Juicy Dreaming Diva

What if everyone let you be Juicy, just like Starbuck's?

I live in out in the country a bit.  Meaning, for any REAL shopping I have to drive about 25 minutes to shop big.   Being a stay at home mom means that I get to Starbuck's approximately once every 3 weeks.  And it is with pure pleasure that I order my drink, EXACTLY the way I want it and trot out with my Juicy purchase.   I don't know about you but the JOY of Starbuck's is getting the order done the way I want it done...down to the little last drop of goodness.   Here's what I mean:

"Hi, welcome to Starbuck's!  What can I get you today?"  the girl at the counter asks.

(At that moment, I always think..."I wonder if they will roll their eyes when I start speaking and hand me a big sign to wear around my neck that reads..'She's one of THOSE people'".)

I forge on...and say, "Thank you!  I'll have a Grande Latte, made with Skim Milk and a shot of Sugar Free Vanilla and another shot of Sugar Free Caramel, no whipped creme please." 

And inevitably, they have already started to push the buttons and then have to correct the button pushing process because my order is a little extra long and not quite as normal as other people.  But I've never seen them actually roll their eyes.  Not even once.

I love that.  I really love that!  Someone like me can come in and order their drink of choice...EXACTLY the way I want it and it won't matter a bit.  I can be juicy...I can switch it up anytime I want and not a person in Starbuck's will even blink at me.   Oh they may have to repeat the strange concoction out loud but they won't tell me I am wrong.  They won't tell me I shouldn't be ordering like that or that I am crazy.  They simply take my order and let me feel the JOY of drinking my beautifully juicy cup o' jo...in perfect pleasurable silence!

And that makes me think...oh how I wish the world was like that everywhere.  What would it be like if we could live exactly the way we wanted to and no one would even blink an eyelash?  What if we didn't have judgement or the burden of pleasing others.  What if we could be a little crazy and not be seen as crazy but rather ...full of perfectly scrumptious fun!?

Oh I know, I'm dreaming.  And yes, the people at Starbuck's are paid to please me and my juicy coffee desires.   But it sure would be a fabulous place to live...yes?

(feeling thoughtfully juiced up)

(P.S. This my darlings, is the newest edition to the reduced-fat coffee cakes the Reduced‐Fat Cherry Lemon Coffee Cake with Oatmeal‐Pecan Streusel.  Can someone please tell me how 370 calories is helpful?  Cause I would really love to eat these over and over again but hmm....I think I should have paid a bit closer attention to the word "reduced" vs. "low-fat"  know what I mean?  And yes, its delicious...very moist, very rich and not very lemon-ish, but the cherry is definately sweet cherry with a little pucker of sour at the end of each bite. The streusel is crunchy and not over cooked...and there is a hint of coconut in the cake portion.  Mmmmmm!  Kim, if you're reading this... take note on the coconut possibility!)

Juicy iTunes Gift Card - Giveaway!

In celebration of all things Apple (yes yes..a shameless plug for yesterdays post), and with joy at being a part of the Bloggy Giveaway Carnival this week, I'm hosting a "Giving Away" with a squeeky new $15.00 iTunes Gift Card!  (absolutely FREE to the winner!)

Who says lurking around blogs doesn't pay?

So here's the scoop!

1) Leave a comment at the bottom of this blog post, that includes your email address, so we can write to you when you win! 

        "What should I say?" you ask.

        And believe me, I am always glad you ask!  Here's the answer.

"Tell me why you LOVE all things Apple or what your favor Apple  tech-toy is!"

2) The contest will end on Sunday evening Feb. 3rd at 8pm EST, any comments left after that will not be eligible for the drawing...(oh don't miss your chance...get that comment in babycakes)!  The winner will be announced on Monday, Feb. 4th first thing in the morning!

Best of luck to everyone.  And thank you in advance for your participation in making this giveaway - entirely Juicy!

I'm addicted and I blame Apple Computers!

