Creating Sparks That Last & All Things Relationships

 Best of Both Worlds https://unsplash.com/@courtniebt13 Our date on this occasion required compromise. Not usually a big problem in healthy relationships so it was little hardship to convince James to come with me to the Market. As we strolled around looking at this stall and that, he even showed interest in the items I was looking at. A door stopper for one, which the ever practical man in him couldn't help but state, "I can fit one for you." Well thank you dear, I thought, but I don't want a spoke sticking out of the skirting on the wall for the door to magnetize to, I would prefer a more aesthetically appealing one like this weighted anchor thanks. Instead, I concurred to have a look at other options. In the end, James was happy for us to go back to the stall to buy the anchor door stop. Well wouldn't you know it? Nope, it wasn't sold, it was still sitting there waiting for me, but the vendor's Point of Sale device couldn't connect to the wifi signa

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

  Follow your nose, it knows what to do Rocks of Knowledge Given the fire ravaged state our small town was in at the time, our intended 5km bike ride to the beach had to be re-planned. The poor air quality and visibility would have compromised our health and safety and besides, other people had suffered far greater loss than our intended bike ride. We hopped into our car instead and decided to ‘see where we would end up.’ Following the roads to cleaner air we found ourselves in Tuncurry and literally followed our noses to be led hand-in-hand to the Rocks of Knowledge. Firstly following our noses was both literal and figurative as we sought out clearer air to breath and quite frankly found ourselves   at the Rocks of Knowledge . If we had ridden our bikes, we certainly would have had a wonderful time, but on this occasion instead, we got to hold hands and amble into a profound wisdom to trust our instincts – this was a broader aspect of knowledge we hadn’t expected to acquire, yet

How to fix dating shortfalls Image credit Tyler Nix via Unsplash The 3 Dating Tendencies Quite honestly, I think all relationships have a combination of Logan's 3 dating tendencies. The trick is to juggle each of them in equal measure. The Romanticizer: The reality is that there are no perfect relationships. Period. We have to accept that there are ups and downs in every single relationship on earth. Once we can accept that fact, it is easier to move towards improving the quality of our interactions without striving for perfection. The Maximizer: Whether it's you or your partner who has unrealistic expectations of the other, it's important to state your boundaries. That is the secret sauce to maintaining integrity in your relationships. Respectful boundaries deserve respect. The Hesitater: If your self-doubt is based on either of the above tendencies, you need to look at your 'why'. Once you appreciate your personality for its strengths you will have a deeper unders

Love is a commitment, not a feeling Quoted from Gretchen Rubin: My husband has to put up with me putting dirty dishes in the sink, not the dishwasher, and I have to put up with him buying more without seeing what we already have. Ask me how much soy sauce we have! And my daughter puts empty containers back in the fridge or cupboard. But love conquers all. What are your kitchen squabbles?   Below is a fabulous article from Grace Dent at The Guardian that epitomizes the nature of love and our commitment to those we love. https://www.betterapp.us/posts/12671688

Sometimes sombre, sometimes humorous, always enlightening Something wonderful is happening so I wanted to share the excitement with you. In 7 months I will be a published author! I have written my memoir which is an expansion of ‘Creating Sparks that Last,’ which you might already have read. If you haven’t, it’s available at the link in the top post; it will give you the backstory to my memoir. If you’re unable to access the link I’ll gladly email the ebook/pdf document to you. Anyway, back to my memoir, ‘En Route: The best is yet to be.’ In the unraveling of my inherent people-pleasing practices I uncover a hidden dragon within. This self-empowerment helps me give voice to my opinions; to speak up in trying times and to face adversity head on. From all this self-discovery I learn new ways of engaging in all my relationship dynamics. From siblings, to offspring, in-laws, parents and partner, I find my identity and mightily so! If you’d like the same empowerment for your life, register

It’s Not Funny Treating our mental health well like we should our physical health is a necessity. To this end, James and I indulged ourselves with a Gold Class movie night out. We went the whole hog as they say – pre-ordering snacks to be delivered to us periodically through the movie. Lounging back in our recliner chairs sipping on tannin rich merlot, the aroma swirling around my nostrils, I was basking in the sheer opulence.    These are important moments to take for ourselves, and each other.  The movie we chose was Joker. In light of a recent emotional meltdown I had had regarding my career, this was a particularly sensitive story for us to follow. It was a dark storyline with uncomfortable truths to follow, but oh so necessary for us as individuals and for the greater community as a universal whole. Doing something out of the ordinary, watching a movie out of the ordinary nudges us towards growth. Understanding of others. Tolerance towards others. Compassion towards our own state