There’s no reason to allow boredom to take over.  There are plenty of engaging activities you can enjoy regardless of whether you’re staying at home or going elsewhere.

Here are some ideas for fun, indoor wintertime activities:

1. Have a game night.   Start a regular game night with your family or invite friends over.  It’s up to you whether you’d like to do something family style to accommodate little kids or an evening for the adults with drinks and good conversation.  Either way, you can stay warm and still have a great time!  It’s a great way to have some family bonding time and togetherness.

2. Catch up on crafts.  Cold weather is the perfect time to bring out some crafts that you’ve been meaning to do.  Sometimes bigger projects get abandoned and never looked at again.  Here’s your chance to finally finish that quilt, scarf, or model airplane.  Have kids?  Have a craft night (or afternoon) and do something fun.  The internet is full of different projects, so go surfing and find something fun!

3. Indoor swimming.  See if there’s an indoor swimming pool in your area. It’s the perfect way to get a glimpse of a fun summertime activity during the colder months.  If your budget permits, take the family to a local hotel with an indoor pool for a fun overnight without the hassle of travel. 

4. Learn a new hobby or skill.  Pursue an activity that you’ve been meaning to try for years.  Have you always wanted to play a musical instrument?  Perhaps there’s a computer program that you’d like to master?  Take advantage of the winter to keep your brain active and learn something new.

5. Curl up with a book.  This is a fun favorite that never gets old.  There’s always a new and exciting story to read.  It doesn’t matter if you’re in the mood for fiction or nonfiction, grab some alone time and lose yourself in the story.  I recently purchased a Barnes and Noble Nook – which I love – so I’ve enjoyed lots of reading by the fire in these cold winter months.

6. Camp indoors.  Bring out the camping gear and camp out in the living room with your family.  You might even want to include Smores made in the microwave or fireplace.  This activity can provide a lot of fun and togetherness.  You can have a night of family memories that you’ll never forget.

7. Enjoy tea or coffee.  Nothing says escaping the cold like a nice hot beverage.  Make up a pot of whatever you and your family enjoy most.  Sit around the table and chat, or watch a good movie together.

8. Sift through photographs.  Take some time to reminisce over some photos.  If you have a collection of photographs from old film cameras, maybe you can make a project out of it and scan them so they’re in a digital format.  Take it one step further and start a digital scrapbook for your family.  I love to scrapbook digitally – it’s fun and easy!  The kids love to go through storybooks of memories of them.

9. Make a meal together.  Another family favorite of ours!  With your partner or family members, decide on a meal that everyone can participate in preparing.  Perhaps you’ll want to try something totally new, or maybe the family would rather go with an old favorite, but the point is to get everyone involved.

10. Experience someplace new.  Stretch your thinking to come up with an idea for a place to go that you’ve never been to before.  Maybe you’ll hit up a new restaurant, an art gallery, or a local play.  You won’t have to worry about the winter blues when you’re out there trying new and exciting things.

Winter can be an exciting time for you and your family and provide you the perfect opportunity to make some cherished new memories.  Use these ideas as a springboard to take advantage of the cold in new and creative ways.

You may think that you already have a success-mindset, and perhaps you do.  However, you can always benefit from strengthening that attitude and therefore increasing your chances for the success you deserve.

Follow these strategies for improving your attitude for success:

1. Find your inspiration.  Discover what inspires you the most and use it to jumpstart your motivation whenever you go.  Feeling inspired enables you to maintain the drive necessary to find success.  Do anything you can within your power to find inspiration.

* Make a list of your ultimate dreams, and then ask yourself if you’re on the right path.  If you are, you’ll know that everything you’re doing will be rewarded.

* If you don’t feel like you’re on the right path, perhaps it’s time for a change.  Maybe there’s a deeper reason why you’ve felt a lack of motivation. Reflect on what this reason might be, and then decide on how you can renew your drive.  When you’re on the right journey, you’ll feel inspired!

2. Surround yourself with positive people.  (One of my favorites!)  When you’re around positive and inspiring people, you’re more likely to adopt those traits into your own personality and go for your goals with enthusiasm.  Negative people, on the other hand, tend to make you negative also.  Energy is contagious whether it’s positive or negative.

