It was two-thirty in the morning when she sent me the message. I could feel her stress and fear even though it was a digital communication. “I am tired of living a lie, a double life…I am gay,” she confessed. Her declaration did not move me, but her sadness and fear did. I felt sorry that she had not been able to truly be herself in this world without experiencing hate and ridicule from others. Individuality is at the core of our existence and the pursuit of it a path no other should ever block.

You know that feeling you get when you're watching a scary movie and the heroin is snooping in a really creepy, dark place? Well, I always say to myself or out loud, "What the hell are you doing? Why are you even going down there? Are you insane? Admit it, you've done it, too! Then I realize that there wouldn't be a story or movie unless someone does something dramatic or to risk bodily harm.

I wrote the statement "The Butterfly deserves to fly" up on my white board this morning. It was meant to be an encouragement to me to get some work done on my upcoming book, The Butterfly Payoff, and it served its purpose. As I stared up at the words, though, I realized the implied message to myself revealed a much deeper cause- one that is for us all.

Do you know who your best supporter is? Is it a friend, a lover, a family member? I have discovered that, while it is beneficial and awesome to have friends and family who cheer us on, we need to have a healthful outlook toward ourselves and our lives as well. No matter what others say we can do and accomplish, until we believe in ourselves and our potential, we won't get too far. Other people can encourage us until they are blue in the face, but not reinforcing that encouragement with personal belief in the accolades or words of faith presented causes it to fall short of the positive intention.

March marked the 110th anniversary of the birth of Theodore Seuss Geisel. He was most famously known for his work in children’s literature, both writing and illustrating. We all remember many of these stories from our childhoods. From The Cat in the Hat to Marvin K Mooney, Dr. Seuss created characters that we have loved for over 6 decades.

Spring is my favorite season. It’s the time of the year when we focus on birth, life, blossoming into the women we were meant to be. So as Kellie recently awaited the birth of her first grandchild, I await the birth of me.

Unhappy in my own skin for many years, I would wake up every day virtually paralyzed by my own fears. I would be tormented by the possibility that people would discover I was a fake; that I wasn’t whom I pretended to be. The persona I projected was this happy, fun-loving, care free, extremely funny girl who acted as though she had the world at her feet. But behind the happy mask that I wore for so many years was a deeply depressed and dependent soul, searching to be loved. I would drink to feel good about myself and suppress the pain, but after a while the numbing effects didn’t work. I became depressed and fearful all the time. My mask was gone.

A few weeks back I introduced to you a healing modality that has changed my life and the lives of my clients. The Emotion Code is a energy/kinesiology based technique that helps you to release trapped emotions quickly and easily. I've practiced it on myself, my family and several clients, and it is nothing short of miraculous in its effectiveness. I'm writing about it again because I've now had some time to see just how much change has come about in my own life.

Imagine you’re outside, by a beautiful lake, enjoying the perfection of your surroundings. You feel comfortable, relaxed, as if you are an important part of it all. You are so in tune that it is as if you can hear nature speaking to you.

Today not only marks the end of the month and the challenge but is an exciting ending to a life season for me. Tomorrow morning, I will enter into a season of life I've never been in before: I will become a grandmother for the first time! I'm so excited I can hardly keep it together here! Until now, it had not really hit me like it is today. My life is going to change in some amazing physical and energetic ways when that precious little goddess breathes her first bit of oxygen tomorrow.

As we approach the end of the New You in 31 Days challenge and the 31 Day Blogging Challenge for me, I am overjoyed with my own personal results and sincerely hope you have enjoyed the content shared here this month. Today, is the perfect day to talk about some specific things to focus on while in the midst of a challenge or challenging situation: Focus for Success!

“I’ve learned that people will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel.” —Maya Angelou (Inspirational Author/Poet)

I have been enjoying the concentration of self-development on the site this month. On this 26th day of our new you in 31 days challenge, I'd like to personally invite you to open your minds today. To what? Well, that 's up to you. But I have a feeling that you know exactly what new ideas and concepts have been hanging around lately. The may be things that go against everything you've been taught or believe at present. That's OK. The point is to open up to things that are out of your comfort zone and not the usual.

If you know me at all, then you understand my passion for taking care of my skin. Though I've used many quality brands of skin care over the years, I've never come across any that offer satisfying results with a natural element...that is until I met Shelly Henley and tried her line, Joyful Girl Naturals. It was nearly five years ago that I first experienced her products and beautiful spirit and personality. And, with my newest Joyful Girl order, I'm even more pleased with how my skin feels and looks after only a few applications.

Belief about anything doesn't just start one day without some sort of thought, idea, influence, experience, or suggestion. What we believe about ourselves is really the most complicated version of all belief.