may meditation challenge

Overall, the April Attitude of Gratitude challenge went well. I definitely believe one of the secrets to happiness is living with a spirit of gratitude!

If you're up for another challenge, here's the challenge for the month of May:

For at least 5 minutes a day
MEDITATE.

It's only 5 minutes.

We can do anything for 5 minutes, right?

There are all types of meditations:

You can focus on just riding the waves of your breath.

You can count each breath to keep your mind focused and clear.

You can focus on a phrase or mantra:

Inhale "Let"

Exhale "Go"

You can do a loving kindness meditation where you focus on these four phrases as you start by thinking about yourself, then move on to someone you love, & then the challenging part...thinking about someone who you don't particularly like:

"May I (you) be free from fear."

"May I (you) be happy."

"May I (you) be healthy."

"May I (you) live with ease."

If you have trouble clearing your mind, move first! Do some sun salutations, take a walk, dance!

Your mind will most definitely resist this process--especially since most of us are very addicted to thinking. It will tell you you can't do it. It will tell you you don't have time. It will tell you there are other more important things you need to be doing. It will start projecting into the future or clinging to the past. When you find yourself thinking, just name it in:

"Thinking" and return to your breath.

If you think you can't do it, watch the documentary Dhamma Brothers. It will inspire you. It's only five minutes, but it will make a huge difference in the quality of your days and nights!

Set your alarm for five minutes and give it a try!

Peace, Love, Lipstick,

& Namaste'

Leslie

april favorites

Here is my list of favorites for the month of April:

LUSH Karma perfume
LOVE this smell & so does my Sweet Husband!

MAC Costa Chic Lipstick
It's a beautiful, bright coral color that is perfect for spring & summer!

MAC Club Eyeshadow
This photo does not do it justice. It is the coolest eyeshadow color EVER-seriously.

It's a beautiful green color that blends out to brown.

You can quickly put on this one color and it looks like you spent hours on your eyes!

Neti Pot
This is most definitely not the sexiest favorite on my list, but it is a must have.

I am not sure how I ever survived before using a Neti pot regularly.

Every time I use this I am once again amazed at how much easier it is to breathe.

*walks with pups*
*glasses of water with fresh lime and lemon*
*listening to Hay House Radio*
*Ujjayi breathing*
*Anjaneyasana*

What are some of your April favorites?
Peace, Love, Lipstick, & Namaste'
Leslie

on putting that baggage down

While I love a beautiful piece of luggage as much as the next Diva girl, there is some baggage I just don't wanna carry. No matter how wonderful and loving and gracious our parents were as we grew up, we all acquire baggage. It's just a part of life. This baggage isn't like a gorgeous Louis Vuitton filled with inspiring beauty; this baggage is down-right ugly and filled with crap. It feels oh. so. heavy. to carry on a daily basis. It slows us down. It keeps us stagnant. It casts a dark shadow on our lives. Yet, sometimes we do everything in our power to keep on carrying it. We fill it with anger. We fill it with fear. We make up excuses as to why we need to keep it around. We hold on tight to it, as if we would have to go naked without its contents. We believe it is a part of us, and that we wouldn't be "ourselves" without it.

Here is the simple, good news:
We can CHOOSE at any moment to put our baggage down.

It is just that simple. We can send our parents, past lovers, friends, etc. light and love and forgiveness, and then set the bag down and MOVE ON. And, anytime we feel the baggage trying to roll back into our lives, (and I can guarantee it will at some point or another) we can make a conscious choice to stop it and simply refuse to pick it back up. While others may have filled our baggage full, we are the ones who have control of whether or not we carry it.

That, my friends, is personal power & responsibility

& we ALL have it.

What do you need to set down today?

Peace, Love, Lipstick

& Namaste,

Leslie

partner yoga & comment love

Tonight my sweet husband and I did some partner yoga after I led him through a short private session. If you're interested, check out this short demo of partner yoga.

Also, I wanted to let you know how much it means to me to get comments from readers. Please feel free to post a comment when you stop by. I so appreciate comment love!

Wishing you a wonderful week!

Peace, Love, Lipstick, & Namaste'
Leslie

yoga workshop & lovely ladies of inspiration

I just got back into town from a two day intensive yoga assists workshop with Gina Caputo at Kansas Siddhi Yoga. It was a wonderful two days of learning. When I get back home from yoga teacher training workshops, my mind is always spinning with ideas and inspiration and a sense of being humbled, yet very empowered. I cannot wait to teach my next class!

