Everything happens for a reason... and Everyone in your life serves a purpose. But it's YOUR CHOICE how you react to it :)

I came across a quote online just a bit ago that I loved. I'm great for finding stuff like that and re posting. Not just anything though. I like to find stuff that really applies to me, my life and what I believe in. It has to really resonate with me. And this particular quote... really hit home.

"Try not to blame ANYONE in your life... for ANYTHING. They ALL serve a purpose. The Good people are there to give you happiness. The Bad people are there to give you experiences. The Worst people are there to teach you some of your most important lessons. And the Best people are there to give you some of your most precious memories."

I couldn't believe this ANY more. It's so true. And say what you want about it being cliche' etc... but I feel this is on point with every fiber of my being.

We all have people that come in and out of our lives all the time. Some people are great! Some are just plain terrible. Or they could start out great.. and end up terrible. Some people are there for the shortest amount of time that it feels like just and instant in the grand scheme of things... and others stay with you for a lifetime. It doesnt really matter how LONG someone is in your life. At least I dont think so. To me, it matters the impact they left on you. That's what really counts. But what I really love about the quote, was that it took the blame off of anyone else but yourself. Everyone has a purpose. Everyone is there for a reason. It just matters what you do with all of that.

On Saturday night, I shared some pretty personal info with my girlfriends. And the reaction sort of shocked me. It was a reaction of "Oh, my GOD, you poor thing, that's awful!" Which... I totally get. They're my friends. They care about me. They don't like when bad things happen to the people they love. I get that 150%. And I feel the same way about the people in my life. I'm usually more protective of them than I am myself, haha. But to me... that stuff that I was sharing that I'm dealing with or have dealt with... I dont want people to feel BAD for me because of it. Yes, it wasnt pleasant. Yes, no one should ever have to go through something like that. But I have to look at it as a learning experience for me. Every single bit of it has taught me something. About life, about myself... about how other people can act in a way that you just can't wrap your brain around. And there may be nothing you can do to change it. There are just some things that you need to accept for what they are.

I was talking to my boyfriend Sunday morning about some awful dreams I had the night before. They of course related to the topic of discussion that night. And I said how upset I was that I was still so angry and so full of hate. After all... the opposite of love isn't hate, right? It's indifference. And I am FAR from indifferent. I still feel everything is so emotionally charged. I feel all consumed with anger and hurt and really... hate. I feel almost poisoned by it. There's no other way to describe it.

I'm almost done with my Masters Program, and a good portion of it deals with holistic and spiritual counseling. So much of what I've learned and what I teach is about forgiveness. And I've said this before... a lot of what I preach and what I focus on in helping other people... are really things that I need to work on myself. It's all constant reminders to myself of what I need to be doing to help ME!

But having all that anger and frustration and hurt... doesnt make me appreciate those experiences any less. They are absolutely instrumental in how I'm choosing to live my life now. It makes me NEVER take for granted all the wonderful people I DO have in my life. It makes me focus on keeping the relationships I have with my friends and family and my boyfriend incredibly close to my heart and want them to be... the absolute best they can be.

I'm still working on the forgiveness part. That's not the easiest. But I know I can get there... Someday :) And to add to that... forgiveness doesn't mean that you forgive the act. Or that you'll ever allow the person back into your life again. I've already made my mind up that a line was crossed that you can't ever cross back. And I'm okay with that. It's not ideal. It's not how I ever wanted my relationship with this person to be. But the damage has been done, and I need to move on. What I mean about forgiveness is that I can't keep holding on to the anger and the hatred and the... poison... forever. I need to come to terms with the fact that this particular person did what they did... and I can't change it. They did the best they could (even though it may have been a piss poor attempt) and that's all they could do. End of story. They may have their reasons for having acted a certain way. They may actually believe they were doing the right thing on some level. Who knows. But they can't take it back. And I need to accept that.

Do any of you have any thoughts on forgiveness? Or moving on from a tough situation? Things that worked for you? Things that didnt? Does time really heal all wounds? :)

xoxo!
Julie :)

Happy Leap Day! :)



Sooooo... we all know that the PRACTICAL reason for having this lovely little extra day once every 4 years is to keep the calendar year in line with the seasons because the earth doesnt actually orbit around the sun in exactly 365 days, yada yada yada. But I'm much less concerned with that than I am with the traditions and history that come along with this super fun day!

My favorite, being an Irish girl myself, is the old Irish tradition that makes it acceptable for a woman to propose to a man on leap day. (You all saw that silly chick flick a few years back, right?) Since leap day existed to fix a problem in the calendar, it was suggested that it also be used to fix an "unjust" custom that made women have to wait... seemingly FOREVER... for their man to propose to them. So, after some haggling between St. Bridget and St. Patrick over the specific details, they finally hashed out that it would in fact be allowed. BUT... that if the man said no... he had to pay a penalty, haha. It was different in some places, but it seemed most widely agreed upon that he owed her a kiss on the cheek and a silk dress :)

I've also read that it's considered bad luck to be born on a leap day. Which, to the contrary, I think would be cool as hell! Who wouldnt love having your actual age divisible by four when you celebrate?? Then you're not 80 years old... you're 20!!! How awesome is that???

