Love your podcasts!

I tried an experiment to see what it would look like to go live in two places at once. I'm thinking I need to put my phone in a different spot so I'm not looking away from this camera 🤣

Hello all! For those of you who don't know, I am a MOT-Mother of Twins. It's an acronym I made up 🤣 Today is their birthday and one of them usually says "Mom did all the work" when someone wishes her 'Happy Birthday.' She's not wrong but her birthday isn't really about me. In thinking about it though, yes, I DID do all the physical work of getting them into the world. I had help of course from my husband and hospital staff. But it was me who carried them and successfully delivered two tiny, scrawny little girls who were a few weeks early (3 1/2 to be exact) and learned how to be a Mom. So I guess I will take a little time today to celebrate my role in their birthday. How about you? Do you celebrate YOU on your kids' birthday? How about other times? If you don't have kids, take a moment today to write down one thing you've done that you are proud of. Celebrate with a thought, treat or whatever makes you grateful for you. If you'd like to share, we'd love to read it.

Earlier this year I shared my experience with decluttering two rooms in my house. After clearing out "stuff" that I didn't need, I found renewed energy pouring in and was able to take action on some things that were making me feel stuck. If you want to listen to the story on my podcast, you can find it HERE. I have noticed my desk once again getting a little mucked up with stuff and I need to clear it again. I thought it would be fun to have a decluttering challenge in this group. I know that I need accountability to get me started and maybe you all are the same way. So let's start a 5-Day Declutter challenge on January 5th. Find a spot in your home, office, car (no judgment) that is collecting stuff. Maybe it's a whole room or a smaller spot like a desk or chair. Think about how you feel when you see it or walk by it. Do you get a tightness in your body? Do you feel overwhelmed? You know you need to clean it up but it's just too much? Let's encourage each other and clear some physical and energetic space. We will start small (literally) and work up to a bit more. Day 1-Donate/throw out/recycle ONE thing. Day 2-Donate/throw out/recycle TWO things. Day 3-Donate/throw out/recycle THREE things. Day 4- Donate/throw out/recycle FOUR things. Day 5-Donate/throw out/recycle FIVE things. Easy right? ***Let's make it even more fun and motivating-post a photo in the group of your daily decluttering and everyone who posts every day will get their name in a drawing for a "Courage" roller bottle.*** Who's in?

I wanted to share something interesting with you. My husband and I had Thanksgiving dinner at my parents' place about an hour north of where we live. Before dinner, my Dad told me he had something for me. I went into the other room with him and he showed me a very old case. Inside the case was a violin-also very old. The wood was dried and when I picked it up, I could see that back was separated from the body. The bow still had the horse hair strings but they were not intact. The violin belonged to my great grandmother who played in a band and my Dad told me about other relatives who were musically inclined. I took the violin home and it has been sitting on my dining room table until this past weekend. I didn't think too much about it, I knew I wanted to display it somehow but didn't think about it much more. My daughters came over on Sunday to decorate Christmas cookies and they noticed the case. I opened it up to show it to them and Katie pointed out the mother of pearl inlay on the front and back of the instrument. It's beautiful and honestly, I did not even see it before then. I looked more closely and noticed the curve of the wood and the flower pattern of the inlay. How did I miss all of that? I am not a big fan of the holiday season and maybe I was too wrapped up in my stressful feelings about this time of year. Or maybe I just didn't take the time. I'm not sure but I do know that I am going to pay more attention from now on. I know my parents will not be around forever and my link to the past leaves with them. I need to soak in everything they share with me including the "things" they pass along. Now I am looking at the violin and wondering if my great grandma picked it out herself or was it a gift? What did she love to play? Did she like to practice? I may never know those answers but it's fun to think about. I also wonder about learning to play. I would never try to play this one but I could see myself trying out a newer version to see how I like it. I am hoping to get this one restored if possible too so I can bring back it's past glory. So many possibilities....