds me of the way I want to live my life.  I truly believe in the power of our minds to make our lives better. I believe in the power of positive thinking and visualizing how we want our life to be.  I also believe that in order to make that visualization come true there has to be action taken or an awareness of the fact that what we are wishing for we already have.  Sometimes we get so caught up in looking towards the future we fail to see that what we want we have already accomplished.  

Today I am gathering pictures and words to create my May visionboard. It's fun and relaxing to do this and it is also a wonderful way to remember what I want to focus on each month.  Time can go so quickly and the demands on us can be so great that it is easy to forget our own needs.  The visionboard is just one way I remind myself of what I want to accomplish. Not everything on the board will get done but I have learned that the most important things do.  Sometimes it is right away and sometimes it is months or even years before it happens. Often there are detours along the way. Sometimes I realize that what once was a priority no longer is. And thus my visions and my goals change to meet the new dreams.

What would you like to see on your visionboard this month?  Could it be more time with your family?  Could it be a beautiful garden filled with color?  Maybe more time to paint or write?  Or closets that are neat and tidy opening up the doors to the feeling of calmness that order always brings.  Take a quiet moment to think.  Imagine your board.  What would you like to see on it?  Even better create your own board and place it where you can see it every day.  And then let it inspire you to create the life you have always dreamed about.

               When you share your dreams and your talent with the world, magic happens.  Let the magic begin!
                                                                                                                                 Ginny

This season's All About You coaching group is slowly coming to an end.  It has been a wonderful ten weeks filled with sharing, laughter,and lots of time to dream and plan.  I will begin another group in June. Groups can be formed both online and in person. If you would like to be part of a small group of women who not only dream but make things happen, please contact me at ginny.lennox@comcast.net  I would love to talk to you!

Embrace the Day!  I love that phrase and I try to do just that.  Today is a special day to embrace.  It's Grandparent's Day at my grandsons' school.  Along with all the excitement comes the memories.  I remember the first Grandparent's Day I attended. The feelings were very different than today.  I was the teacher in charge of 28 third graders who couldn't wait to eat lunch with their grandparents.  Many of them lived with their grandparents but it was though they hadn't seen them in years instead of at breakfast that morning.  I was excited too because I didn't know what to expect and none of us were disappointed.  It was a wonderful day!  Each Grandparent's Day was different but each and everyone was special.

Fast forward thirty years.  Now, I'm the grandparent and the excitement is different.  I remember how much work goes into the program and I appreciate everything that all of the teachers and students do to make this day so special.  I get to sit back and be so proud of my grandsons as they show me their classrooms and introduce me to their teachers. I get to smile and laugh and clap as they perform or show me to my seat to eat breakfast in the school gym.  

Each day is different.  It brings with it different experiences and memories.  It is so important to embrace the day and to enjoy it for each and every special moment.  I hope that you  too will embrace today!

              When you share your dreams and your talent with the world, magic happens.  Let the magic begin!
                                                                                                                                         Ginny


PS:  I want to thank all of the teachers I have known over the years.  I know how hard you work and how much you care for every child that you meet.  It's a special job and you are very special people!