Week ONE Facebook Sabbatical

Hello my friends…welcome to my blog.  For those of you who have linked here from Facebook, please don’t be confused.  I did NOT have to log into my FB account for this to post to your page.  All of my posts automatically link to your pages...so now that that’s cleared up, I would like to tell you all about the first week of my sabbatical.

I have to say it’s been a little strange and has taken some getting used to.  Days seem a little longer and at the end of the week, all those lost minutes have come together to form an extra two hours to focus on life’s delicious simplicities.  This week has helped me realize, life lived without an audience looking is very different than living in the online world.  There's a familiarity about it, experiencing life again as it once was before Facebook.  Days move a little slower with less distractions.  

The first two mornings were the hardest.  I would wake up at my usual time, get ready for work and plop down on the couch to check out my emails and blog.  Both mornings, by habit and without thinking or paying attention to what I was doing, I typed the www.facebook.com into my  search bar and was surprised when the login page appeared.  I suppose you might think this a little dramatic but one could compare it to an alcoholic standing outside the front door of a bar.  Because I was adamant about sticking to this facebook diet and determined  NOT to cheat myself out of this experience, I quickly left the page, moving on to my hotmail and blog.  I have to admit I felt a little disconnected at times, wondering what my friends and relatives were up to that day.  But this little experiment has brought forth some pretty great personal moments for me. 

What has resulted from this week away from FB?  Well let me tell you!  On Monday morning, In the 20 minutes I would have normally been reading posts,  I spent that time making my son warm waffles to wake up to.  The remaining part of the week was filled with things like a phone call shared between my sister and I, so much nicer than our usual quick replies on our walls.   A girlfriend and I got together for a wonderful evening of conversation and shared some yummy lemon ginger tea…something I probably would have never tried had I not went to her home to visit. 

Friends and family emailed and called, after reading my blog post, letting me know that what I had written had rang true with them and had also been feeling and needing in their lives at this moment.  My daughter and I took our dog Gracie for a long walk and talked about all the great things that were going on in our lives.  I've been walking more with friends and during lunch hours, enjoying the beauty of the changing fall leaves and short cheerful conversations with those I meet.   I discovered a new philosopher named Abraham Hicks, whom speaks to my soul, quenching the thirst of my very being.  Listening to her each night has complimented and enriched this experience.

Oh how I’ve enjoyed this week and how it’s made my life and those I’ve shared time with a little sweeter.  For some people, this is not the kind of thing they are looking for and that's ok! Each and every one of us are all different, traveling our own paths.  But for me, this week of living my life without anyone looking and without looking at the lives of others, has been in one simple word ‘therapeutic’. 

Good bye for now my lovelies.

 Stay True, Joella

Facebook Sabbatical and Blog CONFUSSION

Hello All!  Hope you're doing well.  I'm sending you this note from my One Artsy Chick Blog.  Just to clear up any confusion there may be about my blog posts uploading to facebook.  Just to clarify, I am NOT logged into Facebook when this happens.  This is how I have my One Artsy Chick Blog set up, each post made on my blog automatically post to my friends walls.  I have been a very good girl...doing better then I had thought I would.  No slip ups yet !!!  Enjoying the extra 20 minutes a day I have in the mornings.

That's all for now...I'll be posting a FaceBook Sabbatical update next week .  Until then,  stay true my friends :) xxoo

My FACEBook Sabbatical by Joella Notte

It's time...it's really really time. I have decided to take a 60 day sabbatical from Facebook. Taking this time off to reconnect with what's real in life….Facebook has become a source of distraction, and at times has kept me from doing the things I know are important and keep my soul full.  I know I'm not alone in this and there's others out there but are too ashamed to say it.   It's embarrassing to admit but I think it's going to be really tough.  I'll miss waking up in the morning, checking in on my favourite Facebook friends and reading what's new with them throughout the day.  BUT this is something I've been wanting to do...needing to do, for a very long time now.  Yup, I'll miss sharing my inspirational messages, yummy recipes and videos with those of you who appreciate them.  However, I will still be sharing bits and pieces of my art and life through this blog which will automatically post to my FB page... in case you're interested.

