Godspeed on your 2011 Journey

I'm thinking I'm not alone in that 2010 offered ample opportunities for me to

GROW

TRUST MORE

APPRECIATE MORE

BE A BETTER MOTHER/DAUGHTER/WIFE/FRIEND/ENTREPRENEUR

I want you to remember that there are MANY people and resources available to help you get WHEREVER you plan to go in 2011.

If those people aren't readily identifiable in your current home/friend circle - there's always the blogosphere!

What are you up to in 2011? 

Did you set primary goals?  

If so, let me know if I can support them in any way, because it's all about co-illumination, ya dig?

Sending you LOVE AND LIGHT as you journey onward...

Akilah S. Richards

Life Design Practitioner/Execumama

Tips For Teaching Children About Moderation

If I'm honest, I'll have to say that in some areas, moderation is off my radar and indulgence reigns supreme.

The brownie, for example, is my best friend/arch rival, and I'm still learning about moderation in that regard, with the help of The Food Relationship Coach (@naturibeauty).

Okay so, how exactly do I teach my daughters about the idea of moderation, particularly as it relates to food, when I know good and well that I have a 4-brownie minimum habit to curtail?

With the help of other people, of course! It takes a village to raise a child (and to pry excess brownies from this Execumama's hand), and food habits are no exception!

The folks over at Lessons for Children sent me a complimentary review copy of In Moderation to get my perspective, and asked me to share if I so chose. Well, I totally CHOOSE!

"With childhood obesity rapidly rising, many think that maintaining a healthy lifestyle means resisting all treats. As you very well know, research has shown that does not work; it is more important to teach children moderation than avoidance. ‘In Moderation’ uses lively, colorful characters, sure to get every child’s attention, and as a mother myself, I believe it conveys the concept in simple way for children to understand."

 The uncomplicated approach to healthy food intake was a hit with our daughters, ages 6 and 4.  Reading the book was a great segue into a hearty discussion about why some foods serve us better when we have them sparingly, and why some foods allow us more opportunities to indulge.

Also, since it was such an easy read, our 4 year old loved the fact that she could read the book to each of us (whether we wanted to hear it again or not - LOL!) whenever we looked in the direction of our kitchen.


Curious about the book? Considering purchasing a copy for your household?  Click the image below for purchasing details.

Forever Gifts For YOU

Wow, so Christmas is tomorrow, huh!
It's sharing and giving time, and I can dig that.  It's pretty awesome to have time with family and friends to laugh, share, eat, and offer displays of appreciation in the form of gift-giving. #Coolness

Amidst all of it though, I encourage you to take a few moments for yourself.  A few moments, preferably before the festivities begin, not only to give thanks for your life, but also to feed the energy of the things you expect to achieve moving forward.  I suggest a good mix of tangible and intangible, real and ethereal, physical and non-physical, to keep it all the way authentic.

It's vision boarding, but on the most effective canvas, ever—your mind!

I've been doing that more and more since my transition began, and since it's still in motion, I yield to the information that's being presented to me, and I shamelessly give attention to my "wantings", because I know they're rooted not in a place of lack or despair, but a place that says: WHY NOT ME!

So um, I'm not going to chant now or anything, so put down your prayer beads! What I AM going to do is salivate over shoes and fly stuff -- Bluefly stuff, to be exact - LOL!  Shoes make me happy, and since discovering Bluefly.com (Dude, how come nobody told me?!), I've been having shopversation-based visioning in a powerful way.

I'm not into fancy name brands, and wouldn't know a real Insert-Fancy-Name designer different from a fake one, but um...Bluefly.com's Prada section features some HOT boots that make me want to SING!

I don't own a Fendi anything, but that does not block me from appreciating some of the purses that grace those pages! The prices? I don't care, because if I'm visioning and focusing on MY WANTS, then I don't pollute my process with numbers.  If I should choose to have one, then it will happen, period.

Gucci is one brand name that I know a bit about, and for years, they've been awesome at creating quality items, and I know this because my fashion maven friends swear by it! One look at these black pumps, and I totally see why!

So, what's on your "Just For Me in 2011" list? Heart-stopping shoes? More yoga classes? Learning how to sew? More time for yourself?  Whatever it is, start dreaming it up now, and watch it manifest itself, just because you asked for it!

HAPPY HOLIDAYS!!

This post is brought to you by BlueFly.com

Dad Blog Bashes Boring Product Reviews

Uh, okay dudes...I'm totally glued to my Macbook to find out just how to make a Diaper Genie review riveting and engaging. 

Though I'm happy to know that DadDoes.com is focused on honest, ethical, and interesting coverage of relevant products, the tone somehow leaves my feathers a little ruffled. Here's why:

1.  In my opinion, the tone of the coverage implies that mom bloggers just chomp at the bit for any chance to get free stuff and/or monetary compensation to do reviews.

2.  It seems to pit moms against dads -- like we need that crap!

3.  This Just In: If the product is "boring", then the review isn't likely to be Burn Notice type, fast paced, super-engaging stuff. Some products just are what they are, and yes, there is certainly an art to delivery, but I don't need bells and whistles if I'm actually interested in a product.  If I'm not interested, I WILL BE BORED, period.