 

 

I admit it... I am have a serious tech-fever!  And I blame it on Apple Computers!  Oh yes...indeed.  They have me dreaming in my sleep... of things like PhotoShop CS3 (on my wishlist...not owned yet) and glistening Leopard desktop stacks!   And lately, its overpowering me. 

Its been all about Apple. 

My sad story is like many others.    Having been with PC's for years now, I've stood by, like all faithful PC users and declared from far off...I will NEVER leave my PC!  Never!  And I would shrug off the annoyingly fantastic commercials about Apple computers and their quiet yet confident and definately superior experience.  All the while thinking, "Oh brother...who exactly do they think they are?" 

But then one day my hunky hubby bought me one of these:

Yes... my precious little pink Nano iPod.   Ohhhhhhh, how I fell.   I fell so deeply.  At first, I was confused by the pretty little gadget that I held in my palm.  How could I possibly get all my CD's onto that little itty-bitty thing.  Surely they were joking! But it was no joke babycakes!   It was quick..like a dart!  It was fabulous!  The sounds were crystal clear...the albums were all there...and oh my word...all this goodness...was MINE!?   

And then, I found iTunes .  Oh...oh...OH! Girlfriend, if you have not been on itunes...you are missing it.  Remember that song from the 80's?  You know...the one you were humming for a couple of days and finally it lead you to a thought that went something like this? 

"Geez...I loved that song!  Wonder what happened to that guy anyway.  Was he a one hit wonder?  Do I still have that album somewhere in the basement?"

Uh, hon...go to iTunes and your one hit wonder is there, waiting for you!  Not to mention millions of songs just beckoning you to get your groove on.  And you can sample them, before you buy them...OH I LOVE THAT PART! 

It was Itunes that gave me a valid reason  (cause we need one for this!) to go back and listen to big hair bands and groups like Air Supply that made my little 5th grade heart beat twice as fast (go ahead..start the singing...Im all out of love..what am I without you?....).

The truth is, from that moment on, I could have written love songs about my gadget of goodness! It goes everywhere that I go, car, house, gym, bubble baths, massage appointments....(yes...I really did ask the masseuse if I could use my own music on my iPod. And while Josh Groban crooned softly in my ear with his unyielding melancholy voice...I had the best darn massage this side of Texas!  Hmm, which reminds me, I believe I need another one of those).

If you think "what's the big deal about an iPod?"  I dare you!  I dare you to walk into any local Apple store...(Caution: Upon entering that crisp and shiny Apple Store, you should be aware that there is an incredibly strong possibility that you'll acquire the addiction I am referring to.  Enter at your own risk!)   Everything gleams in the store!  Its like the diamonds in a glistening jewlery story only...these things talk to you, walk with you, take photos and make them into astonishing works of art....ok, I'll stop.  You see?!  I get so excited!   And you don't even want me to work my way into the glories of the Bose Docking Station for the Ipod -  needless to say, its serious stuff here baby! 

I'm not alone in my Apple fever.  My juicy friend Kendra, was given a fabulous new Nano by her hubby for Christmas.  As the New Year opened, we made plans to work out at the gym together...but she still needed to upload her CD's to her sparkly new gadget.   When we finally met up, I figured I might find her with maybe a handful of songs uploaded, given that she had a mere couple of days to get to work on it.  Ohhh no...not Ms. Kendra.  This juicy chick loaded up a whopping 800 songs!   Do you see what I am saying here??  The addiction is terribly strong!

And you would think that it stopped there. 

Not so.

Once you have entered the Apple world, its a quickly moving wildfire that rushes through your brain and permanently fixates your thoughts on all things Apple.   And after a luscious few trips into the Apple stores...my husband found the utterly perfect Christmas toy for me.   The new iMac!

To say I was full of joy would be like saying...Tom Cruise merely grinned on Oprah's couch when talking about his girl Katie.   No...joy isn't the word.  I couldn't breathe for an hour.   And the grin has not yet been lifted of my face...over a month later.

