Creating Sparks That Last & All Things Relationships

Because It's All About You https://unsplash.com/@adaliabotha Thank you for your patience while my book launch was happening. Now it’s time to celebrate YOU! I want to know what you've been up to. I've been so embroiled in the details of launching that I lost sight of the world around me. So much so that I took a little digi-detox time for reflection. Now I want to know a little more about you. You know enough about me and my life. What accomplishment are you most proud of?  What goal have you set out to achieve this month?  What characteristic do you LOVE about yourself? If you're not comfortable with that, then ask someone else to describe a characteristic they love about you; or reflect on your general characteristics in a journal or note-taking app. https://unsplash.com/@itsmiki5 If you need a little help settling on a characteristic you love about yourself, I've included this article to help you:  Characteristics list What I discovered on my mini digi-detox is t...

Nobody Perceives You the Way You Perceive Yourself Frida Kahlo Cover image from the book; Frida Kahlo's Garden I am the person I know best.   Quote from Frida Kahlo regarding her self portraits. I have been fascinated by Frida Kahlo's expression of self for many years. Her use of light and shadow in her creativity depicts, closely, her awareness of shadow and brightness in herself. Light and shadow that each of us have. The quote above is preceded by deeper reflection: I paint self-portraits because I am so often alone, because I am the person I know best. For me, alone time has always been paramount to me thriving in a noisy, busy world. Alone but not lonely, which I think is what tormented Frida somewhat. That opinion is my own based on the fact that she divorced her husband, Diego Rivera and ended her longtime affair with photographer Nickolas Muray in the same year. Anyway, this is not a study on Frida Kahlo, merely a reflection of how well she knew herself and how that led...

Are You Your Own Stumbling Block to Happiness? Hello Blog Family! It's been a hot minute since you last heard from me.  Thank you for your patience while I made a huge move, relocating house, home, hearth and heart. As you can tell, this move was a big deal for me, moving far away from my family. This may seem counterintuitive to my happiness but the joy I have already found after just two weeks in my new home far outshines any shadow of sadness that might have been lingering.  https://unsplash.com/@taiscaptures 5 Things Making Me Happy This Week For that reason, I wanted to share with you the pleasures I have gained from setting up home in a far away place: Finding new interests that excite ME: First off, the emphasis is on 'me' because without my own pleasures in life, I have very little joy to impart to others, whether intentionally or by exuding my vibe. It's not necessarily big events or material possessions for me, it's the miniscule shift in awareness . When ...

Self Care Ideas https://unsplash.com/@taiamint [The last in our Self-Love mini-series] “You’re always with yourself, so you might as well enjoy the company.”   Diane Von Furstenberg Last week our post was a little on the long side. I really didn’t want to leave anything out because I felt it was all so important for our wellbeing. This week though, we have a 1 minute self-care video to watch. Enjoy the soothing music and simple self-care suggestions. Show yourself a little love    If you’d like to read last week’s post in snatches, here’s the link: The Art of Restorative Self-Love https://unsplash.com/@avasol How do you know when you're starting to need a little extra self-care?  For example, I get very sweary and I don't normally speak like that, so I know that it's time to pay attention to my stressors and find healthy ways to eliminate them. Do you have a self-care routine or ritual?

Self Worth is Such an Underestimated Superpower “I think it's important to have a great relationship with ourselves before we can expect a better relationship with our partner." Jude -  Quantum Healing Connection Welcome to our new mini-series: Our Relationship with Ourselves Photo by Drew Colins on Unsplash "I determine my self-worth from now on!" This was me after a particularly tough disagreement with my husband of 35+ years. Disagreements happen. They're a fact of life, but when our self-worth is undermined we have to stand up for ourselves. That was a pivotal moment in our relationship. It truly gave me a Superpower I had never owned before. It helped me understand that I do not need to be small to fit someone else's ego; I do not need to keep quiet when I disagree - I found my self-worth Superpower that day and it helped both of us forge a healthier environment for our relationship. Ali and Cameron Daddo speak of this concept in their 'Separate Bat...

How to Practice Self Love We're going to take a step back today with the important distinction that it is not a step backWARDS.  We're going to remind ourselves that without self-love our relationships suffer. What does loving yourself mean to you? In my experience, radical self-love is both internal and external. Earlier this week I'd had a bad nights' sleep and woke up feeling it. I recognised the need for a little 'me-lovin' so took myself out into the garden. Alas! There were roadworks out the front (I live in a cul-de-sac!) and a jackhammering neighbour out the back! No space for self reflection outdoors. So what did I do to show myself a bit of self-care? I wrapped myself up in bed. My mindset was nowhere near ready for affirmations of self love so I simply listened to my breath. After just a few minutes my focus turned inward. I noticed that I was well, I was loved and I was very fortunate to be wrapped up in bed. The switch was miniscule. I hardly notice...