WONDERful Wednesday!

Hello Wonderful Friends!
It's time for another WONDERful Wednesday. So, my next question is:

What do you want to tell yourself in one year?

Now, I know this may seem like an odd time to post this question. Why not at New Year's you say. Well I'll tell you. About a year ago I was going through a tough time. I won't go into any specific details, but let's just say I had hit rock bottom. And at this time if you had told me how my life was going to be a year from then, I would have looked at you like you were an alien with three heads. I look at my life now and how much it has grown and changed, I can't even believe the person that I was then. I don't even recognize that girl anymore. Who was she? Anyway, the reason why this is now and not at New Year's is because a year ago my life was complete crap. One year later, it is completely amazing. Now, I still have a ways to go in pursuing some of my dreams, but I am a far cry from where I was a year ago. And I am sitting here this year wondering what my life next year will look like. I can only imagine it will get better. So, to answer my own question, this is what I hope to say in a year from now - Wow! look at you with your teaching job and your house and now you have a great group of friends that support you and a great new boyfriend and you have a few best-selling books out, wow! what a year it has been. Hopefully, this is what I am saying in a year from now. Only God knows the answer to that question. Hopefully this post will act as a time capsule and I will look back on it a year from now and I will be saying exactly that. This past year took me to places I could never imagined and this next year will hopefully take me even farther. How about you? What does your year look like? Drop me a comment and let me know.

Keep Pushing,
Destiny

Yoga

Hello All!
I'm bringing you another blog post today! Today's post is about yoga. So, you've heard all about yoga, but you don't know if you should try it or not. There are many reasons why you should try yoga. Yoga is great if you have anxiety, because it helps you calm your mind and your body. It is also a great mindfulness practice. You have to concentrate on each move and use your breathing to get through each of the poses. Yoga requires you to slow down not only your mind, but also your body. Through slowing down and breathing you become more present. At first, yoga may seem hard. You may find that some of the poses are difficult or you may find that focusing on your breathing to be difficult. This is completely normal. In a world of screens and sensory overload, slowing down can be a difficult thing to do. As you practice and as you continue to do yoga, more regularly you will find it will get easier and easier. Your mind will focus and the stretches will get easier as your body gets more flexible. Something that is very important to remember about yoga is, it is just a practice. You are just practicing. There is no need to be perfect. Yoga is all about letting go. Letting go of tension, letting go of stress and letting go of worry. The more you keep practicing the better you will get at it. The more you practice you will get better at it. The more you practice yoga, the more that you will find that you can actually carry over the techniques you are practicing into your daily life. Yoga is great for all ages. Children as young as three can learn how to practice yoga. It is great for getting focused and centering the mind. The more you do it, the more centered you'll be. So, keep practicing and keep getting centered!

Om!
Destiny

What kind of freebies do you want to sign up for?

Hey Guys!
So, I have put up a brand new Twitter poll today. I am hoping to get more of a response on this one, because the last one generated no response (WOMP! WOMP! WOMP!) Anyway, still staying positive though! So, this poll is asking about what you want to sign up for. I have sent out a few Fun Freebie Fridays so far, but no one has signed up for my blog. So, I was wondering what you are wanting to sign up for. I am relatively new to this, so I don't know what my audience is most interested in. I am hoping to generate more interest with this poll. So, if you read this blog at all or if you like any of my posts at all, then please head on over to my Twitter page and vote in my poll. The link is at the bottom of the webpage. Also, if you don't want to vote you can always just drop me a comment here, or on my social media platforms so I can send you some content, that you really like!

Thanks!
Destiny

Fun Freebie Friday!

Fun Freebie Friday!
Hi Guys! It's time for another Fun Freebie Friday! So, what do I have in store for you this time? Well, I wanted to share my crafty side with you this time. A few years ago I made bows for craft fairs and also had online shops. I only sold a few bows and have beaucoup bows hanging around my house, so I thought it would be fun to show you guys how to make the bows that I made at craft fairs all those years ago. I am making a bow class for anyone interested. If you are interested all you have to do is subscribe to my blog and I will send you a new bow video each week for 5 weeks and show you how to make different kinds of bows. If I get enough interest, I may start making more video classes. So sign-up and stay tuned for fun video classes! In the meantime, watch this intro video that I made to show you what all the classes are about!

