Thursday 13; this week's accomplishments

It's been a long week.  It feels like it should be the weekend already!  maybe it's because of the record-breaking heat we are having here in Phoenix, or maybe it's that I'm finally settling into some kind of routine and every day does not seem as rushed.  Whatever the reason, I'm tired and it's only Thursday!  I was thinking about this week's Mommy Time Monday post with the 8 of Wands and how we should focus on what ways we are improving our lives and what steps we are taking to move forward, and thought I needed to review my accomplishments of the week.  So I decided to participate in this week's Thursday 13 and make a list...
here it is,

13 things I've accomplished this week
1) I got a lot of laundry done!  It's been one of those "I'm tired of this huge pile of laundry" weeks, so I've been banging out a few loads a day.  My back has been hurting because of the folding, but at least we all have enough clean socks and underwear!
2) The kids started having homework this week.  They didn't have homework for the first week and a half of school.  So we have succesfully implemented an after school homework routine and so for it's working out great and we haven't had any tears or arguements involving homework!
3) I finally got my coupon binder organized.  I threw away all the expired coupons and placed my good coupons in an organized manner so they are easy to find.  Because of this I managed to save about $40 on my grocery shopping this week!
4) I've worked on spending real quality time with the kids each day, other than just doing their homework with them.  We have played board games, cooked meals together, eaten at the kitchen table together for dinner, and read more books.  For some reason before I always felt like I didn't have enough time or energy to do this on a daily basis, but now that I'm doing it I wonder how I ever felt that way before! (Inspired by the book I read, read my review here)
5) I've got a menu planned out for dinner for the next 5 nights!  No headaches about "what's for dinner?"  It's all planned out and I shopped accordingly!
6) I introduced my oldest daughter to the cartoon, "Invader Zim".  I used to love that cartoon and now it's something she and I can enjoy together if we find episodes online.  (This may not seem like an "accomplishment" to some, but have you watched Invader Zim??)
7) I've almost finished reading The Hitchiker's Guide To The Galaxy to my daughter... just a few chapters left.  It's been a great way to spend time together every night and I've enjoyed re-living this favorite book of mine through the fresh eyes of her youth!
8) I've gone to bed with all the dishes clean and a shiny kitchen sink EVERY night this week!  Yay for routines and motivation, and YAY for having the kid's weekly chores set up so they each have 1 or 2 nights to help me do it!
9) I found time to meditate!  Only once so far this week but it's a start!  And it's only Thursday, after all!
10)  I did yoga on my own, twice!  My yoga teacher is in Romania for the next month, so classes are cancelled till the middle of September.  I need to give myself the discipline and structure to continue practicing yoga even without the weekly class.
11)  I confronted a friend about something that was bothering me.  I'm usually a "don't rock the boat / avoid the drama" type of person, but at the same time I didn't want my feelings to fester or build up.  So I let him know how I felt about a couple things that were irritating me.  It may or may not have solved the problems (yet to be seen) but at least I let him know how I felt and didn't just hold my feelings in.
12) I joined some new groups on facebook and have been making some new online friends.  I amfeeling drawn to connect with more people, especially other mothers.  One of the oracle cards I drew for myself this week said "It's a Team Effort" and reminded me that working with others and learning from others is a wonderful thing! 
13) And finally, the most important thing, and the thing I am most proud of; I got my website launched, set up several new pages, got some discussions going on with members, and really got the ball rolling on my recent inspiration!  I am really so excited about the opportunities to help others that my website will bring me and the work I am doing there!  This has been something on my mind for a few weeks and this week I finally took the steps to get it done and get the ball rolling!

Thursday Thirteen - 13 Ways to Nurture your Inner Child

In keeping with the theme of my previous two blog posts, I thought it would be fun to list 13 ways to Awaken and Nurture your Inner Child!



1. Eat healthy foods.  Think to yourself, would I let a child eat this way?  Chances are, you wouldn't let a child drink that soda or eat that junk food... so why do you let yourself eat that way?

2.  Get enough sleep.  Don't stay up too late!  Again... think of how you would care for a child.  Would you let them stay up this late and then still expect them to go through the next day without being grumpy and sleepy?  Why do we have different expectations for ourselves?

3.  Color!  That's right... get some crayons, markers, or colored pencils and some paper and let yourself draw and color!  This can be very theraputic!  Don't judge your artwork for perfection... once again... would you tell a child that their drawing is not good enough?  No, you would praise them and tell them how beautiful it is!

