justBeConnected

Love the Links!

There are so many blogs out there that are inspirational and there are others that are great to read if you're into shopping, jewellery and other creative things.

Here are some of my blogs that I frequent...

My New Shiny Shoes - Michelle always has great shopping ideas and I love her "Found this on Friday".

Gentle Journey Soul Coaching - Cheryl writes directly from the heart and talks about her own spiritual development.  I really enjoy her honesty and self-reflection.

Pink Heels - Jennifer is empowering women professionally and spiritually.  She also is spotlighting successful business women.

The Tall Poppy - Anne is encouraging women to 'live a little' and has a range of articles for real living.

Rainbow Dreams - Michelle is connecting women through her virtual circle.  There are activities for anyone who would like to know themselves more.

Mrs Nesbitt's Place - Denise has cultivated a meme called 'ABC Wednesday's' and one your own blog you post a photograph for the letter of the week, then you can visit others that are participating.  You'll find some amazing photographers within the group.

ZenaMoon - Carla has also cultivated a meme called 'Sacred Life Sunday' and it's really more of a softening ... into a moment, a treasured possession, a companion -- people, parts and places of your everyday life that you cherish. Whatever is sacred to you.

I hope you enjoy these sites.  Have a wonderful and blessed weekend.  Thank you for allowing me to host this week.

Blessings, Nicole

Journey into Blogging

Today I thought I would tell you how this Modern Goddess ended up in the blogging world and it wasn't due to business.

In August 2005 I moved from Australia to Hong Kong as my then fiance (now husband) had secured a position with an airline based in Hong Kong.  When I moved I wanted to keep family and friends up-to-date with our antics and also tell them about the cultural differences and challenges that I faced.

I started by sending lengthy emails, then I moved to creating newsletters, and then a friend introduced me to blogging.  Most of my family and friends are not computer savvy so I had to introduce the whole blogging thing to them, and to this day most read my blog but very rarely comment.  They tend to send me emails to say they read my blog. LOL!

My first attempt at blogging was with Blogger and about 6 months into blogging and writing about the amazing trips I was experiencing in Asia, I deleted it by accident.  Yep, that's right, I deleted it.  I had heard stories about how one day people's blogs were gone and it was the software glitch, but I actually deleted it myself.  I was horrified that I did it but I deleted the wrong one by accident.  I had meant to delete a test blog.  OPPS!

I begged and pleaded to see if anyone could retreive it but as a free blogging software, I didn't get a response.  So, I notched that up as 'a learning experience' and started a new blog.  This one I've successfully kept and have been writing since August 2006, 12 months into my new life in Hong Kong.

This was about the time that I went into business for myself conducting Goddess Playshops and Mother Blessings.  From there someone suggested I blog for business and I started my business blog... from there I fell in love with blogging.

I love reading the inspiration people offer through their blogs.  I love reading people's stories and I love inspiring others through my business blog.

I have a couple of blogs... some business and some personal.  For Journals for Empowerment, we have two blogs, one for our virtual book tours and one about journaling about journals.

For my own business, The Modern Goddess, I have Goddess News in Hong Kong which is related to my face-to-face workshops and coaching in Hong Kong.  A Modern Goddess Online, is related to my online coaching services.  Modern Goddess Magazine is an online magazine using blogging software and themes.

Another blog I have is called Blog Whammy and it is a program that supports women with online businesses and business blogs.

On a personal note, I have The Path of a Modern Goddess and this allows me to be creative and participate in blogging activities around the world.  Plus I have my family and friends blog which I tend not to share with the world.

So as you can see, I'm a busy blogging bee!

For all of my blogs except for my family and friends one, I use WordPress.  I love WordPress because you can host it yourself or you can have a hosted blog by them, and it's free.  Hosting my business ones myself has allowed me to link it to my website and therefore promote my products and services.  It also helps with the search engine ranking because it is being updated on a regular basis.

I enjoy blogging as it is a creative outlet for myself and I LOVE that I get to connect with so many people world-wide.  It is truly amazing!  I've actually met with some of my blogging buddies and am now being offered opportunities to conduct workshops in other parts of the world.  Blogging for me has opened up SO MANY opportunities; opportunities that I may not have been given if it wasn't for blogging.

As an example I was contacted last week by the company working on the Oprah Webcast for 'A New Earth'.  They want to get the community involved in leading their own discussions based on the book/webcast and they have asked me if I would be interested in leading a group.  What an opportunity!!!