Yes...I'm doing it, I really am doing it. Here’s my picture of proof! My last wall post for the next 60 days, made September 18th!

I have to admit...I'm already feeling a little disconnected.  Seconds before I posted this last post, my heart was pounding with fear and the uneasy thought that I would be forgotten, that my existence was somehow being jeopardised. I know....CRAZY!  But alas, I pushed the POST button and was relieved to find I was still all there, all ten fingers and toes and rather than fear, I felt instantly exhilarated. 

 This is the picture of me after I pressed the POST button.

Hey! Where did that sign come from?

 In my heart I knew this was the brave thing to do, this was what my soul needed. Yes. Deep deep down to the very corners of my soul, it was what I knew I needed.  For a very long time I've been hearing my heart whisper 'you should not be relying on facebook to determine your self worth. It is time for you to look at the world through your eyes'.

“It's not what you look at that matters, it's what you see.” Henry David Thoreau

How did I finally come to this decision?  I had been noticing I didn't have enough hours in the day to do the things or spend the time with people I used to enjoy.  I would procrastinate, thinking I should be doing more exciting worldly things...like my FUN facebook friends.  How embarrassing is that?  I was measuring my life's worth by others posts.  Don't get me wrong, I would love to see Paris and Italy like any other girl but it's not something I need or can do right now, and most of the time I'm OK with that...most of the time!  I was beginning to lose site of the real me, the me who is content to just be, enjoying the simple pleasures in life.

I was beginning to lose myself to the fictional life of facebook, where nothing is as it seems and people post only what they want the world to see, not the real stuff that goes on behind closed doors.  It always makes me sad to see friends who are going through hell in their personal lives, in a twisted kind of way, feel they must post HAPPY HAPPY HAPPY to the world.  There's something wrong with society, when we are taught to think any family having problems or are less than perfect must be disfunctional. But that's an entirely different matter and I'll leave that for someone else to write about. What I'm trying to say is we need to remember we're not getting the whole picture and should never compare our lives to those of our friends or acquaintances on facebook. 

Right Lucy?

 What is this fictional life we live on facebook?  What is the good of it?  Well it has it's perks... like keeping in touch with friends and family from afar.  For me I find it very useful in networking my art and posting the odd inspirational quote...maybe bringing a little sunshine to someones otherwise gloomy day.    

But even though FaceBook has it perks, I still feel the need to take a little needed break.  I long for the simple things, the things I haven't been making enough time for, like quiet intimate conversations with family and friends or sitting on the porch sipping lemonade, watching my gorgeous husband cutting the grass in his goofy hat.  He's gonna kill me when he sees this picture...sorry hubs!

I really need to LIVE a life I can LOVE…the life that was designed for only me. I  have known from a very young age that I was meant to create and make art. I also know in my heart of all hearts that I was designed to love DEEPLY.  I'm meant to live each day with PEACE, JOY, GRATITUDE and BLISS and share as much of it as I can with others.  The essence of my being is happiest when I'm living a quiet, authentic, simple life surrounded by nature and those I love and who love me . How do I know these things?  Because sometimes when I'm feeling lost and confused I get really really quiet and listen to the silence...shutting off all the jib jabber of  my mind.  This is where I find my TRUTH, the honest answers to life's toughest questions...from the centre of my being.

Searching the outside world for answers is like being given three different life manuals, each with very different instructions...can you say CONFUSION?

Here are a few things my HEART has being trying to tell me for so long!

~Stop living the life you think others want you to live~

~Spend more time making art from the heart (haha that rhymes)~

~Reach out and re-connect with family and friends~

~Show your husband how much you cherish him~

~Focus more on your health by practicing meditation and yoga~

~Get off FACEBOOK for awhile and get QUIET in your thoughts~

What will I be doing during my sabbatical from Facebook? 

