Happy Anniversary Honey!

"It's Monday! It's Monday! Starting a new week! It's Monday! It's Monday! Get on your feet!" This is a little ditty I sing to Mason on Friday mornings to wake him up (I use Friday, not Monday) so I thought I would wake you up with it today!

Tomorrow is our anniversary, nine years. I have to share that my marriage to Dave has so far exceeded my expectations! I love, love, love my life with you honey! Happy Anniversary.

This weekend was fun, not super eventful which is a nice change from the normal go, go, go! Saturday I took Mason and Kyle to the 4-H Make It and Take It craft fair where they made Christmas gifts for family members. The boys had a ball and really took pride in the gifts they made. Mason played soccer and from that point forward, we were home and in for the rest of the weekend.

Dave had drill this weekend so he had to get up early both days, but Sunday, Mason and I got to stay snug and warm in bed. It felt so good in our pajamas, we stayed in them all day! We watched television, ate whatever we felt like, watched movies and basically just relaxed. Dave was able to come home early and he got right in the swing by putting on his pajamas and crawling in bed with me! We sat in the hot tub and enjoyed the rain as we plan the weeks ahead with Thanksgiving, Christmas, and the New Year.

An update on my Intentional Winning book/blog, I've received some great subjects on dreams NOT come true but I need some more. I'm looking for that thing that maybe as a youngster you thought you wanted to be or maybe even something more recently. Did you want to be a Nurse? Or an astronaut? What was that dream job and why didn't you pursue it? It's not a big deep thing, I wanted to be a actress and until I was 30 I didn't pursue it because I believed I was too big and not pretty enough. When I did pursue it, I learned that I was plenty pretty enough (in fact, I was once told I was too pretty to do commercials!) and my weight was manageable. I took a different path to marry Dave and have Mason - a very conscious choice! My acting dreams are not dead, not by far, they are alive and well in different clothes. So here's an example of what I need from you: "I wanted to be in the military but could not because my vision did not meet their criteria." "I always dreamed of writing for a living but never did it because I didn't think I could make enough money to support myself and my family." "I always wanted to start a business but never went to college so I don't feel I have the skills to run a company." You get the picture, what did you want to do and why didn't you do it. Get to it, write back and tell me what it is/was for you!

Gear up for the new year, it's less than eight weeks away. Don't wait until January first to think about what you want to make happen in 2011. Start now and when January one comes, you'll already be on your way! Happy Monday!

Happy November First!

Welcome to November!

This Halloween weekend has been nothing but fun! Well, some work too, but more fun for sure! Friday Dave surprised me with Halloween costumes he picked out for the two of us, Little Red Riding Hood and The Big Bad Wolf! WOW! How thoughtful! The local newspaper came over to interview us about the way Dave does up our house with Halloween decorations. They took some really great photos, check them out here: //www.http//auburnjournal.com/detail/163611.html After that, we went to James and Lisa's Halloween party and then out to the Auburn Ale house where we shared funny dating stories (before we were an us) and laughed like we were young and dating. It was fun making people smile as we walked in all decked out in our oh-so cute costumes!

Saturday Mason played soccer and his team won - again! The Pistol Pete's Pirates are undefeated. It has been wonderful watching these boys learn to work together and work the plays they learn in practice. Dave and I made caramel apples for the team and I have no doubt the gummy worm coming out of a pile of candy bones made them all that much more fun to eat! We spent Saturday afternoon cleaning house and then it was time to get all decked out again for more parties. We went to a work party and then to Pistol Pete's where we met up with James and Lisa. We walked over to a little bar in town where we found our groove laughing and dancing enjoying all the costumes and smiles. After all that fun, it was hard to believe that we hadn't even arrived at Halloween yet!

Sunday, we got up and read our story in the newspaper and then went for a family run. Mason on his bike and Dave and I (with Spencer) went for a run downtown. It made me think, since we don't do Thanksgiving on Thursday, why don't we do the 5K Run To Feed The Hungry? I think we need to consider it. If you are local, do you want to go, too? I digress, so we ran some errands, got groceries, and watched Beetlejuice on TV. Dave did homework and then it was showtime! We had tons of kids, people who saw the house in the newspaper came to trick-or-treat and see the lights. It was really fun and made Dave really proud. Mason and Dave went trick-or-treating and now it's all done. I hope you had a fun weekend and I would love to hear from you, leave a comment and tell me a little about your weekend. In the meantime, scroll down and see the pictures from our fun-filled weekend! Happy Halloween and welcome to November!