I've actually set up a new blog purely for this opportunity and I'm so excited.

So as you can see... my journey into blogging started small and has grown, grown and grown.  Some days I'm overwhelmed by the task at hand but most day I just do what I can, when I can and enjoy the experience.

Happy Blogging to You!

Being a Modern Goddess

I love the idea of the category 'Creating Sparks' and decided to make this post my first post as Hostess of the Week.

Hi and welcome, I'm Nicole Graham, Business Goddess of Journals for Empowerment.  Journals for Empowerment is a small Australian business that consists of myself and Tara Spicer, our Creative Goddess.

Together we publish a range of unique writing journals that encourage women to experience a journey of self-discovery and empowerment.

Their uniqueness is not only in the beautiful imagery of each journal or the specially tailored sections for ‘self empowerment’ through guided ‘self-study’, but in the companion guided meditation CD that takes each journal’s owner on an magical journey to find their own personal power.

Tara and I are here this week because Melba is supporting us in our  Virtual Book Tour, to promote our recently released journal, Journal for the Modern Goddess.  Thank you Melba!  Also thank you to the hostess who offered her scheduled week to us.  We really appreciate both of you for your support!

So, on to the challenge of the week... because we are promoting our journal, Journal for the Modern Goddess, I would love, love, love to see you create a collage or a vision board that represents you as a 'Modern Goddess'.

Being a Modern Goddess means being committed to yourself, first and foremost, and this means being committed to your own spiritual and personal growth, living with intention and passion while striving to contribute to your immediate world, and the world at large in a positive, meaningful way.

How you interpret that is your own personal interpretation - there is no right or wrong way.

I believe that a Goddess lives in all of us, but she isn’t always easy to find.  Most women have been conditioned from an early age to put the needs of others ahead of her own needs.  Somewhere along the way we have lost our inner, sacred, wise woman, that I call the Goddess within.

Be creative as you like... use images of yourself or from magazines, paint, draw, use gemstones, ribbons, the colours of the rainbows... what ever takes your fancy.

As you complete your collage or vision board, please tell us about them, link through to your blog or you can send images to me at nicole(at)journalsforempowerment.com.  If you are happy to share and they are sent to me this week, I'll show them off throughout this week.

Enjoy being a Modern Goddess!

~ ~ ~ ~

The journal and companion meditation CD retails for $34.95 AUD including GST.

To view or purchase the journal, please visit our website, Journals for Empowerment.

I will be hosting for the rest of the week, however our Virtual Book Tour continues on to Hong Kong tomorrow where we offering Katherine's readers a 'Meet your Inner Goddess' Guided Meditation and Affirmation.

Visit www.spiritualresources.spaces.live.com to get your copy.

Connecting our Community

{Swap Partners were announced Here}

I am unplugging from all computer related activities for a week (February 24th ~ March 2nd)

I won't be reading or writing emails

I won't be reading or writing blog posts

I won't be reading or writing blog comments

I won't be updating any of my blogs (but justBeConnected will still be updated by guest hostess Nicole)

I won't be updating my Etsy or posting art or downloading pictures.

I won't be using the computer to pay bills, to look up the weather or to look up recipes or to watch You Tube

I will be

just Being

and connecting with myself, my family, and my art.

and I will be dreaming about being at Squam Arts Workshops this September. I am going. No matter what it takes. I hope you go too!

If you have anything you want to share with your fellow Creative Bloggers please leave a comment here or email me and I will spread the word in a future Sunday; Connecting our Community post.

You have a voice we want to hear at Create a Connection; Please Share Yourself!

and one more thing...

You don't have to have a blog to be part of our community; you can connect by leaving comments and email!

Have a wonderful week!

XO, Melba

{If you want to be added to our list of Creative Bloggers email me~ melbamcmullin@comcast.net.}

Spring Random Re-Gift Swap (partners announced)

Here is the list of your partners for the Spring Random Re-Gift Swap

I linked to each person's email address.

Please try to email your partner and get to know them asap.

I tried to accommodate all requests, I apologize if I have made any errors.

There were an uneven number of swappers so I have two partners.

Since this is a Spring swap please make sure your package gets to your partner before March 20th ~the first day of Spring.

On Sunday March 23rd we can share what we received in a show and tell post.

For ideas on what to send see these past posts here and here. But remember no buying anything~ send what you have or make something!