If you ever have a chance to take a class or training with Gina, I highly recommend it. She is inspiring & tough as nails, but with a great sense of humor & a huge heart. She is now also added to my list of women who inspire me. Here's my current list of lovely lady inspiration:

Kris Carr
Gabrielle Bernstein
Seane Corn
Oprah
Madonna
Kimberly Wilson
Louise Hay
Cheryl Richardson

I think it's so important to recognize those who are your sources of inspiration, so you can begin to grow and learn and transform--particularly focusing in on the characteristics in that person you admire. What rational risks did she take to get where she is? What feeling does she evoke in you when you're in her presence or simply observing her? How can you give a similar feeling to others? How can you be fully yourself, yet integrate some of what you've learned fom her?

Who inspires you?

Peace, Love, Lipstick,
& Namaste'
Leslie

*photo from Kansas Siddhi Yoga website

shedding perfectionism

Perfectionism is not a prerequisite to anything besides pain.

I consider myself a recovering perfectionist. I know I am not alone with this constant battle, and many women, in particular, are right there with me. I come from a long line of perfectionistic women--some of whom still announce the title proudly. Here are some reasons perfectionism is a sure road to pain and disappointment and definitely worth the time and effort to let the title go:

Perfectionism can stop us from starting.

People who strive for perfection often will not attempt something because they feel like they can't do whatever it is perfectly. Many missed opportunities and experiences can go by in life for those who set perfection as their standard. Sadly, this means opportunities to grow and learn and transform and move in the direction of your dreams can be passed by.

Perfectionism can stop us from finishing.

Many times projects go unfinished because the perfectionist's perception is that she is not living up to her own unrealistic standards. The false notion is that not finishing something is better than finishing the project and it not being perfect.

There is NO such thing as perfection.

Striving for perfection will always be a let down because it simply does not exist. No matter what you do or how you do it, it will never be perfect, so you're setting yourself up to feel unworthy, not good enough, and constantly falling short. We all know (in our heads) that perfection doesn't exist, but we need that shift of knowing to move to our hearts, so we can let it go!

How do we make that shift to the heart knowing?

Radical Self-Love, Self-Compassion, & Self Acceptance

When you feel the perfectionistic voice sneaking into your head, make a conscious decision to shift your thinking. Imagine that you are talking to your best friend:

What would you say to her in the situation? How would you support and encourage her? How would you help her see her strengths and be more compassionate with herself?

Here's to shedding perfectionism, one self-loving thought at a time!

Peace, Love, Lipstick,

& Namaste'

Leslie

music & the soul

Jodi Picoult is probably my favorite contemporary fiction author. Her books always make me think about moral and ethical dilemmas. They are entertaining, and when I want a page-turner, she is always the author I reach for. I am currently reading her most recent book, Sing You Home. One of the characters is a music therapist. Here is a very interesting snippet from the book that as soon as I read, I wanted to share: "Some cognitive scientists believe human response to music provides evidence that we are more than just flesh and blood-that we also have souls. Their thinking is as follows: All reactions to external stimuli can be traced back to an evolutionary rationale. You pull your hand away from fire to avoid physical harm. You get butterflies before an important speech because the adrenaline running through your veins has caused a physiological fight-or-flight response. But there is no evolutionary context within which people's response to music makes sense--the tapping of a foot, the urge to sing along or get up and dance, there's just no survival benefit to these activities. For this reason, some believe that our response to music is proof that there's more to us than just biological and physiological mechanics--that the only way to be moved by the spirit, so to speak, is to have one in the first place." Peace, Love, Lipstick, & Namaste' Leslie

weekend in review

*All ready for The Little Black Dress charity event benefiting the local women's shelter.**At the event with my co-worker girlfriends.* *Our tulips finally bloomed. Yay spring!* *Veggies getting ready to be grilled.* *Spent the day with my good friend Tara. We talked for 8 hours straight--seriously. So wish she still lived in MO.*

*Late dinner with family at Chevy's.*

*Planted flowers in 4 pots and on top of our rain barrel. Only 2 more pots to go. Pictures to come.*

*Made chocolate chip pancakes for breakfast.*

*Grocery shopped--got lots of yummy fruits & veggies.*

*Read while sipping a grande, non-fat, no-whip, mocha in a for-here mug at Starbucks.*

It was truly divine. Hope yours was, too!