“Life is full of beauty. Notice it. Notice the bumble bee, the small child, and the smiling faces. Smell the rain, and feel the wind. Live your life to the fullest potential, and fight for your dreams.” Ashley Smith

Inspired!

Happy Columbus Day!

I had an amazing weekend! It started early on Friday with Dave and I driving up to South Lake Tahoe. We stopped off in Apple Hill where I performed my ritual Thanks to the Harvest Gods for all the abundance and beauty they provide (Yes, I really do this! Ask Dave or Mary D., they've been-there, seen-it!). It's a fun way to show gratitude and appreciation during my favorite season of the year.

We arrived in Tahoe in time to visit some of our retailers and a couple of prospects, too. We had a lovely dinner overlooking the lake, it's incredibly difficult to not be romantic sharing a delicious meal while watching the sky turn pink at dusk. Perfection! We went to play cards for a little while and had a blast in Cabo Wabo at Harvey's. Not only did we not lose the cash we started with, but we won the money to cover dinner. Not bad!

Early Saturday morning, Dave drove me to the north side of the lake where I met up with my new Leadership Auburn class. We did an intense day and a half of leadership training that was great fun! I am so blessed to be surrounded by and continually meeting amazing people. See what happens when you do a ritual giving thanks? Laughing! On our way we stopped at Taylor Creek where we walked the nature trail to see the salmon spawning. An impressive display of nature at work. I suppose we see those impressive displays everyday but they blend into our regular environments so we don't give them the time and awe they surely deserve. The morning walk was was a special way to end our date. Now I'm back from my weekend, completely inspired and ready to go.

So today is a holiday, are you off? Dave is. I didn't think I was, but the banks are closed so guess what? No work for me! This is good news because I have lots to do and I need your help. All of you know about my Intentional Winning In Life concept and anthology book series plan. I'm ready to start sending that plan into action! November first marks the three year anniversary of writing my blog, can you believe it's been that long? Here's the plan and how you can help:

Each month starting in January I plan to take a specific topic, the topic of your dreams placed on hold, and show you in twelve posts (give or take) how to put that dream back to work making you happy!

• I need you to share with me what it was you wanted to be when you grew up, or a dream you realized later in life that for one reason or another you stopped pursuing. I also need to know why you came to believe you couldn't see it through.

• I also need you to put this call out to everyone you know in hopes that with your blessing, they will share their dreams not come true with me, too.

• I'm going to pick ten of the most popular topics and two of the most unusual to work with next year. This will then become the foundation of what Intentional Winning In Life books will be about. Intentional Winning In Wine Making. Intentional Winning In Writing. Intentional Winning In Nursing. You get the idea. This is going to be really fun, and if I use your topic, how cool will it be to have a real road map to making your dreams come true?

Will you help me? Send me your dreams and why you are not pursuing them and send this request out to your family and friends. I can't wait to make things happen as this year wraps up and we welcome a new year!

With love!
Kath

The Faster I Go, The Behinder I Get!

How far behind do you have to get before you decide to quit? Behind in what you may be wondering, to which my answer would be, "Anything that's important." I'm currently behind in filing my monthly paid bills, my monthly newsletter, Mason's cookbook, my exercise program, and several other pressing projects. When I start to feel this way it makes me just want to throw my hands in the air and start new at the beginning of something completely different. The reality is, no matter what I'm doing, if I'm not staying committed to the timeline, I'll fall behind again!

As a family, we're doing more trying to make the most of the long summer days, but yesterday, Mason and I scheduled nothing. Not a single thing on the calendar, Mason watched SpongeBob and I talked on the phone with my girlfriends...not all of them, but a few that I haven't spoken with in more than a month. Yet again, I've fallen behind on keeping my relationships current!

In years past, I've felt a strong sense of balance, like I was doing enough outside and spending my fair share of time at home. Of course, there have also been the times that balance was way out of whack! The out of whack side is rearing it's ugly head this month. I've been working to gain more consulting clients, looking for a regular paying job, along with any other way I can earn a living. Our glove business is moving along with Thursdays delivery of our first shipment of retail ready gloves! We have a trade show to get ready for in September and Mason starts kindergarten on August 19th, just about a month away. Our life is surely no different than every other working family, but some days, it just all seems so overwhelming. It's hard to feel like you're succeeding with anything when you reach a point of completion, all you can focus on is all you still have left to do! I know you know what I mean.

