PART 4 – How I became a Wolf!

I began to sink again.  Then Alice asked, “What else do you love?”

            I pondered a moment or two, really wanting this answer to take us somewhere.  “Literature,” I exclaimed.  “I was an English major!”

             There had to be something here.  What richer vessel of names than the world of literature?  I sat up on the edge of my chair.  Alice stopped chewing.  The table got quiet.  Her nimble literature-rich mind began spinning.  She stared deeply into my brown eyes with her blue ones.  A few seconds passed, and then with her trademark calm authority said, “Virginia Woolf!  Woolf!  How about…… Marilyn Woolf?  Dogs, literature…..Woolf!”  Alice clapped her hands. She had hit her mark.

            All the women at the table smiled and nodded, turning to one another, and looking at me.            “Yes.  That’s a good name.  Marilyn Woolf.  How creative.  Yes, that’s a fine name.  Isn’t Alice clever?”  The approval of my friends rumbled in my ears as I stared at Alice.

Where less creative but equally generous spirits wanting to help may have come up with Hemingway or Shakespeare, Alice found Woolf in the library of her heart and gave me a beautifully simple gift.  My name dilemma had ended.  I loved the name immediately, but not for the reasons Alice thought.  In my dog-loving heart, I instantly knew I could be Marilyn Wolf, with only one “o.”  Now all I had to do was conjure up the courage to actually make the change.

Be Inspired – Rambling Rose Volunteers!

Come out to the 3rd Ramblin’ Rose Winston-Salem Women-Only Triathlon, benefiting the Gateway YWCA, and be a part of the official Race Crew!

Wednesday’s Word: Service

Unless someone like you cares a whole awful lot,
nothing is going to get better.  It’s not.
(Dr. Seuss)

Do not let what you cannot do
interfere with what you can do.
(John Wooden)

Wednesday’s Word is service.  What do you think of when you hear the word service? Sadly, most of us think of people who serve us such as those who work in restaurants or other establishments where we purchase items or services. What if when hearing the word service, our initial thought was serving someone in our home, the community or even the world?

Is it truly “service” if you are doing something, but secretly you are bitter and the “critical monster” is dancing in your head? (Let us be honest, we have all had mental visits by Bitter Betty and the Critical Cassandra!) If this is occurring, your motivation for service might be the issue and/or you could be over committed. Service, Rest and  Peace all live together; in fact they do their best work, working together.

Is one of the keys to a fulfilling life service?  How do you serve others? How do you serve your family? Why is it important to serve beyond the walls of your own home? Is giving money to important causes distinctly different from service? Can you do one or the other and have a fulfilling life?

How do you serve? During the next week, would you be willing to look for simple ways to serve others without any self-motivation?

Service (July 21, 2010)
Peace (July 21, 2010)
Rest (July 14, 2010)
Veggies – Twisted Salsa Recipe (July 7, 2010)
Counting Calories (June 30, 2010)

B R E A T H E  (March 17, 2010)

Staying Cool for Under $10.00

When all you want to do is sit inside and stay by the air conditioning, it is hard to think about enjoying any outdoor fun. But I am going to tell you 5 things you can do for under $10.00 , that might make you want to get out our your cool air conditioned house!
1. Gelato/Ice Cream. We have plenty of ice cream parlors or stores to choose from. And guess what? They are all inside in the AC. So frequent one of your local favorites today!
2. Putt-Putt. Remember when you were a kid and you used to love to play it? Well your kids love it too. I have found that I am much better at it now that I am an adult. Oh, and guess what? They have an arcade that is INSIDE!! But so are the games, and that would be another splurge!
3. Museum/SciWorks. We have several museums that are entertaining and don’t require an application of sunscreen.
4. Games. You can find great deals on games at Target or WAL-Mart. We have been playing the classic game CLUE and it is really great family entertainment!
5. Movies. The cinemas are having Summer Movie days on Tuesday. They play a classic movie and popcorn and drinks are only $1.00. Yes, ONLY $1.00. You can’t beat that with a stick!!
So go on out and venture into that bright, hot sun! It may feel miserable in the heat, but you will feel cool saving on these summer splurges!!

Wednesday’s word: Peace

First keep the peace within yourself, then you can also bring peace to others.

(Thomas a Kempis)

Worry gives a small thing a big shadow

(Swedish Proverb)

Wednesday’s word: PEACE. Do you want to grow peace within your mind and spirit? What if the word peace described your home, workplace and even your mind and spirit? Is it possible to have a peaceful spirit even in the midst of daily duties? Most of us would gladly welcome greater peace and calm within our minds and our overall being.

Peace within ourselves – what does it look like? What helps you cultivate a sense of peace within you? Here are my ten top ways to cultivate peace in my life.

How do you welcome peaceful moments into your life? What could you do today to nurture peace within your spirit?

Wednesday’s words:

Peace (July 21, 2010)
Rest (July 14, 2010)
Veggies – Twisted Salsa Recipe (July 7, 2010)
Counting Calories (June 30, 2010)

Money Monday and the Girl’s Getaway!!