Take Care!
Destiny

WONDERful Wednesday!

Hey! Hey!
So, today is WONDERful Wednesday! What is WONDERful Wednesday, you ask? Great question! Starting today, each week on Wednesday, I will ask a question. The question may be deep and thought provoking or it may be fun and silly. The reason why it is called WONDERful Wednesday, is because I'm asking about something that I am WONDERING about! Get it! Anyway, drop me a comment to answer the question. So, since today we are talking about Earth Day and going outside I want to know:

What is your favorite thing to do outside?

My favorite thing is to play with my dog and enjoy nature! What's yours? Let me know in the comments below or on social media! I can't wait to hear your responses!

Have a WONDERful Wednesday!
Destiny

 

Happy Earth Day!

Hello All,

I just wanted to take the time to say: Happy Earth Day! Being that it is Earth Day, I am going to take this opportunity to talk about nature. Now, before you run away from the computer screen or your iPhone or whatever device you are reading this on, and think that this is another hippie dippie, let's love the Earth and go hug trees nonsense, just stop for a second and read this post.  

I am writing about how essential Mother Nature is to our mental health. We live in a world where our screens are king. Whether it's a T.V., phone or iPad - our screens are always on. With COVID-19 sweeping the nation, we are put in unusual circumstances at these times. We are probably spending even more time with our screens these days. Most of us, however, are using our screens for things like work and school, rather than to zone out on YouTube. But still in addition to going to work and school online, we may also be using our screens to zone out on YouTube, FaceBook, Twitter, Instagram and the like. 

Also, with stay at home orders now in effect, we are mostly staying inside now. This is certainly the case for me. I am a self-proclaimed "indoor cat." I have never been one much for going outside. I have never seen the draw and have always been more apt to stay inside and read a book instead. However, as of late, my sleep patterns have started to change. Consistently, every night for a week, I would go to sleep for a few hours, but not in a deep sleep. Then, like clockwork between the hours of 1 a.m. and 5 a.m. I wake up and cannot for the life of me go back to sleep. Or if I do it is usually an hour or half hour before the alarm is going to go off. So, after a week of this, I had had enough! That's when I asked my therapist about it and she suggested going outside. Not only going outside, but participating in an activity called earthing. Earthing is where you put your bare feet on the grass for a little while and really get connected with the Earth. Not on concrete, but on grass, real natural Earth. So, I took her suggestion and went outside and lo and behold! I slept so much better that night.  

Also, what has helped me is getting off of my screen an hour before bedtime. The other benefit of going outside is that it really does help with anxiety. If you don't believe me about this, try it! Make note of the state of mind you are in when you are inside looking at a screen and then go outside. Then, make note of what it is like when you are outside. I bet you are calmer and more focused. If you are not sure if there is a difference, go back inside for a few minutes and pay attention to your mind again. I guarantee you, you will see a difference! This is when I notice, when I come back inside. My thoughts are rushing around in my mind like a great white river. All of a sudden, when I go outside they disappear. Then, as soon as I come back inside, there are all of my thoughts, right back in my head, rushing around again. It is amazing the difference what a few minutes outside can do for your mind. Also, I was scrolling through Pinterest and I came upon a quote about this very thing that I wanted to share with you. The user that posted this is named ledbethlin. This is what she said:

"Do you know what I love? How closely nature is linked with mentality. A walk in the woods can calm anxiety, sitting and dropping stones into a lake can ease anger, even taking time to pot some plants and look after them can keep your mind occupied from dissociation. It's like the earth is the oldest psychiatrist of all, and it is always there to talk to, giving me a constant free prescription. Isn't that beautiful"

That is an amazing quote and so well written. It basically sums up the point of this article. So, to celebrate Earth Day, get outside and soak up some sun, plant a tree or plant or take a nature walk and just enjoy Earth's beauty. Today is the perfect day to do all of that. What are some creative ways you are enjoying Earth Day?

Happy Earthing,
Destiny

What do you want to read?

Fun Freebie Friday

Fun Freebie Friday!
Hey Guys!
Today is another Fun Freebie Friday! I have a great freebie for you today. It's a 30 day challenge. This challenge is a self-improvement challenge. Each day you do something that goes towards self-improvement. All of these things are things that I have tried that have helped me on my self-improvement journey. Some of these things are put in there in the hopes that you'll continue them beyond the thirty days and make them a new daily habit. Hopefully, if you continue past the thirty days you'll start to really make great progress in your life. If you want to get the challenge, all you need to do is subscribe to my blog and I will send it to you!