I won't bore you with all the technological nuances.  Just simply put...it is thin, sleek...picture perfection...fast and holy moly, do you see that screen?  That screen is also the computer itself, there is no other box...it is wireless, the CD's slide right into the side and all USB ports are right in the back.  that's it.   Oh and did I say that its addicting?

What's next on my radar?   Just a little thing called the iPhone and their brand new Laptop... (Its so cute, I could pinch its little hardware cheeks!)

If you are wondering, no,  I am not seeking help for this addiction.  In fact, I will be indulging in my love of Apple, today, tomorrow and many years to come.   And if by chance, you see me in the gym...eyes closed, ears snuggly cuddled by my ear buds...and me moving on the treadmill at a speed you'd never expect out of me, just shake your head and move on... I'll be ok, its just the Apple fever taking over for a moment.   

(feeling my joy...joy...juicy joy!)

The joy of a Juicy friend!

Have you ever asked God for a surprise?

"What?" you ask..."are you crazy?  Ask God for a surprise?"

Oh yes my darlings, I am entirely serious!  I ask Him for surprises every now and again.  And if you are a believer in the Bible, you'd find that I am entitled to ask ANYTHING of Him. 

"Are you serious?"

Why yes I am!  It says, "Ask and it will be given to you...seek and you shall find, knock and the door shall be  opened to you."  Matthew 7:7-8  Now I am not saying that God is a Genie in a Bottle as my friend MB once helped me to see.  But I am saying that He hears it all and since I am his kid...well, I can ask!  (Btw, so can you!)

So yesterday, I did asked!  Boldly.  I told God it was so gloomy outside with the grey overcast sky and I was feeling rather blue.   Not in a particularly harsh way but I just had a dull sense that life was not so full of color day.  Know what I mean?

Then, last night, I went to a exercise class that a friend of mine has started this year.   Her name is Tina.  She's tiny, she's bubbly and a fierce force of a petite thing!   Tina is a work out queen and has amazing goals this year for her body.   I am not a work out queen but this year I have suddenly had a desire to become one.  Oh my, I still can't believe I can say that.  (Yea- ME!) 

Together, Tina and I started a set of goals.  We both have read the Body-for-Life book and we think we can manage to lose extra pounds and gain loads of muscle through using aspects of the program.  As with all goals, it takes discipline.  And frankly, with both of us sporting multiple kiddos, busy schedules, programs and each one having a husband that is so utterly adorable we just truly want to spend time with him...well, finding the time to work out is a challenge, to say the least.

When I arrived at the class last night, out of the blue and for no apparent reason, Tina handed me a pretty paper bag..with pale pastel tissue paper peeking out from the handled opening.   Just looking at it I felt special.  But when I opened it, this is what I found.

"What is it?" you inquire.  So glad you asked!  Its a Fitness Journal, put together creatively by my friend Tina!  Oh my.  Let me show you what she put inside of it.

Below is the first page! 

As I told Mr. G, based on the stickers she chose alone...it is clear that this girl, really "gets me".   Oh how I love to hold anything that declares that I am "Juicy"!

And then she did this!

She copied and pasted our daily fitness worksheets right into the pages for our daily six week schedule ahead!  If you look closely, you'll see that she even included all kinds of encouraging words...like "You can do it!" And its on every page for six whole weeks.

But THIS thing was also in the bag!

I am happy to report that it says "Sporty Girl" on the package...so there must not be any calories, right??  And for those concerned with the essentials of protiens...I am thrilled to announce that there are a total of 3 grams of protien in this little box of Hershey's Kisses!  Who knew I could get my protein so easily?!

Tina's gifts were most definately a juicy surprise from God through her!  And it is a tremendous priviledge to say I have such a good and kind and VERY JUICY friend like this.  (Thank you so much T!  You are amazing at helping me to get motivated to work it!)  I am glad to have a friend who firmly believes that we will reach our goals and lose the cottage cheese!

(feeling entirely grateful!)

A dollar!? Is that possible?

