My Holiday Book Picks for 2011

NO FAIL READING OR GIFT GIVING!

I was never a reader until this year. I only read on plane trips. These books along with a life-long friend, changed my life this year. I hope some of these books touch you as they have me.. these will all be in my collection, always!

HAPPY HOLIDAYS and READING JOURNEYS

“Let us read, and let us dance;

these two amusements will never do any harm to the world.”

~Voltaire

1. The Hunger Games Trilogy by Suzanne Collins ~ Fiction

2. The Book of Awesome by Neil Pasricha ~ Happiness

3. Saving Cee Cee Honeycutt by Beth Hoffman ~ Fiction

4. The Untethered Soul by Michael A. Singer ~ Self Help

5. Heaven is for Real by Todd Burpo ~ Inspirational

6. Lady of Heaven by Kathryn LeVeque ~ Historical Romance

7. The Art of Racing in the Rain by Garth Stein ~ Pet Lovers

8. Sarah’s Key by Tatianna de Rosnay ~ Fiction

9. My Lucky Life.. A Memoir by Dick Van Dyke ~ Biography

10. Half Broke Horses by Jeanette Wells ~ Non-Fiction

(The last book was the GIFT that started my journey.. has made me an avid reader, a book blogger, reconnected a lost BFF & was the 1st of over 100 books I have read just this year.)

For More Great Picks, Check Out:

www.coastalconversations.wordpress.com ~ @coastconversa (twitter)

INSPIRATION...

What Inspires YOU? This is a month of Love & Inspiration for me.

I love beauty! I enjoy beautiful things, beautiful words & quotes.. I see beauty around me every day and I can find beauty in every one I meet.

February is a tough month.

Do you have a Valentine or Don't you? Do you buy roses or wait until another time of the year. Do you send special people in your life notes or wait for another time?

Back East the Winter is in full force & probably annoying by now.

In the West the weather doesn't exactly know what it wants to do..

Transition, to Spring. It's so close but not within reach yet.

A time of change. Darker makeup? Lighter makeup? Brighter or lighter lips?

Time to clean out the closet.. give away those clothes you haven't worn in a year.

And finally it is starting to be lighter later.

Transition, confusion and maybe frustration!

I've decided this month for me is about INSPIRATION..

Inspiration for myself and Inspiring others.

I sit all day and listen to so many stories.. some happy, some sad, some hopeful and some hopeless. How can I help? Listening all by itself is a good start. But what if every situation you encounter you look at it a different way? See how you can put a positive spin on it. Pick one thing a day that inspires you and allow yourself 10 minutes to enjoy it.

Go buy that dress you have had your eye on, try 3 lipsticks.. you may like them all! Buy some new soap, smile at a stranger or start writing that letter or blog you've thought of for awhile. Start a new business, reconnect with friends, pick-up a new hobby or try a new dance class.. When in doubt DO something for SOMEONE else! Whatever it is for you.. Do it!

In the process of inspiring yourself & others, you may actually stumble upon a treasure you never knew was there! For me, Love is always attached to Inspiration..

I stumbled on this quote at the end of the month, and it inspired me to write this entry:

"People will forget what you said and what you did, but people will NEVER forget how you made them feel." ~ Dr Maya Angelou

Have a Wonderful Month Filled with Your Own Inspiration & Love!

Here's a great example to help get you started:

http://coastalconversations.wordpress.com/a-yr-of-inspiration/

You can't Smile & Frown at the same time!

It's true! If you are frowning you can't SMILE. If you are SMILING you can't frown, at least not at the same time.

Smiling LIFTS everything up.. Frowning brings everything down and exaggerates WRINKLES!

So while on vacation visiting my parents this holiday season, my mom looks over at me and says, "Are you using EYE CREAM?"

I just stare at her wanting to say, MOM! I am a skin care professional..

She then says, "YOU better! I can see lines starting around your eyes and your skin is so pretty it would be a shame to let your eye area go."

Gotta love MOMS. I DO love my mom, she started me at 19 years old on skincare and I still think that really made a difference in my skin today. And even though I hate to admit it, she got me thinking.. Even though I am almost 39 years old, sometimes she is still right. LOL I might have noticed a few "LINES" starting around my eyes but I am working VERY hard on my SMILE LINES (at least that is what I tell myself!)

When I workout out at the YMCA and swim in the pool without makeup and abunch of women, I notice two things:

First, they all think I am in my twenties (remember, without makeup).

Second, I can GUESS by the casual expressions on people's faces, who has a happy life and who might be stressed or unhappy.

Casual people watching, you can learn a few things from people's skin and expressions.

People wear their attitudes on their face.

They wear their habits on their skin.. you CAN'T fake it. What is going on inside, shows on the outside.

As we start a New Year, start to notice. If you are watching TV or casually thinking about your day and you quickly caught a glimpse of yourself in the mirror, would you be SMILING or FROWNING?

When you lay down to sleep or as you awake in the morning, are you SMILING or FROWNING?

Call me crazy, but after purchasing OIL OF OLAY'S "Regenerist" Eye Serum and applying twice a day.. I remind

myself before bed, after waking and while singing along in my car.. I AM WORKING on my SMILE lines!

It's up to you!

Good skin not only takes time & work,

but because you can't SMILE & FROWN at the same time!