It is an OUTRAGE! Safety measures, injury prevention and using some smarts could save so many young/innocent lives…what am i talking about: Dummy parents who refuse to respect water and life! Here in Florida…i’ve heard so many super-sad-stories of beautiful-fragile-life drowning because of a lapse in supervision, etc…Just overheard another incident/tragedy and i’m ANGRY.

Okay, not out-of-control angry…just VERY upset by stupidity and senselessness. (Thus–the inspiration for this post.) Yeah, we make mistakes as parents, (and my heart breaks for any parent who has lost their child in death:(

But, can’t we be more vigilant when it comes to our kids’ safety?! Parents must protect their kids. Parents must respect life. Parents must respect water. Parents must respect time. Parents must WAKE-UP/PAY ATTENTION before kids drown…Until our kid(s) are grown, our job as a parent is: LIFE GUARD! (not just talking water)

Scope of the Problem       

Florida loses more children ages 1–4 to drowning than any other state. Annually in Florida, enough children to fill three to four preschool classrooms drown and do not live to see their fifth birthday.

Florida overwhelmingly has the highest unintentional drowning rate in the nation for the 1–4 year old age group with a rate of 6.98 per 100,000 population (Oklahoma was second for this age group with a rate of 5.04) for 2007–2009.

Alaska, Hawaii, and Florida have the highest overall unintentional drowning rates in the nation between 2007–2009, with rates of 3.53, 2.90, and 2.09 per 100,000 population, respectively. The soaring rate for the 1–4 year old age group drives up Florida’s overall rate, so if we can impact the 1–4 year old rate, we can also make an impact on Florida’s overall rate. ~Floridashealth.com

Sun, surf and sand…sand, sun and surf…baby powder sand of Siesta Key Beach is 1 of my all time favorite beaches…had the privilege/experience of living close by (Gulf Gate)…Hubby and i would pop over in the evenings (when the sun wasn’t so strong) with the babies/toddlers…and i remember one of our first times at the beach (after relocating from Massachusetts to Sarasota)…word was spreading around the …

Are You a lover or a fighter? Both?!…I am–a Lover of Truth and a fighter for it!:)  (FYI: not talking physical combat.)

Who enjoys being scammed, fooled or tricked, lied to, exploited or taken advantage of?! Not You. Not me.

When it comes to power also known as choice…everyone should be well-informed. Being well-informed is crucial to wellness on many levels of compassionate living. Investigating and researching our belief system to ascertain if it is based on truth or lies is important to better decision-making. Better decision-making leads to wellness. Wellness leads to Life!:)

THANK YOU for Wielding your power–your choice in ways that heal and don’t hurt You or Other Beautiful-Breathing-Fragile-life!! When Your choice is based on truth, You find inner peace. Isn’t that what we all want regardless of circumstance…PEACE?!:)

Blind believing and blind following is blind living. Why?? walk around blindfolded and possibly injure yourself or others-when You can (with a little effort, with a little time, with a little help) choose to take the blindfold off or turn on a light and actually see where you are going.

History is filled with many habits, patterns and traditions inherited through the centuries…behaviors blindly followed and passed along from one generation to the next. Not all centuries-old habits are healthy. i entreat You to honestly examine your traditions, your patterns of living, your habits…are they truly healthy? Are they leading You to wellness and longevity? If NOT…remember, you have the power…You can choose to follow or stop….or start…

Are Your beliefs based on substance, evidence and Truth? Do you trace the origins of some rituals you may practice? Do certain rituals bring You wellness or detract from your overall health/well-being? Something to deeply consider before rituals and/or celebrations: Not all patterns should be followed. Do you blindly follow just any traditions? Or do you break tradition? Would you break tradition IF it meant wellness, peace and longevity of living? Of course you would!:) Personally, my choice is NOT to be a slave …

M is for ?…mmmMonday. M is for March. M is for Mars.

M is for Marshmallows!:)

Do you like marshmallows? Just “realizing” while writing this post:

I pronounce and spell marshmallow as marsh-mellow!

Though, others have remarked on my spelling skills, i feel, my accent messes up my spelling abilities…not going to worry about it–just going to “mellow” out. -lol:)

I have an odd/thick accent…especially when tired and/or upset. What i term “New England” accent because of growing up there. Specifically, a “Somerville”–east Somerville accent…i get teased in good fun all the time about it!:) My kids get in on it too…correcting me when i speak. That’s okay!…found a great way of getting kids–my kids to listen/obey/cooperate…threaten* (*using this term jokingly) a public display of affection like a kiss on the cheek and/or hug or start calling them by a cute nickname ala my accent: works every time!-lol:)

It’s pretty ironic, Somerville has come a long way from “slummerville”…it use to really bother/embarrass me as a kid when people would refer to my hometown that way! (waaaaay over it!) Looking back now, really thankful for my upbringing there…a lot of good people/things have come from Somerville, Massachusetts…not just famous ones.

