E-courses....!

I have signed up for another e-course, The Sea Change Program, with Leo Babauta from Zen Habits! This course is for helping you make new habits and in May the new habit is forming a daily writing habit. This is something that I really want to starting doing and I have been on the lookout for something like this. I don't really like writing because I don't feel as if I am any good, my inner critics need to be sent away and given something to do keep them busy. I don't write much, therefore I never improve. So it is all about to change. My creative hour in the morning before work has been going well and I have even started to wake up before my alarm clock! I am now going to write in this hour and do some art! So busy busy!

Only the other day I was thinking that I have signed up for too many on-line commitments! Oh well I am sure another one won't hurt. These are the courses I am doing; the Apothecary Circle, Leonie Dawson's - Creative Goddess, loving the results of her course and from the 1st of May I start the Manafesting Abundance, spirit led financial planning with Laura Emily from the AC! I have also signed up for another on-line free herbal course at the Herbal Academy of New England. I think that is all of them...

Tinctures

I finally jumped in and made my tinctures.... I bought the herbs a couple of weeks ago, I had collected the jars and had been ready to jump since buying the herbs, but I just didn't feel confident about it. So on Sunday morning I woke up and felt it was time to start mixing up some tinctures. I checked the alcohol that I was planning to use and "darn" it was under 40%. So off I went to the shop to buy some vodka. This was all I bought I was the till operators first customer of the day! She was note a happy bunny, she was rude, she didn't look at me, she barely spoke and she started to serve the next customer before I had even paid. I asked for my till receipt and she acted as if I had sworn at her. I was baffled by her attitude but I guess she doesn't make tinctures. I chuckled to myself and thought about the rest of the women form the Apothecary Circle making tinctures and wondered what stories they had to share.

When I arrived home I cleaned and sterilised the jars and realised I was going to have a spectator. My husband. I didn't mind at all as it gave me a little confidence; not that he would be any help as he didn't know what to do or what a tincture was. But it was nice just to share the experience together. We inspected the vodka bottle with great interest and noticed that their logo was a wolf and a eagle he said 'that is you and me, I am the wolf and you are the eagle'. Well, that made my day. I love it when he says things like that to me.

I measures out the the herbs, I used half a jar for each tincture. Then filled up the jar with vodka. I made labels for each tincture. The lavender label looks as if I was actually drinking the vodka rather than making tinctures.

The next lot of tinctures I make I will make them on a 'new moon' as I read over on Moon Daughter that making them on a new moon helps to draw out the liquid. Now I just have to remember to shake them every day for a week or so and then every week and then wait six months to stain them.

All in all it was so much easier than I anticipated, I don't really even know why I thought it would be difficult 

This posted is well over due and I can't believe that it has been sat in my notebook for well over a month, note to self - must try harder. 

Mid Week Gratitude

This weeks mid week gratitude post is long over due as it popped into my head as an idea last week. This weeks mid week gratitude post is going to be for the women on the web that have inspired, encouraged and taught me new things. I am ever grateful to you all  - 

First up is Lauren Luquin I have been reading Laurens blog for a well over a year now. She is so inspiring and loves nature, creates amazing offerings; such as medicine pouches and jewellery. You can read her full bio here. She has also set up a safe haven for women on-line here at the Intuitive Heart Sanctuary. I attended the e-course last summer and I am planning to work through the IHS ebook during Spring.

Stacy de la Rosa makes inspiring jewellery and sends out cool newsletters that are full of loveliness and inspiration. Gratitude is high up in her list for 2013 and she was the one who inspired me to write this list.

Laura Emily runs the Apothecary Circle. The Apothecary Circle is a year long course and new members are being excepted now for the next starting date on 21st March. 

"2013 is here, and it’s time to raise our vibration by returning to earth and engaging in growth, Spirit, and healing. Be there with us, love. This spring, sow growth. One year. Earth. Health. Community. " Laura Emily

Moorea Seal is a jewellery designer, a blogger, a designer and generally a cool girl. I can't remember how I found her but it was only at the beginning of this year and already so many of her posts have inspired me. I follow along with her 52 list project and have a backlog of lists that I need to post. I enjoy doing the lists so much and Moorea is developing a project from this idea. So that will be exciting to watch grow over the next year. 