Overall, with their plan to travel to Consumer Electronics Shows to find new products to review, it should be fun to watch, and I'm looking forward to it.  But dude, c'mon, it's totally okay to promote what you're doing without the "subtle" implications about how boooooring everyone else (read: MOMS) have been with their reviews. 

I dunno...maybe I'm being overly sensitive. Check it out and tell me what you think.  I promise, you're allowed to disagree with me, and I WILL post your comments - LOL!

At Dad Does we are fed up with boring and biased product reviews and we are not going to take it anymore! We believe that products reviews should be real, relevant and even riveting. Here is our 4 point pledge to you…HERE'S THE REST

Well, what's the verdict?

When Women Simply Want To STOP!

"My first instinct was to shut down Execumama.com, call all the people with whom I'd scheduled meetings, Skype chats, or shoots related to anything in the realm of Life Design, and sit my ass down somewhere dark to play dead. 

Actually, I did a version of that for three full days. I stayed upstairs as much as my life allowed, deciding against re-connecting my cell phone service, and embracing the steel cold reality: Akilah S. Richards, one of many Execumamas/Life Design Practitioner/Wife/Mother/Harvester was a BIG BROWN TOWER OF FAILURE.  I was a poser, all dressed up in fabulosity, but hollow on the inside, and not worth the labor pains that petite 20-year-old girl endured to bring me here. SHIIIIITTTT. That hurt was nasty, and it was all my own doing."

----------------------

Hey, Mamas! I've started a series of FREE e-books that I think you'll find interesting.  It's about Life Design, and as moms/wives/women-in-progress, we've all transitioned at various times in our lives.  We evolve into the women we need to be, and oftentimes, that evolution comes on the heels of a shitload of pain, and a few heaping doses of self-doubt.

I know from speaking to many of you, either through comments or email, that you have been through times where you just want to crawl off to figure stuff out, but you couldn't because you had obligations.  Well, I had no choice but to face my life head on, and it hurt like a mofo, but the results...they made it all worth it.

I'm still in-progress, but I've transitioned in a major way. I want to share the deets with you because I'm sure you'll be able to relate.

Read this post about transition for starters, then if you want to experience the results of my having access to that part of my being, sign up to receive the short fiction e-books.

Have a wonderful week, Execumamas!

Tangled on Wii: A Video Game Review

We're total Wii-heads in our house, and there's no way around it! I used the clever disguise of Wii Fit to validate the purchase, and though I do love my yoga and scenic jogging options, I get serious about my Summer Sports (Paradise Island), to the point of soreness, and ... child-shoving *shameful*.

When I received the email to review the Tangled on Wii game, I couldn't hit "Reply" fast enough. Like I'm gonna say no to a Wii game!!

W allowed our girls to play the game a few times, and let's just say, they approve! We've been shamelessly using "Tangled Time" as incentives to do extra chores! Hey, we use whatever works, folks!



Overall, Marley (age 6) gave it 4 out of 5 stars, and Sage (age 4) simply proclaimed Tangled on Wii officially FUN!

Click the link to get a dose of the the Tangled on Wii experience! But turn the volume down if you don't want the kiddos racing into whatever room you're in, thinking you're setting up shop for them!

(Sort of) Wordless Wednesday

Don't you just love finding old photos of your kiddos?!

This was only two years ago, at my mom's holiday office party, and the girls have grown so much! I found this while combing through one of my external drives last night, and I had to share.

HAPPY HOLIDAYS!

Hannah and the Talking Tree: A Review

Confession: I'm a total wanna-be environmentalist. A friend to tree-huggers everywhere! Oh, but I don't like grass, or camping, so that kinda nips the whole let-your-green-flag-fly thing right in the bud, doesn't it? #LeSigh

No worries, I found a solution. Since I'm not quite "there" yet, I simply grab a seat at the table with the cool kids who totally get it.  Yep, I found an entire world of environmentally-conscious folks who make it their job to help save our plant. Greening Youth Foundation (GYF) is an Atlanta-based organization that uses comprehensive environmental education programs in schools and their greater communities to nurture environmental stewardship and provide environmental career opportunities to underserved youth.  Their projects don't just benefit Atlanta either, check out their G.R.E.E.N. project!

As a closet environmentalist, I jump at opportunities to do my part by pointing anyone looking my way in the direction of great resources on the topic.  I was given a promotional copy of a children's book, Hannah and the Talking Tree, and it was an absolute pleasure to read and share with my girls.  My four year old in particular, loved the story so much, she and I decided we had to share with you!

Hannah and the Talking Tree

By Elke Weiss

List $16.95

Trade hardcover 36 pages color 11.75 inches by 11.75 inched

Printed on recycled paper, approved by the Forest Stewardship Council.

Free Focus Publishing; 1ST edition (2010)

ISBN-10: 0982674716  ISBN-13: 978-0982674710

Available at bookstores online. For more information visit www.freefocuspublishing.com