Nurturing the relationships I hold close to my heart :)  Going for long walks. ART. I have just recently started selling my work at the FLOWER FOREST and would like to do my best to make a go of it. I will also be working on my One Artsy Chick gift card line. I am hoping to share more of myself on this blog.  I will be practicing my yoga and meditation on a regular basis, connecting with my inner truths, finding my peaceful place. filling my mind, body and spirit with yummy and delicious emotional, spiritual and physical nourishment.  I've still got so many broken peaces that need to be healed, the day to day hurts that need forgiveness. I will let myself be sad when I need to and be silly when I want to.  AND all of this will be done with my eyes wide open... when my soul tells me it's the right time.

So my friends, the ones who really love me and can't live without me (big sigh)...please  follow my journey.  I will do my best to write on my blog each week. For those of you who relate and are finding yourselves right where I am today...my hope is that through this experience I can help you in some small way, stop and look around at what's going on in the real world in your real relationships, the ones that really matter and most of all to be GRATEFUL for what you have...EVERY day be grateful.  My biggest wish for myself and you my lovelies is that we make each day count, paying attention to those around us and living what is in our hearts, what is REAL.

  I will miss keeping up with you on Facebook.  Please email or call and if you do happen to post to my wall, your comments will eventually be delivered to me through HTML :) 

Stay True 

xoxox

Healing Prayer Flag

I haven't been feeling myself lately and decided to make a prayer flag asking for health and healing. To some this may just look like a pretty pieces of coloured cloth with funny writing on it. The symbols i've chosen are powerful reiki symbols believed to produce a spiritual vibration that is activated and carried by the wind across the countryside. This is my silent prayer to be spoken on the breath of nature.

Hope in the City Fundraiser

Hope in the City Breast Cancer Fundraiser was a BIG success and an amazing night for all.
 

Myself and five friends, dolled ourselves up...don't we look smashing?

The experience in one word...BREATHTAKING.

I had so much fun making my purse.  Yup...it's a bra!  Oh la la!!!

At the end of the night, each one of us received this beautiful and very yummy plate of goodness!!!

Next year...same time same place ?  I can only HOPE :)

Brave Girls Club - Soul Restoration

Hello my lovelies!  Have you heard about the awesome inspirational, soul quenching club called Brave Girls?  If you're into healing and finding your true self, Soul Restoration is for you!  It's not too late to register, the closing date is May 1!  All of us Brave Girls are having a blast and learning sooooo much about ourselves...we'd love you to join us!!  Find out about Soul Restoration 1 and 2 here

Hand Turned Exotic Wood Ornaments

For my 39th birthday, my sister Kerry and her husband, Ed gave me this beautiful hand turned wood ornament.  My brother in-law Ed, works with all kinds of wonderful exotic woods and had been saving this particular piece for awhile and was not quite sure what he wanted to transform it into.

 I've always loved receiving handmade gifts and so he and my sister decided on one of these beautiful ornaments, made especially for me in mind.

Little did he know, there was a little something very special ingrained in the wood, something that would have significant meaning when it was uncovered.

Look very closely...do you see it?  Do you see the bear paw print?  When I opened this lovingly and thoughtfully made gift I was near tears.  You see, I work as a Team Leader for victim services with 16 volunteers working under me.  One of those volunteers, whom is not longer with us, always called me mama bear.  She said I was like a mama bear watching over her cubs, my volunteers.

 I did a little research on what the Bear Paw symbolises and found in many cultures it stands for power, direction and connection to creator. 

I believe there are no coincidences in life and that everything happens for a reason.  Ed chose this piece of wood for me without knowing the significance behind it.  Chance?  I think not.

If you're interested in purchasing one of Ed's hand turned ornaments you can email him at info@coins-n-things.com or visit his website   http://www.coins-n-things.com/

Each handmade wooden ornament has its own distinctive warmth and beauty. In the talented hands of my brother-in-law, each individual unrepeated turn differentiates each ornament from the next, producing a lasting heirloom.
Many people keep some of the best and most expensive ornaments they have as keepsakes and collectibles and even pass them down in their families as heirlooms to enjoyed year after year.