I’m getting choked up writing this now…thinking about my family/friends/experiences…”Somerville” and what that word/place means to me. Somerville did indeed play a part in shaping/molding me–my impressionable formative years!

Questions for Consideration:

• What place has helped shape You into the personality You are today?!
• Does this place express Compassion Culture?!
• Where are You now?!
• A place of Compassion?!

Still living in Summer…ville here in sunny Florida. My accent pronounces “Somer” like the season Summ…drop the er and insert a..Summaville…er is always short a sound..R gets dropped too: car is ca…yard is yad. Then insert the r sound where it doesn’t belong like idear. Forty…for becomes fau-ty becomes d (sounds perfectly right to me): fau-d. Heart sounds like haat. Start sounds like staat.

Confusing?? There’s way more to this accent than that…No wonder i get blank stares when talking very fast!:) That’s probably why i feel more easily understood in written …

All work and no-play makes any partner, care-giver, friend, family…
dull!:( Wellness must include some play-time, too. Recreation in just the right amount is just what the doctor ordered.

Ahh, peace at the beach!:) Spontaneity is refreshing…sometimes. Do you enjoy nature? Do you spend enough time outdoors?! It will do you some good!

i’m an “awake accepter”…of the importance of daily exercise! Just like variety is good for a healthy, nutritious diet. Same with exercise…mixing it up keeps it fun, fresh and good for you, too. Of course, check with your doctor first before you start any new regimen. Just like i eat more than once a day…staying active, exercising in measured amounts throughout the day works well for me (usually). Having 4 hyper kids to keep up with and major housework helps. (For context of term “awake accepter” see my last post: Go to the…Source!  Hubby decided to do some kayaking Saturday…too cold and windy for me to swim…there’s always reading, chasing the kids, birds, taking photos and writings in the sand…

Think, Read Books-66…how many books make your favorites list?…i would start w/66.

Windy/Cool day… 

 Son on pier…Hubby under pier.

The birds were so beautiful and the beach too…too bad my photos uploaded too dark…gotta get Hubby to adjust them.

 …i tend to…work, work, work, work, work…and work some more. Do i escape through work?? or do i just try hard to live up to my responsibilities/word as care-giver, wife, mother, friend, fragile-life-member of global-family? Escapism…comes in many forms…it could be a religion.

Seriously, writing this post forces me to sit and relax my body while …

Hoping this artwork sample brings a smile to your day!:) Art therapy is a good, healthy stress-reliever and stress-manager. The kids had been asking to do some painting (with me) for a while. So, this mama decided to enjoy some “relaxing” (whatever that means:)–art time with my girls…(usually they do a lot of art stuff with Daddy!)

What fun!…What a mess!:)

A week later and i’m still finding “traces” of colorful, acrylic paint in odd places. You cannot get creative without a mess. I live with VERY creative people!:) It’s like i blinked and walked away for a split-second and…OH NO!-lol:)

The kids did GREAT cleaning up and mopping the tile for me, which i appreciated!! Let them paint inside and outside…grass looks great green and other colors, too.

Before kids, i was a neat freak…sorta, everything organized and in its place…sparkly clean!! I still “prefer” organization and cleanliness. Though, i’m “realistic” about the natural messes kids need to make in order to learn and grow. Learning and growing requires mess to a degree. Creativity requires a measure of mess and i’ve learned to adjust. Making adjustments is an essential part of life.

I’m still constantly cleaning and trying to keep organized and get the kids to do their fair share. (FYI: i don’t expect kids to do the share of an adult nor be able to organize or clean like an adult.) I just “try” to set an example of organization/cleanliness and hope they follow…fast!

At times, keeping things organized and very clean…is like trying to shovel in a blizzard! “Almost” impossible…i just work harder.

The snow constantly keeps coming at you. Working “smarter” means: You gotta wait till the snow stops then clear it away!:) I strive “not to let” my need for clean encroach on their need to create (within reason)! I don’t want to stifle their learning processes…taking things apart, making new things out of  junk or baking, cooking. My kids like creating with junk, etc. i don’t mind some junk/stuff…i “prefer” less stuff…minimalist at heart…sorta.

I’m always …