As a parent of three children, I understand how quickly things can get out of hand when it comes to the family's mood.   We love to gather around, play games, have some fun and share a good belly laugh together.   We also have our days where a bad vibe mood can seep into the whole family tribe.   Somedays,  it used to seem like these bad vibes mood would never, ever end.  Have you ever had days like that with your family too?

Through the years I have come up with a new plan to help clean those bad mood vibes out of our house!   Whenever I feel the Good Vibes beginning to heading out of our home, I rely on my new Good Vibes Toolbox to reclaim our Good Vibes Space.    

Our homes are to be our safe, calm and nurturing refuge in a world that offers challenges.   I make it a top priority to regularly clear of bad vibes out of our home and family.    As you know one person's energy in a family can affect the whole.  

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It Fall Ya' All!   

Every year around this time I am deeply reminded of how life is about change.   Growing up in the heartland of America, fall always was the signal for showing gratitude for the harvest from our abundant farmlands. They called our part of the world the "Wheat Capital of the World" for all the wheat that was grown in our part of the world.   The sea of golden waving wheat crops was a testament to a good summer with enough rain and sunny days and our home gardens would be overflowing with mouth-watering and nutritious homegrown goodness.  Homegrown tomatoes and cucumber can get this girl's mouth-watering anytime.

As I have grown older,  I have begun to include in our fall celebration the honoring of my ancestors and all other ancestors for all they have done in their lifetimes, so that we may live the life that we are fortunate enough to live today.    Each child that is born is standing on the shoulders of a...

Who knew that spending time in prayer and meditation is like sending flowers to heaven?

I certainly had not considered this joyful viewpoint of prayer and meditation growing up.   I always thought of prayer as asking for things I  or others needed help with. Then making sure I said thank you.

  Never did I consider that the time that I spent in communion with God/Creator as such a beautiful way to send flowers to heaven.  It has been said that praying is talking to God/Source and meditation is listening to God/Source.

Most people I know like to be listened to and heard when they speak.    In my experience, God loves when we take the time to pray and listen in quiet meditation for the answers.  I like to imagine that I am delivering a beautiful bouquet of flowers to God each time I sit in prayer and meditation.   It brings me joy and helps me feel more connected. 

What about you?  Have you sent any special delivery flowers to heaven...

Autumn is the time of year that I love to watch the leaves race down the driveway like a group of excited children running to see a new attraction. I feel grateful to live in a part of the world where we get to enjoy four seasons. Each season holds its own unique gifts. Years ago, during the busy fall preparations for the holidays, I found myself becoming frazzled and cranky.

I was not feeling the true holiday spirit, and my acting job did not fool my family one bit.  In my heart, I knew it was time for me to make some changes and turn this picture around.

I have so much for which to be grateful; however, I had gotten out of the daily practice. One of the most powerful things I have discovered that I can do for myself is beginning my day listing three things for which I am grateful at the beginning of my day. 

The simple yet powerful step of acknowledging what I am grateful can help to shift me from being a cranky mom into a grateful mom who is a much happier...

Good News Flash!!!  Awesome tip for all Moms and Kids too!

The credit card machine was prompting me to input the phone number so I could get our family rewards points credited to our account.  l was in the process of paying at the office supply store and I have entered this number many times at this store. No problem, easy peasy! However on this day I could not for the life of me, remember the number that we use on this particular account.   My mind went totally blank!   Have you every had the same experience where someone ask you something you know by heart and your mind goes blank?

I have to admit I was feeling bit embarrassed.  What was going on?  I know, I know this phone number!  Maybe, I stayed up a little to late reading my book.  The lady who was working at the cash register was so kind. She said, "I totally know how you feel.  I now keep a book in my car with all my important phone numbers written down.  My cell...

Throughout time the age old questions that new parents have had to decide is how are we going to raise and guide our children when it comes to discipline.   Some parents chose to follow the well- worn path of continuing  to raise their children the way their parents chose to  raised  them.   While other couples decide they want to change some things up from the way they were disciplined by their parents.   Still others may decide they are going to raise their children completely opposite of how their parents raised them.

Let's look at the definition of the word discipline as defined in the Merriam-Webster Dictionary. 

1.  Discipline -

a.  control gained by enforcing obedience or order.

b.  orderly or prescribed conduct or pattern of behavior

c.  Self-Control.

My husband Jeff and I were newly married we had not given much thought or conversation to how we were going to discipline our first child Tori.   One day we found...

“You’re doing what?”

I could only imagine the shocked reaction my family would have to my announcement that I was going to walk across Spain. It was October 2014, and I had finally decided to fulfill my long-held dream to walk the legendary Camino de Santiago. Also known as the Way of St. James, The Walk of Forgiveness.  The Camino is an ancient pilgrimage along the field of stars that follows the Milky Way, a journey of 850 kilometers over the French Pyrenees across Northern Spain.

As a child, I dreamed of being an astronomer. Now, I was actually going to follow the Milky Way. The Camino attracts not only Catholic pilgrims, but also many spiritually minded people who wish to test their resilience by hiking through several mountain ranges and the Meseta of Spain. It is a journey that crosses both harsh terrain and the landscape of the soul.

My heart was telling me it was time, so I prayed and asked for clear guidance on what would be the best decision for our...

As a mother, I am always seeking new ways to encourage my family in this busy world. I discovered that two of my children were being bullied, though they told me they were “fine.” Research shows that over 60 percent of kids who experience bullying never confide in anyone. Where do we start to gain our children’s trust to confide in us when they experience challenges in their lives?

I want this to change for all families, whether their child is the target of bullying, the bully or the bystander who fails to speak up.  When I speak to parents and kids around the country, we talk about how sometimes a cry for love is buried within the bully’s actions.  My son had an incident with a teen who had sprayed a toxic spray into his face. At the exact moment that I was speaking to the principal about this incident, the teen who had sprayed my son was on the football field under the bleachers crying because a group of boys were taunting and teasing him. I later...

If you are a busy mother or caregiver like myself, your “To Do List” is filled with things needed to help your children make a smooth transition into their new school year.

But let me ask: do you put yourself anywhere on that “To Do List?” In my own experience, there were many days that I never even considered my own needs, let alone found the time to tend to them. I knew deep inside that something needed to change.

I made a commitment to start each day with time for me.  At first, I could only offer myself five minutes per day. Once I gave myself this small gift of time every morning, I began to notice how much more pleasant and balanced I felt. It’s like the moment on an airplane when we are instructed to put on our own oxygen mask before we assist our children.

The first thing I do when I wake up is list three things that I am grateful for and three things that I love about myself. I either speak these aloud or write them in my journal.

Then, I...