Are you sitting down for this? What you are witnessing is a $12 arrangement from grocery store blooms! Chelsea at Frolic gives us the 411 on how it’s possible to get the look of an uber expensive garden rose arrangement for less. Loves it! I can smell them now….
I think now is the perfect time for the, albeit fitting, cliche of the day: Stop and smell the roses, my friends.
(images by Frolic)
Hey there! So, I’ve been keeping something from you. I know, I know. How could I? We tell each other everything. Well, the excitement is growing so intensely that I must share a teeny tiny bit. I simply can’t keep it in any longer or my body will morph into an expanding blueberry (yes, Willy Wonka Violet style).
Change is coming to Hello!Self and the Hello!Self blog. Really, really fun change. Change that has hit me over the head and has me saying, “DUH! Why didn’t I think of this sooner?” (The answer: because NOW is the time!) Change that is derived by my connection with you, my connection with self, and my connection with what wants to unfold. Change that results in an expanded scope of my services as a life coach (hint: who likes to part-ay?!) and change that will result in what this blog has to offer YOU.
How’s that for a nibble? I’ll be sharing more in the coming days. In the meantime, if you see a big blueberry floating through the sky, please call for help!
YEEEHAW!!! I am fully alive as my authentic self. Good god that feels incredible to say, to make real in my innerds.
Today’s affirmation is the key to our kick ass day today. Being fully alive as our authentic selves means there are no masks to wear (thank god because those things get sweaty!), there are no roles to play (thank god because that’s freakin tiring), there are no self-deprecating thoughts (because we are authentically magnificent), and there’s ample space for feeling jubilant, excited by life, confident in our own skin, and ready to live this lift exactly how we want to.
What can you do to live fully as your authentic self today? How does that look and feel different than normal (besides choosing the purple socks, silly)?
Live it up, friends! I’m right next to you doin’ the same!
Ever feel like your to do list is never ending? You’re not alone! Here’s a cute notepad from Finch and Hawk – perfect for those to do lists that don’t have an apparent end.
Just remember (and I say this just as much for myself as I do for you): Just because the to do list is seemingly never ending, we have absolute control over how we feel about the list. A long to do list is not automatically synonymous with stress UNLESS we assign it with such a label. The list does not have the power to dictate our mood. We do. The list is not in control over when we do the task. WE get to choose when to do the task (when our energy is up or it just feels like the right time to do it).
So let’s get to doing those freakin’ tasks. Are you with me, sisters? 
Happy Monday! Welcome to another week – full of possibility!
So, it’s nearly that time of year when we start shedding the heavy sweaters and multiple layers that have kept us warm and cozy this winter. I’ll be the first to admit that layers and sweaters kept me warm and cozy – and even provided extra wiggle room to indulge in an extra cookie now and then, for which I am extremely grateful. However, they are also starting to feel like a bit much, a bit hot, a bit worn, a bit heavy for where I am right now.
Personally, such a notion of shedding the layers gives me a tremendous sense of FREEDOM and an “I can breathe freely again” kind of sensation. It may feel a little odd at first, yes. My forearms may be asking what they sunlight is. My happily full belly could be asking where its hideout went. Yet, the end result of freedom, connection to the full self – exposed to the light of day, is undoubtedly a very, very good thing.
So, why am I talking about shedding the sweater sets? Well, allow me to build the bridge over to affirmation land.
Today’s affirmation supports us all in freeing ourselves of attachments. Like the shedding of the sweaters and multiple layers, freeing ourselves of attachments can lead to incredible freedom and a lightness to our living. Freeing ourselves of attachments, be it attachments to negative self-talk scripts or a collection of things that has us in the running for the “World’s Biggest Hoarder” award, can lighten our loads and brighten our experience. It may allow for deeper connections with others, a deeper sense of self, or a more raw, authentic relationship with self. It may leave room for possibility to do its thing. It may brighten our living in a way that others are able to perceive our true essence. The world may seem more attractive and gratitude for its brilliance may be more readily accessable.
If you want to do a little inner exploration this Monday morning, here are some questions to spend a little time with:
Can you identify one thing or concept that you are attached to that does not contribute to living your best life?
If you released your attachment to it, what may come from doing so?
What protection is that attachment currently providing?
What might support you as you choose to release the attachment – knowing that it has been serving a purpose?
How might you go about releasing it?
If you release your attachment, where are you in a year without it?
Friends – if you are having a hard time parting with that adorable Splendid sweater that has seen its last day or that nagging self-talk full of self-doubt, may this affirmation equally support you. I’m already celebrating the freedom you and I experience from doing so. Happy shedding.
I just returned from lunch with the hubbims. The Portland food scene is seriously amazing. As ones who love to eat, this makes us ecstatic and has our heads spinning with options. Today’s mid-day meal has me particularly warm with delight. The place: Ned Ludd in Portland’s NE Irvington neighborhood.
Every bit of fresh meat and produce comes from local farmers (three cheers!!). And here’s the cool thing – there’s no stove! They cook with a wood-burning brick oven and a DIY spirit.
As I learned from reading article after article about this adorably authentic restaurant that’s committed to churning out incredible food, not having a stove was NOT what the co-owners, Ben Meyer and Jason French, originally had in mind. They had a completely different restaurant concept in mind as they started out on making real their plans to open a restaurant. But low rent in an old pizza joint with a wood oven already in place, helped change up the plans. The restaurant is totally working and Portlanders are eating it up!
