A Caregiver Boost

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Hiya;

Happy Wednesday! We hope you are doing good, treating yourself well, and enjoying nature. It was cooler in Kansas yesterday so we spent some time outside. Also millions of birds are migrating and they are very vocal. The symphony is delightful. A hawk also brought us great delight by chilling in our backyard Monday. And the full moon made the stars shine bright Monday morning.



With the Heartland Caregiver’s Conference fast approaching,  we are busy plumping up our Hello Caregiving YouTube channel @HelloCaregiving. Over at our Etsy shop, we have been stocking our virtual shelves with more printables that help caregivers keep their loved ones engaged. And yesterday, Delaina released a poetry reading of “As a Caregiver, I Learn to Lie Better,” from the poetry collections Paper Birds on her YouTube channel. She even talks about the value of “compassionate deceptions.”

How are you doing? What has delighted you so far this week?

In love, light, and caregiving,
Delaina and Kristin

Saturday Markets

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Hiya;

We hope your day is going well and you can enjoy the sunshine or whatever your weather is like. We have pale blues skies and it is a warm October day.

We love Saturday’s they are built for small business, farmer’s markets and charity car washes. If we had a stall in a Farmer’s Market today, here are the three things we would be thrilled to share with you.

1. Our anthology Paper Birds is celebrating its 6 month book launch birthday. It is hard to believe that it’s been a half a year since our Paper Birds left the nest. Thank you to you all for your support and helping us make this dream a reality. You have made four poets from two continents very happy.

2. We have been using Norwex products in our home for a decade and now we are consultants. Our favorite Norwex products are: The Mop, Microfiber Kitchen clothes (less paper towels), window cloths, the deodorant, and our soft plush bathrobes. This month we will be testing the face clothes and the laundry soap. We will let your know. 

3. Our Etsy shop has a new spooktacular offering, a Halloween Countdown sheet (two varieties orange or pink). This countdown calendar includes a QR code to Spotify playlist we created full of Vintage Spooky Music from the 1920-40’s with a few exceptions. This playlist is great for the sandwich caregiver household with classics for all ages (‘cause it’s really not that spooky).

When you go to your local Farmer’s Market, which stalls do you stop at first?

Have a great week!

In love, light, and Market Day,
Kristin and Delaina

Ripples in Blue – A Soundology and haiku for Inner Peace

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Hiya;

This morning when the air was still cool the cotton ball clouds rolled across the sky. And I could not resist taking a handpan out and playing under the ripples in blue above me.

ripples in blue
I want to name each cloud Peace
–formations in light

Kristin and I hope you take some time today to rest in the nest of your heart.
In love, light, and sound,
Delaina and Kristin

Nourish Your Soul

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Hello;
Kristin and I hope you find delight today in simple and magnificent ways. That you celebrate your breath. That the warm touch of the sun on your cheek makes you feel all the more alive. That you dress your soul in gratitude for all of your emotions. That when you see the world today: you see your value, light, and love on the tips of butterfly wings.

You are what the world needs now. You, just as you are. Eager and ready to live today in each moment. You are powerful and enough to touch someone’s life in the perfect way. Everything is possible because you dare to be, create, and share. Today is a canvas for your creative-divine art. And we can’t wait to see what you manifest through the magic of you.

Personally this week we have been in caregiver mode, taking care of family while also preparing for two local caregiving events. We are taking care of ourselves: listening to music, meditating, playing with our own creations and finding inspiration in the offerings of others.

Here are some of our favorites:


Inner Light music
Laughter Yoga with Dr. Kataria
Indigo by Ellen Bass

Enjoy, and thank you for sharing your magic.

In love, light, and breath
Delaina and Kristin

Self-Care Saturday & Sunday Too

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Hello!

Make today a Self-Care Saturday. Turn your nurturing vibes inward and claim space for your health and well-being.

Inspiration. We love a good quote and will sometimes search the internet for motivating words when we need a little inspiration. One quote we love is written by Kamand Kojouri. “Forget your voice, sing! Forget your feet, dance! Forget your life, live! Forget yourself, and be!” The quote encourages us to let go of self-judgments and celebrate life. We turned this quote into a printable poster and made it available on our Etsy shop.

Music. Music is a great way to breath in calm and exhale stress. To help you settle into your soul and tune into chill Sunday Vibes which are also Self-Care Vibes. Here is a video Delaina created earlier this year.

Coloring. You might have noticed that we love the calming effects coloring offers. We have published sixteen coloring books that use the meditative magic of mandalas. And we have also created smaller printable coloring pages bundles available at Etsy and our Fourthwall shop.

 In love, light, and self-care,
Delaina and Kristin

Please let us know what you do to show yourself some care and what your favorite self-care tool is.

A Poetry Reading by Delaina J. Miller

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Checking In

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Hello Friends;

It seems like it’s been ages since our last connection but in reality it’s only been three days. But I guess with all the things happening in the world and in our lives it feels like a lot has happened in three days. Am I right?

Puppy for cuteness only. We would not gift a caregiver a puppy.

