The Secret World of Arrietty

I was delighted to take my three children to a screening of “The Secret World of Arrietty” on this snowy Saturday morning.  The story is based on the novel “The Borrowers” by Mary Norton.

Arrietty (voice of Bridgit Mendler), a tiny, but tenacious 14-year-old, lives with her parents (voices of Will Arnett and Amy Poehler) in the recesses of a suburban garden home, unbeknownst to the homeowner and her housekeeper (voice of Carol Burnett). Like all little people, Arrietty (AIR-ee-ett-ee) remains hidden from view, except during occasional covert ventures beyond the floorboards to “borrow” scrap supplies like sugar cubes from her human hosts. But when 12-year-old Shawn (voice of David Henrie), a human boy who comes to stay in the home, discovers his mysterious housemate one evening, a secret friendship blossoms. If discovered, their relationship could drive Arrietty’s family from the home and straight into danger.
 
“The Secret World of Arrietty” is an introspective movie that, as my eight year old daughter says, doesn’t have a lot of words”.  The beauty of the movie comes through in Arrietty’s tiny, but courageous and self-confident character.  As Arrietty comes of age and is officially able to become a “borrower”, her world explodes with beautiful imagery, sound and wonderment as she explores the world of the Beans.

The film hits theaters Feb. 17, 2012.

Honey – A Natural Cough Suppressant?

My 10 year old son has had a bad cold for that last 6 days. I took him to the Dr’s office on the 3rd day because he was complaining of a sore throat, which for him usually means strep. The rapid strep test came back negative and we were both surprised. So the Dr asked him – my 10 year old mind you – if he wanted a prescription for his cough, which wasn’t even that bad yet. Again, he asked my son, not me! Anyway, my son got a prescription for Robitussin, which I didn’t fill…. until 2 days later when his cough was getting worse. He had about two different doses and we didn’t notice a difference at all, so we stopped using it. Tonight was an especially hard night, as he was coughing consistently all afternoon and evening. Despite my efforts with a hot shower and warm tea with honey (he wouldn’t touch it) his cough would not settle down. Most kids love honey, but not my finicky boy. I finally convinced him he needed to try honey. 

Honey has many benefits and the benefit I needed was to suppress my son’s cough. Dr. Weil states that in “a study published in the December 2007 Archives of Pediatrics and Adolescent Medicine, which showed that a teaspoon of honey given at bedtime seems to quell coughs among young children and help them sleep better. In this study, honey worked better than giving kids cough medicine containing the dextromethorphan or giving them nothing at all.” Although this study focused on children, adults can benefit from the use of honey to suppress a cough.

So before bed I gave my reluctant son a spoonful of honey and set up the humidifier as an additional measure to help ease his cough. I tucked him in and…so far so good! I haven’t heard a peep from his room. Let’s keep our fingers crossed.

Weeding My Garden – Who Knew?

I had been delaying the inevitable for days, weeks, maybe even a month or so - weeding my garden. Everyone one of them, the flower garden along the front, side and back of my house.  The vegetable garden and lavender garden.  Our memorial garden where our two beloved dogs and my brother’s cat are buried.  And the old burn pile turned into yet another flower garden.  Every one of them was being overtaken by weeds! 

Weeding to me is addictive.  Once I start I really can’t stop.  The benefits far outweigh the aches and pains of a back stooped over for too long, my broken and dirty fingernails, and the scrapes and scratches I get.   I started to think of weeding as a metaphor for weeding things out of my life that no longer serve a purpose.  Mostly what I was weeding out were thoughts. Negative thoughts that weigh me down and keep me from moving on.  Thoughts that deplete my energy and leave me angry and frustrated.  I plucked them out and threw them in the pile with the rest of the weeds.

I like seeing the clean fresh earth as the weeds are cleared away.  It gives a quick rush of fresh hope.  Like starting out with a clean slate and being able to dream again about the future.  But one thing I’ve learned from weeding is that if you don’t put something in place of the weeds, like compost or mulch, the weeds will soon take over again.  The same with my own thoughts.  I had to replace the old negative thoughts with positive ones to keep the negative ones from taking over again.  But it’s interesting how many positive thoughts, affirmations, and visualizations you need to overtake just one negative thought.  To retrain you’re stinkin’ thinkin’ with something more enriching, healthy and productive.

As far as the physical benefits of gardening, you’re using all the major muscles groups; legs, arms, shoulders, back, buttocks and abdomen.  You’re burning calories and gaining strength and muscle as you weed your garden.  Gardening 30 minutes a day can increase flexibility, strengthen joints and decrease your blood pressure and cholesterol.  You can burn about 156 calories in 30-45 minutes of weeding.   

After 3 days of weeding and 4 heaping wheelbarrows full of weeds, I can proudly say my mind and garden is weed free, and I’ve been stretched beyond what I’m used to.  Which one do you think will stay weed free the longest?  It’s a constant battle that I have to stay vigilante about if I want my garden and my mind to be clear and allow for new and fresh growth.