Melba ~ Nicole

Maree ~ Georgie

Suze ~ Shea

Shelley ~ Carol

Tammy ~ Donna

Florence ~ Becca

Emma ~ Lisa

Kathi ~ Robin

Julee ~ Deirdre

Cat ~ Michelle

Judy ~ Jenny

Gina ~ Dyan

Emily ~ Jodie

Wyanne ~ Katie

Vivian ~ Melba

I know sometimes when writing someone new you may be feeling a bit shy and get stuck on what to say. Here is a little sample email to help you get started. I underlined the parts you would fill in for yourself.

Hi I am Melba

I write the blog Be Alive Believe Be You

I have been blogging since 2005

I am married and the stay at home Mama to two young children

I love writing in my journal, creating scraps into collages, making symbols out of wire, drinking tea, and my favorite color is pink. My favorite product right now is rub ons.

You can also find out more about me at www.melbamcmullin.com

My address is...

Do you have a blog?

What are some of your hobbies?

What is your favorite form of creative expression?

What are some of your favorite products to work with?

What is your favorite color?

What is your address?

Hope this helps! Happy Connecting!

Linky Love from Maree :)

Mollie, who I adopted from a local animal shelter two months ago, wants to give you some doggy love while I tell you all about my linky love!

Ooohhh!  This is so fun.  It has been hard to narrow down my Linky Love, but here we go:

The Anti 9-5 Guide

Michelle Goodman is the writer of this blog and the author of the book with the same title.  As someone who hopes to one day leave the 9-5 world behind and write full time, Michelle’s book and blog are chock full of practical information and brims with inspiration.

Life Unfolds

This is a recent find for me.  I am also a fan of Jennifer’s other blog – Right Brain Business Plan - which is all about being creative in business.  You should see her idea of a business plan!  It is all collage and scrapbooking and nary a dull word in sight.  Her Life Unfolds blog follows her creative journey and is fun, meaningful and interesting.  Highly recommended!

Posie Gets Cozy

Alicia Paulson is the kind of crafty person I wish I was.  She churns out works of art and that are warm, quirky and stylish, and barely breaks a sweat doing it.  Her photographs are divine and I believe she has a book filled with craft projects coming out really soon.  Her blog is a delight. 

Jen Lemen

Jen is bursting with creativity and kindness.  I bought all my Christmas presents from Jen’s Etsy store this year and everyone loved them!  Jen is a gifted artist and a dedicated Mom with a terrific sense of humour!

Sunday Scribblings

Every Saturday the girls at Sunday Scribblings provide us with a prompt – it could be a word or two or a sentence.  We then write to the prompt – we could write a poem, or part of a story or a journal entry.  The point is that we WRITE.  We then post a link and everyone visits everyone else’s prompt and leaves feedback.  I just love it – it is one of my favourite parts of the weekend!

Hip Tranquil Chick

Kimberly Wilson is a yogini (aka yoga buff and yoga teacher) and has a wonderful podcast where she talks about all topics relevant to the modern girl.  Her website is filled with hidden treasures and reflects her eclectic interests.  Love it!

I could seriously go on for days, but these are my top links of the moment.  Go ahead, give them some linky luurrrvvveee. :)

Maree

xxx

How to Grow a Dream

They say that every blade of grass has its own angel that bends over it and whispers “grow, grow, grow”.  I have discovered that in order to grow your dream, you have to be that angel.  You have to gather your dream up in a fluffy blanket and wrap it so it feels warm and secure, just like a baby.  Then you hold your dream in your arms, close to your heart, rocking a little from side to side and you whisper, grow, grow, grow. 

Your dream will hear you.  Like an infant it will respond to the warmth and love in your voice and in your touch.  It will know that it is important to you and that you are there to help it grow into your vision.

Perhaps your dream is to decorate canvases with the bright colours of your soul, or perhaps you coax forth form and substance from clay or wood.  Perhaps your dream involves scrapbooking and you gently craft the memories of life.  Perhaps like me, your dream involves words and stories, the fabric of which can wrap around you and transport you to other times, places, realities.  I love words, and I love crafting them so they have meaning to myself and others.

We are all creators with a dream.  Once we have accepted our dream and hold it in our arms and whisper for it to grow, grow, grow, we then have to take action.  Dreams are like babies – if you wait for them to do all the work of looking after themselves and helping themselves to grow up, you will be waiting a long time! 

