expand.

i sure have talked you ear off this week, haven't i?

i mean, look at all of these - nothing but - words words words.

one more thing {for now, that is}.


i find that when i am constantly asking myself the question: does this serve me? i can release what i do not need.

is this working for me? if not, let it go. thoughts, behaviors, attitudes, relationships. it applies to all. and, i believe it really can be that simple.

this week in an early morning yoga class, cara was spot on...

maybe there's something in your life that's really annoying you right now.

locate it.
pin point it.
hone in on it.

breathe there.
breathe right into it.
expand the space around this problem.

let the breathe allow you to make this issue a teaspoon among a vast ocean. an ocean of breathe.

i love this metaphor.




i sure hope you do some breathing and expanding and letting go this weekend, my dears.

release what does not serve you.

sometimes i find this the most grounding thought in all the world. i have the power to choose what works, and what doesn't. and, inevitably own my life. because that's what we're all trying to do anyways.

*pure goodness found here and here.

commentary.

so, can i ask you a teeny tiny itty bitty little favor?

{eeeek! how selfish of me}.

i know you'll do this one thing for me, i just know it, my sweets.

just one simple word.

comment.

can you maybe leave one...drop me a line...a thought...anything...are you out there...?

don't be shy. we all know we're far beyond shy, dolls, as i am constantly divulging my secrets to you daily.



you can also send me a personal note...

embraceithappening at gmail dot com.

oh, you don't have to. i'm just encouraging you, of course. i'll still love you no matter what.

oh boy, it would mean a whole lot.

*found here.

let's talk about the universe.

one time, in college, alexis and i drove all the way from santa barbara to the roxy in hollywood. it was a friday afternoon and it was time for a big best friend adventure. we tended to do that quite often.

the trip to see the one and only tristan prettyman had been planned for weeks. we were to depart around two with our printed map and directions. smart phones were a thing of the future.

i even remember what i was wearing. embarrassingly enough, ugg boots paired with a ruffled denim skirt from abercrombie and fitch. i swear that look was in.

our first stop was fred segal. our second stop was ashton kutcher's restaurant - dolce - and our third stop was truly the main attraction. the tristan prettyman concert. the internet told us we could buy tickets before the show for a whopping ten dollars. what a steal!

here's how the story really goes...

i bought the ugliest army green, fur-hooded, juicy couture, five-hundred-dollar jacket on our shopping endeavor. oh yes, the one with the be-jeweled "j" on the sleeve. apparently, back then, i had to have it.

it turns out that ashton doesn't hang out in his own restaurant around the earliest reservation time. yup, that would be five thirty. in fact, just as an fyi, you will be the only people - and youngest - dining in this swanky restaurant this early. which, mind you, will make pulling out your fake id way more intimidating than it needs to be.

however, nothing could rain on our parade at that point in our evening, because onto the much-anticipated show we went.

well, not so fast.

i'm sorry, she's all sold out.

but i called! i promise! i say to the woman at the ticket booth.

i'm sorry, there's no tickets left to her show tonight.

...and back home we went.




for as disheartening as that trip turned out, it's a story that will forever make me laugh. all of the silly details of that day make me smile.

throughout the years, tristan has only grown cooler in my eyes. she now writes a blog and is an aspiring yogi, like me.

often times, the things she writes are some of my exact thoughts. she's just cool enough to articulate them in a way that i am unable to. all i know is that more often than not i'm speaking out loud to her "me too! me too! yes, exactly!" we have the same way of getting all preachy. and that, in my opinion, is a great similarity to have.

to be quite honest, i think we'd be dear friends in real life. well wait, this is real life.

anyhow, the whole point of this long-winded {you know me, i'm always rambling to you} note was to share one of my most favorite things she posted the other day.

“first you have to know what you want, defined in terms of the end result. and then you have to physically move towards it, without defining the hows. at which point, the thing you want actually starts coming to you, on its own terms, from a direction completely unexpected. just carry on, detached from the details and timing, and perhaps act like you couldn’t care less.”

so, there you have it.

thank you, tristan, for always reminding me to trust in this universe. i hope someday our paths will cross. i promise i won't be wearing ugg boots.

*photos found among my pins, here and here.

the missing piece.

i never knew writing would become one of my passions, ever. it hit me out of the blue.

i suppose that's how love is. it hits you when you least expect it.

often times, in matters of meeting the one, i think about the missing piece meets the big o by shel silverstein {i think we all grew up with a little where the sidewalk ends in our lives, yes?}.

to me, it's about being your own whole person before you meet your match. to be in true, real love, we cannot serve as the missing or filler piece for the other person just as we cannot expect another person to serve this purpose for us.

falling in love, to me, means two wholes coming together, and as shel puts it "rolling together."




two wholes, well, make an even bigger whole. i like it this way.

here's to being your own big o so you can meet your most perfect o match.

might i suggest reading the entire book online here, too. it'll warm your heart, and i bet you'll take away a sweet message.

tonight as i flipped through my own personal copy of the book, i had a flashback of when i received it.