* If you must be around people that continually bring you down, do your best to avoid absorbing their negative energy by listening, but not taking the negativity to heart.

3. Jump right in.  The best way to improve your attitude might be to just jump right into life. Don’t be afraid to take initiative and plunge forward towards your goals.  People who take action find success.  If you take action and start to see the results of your efforts, your attitude will only improve. The action doesn’t have to be big – it just has to be something!  Remember, small steps are great ways to get moving.

* The increased drive and motivation you get from your actions can be the difference between success and failure.

4. Strengthen your focus.  Your focus can also play a role in your attitude.  When you are driven toward success, it’s easier to have an optimistic attitude. If you have a lack of focus and don’t know where you’re going, it leads to being unmotivated and uncaring.  You just seem to go in circles.

5. Allow for mistakes.  You’re only human and you will make mistakes from time to time.  Be careful to avoid judging yourself harshly when this happens, as it negatively affects your self-confidence.  If you work on more of a “go with the flow” attitude, you’ll find that you’re able to pick yourself back up and continue moving forward when you do make a mistake.

The main things to keep in mind are that the combination of inspiration, positive thoughts, and proper motivation can lead you to a healthy and positive attitude.  Follow these strategies daily and you’ll boost your attitude for success.

No matter what situation your stress is coming from, it’s important to take a step back from the stress to hold onto your sanity.

Try following some or all of the following tips:

1. Get Your Shopping Done Early. When you get your shopping out of the way early, you can save yourself stress on a number of levels. You won’t be battling other shoppers during peak shopping times. You won’t have to worry about making split second decisions on gifts. You’ll also have the time to craft a budget to help make your money stretch to the best of your ability.

2. Take Time to Yourself. We often take the time to think of others during the holidays. While that’s very important to maintain, you can’t forget about yourself in the process. Remember to schedule “me” time and concentrate on winding down. In order to take good care of others, you first have to take care of your own health and well being.

3. Keep a Cool Head. While it may not be a problem with every family, sometimes the togetherness causes conflicts and clashing. Before you enter a family holiday event, tell yourself that you’ll take the high road. You don’t want an argument to ruin your holiday memories.

4. Keep Up Your Exercise Routine. Sometimes the thrill of the holiday season can disrupt your daily routines. While a little break from exercise might not make a big difference in your physique, it might make a difference when it comes to your stress level. Try to keep up some form of exercise, as it will provide you with a release from stress.

5. Watch your Diet. It’s not fair to completely avoid indulging around the holidays, but at the same time you should always remain in control. Watch what you’re putting into your body, because large amounts of certain foods can definitely affect how you feel. The two big ones to watch are caffeine and sweets.

6. Treat Yourself. Is there something that you want to treat yourself to?  It doesn’t need to be expensive or really cost any money (a hot bath, etc).  Get creative, but take care of yourself and give yourself a treat!

7. Get Enough Rest. The excitement definitely kicks in during the holidays. Sometimes you’ll lose sleep because of stress, and sometimes you’ll lose sleep because of excitement. Either way, you’ll be doing yourself a favor by concentrating on relaxation and getting to bed at a good hour. If you start a pattern of getting less than 8 hours of sleep per night, you could be setting yourself up for stress without even really knowing it.

8. Learn to Delegate. If you come to the realization that you’ve been put in charge of too many things, don’t pile on the stress – instead, delegate the tasks. Be wise enough to know when you need some help and ask for it. You can even get the kids involved with certain preparations.

9. Be Flexible. Of course you have an image in your head of how you’d like certain holiday events to play out. You also know that things don’t always go according to plan. Realize that certain things will not be perfect, and you won’t feel so much stress if things do go wrong. Go with the flow and have back up plans if necessary.

Most importantly, have fun and make lots of memories!

I host Thanksgiving.  My husband and I love to have this wonderful holiday.  We truly enjoy preparing the meal together and eating and relaxing with my family.  Of course, it’s a great day to watch football, too – one of my favorite things to do.