4. Read a book.  Read something light hearted and fun!  As a child we love a good story, and a good book has the power to transport us to another land or another time.  If you have a favorite book from your childhood, consider re-reading it.  Or, try reading something new!  Your inner child will love a new adventure, fantasy, or mystery novel!

5. Listen to some favorite music from your childhood.  What music reminds you of your childhood?  Music has a powerful ability to awaken the Inner Child by returning us to a time when we felt happy and peaceful.  Find some of that music that takes you back to a happy time in your childhood and listen to it!

6. Watch a movie you enjoyed when you were a child.  We all had a favorite movie, cartoon, or sitcom we loved to watch as a child.  Take some time to find and watch something that makes you smile and laugh... even something that makes you cry!

7. Play outside!  Don't make excuses about the weather... if it's too cold or there is still snow on the gound, bundle up, make a snow man, splash in some rain puddles!  If it's warm, take some time to play in the dirt, get your hands dirty digging for worms, making mudpies, and working in your garden or planting a tree or flowers!  If it's hot outside, put on some sunblock and go swimming or play in the sprinklers!

8. Go to a zoo or museum.  Look at some animals or learn something new!  To a child everything is new and amazing!  Find the joy in learning again!

9. Dance and Sing!  Turn up the music and let yourself dance and sing along!  You can even do this while you're doing housework!  Let yourself bounce and waggle however you want... a child doesn't care if anyone is watching.... so just dance like no one's watching and let yourself laugh and sing!

10. Play Dress-Up.  Every child likes to play dress up!  Find something in your closet you haven't worn for awhile... even that fancy dress or your nice Sunday Suit... put it on and just let yourself feel "Dressed Up" for awhile!  Ladies, Do your hair, paint your nails, do your make up... but do it a little differently than you would normally do it.... let yourself experiment and play the way a little girl plays with her mom's make up!

11.  Look for Fairies.  Find magic in every moment!  You can do this however you choose... it can be as simple as just taking time to notice the magic of a blooming flower or a magical moment in nature, or building a "Fairy House" to welcome the fairies into your home, garden, or yard.

12.  Treat others with kindness and compassion.  Children love pleasing others.  What can you do to bring a smile to someone's face, or warm someone's heart?  Chances are you have multiple opportunities in a day to show random acts of kindness and compassion to people... seize the moment!

13.  Love yourself the way your Gaurdian Angel loves you!  I got this idea from Delia at Open Your Heart Project.  This blog post outlines a simple meditation and awareness activity that will help you to love yourself the way your Gaurdian Angel loves you! - Love Yourself The Way Your Gaurdian Angel Loves You!




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Thursday's 13 - Lunar Liberation

It's time for another Thursday's 13, Tarot Mom style! Here are 13 versions of the tarot card, 18 The Moon! Through exploring and comparing many different artists' interpretations and symbols used for this card, we can get a clearer picture of what the card means! Through all these cards I see the themes of Mystery, Secrets, Divination, Dreams, Fear, Instinct, Illusion, Mother Goddess, etc. The beauty mingled with darkness, of the things we can only see by moonlight, or by peering within the depths of our true Lunar selves. Enjoy!

The Aquatic Tarot

The Gaian Tarot - http://www.gaiantarot.com/

Deviant Moon Tarot -



Unknown - Linda K.


Thoth

Unknown - Stephanie Law

Unknown - Manga?

Unknown -

Giger Tarot

The Spiral Tarot

The Housewives Tarot

The Fey Tarot

Celestial Tarot

Thursday 13

P.s. - I found most of these images on public domain. I do not claim ownership of these images, and no copyright infringement is intended. These images have been shared for educational and comparative purposes for those with an interest and respect for Tarot Cards and art. If you know what the names of some of the unknown decks are, or the artists, please leave a comment so I can give credit!

Thursday's Thirteen - Starstruck!

I haven't done a "Thursday Thirteen" in a while now, but I figured since I am currently obsessed with the tarot card The Star, this would give me the perfect excuse to go web-hunting for different variations on this card! So I searched high and low and here are the 13 versions of The Star that I found to share!!

1) Beautiful in it's simplicity, here is a digital image of The Star, much like the Rider-Waite version, and including the imagery of a young maiden pouring water into a stream and onto the earth. The Sunrise represents hope and renewal, and the 8 pointed star, which represents cosmic order and radiant energy. Artist/Deck unknown.