This is going to be an on-going list as there are still quite a few women that I would like to mention. I hope that you enjoy their work, offerings and their amazing spirit as much as I do.

Ten Day Fast - Reflections

The Apothecary Circle ten day fast finished on the 14th Feb. I managed to last without some things and not others. The night before the beginning of the fast I had a dream about eating a bacon sandwich, I don't normally remember my dreams so it made me chuckle that even before I started the fast I was already dreaming about eating meat. I think deep down I knew that I would not be able to not eat meat while visiting my family the following weekend. I didn't want to cause them any trouble and I know my Dad always likes to send me on my way with a fry-up for breakfast the day I leave, it has become a little ritual for us and I didn't want us to miss out by not spending this time together. 

I didn't eat any biscuits, drink any caffeine or use social media on my phone. I am going to continue not to use Facebook on my phone as it gave me more time to do other things, such as not being late for work! I am also going to continue to eat less biscuits, I didn't really miss them and I don't think I need them as part as my regular diet. Biscuit will now be eaten on special occasions only! Dark chocolate however will be eaten when necessary. I think I owe Greenpeace in the region of £20, doing the swearing fast has made me more concious of my swearing and I think I have almost stopped, which I am glad of.

My moon time grumpyness didn't really appear this month, not sure if that was down to not drinking caffeine and eating less sugar but I will be experimenting with both of these next month by cutting these out a week before and seeing if it makes a difference, will be interesting to see.

So I am back drinking my one cup of regular builders tea, not eating as many biscuits, eating meat (not everyday and I have realised that I need a vegetarian cook book), eating dark chocolate when I need it, no more Facebook on my phone or reading blogs before bed. Who knows what the next fast will entail.....

Ten day fast

Apothecary Circle - Ten day fast

February seems to be the month of firsts; so far I have eaten Sauerkraut, oil pulled,smudged and used oracle cards, lit a candle for Candlemas, made tinctures and started a fast. It was a busy weekend! 

I have now started a ten day fast. This is linked to the Apothecary Circle. I didn't want to fast from food/solids as I don't think my body would react well and I don't feel comfortable doing it while having to go to work. I think maybe this will be something for the future, possibly the summer.

I have never fasted before. I found it quite a challenge to think of something to give up. (I don't drink or smoke). Once I really thought about it, I came up with these - 

• Caffeine - not much of a challenge as I only drink one cup of tea a day.
• Chocolate - this will be be difficult, I eat it about 2-3 times a week. I like to sit and relax with a detox tea and a few squares of dark chocolate.
• Meat - this will be a challenge as I will have to make yummy meals (must remember to marinate the tofu) so my hubby forgets he is not eating meat. (failed this one meals are not yummy, need for follow recipes). I have offered to cook meat a couple of times, fairs fair.
• Biscuits - I am giving these up because they are over processed and full of sugar, I eat about 10 a week.
• Swearing - I do this too much and I am very blasé about it. f**k being my favorite. For this one I have decided to have a swear jar, every time I swear Green Peace gets 50 pence.
• Social media - I use social media on my phone way too much. I wake in the morning and check Facebook and I read blogs before sleeping both of these habits I would like to stop. So this is a good time to start stopping.    

I am getting the urge for all of these things. Why is it when you say 'no' something in you says 'yes'.

Wow, that is a lot to remember! Wish me luck I may need it...

Mid Week Gratitude

I think it is good for us to appreciate and be grateful for things in life however big or small. It is easy to take things for granted and not really notice how much joy they can bring, how often do you stop and watching the birds in the trees or how a leaf falls from the tree. These are some of the things I am grateful for. 

This link on Tiny Buddha is a good starting point. I am going to sharing with you all what I am grateful for. 

