I love to dance, I love to move.  Thankfully, my toddler also loves to dance so I get to do this quite often!  Another creative outlet that I have recently discovered is yoga flow.  I am taking an amazing class right now, I think it has a lot to do with the teacher.  Anyhow, it is unlike any other yoga instruction I've ever had and I am really enjoying it.  After the first class, I kept having this mental image of snow being wiped off of my car windshield.  I think it was because I started feeling some clarity during the movement.

I am a Libra and can see both sides of almost any issue.  I do lack balance however, but I'm working on it...

My Mom is very patient with people and exudes a certain light, a certain joy.  Her very being reminds me to slow down and appreciate other people and see the good in them.  I do not always agree with her on many things, but one thing she has certainly inspired in me is to strive to be fair and patient in my relationships with others.

I do not believe in violence of any kind, toward anyone or anything. 

My idea of a balanced life is one of simple contentment.  I think that pleasure is a very important part of the human experience, but so is inner discipline.  Perhaps the trick lies in enjoyment of the simple things and learning from the more difficult.

Well, I'm only 34...so this has been the best thing thus far...I no longer care about "out-cooling" everyone else.  When I think about the time and energy I spent trying to be the coolest girl in the room, it makes me laugh!  I guess that's all a part of growing up.  I'm sure ten and twenty years from now I will laugh about something I did in my 30s.  I laugh much easier these days! :)

I'd have to choose two because I think they are intertwined.  I am dedicated to the rights of children, as well as to good stewardship of our planet.  I believe that taking care of our environment is essential to taking care of our children, and vice versa.

Why are we here?

My spiritual path has been very jagged and meandering.  But I've always been a seeker, and probably always will be.

Guilt!  It's a family legacy...my mother suffers from it, as did her mother.  I hope to break the cycle with my kids.  I believe there is a difference between guilt and conscience, conscience is productive and guilt is most certainly not.

As a little girl I found a love for dance, and found a lot of joy in the movement of my body.  As an adolescent, I became very self-conscious and regarded myself as too large.  That began years of thinking of my body only through the eyes of others.  I denied myself food when I was hungry, wore too high heels even when I was hurting, and exercised to the point of obsession.  Physical appearance meant everything to me, but I was so unhappy.  At some point in my late 20s, I decided to let it all go.  I started to understand that my body is a certain shape because of heredity.  I also came to appreciate the womanly shape.  Around that time I started yoga, and that made a huge difference in my relationship to my body.  For the first time in my life since I was a dancing little kid, I found joy and amazement in the movement of my body.  When I was 29 I had to have an ovarian laporoscopy.  I could not believe how quickly I healed afterward!  Our bodies are made to withstand these things if we take care of them properly.  Now, after giving birth to two children, I continue to be amazed at what my body can do.  My shape is far from what I strived for as a teen and younger adult.  But my stomach, while stretched, was a sacred, warm cocoon for two beautiful little boys.  My breasts, even though they are getting kind of saggy :), nourish my boys every day with fresh mama milk.  The seasons of my body have taught me a great deal about myself and what is important to me.  As I grow older, I look forward to the new changes that will come about and hope that my relationship with my body continues to mature.

My Mom is the kindest person I know.  Everyone who meets her see that she has a special light.  She is very intuitive and uses her kindness to meet even the needs of perfect strangers. 

Indecision! :)

I would "uninvent" guns.  I don't know what I would invent to replace them since I really wouldn't want to.

There's not much I would want to change, much less need to change, right now.  I think it's all part of a path, and even though some things aren't perfect, I trust that I will be learning something from them.  On a more superficial level however, the first thing that popped into my head is I need to get better at cleaning my house!  I am totally disorganized and I'll always admit that I'd rather play with and tend to my kids than do any kind of house-cleaning.  But I have a feeling that if I got better at this, other things may fall into place.  Organization is certainly not my strongest quality. ;)

What an interesting question...I can't really think of anyone.  I like to try to be empathetic to people and their situations, so I guess I feel similiar to those I am trying to relate to, if that makes any sense.  Hmm...I'll have to give this one some more thought.

One year ago I was four months pregnant with my second son.  So perhaps I would say, "You have it easy now!"  but I would follow that up with "Just wait...you thought your heart couldn't get any fuller!"

Well, I don't have a profile picture, and what that says about me is I didn't even think about using one...and I don't know why.  Maybe I just like that friendly smiley...:)

I'm a stay-at-home mom...so obviously the Mom part of my job is something I will be doing (happily) for the rest of my life.  As for the stay-at-home part, I don't think I would be happy staying at home once my kids are in full-day school.  At that point, I think I would like to find a job that allows me to be home at the end of their school day. There are so many things, other careers I would like to explore.  One of the nice things about having this time home with my kids, other than being able to watch them grow, is that I've had the opportunity to grow with them.  I'm learning about myself and I often wonder about where the next stage of my life will take me.

I don't know that I have a favorite, but I did find today's Zaadz Buddhism quote of the day very timely and inspirational.  It's from Pema Chodron:

"Ordinarily we are swept away by habitual momentum and don’t interrupt our patterns slightly. When we feel betrayed or disappointed, does it occur to us to practice?"

I'm looking forward to a relaxing autumn day with my husband and kids.  Last night we hosted my parents' 35th anniversary party so we have some cleaning up to do, but not too much.  Tomorrow morning a couple of friends and I are gathering with our kids for a mini Halloween party, so that should be fun!

Funny, I was just thinking about this yesterday.  Sometimes I think about what I will do for paid work when my kids are grown.  Prior to having kids, I was a second grade teacher.  For many reasons, I will not be returning to that profession.  So that leaves me to explore what I will do next.  One of the things I struggle with is a fear of money.  I don't know why, but it is something I have realized over the past few years.  I tend to gravitate toward taking jobs that pay very little--for some reason it makes me feel better about myself.  It's not that I don't think of myself as a worthwhile employee, it's that I, for some reason, have a very difficult time "having" any kind of money.  I would love to take something I love doing and turn it into paid work, but I fear that the money part would taint my passion.  I've noticed several people here on Zaadz work in jobs that feed their passion, and I would like to learn from all of you!

When I was in the third grade, I made a princess dress out of crepe paper streamers, lol!  My Mom went along with the plan, and I wish I had pictures of it because I remember it being quite the undertaking.  I remember the streamers were yellow and gold, and I had a very elaborate plan.  I remember being very proud of my creation, until Halloween night became rainy and muddy and I was suddenly unraveling in wet crepe paper.  Oh well, live and learn...I do remember that particular evening ended with getting dried off at my Grandma's house and having donuts and cider, so all was well! :)

This month has gone by very fast, we've been so busy.  I caught a nasty cold that turned into a sinus infection and, while that was miserable, it made me realize that I have been neglecting my own health and nutrition this month, as often happens when I become very busy with lots of events and commitments.  So that was a wake-up call. 

This month also brought my parents' 35th anniversary party, which I hosted and coordinated, with the help of my brothers.  It was very life-affirming to work together with my siblings, all with the common goal of celebrating our parents.

Just this past week I started having some inkling as to what I might like to do once my kids are in school (which, by the way, is several years away, but it's something that has been on my mind lately), so I have a lot to explore.

Today is my baby's first Halloween, so we have a fun day planned!

Tomorrow is the 1st of November, which is my Dad's birthday, and hwe are hosting an afternoon playdate, so the busy-ness never really ends, but it is my hope that November will bring us better health and we can continue to enjoy our family.