2) Harry Potter Tarot - this is an unpublished deck by Laura Freeman. A bit different from the classic image, this artist choose the image and symbolism of The Phoenix - a mythical creature that is in a constant state of rebirth and regeneration - very appropriate for The Star card, although in this deck it is called "Hope". http://www.nasubionna.net/ 3) The Thoth deck shows the naked Egyptian goddess Nut. Her right hand is held high, and she pours water from a gold cup onto her head. Her left hand is held low, and she pours the immortal liquor of life from a silver cup onto the junction of land and water. Behind her is a celestial globe on which is a seven-pointed Star of Venus. In the left-hand corner is a seven-pointed Star of Babalon. This card represents hope and promise. The imagery suggests Jung's archetype of the star. According to von Franz (Boa, 1992) Jung taught that the star symbolizes that part of the personality that survives death; the spiritual part of the psyche. http://www.schuelers.com/chaos/chaos7.htm

4) Here is a photoshopped version of The Star, though I don't know the artist or the deck. Though it lacks some of the classic symbolism, the Maiden with her vessel of sparkling water of life is still present. Perhaps the 3-leafed clovers represent the feelings of Luck that come with Youth and Hope, but I have a hard time finding the sense of Purity and Renewal here - perhaps the city setting that looks like New York or Las Vegas just spoils the mood for me.


5) All I could find about this card is that it was created by an artist known as "14 Fourteen", but I don't know if she has created a whole deck or just a few cards. What I do know is that I LOVE this card! From the interesting star (suspended by a hook) that seems to be staving
off the darkness to the best of it's ability, to the maiden who seems to be haphazardly pouring her water, to the small creatures gathered around her, I could explore the imagery of this card all day!
6) You all know by now that I have an affinity for The Housewive's Tarot by Paul Kepple and Jude Buffum. Here we find The Star translated as Success and Victory, and finally getting the recognition for your hard work. Winning that blue ribbon sure looks invigorating, and I bet this housewife goes home with a renewed sense of self and finds inspiration to try new recipes!

7) 'The Stars' from The Fey Tarot, illustrated by Mara Aghem. Now this is refreshing. I can almost feel ans smell the crisp night air, and the inspired hope and vitality of this young Fey. The stars seem to be falling right into her skin, as she absorbs their light to take with her on whatver journey may lie ahead.

8) The Star / Aquarius from The Celestial Tarot by Kay Steventon and Brian Clark. I blogged more about this card last week, Here

9) The Voyager Tarot by James Wanless. I wouldn't know where to begin with the multitude of symbols in this multi-media creation. This deck is purely amazing!

10) Unknown - this simple artists sketch seems to capture Hebe, the Greek Goddess of Youth and Vitality, who poured the waters of life for the Olympians and mankind alike.

11) Beautiful, refreshing, and Hopefull, here is The Star from The Gaian Tarot. Gazing into the pool, and perhaps even drinking from it, I feel that this card represents the way that the Waters of Life are available to all of us... we can all find renewal and hope if we just look and ask. This deck is set to be published in September of 2011 by Llewellyn Worldwide... it will be on my Wish List for sure!

12) Another deck unknown to me, but very beautiful and I thought it deserved a place here. The Star is present, as well as the imagery of water... though it's hard to tell if the setting is above water or under water. Does our hope and vitality come from within us or around us? Does it matter?

13) I am trying to finout what deck this is... it may not be part of a whole deck but simply an artist interpretation of this card. The only clue I have is that the artist may be known as "Sanja", and I found her website at DeviantArt. Simple and Beautiful, the feelings of Youth and Hope are easily seen in this card.

Thursday's 13 - 13 things I did today

It's been awhile since I have posted a Thursday's 13. I was gonna blog about my day, and figured I'd kill 2 birds with one stone so to speak, and do it ~List Style~

AAAAHH!! I was typing this last night, and Blogger suddenly had some very annoying technical difficulties that prevented me from finishing it or posting it! Thankfully most of my draft was saved!!!



http://thursday-13.com/2009/10/21/thursday-13-week-42/

A Not-So-Average Day In My Life

1) Woke up and realized that I had forgotten to play "Tooth Fairy" last night. HOW could I do that? My 6 yr old daughter just lost her 1st tooth! Fortunatley, she was in the bathroom and the other 2 kids were still sleeping - I was able to sneak into her room and make the switch. This of course, resulted in her screeching with suprise as she returned to her room and found that the tooth that had been there moments before was gone, replaced with money. Of course, she finds mommy in her bed, "sleeping" - after screaming so loud that she had woken everyone up, except for me :o)



2) Made a healthy breakfast of GrapeNuts cereal with raisins, Yogurt, and juice. Yep, I'm making an effort to change from the quick & easy breakfast to the fresh fruits or other healthy stuff breakfasts. (Aartianna, aren't you proud?)