Make a list of something you can do every day to work towards your dream.  It can be as simple and small as looking at colour swatches for your next painting project, or reading a chapter of a business related book.  Perhaps you could take one photograph every day, or sign up for a class on scrapbooking.  You could start a blog, or start visiting the blogs of people whom you admire and leave comments to encourage them and the community they (and maybe you) are a part of.  All of these little tiny steps will help your baby dream to grow.  Ask for input from others, join a networking group or take 10 minutes out of your day to set up a workspace.

If you are further along in your progress towards your dream you might have a dream that resembles a screaming toddler!  It might be wonderful and fulfilling part of the time and an absolute hectic tear-your-hair-out mess at other times.  This is definitely the time to seek outside opinions and assistance.  Clarify what your dream is, what you need to do to achieve it and how you can best help it to grow in the direction of your vision. 

I hope all of you have dreams that you wrap in those fluffy blankets and nurture.  The world needs more dreams and more people like you – people who believe that dreams can come true and are on the way to nurturing their dreams into reality.

“A dreamer is one who can only find his way by moonlight, and his punishment is that he sees the dawn before the rest of the world.”
- Oscar Wilde

Happy Monday!

My name is Maree and I’m SO excited to be your hostess this week at Just Be Connected! 

Me and my dog Hopie in my conservatory where I create (and eat cupcakes!)

I’m a little bit different than some of the lovely hostesses who have preceded me – my main “craft” is words.  Yup, I’m a writer.  My journey to becoming a writer has been a long and bumpy one.  Being a writer – of fiction novels in particular – has been my dream ever since I can remember.  But as can happen with dreams sometimes, I was so scared to believe in it.  What if I tried to become a writer and actually started writing on a regular basis but it turned out I was no good?  My dream would crumble into dust, and I would be dreamless.  Or so I thought.

In reality, being frightened to pursue a dream because of failure is the surest way to make sure it never comes true.  When I realised that I started making tentative forays into writing.  I read The Artist’s Way (if you haven’t already read this book READ IT NOW! Love. It.) and bought writing books by Barbara DeMarco Barrett and Natalie Goldberg and about 5 or 6 others.  I even bought “Snoopy on Writing”!  I took up journaling and enrolled in a writing class and slowly, slowly, I began to become a writer.  It is still a bold statement for me to make – I AM A WRITER.  I sometimes feel like I need to say “But I’m not published yet!” or “I’m still learning!” but I really feel I need to put it out there just as it is, so I can learn to believe it, feel it and know it.

My creative journey also includes crafting, painting, journaling and photography.  For a long time I wasn’t sure that I was creative, but now I thrive on creativity.  I don’t mind that my paintings will never hand in the hallways of museums or that my craft projects sometimes come out a bit, well, lopsided.  The joy I derive in creating and creation outweighs the result.  And who am I to judge the result? 

The biggest lesson I have learned from my creativity journey so far is that I cannot do this wrong.  There is no way that I can make a mistake or not make the right decision.  Creativity is a flow and it doesn’t know right or wrong, just forward.  And so my journey continues.

My blog is here: thebeautifulwitch.blogspot.com and this is where I write, photograph and muse on my life and all of the stories that are bursting out of me and longing to be told to the world so they can take on wings and fly.  I would love it if you paid a visit and had a poke around.  My blog has  allowed me to share my writing and photography for the first time and as such my confidence has grown in leaps and bounds.  I can't believe how supportive and kind complete strangers have been.  I try to give as much (if not more!) than I receive so I visit other blogs often and really enjoy the little insights into people's lives.  It is amazing to feel so connected, so human, so not alone.

I have a second blog which I started in November last year called “A Crafty Christmas”: craftychristmas.wordpress.com.  I decided last year to try and bring some more meaning into my festive season by exploring Christmas arts and crafts.  You can see the results in the blog – I had so much fun and am considering a similar sort of thing for Easter crafts.  The blog was fantastic for keeping me motivated and accountable.  I don't think anyone was following along on my journey, but I felt I needed to post often to chart my progress and it's a fantastic charting of my Christmas crafting and my realisation that the Christmas spirit is still there within me.

Finally, I would love for you to think about your creative dream.  What is it?  How did you know that this is what you wanted to pour your energy, your heart and your soul into?  Were you ever afraid of your dream?  How much has creativity brought into your life?
 

Maree

xxxx

Connecting our Community

Hi~ I hope this Sunday morning finds you all well!

So last week I messed up a bit and we didn't have a hostess for a week.

But it worked out anyway since it gave an opportunity for my post last week about The Random Re-Gift Swap to remain the focus. &  we now have a great group of woman signed up! :) It is not to late! You can still sign up until Friday February 22nd. Next Sunday I will announce the swap partners.