Peace, Love, Lipstick,

& Namaste'

Leslie

yoga at home sequence

I just finished an at-home yoga practice & it. was. divine. It was one of those practices where I turned the music on and just let my body lead. It always feels so good to silence the mind monster--even if just for a short time. I turned on my Le Spa Sonique cd, and just let go.

For those of you interested, here is the sequence I practiced today:

Start in Mountain Pose

3 1/2 Sun Salutations

Sun Salutation A--4Xs

Sun Salutation B--4Xs

Standing in Mountain

Inhale arms up

Exhale forward fold

Inhale extend half way up

Exhale forward fold

Inhale to plank Exhale lower slowly

Inhale Cobra Exhale Down Dog

(Now for the standing sequence--hold each pose 3 breaths)

From Down dog move into Warrior 1-hold

On the 4th exhale, move into Warrior 2-hold

On the 4th exhale, move into reverse Warrior-hold

On the 4th exhale, move into extended side angle-hold

On the 4th exhale, move into pyramid with hands on the floor on the outside of front leg, or on leg if you need to modify-hold

On the 4th Inhale, move into standing split-hold

On the 4th Exhale, move into crescent lunge (with back knee down or up--you choose)-hold

On the 4th Exhale, revolve the crescent lunge--hold

On the 4th Exhale, come back to center and move into pigeon pose-hold

On the 4th Exhale, move into Down Dog

(Repeat entire sequence on the other side)

Come into sitting for Wide Angle Seated Forward Bend-hold

Come onto back for Supine Spinal Twist-hold

Then, do other side Savasana for at least five minutes

Come up to sitting cross legged, hands at heart center.

Breathe as you focus on the following four phrases:

May you be free of fear.

May you be happy.

May you be healthy.

May you live with ease.

Namaste'

Leslie

weekend in review

*major grocery shopping excursion w/ Sweet Husband*

*yummy fajita dinner at friends' house*

*house cleaning*

*hosted good friends & their two little girls for the weekend*

*went on a picnic*

*shopping trip where I picked up this*

*reading this while sipping a mocha at Starbucks*

*BBQ at home*

*chocolate pancake breakfast*

*long walk while listening to this podcast*

*planted these*

*afternoon nap*

*bookstore browsing at Barnes & Noble*

*home-made ham & pineapple pizza*

Love weekends!

Peace, Love, Lipstick,

& Namaste'

Leslie

shifting

The end of my day at work today was hard. Being the receiver and then bearer of bad news doesn't sit well with my soul. I left feeling tired and drained. Then, I decided I was going to shift my stinkin' thinkin', and kick Negative Nelly to the curb--where she belongs!

Here are a few ideas to help with this shift

(you may need to utilize a few of these to get Ms. Nelly totally gone):

*take a walk*

*read inspiring blogs*

*do yoga*

*create a gratitude list*

*pet your pups*

*take three deep, full, present, relaxing breaths*

*write in your journal*

*meditate*

*kiss your spouse--a good, long, juicy one or at least get a good hug!*

*listen to fun, feel-good music (maybe even bust out in dance, if your body desires!)*

*read through a list of positive affirmations*

*watch something funny (nothing's as good for the soul as laughter)*

*walk bare-foot in the grass (maybe even do a cartwheel if you're feeling courageous!)*

Little actions and shifts in perspective, can make a BIG difference!

Peace, Love, Lipstick, &

Namaste'

Leslie

a few spring break photos

New hair with highlights Vision Board

Expect Miracles t-shirt

Lunch in KC

Peace, Love, Lipstick

& Namaste'

Leslie

spring break 2011 in review

*overnight trip to KC w/ Sweet husband & good friends*

*trip to St. Louis w/ Sweet husband and met up with good friends*

*hosted spring break soiree' w/ girlfriends*

*watched Kris Carr and Garbrielle Bernstein's Crazy Sexy Miracles lecture via ustream*

*dinner on patio at Flatbranch*

*long walk w/ the pups*

*Barnes & Noble browsing*

*Target shopping trip*

*designed and got "expect miracles" t-shirt made*

*Spring Cleaning*

*closet organizing*

*sushi & pad thai at Kampai w/ Sweet Husband*

*reading & mocha sipping at Starbucks*

*typed up loads of yogathoughts for upcoming yoga classes*

*made yummy pasta dinner*

*lunch at Bangkok Gardens & hung out downtown*

*made new vision board*

*got new do...lots of blonde highlights added to my hair*

Peace, Love, Lipstick

& Namaste'

Leslie