I Believe: ‘Be Yourself’ Should Be The Motto My Kids Live

January 30, 2012 By Leave a Comment

Sweet.  Sassy. Spunky.  Smart.  Silly.

Funny.  Fabulous.  Fantastic. Fickle. Going on Fifteen.

Delaney is all of this and more.  She is one of the youngest in her grade.  She is a kind soul and prone to checking with her friends before she makes a decision.  She feels deeply.  She is emotional and sometimes has a hard time sitting still. She is good at soccer, excellent at softball so-so at math and has the voice of an angel. But don’t ask her to sing, she hates the spotlight. She is quickly learning that working hard can mean beautiful results.

And I wouldn’t change a single thing about her.

In this picture, she was deliberately posing for me.  This is ‘her’ simply having fun.  She is not worried if she ‘looks ok’, ‘sounds ok’, is dressed ‘just right’ or if anyone else is watching.  She was just being Delaney in all her beautiful, freckled, messy-haired (and apparently gansta’-posing) glory.

As she gets older and starts to worry about all of the external things that attempt to tear away from our small people’s desire to stay true to their heart – I will pull this out to remind her of her ‘silly’, of her ‘sassy’, of her ‘Delaney’.

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I believe “Be Yourself” Should Be the Motto My Kids Live…

and that means it should be the one I LIVE as an example.

What do you believe?

Filed Under: Featured Content, I Believe, Inspire, Recent Posts, Uncategorized

A Little Beauty Basic – My Style

January 27, 2012 By 1 Comment

I will be honest, I don’t wear a lot of makeup….. but at the same time, I rarely leave the house without ANYTHING on anymore either.  A *little* seems to go a long way for me….or at least it goes a long way towards making me feel good, and that’s what really matters, yes?

So, just for fun…. and because my lovely friends at Babble told me they were wondering if I had any make-up musts, any hair styles I trend towards…any products I love…  Here’s the scoop:

If you know me…  you know that I almost always wear my hear down.  It has been long, long, long ever since I stopped reporting and those crazy TV stations couldn’t make me have an’anchor bob’ anymore (don’t laugh – you know what I’m talking about!)  Sometimes I add a little curl, sometimes it’s mainly straight, but really?  It is just down and long.  Probably fairly boring – I should branch out.  It is on my ‘do it before I turn 40′ list.

As for make up – my ‘musts’ start with my eyes.  I have small eyes.  Itty bitty eyes.  So small, you probably don’t ever notice the color… at least no one ever did *before*.  Mascara was always the ONE thing I refused to leave the house without.  And my number one choice in mascara has been Cover Girl’s Lash Blast Volume for years.  I can’t live without it.  And now?  To supplement that?  I have fallen in love with Xtreme Lashes.  And I have a divine friend/stylist, Autumn LaTour (STL Makeup) who does an amazing job.  No, they aren’t traditional fake lashes – they are extensions to your individual lashes that help your lashes to grow thicker and stronger.  And for the first time in my life, I’ve been given compliments on my eyes.

And finally….LIPS.

It is the only other ‘must’ I feel compelled to cover.  If I’m wearing mascara and something on my lips I feel mainly makeup complete.

I haven’t been a big lipstick girl in years, so I typically opt for gloss….possibly because I have never been able to pull off bright colors…or it could be that I stopped wearing anything for a time when my small people were really small (I kissed them too often – and babies covered in lipstick starts to look a little bizarre after awhile)

So my ‘go-to’ for my lips: I cannot live without Bare Escentuals, Buxom Lips.  It is a lip gloss to die for and I have to thank my friend Alli for bringing it into my world.  Is it wrong to say it has changed my life?

So there you have it….  a few of my deep, dark beauty secrets.  Let me know what you think if you try any of them – AND, better yet – what are your favorites??

 

Filed Under: Extraordinary, Recent Posts, Uncategorized Tagged With: , , ,

What’s Holding You Back on eBay?

October 31, 2011 By 2 Comments

I have stuff.  Some might call it clutter (ehem… my husband).  But it has finally occurred to me that my ‘stuff’ – you know the cameras, clothes, toys, books, bags and well, everything else is truly worth something. You might think I jest – that potentially, I don’t have quite so much clogging my closets and packing my shelves, but, in fact, I do.

A few years ago, I decided to use eBay to sell a few items.  I had moderate success with old bridal magazines and a few articles of clothing, but I couldn’t get a handle on the shipping.  I clearly remember one set of magazines COSTING me money to ship to a ‘seller’.  It was at that moment that I became an eBay ‘buyer’ instead.

But now, I’m back and I want to tell you what has changed for me. (Aside from my desire to clear my clutter and make money doing it!)