She had an idea that I just LOVED! I wanted to share it with you.  Her idea was to have a bowl of river rocks that you can get at the craft store (big enough to write on)….or you could even have the kids hunt for rocks in the yard and clean them up.

As a great conversation starter, she suggested having each guest take a rock and write what they are grateful for on it (family, friends, health, etc…) with a sharpie marker.  These gratitude rocks can then be sprinkled across the table as beautiful reminders of all the gratitude being shared at the table.  Also, these cute little rocks can be used a place card holders for guests.

Libby had several other great ideas for the perfect Thanksgiving tablescape.  Click here to head on over to watch the segment for more great holiday table tips!

Having said that, I stumbled upon an application recently that I thought I would share with my readers.  It’s a Gratitude Journal for the Iphone.  I am a blackberry addict – but I thought it was neat and wanted to share it with you.  According to the article it does work with the ITouch as well (which I do have Woo Hoo!) – but I have not tried that yet.  I’d love to hear thoughts from anyone who has tried it.

Here’s the link for more info:

http://www.macworld.com/article/138675/2009/02/gratitudejournal.html

P.S.  Oh, and it’s cheap, too only $1!

This quote truly spoke to me.

My mental and emotional house is in need of a good spring cleaning. 2007 was a year of accumulation. It’s now time for me to get my house back in order. It’s time to toss negative attitudes, clear my head and let in new fresh energy.

And finally, I need to clean the house I call home, where all my stuff is. I’m going to clean the basement, garage, closets, and my desk. Wherever I’ve accumulated stuff that I don’t need, I’m going to clear it out and give it away. Clutter causes stress!

The physical action of house cleaning is symbolic of what we are doing on the mental and emotional levels. Clearing out old, useless stuff will get our energy flow moving, which really gets our “house in order.”

Affirmation: Good things are coming my way with all the order and space I’m creating.”

Stay positive about the cleaning and clearing process, and watch your life begin to sparkle.

Judy

We recently read a great article on The Art of Meditation in a small regional newsmagazine called “Natural Awakenings.”

You may not be someone who has ever practiced meditiaton or you may be someone who does it frequently. Meditation doesn’t need to be long, but is a great way to focus your mind and soothe away stress.

We pulled some great tips from this article for you to read about:

“-Chant a mantra to yourself: (such as “om” or another repetitive word or phrase that can be personal to you). This will help to quiet your mind and get you focused.

-Breathe easy: Inhale and exhale through your nose, creating a rhythmic pattern that lengthens progressively. Inhale for four counts, exhale for four counts; then inhale for five counts, exhale for five counts, and so on.

-Move and Repeat: Along with your breathing, repetitive movement like walking, jogging, swimming or t’ai chi can be used to induce a meditative state.”

You can really do some of these anywhere. If you are at work take some time out at your desk to spend just a few minutes doing some deep breathing. It’s amazing what this can do for you. It also gets you to take a few minutes to slow down and practice being mindful.

Don’t be one of them. If you need encouragement, John Maxwell, author of “Today Matters,” offers a helpful prayer:

Dear Lord, So far today, I am doing alright. I have not gossiped, lost my temper, been greedy, grumpy, nasty, selfish, or self-indulgent. I have not whined, cursed, or eaten any chocolate. However, I am going to get out of bed in a few minutes, and I will need a lot more help after that. Amen.

According to Maxwell, “People create success in their lives by focusing on today. It may sound trite, but today is the only time you have. It’s too late for yesterday. And you can’t depend on tomorrow. That’s why today matters.”

I am now looking my week as I plan ahead and trying to see where I can find little pockets of time to take care of myself. Just sitting at my computer yesterday I took a few minutes to do some deep breathing–it felt so good!

Anyone who knows me knows that I am a pilates addict. I usually take classes at the gym 3 times a week and then practice at home on other days. I love the physical results, but I also love the mind body connection. When I am in that room for an hour–it’s all about me and my mindfulness. For you that could be yoga, meditation, running or just sitting on a park bench…just make sure to take that time for yourself.

Deanna