But according to English Law, February 29th had no legals status. So nothing that was done, tradition or otherwise, had any legal status. With that said... Today, I vote we all go out and do something COMPLETELY out of our comfort zone. Something that we would otherwise never do. Something crazy! Something fun! Something scary! Whatever. Just do something outside of your normal, boring, day to day routine. Why? Because if it turns out  horrible... since today isnt technically a REAL day... then it never really happened right??? :) LOL! Orrrrrr... it could turn out absolutely amazing! And once... every 4 years... you can look back and remember just how bad ass you really are! :)

Hope everyone has a fabulous day and HAPPY BIRTHDAY to all the cool little leap year babies out there!

xoxo!
Julie :)

Lent... do you observe it?

So, today is Ash Wednesday... which is the 1st day of Lent for those who observe it. I was raised Catholic, but don't really consider myself a Catholic these days. I never wanted to be confirmed. If anything... the closest religion I come to following would be Unitarian Universalism. To me, it's much more about being an overall decent human being, having respect for yourself and others, and having a personal relationship with whatever you feel your higher power or God is for you.

That said, I do still observe some portions of Catholicism. Lent, being one of them. So, for 40 days you give up something. Something good that you dont want to give up. Or something that you know is an issue or will pose a challenge for you. So, this year... I'm going to give up negativity of any sort. No complaining, no bad mouthing people or things, no negative speech or action. Nada. I want to completely focus on the positive aspects of EVERYTHING. In general, I try to be a pretty positive person anyway. There's not a whole lot of negativity going on here, lol. (Of course, I AM only human. We all have days where we KNOW we are a complete and utter wench, right?) But I want to really make a conscious effort to wipe it ALL away for the next 40 days.

So.... here goes! :) And please feel free to call me out if you ever catch me being a Negative Nancy. Im sure there are times where I won't realize it. You have full permission to bring it to my attention so I knock myself back in line! haha!

What about you guys? Do you observe Lent? If so, what are you giving up? Or what have you given up in the past that's been difficult? How did you feel after?

Hope you're all having a fabulous day!!

xoxo!
Julie :)

We all have animals that influence our lives... what's yours?

Animal Spirit Guides... Power Animals... Animal Totems... whatever you want to call them... are in all of our lives. Do you know yours? Do you have an animal that you somehow feel connected to? Or maybe one that seems to show up randomly at bizarre times in your life? Or one that you see ALL. THE. TIME. everywhere you go?

Mine... is an elephant. Shocker to all those that know me, right? Haha! I talk about them all the time. I even have a giant baby elephant tattoo on my back - that's commitment to an animal right there! :) Josh and I were sitting around the apartment the other night counting how many we had in the house, lol. We have 6 to be exact. (7 when I'm home if you want to count my tattoo!) I would say that having 6-7 elephants in our little 1 bedroom apartment is pretty significant, wouldnt you?

I never really knew what my fixation was all about. When I was a kid and my grandparents or parents would take me to the circus, the elephants were ALWAYS my favorite! I even got to ride one when I was little and was sooooooo excited! I didnt care about the horses or the lions and tigers or bears or any of the other animals so much. They were okay... but I was just in awe of the elephants. Then when I started reading more about them and more specifically, when I started reading more about what they represent symbolically... I think my fascination increased about 1000%. Everything I read resonated to much with me. And when I saw the picture of the baby elephant (Baby Ganesha - the Hindu God, sitting on a Lotus Flower to be exact) I knew I wanted it on my body... forever.

Elephants represent the following virtues:

Strength, wisdom, good fortune, power, strong sexual intensity, eternity, identifying right emotion, champion of injustice, ancient wisdom, care for others especially the elderly and children, strengthened memory, long-life, increased sensitivity to others feelings and external stimulation, intelligence, loyalty, affection, passion, family values and the importance of a happy family.

All great things right? I think if I didnt know what my spirit animal was... and I read that... I would instantly choose it for myself. But I don't have to... because I already knew :)

Here are a few pictures that I absolutely adore... mostly of baby ones... because I'm in love with the baby version of all things, haha.

My tattoo... Coloring still needs to be finished... but isn't it pretty?

Ha!

<3

Seriously? I can't even take this!

So sweet...

Cuteness over load!

Gorgeous!

This little guy is adorable!

And of COURSE... I could never forget my beloved Dumbo!

So... what about you guys? Do you know what your spirit animal is? Do you know what it represents? I know quite a bit about the subject. If you're interested... ask away! I can tell you what many of them mean... and if I dont know off hand... I'll look it up for you! :)

Hope everyone is having a great day!

xoxo!

~Julie <3

Why do we do things that we know make us feel... yucky??