Normally, I wouldn't say a word.  But when you find something so shockingly great with goodies like this...you have to share it with your girlfriends! (Kinda like girl-code, don't ya think?)

I was working yesterday on a few projects on the internet and bumped into what nearly knocked me off the chair.   Make-up...in DROVES, for a mere $1.00 per item (kits and collections a tad more).   Yeah...Now we're talkin babycakes.  E.L.F. Cosmetics which stands for Eyes, Lips and Face...is the place!  I've noticed quite a buzz surrounding this company lately - they are everywhere!   (Including Carsen's Kressley's new show, "How to look good Naked"...which caused me get all misted up when I watched him help a girl love the skin she's in...maybe it was hormones or something...but come on, have you seen it?)

Ok back to the juicy topic at hand.

So I jumped onto their website and found myself joy-fully exploring the goodies.  Oh my word, they have some fabulous items!  Take for example, this set of Dramatic Eyelashes ...seriously vain but soo utterly juicy that I have to order them for my next date with my fabulous fun husband!  And then there were these little Candy Shop Lip Gloss tins, in 7 yummy flavors (I can not pass up that coconut one, Stephen is in LOVE with all things Pina Colada...can you just feel the Love he'll have for my sugared up lips?)  The packaging alone...just so adorable. Seriously, can I just eat the tin?  And then I found the kits.  A mere $5.00 for an entire "LOOK" for the eyes...in ONE package.   All the eye needs in one place...pre-designed and all the work done for me.  Oh yes...we DO love this!

Seriously, this website has it all.  Lotions, Bridal Sets, (isn't that a perfect gift to give a bride!)  Lip Liners, Blush, Mineral make-up....ahhhhhhhhhhhhh! For a girl who believes in having some of life's indulgences and living it up, this is a dream come true!  And for one dollar...I may go a little crazy.  But oh my word!  How utterly JUICY is that! 

Oh you KNOW you want to go take a peek.   So go!  Then come back and tell me what juiced you up!  I can't wait to hear about your fabulous finds.

(feeling oh so juicy!)

Juiced up?

Living out loud sometimes takes a little encouragement.  Now here's the thing, I know you have been reading...we bloggers have these little tools that tell us how much lurking goes on in our blog.  (No worries, lurking IS allowed in this place...so lurk on if it so pleases you.  But I challenge you to do more than read!  Come on and write! 

Are you living juicy?   Did you DO something fabulously fun?  Are you gonna? If you are all juiced up and ready to live out loud.  Tell me whatcha got!  Put your thoughts to keyboard and brag about your juicy life or the juicy life you are about to create!   Go ahead, just hit the comments button below and make your declaration! 

Inspire ME!  And I promise that I will show you what is inspiring me in the days to come.

Come on, make a comment below or in one of the written blogs!

To live that Juicy Life

Dear girlfriends (who are dying to live JUICY),

You are NOT getting any younger.  If you think that next year, you'll be sexier, prettier, richer or happier...think again.  Maybe you won't be here next year.

What are you waiting for?

At a large dinner party the other night, I was blessed to find myself talking to two fabulous women who shared two stories that caused me to pause...and simply re-examine my life.   

The first of these women, I will call Roxanne.  She is without a doubt, beautiful.  She walks into a room and promptly commands attention with her rather poised stance, impeccable style and pretty features.    Sadly, having been married for MANY years, to a man that all out rocked her world, she recently became a widow.   As she told me, her husband truly gave her a life that was crazy...loving and genuine.  They had lived such a beautifully JUICY Life together! 

You'd think that with her tremendous loss, she would be a wilted mess of a woman.  But not so with Roxanne.  Even with the tremendous loss, she sports a quiet confidence that is completely inspiring. 

Oh don't get me wrong, she misses her late husband something fierce.  And we talked about just how much, at great length.  I asked her at one point, what she missed the most about her husband.  She replied softly, "His presence."  There was a deep breath and then she continued.  "Sometimes I wrap something around me that I have sprayed with his cologne and sleep in it.  It makes me feel close to him still.   And I miss his voice and how he would talk all the time...chattering on and on." And then with gentle boldness she simply said. "Its just too quiet now."

