10 More uses for an empty candle jar! March 16, 2010

10 MORE uses for your empty jars -

1. Doggy biscuits
2. Kitty treats
3. Picture holder (put the 4×6 picture down in the jar
and then use as a pen holder. Frame + Pen holder
on your desk!)
4. Good container to transport your pet Betta fish
from office tank to home tank on the weekend
(his name is Stewart )
5. Remove the lid, place a glass votive holder down inside with
a votive. Becomes a dimensional candle holder.
6. Place a row of jars on a shelf or mantle. Then find some
pretty Spring flowers. Remove the stem, and just place
the pretty flower down in the bottom of the jar. A grouping of 3 or more
is a nice effect.
7. Spare change jar
8. Granny’s New “old fashioned” button jar (my Granny used to have an
old Mason Jar she kept buttons in to repair shirts when one was lost.
Now, every time you purchase new clothes there seems to be a
“spare button” attached. I clip them, keep them in the bag, and put
in my “Bella Button Jar”.
9. Beach in a Jar – sand, shells, and a small piece of drift wood.
A vacation for your desk!
10. Spare screw and Nail jar (for those quick fixes – a jar under the sink
keeps you from having to plunder in the tool shed)

10 uses for an empty candle jar March 16, 2010

Time to think GREEN and recycle!
Earth day is on the way!

10 uses for an empty candle jar:
1. Candy Jar
2. Cotton Balls or Q-tips on your dresser
3. A pretty display to pour Mia Melts. Shoppers can
see the lovely colors.
4. A Bella Bar, A Scrubby, and a Votive = Spa In a Jar
5. Pour all your ground votives in the jar. A nice way to transport
if you want to “market” and go fill sample bags while enjoying a
cup of coffee somewhere. A nice conversation starter.
6. Fill with small ornaments and sit on a shelf, table or mantle
for sparkly Christmas decor.
7. Fill with candy, attach your fundraising information and give
to someone inquiring about fundraising. Be sure to put a hang tag
on the jar “Tired of selling the same old candy year after year? Try
candles!)
8. Add dirt, a small plant and a tablespoon of water. Put the lid
back on enjoy a miniature Terrarium.
9. Take cuttings a favorite Ivy and put in the jar to take root.
10. Pen holder for your desk

The Blind Side and building your business March 8, 2010

This popular movie in 2009 in which Sandra Bullock won the 2010 Best Actress Oscar portrays a family ( a MOM) that reaches out to a young man of a different race. She gives him not only the basic necessities, but also gives him the guidance and support he needs to exceed. Not only to exceed as a teenager/young adult but also as a professional football player – Michael Oher, an offensive lineman who plays for the Baltimore Ravens of the NFL .

I love the line in the movie in which Bullock explains to Michael what his task is – to protect the
quarterback when he is turned to make a pass. The left side that is turned is called “the blind side” or in other terms “watching his back”.

Now, Micheal (the real) has given information that in an interview, that scene really didn’t happen. He knew HOW to play football – but it made for a GREAT movie scene.

It also makes for a great home business lesson.

YOU are your home business’s Defensive Player. You must protect it’s “Blind Side”.
You may be skating along, having fun doing your business, and not really understand all the pieces and gears grinding in the back ground that are happening with/to/and for your business.

So, here is the cold hard truth. I had it happen recently. I was very dependent on an upline’s activity in my business (lead capture, business specific group website, team distributor training, etc). When they abruptly left, and website’s began shutting down I was struck in The Blind Side. Talk about having the wind being taken out of your sails!

However, I had begun “branding myself” and working a little bit on building my own website for “fun”. I was a little more ahead than some of the rest of the crossline. But I had to take action quickly. So, very quickly in the past 2 weeks I’ve had to learn how to build a better personal website (still working on it!). I’ve had to learn how to manipulate an Auto-responder system and write my own content. Don’t get me wrong. It’s nice to be a part of a team – but, don’t be so dependent on those team tools that you don’t know how to build your own business.

I must defend MY business. It’s up to me to protect “the blind side” of my business!

(The title is a football reference: when dropping back to pass, a quarterback will turn to the side of his throwing hand, his opposite side becomes “blind” to rushing defensive players. For most quarterbacks, as they are right-handed, the left side is their “blind side” (Oher switched to left offensive tackle while in college, which required him to protect the quarterback’s blind side).

When the bottom falls out, what do you do? March 2, 2010

I had that experience twice in February.

The first experience was walking through our hall and
the floor where I had just placed my foot fell through.
It appears we had visitors (termites and moisture) that
did some damage!

Now we are making plans for the repairs – and as you
know, any home improvement projects always
cost more than you expect and take longer than
projected!

Later, the bottom fell out when tools that I was
using to build and spread the word about my business
were abruptly shut down and ripped away
from my existence.

I learned real quick why everyone I’ve been learning behind
has said it’s so important to “brand yourself” and have
your own website.

So, I’m working on repairing the damage! I have
a new focus and a new mindset.
The number one thing – is that MY destiny is in MY
hands and I’m not going to “depend” on one sole
person again!

Looking forward to “stability”!!

