Hi Friends!
Our prayer for you this Christmas Eve and beyond is that you will have ~Peace~ not only in your waking moments, but in your sleeping ones as well!
Blessings and P E A C E!!
Peace with Food
Give the Gift of P E A C E !!
You’ve probably heard that Christmas song that goes, “Let there be P-E-A-C-E on earth and let it begin with me.”
As you finish up your last-minute Christmas shopping, why not consider giving the gift of P-E-A-C-E this season?
Is there a relationship that needs reconciliation, a kind word of hope you could give, or some other gesture that would bring peace into someone’s life or your own and make the world a better place?
In the past four months, since we published our book, we have received numerous stories from people telling us how they have experienced greater amounts of peace, not only as it relates to food, but also to L I F E in general!!
But don’t take our word for it! You can read some of their stories in our Amazon reviews and/or purchase HERE.
Have a BleSsEd and PeAceFuL Christmas!!
Messy, Messy, Messy!
One Christmas-time tradition I have is to watch FrOstY ThE SnOwMaN with my kids. I love that movie. Probably because it takes me back to my childhood.
Yep.
Immediately I’m transported back to the frigid South Dakota Christmas season, in front of the television with my family, watching holiday specials with popcorn and grape juice.
In the movie, there is a scene where the magician attempts to do a trick for school kids involving eggs. The trick obviously fails and he ends up with raw eggs on the floor to which he responds:
“Messy, messy, messy!”
Messy, messy, messy. How true is that statement when it comes to life. It is also true in Peace with Food. If you truly want peace, you will have to take on the role of a scientist and experiment. Here are a few things you need to know about this process of experimenting in the pursuit of Peace with Food:
- As we just mentioned, it is MeSsY – Things won’t always go as planned. At times you will feel that you are botching things up. It’s par for the course. Just keep moving forward and don’t worry about getting things perfect.
- It takes TiMe – We call experimenting a process for a reason. It is not quick and it requires patience.
- It is AwKwArD – Experiementing can be really awkward when you first start. But remember, the sooner you get past the awkward stage, the sooner you will gain the wisdom and skill you’re seeking.
So, as you experiment, give yourself grace. With each tiny step forward you are making progress and that’s what life is all about – enjoying the journey on your way to your destination!
Lara’s Podcast: My Recent Slip-Up with Cookies
It Pays to Be Nice!
I love this pose of our puppy, Buddy. And of my husband Scott. Both are classic.
For Buddy, this pose is the very thing that caused us to choose him over the 20+ other puppies. While all the other puppies jumped on us, in out-of-control-puppy fashion, Buddy, politely sat looking up at us with those innocent, puppy-dog, dark brown eyes. We were suckers. He had us at “HeLLo”!
Buddy clearly set himself out from all the rest and we knew that he was “ThE OnE”.
The funny thing is that I was set on getting a female. We had a girl’s name picked out and had purchased pink and purple studded collar and lease, a pink crate, and other girl dog accessories. But even though Buddy did not meet the qualifications and requirements, he was still chosen all because he was N I C E!!
How that lesson parallels life. Often times the most qualified person, or the person who seems to meet all the requirements get passed over by some unlikely candidate, all because they were the more gracious person. There is a saying that, people want to do business with people they know, like, and trust. I’m sure it could be said that people want to do life with people they know, like and trust, as well.
So, today, I am pondering how I can be a bit more FriEndLy, PleAsaNt, and KiNd. Who can I say “Hello” to that I might otherwise pass by? Who can I give a smile, pat on the back, or other gesture to let them know they are important?
Hmmmmm. . .
Day 90 – 1% Change {90-Day Challenge} Focus
When you’re committed to something, you accept no excuses, only results.
~Ken Blanchard
WoO-HoO! Today is the final day – Day 90 – of the 1% Change {90-Day Challenge}!
How did you do? After looking back over these 90 days, can you see some growth? Maybe you didn’t experience 1% Change every day, but how about every week? If you were to rate your growth how would you rate yourself?
Today may be a day for celebration for you – you made some positive changes – or it may be a DaY FoR ReFleCtiOn if you didn’t follow through on your good intentions. I’m hoping it is a day for both.
And as you reflect, use these questions and come up with your own to assess your growth, as well as learn from your experience:
- How did I succeed?
- Why did I have this success? (What did I do to contribute to that success?)
- How did I fail?
- Why did I have this failure? (What did I do to contribute to that failure?)
- If I were to do this challenge again or something similar, what would I need to adjust to have better results?
As I reflect on my 90 days, I see successes – I kept at it even when I didn’t feel like it, but I also see failures – I lost focus from time to time. With my successes I congratulate myself and with my failures I devise a plan for the next time I face a similar situation.