We're not quitters and we will keep persevering no matter how hard it gets. Are you finding that your lists are longer and your check-marks fewer? Do you have any tricks or tips for coping when it seems like there is so much more to do than you can ever accomplish? Please, do tell!

Have a great week. My motivator for today is this: Take some time each day this week to tell someone something about you or your situation that will reveal to them that they are not struggling in this economy alone. Though we all logically know we're not alone, it sure feels good to have the ones we love share that they are coping in some area of their life as well. You can start with me if you want!

Where Did The Weekend Go?

Dave asked me this as we were falling asleep last night. I think we all feel this way, but I find it comes after an especially enjoyable weekend.

Saturday we took Mason to a birthday party for one of his friends from preschool. The family lives on five acres and had three huge blow-up water slides. What fun! The kids had a ball. Dave and I left the party for a little while to walk around downtown Lincoln. It was nice to have a little couple time and know that Mason was not only in good hands, but having lots of fun, too. Later that evening, Mason was in bed so Dave and I made s'mores by the fire testing out some of our adult themed ideas for Poobah's "S'more's-Ga-Borg." After snacking, we got in the hot tub and relaxed watching the last of the fire. It was a really nice day.

Sunday was getting stuff done around the house. Mason messed and I cleaned while Dave watched the race. Before we called it a day, Dave worked in the yard, we started organizing our camping gear, I made a new pile of stuff for GoodWill, and we wrapped up the weekend with the kid s'more ideas. This time, we included our neighbors and their two girls to help pick the best recipes. We've got some good ones, so if you're coming to Poobah, get your thinking cap on, we're gonna be hard to beat!

Now it's back to schedules and work. I look forward to the structure of the new work week, do you? It's certainly tough if you don't like what you do for a living and if that's the case, start thinking about what actions you could take to find something that you really look forward to doing. With that, make this week really great and drop me a note letting me know all about your weekend!

Happy June 1st!

Can you believe it's June already? I'm excited. There is so much I have to share that there's no way you want to read that much, so let me just cover the weekend.

As all of you know, I've been decluttering. On Saturday, Dave, Mason, and I went out to Denio's Farmers Market and Auction and rented a space to sell some of our clutter. We had to be up at 4:30, to the site by 5:30, and set up ready to sell by 7:00 AM. I had loaded both vehicles the day before so that was done, but it still made for a full, busy day. Mason did really well considering it was a long time and hot outside. With Dave and I working, he had to entertain himself. We stayed until 3 PM and sold enough stuff that we only had one vehicle of clutter to bring back home.

Sunday, I was back at it. Dave helped me load the Durango of all the stuff that didn't go to the auction, and that completely filled the Durango. I took that to GoodWill. I returned home and loaded up the clutter that didn't sell and that was another complete Durango load donated. That's 3 full loads of stuff that is no longer in our house! Even still, we have a few high ticket items that I've posted on craigslist, and if they don't sell there, I'm planning to donate them to the appropriate charity.

There is lots of good that I acknowledged this weekend. We all really worked well together and we had a fun day at the auction even though it was work. I can't forget to mention that we made a few bucks, but the best part was when we arrived home. I came in through the front door and the house was so welcoming. The kitchen table was clear, the shelves under the windows were free of clutter, the bar area was clean, it all just felt so good to come home to. Home really felt like a soft place to land. What a wonderful feeling. Not only does this feel so good, but it's easier to keep up. There is less stuff so everything has a place. I never really realized how I simply moved stuff from one place to another. When everything has it's own place tidying up to clean is a snap!

This is the perfect motivator for today. Have a wonderful, clutter-free week!

What's around you?

Look around you. Do you see clutter, confusion and chaos, or do you see focus, direction and purpose? Not only does your environment say a lot about you, it has a profound effect on you. The person you are does not end at the tip of your fingers. Your essence extends deep into the world around you. You influence that world and it influences you.

So what kind of influence is it having? Does your environment support you or does it detract from what you're attempting to accomplish? Sometimes a small change in your surroundings, something as simple as cleaning off you desk or washing the windows, can have a profound effect on your attitude and effectiveness. The effort you put into making your surroundings more supportive can multiply the effectiveness of all your other efforts.

Take control of your life by taking responsibility for the things around you. Surround yourself with excellence and your efforts will more naturally and more surely lead toward excellence.

Used with permission by Ralph Marston www.thedailymotivator.com