Self-Control Games

Hello Folks!
Today I thought I would post some simple self-control games that teach little ones, well self-control. Since everyone is stuck at home, this is the perfect time to teach these games to your little ones! Let the games begin!

1. The Skittle/Marshmallow Game
You may have seen this one before. Researchers have conducted this experiment with several different children, seeing which children have the most self-control. Basically for this game all you need is a bag of marshmallows. Now, since marshmallows are a choking hazard for children 3 and under if you have littles, you may want to use Skittles instead. The game works like this: You give your child one marshmallow or Skittle, then you set it in front of them. You see if they take the Skittle/marshmallow or not. If they don't take it, wait a few minutes and then give them another one. Give them as many as you want depending on your threshold for hyper children after eating all that sugar! I ended up only giving mine five. The idea is the more self-control they have, the more Skittles/marshmallows they will get. If they have the best self-control they will get all five marshmallows/Skittles. If you have more than one child you can make it a game to see who gets the most and who has all of them when you are done playing the game.

2. Don't Wake the Dragon!
The next game is a lot of fun. It's called Don't Wake the Dragon and it goes like this: One child or person is chosen to be the "dragon." Another child or person is chosen to put a "key" or object close to the dragon without waking them up. Each person or child takes a turn trying to get the "key" without waking the "dragon." If someone accidentally touches the "dragon" the "dragon" has woken up and a new person becomes the "dragon" and play starts over again. Cycle through all of the players until each one has gotten a turn to be the "dragon." If no one wakes the "dragon" after cycling through all of the players, then you can keep going until the "dragon" wakes up or the current "dragon" can trade places with someone and make that person the new "dragon." It's great to see who has the most self-control!

3. Walk the Line
No, you do not have to sing the Johnny Cash song that shares it's name with this game! This game is very simple. All you have to do is put a long line of painter's tape on the floor and pick a leader. All of the players have to follow what the leader does while walking on the line. Another way to play this game is to have each player walk the line individually while performing a certain action. For example, let's say the action is to "walk like a whisper." The person or people on the line have to walk as quietly as possible the whole time they are on the line. This would be especially challenging self-control if your child or children are "Chatty Cathy's!" You could use any kinds of actions you want. Some actions may include: walk like a lion, walk like a cloud, walk like an airplane, hop like a bunny or walk like a princess. There are many others you could use, just use your imagination, because the sky is the limit! This helps with self-control because the person has to stay on the line while performing the action. Also, particular actions may be harder for some children.

4. Red light, Green light!
This one is pretty self-explanatory as most people know how to play this, but just in case you don't here are the rules: One person is chosen to stand on one side of the room. Everybody else stands on the other side of the room. The person at the end yells "Green Light!" Once "Green Light" is announced the people on the other side of the room begin to walk towards the person on the other end of the room. At any time, the person can yell "Red Light!" At which point the players must stop walking towards the other player. If a player falls or doesn't stop, they must return to the beginning. Play continues until the person at the other end of the room is tagged. Once that person is tagged the person that tagged them first switches places with them and they become the caller. This is a great thing to teach bodily self-control because you really have to control your body when the person calls "Red Light!" as to not fall over or to stop, so you don't have to start over.

5. Walk through tape
This game does not have a fancy name and it is pretty simple to play as well. Basically, you put painter's tape on the floor and you want to criss-cross it look like a spider's web or something similar. The idea is to leave gaps in between the tape for your child to walk through. You pick a starting point and an ending point and your child starts walking through the tape. The object of the game is to only step in the gaps, but not on the tape. They must walk this way until reaching the ending point. Again, this one is about body control, because they have to control their body to not step on the tape. Your kids will enjoy this game!

6. Ready! Set! Go!
This game is similar to red light, green light, in that one person is the caller that stands on one side and all of the other players stand on the other side. The caller will call "Ready! Set! Go!" and when the players hear that they start walking towards the caller. The catch to this game is that the caller must say "Go!" for players to go. The players have to listen and pay attention, because the caller may say something like, "Grow!" for instance and the players can't go. This game encourages listening skills as well, because you have to make sure you are listening for the right word.

