Polkadots & Moonbeams

New HeART & Soul Creativity Course is starting soon...

        

::: ART IS HEALING & HEALING IS AN ART :::

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Please click here 

for more information or

to sign up for our beloved art-journaling class that begins on

October 22, and runs until November 12th 

at The Spectrum Center. 

Hope to see you there! 

With color + joy,

**************
  

A Work In Progress....

Hey there, lovely. 

It's me. 

Pssst. Over here. 

Yes, that faint sound of the keys you hear clicking...

it's where I've been hiding. 

Oh, what is that you say? 

You missed me? 

Well, m'love...

I HAVE MISSED YOU TOO!

So so SO much.

But this little break that I have taken from nurturing this cyber-space,

has allowed me the time, energy, love, and attention to nurture some other

really, big and beautiful changes

that have been unfolding in my life.

I was able to craft + create a major piece of (healing) work that took nearly every

ounce of my creative energy to finish. 

The beauty of taking this 'break' -

is that it has helped me to feel more WHOLE. 

WHOLE HEARTED. 

**********

While I'm not totally 'done' with some of the lessons that I've been moving through, and I'm still busy-busy

writing the next chapter of my life + love, 

I am excited to dive back into this magical place of "Polka-dots & Moonbeams."

I've got the itch to write (more), dabble with the design, 

add some new jazz {& I don't mean music...}

 and ultimately,

begin to sprinkle some extra tidbits of guidance about health, beauty, wellness, style, and spirit in a

glamorous, but yet grounded way.

That means sharing  my "Rock-That-Goddess-Body-Reboot-Cleanse" that I just started/created...

posting inspiring quotes,

making ah-ma-zzzzing playlists of songs to help motivate you,

writing about tips + tricks on how to be a lipstick mystic,

&

giving you a peek behind the pink curtains into my private dressing room,

where we can curl up and chat about 

shoes, spirit, handbags, and henna...

and all the other things in between. 

In short,

I hold the hope for this space to be a place that I myself,

would like to visit often and read...

not just for the spiritual wisdom, 

but for the more practical parts and the earthly pearls, too. 

I am so happy that this domain is being called to evolve...

(just like me!)

Progress, though...

is always a process. 

I am working on another, more intimate and personal post to explain why I have felt the need to retreat,

unplug, and hide away from the world to rest, restore, and reflect. 

For now, 

I'm just grateful for the chance to pop-in and say "hi". 

I'll be back soon to share more, I promise. Pinky promise, I do. 

Until then, I hope you have a terrific start to Spring...

 with bundles of  Bluebonnets + Cherry Blossoms.

All my BIG love...

 

 

 

Sweet Debbie Ford

                                   (Debbie & I  @ Unity Church of Houston in 2009)

Oh Debbie...

May your soul have sweet slumber, and your spirit be forever at peace. 

You were SUCH a beautiful teacher to me, and to so many. 

Thank you for the light your life has shined upon me. 

I will forever remember you,  in your own words of being...

"Sexy, spiritual, and delicious!"

And so it is. 

Godspeed in your journey to the next....

xoxo, 

P.S. I hope my first book will make you proud!!! 

:: Miracle Monday ::

Miracle Monday | Teachings from A Course in Miracles

*************

Oh yes, those who are CERTAIN of the outcome can afford to wait...

+

wait without anxiety. 

In my own life and on this sweet and sacred night,

this is EXACTLY what I am doing now.

Cheers to you, on the eve of a beautiful New Year -

so full of prosperity and hope.

May you release all anxiety 

while you wait for whatever 2013 may bring.

Keep certain. 

Keep believing...

+

keep true. 

Blessings be to you,

as you celebrate with a heart full of patience,

trust, 

and a spirit full of peace. 

*************

See you with miracles and magic 

in the New Year ahead...

xoxo,

 

:: Miracle Monday ::

Miracle Monday | Teachings From A Course in Miracles

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After what has been an incredibly painful week for my own heart and family...

along with the news of the tragic shooting that occurred in Newtown, Connecticut it's hard not to wonder how the world could be so cruel?

As my family circled around on Saturday to say goodbye to someone very special who we have loved and lost, I squeezed the hand of a grieving mother and father,

who will forever mourn the loss of their 31-year old son.

In those sacred moments of sharing memories, wiping falling tears, celebrating his life, and remembering what an incredible soul he was { + will always be...}

 my heart ached for ALL of the grieving parents, lovers, siblings, children, and friends who are suffering from what feels like cruel and hugely unfair circumstance of loosing someone they deeply love. 

For them, 

I share this healing prayer....

 

************

For those who bear tonight the unbearable burden
of unimaginable grief,
who in their agony yell at the forces of fate...
For those who moan and those who faint, 
for those who rage and those who pray,
we moan and pray along with them.
For tonight, those were our children too.
Dear God, May a legion of angels come upon the parents
and bring to them an otherworldly touch,
an otherworldly comfort

and otherworldly sense that their children are well,
that they are safe with God,
and shall be with them always.
Give to those who grieve what no mortal force can give...
the touch of Your Hand upon their heart.
May all who are touched by this darkness
be Lit by Your grace.
Please wipe away all tears, dear God.
as only You can do.
Amen

~ Marianne Williamson

*****************

I will write more about about my experiences of the past several weeks as I myself, begin to process and heal from all of the heavy, sad, and painful situations that have unfolded in my family, in our hearts, and in our homes. 