3) Played on FaceBook. For way too long. What can I say?



4) Drank a coffee from Starbucks. Hubby was home today and went out and got us each a Starbucks, a special indulgence, and yes - one of my guilty pleasures.



5) Finally washed the dishes, scrubbed the countertops, swept the kitchen floor and took out the trash. I had been putting this off since Wednesday.... but once I got started it only took me 30 minutes to do. (kicking myself in the butt and reminding myself of all I havelearned from FlyLady ) I blame temporary amnesia. But, all is back in order now!



6) Got in the car with son and Hubby and took a drive. OMG it was so nice to get out of the apartment for awhile!!



7) Ended up at a used book store - can you say HEAVEN?? *Contented Sigh* Browsed among hundreds of books - love the smell of books!! Bought Mr. X a "Super Why" Matching Card Game, bought myself another blank Tarot journal, and a copy of Buckland's "Practical Candleburning Rituals"



8) Went across the street to eat at McDonalds (I know, EEWWW!) But they have this really big awesome play land, with some almost-life sized replicas of DINOSAURS - Mr. X had so much fun!!!

9) Drove around town some more, looking for a guitar shop for Hubby. He was given a guitar and is teaching himself to pla. We found a really nice music shop and looked around - we will have to go back there again sometime!

10) We came home (Mr. X made it the whole 3 hours without having an accident, an he used the public restrooms about 4 times - YAY!) The girls came home from school and since it was so nice outside, I sat on the steps and watched them while all 3 of my kids played in the grass.

11) I cooked dinner. Nothing special, the cupboards are getting bare (it's the end of the week). Hamburger Helper, Veggies, Fruit, and Bread.

12) I spent some time looking at my new books, and some more time on FaceBook. My two favorite shows were not on this week, so while my Thursdays are usually booked, I had some extra free time. (The Vampire Diaries was a re-run, and Fringe wasn't on due to baseball.) I even washed the dishes, put the kids to bed, and cleaned up the livingroom at my leisure. But it all got done!!

13) I drew a Tarot Card for the day. Just out of boredom and curiosity, I asked the Tarot to clarify what my lesson for the day had been. I drew the 9 of Pentacles. I know I definatley had the "Enjoying Leisure" part of this car down, and I did feel pretty in control of my life today (Even though hubby was home and we went out for awhile, I still had the self-discipline to get my housework done.) And - I am crossing my fingers and knocking on wood - because this card can indicate that my harvest is almost ready, that it is almost time to see the benefits and rewards of all my hard work, determination, self-control, and faith. (A house?? Our House? Can I dare to get my hopes up?!?!?!)

Thursday's 13 - Princess A turns 6!

Thursday's 13

13 pictures, 6 years of "Princess A"

6 years ago; 7 lbs, 4oz, 21 inches long & Perfect in Every Way!
She had grown a lot by her first Christmas, 4 months old

By the age of 6 months, she had perfected the "Angelic Eyes" pose

Mud & Baby Butt Crack. I couldn't resist!! Age 1

"Here I am, now entertain me."

Even when she is just waking up, she still has a smile for me.

The Princess was still a tom-boy at age 3. And so vibrant!

I never noticed the red-plaid Christmas theme until just now. But, 4 months old or 4 years old, it looks good on her!

This picture really says it all!

She can be really shy and quiet at times.

Princess A's 5th Birthday (a year ago!)

"Mommy, take a picture of me eating my Easter Candy!"

Growing up is so much fun!

Happy Birthday, my Sunshine, my Princess, my little Leo!!

Thursday's 13 - Strength

Well, I just had to post another Thursday's 13 today, I couldn't help myself! In keeping with this week's journaling theme at Journal Yourself Awake (Strength), I've found 13 beautiful variations of the Strength card (Tarot) Enjoy!

Alice in Wonderland - Artist unknown
Unknown Artist / Deck

art by Stephanie Law

Spiral Tarot by Kay Steventon

Rider-Waite Smith deck

art by Laifierr Grogan

The Housewives Tarot by Paul Kepple and Jude Buffum

Harry Potter - unpublished deck, artist unkown

The Fey Tarot by Mara Aghem

Druid Craft Tarot

Celestial Tarot by Kay Steventon

art by Kari Buziak

art by Annie Rodrigue

* Many of these images were found on public domain on the internet. I claim no ownership of these images, and I am not their creator. No copyright infringement intended.

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