Really... why? We all do it. And sadly, we do it all. the. time. Things that we know aren't good for us or that will make us in some way feel... just... yucky. Today for example... I was having a great day of girl chat with my Mom, my Auntie Paula who is basically Mom #2 in my book, and one of my awesome cousins that I don't EVER get to see. My Aunt and I are both recovering from surgery at the moment, but were so happy to spend the day in such great company that you wouldn't have known how much pain we were in, lol. Anyway... she offered me a pumpkin pop tart. Yum, right? I love pumpkin pie, pumpkin soup, pumpkin ice cream, pumpkin anything! So of COURSE I said yes! And I did this knowing fully well that every single solitary time I eat a pop tart... I get violently ill. They just don't agree with me... ever. But I said yes. I ate it. And spent the next 20 mins in the bathroom throwing up. Awesome. I did the same thing when I went out to dinner with Josh. For those of you that don't know me personally... Josh is my amazing boyfriend, who I can't imagine my ordinary, average, everyday, amazing life without <3 I'm sure you'll hear lots of ramblings about him later, but that's the short of it! haha! ;) But back to my point. I did the same thing when we went out to dinner not too long ago. I can't do fried stuff either. It makes me feel queasy and gross and more often than not, I'm praying to the porcelain god and losing my lunch within minutes. I know this. I know this well. But that didn't stop me from downing several cheesy waffle fries from his plate. Ugh!

I know you guys are with me right? Eating too much or something you know you shouldn't eat... then you're paying for it breaking your ass in the gym and feeling guilty for every single bite. Yucky! And we do it with other areas of our life too. It's not just food. We stay in relationships we know are no good for us. Yucky! We stay in jobs that don't make us happy or fulfilled. Yucky! We keep friendships with people that don't make us feel good. Yucky! Or even simple things like hitting the snooze button one too many times, knowing that it's going to make you late and you spend what could be an otherwise normal morning getting ready and turn it into a complete cluster fuck, forgetting your lunch, leaving your ID badge on the counter, speeding and almost getting into an accident on your way to work. Yucky! Going out to dinner with girlfriends before payday when you know you don't REALLY have the money for it, and spend the rest of the week stressing about how you're going to run out of gas if you don't fill up soon. Yuck, yuck, yuck!!! Why do we do it? We're all smart people. We know there will be consequences for our actions. We aren't just oblivious beings, aimlessly roaming around the planet unaware of the things we do and how they make us feel. So WHY purposely do things that we know give us the yuck factor?

I read an article a while back about this subject. It basically said that there are four key things that we need to do, if we want to stop doing things that we know are bad for us.

1.)  Be aware of what we're doing or what we are about to do and how that will make us feel

2.)  Decide what we should do instead, and what would make us feel better

3.)  Having another way to release whatever tension or pull we feel to make us do the bad thing in question. Otherwise, our primal instincts will kick in and completely overrule any good decision making we could do

4.)  Having some kind of system in place to keep us on track and not let us revert to old/bad habits

By utilizing those 4 rules, tools, whatever you want to call them... you learn to harness your own power, attention and you learn to truly be present in the moment.

I'm definitely going to start implementing this in my life. Starting... NOW! Baby steps first. Let's start with no more pop tarts and french fries, shall we?  Haha! Then I can start working on the good stuff! :)

I'd love to hear any experiences you guys have had with this kind of thing. Are you someone that sabotages your own success in some way? What are your thoughts?

Blog Numero Uno: Ready? Go! :)

Well... HELLO there!

I'll start by saying that I have NO idea how it's taken me this long to start a blog. Anyone that knows me knows I'm a "sharer". I talk. I talk about everything. I talk about nothing. My life can be crazy. My life can be boring. But more often than not... it's entertaining to say the least. If I had a dollar for every time I've heard one of my friends say "You seriously need to write a book!", I'd be rich. Not just comfortably well off... but full on, disgustingly, no-need-for-it kind of rich. Sooooo... here goes! While this may not be an actual book... it's a start :) A girl's gotta start somewhere, right? RIGHT!

I can't promise that this is going to be some life altering, can't go a day without reading, incredible blog. But I CAN promise that I'll be honest. That I'll be real. And that I'll be fun. I try to make sure that everything I do in my life has SOME element of fun. If it doesn't... whats the point, right? Life is all about being happy and doing anything and everything in your power to get you there, and keep you there for the most part. Believe me... my life is anything but perfect. It's certainly not all rainbows, gum drops and sunshine ALL the time, for sure. But I'm happy. I am blissfully, unabashedly happy. And hopefully you are too. Or at least you're working on getting yourself there! :)

That said... I'm pretty sure that's what my main focus is going to be here. On living the best, happiest version of your life that you can. Im big into metaphysical stuff, meditation, and holistic... everything. I want to share a lot of what I've learned over the years. Things that work for me to keep me sane on this crazy roller coaster we call life, and things that have worked for others to get them to their "Happy Place" a good portion of the time. I'm sure a lot of other randomness will be thrown in of course. I am pretty random, after all. You'll get to hear about all of the amazing people in my life, the things that make me want to pull my hair out, and what makes me all warm and fuzzy inside. I have lots of crazy stories from my past... that I think are important because they have shaped who I am as a person today. Some things will make you absolutely adore me and you may read things that make you cringe or make you think I'm not such a great person after all. But as I said earlier... I will always be honest. And I will always be... ME.

That's all for now. I just wanted to send a big, warm hello to all of you undoubtedly fabulous people... and tell you what you can look forward to from here on out!

xoxo
Julie :)