I also got the Hostess Schedule back on track. We are all set until May. Please email me if you would like to Be a Hostess. We would LOVE for you to share your voice!

I decided to read the new Oprah book club selection A New Earth. I have never read along with one of her suggestions, but when I saw that she was giving an OnLine class I thought this would be the perfect opportunity for me to go deeper into a book.

Thinking back on how enriching and fun it was to blog The Artist Way, True Balance, and Finding Water with my fellow Creative Bloggers I decided to create a blog to encourage others to share this journey with me~

A New Earth

I just created the blog so I am still working on adding to it. Let me know if you will be reading along with me.

This weekend at justBeBrave we are sharing tips for Selling OnLine. We would Love to hear any tips you might have. justBeBrave features a different indie artist everyday Monday - Friday. If you would like to be featured Please see all the details here

If you have anything you want to share with your fellow Creative Bloggers please leave a comment here or email me and I will spread the word in a future Sunday; Connecting our Community post.

You have a voice we want to hear at Create a Connection; Please Share Yourself!

and one more thing...

You don't have to have a blog to be part of our community; you can connect by leaving comments and email!

Have a wonderful week!

XO, Melba

{If you want to be added to our list of Creative Bloggers email me~ melbamcmullin@comcast.net.}

Hi~ I hope this Sunday morning finds you all well!

So last week I messed up a bit and we didn't have a hostess for a week.

But it worked out anyway since it gave an opportunity for my post last week about The Random Re-Gift Swap to remain the focus. &  we now have a great group of woman signed up! :) It is not to late! You can still sign up until Friday February 22nd. Next Sunday I will announce the swap partners.

I also got the Hostess Schedule back on track. We are all set until May. Please email me if you would like to Be a Hostess. We would LOVE for you to share your voice!

I decided to read the new Oprah book club selection A New Earth. I have never read along with one of her suggestions, but when I saw that she was giving an OnLine class I thought this would be the perfect opportunity for me to go deeper into a book.

Thinking back on how enriching and fun it was to blog The Artist Way, True Balance, and Finding Water with my fellow Creative Bloggers I decided to create a blog to encourage others to share this journey with me~

A New Earth

I just created the blog so I am still working on adding to it. Let me know if you will be reading along with me.

This weekend at justBeBrave we are sharing tips for Selling OnLine. We would Love to hear any tips you might have. justBeBrave features a different indie artist everyday Monday - Friday. If you would like to be featured Please see all the details here

If you have anything you want to share with your fellow Creative Bloggers please leave a comment here or email me and I will spread the word in a future Sunday; Connecting our Community post.

You have a voice we want to hear at Create a Connection; Please Share Yourself!

and one more thing...

You don't have to have a blog to be part of our community; you can connect by leaving comments and email!

Have a wonderful week!

XO, Melba

{If you want to be added to our list of Creative Bloggers email me~ melbamcmullin@comcast.net.}

Spring Random Re-Gift Swap

Time for the Spring Random Re-Gift Swap!

Notice there is no "secret" in the title. Based on some awesome feedback (and some not so awesome feedback) this swap you will have a partner.

That's right ~ you will be sending to and receiving from the same person!

After sign ups close on February 22nd, I will post partners along with a link to their email address on Sunday February 24th.

Since this is a Spring swap please make sure your package gets to your partner before March 20th ~the first day of Spring.

On Sunday March 23rd we can share what we received in a show and tell post.

For ideas on what to send see these past posts here and here. But remember no buying anything~ send what you have or make something!

Better yet ask your Partner! Hopefully you and your partner will exchange several emails and really get to know each other!

Sign up in the comments. Please include your email so that your partner can get in touch with you.

A bit of a disclaimer. PPLLEEAASSEE don't sign up unless you will follow through and send your partner something. Swappers get very disappointed when they send their package out into the world and then don't receive anything back. I know that it is not about the material stuff, but it still feels pretty crummy to be the one who doesn't get a package in the mail and it also feels pretty crummy to send a package and not get a thank you. So like my daughter always says pretty please with a cherry on top ~ be a courteous swapper! Thank you. I know some people who host a swap chase down people who don't send items on time or fill in for lame swap partners, but this is a community blog so that won't be my role in this swap. I am happy to be your hostess, but I am also asking you to do your part.

Thank You ~ Thank You ~ Thank You!!!!

Happy Swapping!

XO, Melba