The Power of Simple Things:Top Five Things that Fill Me with Awe

1. The beautiful blooms that open after a nice summer rain. After a rain, my flowers have a beauty that is very different than when I water them. Nature has a way of supplying life with something more significant.

2. Good people - no strings attached. As I go through life, I find that I am filled with so much joy from the good people around me. I often meet new people who are decent and kind and have a unique quality of good in them.

3. The rise and fall of the ocean. There is something magical that comes from the waves of tides. On Sanibel Island in Florida I walk on the beach with water rushing in and sand between my toes and a peace overtakes me. I could stay here in this moment forever!

4. Family - blood IS thicker than water. When I was young, I didn't realize the commitment my family had to me and I left them in my dust as I went out to explore the world. Even with imperfections, to know that they are always there is so profound.

5. Touch - an instinctive human need. There is something very therapeutic about physical touch. I have a new nephew and all I want to do when I'm around him is hold him in my arms. A loving touch is known to reduce heart rate, blood pressure, and stress hormones. As a result, the immune system works better and people stay healthier.

Do you need a good photographer?

There are many reasons a person may need a photographer. With today's technology, and the point and shoot digital cameras that will do just about anything you want and the iPhone, which I personally own, taking photos have become so easy and allow individuals to capture parts of their life that they want to remember forever.

But, if you need professional photography, that goes way beyond your capabilities, I have the perfect company. Meet Cory Piehowicz and Rainer Zeihm of Hello PZ. They have amazing talent and are great to work with. I recently had the opportunity to spend several days with them on a photo shoot and they are a delight to work with. I received the most amazing photos and will definitely work with them again in the future.

What Do Blue Skies and BabiesHave in Common?

Shawn Corry, Baby Planner, Consulting & Design and my new client! If you have ever had a baby, you know the stress of becoming a parent. It is the most wonderful time of your life and the most stressful at the same time. I remember when I had my son I didn't know what I was doing, I lived away from my family and I was so worried that I would do everything wrong. It would have been nice to have had a little help. Shawn has started a new company called Blue Skye Baby, which provides many of the resources related to planning for the arrival of baby and beyond so that this time of your life can be less stressful and more enjoyable!

Whether you need assistance with your baby registry, nursery design, baby shower, house cleaning, a personal chef, meal delivery, or a personal trainer to get you back in shape, Shawn has all the right resources. She is an amazing person, and is ready to help make this the most wonderful experience of your life.

My Client Goes To "Hollywood"

Laura Hamrick, of Westerville, Ohio invented OnTray™, a container that attaches to a shopping cart and can hold such things as snacks for your children, a calculator and your coupons. Laura's product will be provided to the Oscar nominees in their gift baskets. I feel so honored to have Laura as a client and to be her friend.

Read Press Release "ONTRAY™ GOES HOLLYWOOD".

You can purchase the OnTray's for $6.99 on her website www.ontray2go.com or if you like to see the product before purchasing you can visit Hey Diddle Diddle in Westerville, Ohio and Irwin's Hallmark in Gahanna, Ohio. Laura also has many other retailers throughout the United States and even Limoges, France.

Way to go Laura, I'm so proud of you!

Is It Really Just Business?

When I was working hard at advancing my career I constantly used the phrase, "it's business, not personal", and "I'm here to work, not make friends". It's sad I know, but at the time I really believed that. My expectations were so high for myself and I expected others to follow that same strict guideline. Now that I'm older and I have softened up a bit, I realize how personal business really is. When a person works 80 hours a week to produce great work for their client(s) and they put their heart and soul into it, that goes way beyond just being about business.

I find as I get older that I want to be friends with all my clients. I want it to be more personal. I really just want to give my clients the knowledge that I have learned throughout my work experience so they can help themselves and not be taken advantage of and hopefully meet their business goals.

I still have very high expectations of myself and I accept that others don't work the same way as I do. I learned that each person has a different work method and I now respect that. In the end, we all achieve the same goal, we just get there from a different direction.

So to all those people who I may have pushed to hard, or complained because I didn't think you were working fast enough, I apologize! If I knew you now, I would want to be your friend, and it would be way more than business!

I Just Want to Connect!

I've had some interesting conversations with my friends lately about the grocery store! I recently moved to a new area of town and people are just not friendly at the grocery store. I am disappointed that no one talks while they shop. I'm thinking that I have moved to a snobby community, then I talk to my friends and they are wondering why I want to talk to people at the grocery store. Is this something that people generally do not want to do? Is focusing on your grocery list that important that you can't connect with someone in the aisle? I guess each time I leave my house, I'm on a mission to find someone that I've never met, someone with an interesting story, someone that I can connect with. Isn't life about people, or has it become more about the groceries?

Now, I have to tell you the story about the man I met at the grocery. The only person in 3 months that has talked to me during my shopping. I was just getting over a cold and still coughing like crazy when I entered the soup aisle. There stood a tall, slender, older gentleman wearing a Navy ball cap and he looked at me and said "you better stop that smoking or it will kill you!" Ha! I've been waiting 3 months to talk to someone, make my connection at the grocery store, and this was the beginning of my first conversation. I was so excited that someone spoke to me, that I smiled and said, "I don't smoke and never have". Then I said, "well, wait, I did smoke one cigarette in 8th grade with a couple of girlfriends behind the church house that was located across from the middle school and I choked and coughed until I was sick and I never smoked again". He said, "did you get in trouble?". Now we were off and running. I finally made a connection. So, as the story goes, he was the nicest man and a rebel at that. He told me of his life in Wyoming, how he never follows the rules. He cracked me up when he said, "you know those forms that say don't sign below this line, well, I sign below the line just to spite". He made my day and I hope I made his. He looked to be in his 80's maybe, and I wondered if he lived alone. Maybe his grocery store escapade may be the one time that he gets out and connects with people. I'm so glad I met this man, I never asked him his name, I actually didn't even think to. I just felt like we were old friends catching up.

So whether you like to talk to people at the grocery or not, try and connect with someone today!