Source: google.com via Alison on Pinterest

The Final Analysis

I have always admired Mother Teresa and her wisdom transcends time.

When I feel surrounded by people who seem uncaring, selfish and downright mean, I try and remember these words of wisdom.

Try your hardest to not let those people's negative energies pull you down into their dark pit.

Do your best to see the bright lights of true friends among them. It may take some looking, but they're there, like a small light in the dark. Surround yourself with these good people and like the shadows that run when the light is turned on, the others will fade away.

Enjoy Mother Teresa's words of wisdom:

The Final Analysis

People are often unreasonable, illogical and self-centered;

Forgive them anyway.

If you are kind, people may accuse of selfish, ulterior motives;

Be kind anyway.

If you are successful, you will win some false friends and some true enemies;

Succeed anyway.

If you are honest and frank, people may cheat you;

Be honest and frank anyway.

What you spend years building, someone may destroy overnight;

Build anyway.

If you find serenity and happiness, they may be jealous;

Be happy anyway.

The good you do today, people will often forget tomorrow;

Do good anyway.

Give the world the best you have, and it may never be enough;

Give the world the best you’ve got anyway.

You see, in the final analysis, it is all between you and God.

It was never between you and them……………….anyway.

~ Mother Teresa of Calcutta

Letting Them Help

When you have a lot to do, it can be hard to find the patience to let your little ones help. Children love to be in the middle of everything, don’t they? And boy do they ever get in the way sometimes!

They love to “help” even when it means more work for us. But I think we need to let them help us for them to feel valued. They need to know they are needed and can be of some use. They live to please us and to be a part of something.

I know there are many times I have been short with my son when he’s tried to help me and said things like, “Not this time. I just need to get this done!” What I didn’t realize at the time is that he needed to feel useful. He felt the need to help me and to feel like he’s a contributing. He needed to feel useful. All I ended up doing was just made him feel bad, like he was in the way.

Ugh! I did it again! I hate those parenting failure moments!

Often times when I don’t let him help me, he gets frustrated and even angry. He also gets his feelings hurt. When I deny him this opportunity to feel helpful and to learn skills by working with me, I am making him feel like he isn’t capable of helping me or that his help isn’t valued. And I never want to make him feel that way.

Looking back, I see that even if I didn’t have the time to let him help me with what I was doing, I should have looked around for a small, out of the way job that he could do at the same time. That way I could have completed my task quickly and still had made him feel useful.

I must learn to schedule more time to accomplish my daily chores to allow for time for my young son to help me. Yes, it may take me longer to get done and I may have to re-do it over later, but the payoff of him learning new skills and more importantly, boosting his self esteem far outweighs the benefit of scratching another chore off my To-Do list.

I love scratching off the chores on my list, but I love showing my son how to write his letters more.

I love getting caught up on laundry, if only in my dreams, but teaching my son how to separate the laundry into piles will serve him better when he’s on his own and doesn’t want to end up with pink underwear.

I love having a clean house, but it sure is entertaining to watch my little one wrestle with a bulky vacuum that is bigger than he is and see the look of satisfaction and pride when he shows me how clean the rug is.

See, my most important job isn’t to balance the checkbook, to do the dishes or keep the laundry pile under 30 ft high. My most important job is being his teacher, his coach and his mama.

How do I want my son to remember spending his time with me? As always making him feel like he was in the way or where he learned about doing things for himself with his me right there to help him learn?

I think I know. It’s teaching him how to put the toilet paper roll on right.

Julie

~If you are a stay-at-home mom who has ever struggled to make ends meet, or a working mother who would like to transition to a business that allows you to spend more time with your family, then Project MAHMA is for you!

Project MAHMA(Moms at Home Making A Difference…and a Lot of Money!) is a global coalition of moms (and dads) who are earning an income from home and giving themselves the gift of freedom— including more time with their families—while at the same time offering others the gift of better health and a better life.

Visit us on the Web at: Project MAHMA

Powering You, from Start to Finish

With the arrival of summer, many of us will increase physical activity levels for both fun and fitness.  

As we’re playing and working more outside in the heat, applying science-based nutrition strategies is sure to improve your results.

Today's sports nutrition guidelines are well-grounded in science and focused on proper hydration and smart nutritional intakes before, during, and after your workouts.

Even if working out isn't what you plan to do this summer, following these sports nutrition guidelines even when just mowing the grass will help keep you healthy and have extra energy to spare to enjoy a fun grill out with friends later.

Here are some great articles for you on Sports Nutrition:

• The Evolution of SportsNutrition
• Sports Nutrition Before,During, and After Workouts
• Smart Hydration for BetterWorkouts

*For more information on health and wellness as well as our full line of Sports Nutrition products including Performance – a great hydration sports drink    check out our website To Be Healthy – Sports Nutrition.

Don't keep us a secret! Share this with your friends who are interested in keeping healthy!