7. Self-Control Bubbles
I saw this idea on the website listed below and I thought it was a great idea. First you get some bubbles and blow them for your kids. Then you tell them they can pop as many as they want to. The next go round you blow them, but tell them they cannot pop the bubbles, no matter how much they want to. It'll be interesting to see if your kids can resist popping bubbles!

Some of these ideas can be found here and here.

Happy Playing!
Destiny

Anxiety

Hello All,
      Today I am going to post about something that is very important to me, as is many of you as well: anxiety. Anxiety can, in some cases, be very debilitating. Anxiety lies on a spectrum and each person that has it experiences it differently.

     I just wanted to write this post to let anyone that is suffering with anxiety that they are not alone. This is a very difficult topic to talk about for many. Many people are afraid to talk about it because it is a very taboo topic in this country. That is what I wanted to talk about today. Why is mental health and anxiety such a taboo topic? Why are people so ashamed of it and ashamed to the point where they don't want to get help? I think the main reason it is so taboo is because people are uneducated about it. People think it is something to be afraid of. People think that people with anxiety and mental illness are crazy, deranged, psychopaths in some way.

     I'm here to say, that we are not. We are not in anyway. Here's what we are: people who are fighting incredibly huge battles in their minds day in and day out. Anxiety is a very tough thing to deal with. For some people, it can get to the point where, they don't want to leave their house. This is a very tough and very real topic and for most of us it gets treated like taboo and swept under the rug. I am writing today to say "Enough already!" We need to quit hiding and treating this like a taboo topic. We need to treat the topic and people who have anxiety like they are normal.

     If you look around you, I am willing to bet wherever you are, you are probably sitting in a room with someone who has anxiety. Even if you are sitting in a room by yourself, you may be the one with anxiety. I'm also willing to bet, that none of these people look like crazy people or deranged people. They probably look just like normal everyday people. Yet, the battle that goes on everyday is far from peaceful. It is usually a very crushing and frustrating battle that takes place everyday.

     There should be no shame in talking about anxiety or mental health. It is important that we talk about these things, especially with a therapist or someone that can help you. So, this is what I want to encourage from those of you suffering from anxiety. Please, if you can, seek help. It is so important. The more you live in shame, the more you are hurting yourself. The longer you wait to get help, the longer you have to suffer. Getting helping and talking about it is the only hope for most people. Talking about it can help you feel something that most people want anxiety or not, to feel understood. So, please, if you are suffering, suffer no more and talk to someone about it today!

Best Wishes,
Destiny

Fun Freebie Friday!

Fun Freebie Friday!
Hey Guys!
It's another Fun Freebie Friday for you! Today I am talking about book boxes! What is a book box you ask? Great question! A book box is a box where you put items that represent a children's book in it and you read the book to your child or to your class if you are a teacher like me and it becomes a great interactive tool for reading a book to your child. How do you make one you ask? Well, if you subscribe to my e-mail list, I'll tell you. Until then you can just look at mine for inspiration.

Happy Creating!
Destiny

Hoppy Easter!

Hey! Hey!
Since it is almost Easter I thought I would do a fun blog post about cool things to do for Easter. I know this year's Easter is a little different due to COVID-19, but hopefully everybody can still enjoy a little Easter fun pandemic or no pandemic. So here is a list of ideas from Pinterest that I thought the kiddos would enjoy for Easter.

1. Glow-in-the-dark Easter egg hunt
So, I saw this one on Pinterest and I thought this was a great idea! I'm sure many of you have seen it, but in case you haven't the idea is pretty simple. You get some glowsticks and plastic Easter eggs and you put the glowsticks in the Easter eggs and then hide them around the house and turn off the lights and let the kids have some Easter egg hunt fun! There is no link on Pinterest as to where this idea came from, but it appears you can get all of the items needed from Target.

2. Shaving Cream and Easter eggs
Y'all, this is a great sensory idea! If you are not one for mess, I wouldn't recommend it, but me personally, I love this idea! Barbasol is cheap and fun to play with! You could use a small kiddie pool or a large empty tub you have laying around your house. It's a great sensory bin especially for the littles that love to touch and feel and play with sensory stuff. Not only that, when it's finished your house smells great! Find the idea here.