How are you going to build on your experience from this challenge? You can use it for your BeNeFiT regardless of whether it was a success or failure. What is your next step?
I hope you’ll use this experience as a stepping stone to where you want to go!
BeSt WiShEs!!
P.S. For the previous post in this series click HERE.
Day 88 – 1% Change {90-Day Challenge} Quantum Leap
Nothing builds upon your momentum and sense of progress like taking massive action.
~Ed DeCosta
This past summer my family visited a hotel that had a beautiful small lake directly behind it. Crossing over this lake was a picturesque bridge and on the lake people were in boats enjoying this relaxing resort with all its amenities.
As my family watched people in paddle boats we decided that we too wanted to get in a paddle boat and cruise around the lake. So we jumped in a boat – my husband and oldest daughter in one paddle boat and my youngest daughter and I in another.
It was an incredibly windy day and we were heading into the wind. OuR GoaL was to cross under the bridge to the other side of the lake. As my boat began to approach the bridge we were met by a lady in a paddle boat who yelled to me that the current under the bridge, along with the wind, was too strong for one person to paddle through. Well, that was all the motivation I needed. I was determined I would make it over to the other side.
Reaching the bridge I quickly realized how difficult it would be to overcome this current and pass under the bridge. I peddled like my life depended on it, making only tiny strides, but I kept at it.
If I let up in the slightest, any effort I had made was quickly lost, so I peddled like mad and after a minute or so of giving it my all, I was able to overcome the current and wind and get to the other side. From that point on, everything was a breeze.
This story reminds me of life. Sometimes in order for change to occur, the situation requires a QuAnTuM LeAp, a breakthrough, or whatever you want to call it. Sort of like the energy needed to lift a rocket. Initially the energy exerted is incredible, but once you have your momentum, the rest is actually almost easy.
As you assess your situation and what you desire to accomplish, ask yourself if it can be best accomplished with small steps, or do you need a quantum leap to get the ball moving? Answering this question might help you determine which approach would be best for reaching your goal.
What action are you going to take to get momentum on your side?
P.S. For the previous post in this series click HERE.
For the next post in this series click HERE.
Day 85 – 1% Change {90-Day Challenge} Gaining Momentum
Tenacity is the solution to many a problem that you will encounter on the road to your dream.
~John C. Maxwell
This may sound nerdy to some, but one thing I love to do is learn, read, and grow. I love to do this so much that I joined the John Maxwell Team becoming a Certified Speaker, Trainer, and Coach. {{By the way, if you are interested in joining this World Class Team, let me know and I can hook you up! }}
In his book, The 21 Irrefutable Laws of Leadership, John talks about the Law of the Big Mo. The Big Mo, that John is referring to, is momentum and earlier this year I found myself in desperate need for momentum. I was stuck. Just couldn’t seem to make any forward progress in Peace with Food.
So, I began reflecting on the principle of momentum and was later given the opportunity to ask John the following question:
How do you gain MoMenTuM? Is it by taking baby steps or by taking a quantum leap?
His answer:
Ask yourself, “What is the SiMpLeSt ThiNg (not necessarily the easiest thing) I can do that will give me the greatest return?”
I love that answer.
As I look back on my life I see how his answer was spot on. At times I had gained momentum due to small steps and other times I had taken the quantum leap to get the ball rolling. But before John answered my question I had never connected the dots.
Do you feel stuck? Do you need to gain momentum in some area of your life? If so, ask yourself John’s simple, but powerful question and then as John says, “Begin stringing together little wins to GeT A BiG WiN.”
P.S. For the previous post in this series click HERE.
For the next post in this series click HERE.
Day 82 – 1% Change {90-Day Challenge} Don’t Quit
Most of the important things in the world have been accomplished by people who have kept on trying when there seemed to be no hope at all.
~Dale Carnegie
How are you doing on your 1% Change? Are you pressing on even when you feel like quitting?
I memorized this quote during my high school basketball season. It EnCoUrAgEs me to this day – reminding me not to quit.
Don’t Quit
When things go wrong as they sometimes will,
When the road you’re trudging seems all up hill,
When the funds are low and the debts are high
And you WaNt To SmiLe, but you have to sigh,
When care is pressing you down a bit,
Rest if you must, but don’t you quit.
Life is queer with its twists and turns,
As every one of us sometimes learns,
And many a failure turns about
When he might have won had he StUcK It OuT;
Don’t give up though the pace seems slow–
You may succeed with another blow,
Success is failure turned inside out–
The silver tint of the clouds of doubt,
And you never can tell how close you are,
It may be near when it seems so far;
So stick to the fight when you’re hardest hit–
It’s when things seem worst that you MuSt NoT QuiT.
– Edgar A. Guest
Peace with Food 