Until then, I will stay tucked away in my creative cave, 

pouring my heart + soul into 

my first e-book & self-study on-line course, 

"Healing Your Broken Wings....

A soul guide to soothe your heart during tough times."

with my beautiful soul-sister & writing partner, 

Christine Gutierrez.

You can visit our website here:

www.healingyourbrokenwings.com

to learn more about this new, heartfelt, + healing project. 

It is available for purchase now, but will be officially released on

12-21-12

Know that my heart will be with you during the days ahead. 

I will see you, soon...

m'beautiful friends. 

In hope, healing, + grief, 

:: Miracle Monday ::

Miracle Monday | Teachings From A Course in Miracles:

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Here are a few random examples

of the many sweet miracles in life that are ever unfolding...

* The National Center for Atmospheric Research reports that the average cloud is the same weight as 100 elephants.

* The seeds of some trees are so tightly compacted within their protective covering that only the intense heat of a forest fire can free them, allowing them to sprout.

* Thirty-eight percent of North America is wilderness.

* Anthropologists say that in every culture in history, children have played the game hide and seek.

* With every dawn, when first light penetrates the sea, many seahorse colonies perform a dance to the sun.

* A seven-year-old Minnesota boy received patent number 6,368,227 for a new method of swinging on a swing.

* A chemist in Australia finally succeeded in mixing oil and water.

* Except among birds and land mammals, the females of most species are bigger than the males.

* The sky not only isn't falling -- it's rising. The top of the troposphere, the atmosphere's lowest layer, is slowly ascending.

* To make a pound of honey, bees have to gather nectar from about two million flowers. To produce a single pound of the spice saffron, humans have to handpick and process 80,000 flowers. In delivering the single survivor necessary to fertilize an ovum, a man releases 500 million sperm.

* Some Christians really do love their enemies, as Jesus recommended.

* Kind people are more likely than mean people to yawn when someone near them does.

* There are always so many fragments of spider legs floating in the air that you are constantly inhaling them wherever you go.

* "The average river requires a million years to move a grain of sand 100 miles," says science writer James Trefil.

+++++++++++++

The above phenomena are "mirabilia": events that inspire wonder, marvelous phenomena, small miracles, beguiling ephemera, inexplicable joys, changes that inspire quiet awe, eccentric enchantments, unplanned jubilations, sudden deliverance from boring evils.

Thank you beloved, Rob Brezsney for these lovely reminders!

xoxo,

"Miracles are all around you- if you choose to see them as they are..."

:: Miracle Monday ::

Miracle Monday | Teachings from A Course in Miracles

********************

Seeing this quote tonight,

reminded me of my favorite question ever:

"What are you grateful for?"

Many moons ago, while visiting San Francisco, I stumbled into a sweet little vegan (& raw food) cafe called, "Cafe Gratitude".

I was so inspired by the beautiful owners, their slogan, & the thought provoking question...

"What are you grateful for?" --

that I came home & immediately changed the greeting on my home answering machine to pose the same question to unsuspecting people who were calling my home residence. 

My voice-mail greeting goes a little something like this, 

"Hi-  Thanks for calling. You've reached the Picone's. We are sorry to have missed your call. Please leave a message after the beep, yadda, yadda, yadda...

+

then out of the blue; 

We'd also love to know what you are grateful for. So if you are guided, please leave us a message & include what you are grateful for today..."

I cannot even begin to tell you how many wonderful messages of gratitude that I've been blessed to listen to over the years - all because I made this simple request for people to share with us what they were grateful for.

Even complete and total strangers who might have only been calling randomly, have left the most heartfelt and amazing messages on my answering machine sharing inspiring stories of love, thankfulness, and faith. 

Imagine their surprise when they were simply calling to tell me that my dry-cleaning was ready for pickup, or to remind me of an upcoming dental appointment scheduled for  the following week, or some other down-to-earth business-type call...only to be greeted with this somewhat strange + unexpected personal request. 

Our voice mail recording (almost) ALWAYS stops people in their tracks. 

It's especially spectacular when the voice on the other end of the phone leaves a long + rambling message telling me what a horrible day they had been having, or how upset they had been, only to have had a complete shift in awareness + attitude once being asked to focus and name what they are grateful for. 

Even our family + friends who call often and on a regular basis, leave us these beautiful messages full of gratitude and grace.

I have sooooo many of these messages saved that truth be told, I have a hard time deleting them to make room for the new ones because they are all so real, raw, and incredibly sweet. 

When I saw the picture and  read the quote above, my mind was instantly flooded with instant replays of the variety of blessings that I have heard about on my answering machine over the past 4 years. 

We all have SO much to be grateful for...

+

many times, 

the "miracle" is

just simply being mindful enough

to remember + acknowledge

of all the beautiful blessings

that surround us in any given day.

So, 

 rather than celebrating + practicing gratitude just because it's "Thanksgiving"

I encourage you to find your own unique way of cultivating a conversation

centered around gratitude...

(ALL YEAR ROUND)

so that you too

can be flooded 

with unexpected reminders of the universe's abundant blessings!!

Dare to ask yourself the question,

+

most importantly to others....

"What are YOU grateful for?"

With miracles + magic, 

 

ps. A very special thank you to "Heather Gregory" for providing the picture above + all the lovely goodness she shares daily on Facebook. 

"I AM GRATEFUL!!"