The Police Wife Life, An Urgent Cry For The Support of Law Enforcement Officers, by Melissa Littles

The Police Wife Life, An Urgent Cry For The Support of Law Enforcement Officers, by Melissa Littles This article hit home and is a worry for all of us who are husbands and wives of police officers.

A Little Luxury just for Me...from Me!!!

The girly girl in me couldn't help herself, I first saw this soap displayed at a local pharmacy back in December and i just could not get the gorgeous scent out of my mind! I knew I had to have it but thought I should wait until after Christmas, you know how that is.  Well it's February and I finally decided to treat myself.  There were four different scents and they were all so divine.  It was hard choosing just one.  I would loved to have purchased all of them but they are a luxury soap and each bar retails for $8.99.  Well worth it I'm sure.

After quite some time, I finally settled on the ROYAL LILY AND NARCISSUS  (Giglio del Granducato e Narciso).  It's fragrance of the white velvet petals intertwine with the sensuous scent of Narcissus is just heavenly.

I would love to try the others...I'm hoping Nest Dante will send me a few of their products to review on my blog and my twitter!  I'll let you know what happens !!!

Anyhoo, it's time for me to go.  I've got the bath water is running, candles lit and a glass or red wine waiting, soon I'll know just how luxurious this soap really is!  Stay tuned for updates!!!   

Imperfect Me

 The most terrifying thing is to accept oneself completely.  Carl Gustav Jung

   Can we learn to love our imperfection?  To find out how, read  Love Your Imperfections  written by Cynthia Hanson for Life and Beauty Weekly.

Stella & Dot

  Stella and Dot jewelry is both YUMMY and stylish and designed in New York and San Francisco by award winning trend-setters who also create jewelry sold in Neiman Marcus and Fred Segal!  Many of their pieces sell for under $50...  check out their site here!

No New Years Resolutions for 2011

This year I've promised myself not to make any new years resolutions. I figure I'm already too hard on myself, why add one more expectation to the long list I've managed to make already?  Nope, I'm going to try something a little bit different this year. I've decide to continue on my journey of getting to know myself, who i really am in spirit and beginning to appreciate me for me. No new expectation, just being myself, the way I am right now, and being ok with the me i am. 

You're welcome to come with me on this journey!
Just being ourselves will take courage, faith and a conscious commitment. It's going to be a process of stripping off the layers of false beliefs we've wrapped around our true selves. Things that we've told ourselves, like we have to look a certain way, know the right people and impress them with our wisdom, saying the right things, have the best experiences, all so we can be happy and successful in life. Just being ourselves may be scary and may not fit into what we want to believe about ourselves, it will not be easy and may even put us off kilter at times, heck it may leave us feeling a little lonely. However, don't you think being our authentic selves will be liberating, even exciting? So much of the stress, suffering and worry will simply fall away when  showing our truest of selves and having the courage to be who we really are, without apology or falsehoods.

This is not going to be easy, we're going to slip up once in awhile, but that's ok.  We're only human, what's important is we're making a conscious choice in getting to know who we really are, doing our best to live life as our authentic selves.

Here are a few things we can do to help us deepen our awareness, show the world our truest, bravest authentic selves this New Year.
.•Find love and acceptance for who you are. What do you love about you that has nothing to do with your external you? not what you do but who you are.  the more we're able to uncover what we love about who we are, the more confidence we'll have to show the world our true colours and live in a place of peace and self-love.
•Be truthful to yourself.  How much self-worth do you base on your actions, who you know, and what accomplishments you've made?  Let go of defining yourself by your external self, it will give you the freedom and power to experience your purest truth.  Getting honest with yourself may bring you to the realization, you really don't know who you are without your external layers. Yikes...this going to seem a little scary at first, but it's good and may even give you the tools to understand and experience the true spirit and soul of YOU.
•Practice just being YOU.. You may not like this but we've had alot of practice at being phony or being someone we think the world wants us to be.  This is going to mean making alot of conscious decisions,  just be the real you and bringing only your truest of reactions to outside situations.  You must be aware by paying attention to your true feelings, your thoughts, what you choose to say, honoring your authentic self. This is about letting go of who you think you should be and just letting the world see who you really are in the moment.