Shaklee Health Sciences Conference Call - Fueling Your Performance with Sports Nutrition

When:  Date: Wednesday, June 13th

Time: 5:30 pm PT | 6:30 pm MT
7:30 pm CT | 8:30 pm ET

Dial-up #: 1-512-225-3211 / 724411#
(Please note the new Dial-up #!)   

Join Dr. Jamie McManus, Shaklee Chair of Medical Affairs, Health Sciences andEducation, Les Wong, Vice President of Health Sciences, and Pamela Riggs, MS, RD., Director of Medical Affairs, for this month's Health Sciences Conference Call.

With the arrival of summer, many of us will increase physical activity levels for both fun and fitness. As we're walking, cycling, swimming, or playing more golf or tennis, applying science-based nutrition strategies can improve the results obtained from working out. The Shaklee Health Sciences team will share with you today's sports nutrition guidelines to help you make the most of your summer activities.

In addition, we'll also be sharing exciting updates about some of our Shaklee star athletes on the Pure Performance Team!

All Shaklee Family Members and their guests are welcome to join us for this excellent call, perfect for the summer season! Join us!

After the call, check out our Sports Nutrition Products and contact us if you have any questions.

Here are the details again:

When:  Date: Wednesday, June 13th

Time: 5:30 pm PT | 6:30 pm MT
7:30 pm CT | 8:30 pm ET

Dial-up #: 1-512-225-3211 / 724411#
(Please note the new Dial-up #!)   

A recording of this conference call will be placed on rebroadcast shortly after the conclusion of the call at 1-512-404-1255, press 2.

Know the Story Before You Judge - Part 2

The previous story got me to thinking of all the ways we tend to judge other people without even knowing them.

And for the record, I am also guilty of judging people, so I’m not saying I haven’t done it myself. I am ashamed though of the times I did.

Here are some examples:

• When you see a parent with their child on what appears to be a “leash” – Before you condemn, know that the child may be severely autistic or mentally handicapped and is prone to running away. The parent is using the tether as an “emergency brake” not a leash.

• When you see a young woman park her minivan and run inside the store – Don’t assume she’s lazy. What you may not know is she finally was able to get a spot close enough and is running inside to help her husband – a war veteran who lost his legs in Afghanistan and is trying to carry things out that are too heavy and bulky for him in his wheelchair.

• When you see an overweight woman looking sadly at this seasons swimwear – Don’t say under your breath, “Try staying away from McDonalds more.” What you don’t see is a heartbroken woman whose husband left her for a younger woman and is refusing to pay child support. She now has to work 2+ jobs just to take care of her children and has no time to take care of herself.

• When you see what appears to be a nasty older man cut in front of you in the supermarket parking lot – Don’t judge him as mean and nasty. What you don’t know is he lost all his retirement savings when the recession hit, his wife is terminally ill and he’s going to pick up yet another expensive pain medicine for her and there’s no money left for food this week.

• When you see a young person looking lost and sullen – Don’t assume they are just another spoiled child who doesn’t care about anyone, but themselves. What you don’t know is that young person just lost his mother to cancer, his father is heartbroken and has taken to drinking and abusing the teen and this young person’s dream of going to college to study art or music is now gone.

What are some other examples of judging have you experienced?

Know the Story Before You Judge

I had a recent Facebook issue happen to me. I took a post a good friend had and made a comment, which was mistake number 1.

I wanted to share a different side of the story. Mistake number 2.

See, she went to the zoo and witnessed a mother “walking” her child on a leash and how she hated seeing that.

Since there were so many people hitting the like button and sharing nasty comments, I wanted to make the point, that they may not understand the whole story. I wanted to do this in a funny, non-threatening way by giving my own example of having to do that once in a dangerous, high traffic area with my young son wearing a small backpack and having a strap attached to it.

He was prone to breaking out of my hand grasp and was in near vicinity of race cars where he could get run over in the few bounds he would get before I caught him.

So for safety sake, I had him wear the backpack and the strap attached as an “emergency brake” in case he got away from me. He was maybe 18 months old and I was holding his hand, not "walking" him on a leash.

I haven’t had to do it since as I worked with him on staying with me and not letting go of my hand – a concept he was having trouble learning at the time.

I wanted to make my case known and to shed light on some parents who have special needs children, such as those with autism and other mental handicaps, how in high traffic areas like zoos and festivals, they sometimes have to have an “emergency brake” for their children.

I wanted to let those who were quick to make judgments and nasty remarks that there may be reasons they are not aware of and that not all parents who do that are lazy or can’t control their children.

That was mistake number 3. Thinking I was dealing with mature adults who were capable of understanding this concept.


Here are some of the comments that were made:

“….leashes are for animals, not children.”

