Why BE Grateful?

Jacqueline at age 2

"If you want to turn your life around, try thankfulness. It will change your life mightily."Gerald Good

Why BE Grateful?

Eating chocolate is still one of my favorite treats. I was grateful then and I'm grateful now for chocolate. Why? I tastes good; I feel energized and fulfilled when I eat it.

But really why be grateful?

Research tells us that when we are grateful, we are happier. 

People who are grateful have more energy, enthusiasm and are more likely to help others; they also have lower incidents of depression and stress. 

So here are some of the things I'm grateful for today:

• My boys because they keep me laughing and on my toes.
• My family and friends because they keep me connected. 
• My health, which has challenged me a bit this year, but has allowed me to do all I want to do.
• My abilities that spark my creative genius and keep my life very interesting.
• My students and readers who give me an opportunity to share what I've learned and synthesized. 
• and finally my past, which made me who I am.

pyrite touchstone

Each night before sleep I have a little ritual I perform. I keep a rock on my nightstand, a touchstone. I pick it up before I switch off the light. It's smooth so I run my fingers over it and say what I am grateful for and why.

What are you grateful for and why? Tell me.

#grateful

4 Steps to Avoid the Winter Blues

Ethan #snowboarding #Brighton

The cold has come early this year bringing with it snow and shorter and darker days.
Some of us are more affected by others during this seasons. Yet, each of us has our moments.

Here are a few tips to help you stay healthy, happy and sane this winter.

1. Keeping moving. Enjoy the winter weather with outdoor sports skiing, snowshoeing, etc. Also exercise regularly-- yoga, walking, lifting weights--even when curling up in front of that warm fire with a book might sound more inviting. Be sure to get lots of sunlight or use an artificial happy light.
2. Eat well. Although our options for fruit and vegetables change in the winter, and our caloric needs shift, it's important to continue to eat balanced, warm and healthy meals in winter. Hearty vegetable soups, warm drinks, and baked roots are great places to start. Get plenty of Vitamin D3 or supplement.
3. Spend time with family and friends.You may have desire to hibernate, yet it's important to spend time with others in community. Exercise together, do a group service project like shoveling others driveways, or cook a wonderful meal.
4. Spruce up your routines. Continue with routines that support your wellness. If you don't have any, check out this post on daily routines(dinacharya). Make sure to incorporate abhyanga (self massage), nasya (oiling your nostrils), and routine. Even though winter is a time for some of us to get stuck, we still need some routine.

If you'd like to learn more about fighting off the winter blues, stop by my workshop at Mindful Yoga this Saturday. I look forward to continuing to offer tips and practices to help you through the winter and being the healthiest you can be.

#avoidingwinterblue #wintersports

DIY Cleaning Products that WORK

DIY Cleaning Product Ingredients 

You might be wondering why a yogini is talking about Do-It-Yourself cleaning products. Well, I have found myself more and more unable to deal physically with all the unnatural chemicals in products--for my nourishment, my skin, my makeup (which I love), and for cleaning.

When I woke up looking like I'd been in a fight because my eyelids were so swollen, I knew I had to do something. Nothing had changed except that I had a new cleaning person with new-to-me products.

Bottom line is that I want to be mindful of what I put inside, outside and around my body and on the planet.

I began doing research through books, people and the internet. I thought my students and readers might like to hear about some of my findings. For those of you who live locally, I am doing a free presentation at REAL Foods Sugarhouse, in Salt Lake City, Wednesday, November 19th at 6:30 pm. You'll take home some ideas, recipes and easy-to-make holiday gifts that people will love and use.

Some of you already know that I spent many years as a Health and Science teacher dealing with all sorts of chemicals and experiments so making products and conducting experiments is right up my alley. I love trying out people's recipes and seeing what works and trying different things to make them more effective.

I decided to start with some of the more toxic cleaners.

Oven Cleaner

One of the easiest and lest toxic ways to clean the bottom of your oven is to use baking soda. Yep, that's it. Wipe down your oven with a wet sponge or rag (I an old t-shirt because it gets pretty dirty). Sprinkle baking soda, leaving a thick coat. Spray some more water to moisten all of the baking soda. Let sit for an hour or so. Wipe clean with warm water. You'll need to rinse your rag and change your water a few times. Depending on the severity of your oven, you may need to repeat. After my initial cleaning, I clean it monthly when I'm using my oven regularly and I only have to do it once. 

Toilet Cleaner

Believe it or not, my son Aaron makes these incredible bath bomb fizzies. People of all ages love them! It turns out that they are great toilet bowl cleaners as well. You know the toilet is a smaller body of water fairly close to the tub; let's see what happens kind of story that only kids can make happen.

For this recipe I suggest safety glasses and plastic gloves for protection as you are preparing it. 
Mix 2 c of baking soda with 2/3 c citric acid (we buy ours in bulk from the local Gygi Store). Using a spray bottle of plain water. Lightly spray the mixture and stir until it is the consistency of wet sand. Add essential oils of your choice. We like lemon and lavender mixed (15 drops of each). Press into candy mold or mini muffin dishes. Dry. In Utah this happens pretty quickly (4-8 hours). 

These are great for baths, toilet bowl cleaning and gifts. Store in an air tight container-zip lock baggie or a little glass jar.

For more simple, natural cleansers, stay tuned or stop by REAL Foods Sugarhouse next Wednesday, November 19th at 6:30 pm.  

I'd love to hear any of your ideas, recipes or success stories with natural cleansers.
#REALFoodsMarket #DIY

How Do You WANT to Feel?

Let’s talk about your life.

Do you feel free? Joyful? Connected?

Most importantly, does your life feel the way you want it to feel?

When I read The Desire Map by Danielle LaPorte for the first time, my life was not feeling the way I wanted it to. I had just left my school teaching job and was unsure where teaching yoga was going to bring me. The Desire Map was the catalyst for the change I needed.

This book isn’t just intellectual theory. It actually walks you through the process of practically (+ soulfully) creating a life that you actually want to live, connected to people, experiences and things that you actually want to be connected to.

It seems so obvious, right? Of course! My life should feel good!

But the thing is, so many of us aren’t living that way. We’re fixated on what others think we should do. We’re pushing ourselves to meet someone else’s expectations of The Great Mom, The Successful Businesswoman, The Patient Wife or The Forgiving Friend.

And in all that striving to meet other people’s expectations, a lot of us have lost ourselves. 

For a while, I did.

The Desire Map snapped me out of it and got me back on my own life track, moving towards a future that feels right for me.

And because of the profound impact desire mapping has had on my life, I want to sing about this work from the rooftops. I want you to have this opportunity to reclaim your life too, which is why...When I heard that Danielle was creating a Licensing program so that people could teach this material, I was one of the first people waving my arms at the front of the line.

And now... I am thrilled to announce that I’m an official Desire Map Licensee (cue the confetti!).

I’m preparing to host my first in-person workshop in Salt Lake City, January 17-18, 2015.

If you’d like to join me, click here for more details and to register.

It’s never too late to live a life that feels good. A life that you consciously choose and design, based on your own core desired feelings.

I’d like to help you uncover those feelings so you can start building a life that helps you generate them.

Love, Jacqueline

PS- I will be offering a virtual workshop starting at the end of January. You can contact me to get on the update list.