3. Easter coupons
These are a great alternative for filling those eggs with something other than candy! The coupons are things that your kids would enjoy having and also better than buying them something material instead. What I love about these coupons is that there are time-spending coupons. More than material things, that is what our kids need the most - our time. Find these coupons here.

4. Color sorting eggs
This is a great idea, because you are doing an Easter activity, but your child is learning colors at the same time. Not only that, but it is a great way for them to practice fine motor skills and engages your little one in conversation. You could even encourage your child to make their own combos or play a game where you each take a turn making the combos as an extension to this activity. This is a step up from your regular Easter egg hunt and really gets your child engaged in learning the colors. Check it out here.

5. ABC Easter egg scavenger hunt
This is also an awesome idea that will get your child engaged in learning and doing something other than the traditional Easter egg hunt. The letter magnets are hidden inside the eggs and each time they find an egg they find a letter. Also, she provides a free printable letter mat for your kids to match the letter that they find to. Amazing activity all the way around. You can find it here.

6. Easter egg patterns
This game is a creative way to get your child to learn patterns. If you have a child that is Pre-K or a little bit older and is learning patterns, this is the game for you! I love any game that gets them having fun and learning, too because oftentimes littles are practicing a skill without realizing it. Not only can you talk about patterns, but your kids can make up their own patterns as well. Get in on the fun here.

7. Easter egg gross motor game
This is a fun one to get your kids moving around. I mean instead of zoning out in front of the iPad all day, why not get up and move around! Also, what's awesome about this game is it is not all gross motor stuff, there are also some other fun things that require no movement at all, like "sing the ABC's" that will encourage your kids to learn as well. Another fun one is "tell a joke," which I'm sure will encourage all kinds of silliness, fun and laughter from your little one. You can't go wrong with this one! It's here if you want to see this fun game!

8. Easter egg scavenger hunt
This is a cool one because you have to use the clues to find your eggs. You could also do a scavenger hunt to find your Easter basket as well. What's more fun than using clues to find hidden eggs with prizes inside? Nothing I'd say! It also engages your child's mind and helps build problem solving skills. To see this cool activity go here.

9. Plant flowers
What a great spring/Easter activity! What is so great about this activity is there is so much learning involved. Think about it, you could teach them about the process of planting a plant and then also the life cycle and parts of a plant. Not only that they can see progress made on something they took part in doing. Also, it teaches them responsibility. If they want the plant to grow, they have to water it. If they don't take responsibility and water it, the plant will die. Not only are there great ways for them to learn from this activity, but also it beautifies the Earth. You don't just have to do this at Easter, Earth Day is coming up as well. Even though this is a sensory bin, the idea was inspired by this post here.

10. Jelly bean science
I did this activity with my kids at school and they loved it! It is not only a cool science activity, but also a color sorting activity. First we took the jelly beans and sorted them into colors. Then we talked about what would happen if we put the jelly beans in a cup of water. After that I let each child put some jelly beans into a cup of water and we checked it out at various times of the day. Needles to say the water turned a weird brown-gray color and the jelly beans turned white. Yuck! But the kids had fun with it and that's all that mattered! Get in on the fun here.

11. Pin the tail on the bunny
Last, but not least, a classic with an Easter spin on it: Pin the tail on the bunny! You can do a more traditional version like the one here or in a learning game like this one. Either you choose should be fun for your kids. If you choose the learning game, you could teach them their colors as well.

Thanks for reading! I hope everyone has a safe and healthy Easter!

Until Next Time!
Destiny

Fun Freebie Friday!

Fun Freebie Friday!
Hello All,
So, today is my first Fun Freebie Friday! What is Fun Freebie Friday? you ask. Excellent question! Well, I'll tell you. Every Friday (or most Fridays, when life gets busy again!) I will post a Freebie for you to get. What's the catch? you ask. Another excellent question! You are on fire today! The catch is that you must subscribe to my blog in order to receive my freebie. Today's freebie: Popcorn Trail Mix. So due to a streak of creativity (or a large amount of boredom, depending on how you look at it!) I created my very own popcorn trail mix recipe. It contains: popcorn, pretzels, sunflower seeds, cranberries and chocolate (my favorite ingredient!). But if I tell you too much you won't sign up for the recipe. So, start signing up! Meanwhile here is a little picture to whet your appetite:

Thanks for Reading!

Destiny