Lets not take this too seriously, lets have fun with it, share it with the people we trust, being gentle with ourselves on this journey—this will be a big step for most of us.  I'm excited to meet myself and soooo ready to introduce ME to the rest of the world. Wishing us all the best of being ourselves this 2011!!!  Peace, Light and Hope to you all :)

Insight Course

Insight Course

This course is beyond price! It helped me realize that it is actually okay (and safe) to love everyone. That was a really powerful insight for me. Thank you. ~ Ursula D.



A little inspirational Christmas gift from me to all of you! Hope you'll join me in this on-line course :) Merry Christmas, Joella

Art, Heart and Healing Assignment 2 Part 2

Like many girls I felt left out at times, like I somehow just didn't belong. I had plenty of friends but I was not the queen bee and this sometimes got in the way of forming true friends.  Not because I didn't want to but because as children we are often swayed or manipulated into doing hurtful things to those we consider friends in fear of being targeted ourselves.  All too often I was the one being targeted and the circle of friends I had come to trust turned their backs on me, knowing where they stood on the social ladder.  This is where this assignment comes in... I was asked to look back on my childhood and find a situation we wish


 we could change or make different.

 Because of where I stood on the social ladder I never really felt like I had a BEST friend, I had plenty of good friends but not the kind I could trust would stick by me no matter what.  This is the one thing as I child I wished for and the reason why I chose to paint this childhood dream. 

"The circle of true friendship is never ending"

The girl in the middle represents ME with the two BEST friends I dreamed of having as a child !!

Today I have an abundance of good people in my life who I consider great friends, all with different attributes and personalities. Each of them touching my life in different ways, ways that no one person could ever fulfill and I am thankful for all of them.

I really enjoyed doing this assignment.  Some of the old insecurities and feelings of sadness came rushing back, but with this came a greater understanding of why I never really had a "one true" Best Friend.  It wasn't because I wasn't worthy or good enough, it's something much more complex than that, something I'll save for another blog entry.  I would like to share one more thing with you before you go, we are all our own best friends and we should accept that gift from ourselves and hold it close to our hearts... I do :)

The Journey

I woke up to the sound of the rain this morning, a wave of melancholy washed over me and Mary Oliver's poem 'The Journey' crept up on me like a long lost friend.

The Journey

One day you finally knew

what you had to do, and began,

though the voices around you

kept shouting

their bad advice - - -

though the whole house

began to tremble

and you felt the old tug

at your ankles.

'Mend my life!'

each voice cried

But you didn't stop.

You knew what you had to do,

though the wind pried

with its stiff fingers

at the very foundations - - -

though their melancholy

was terrible.

It was already late

enough, and a wild night,

and the road full of fallen

branches and stones.

But little by little,

as you left their voices behind,

the stars began to burn

through the sheets of clouds,

and there was a new voice,

which you slowly

recognized as your own,

that kept you company

as you strode deeper and deeper

into the world,

determined to do

the only thing you could do - - - determined to save

the only life you could save. 

It's days like this I'm thankful to have my art, guiding me through the melancholy and through to the other side. 

Celebrating Life

I’m not in this world to live up to your expectations and you’re not in this world to live up to mine.

~Bruce Lee~

This past weekend was about celebrating life with the women closest to me.  Unfortunately, I didn't get a chance to spend time with all of them  but each and every one of them were in my thoughts.  I'm finding as I'm getting older I want to celebrate life's twists, turns, ups and downs... you know, the stuff that really matters!

By celebrating I don't mean with material things but by connecting with others and sharing what it is that makes us truly happy.  So many of us are trying to be someone we're not, going against the natural flow of who we are and what we believe. I'm tired of trying to impress others just to fit in, it's just too exhausting and it's suffocating me...who cares who's got the biggest house, nicest car, who had an affair, who seems full of themselves, or who goes on trips three times a year.  It's who we are and what speaks to our souls, and it's mirrored back to us in the way we treat ourselves and others. I'm tired of the game "To be the BEST you have to IMPRESS" if you don't like who i am or you're not wowed by my company...OH WELL!  I'm not interested in being the most exciting, funny, smart, beautiful or interesting person in your life but what does matter is that friends and family know I care deeply trust that I'm as an ear to listen and a shoulder to cry on when they need one.