Anyway, we have signed up as sponsors for the Heartland Caregiver Convention hosted by Sandwiched KC. The event is November 1st. Here is the registration page if you are in the area and would like to attend. We plan to donate a gift basket to the event. What would you like to see in the gift basket? Hello Caregiving swag, large print books, coloring books, activity sheets, maybe a CD (does anyone, besides us, even listen to CD’s anymore?). What makes or breaks a great gift basket in your opinion?

Besides our little announcement and “gift basket poll” we really just wanted to check in on you, say hiya, and drop a little encouragement into your day.

 Delaina shared a post that someone created and it has us thinking about value. The post is a quote attributed to Kobi Simmons talks about the price of a bottle of water. The cost rises depending on where you are: a supermarket, the movies, an airplane; you get the idea. And goes on to say that if you don’t feel valued maybe you are in the wrong place.

 Delaina is playing the submission game again. AKA, writing poetry, editing poetry, submitting poetry, waiting to hear if the poetry was good enough for said journal to publish it. And that’s just it right? She is not really waiting to hear if the poem is “good enough.” She is waiting to hear if the poem is a good fit with the journal. That is the thing right? It’s not about quality as much as it is about placement. It’s about finding the right place for the poem.

The same is true no matter what any of us bring into the world. Our words, art, talents, and contributions are valuable. They are what the world needs now because we are here to create them. Be true to you, tune into your intention, and find your playground. We believe in you. We know there is value in your creations. And we know that you are what the world needs now, because just like water, you are valuable.

Okay, that is us for now. Meanwhile let us know what you think we should put in our gift basket and let us know if you have found your playground.

 In love, light, and gratitude,
 Delaina and Kristin

New Inspirations

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Hiya!

Okay friends, we’ve got a few new things coming your way. We’re pretty excited about them so here we go:

First, we’ve created a new mug design and you inspired it. You have been following us for a while so you know how proud we are of our mandala art. But you might not know that it was our gratitude for you that kept us striving to create our Mantra Mandalas. We know a lot of you were disappointed when the plug was pulled on our Mantra Mandala Mugs. Well we have finally found a partner that will help us put those mugs back in your hands. To celebrate we added a splash of color as part of the new design. (Delaina’s decadent crush project.) We started with ‘Love’, because that is what we feel for you. And what better time to bring more love into the world than right now. Am I right?

Love Mug

Second, Delaina has finally convinced herself to try haibun poetry. You might be wondering what that has to do with new things. Well maybe it doesn’t. But she found a, new to her, poet and some great articles about writing haibun to share with you. If that sounds like something you’re interested in…click the links below:

 

And we saved the best news for last…

Kristin is ready to let you in on her secret project. It’s something we’ve been wanting to do for a while but life kept getting in the way. As it does. It’s an activity book to help with engagement and entertain the older guy in your life. We hope to have it ready in time for the Holidays. Fingers crossed, please and thank you.

We hope you are doing well, staying focused on the love there is in the world, and sharing that dynamic light that you are with the world through your voice and creations.

Let us know what you think about our new mug design. And tell us what your decadent crush project is?

In love, light, and haibun,
Delaina and Kristin

Thank you for your support and for being in our lives.

Feed Your Soul

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Yesterday, Delaina bathed in the poetry of Mary Oliver. Her new ritual is to read one poem a day. Absorb it into her soul. Then write one of her own. The poem was “June” from Owls and Other Fantasies.

Then we loaded up a handpan to visit with our friends at Prairie Elder Care. It was an emotional afternoon as we haven’t really been there since our Bob passed. But it was also healing to see his friends and the people that cared for him and us during our journey. They are our PEC family and it was good to reconnect.

In the near future we will be sharing simple guides on in-home activities you can do with your loved one.

Have a great day friends. We love you.

In love, light, and gratitude,
Delaina and Kristin

Meanwhile, share with us your favorite daily ritual or favorite soul-filling activity.

Celebrate Slow & Steady

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Hiya;

Slow and steady wins the race to joy.

Congratulations! You made it to Thursday. Let’s celebrate that fact.

It’s important to celebrate our steps forward no matter how small they feel. Progress is progress. Delaina wrenched her thumb the other day and has been wearing a brace to help support her hand and also as a reminder to take it slow and steady. 

Speaking of slow and steady, our Hello Caregiving YouTube Channel is pumping up. Yes, we added two fitness guys that we feel really get the ‘aging gracefully’ thing. But don’t take our word for it, check them out for yourself. They are under the “Resources” heading where you will also find “The Pocket Psychologist;” who we love because she is full of stress relieving tips. We can all use that, right?!

Also… Speaking of stress relief:

We have added some Mantra Mandala Coloring Pages to Fourthwall. Check them out if you are feeling the world to be a little drab. And please, if you decide to give them a try, share pictures of your creativity with us for a bit of fun. 

Here’s your gentle reminder: fill your day with the little things that make a difference to you. One fit, stress free, colorful moment at a time.

In love, light, and joy

Delaina and Kristin

P.S. What’s something fun you’ve done for yourself lately. We’d love to hear.