{handwritten messages inside book covers are such a treat, don't you agree?}

the note reads...

june 2008

gina,

i hope you enjoy this book as much as i do! you are such a treasure and the world is a more beautiful place with you in it! your friendship and insight bring me joy, soul sister! here's to rolling!

love,
karen

the world is a more beautiful place with you in it.

if this isn't the best compliment in all the world, i don't know what is. re-reading this three years later gives me the utmost gratitude.



now, i've since lost touch with this particular soul sister, but i hope she knows what an impact she had on my life. it's almost as if this simple gift she gave me in june of 2008 has helped shape my view on love.

pay it forward, my friends.

even the smallest gestures can impact us in the biggest of ways. i thank you, karen, wherever you are today. sending you goodness and love. i hope you've found somebody to roll with.

xoxo.

beginnings.

sometimes i have the hardest time starting my words. i stare at you for quite some time, crafting how i want to begin our little chit chat, but it doesn't always come easily.

what is it with beginnings anyway? often times they are more difficult than i would like.

"beginnings are scary. endings are usually sad, but it's what's in the middle that counts. so when you find yourself at the beginning, just give hope a chance to float up, and it will."
~hope floats

lord knows i have plenty to say, it's just a matter of putting it ever so perfectly for you. because, i like perfect words {especially for your eyes}. the kind that leave you hanging onto every last syllable... every last drop.

for instance, each and every time i read her ink, it's as if i've finished the most quenching glass of ice cold water post eight-mile run on a scorching hot day. she gets it - you know, the sweet part of life - and she's just that good. gut-wrenchingly good.

she's my mentor, my words mentor. i think it's about time i let her know.

*may this photo inspire you to live a little recklessly this week. just begin. we could all use a little help leaping into the unknown.

tahoe.

i just had the best "summer" weekend, dolls. the kind that leave you thankful to be alive. i sure hope you did, too.




my body aches for the best possible reasons which include, but are not limited to the following... {entrez vous multiple-choice question lingo}.

paddle boarding.
water trampoline-ing.
head-first-into-the-lake-water-slide-ing.
peppering {why do you think they call it this? oh, because it's hot and spicy like pepper. nice try, gean}.
hours {yes, hours!} spent dancing on chairs belting out the words to everything from spice girls to stevie nicks.
heated flying marshmallow wars.
many-a-song spent perfecting "gypsy arms."
and, inevitably, deep deep belly laughs.

i feel the joy to my very core, literally.

{apologies for the delirious post. the kind where i tend to make nouns into verbs and verbs into adjectives. oh well. there's always tomorrow}.

i am oh-so-lucky to have such dear friends - second family really - who host me in tahoe.

kiss kiss!

grace.

spiritually, yoga makes me come alive. especially when i am spoiled with such a great teacher. {i'm sure you've heard me mention her many-a-time}.

set your intention. offer it away. give it all away. touch someone else's life and dedicate your practice to them so that they are happy, safe, and free.

this is when i pray.




i pray for my bests, that they overcome their struggles. i pray for the happiness and health of my family. i pray for peaceful and healed relationships and for the future one i'm going to love.

i pray for whatever needs praying for that day, really. the message is usually the same...that we all may lay our burdens down.

oh, the power of prayer. we have the power to touch so many lives.




one of the best things about yoga is that it's also about the well-being of others. it's finding the perfect balance between the giving and the receiving.

i think this act transcends into our everyday lives. give your good thoughts and kindness away, and allow yourself to receive it back.

to me, this pure give-and-take act is the essence of grace.

i've always had a thing for grace. growing up, being a graceful dancer came easy to me. it's when i felt most empowered. the flow and movement of the body is one of the most beautiful things in all the world. hence, why i'm on the constant quest to be a graceful yogi.

may your weekend be filled with nothing but grace, in the exact form you need it. thanks for hanging with me this week!

love and peace.