My eBay challenges were:

  • Deciding what was worth selling.
  • Setting the correct pricing.
  • And shipping.  Oh the shipping.

But now, things are a mite different.

EBay has a Learning Center, for buying, selling and increases your productivity….and if you are especially committed, you can actually take a class in your area through eBay University.

I decided to pretend I was completely new to the process and I read through eBay’s suggestions on Tips for Successful Selling, as well as the Shipping

The Solutions to my eBay Challenges:

  • Take the time to sort through my items, but don’t feel pressured to do it all at once.

*I took 30 minutes, scanned through one closet and started pulling items out.  I know I don’t have to list everything at once – I’m not in any hurry.

*This gave me an idea of what items were listed for within the last 15 days, whether they sold or not

This whole-pretending-I’m-new-again process took me 30 minutes.  (of learning)

And finally – I’m listening and learning to people who are having success….like other members of the eBay Parent Panel – Eric Payne specifically.  I love that he has set a goal of generating $500 of ‘fun money’.  I’m trying hard not to copy him.

So, my goal for now, is, as he suggests, to start slowly.

Disclosure: I am a member of the eBay Parent Panel and am working closely with eBay, however, all opinions and experiences shared are mine alone.

Filed Under: Checking this out, Recent Posts, Uncategorized Tagged With: , , , ,

Dear Community, A Love Letter….

September 27, 2011 By 7 Comments

Dear All of You who Read “You Want Honest? I’ll Give you Honest….”,

Thank you.

You kept me from drowning. Figuratively, of course…..not literally.

Thank you for telling me you understood what it is like to feel as though you can’t get it all done. You helped me stand up and knock a few things off my list.

And be ok with the things I couldn’t get done.

Your understanding made it possible for me to breathe.

Thank you for telling me you smiled and nodded as you read.  It made it possible for me to smile and nod, instead of cry and nap.

Thank you for telling me it was ok to cry and nap.  Because your permission made it possible to ignore the urge.

Thank you for saying, ‘thank YOU, Danielle, for writing this…” because you allowed me to bust some myth that existed that there is ANYONE, ANYWHERE that has it ALL together.  People, I don’t.  You don’t.  She doesn’t.

Thank you for being kind while I was vulnerable….  you could have told me to ‘suck it up’, but instead you reminded me why I adore this space….because, generally, we pick up, not tear down.

We look for the good.

Thank you for forgiving my weakness, accepting my nervous parenting, my paralization instead of progress.

And finally, thank you, THANK YOU, for being the amazing, beautiful, understanding people you are… the kind to say, ‘THANK YOU’ to me when I didn’t DO ANYTHING but cry on your virtual shoulders….

You lifted me up.  You made THIS week possible.  I leave for the book tour this week….(will I get to see some of you??) on Thursday, actually…and because of you?  I’m ok with that.

So… fist bump… air kiss… big squeeze…bear hug… whatever you want… that’s how I feel about you.

Photo Credit: Flickr: Jennifer Donley

P.S.  What I should really do for each of you…. is print a copy of this ‘letter to show I care’ that I found today via by friend Phil Gerbyshak

Filed Under: Give Good Get Good, Recent Posts, Uncategorized

Con Agra ‘Dishes’ Out New Website for Bloggers

September 27, 2011 By Leave a Comment

Evolution.

The way this space…. this social media space…  my blog, your blog, his blog, their website, her website… the way it all evolves is a distinctly beautiful thing.  I will confess it is this constant desire to BE evolving to BE moving and changing that attracted me to this space in the first place.

Every once in a while, I am given the opportunity to be a part of a creative team that is molding and blending, designing and honing in on something unique… in this case, from the very beginning.  And it wasn’t my own site – as naturally – I’m always involved at the very begninning there.

This time, I was invited by a company I have worked with in many different capacities over the years – Con Agra Foods to participate in the creation and launch of a brand new site.  In the past, I have worked as both a charitable advocate on behalf of the Con Agra Foods Foundation and Child Hunger Ends Here and with Con Agra Foods as a consultant.

In this case, I was part of a team that helped to fine tune what you now see today as The Dish.  This site was designed specifically to give bloggers special access to exclusive content from Con Agra Foods including recipes, seasonal tips and trends and even cooking advice.  A special section, First Look, First Taste allows bloggers to register to see new products before they are released, receive coupons and even free samples to review. That post you see excerpted there is from my friend, Kim Moldofsky who was on our team and is this month’s featured blogger as well. (stop by and say hello to her!)

A Panel of experts including Celebrity Chef George Duran and Savings expert, Phil Lempert will be posting on the site AND you can ask them questions as well.  (Kim is taking questions too, be sure to ask her a nice one!)