“I agree 100%! It makes a parent look like they can't keep their child under control. I refuse to ever buy one of those things lol”

“I agree! It's cruel! There's this ancient thing called holding your kids hand it works the same only it's not cruel... children aren't dogs or pets of any sort”

“ …I did just fine without a dog collar and leash. I survived. “


And the one that got me the most angry was this one:

“Any "parent" that puts a child on a harness and leash needs to be smacked right in the mouth, its a child. the last time i seen a parent do that i asked them if they had a pooper scooper also. i swear i did!!! But its just a perfect example of a lazy parent. it like the fat lady on a scooter at the store but when she gets to the pop aisle, Jesus blessed her with the ability to walk, lol.”

Here was my response:

“Well, before you judge - ask the whole story. Some parents have special needs children who are severely autistic or mentally handicapped and for their own safety they have a brake. I don't agree to "Walking" your kids on a leash. But to assume that every child can be taught or is capable of understanding or that the parents can keep up with them if they break away from their hand is naive at best and ignorant at worst. Yes, some parents are just plain lazy or can't control their kids, but there are a few who choose safety over others opinions and for a time in their children's lives they have to do this. And anyone who were to threaten me or the parents of special needs children with a slap in the mouth or nasty comment may find one right back at them. Know the story before you judge.”


In defense of my friend, she did apologize and meant no harm and I know she didn’t. She’s a good person.

Here is what I said to her,

“I'm not mad at you. I'm just mad at people who either don't have children or don't have any idea what it's like to have a child who can break away like my son was or deal with an autistic child's behavior. I was concerned at that time in his life that he might be showing autistic tendencies because of his behavior. I remember having the discussion with his pediatrician over "leashes" and how I hated the thought of having to use one, but I also wanted to let him go to the track and see the cars in the lanes, etc - safely. He said, you have to do what's best for him and basically screw everybody else. Plus I used to watch a special needs child who I thought his mother was being cruel when she sometimes put a harness on him. After watching him for one day and having him get away from me, I understood. I've talked to some moms with kids with special needs and have heard them sobbing over all the nasty remarks made to them in public about their choices for protecting their children when those people had no idea the challenges they faced. People like them, have no right to judge other parents on their parenting ability or say nasty remarks to them. Yes, some parents are lazy, but more often than not, that child with the tether is a runner and may be mentally handicapped. I should have never made any comment on your post. I just wanted to show another side to the story many people may not be aware of because they have never known anyone with children like that, that's all.”


I wanted to make it known that I don’t agree with parents who use them because of their laziness in teaching their children properly and only support their use for those who have no choice.

Moral of the story, don’t judge other people if you don’t know them and their situation.


That and stay off FaceBook! It causes too many problems!

June 2012 Newsletter

Forget the tie. Nix the aftershave. For Father’s Day give the gift of good health.

June is Dad’s month, but you don’t have to be just a dad to be a great guy. That is why June is about all men, not just dads. Think about all the men in your life and how they have helped you.

This month we would like to highlight men’s health. They do so much for others it’s time to help them back. Visit our website – ToBeHealthy.com to help you take care of the men in your life (and help yourself, too) by making sure they take care of themselves.

Here are some great articles for this month:

Shaklee Performance & Kidney Stones

All About Stanols (and how they can help you lower your cholesterol naturally)

Natural Bodybuilding

Thinning Hair and the Power of ProSanté

Meet the world-class Shaklee-sponsored athletes on the Pure Performance Team - Pure Performance

This video spotlights the amazing adventures and athletic feats that Shaklee Sports Nutrition products have powered over the years - Sports Nutrition

Here are some great gift ideas for Father’s Day!

Vitalizer for Men - the most advanced multi-nutrient supplement in the marketplace today!

Sports Nutrition – Use what winning Olympic athletes use to get the most out of their performance!

Heart Health – Protect your heart.

Prostate & Liver Health – for added help in areas that many men need.

Energy – Get your energy back!

Great Looking Skin – women aren’t the only ones who want to continue looking great as they age. Men want to look great without all the fuss or perfumes.

Own Your Life – moms aren’t the only ones who want to stay home and work for themselves. Do you dream of owning your own business? You can be an Entrepreneur.

~So remember the great dad in your life and give him the very best in good health!

~Healthy Nutrition – Changing brands can change your life! As the number one national nutrition company in America, we’ve been helping people live healthier for over 50 years. Are you ready to change your life? Visit our website and see how we can help – To Be Healthy

Julie

Listen Up Folks

Do not, I repeat do not put off taking care of your health and learn the warning signs of serious health issues such heart attacks and strokes today.

We lost a friend and fellow racer yesterday who was only 39 from a massive heart attack. He left behind a wife and two young sons. He died one day after his wedding anniversary. His last Facebook post read, “Today fourteen years ago I married my sweetheart..........Love Ya Honey...........”

He raced a three day race over the holiday weekend. We weren’t there, but others said he was complaining of having really bad heartburn and not feeling well. Later in the week on his way to work he started feeling really bad. He went to the ER and collapsed in the doorway. They were not able to revive him.

The world lost a good man, husband and father.

Please learn the signs, talk to your doctor, get a checkup, change your eating habits and start exercising. There are so many people who love you and count on you, don’t let them down.

Julie