*prayer found here and here.

foundation.

i'm about to share something from the very deepest part of my heart, okay? i know you won't judge me because you're just that special.

so, here's to a little cheers to vulnerability!

do you ever have the feeling you've known who you wanted to be all along?

let me explain.




a few years ago i wrote this goal chart.

i remember being on my bedroom floor in my first apartment in the city. i think it was late one night when i whipped out my box of crayons {crayons are so underrated, don't you agree?} and stole an extra-long piece of paper from the printer at work. pointless details, i know.

the funny thing is, i've always envisioned myself the same. happy and free from anxiety. me, at the center of my own life, grounded, with an open heart living richly and fully. all i ever really wanted was a strong, sturdy foundation. and i found it within myself.

there i am {stick figure, mind you} sitting in lotus pose reaching up to the suns that hold a goal inside each circle of orange, radiant light. because, each achieved goal is just that. a little accomplishment that adds light to your life.

i envision a ladder as the mode of traveling to each sun. climb high, take one rung at a time. step by step. we're all doing our best.

some burning suns i've accomplished and some i haven't quite yet. but the best part is, i've always known who i want to be and what i want to achieve. the essence of my being is constant. i think that's how it is with most of us.




i believe the sun that aligns the most with the birth of this blog is, "write an anna quindlen book someday." have you ever read one?

oh, you must! she is where i began my love affair with kind, simple words. little "life epiphany" talk, if you will.

well, i realized that it's all happening is my version of an anna quindlen book.

this pleases me to the core. who would have thought!?

when you envision what you want out of your life, it comes true. i promise.

my most favorite untouched sun reads...a healthy relationship. love. romance. connection. open myself up and release inhibition.

as silly as that sounds, i love it. never have i ever felt so ready.

i hope this can inspire you to voice and embrace something you're ready for, my dears. there's no fear in it. it's actually quite liberating.

nothing but love. the best is yet to come.

*being alive found here.

you know what?

...i never turn on my tv.

i should probably disconnect it all together.

i'd much rather sit in the candlelight. the weepies on low, playing in the background. incense and sage-a-burning. window cracked open as the subtle night breeze flows through.

i gaze out at the twinkling lights across the bay in the distance. oh! that bridge, what a great companion...steady and constant.




i am thankful. that's all i really wanted to tell you.

may you relish in the quiet nights at home, too. television free. xoxo.

*this quote dedicated to ms. pom pom. she taught me that life can be pretty simple if we allow it, long before anyone else. big hug.

leave a little room.

at the end of my practice on this orange-sky-painted-fog-rolling-in-ever-so-tenderly-ready-to-protect-us-tonight-kind-of summer evening, i had a thought.

in shavasana, the fresh air from the {finally} opened windows crawled over my skin. it glided up the left side of my body like a whisper cooling me down.

leave a little room.

let your practice leave a little room.

for the gratitude.

for the kindness.

for the stillness.

this is why yoga has changed my life.

i have a little more room now.

*does reading this give you chills too?

soul.

have you stopped in to visit ms. souled yet? if not, you're in for a real treat.

she is the sweetest. a self-proclaimed barefoot dreamer. i envy her hippie-chic ways. more so, i envy her true gift with words. they always leave you wanting more.

when i first discovered her treasure of a blog {most likely while i was a little lost and wandering in blogland}, i knew it was love at first sight.

...soul just might be my most favorite word in the english language.




i had a mini revelation about this very special word. soul reminds me of the word soil.

and, if you think about it, without soil, a tree is unable to grow.

{stick with me here}.

within the nourishing soil, the roots of a tree deeply reside. without these roots, the tree is not able to ground itself into the earth and stand tall.

do you know one of the ways i know a good soul when i see one?

that person has roots grounded deep within the soil and stands tall and proud.

epiphany! feels so good to make this connection.

*i broke down and confessed a thing or two to ms. souled. thank you for letting me borrow your pins. how am i ever to repay you?

posture.

in yoga, a teacher once told me, good posture is sexy.

this saying continues to resonate.




always striving for sexy. i'm a work in progress.

om.

so i have this friend. and, you guys, she is so creative.

you can also find her over here. clearly {one of her favorite words} photography is her forté . ice cream, her passion.

she's going places, and i can't wait to sit back and watch her be a living example of how creativity and following your bliss can lead to the ultimate prospering business one day. one step at a time, my friend.




one time she made me this! banana ice cream with peanut butter cookie dough and marshmallow fluff swirl. de-lish!

anyhow, i recently got to dine in cole valley, walk the peaceful stow lake, and get henna tattoos with her in the haight. what a treat. it made for a simply delightful day.

i realized something. i am my happiest when i am exploring and beating to my own drum.

i must share this gem of a quote.




here's to being lost in san francisco, a place to call home. i am grateful to have a buddy to adventure with.

*photo via lisa.

sunday.

how blessed we are.
~rusty wells

what a treat.

*everything is as it should be found here.

tribes.

do you ever think about your tribes?

you know...the group of people you surround yourself with. the packs you travel in.

well, this week it became my new favorite word.

{right up there with cultivate}

then i realized that these two words - cultivate and tribe - really go hand in hand.

we must cultivate our tribes with utter care and consideration as they are a reflection of who we are.

you are the company you keep, i believe the saying goes.

i think, most importantly, they are the family you choose for yourself. isn't that such a wonderful phenomenon? think about it again. the family you choose for yourself. it's a beautiful thing if you ask me.

i am having one of those days where i am overwhelming grateful for the unique souls in my tribes. while they are all different, the common thread is that they love me for who i am.





now if that's not pure comfort, i don't know what is.

hope you've had the loveliest of weekends, my sweets. i sure did. full of yoga and out of the box adventures. none of which would be possible without the family i've been lucky enough to choose for myself.

good people find each other.

