Nature by the Drop Blending Lab

On Saturday, after my son's baseball game (his team won by the way -- tied all the way to the end. Final score was 6 to 5), I met my friend Holly over at our mutual friend's Veterinary Clininc to host this month's essential oil blending lab. We had invited all of our friend's clients with the intention to focus on the health and well-being of their pets and using essential oils to help with that. Well today only one person came to our blending lab. But it turned out so lovely; it became a one-on-one, three hour consultation for Deb (which gives me lots of new expanding ideas). This "private session" gave us the opportunity to get a bit more personal. We helped Deb create special healing blends for each person in her family (we ran out of time and did not get to make one for her dog, but she did get something pre-blended for her). ... A very nice afternoon! ... Then off I wen to the beach to pick my son up from a birthday party. My daughter spent the day with Grandma.

Cheers,
Julie

A Maya Angleou Poem from Ms. Mia

Today when I went to work in the office at my kids' school, I found a poem written by Maya Angelou on my desk. It was given to me from one of our dear and wise kindergarten teachers, Ms. Mia. Thank you Mia for this gift!

Maya Angelou's "What Every Woman Should Have"

A WOMAN SHOULD HAVE ...
Enough money within her control to move out and rent a place of her own,
even if she never wants to or needs to ...

A WOMAN SHOULD HAVE ...
Something perfect to wear if the employer, or date of her dreams wants to see her in an hour ...

A WOMAN SHOULD HAVE ...
A youth she's content to leave behind ...

A WOMAN SHOULD HAVE ...
A past juicy enough that she's looking forward to retelling it in her old age ...

A WOMAN SHOULD HAVE ...
A set of screwdrivers, a cordless drill, and a black lace bra ...

A WOMAN SHOULD HAVE ...
One friend who always makes her
laugh ... and one who lets her cry ...

A WOMAN SHOULD HAVE ...
A good piece of furniture not previously owned by anyone else in her
family ...

A WOMAN SHOULD HAVE ...
Eight matching plates, wine glasses with stems, and a recipe for a meal, that will make her guests feel honored ...

A WOMAN SHOULD HAVE ...
A feeling of control over her destiny ...

EVERY WOMAN SHOULD KNOW ...
How to fall in love without losing herself ...

EVERY WOMAN SHOULD KNOW...
how to quit a job, break up with a lover,
and confront a friend without ruining the friendship ...

EVERY WOMAN SHOULD KNOW...
When to try harder... and WHEN TO WALK AWAY ...

EVERY WOMAN SHOULD KNOW ...
That she can't change the length of her calves,the width of her hips, or the nature of her parents ...

EVERY WOMAN SHOULD KNOW ...
that her childhood may not have been perfect..but it's over ...

EVERY WOMAN SHOULD KNOW ...
What she would and wouldn't do for love or more ...

EVERY WOMAN SHOULD KNOW ...
How to live alone... even if she doesn't like it ...

EVERY WOMAN SHOULD KNOW ...
whom she can trust, whom she can't,
and why she shouldn't take it personally ...

EVERY WOMAN SHOULD KNOW ...
Where to go...be it to her best friend's kitchen table...or a charming inn in the woods ... when her soul needs soothing ...

EVERY WOMAN SHOULD KNOW ...
What she can and can't accomplish in a day ... a month ... and a year ...

Altering A Christmas Tradition -- Best Gift Ever

Of course a Christmas tree is must -- every year we put one up in the living room the first Sunday after Thanksgiving and it stays up in until January 2. My December budget has always dictated the sized of the our tree -- usually around 5 feet tall and I gravitate towards a Douglas Fir type tree. Then loading, nearly stuffing, it with white lights and decorate it with silver, gold, red and green ornaments that have been collected over the years. When all is done the Christmas tree looks ... perfect ... in my opinion. Well this year I stepped out of that comfort zone. I didn't mean to and to be honest to felt a little uncomfortable at first. The kids and I were visiting a friend after school a few days ago and it just so happen that her father-in-law had "weeded" some saplings off his property in the mountains and brought her family three trees early in the day. My friend asked if we would like one. Something came over me and I accepted the frail, meager 7' gift -- the kids were thrilled! All the way home all I could think of was how am I going to put lights on this tree? It reminded me of Charlie Brown's Christmas tree only much taller. Well we managed and the tree is adorable. It is definitely not "my" traditional tree. Seeing the kids proud of their tree made the change worth it to me. I am proud of myself too for flowing with this -- observing my uneasiness about this and letting it go. I truly love this tree and it makes it one of the best gifts I have ever received!

Would you like to find FREE Babysitting?

Have I mentioned yet that I am part of a wonderful community of 16 families who share in babysitting each others' children? Well, a year ago one of my friends asked me if I would like to join a babysitting Co-Op that she was starting. Many of us were doing the "Date Night Swap" deal where we were individually trying to find babysitters to get a day of shopping in, uninterrupted house cleaning done or even a DATE with our husbands every once in a while. If our kids ended up on a "play date" with our friends' kids, we always some how reciprocated with watching their children in return sometime in the near future. Well a real system was put into place when my friend, Shannon, decided to start our babysitting co-op. We meet as a group every two months to discuss business. We each take turns at being the secretary; who takes sit requests and finds families within our group to sit for us. It is all kept "official" with a point system. We all have very similar parenting styles which makes it very nice. It feels really good to have an adult watching my children! And when it is time for the "sitter" to go home it feels even better to leave that $8.00 (I have sometimes had to pay as much as $15.00) an hour in my pocket! And I must add the stronger bounds we have all made are simply wonderful!

You know what, if your are interested in learning how to start your own babysitting co-op, subscribe to my FREE monthly Journal! I will share how to do things like this in my publication!

Jules