GratitudeToBliss
Love Life Every Day

Vitamin G Your Food

What’s one of the healthiest things you can do to improve your diet?

Add some Vitamin G.

Seriously, have you ever considered how much is entailed in getting food onto your plate?

From the farmer to the truck driver to the store or restaurant owner, to the chef who cooked it, a LOT goes into filling your tummy with fuel to go about your day.

And whether it’s organic or it came out of can, food that is appreciated provides the best nutrients. Tweet this!

Food nourishes body and soul.

Food brings people together.

Food is one of the ways we take care of others.

Food is one of the ways we take care of ourselves.

My 4 year old and I love to sprinkle Vitamin G over everything we cook together. Then we eat it, together.

Give it a try and most of all, enjoy what you eat.

To yumminess!

Please share your thoughts in the comments below.

Is something missing?

After years of doing the Oprah Show, Oprah Winfrey began talking to her audience after the show to get a better sense of what women needed.

What she heard over and over was how much women were craving something more from their lives. Despite having an education, a career, and a family, most women felt as if something was missing. 

Can you relate?

Do you find yourself craving something more and not knowing exactly what that something more might be?

Being a spiritual person, Oprah said she knew instinctively that “something more” was a connection to something that’s bigger than yourself.

One of the things I love most about the power of daily gratitude, is how it helps you FEEL connected to that something bigger. It helps you stay connected to what already is. To what you already have. To the life force that gives and gives and keeps on giving.

Whether it’s the dream job, car, vacation, relationship, house, or even a baby, it’s important to remember that those things will not fulfill that need for “something more” in the way that true appreciation does.

So on your journey to achieving all that you desire (and I’m not saying you should give up on your dreams, never ever!), be sure to include an attitude of gratitude.

Make today count.

Smell the flowers.

Look people in the eye and smile.

Walk in the woods.

Talk to the trees.

Search for butterflies.

Money and “things” don’t buy happiness. Appreciation does.  Tweet this! 

Learn the art of appreciation now and that dream house and love relationship will seem all that more delicious once they happen for you.

Please share your thoughts in the comments below!

Thriving Through Infertility With Gratitude

Check out my latest article on Thrive Global!

Thriving Through Infertility With Gratitude: How one small change can make your journey to motherhood healthier and happier

Rock Your New Year With Self-Gratitude

Wow, can you believe 2014 is almost gone?

The end of the year always has me looking ahead and making goals. I’m an expert at making lists, planning ahead and dreaming big!

What practicing gratitude has taught me though,
is that it’s just as important, if not more important,
to appreciate what you have already accomplished
than it is to dream, plan and vision the future.

Here are some ways I am appreciating me this year by making these extra special year-end “self-gratitude” lists:

20 amazing things I accomplished this year, big and small!  Everything from changing over 2,100 diapers, cleaning out the attic, and publishing my first children’s book. This list is probably the most important. It’s easy to overlook the mundane but when you take a step back, the little things you do on a daily basis add up to a mountain of success.

20 things I’m most grateful for about myself this year. Another very important list! This includes things like being part of an incredible play group with the new Mom friends I’ve made. I also appreciate my ability to find great babysitters for my son and to stay on top of his growing needs. Most importantly, I appreciate myself for being able to find gratitude in the most challenging moments – e.g. being woken up at 3 am by a teething baby and feeling joy in being the one to hold him through the night.

20 fun things I did this year. Some highlights on my list include trying standup paddle boarding for the first time with my friend Lindsey Smith, playing in the sand in the early mornings with my son at our nearby beach, date nights with my husband, and appearing on stage at Integrative Nutrition’s fall conference.

5 things I learned or improved about myself.  A big one for me has been exploring my own mind-body connection and relieving severe chronic hip pain by releasing fear. Another big win was shifting my mindset to allow self-care to come before work – in fact, self-care is now part of my work, and it’s made a huge difference in my daily bliss-making!

15 things I am ready to let go of. I am ready to let go of worry, overwhelm and playing the victim when things go wrong. I am also ready to let go of some extra pounds, old files, and any other clutter crowding my space.

15 things I want to bring into my life in 2015. Aaah, I love to make this list. The sky is the limit here. What I’m looking forward to this year now that I have made some shifts are more vibrancy, more confidence, more yoga and movement, more joyful writing, more bike riding, more art-making, more time with my husband, and more me time.

So now it’s your turn!

How will YOU transition from 14 to 15?

What do you appreciate about yourself in this moment?

Please leave a comment below or share on my Facebook page.

Tweet now!
Rockin’ my new year with self-gratitude! @Gratitude2Bliss

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3 Ways Gratitude Squashes Stress

One of the things I don’t like about this time of year is the heightened stress factor the holidays bring. The other day I was beeped at just as the light changed to green – as if that extra second of waiting made a difference.

Stress is “in the air,” especially this time of year.

In fact, it’s epidemic in our country. According to the American Institute of Stress, 75% of all doctor and hospital visits are stress-related.

That’s crazy! Living in a constant state of stress is not only killing us, it’s preventing us from enjoying life. Simple pleasures get snatched away in our effort to do more, get more, and be more.

Luckily I have found an antidote. When it comes to stress, I often say gratitude is my BFF. Let me explain.

When I start to feel anxious, overtired, or angry, that’s usually a trigger for me to slow down, take a breath and ask myself,

“Am I operating in a state of fear and stress,
or am I operating in a state of
love and gratitude?”

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If fear and stress are the culprits, I know I how to turn things around. I simply put myself in an immediate state of gratitude by thinking of a few things I am grateful for and allowing myself to really feel the love those things bring to my life. I instantly feel better.

Here’s the science that explains why this happens:

  1. When you are stressed, your blood vessels constrict and less oxygen gets delivered to your brain and other organs. You may experience brain fog, headaches, stomach issues, fatigue or other symptoms. However, when you engage in thoughts of gratitude, your heart rhythms become smooth and as a result you think more clearly, have more energy, and make better decisions regarding your health and happiness. You become better able to avoid binge eating, drinking or other damaging behaviors that stress can trigger.
  1. When you are stressed, your cortisol levels increase. Excess cortisol can lead to inflammation which can lead to discomfort and “dis-ease.” Engaging in thoughts of gratitude, however, lowers cortisol by 23% and helps your body rebalance after stressful situations, allowing you to feel more relaxed and more comfortable.
  1. Fear and worry can overcome your mood. But thinking of something you are grateful for activates the frontal region of your brain which is responsible for releasing serotonin and dopamine – your body’s natural mood enhancers – and voila, you feel better!

So the next time you feel stressed, try focusing on something you are grateful for and see what happens. Remember to focus on the feeling, not just the thought.

Feeling stressed right now? Visit my Facebook page and post something you are grateful for or leave a comment below.

Tweet now!

When stress takes over, gratitude shifts me to a better place. @Gratitude2Bliss

Happy Holidays!

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