And this struck me.  It sent an arrow deep into my heart immediately.  Oh how I would miss my husband if he were to go to the Lord before me.  I couldn't breathe.  I doubt I would even want to breathe again. 

But I found myself deep in thought as I felt her pain.  And it came in the form of questions.   Do I take my husbands presence for granted?  Do I see him daily for who he is?  Do I stay in the moment....enjoying the smell of his skin, the smile that he gives me when he looks into my soul, through the doorway of my eyes?  If he was ever to leave this earth early, would I KNOW that I had showered him with all the goodness that he deserves?  And did the sweeping romance I had always wanted to have with him...really happen?  Am I living the juiciest life? 

It all swirled around in my head and I felt a deep motivation to lean over and squeeze my husbands thigh with the palm of my hand.   When I did, he leaned into me and kissed my cheek.  Right there in the throngs of people surrounding us, for a moment I stopped and breathed him in.  I felt an unusually high level of gratitude for being in the moment...and I knew, it was a very juicy place in my soul...and in my life. 

As the evening progressed, I felt the joy of being among good friends with buckets of laughter spilling over - all around me.   It was during this bit of heavenly uphoria that I bumped into the second woman, whom I will call, Tracy.   She too is exquisite!  I would describe her in detail, but I want to protect her identity very carefully.   Needless to say, she is a beauty worth looking twice at on any occassion. 

Like Roxanne, Tracy has been married for many years to a man that she truly loves.  And when by chance, I found her in the ladies room, we bounced easily into a discussion about how much we loved our husbands.   Upon the arrival of yet another mutual girlfriend, the conversation rapidly turned toward a few things that we each had consciously done that evening, to make our husband want to grab the car keys and rush home for a private moment with their wife.
   
It was then that Tracy, shyly admitted that there was one crazy little thing, her husband had asked her to do for him while at the dinner party...that he thought would be such sexy fun.  (I know, your on pins and needles now).  This fun sexy thing was nothing even close to a mile high club kind of experience but it was luscious and wonderfully fun and well...she replied, "I can't do that!" with a tone of indignant shock, even while re-telling us of her husbands simply sexy request.   

But honey, living a juicy life means you take chances... you reach for the moment, IN THE MOMENT.   You don't consider that tomorrow is there waiting for you.  You do it.  YOU just reach forward and do that crazy little fun and sexy thing!   And so...with the quick encouragement of two very juicy friends, Tracy blushed beautifully and then decided to make her husbands fun and very sexy game become a reality. 

I do not know what happened after this darling couple left the dinner party, (in all honesty, I hope she jumped him in the parking lot! That's juicy!)  but I did notice that Tracy's husband was simply glowing as they left.  And I felt so glad to see this precious pair reach into their bag of joy and grab out a sampling...in the moment.

Listen, the point here is this...and I will say it again and again, You are NOT getting any younger!  If tomorrow happens, then you and I are indeed blessed.  But knowing it may not come. Ask yourself some of this...

Did you live as juicy as you'd like? 

Did you take the day and make it yours? 

Did you do something you have always wanted to do today? 

Did you tell that man of your dreams, that you are head over heels in love with him? 

Did you go and give in to having fabulous sex with your husband for the FUN of it? 

Did you kiss your little ones and hug them so tight they say...Oh mom, you're squeezing me too tightly?   

Did you fall on your knees and thank God for every single blessing you've received thus far?

If you can not say yes to these things...and you're reading this blog...then I ask you... 

        What are you waiting for?

                            Honestly, what will it take?

GO LIVE JUICY, NOW! 

        Do it. Do it! 

                Go and live...  Live OUT LOUD!

(feeling free...sexy...fun and definately juicy!)

Selfish-Desires - Will Inspire!