WARNING:  I'm not perfect and I WILL slip up from time to time... sometimes even the best of intentions fall short.  Lets make a promise to ourselves and each other to stop looking to others to to fill our cups up with happiness.  Only you can truly make yourself happy, I'm just here to share in the celebration and be the "lucky" one who get to walk beside you on your journey !!!

After reading this post I hope you'll find time to CELEBRATE Life and breathe in all the happiness you can!!!  xoxoxo

Wean Green Environmentally Friendly

Wean Cubes are a safe, environmentally friendly food storage alternative. The design team at Wean Green have designed these quality containers with mommies, daddies and babies in mind - they are durable, easy to clean, and can go everywhere you and your baby go.  These containers would be perfect for a day at the park, an afternoon at the beach or the roadtrip to grandmas.

To learn more about these excellent quality environmentally friendly containers go to http://www.weangreen.com/.

GIVEAWAY

Be sure http://lovemyartjewelry.blogspot.com/2010/10/lmaj-monday-giveaway.htmlto enter your name in to win a set of beautiful handmade earrings!!!   ummm and you may want to check out the rest of her blog...she's got some amazing stuff! 

Free 21 day Guided Meditation Challenge

I am hoping through this meditation I'll be more open to my creative muse, letting go of any block or doubts I've been having about my art and life in general.

The 21-day Meditation Challenge starts with small steps and gently progresses to longer meditations, then eases back down. During this challenge we will be exploring different types of meditation. The optimum length and frequency for a meditation practice is 30 minutes, twice each day, but we’ll begin with a few minutes at first and work our way up to more extended meditations.


They say if you already have a meditation practice to feel free and continue with that and to use the daily guided meditation as a way to enhance and deepen your current practice. The power of a guided meditation can help you stay in the present moment, move through blockages, heal aspects of your self that you didn’t even know were wounded, as well as experience deeper states of relaxation and higher states of consciousness.

So come join me guys... you know you want to :)



click on the link... it's free !    http://www.chopracentermeditation.com/2010/08/12/day-1-2/

What Is this Need to Create ?

What is this need to create? I create because it relaxes and centers me. I create to bring hope and joy to others. I create because suddenly the mood takes me. I create to express my thoughts and feelings at a particular time in my life. I am passionate about colour and how it can magically change our moods. When we're surrounded by colour and self expression we are more alive.

What is the driving force behind it and why is it so important to me?  I suppose it stems from the need to express my thoughts and feelings, without having to use the spoken word.  Growing up, I had a hard time expressing my feelings.  I was afraid of saying the wrong thing, the wrong way and risk being viewed as unintelligent by others.  I recall many times when I simply ignored the cruel words of others and was mistakenly labeled as dumb for not catching on to their hurtful intentions, when in reality saying something equally harmful was not in me. I was taught from an early age to treat others the way I  would want to be treated and if you have nothing nice to say, don't say anything at all.  I'm not sure what was worse, putting others feelings before mine or not standing up for myself. 

Most times I'm in a good place while creating but there are times when life throws me a curve and I use my art to work through it.  Blocking everything else out around me, and separating my feelings from the problem suddenly brings clarity to the situation, allowing me to find the answer my heart has been searching for... it's very therapeutic. Through creating I've come to know who Joella is, what makes her tick, what she values most in life and what really makes her happy.

I feel it's important we do what we can to make the world as loving and accepting as we can for ourselves and others.  I have developed an overwhelming need to leave something of myself behind for my children and their generation, making their lives richer through my work.  Giving hope and inspiration by sharing the secrets I have learned on my journey that have giving me the tools to live an authentic life.

There are many reasons why I create, but the single most important reason is in the knowing that I have touched the hearts and souls of others, and maybe just maybe making their lives a littler more joyful because of it.