Royal Neighbors

I love chickens.  Always have. My grandma loved birds too.  She had 25 or so that followed her to the mailbox.  She called them the “Royal Neighbors.”  We just stand & watch them scratch and peck and their quiet little "chortlles" make me smile.  You should see the commotion when one finds a particularly juicy caterpillar -- the race is on!  

Every time we open the back door they all come running. Of course, I think they are glad to see me, but they really hope for some table scraps.

 

This winter was hard on them.  They were only laying 1 or 2 eggs a week.  At zero degrees, we hung a heat lamp in their little house and left it on for four days straight.   On the night of the fourth day they didn’t go into the house to sleep.  Just imagine Bob and me going round and round the house trying to catch them while we slipped on the ice!  They seemed dazed from lack of sleep – apparently they had been awake for 4 straight days at this point.

But, the next day there were FIVE eggs in the nest.  Maybe we fooled them into thinking spring had arrived.  What a wonderful breakfast for us the next day!

Why do women CRAVE Chocolate?

Let’s talk CHOCOLATE.

                Women CRAVE chocolate.  Why?  Because nature tricked us.  It packed all the B-vitamins AROUND sweet, delicious foods so that we would eat our vitamins on our way to the yummy middle.  Well guess what?  Our ancestors learned how to mill OFF those husks so that we don’t have to eat all that fiber, but they also tossed away the vitamins.  B-vitamins help us convert food to energy, alleviate sugar cravings, forms antibodies, reduces risk of heart disease, soothes PMS, morning sickness, anemia, carpal tunnel, depression, even hearing loss.  Its nickname is the B-HAPPY vitamin.

                Chocolate also contains magnesium.  Can you guess which organ DEMANDS extra magnesium once every month?  Yep, the uterus.  It uses magnesium to contract and if it doesn’t have it, it is not an easy job and the organ cramps and aches and causes untold distress.

                How can you make a wise choice?  Listen to your body.  The week before your period, start eating extra calcium-magnesium supplements and up your intake of B-complex vitamins.  Drink a little more water, change your exercise routine to include gentle stretches of waist, back, and abs (yoga?).   You should notice diminished cravings, irritability, and much less discomfort. 

March 22, 2011 CBS Early Show says Shaklee is one of BEST turnkey companies for Women

Fabulous news!  Shaklee and our income opportunity were prominently featured on The Early Show on CBS this morning, and a video with a recap of the segment appears on the CBS web site right now.  

We were featured in a segment that focused on "great turnkey companies" for women, and we're listed as one of the best companies for busy women who want to get started in a business with minimal initial investment and most of the set-up work taken care of.

Very cool.

Click here to visit the CBS Early Show web site so you can read the coverage and watch and share the video! 

Blogging for Dummies

Stacy and I spent Wednesday morning with Tiffany Odutoye (and you thought Kshywonis was hard to say!!) learning about social media.  Tiffany is BRILLIANT.   She guided us through the new vocabulary of blogging and taught us about feeds to our Facebook and Twitter accounts, and gave us a road map to start us off in the right direction.


Visit her website at  www.talksocialnetworking.com/  

I thought blogging was some secret code between strangers that instantly made them friends....much to my relief, it's just a muchbiggerthanIeversuspected meeting place where we can introduce ourselves, take them a virtual plate of cookies, and learn to know, like and trust them just like we do in line at the grocery store.  Aaaah....

 

Stressed is just 'DESSERTS" spelled backwards

                 The body reacts to stress instantly.  It’s built in – the old fight or flight instinct left over from cave man days.  The ears and eyes become super focused, heart rate rises, blood is rushed from the internal organs to the limbs to prepare for battle or escape, extra glycogen (sugar) is pumped from the liver into the bloodstream to provide extra energy. 

                The battle is on…..or is it?  In today’s world, we seldom get to “work off” all that extra glycogen physically.  Instead, we silently seethe, hold down our emotions, and feel the burrito we had for lunch turn to a rock in our stomachs.

 

                There are several things we can do to balance our stresses throughout the day.   One is to take control – get a jump on potential problems.  Do your feared thing FIRST – get it out of the way and pat yourself on the back for getting a bad job well done.

                While it is not always easy, get enough rest.  Drink lots of water through the day. BREATHE – just 3 deep inhalations and exhalations—can do wonders.   Breathe in slowly; feel the movement of air, nothing else matters for this moment. 

 

                Eat well.   Don’t add bad food choices to your list of stress producers.  Fresh fruits and vegetables are easier to digest (remember that saber tooth tiger that was after you earlier?  The body doesn’t care what you just ate; it’s stopped supporting your digestive system.)  This also goes for too much comfort food, alcohol, and candy.         

               So what are our choices? 

                Drugs – they all come with side effects

                Life style changes – better diet, better attitude, better body mechanics (exercise), better sleep

                Get some help – fill the gaps with healthy supplements.  

              

           

Little Guy sets Big Goals

Stacy called me today all excited.  Joseph (6 years old) wrote her a note where he created a sales flyer --

"Join Shaklee and in the end you get 100 dollars." 

Attached with tape in the middle was a list of 5 toys he wants to buy with his bonus check.  Stacy is ON FIRE with her Shaklee business.  She has been creating flyers and postcards and setting appointments and planning events.  The excitement is rubbing off on her children.

Her goal is to become a Shaklee Director in the next 60 days so that she will be able to quit her 2nd shift job at the insurance company.  She REALLY WANTS to be a full time mom but also desires  to earn an income too.   She grew up watching me work from home.  I know she can do it!  Send her some good thoughts please!

Oh -- this is cute!  Edith Schories showed me a church cookbook from the early 1900's:

Dessert for Boys

One fresh bunch of boys                                             One shallow duck pond
One hot July noon

Peel the boys.  Cover half with trunks (not tree trunks).  Drop in lukewarm pond and "swash" around until well soaked.  Then put in hot sand to bake and brown.  Serve as deserved.