I was going to leave this blog, perhaps forever.  Until my friend Diana grabbed my attention just the other day and said in essence, "Write the blog."  I spent the following day just thinking about what she had said.  Repeating her words in my mind.  Rolling around in the thoughts.  Wondering if it made any difference to put words out there into cyberspace.  And then, I stopped resisting.  (Di, I have to practice what I preach.  Thank you.)

Timing is definately a factor for me when I am writing.  And amazingly sometime this afternoon I was fully ready to write the title of this blog.  "Selfish Desires-Will Inspire."   Let me explain that oddly funny thought. 

I have always heard people say that being Selfish is a horrible character trait to have in a human.  And in some tenses, that is true.  But my thoughts about being selfish have begun to spin into something that rings with amazing truth that as a mommy, a wife and at times a friend, there are many days in which, I totally forget about myself altogether! 

You probably know exactly what I mean.  And more than likely, you don't need to be a mother or a wife to understand it.  Its human nature to give to others above and beyond yourself.  Sometimes we give, give and give more.  Until we are so exhausted on the inside.  I have always felt as if that moment could be described as if you were a vehicle that would like to run but is completely out of fuel. 

And that my dear, is when it is time to be selfish. 

As the New Year worked its way into my system, I quickly began to make plans for my "selfish desires".  I've made arrangements to work out at the gym, leaving the baby in the daycare for an hour.  Oh the freedom!  I scheduled a hair appointment and lopped off a whole chunk of hair to give myself a mini-make-over. (It was drastic and utterly thrilling to feel it fall from my head!)  I purposely began filling up my calendar with plans to get together with friends and do activities that will induce a series of enjoyably succulent moments!

But until today, I didn't clearly have the words to describe it.  You see, I was talking on the telephone to my friend Joelle, who lives several states away and feeling rather joy-full as she spun her story about how she was planning a dinner this very evening with another girlfriend...she was bringing wine and noodles to the dinner and they were going to discuss the possibility of getting a weekly "Supper Group" together,  with other girlfriends...with the pre-requisite that these girls be truly FUN friends who wanted to stretch themselves and actually cook a meal, no take out or pizzas allowed!  It sounded like so much fun!   I wanted to join them immediately.  So I excitedly blurted out,

"I am so happy for you!  I hope your dinner tonight is fully succulent and very enjoyable!  And I cannot wait to hear about your "Supper Group"!"

She quickly shot back, "Oh its purely for my own selfish desires!  I need some fun girlfriends in my area!"

And I quipped without thinking, "Well, your selfish desires, will inspire!"

We both started to laugh out loud.  But it was such a crystal clear thought! And strangely it made sense.  Perfectly charming sense.  I realized that it is because of others, like my friend who lives states away from me, indulging in her "selfish desires"... that I fell under the fabulous rainfall of inspiration to do something myself!

For a moment just ponder the women who do fabulously fun things around you.  Like those who build great digital scrapbook pages, such as my friend Jenna, who then shares them with the world.  She inspires so many others to create their own glorious pages.  Or my friend Aisha, who after years of hard work, will be completing her Masters Degree in a matter of months! 

Or any one of my flirtatiously fun girlfriends who calls to tell me about how amazing her date was with their sexy fun-filled man.  (Even one contagious discussion about the fabulous make out session a girlfriend had with her husband, sends me giddy with joy into my own hubby's arms, full of anticipation that I too will enjoy a session of lip locking!) 

How about a girlfriend like my wild friend Tina, who decided to start a brand new exercise class that she has wanted to teach for a long time.  And just today, signed herself up to run a marathon in the spring, JUST BECAUSE SHE WANTS TO DO IT!

And who can watch "The Biggest Loser" without being fully inspired?   I could literally write on and on about this very thought.  I am INSPIRED because someone else took the time out to be selfish and do something fabulous for themselves. 

Yet, today it dawned on me.  While every day I am inspired by someone else's "selfish desire"...I too have selfish desires to share.  And that is enough reason to write again.  Hopefully, it will indeed, do its job and inspire.