The Navigator

Posts Tagged ‘joy’

I can’t believe how fast time flies.  I’ve got too much going on I think but thought I would take a minute to catch up.

I’m in the process of moving my website to a new program and hosting site.  I am really excited about the new options available on this new system and can’t wait to share it with everyone.  It has things like alternating content, the weather, quotes, a calendar, newsletter and you can import your wordpress blog right into your site.  I haven’t decided if I’m going to do that last one since I’ve had this on it’s own for quite a while but we’ll see.  Right now I just need to worry about getting all the content over.

I’m also switching my newsletter manager away from Constant Contact.  I have no complaints about Constant Contact – it’s a great program and their customer service is also great.  I have just found another one that has more options and is easily integrated with an event management system, a survey program and social media.  This will make it so much easier to get things done and they’ll take less time!

I’ve finished my second quarter of school which was a lot tougher than the first – many of you have heard me comment on that!  This is definitely an example of “be careful what you wish for”.  I thought the first quarter was too easy and was worried it would feel like that the whole program and I wouldn’t feel like I’d “earned” my degree.  I know that doesn’t make any sense.  It’s a belief I’ve been working on for a long time that I just haven’t seemed to clear completely yet.  It’s that nasty belief of “I have to work hard to get anywhere”.  Do you have this one?  (Thanks Mom and Dad)  Now, I’m just moving along like Goldilocks, looking for the “just right” option.

As many of you also know, my oldest daughter moved out a couple of months ago.  We’ve done a lot of painting upstairs and down and began to make the entire house our own.  It’s been fun getting to do some redecorating.  My favorites are the new paint in the stairway going downstairs and the hall at the foot of the stairs because it makes it so much brighter in an area that is kind of dark AND the paint in the upstairs bathroom – also much brighter and cheerier.  It’s the simple things, isn’t it?

My youngest, Kayla, off with a friend shopping today is starting drivers ed in a week.  I can’t believe she’ll be driving soon.  She keeps asking about driving my car…I am such a nervous passenger as it is…I don’t care what car she drives but I can’t be in the vehicle.  I know that much.  I would not be helpful in her learning process.  I don’t think I rode in the car with my older daughter for years after she got her license.  Thank God for husbands and siblings.

We had a great Christmas.  New tradition of fonduing was great.  We had way too much food but it was all so good.  One of the favorites was the shrimp cooked in the broth.  It had this incredible flavor.  I’ve made notes for next year and bought a few things yesterday so we could do it on a smaller scale more often.  The oil and the broth both heat up so fast and it’s a fun way to cook and eat.

Lastly for today, my desk is in my new home office, ready to go.  I have a lot of bins to go through to get things organized and a couple of things to get out of storage to make it complete but it feels good, I love the paint color and I’m excited to start working in there finally.  I know that having a nice work space will be a big help in staying organized and getting some thing complete like the 2 eBooks I’ve had almost done for most of the year (LOL) among other things.

I am really looking forward to 2010 and all it has to offer each of us.  Enjoy what’s left of the 2009!

I just shared in my newsletter how inspired I am by Ellen and her philosophy of “have a little fun today…give a little love away”.  Who inspires you and why?

How do you show up every day – as the real you or someone else?  Take the quiz below and see how happy you are with your “real self”.   Just check the statements that apply to you and then total them up  when you’re done!

_____  I am happy with who I am, I don’t concern myself with what others think.
_____  I accept my flaws, with gratitude.
_____  I use my strengths and surround myself with others who are great at things I’m not.
_____  I feel like my life is easy, fun, and a genuine expression of who I really am.
_____  I don’t have to impress anyone but me.
_____  I take care of my body, and I’m generally happy with the way I look.
_____  I am able to see the greatness that I already have, but I’m not trying to impress everyone with it.
_____  I use simple English instead of trying to impress people with my vocabulary.
_____  I see things as they are, not through someone else’s opinion.
_____  I have let go of wanting myself to be a certain way. I like who I am.
_____  I am beautiful/handsome.
_____  I always tell the truth.
_____  I have let go of wanting other people to be or act a certain way.
_____  I am living my life, not the life that someone else designed for me or expected of me.
_____  I don’t have any habits that I try to hide from other people.
_____  I am not perfect, and that’s ok.
_____  I don’t pretend to be someone I’m not, just to suit other people.
_____  There is nothing about my life that I am ashamed of.
_____  I respect other’s rules and beliefs, even if they seem unusual or confusing to me.
_____  My actions match my words, For example, I don’t condemn a musician for his lyrics, then go buy his  CDs.
_____  I am my own best friend.
_____  I am able to laugh at life.
_____  I cooperate with life; I don’t fight what’s been given to me.
_____  I am fully responsible for how my weaknesses may affect me, my life, and those around me.
_____  I have fully accepted both my talents and my faults.

Results 
0-5: You only get one chance at life.  Make the most of it.  How can you be more true to yourself? 

5-10: What if “being authentic” was more a part of your life?  How would your life be different? 

11-15: Not too shabby!  This is a great start and what you can you shift in your life to be more accepting of who you really are? 

16-20: Great!  You’re doing a wonderful job of being yourself.  Sometimes this may be less comfortable for you.  Overall, though, you’re doing well.

21-25: Fabulous!  You are definitely comfortable with yourself and you know how important this is for others around you.  Congratulations!

Are you ready to be your authentic self?  Are you ready to show the world who you really are?  Life will be so much easier, more fun because it becomes an expression of who you are.  So what’s holding you back?  If you are ready, try setting goals for yourself to allow your real feelings and desires to emerge.  You can do it!

Source Unknown

Another one by Liv Lane…http://www.myangelpie.blogspot.com/

This one is brand new and I have no doubt it will be as fun to read as her year of beauty.

Very inspirational…http://oneyearofbeauty.blogspot.com/

“The most useless day of all is that in which we have not laughed.”  ~Sebastian R.N. Champort

“We are told that laughter is sunshine filling a room.  And where there is laughter, there also is life.  They say that people who laugh a lot live longer than do the sour-faced.  When we laugh together, gratitude comes more easily, companionship thirves, and all praise is sincere.  Laughter brings us joy that cannot be bought.  Such joy is with us throughout each day.  To hoard joy, to hide it away deep within us away from others, will make us lonely misers.  We cannot buy or trade for joy, but we can give or receive it as a gift. 

Laughter’s joy celebrates the moment we are living right now.  It is a gift we must share, or it will wither and die.  Shared, it grows and thrives, and always returns to us when we need it most.”

~Today’s Gift by Anonymous