'Joy is what happens to us when we allow ourselves to recognize how good things really are' - Marianne Williamson

Here is my gratitude list for this week -

• Going home for Christmas, being able to spend time with my family, always means so much to me.
• Honey, lemon and ginger, soothing my throat and helping me recover.
• The Apothecary Circle, so much knowledge, support and love. 
• New notebooks from Paperchase, I am going to be organised this year. I even have a notebook for my blog!
• My husband for looking after me while I was ill, I am the worse patient there is!

Water a day challenge

I am taking part in the Apothecary Circle and one of our first things to do is to make sure we are drinking enough water. 80-100 ounces (2.37-2.96 litres) a day of water! It is advised that we do a 'morning flush', this is to drink 16-32 ounces (0.47-0.95 litres) of water first thing in the morning before doing anything else. So far so good, I have started to drink 27 ounces (0.8 litres) every morning. It is quite tough but I think the pros far out weigh the cons. Then sipping water throughout the day, having a glass of water before and after your meals and drinking extra if you drink coffee. It is hard to remember to drink, there are apps out there such as Water Your Body to remind you to drink your water. I have decided to test this one out as I think I could use some reminding.

Hydration is key to being healthy. If you want to change one thing this year make sure you are drinking enough 'pure' water. Are you up for the challenge? I know that in the past I have struggled with drinking enough each day. Over the Christmas holiday I was really bad and drank about 5 glasses of water the whole time I was visiting family. It is a easy habit to fall out of but such a good habit to have. Proper hydration really is a life changer. Here are some of the benefits of being hydrated; headaches disappear, it helps to regulate sleep and on waking you feel refreshed, it helps improve digestion, skin and hair quality improves and hormones begin to balance out. I will write more about what I have personally discovered as the challenge progresses. I hope this has inspired you to take up the challenge. Cheers.

My Word of Intention for 2013

I have never had a word of intention for the year before, but I think the universe wants me to have one or it thinks I need one. Three things have lead me to having a word for 2013. The first was the workbook from Susannah Conway this is a really useful workbook and helps you to say goodbye to 2012 and gives you focus for the following year. It took longer to fill out than expected but I enjoyed the process. I was then introduced to ‘2013 Creating Your Incredible Year’ by Marissa at Moondaugter this workbook looked interesting and inspiring, it didn't take me that long to decide to purchase it. What it's about - 'The 2013 Create Your Incredible Year workbook, planner & calendar is an incredibly popular & useful tool to help you plan out & make happen your most incredible year in life or business (or both!). Over the last four years, thousands of women have used this workbook with the most amazing results. It’s the best planning tool available to help you make your year your most exceptional yet! Used by entrepreneurs, artists, mamas, creatives, coaches, teachers and women of all ages, the Creating Your Incredible Year workbooks are filled with dozens of pages of powerful worksheets & a printable calendar to help you create your amazing new year'. I have worked though most of it and it is more in depth than the first one and takes that much longer but I think it is worth it. It is also a bit of work in progress at the moment as there are parts of it I need to revisit.

The third thing that spurred me on to get a word for the year was the course that I am taking, The Apothecary Circle run by the lovely Laura Emily. It is a full year of holistic living while earning a certificate in keeping a home apothecary. Here is what it's about- 'learn how to craft up your own herbal remedies, how to replace your medicine cabinet with fresh, gorgeous food, develop a foundation for abundant and vibrant health by engaging in our monthly group challenges- dive into a buffet of ecourses and workshops read up on weekly lessons, monthly tutorials and be surrounded by a gorgeous and thriving community of women, all desiring to weave some earth medicine into their own lives. And if you feel called to, use your time in the apothecary circle to apply towards an accredited course to become a certified Holistic Coach, and more.' Wow I am going to be busy this year....

With all that said, my word for the year was ‘change’ until on my journey back to London last week when my word changed! It is now ‘BELIEVE’...I was the passenger in our car while Kris drove us home after spending 6 days on the Isle of Wight with family. Not feeling too great, I was drifting/meditating and the word believe was brought to my attention, it just popped into my mind. It feels so right and special. So that is how I have a word for the year.