*running gal pals found here.

on falling in love.

i can't stop thinking about love.

l
o
v
e

ever since i woke up needing it, i've done nothing but reflect on the matter.

you know what i want?

i want to grow with someone.

i want a spiritual journey.

i want to fall in love together. as a team. you plus me.

it takes two.




let's do it two-gether.

can't stop gushing over this photo sesh. shine bright, my love.

ships.

there are big ships
there are small ships
but there are no ships like friendships
~unknown

*precious bracelets remind me of carefree summer days.

patience.

do you know why i love you so much?




because when i can't find my voice in real life - in everyday conversations - i can write to you.

and, you're patient with me.

you allow me to take my time and really craft my words to perfection. so that each typed letter harmonizes with the thoughts deep within.

when i am unable to translate my opinions into the spoken word, you're here for me. you wait, and you listen.

i am eternally grateful and thrilled to have found you.

*thumbprint hearts found here*

on branding.

someone once told me, it's important for each of us to first and foremost truly define our own personal brand.

it all starts with defining who we are {and, of course, not being afraid of whatever that may be}.

who am i?

i love this concept. my personal brand. we all have one.

i think it's half the fun of growing up! defining ourselves. do you agree?




i got to thinking...

i've created my professional career around brand advertising. i strategize how aol can help brands truly define themselves via the wonderful avenues of our ad platform.

why can't i treat myself like i treat my retail brands? like i do in my work life, i can creatively strategize on the different ways to express who i am. what can help me continue to evolve and share my message with the world.

loving this parallel.

i think you should try it for yourself. oh please do, you.

whether it be your outfit, your jewels, your hairstyle. let's see your brand.

start here and persevere.

*something about the wrist is oh-so-sexy & oh-so-expressive*

crave.

do you ever have that feeling where you just need love? your soul needs it.

enough of this like stuff. this i like you a lot, here's a half hug stuff.

i want deep adoration. an embrace full of passion and meaning. i want to feel your love.

okay? {gosh, i admit it}.

i want the kind of love where i'm wrapped in you so tight. heart to heart. your breathe is my breathe. my life force, just for a moment.

i need that.




come soon. i'm ready for you.

love,
me.

*could get lost in embrace photos forever...

love your experience of solitude.

i sometimes think that blogging is saving my life.

how else am i supposed to find my voice? even when i'm so tired it hurts i feel the need to visit you.

one of the most important excerpts you'll ever read {in my opinion}.




be whole. love wholly.

seven reasons why there's nothing to worry about.

one. you can't get happy, you can only be happy
two. you can have true love
three. you're not fat
four. you're not your daily grind
five. you can change your world
six. you will never die
seven. you can be yogic, and to the yogi, everything is bliss


*happy yoga by steve ross.*

the easiest way.

i don't mean to get all preachy on you, loves, but i had to share a little life lesson on forgiveness. bear with me. i need to remember this.

i love you.

thank you.

universe, i am sorry. please forgive me for what is going on in me that has created this situation/problem.

i take one hundred percent responsibility.

-ho'oponopono philosophy.




may we take good care of ourselves.

in order to achieve one of life's ultimate goals - discovering who we really are - we must love ourselves and realize that problems are only our perceptions of the actual issues or relationships themselves. if we erase and clean our mental tapes by repeating the mantra above, we can begin to find our true selves and live a happy life.

thanks for allowing me the deep moment.


*all concepts taken from the book by mabel katz, "the easiest way"*
**words to live by found here. follow me, yes?**

bliss.

fourth of july in san francisco...the city's best kept secret. a quiet calm comes over this seven by seven radius that's so perfect, it hurts.

these first four days of july have most definitely been some for the record books.

full of nothing but true, deep, unfiltered happiness.



each moment was a moment to soak in.

let me recap...

sunshine, best friends, runs, bbq's, fire escapes, wine, yoga, parents, scrabble, pool time, rafts, vitamin d, belly laughs, and tan lines.

may i go on? i must.

errands, the rez, chow, deep sleep, shopping, gossip mags, dark chocolate, movie night, beautiful savasanas, lingering backyard summer night dinners, rooftops...and fireworks.

i am oh so lucky. thank you, universe. i am grateful.

oh hi, july.

nice to see you again.




officially turned the page of my most favorite calendar and this is what i will be reminded of for the next thirty one days.

speak from the heart, as that is when we are our most authentic selves.

may you have a heartfelt month, darlings.

good things are in store.