Since the site is brand new (and a lot of people worked very hard on it) I would love to know what you think of the site – and naturally, if you have any suggestions.

I have been paid for my time consulting with Con Agra on The Dish Project, but as always, my opinions can not be purcahsed.  All thoughts shared on this site (by me) are mine and mine alone. (If you see my husband posting – I’m not responsible for his thoughts or actions)

Filed Under: Featured Content, Recent Posts, Uncategorized Tagged With: , , ,

You want Honest? I’ll give you honest.

September 19, 2011 By 132 Comments

Sometimes I feel like I’m drowning.

Sometimes I stare at my computer for a full hour, unable to compose even one stupid, worthwhile sentence.

Sometimes I am so overwhelmed by everything I have to do that my only option is immobility.

And then I get really pissed off about it and I make a to-do list that includes everything I need to do.

And everything I’ve already done.  Just so I can cross SOMETHING off the list.

That is called pretending you are productive, my friends, PRETENDING.  With a big, fat “P”.

Sometimes I wake up so ready for the day, positive I will tackle 27 tasks.

And go to bed that night having accomplished two.

Wondering how I managed to fail so miserably.

At life.

Sometimes, I love my kids so much, it actually hurts.  They are edible.  I want to curl up next to them, burrow into their little necks and be surrounded by everything that is perfect and good.

And sometimes I’m so frustrated with them, it ALSO hurts.

I blame myself for their flaws, but do not take nearly enough credit for all that is good and fabulous and joyful about them.

I have trouble saying ‘no’ and the words, ‘I’m sorry’ have become a ridiculous crutch punctuating my speech.

And I can’t figure out how everyone else seems to have it all together.

And by everyone, I mean you.

Yes, YOU.

The kids.  The work.  The family.  And you have a life.  You read?  You watch TV?  You have hobbies?

Yes……  I know.  You really don’t feel like you have it together either.  But it looks like you do.  And when I get sucked into Facebook in my darkest hour….  it reads like you do.

This is how last week went for me:

Monday?  Terrible.  Barely managed to knock anything off my list.

Tuesday? Brilliant.  On top of my game.  Nailed a speech and MY BOOK ARRIVED.  Banner day.

Wednesday?  So-so.  Stressed.  Morning = ok. But in the afternoon, I was simply so exhausted, I took a nap.

Thursday and Friday included tears of some kind, but blah, blah, blah…..

A NAP?  How absurdly lazy of me. Tears?  PULL.IT.TOGETHER.WOULD.YOU.ALREADY?

But a friend said something to me tonight that helped me to understand where I have been…..  I’m physically and emotionally bankrupt.

And it is ok.

These next few sentences are as honest as the first.

I have been trying to write this post for a long time.  I know it doesn’t look like much, but I typically do my best to be a glass-is-half-full-tell-me-your-good-news kind of girl.  So, the fact that I’m sharing this bankruptcy with you makes me want to hyperventilate a lot a little. But there really is no sugarcoating the fact that sometimes, a good cry and a nap are just what you need.  Sometimes you just need to be honest with yourself.

Because it is extremely lonely when you feel as though you missed the meeting where they passed out the keys to life balance.

The good news is…..  I didn’t miss the meeting.

Because they didn’t have one.

Starting a business, running a business and raising a family take a lot of work.  You don’t need me to tell you that.

I took a small step forward tonight.

I wrote a post.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Filed Under: I'm just sayin', Recent Posts, Uncategorized

Smile Like You Mean It…..

September 9, 2011 By Leave a Comment

I am always smiling.  And by always, I do, in fact, mean ALWAYS.

I figure 3 years of braces plus a year of the sexiest neck-gear you have ever seen mean that I have earned the right to flash a smile  every single chance I get.

And I don’t mind telling you that I consider a smile the best asset you have… the best asset I HAVE.  Not because I have an Academy Award winning smile like Julia Roberts, but because it has always made me feel strong, confident and powerful.  When I smile – I let you know I am in charge of my attitude.  I’m CHOOSING to be happy, to invite you in, to tell you, without a word, that I think things are good. And those things ALL combine to make me feel more confident.

As a kid, I didn’t have the fanciest clothes, the designer backpacks, the latest accessories – but I did have a smile.  And I meant it when I used it.  I still do.

Sure, there are lots of things I do to instill self confidence – I’m honest enough to admit vanity plays a role  in my decision to wear make up, get my hair done, exercise (not often enough) and drink water. ( I certainly don’t do it for the taste).  But putting on my smile?  It is the easiest decision I make, the one thing I know I can do at the last minute to make myself feel ready to face the world.

 

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Filed Under: Featured Videos, Uncategorized, Video and Vlog-It! Tagged With: , , , ,
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