Got me thinking – how cool is it that these restauranteurs had thought and thought about a concept for a restaurant -probably drawing up plans and menus – and yet where they are now is completely different in application, look, feel than what they had ever conceived. YET the end point is undoubtedly either meeting or surpassing their original dreams.
In order for this to have happened, they had to have loosened their grip on complete control. They went with the flow. They were open to allowing this idea to take shape in its own manner – not forcing it to look just so or be just “this” way. They were open. They were willing to shift and follow their guts. They were allowing and making good with what was presenting itself.
Since I passed on the s’mores dessert they offered, I’ll consider this great reminder as my sweet finisher (which nicely follows the sharp cheddar on wheat that I enjoyed as the entree).
(images from Ned Ludd)
Good day, fine friends! Happy, happy, happy Friday! As you fly into an incredible weekend, feel free to keep this affirmation top of mind. I have to admit I normally try to avoid such inspirational cliches with the affirmations I write. However it just seemed right today, so with this bit of wiggle room and inspired cliches, let me just throw in an Hallelujah, Amen, and Can I get a witness? 
How does the thought that we are meant to soar feel to you? We are MEANT to soar. Let that sink in and check in with yourself about how it feels. We are meant to connect with that which energizes us, brings about peace and understanding, and makes us want to kick up our heels and achieve new heights.
It’s like our job. But what’s cool about this job is that we already have everything we need to perform it well, get promoted, and buy fabulous yachts with our bonuses. The only prerequisite is that we understand the truth in already having the wings to soar – that we pat down ourselves and locate those wings (surprise – there they are!).
Spend some time today recognizing what you already have in order to catapult you into the realm of soaring – if you so choose. Happy soaring!
Normally, I’m working from my office indoors at a white desk with a white chair – situated right under a window with white trim with a huge tree and our neighbor’s chimney within view. Today, however, I’ve moved outside, as I often do when it just feels like the thing to do. With blue sky saying hello through the NW clouds and the birds chirping away as my background music, I’m plopped down on the back deck with just a towel and one of Burkeley’s dog beds beneath me (she is highly confused, but it was soft so I went for it).
I’ve got my laptop, my moleskine journal, my pencil, and the world’s best co-worker in the cubicle next me (read into this: my dog Burkeley sitting next to me eating a stick with flaky leaf scraps all caught up in her beard). Breaking news: A hummingbird just hovered above us. Crazy cool bird. Ok, this is officially my favorite place to work.
Is there any way you can follow your energy to a slightly new area to work from today? Even if it’s turning your chair around to gain a new view, if it feels right to switch it up today in order to support the flow of those crazy creative juices of yours, join me. I’ll be outside if you need me. Or just leave a message with my assistant, Burkeley.
There are many places you and I can go for inspiration, yes? We can surround ourselves in nature, check out magazines, hit up chic stores, chat with friends, watch HGTV, the list goes on.
One of my favorite sources of inspiration, however, comes right from the tappety tap, clieckty click of my computer – blogs.
Do you have your favorites? Have you discovered some cool ones lately that inspired you to delve into a new project, try out a certain style, or change your thoughts in order to live a more joyful life? I certainly have, so I want to share them with you today. Here are four new blogs I’ve recently discovered that have me feeling good and loving life. Check them out!
Jules, a wife, mother, writer, and attorney (but not always in that order) shares her everyday follies and triumphs with wit and honesty. She’s a laugh-happy lady with heart you’ve just got to know. And she makes the perfect friend for an accident-prone, quirky dame like myself because she provides companionship in the very real reality that we aren’t perfect – so let’s all just all have a drink and laugh about it.
PENELOPE LOVES LISTS – ”Inspiration for unapologetically organized soul” Yes!! I’ve finally found company in my affinity for list making, office supplies, and all things organization. Until writer and blog creator, Meredith, came along, I was the only lady I knew of this side of the Mississippi that found utter and pure elation in making lists, roaming the aisles of office supply stores, and stacking containers. She readily admits she’s got a to do list and she knows how to use it. You can even check out her current to do list on the front page of her blog. Loves it! You’ll find great tips, tricks, and tales all designed to give us our organization fix. Yes, please!!
COVET – Design blogger, Brigitte, serves up fabulous finds and design inspiration with this easy-on-the-eyes blog. Post after post has me saying “I want that.” or “Ooooh that’s what I want my house to look like.” or “That’s exactly what I’ve been looking for!” The girl’s got style and she knows how to share it!
HOLLY WOULD IF SHE COULD - Can we get a round of applause for honest, raw, relatable, and completely like-able bloggers like Holly? I LOVE reading her blog (and completely want to be her friend) because she delivers such pure observations, often witty, as she writes about “cooking, reading, traveling, and generally trying to get my act together.”
Don’t you just feel like superwoman when you say today’s affirmation? I can’t help but picture myself as superwoman on the cover of a comicbook – cape flapping in the wind, hair blowing back, and reading as the headline in big, bold comic fonts - Super Emily: Sacred body. Fearless mind.
Imagine the power of this affirmation for you. Allow it to elevate your living today – or at the very least, allow it to give you the ability to scale tall buildings and leap over mountains.