How can I lose weight in a month ? February 21, 2010

(I have been doing this for a month – sort of thought of it on my own – or so I thought! THEN, I just read this posting by someone else who said they got it from some other website (but they didn’t give the link) Maybe I read it then a few months ago and it finally made it way to the front of my mind! SO, the bottom line is Diet and Exercise… And following this pattern has resulted in a 10 pound loss so far in 4 weeks. )

The posting read ****
1. First start by getting up earlier than usual. Around 5:30 AM to do some of you workouts. Getting up early shocks your metabolism because the body needs more energy to get going. Right? This will start your system on the road to weight loss. That early start with about 10 minutes of stretching. Have a cup of coffee to get the blood going also.

2. Do all the sit-ups you can. Just do them. 15 or 20 whatever, we don’t have a lot of time to work with. Rest 1 minute repeat, do this for 6 sets. Already you are breathing hard and feel worn, because the body is working extra hard at being up earlier and then going right into exercise. If the early morning hour lets you get your cardio in, go ahead and do it. 30 minutes.

3. Diet. Cut all current meal portions in half, just cut them in half, nothing fancy or complicated, CUT IN HALF! Cut out all bread products, all gravies, candies, chips, night snacks, etc. If you crave at night eat a banana, other fruit or best a non-fat yogurt. There are some tasty ones out there.

4. In the evening do another 6 sets of sit-ups maxing out each set. Cardio again. The trick is to stay with getting up earlier. Yes it’s hard, that’s why it is so effective. Why do you think the Army gets up so early, it is intense training to the max.

My Wii Fit Fun January 22, 2010

So, why am I enjoying my Wii Fit so much??

Well, first, I’m out of shape so anything I can do to help myself get back into
shape.
Second, I hate going to gym because I am so intimated by all those skinny young
things toned and trimmed, and there I am all…NOT young, NOT trim, and NOT
toned, lol. I do not like my routine having to be either walking in place on a
treadmill or riding a bike in place. We live in the country and walking
early in the morning or late at night is not a favored choice for me because
then I’m intimidated by the skunks and coyotes.
Third, I like the program with the Wii Fit because it’s “bite-size” portions of
exercising and I can change it up (do some strength, do some aerobics, end
with Yoga, etc).
Fourth, it’s FUN for me (but I like computers, and playing games, and game
systems) and if something is FUN you are more likely to DO IT.
Fifth, it charts my progress with the game, so no need to keep a separate
log or calendar if “when did I exercise last, for how long, and now what do
I weigh”
Sixth, as you accomplish the basics, you open up more challenging
(for instance this morning I opened up a new series of “steps” for the
step aerobics used with the balance board! Had to put in 800 steps within
a 10 minute time period)
Seventh, I know I can build up with the Wii Fit to the Biggest Loser
(Which I purchased, tried one time, and nearly collapsed on the floor, lol)

Some say the Wii Fit is “slow” but for someone (me) starting out with a
routine it’s perfect – I need the variety to keep me motivated!

Lifestyling Your Business – Part 1 January 18, 2010

Presentation at the Texas Dare to Dream Regional Meeting

Lifestyling Your Business, Presented on January 16th

Meet… A time of rest January 10, 2010

Image by SmilingSunflower via Flickr

The seasons have a time of rest (Winter). The animals have a time of rest (hibernate in the Winter). The plants have a time of rest (the seeds rest in the Winter)…. am I seeing a pattern here? Is that’s why it’s so hard to get motivated to DO major projects in the Winter? Our body really wants to REST?? I am going research this a bit more – after I go take a nap.

Meet .. Yoga December 26, 2009

Ok. I stepped out of my comfort zone and tried something new today.
Yoga.

Now, I’m not talking about REAL serious yoga. This was just dabbling in something I had never tried before.

I was going to purchase a DVD, but then, I thought surely someone on You Tube would have something posted. Wow!
There are MANY yoga videos!

I found these videos by FreeYogaVideos The audio is a pleasant and I LOVE his accent!

I had a good 30 minute workout – and YES, for person in beginning Yoga it is a workout! I never knew stretching could leave you out of breath! But it was a GREAT work out and I’ll be continuing. The shoulder roll pose really relieved some tense muscles – I could feel it leaving with each repetition.

Here is a little bit information about Yoga.

Yoga Training

Meet.. Gardening December 11, 2009

One way I enjoyed relieving stress and getting back to good wholesome eating in 2009 was by gardening. I had not grown a vegetable garden in about 8 years, and my husband decided it would be a good thing to do last spring. So, we carefully laid out our plan.

A small 10×20 patch that he tilled and tilled and tilled to break up the hard soil. Then a few hours of weed pulling and mixing in bags of soil from the local Home Depot. I was seeing quickly that this was no small project as our hard Texas soil need much TLC.

Finally, the preparation was complete and it was time to hoe the rows and make the mounds. OUCH! Talk about back breaking labor! I was trying to smile – but this “nice relaxing garden” was taking some back breaking labor!

After the season was complete, and all our harvesting was over I decided that there must be an easier way to get the same results. EUREKA! I found it!!

There is a thing called a Garden Rack that brings the garden up to waist level. It can actually be built to even accommodate someone in a wheelchair. I am SOO excited!! This will be our building project this Fall and Winter! YES, I realize that it isn’t going to be as large as a 10×20 garden. BUT, we also realized that with 2 of us, and my parents, a 10×20 garden yielded WAY too much harvest. At one point, I thought I was going to have to be the Ninja Squash woman and leave bags of squash on unsuspecting neighbors porches.