A Good Morning Smile

Our new morning routine is working! Waking up a little earlier to make a hot breakfast and read a story has changed the energy in our home and set the tone for a sucessful day. Gone are the days of rushing out to the impatient school bus with toothpaste at the corners of his mouth. I won't accept the old habit of a morning spent eating two bites of of cold cereal while watching depressing news local news stories on the tube.

HOWEVER, in the silence of our morning without tv or radio, I've become acutely aware of the programs running non stop in my brain. The to do list goes on and on like a broken record. My anger at unresolved issues simmer in the background. My worry over a nagging pain in my back crowds in. A small hopeless feeling of never getting it all done starts to mushroom, while anxitey over not doing enough to grow the business sits like a wounded animal in the far corner, whimpering. Welcome to my brain at six am.

Coffee does not help. Texting and facebook are mere distractions, adding to the psychic fragments floating like space junk over my corpus callousum.

I need nature, hours of it. In whatever weather. I need to sweat and climb hills and run until the voices are silenced and only images of my surroundings remain. And after that, it helps to write a little. If you have a routine that helps clear the mind chatter that creates anxiety, please share your method or tips for finding peace in your day, I'd love to hear what works.

Discipline is a routine that comes to feel natural

Before my father died last year, we had one beautiful phone conversation on his birthday. As usual, I was troubled by some dilemma in parenting. He told me not to worry about being firm as long as I followed up any disciplinary action with love. Then he added, "in another way, you can think of discipline as a routine that comes to feel natural." In the year since he died, I've carried that message and contemplated the wisdom it holds. I'm continually amazed at the way it's helped me to live not only more purposefully and effectively, but happier as well. And so, after months of waking our kindergardener up late for school and rushing him out the door at 7:09, I've decided to make a new routine, a new early morning discipline. This morning I fried bacon and made silver dollar pancakes while he showered and dressed. In the quiet sunrise we had time to enjoy our first meal while I sipped coffee and read "Henry and Mudge and the Sneaky Crackers". We both laughed and he got on the bus happy. I've been undisciplined for too long. I want this new happy morning to be the every day routine that feels completely natural.

Hang gliding is for everyone, even the timid like me

It's Monday afternoon and I'm back home after a full weekend in Nags Head, a little town on the Outer Banks off the coast of North Carolina. We were lucky enough to snag a room at our favorite economical ---yet clean---- Colonial Inn Motel, lucky because it just happened to be the weekend before the official kick off of Bike Week. Also we were blessed with several hours of warm weather and abundant sunshine on the beach, where I realized that I need to invest in a bathing suit made of body armor to hold up all things sagging. In the afternoon, we took our son "crabbing", which is like fishing, but crabs are the harvest instead. Crabbing is easier than fishing because no rod, reels, or casting are required. You just tie a chicken or turkey neck to the end of a string and watch the scuttling and clamping begin. Unfortunately we did not score enough crab for a nice meal or appetizer but were rewarded with their succulent flavor later in the evening at Awful Arthur's Oyster Bar. Dipped in a spicy coctail sauce, these morsels are absolutely delicious and pair well with a Corona. To finish our weekend of fun, and to celebrate my husband's birthday, we headed out to Jockey's Ridge State Park, home to the largest sand dunes on the east coast and the world's finest hang gliding school. Nothing really compares to the experience of a first flight off the dunes. One flight makes a person addicted for life, and jealous of birds. This was my second hang gliding lesson, and my husband's first. Being on the dunes makes this activity so safe that young children can do it during the summer months when Kitty Hawk Kites hires extra instructors to hold gliders and run up and down the hills. I'm counting the days until we return.

Monkey Knees and Paws

Thank You Jen, owner of Tutu's Bliss, for the unique request of Monkey Knees and Paws. I recommend these for kids who love to climb trees, eat bananas, and goof around! These custom Knees and Paws are part of a new Wildlife collection that's currently underway. They include a new knee pad design having an adustable strap to accomodate the rapid growth in young children.

Shooting a commercial is the funniest activity on the planet

We did it. With no dress rehearsal on a freezing cold day in Fairborn Ohio one week before Easter. We shot our first television commercial for Knees and Paws and I can't guarantee it won't be cheesy! After all, I made my poor mother's chocolate lab, Bear, wear a sweatshirt and hat. At least he was warm, which is more than I can say for the people who were there that day.

I learned that I have to be careful with the emphasis I place on the instructions I give to our son. I specifically and emphatically said that under no circumstances is there to be any leg lifting, any pretend peeing, on the set. I don't know what made me put this idea into his head because he had never done this before while pretending to be a dog. But because I said not to, it sounded like the best thing to do in front of a tv camera and everyone on the set.

All jokes aside, we were all blessed that day with the love and hard work of many people who gave their time, talent and positive energy to our effort. Thank you, Ken, my awesome brother, for your patience in getting the right shots, take after take.