Need Blogging Support?

I joined Mom Spark Media several months ago and love it!  It is a great way bounce ideas off of and get fantastic support from other mommy bloggers.  They have some wonderful opportunities for reviews, giveaways, promotional posts, and paid campaigns as well as some helpful information on blogging courses and other handy tips. 

Well, Mom Spark Media just announced they are running a special promotion for new members only!  New members can sign of for a MSM membership and test it out for two weeks to see if it’s a good fit.  You get the same access as a regular MSM member in the form of classes and you can apply for opportunities too at no charge for the first two weeks with no obligation to join permanently.  After the two week period, you can decide if you want to continue your MSM membership (with a paid membership) or cancel.

If you are interested, you need to enter a referral code which is my blog name (The Positive Self) or my name (Jeanne Gumbleton) into the sign-up form.  Here is where you can join.

So go ahead and give it a try!

Are You Really too Sick?

My 10 year old complained of a stomach ache this morning and told me he wasn't going to school.  I of course ignored his please as this was probably the 118th time he tried this.  So I guess I shouldn't have been surprised when he called from school to tell me his stomach was still bothering him, and yes he did eat something and still didn't feel better.  He proceeded to tell me his teacher felt his forehead and he did feel warm.  So I jumped in my car to pick him up.  I ran into his teacher in the office and I had to chuckle because he apologized to me.  I not sure he was apologizing because my son was sick, or because I had to come pick him up and take him home.

Even as a WAHM it's not always easy to work when the children are home.  It is a blessing that I can drop everything and pick my children up when they are sick, but they are basically in my "office" when they are home.  I feel for mother's who work outside of the home and either can't leave, or have to jump through hoops to figure out how they can leave and still get their work done.

So after a half a package of saltine crackers, my son is feeling better...until tomorrow and the 119th time.

How Can A Busy Mom Stay Focused?

I haven’t posted in awhile and I apologize.  It seems that the closer it gets to spring, the busier we get around here.  With three children in various activities and all the tasks that I currently have going on with work and other projects, I find that I have a hard time focusing on what’s important and what I really need to get done.  Like right now it’s taxes!  We don’t prepare our own taxes, I just need to gather all the paperwork that our accountant needs.  Ok, so how easy is that?  Yet I still procrastinate!  I get frustrated with my children when they can’t seem to focus on a simple task and here I am doing the same thing. 

I wrote a post about organization awhile back and I think it’s time to revisit this and also other ways to stay focused.   

I started listing the top three things I need to do today.  #1 today is of course getting paperwork together for taxes (right after I finish this post of course).  Make sure you put in a task that is fun, interesting or educating.  This will motivate you to get to the end of your list faster. 

I also decided to keep most household chores for the late afternoon and evening when the kids are home.  This way I can interact with them better than if I was sitting at the computer working.  Plus it’s easier to get them to do their chores if I’m working alongside with them.

One of the last things I like to do at the end of the day is to read.  This is my way of relaxing and I look forward to it every day.  So most evenings by 10:00 pm you can find me with a book in my hands winding down for the night!

What helps to keep you focused and not procrastinate?

Celebrating Love Giveaway

Celebrating Love: Share, Remember, Cherish follows Celebrating Mom in a new gift series from 1-800-flowers.com and Celebrations.com founder Jim McCann.

Reinforcing the 1-800-flowers.com and Celebrations.com philosophy of helping customers express, connect, and celebrate, McCann balances the practical with the inspirational, and the poignant with the profound, inside this collection of authentic love stories.

Full-color drawings illustrate the book throughout and are interspersed with meaningful quotes and little-known facts about love and affection.  Divided into four sections based on the distinct seasons of love, Celebrating Love features 150 entries.

Jim McCann founded 1-800-flowers.com in 1976 and over the last 35 years he has built it into the world's leading florist and gift company.  What a great gift to show that special someone how much you care.

1-800-flowers.com is also holding a "Love Note" contest on Facebook:  All you have to do is go to the website and "like" your favorite bouquet with the Facebook button.  It's really easy and it enters you into an additional contest to win a free bouquet.

One reader of The Positive Self will win a copy of Celebrating Love.  Ways to enter:

1. Like my Facebook page and post a message that you would like to win the Celebrating Love Giveaway and share the post with your friends.
2. Tweet about this contest up to 3 times a day with at least an hour in between each tweet.  Leave the link.  Tweet - "Celebrating Love Giveaway http://bit.ly/f1EwCl ( via @ThePositiveSelf)"
3. Leave a comment below that you would like to win the Celebrating Love Giveaway.  Make sure your e-mail is included.

Contest ends 2/20/11 and is open to US residents only.  This giveaway was made possible by Mom Spark Media.  Thoughts and opinions are my own.  Product was provided for review.