Okay, so it is the middle of summer and all the moms are in the throes of day camps, beach trips and swim meets. And if you are like me, you keep having those flashes of school lunches, back to school clothes and supply lists! Not to mention all the wonderful little things that life throws at us, i.e. a big move, a family pet dying or a sick family member. It is enough to make even the most organized mom a little crazy. So how do you solve this problem, Maria, you ask? A GIRL’S GETAWAY!!!
Now the first rule is NO EXCUSES!! If you are actually going to get your BFF’s to go anywhere, you have to squash the excuses! We all have so much on our plates, that even if we wanted to wait until a better time, there would always be something.
Second, start out small. A week might be too much for anyone to handle, although sitting on some tropical beach sipping Pina Coladas, does sound way tempting. You can always do a “staycation “, where you venture 30 to 45 minutes away and just book a hotel room for a night. 24 hours can do wonders! While you are there you can look through travel magazines or surf the web for some surfing getaways.
Now start the planning: Pick a few friends who you love to be around, and start thinking of possible places to go! Once you have a few destinations, you can and add a few friends from there. 6 people is a good number, after that the dynamics start to change. Pick a deadline and make everyone commit to that date. Set the date, book your place and off you go!!! Don’t look back! And for goodness sakes!!! Enjoy yourself. All moms need a little R&R every now and then!
Make sure you post your adventures here, so we can all enjoy!

Living Life MORE MORE: Rest

He that can take rest is greater than he that can take cities.  (Benjamin Franklin)

Wednesday’s word is REST. Is there a rhythm of rest and work that is a secret key to living life fully, being productive and enjoying life more? Could it be possible to get six to eight hours of sleep and not be rested? If you made rest a weekly priority and included small daily periods of rest, would the quality of your life improve?

In many countries around the world, an afternoon nap is part of their daily rhythm. In fact, I was amused to discover that some workplaces provide napping areas in the workplace. Sadly, most Americans refuse to make time for naps or even allow short periods of rest in their day. Do we as individuals assume we are so important that the world would stop, if we paused for a few moments each day or is it possible that we are afraid of silence and stillness?

For one week, could you try to incorporate a few moments of rest in your day? What would be restful for you and what might a restful pause in your day look like? Could restful pauses become part of your daily rhythm of life?

Wednesday’s words:
Rest (July 14, 2010)
Veggies – Twisted Salsa Recipe (July 7, 2010)
Counting Calories (June 30, 2010)

How Much Money Do You Need To Be Happy?

So it is Monday and that means it’s all about the money.  I saw this interesting article and I thought I would share it with you.  It asks the question, how much money do you need to be happy?  I think that is an excellent question! The article which conducted several studies, aims at finding out whether money makes you truly happy and what is it about having money that makes your life seem better.

The research found that money can bring life satisfaction but not happy feelings.  The questions of the everyday had more to do with feelings. For example, did you smile a lot today?  Did someone show your respect or did your kids make you laugh?  These were questions that seemed to have less bearing on money matters and more on the emotional factors.

And I think that is something we should all try to focus on in our lives.  Was it a good day, and if not how can we make it better?  Will money make it better?  Maybe, but then maybe it won’t. Read this article for yourself and let me know what you think.

Money does make the world go round, or does it?

Here is the article:

http://finance.yahoo.com/family-home/article/110009/how-much-money-do-you-need-to-be-satisfied

Do you have summertime hair?

Do you have Summer time hair?  Not the sun kissed sweet, flowing hair but the brittle, dry, straw feeling locks!  Here are a few tips to add some moisture back to your summer time hair!

Vinegar – we use it to clean the floors but this is a great way.  1 tablespoon to your hair and rub in well once a week before shampooing will help hair retain moisture.

Mayonnaise – fat free doesn’t work as you are looking for the fat in your hair.  Slather 1 tablespoon in your hair, wrap and cover with a shower cap and wait 30 minutes before shampooing out.

Banana and avocado – mash this together and cover your hair again with the shower cap and wait. 

Milk and Honey – even if there’s a song about that, your hair will love it.  Combine two cups milk with 1 tablespoon honey.  Rinse dry hair with the mixture then shampoo and condition as usual, make sure you clear it all out so you don’t smell like sour milk as you go on your day.

Finally our favorite – BEER!  Not it’s not happy hour in the house; it is happy hour for your hair!  Rinsing with a can of beer periodically gets your hair drunk enough to be happy!

Make you hair happy this summer with these simple remedies, it will thank you by looking fabulous!

Tour de France Talk

In case you didn’t know, the Tour de France is in full swing.  The tour started July 3rd and ends the 23rd running from Rotterdam to Paris.  To help you sound like you know what you’re talking about, here are some key words to use in your conversation:

• 2241 Miles in 20 stages running 3 weeks
• Yellow Jersey: General Classification Leader – fastest combined time of the race.  Each stage has its own winner, yellow is overall.
• Green Jersey: Points Standings Leader.
• Red-Polka Dotted Jersey: King of the Mountains, best climber.
• White Jersey: Young Rider Standings – under 25 years of age 
• Peloton – Largest group of riders in the race.  French for platoon or little ball, riders ride tightly together to keep draft down and that saves them pedaling energy.
• Money at stake 3.5 million dollars.
• 9 riders on each team. 
• 3 mountain summit finishes

If you’re at that cocktail party here’s what you can say:  “Have you been watching the Tour?  What Tour?  Why the Tour de France!  We’re in the middle of the 2241 miles, but since it runs 3 weeks  and 20 stages there’s time to watch it.  I sure hope that Lance Armstrong wins the yellow jersey, he could get the polka dotted.  What’s the polka dotted jersey?  Well, the polka dotted is the King of the Mountain, we’ll see how he does on the three mountain finishes.  He’s too old for the White Jersey, could get the Green.  Even with 9 riders on his team, Lance wears out a bike chain each day.  3.5 million dollar price purse will purchase many more, right?”  Then walk away because you’ve used up your knowledge and can’t follow up with anything else.  What would you add?