First and foremost! HAPPY VALENTINES DAY! You are all sweethearts AND I'll happily eat a cupcake on behalf of our friendship today :P

It's been really busy around here, dear readers. My time is really spread thin right now. There is that movie trailer I am producing (w/ lots of chihuahuas!!!!), which is due a week before the wedding, the wedding plans, and also, the ongoing life changing plans: visa issues, new job, new career, new dreams! Nothing can fall off the list. Everything matters. I wish I could draw a picture of how it all looks like right now, but alas... This phase will have to remain a blur in my head and in yours too, I'm afraid.

The good news is that after a few weeks of serious overwhelm, I finally feel like I've settled in the moment and that I am dealing with this phase better than I originally expected I would. I am finally committed to enjoying the present time. It is a grand moment in my life! Love and Dreams connected and coming true all at once.

I am planning on writing a comprehensive post about wedding stuff next week. I really want to share with you my invitations, the decor, the style of our ceremony, the location and the honeymoon too. So look out for my next post!

For now... Since my time is limited (and not nearly enough) to really daydream deep and "howl" with you, I've decided to list and share some of my recent discoveries:

The Female Business Paradigm by Shiloh Sophia McCloud
(found in the Open Exchange Magazine in the East Bay).

The author Shiloh seems quite fierce and lovely. I am going to check her work further when I get a chance... Her questions remind me of the amazing Lynne Franks book SEED , another great book to read if you're starting your feminine enterprise.

Ten Decision Making Questions:

1) Does this decision excite, nurture and sustain me?
2) What or who is being served and blessed by this offering?
3) What is the impact of this on others, the environment and me?
4) Where is the main source of profit; is it accomplished by completely humane means?
5) What will the impact on my family/ community be? What will be compromised?
6) Is it aesthetically pleasing? Creating beauty? Adding instead of taking?
7) Is this fulfilling my purpose - a deep place of truth within myself?
8) What and who do I need in order to make this work?
9) Is love at the center of my motivation?
10) When I see this project at the highest point, are all of the above questions still able to be answered truly?

Ten Success/ Self Value Questions:

1) Have I defined reachable and frequent journey points/ goals?
2) What would success look like for me?
3) Have I given up my story of what success looked like before?
4) Have I clearly articulated what resources I personally need first, and then for my business?
5) Do I have rewards and celebrations outlined all along the way?
6) Do I have systems in place for celebrating team members?
7) Have I established a self value practice, and does this practice include how I price my work and am compensated for it?
8) Do I have an understanding of the distinction between my free services and paid ones?
9) Have I honored my business by setting up systems to support the increasing flow of business as I reach monetary heights?
10) Do I allow my small accomplishments to affirm that I am doing enough, instead of thinking that I am never enough or that I can never do enough?

A note from the Universe

I signed up for something called TUTS adventure club. Now I receive a note from the universe every morning. It makes me smile! A LOT! The first note I received was this:

Yes, Gypsy, it's time for "good news and bad news"...

You, Gypsy Girl, have just been named the luckiest person alive! The absolute luckiest! No one luckier for trillions of miles!

Can you imagine? Having an advantage in all of your adventures? Good fortune smiling upon you? Joy, passion, and dreams coming true? Folks secretly admiring you from lowered sunglasses? New friends seeking you out? Massive abundance effortlessly drawn into your life? Opportunity and adventure only ever a breath away?

Wow! I'd say things are really, really going to start changing for you!!!

The "bad" news?

You only ever had to visualize.

The Universe

Thoughts become things... choose the good ones!

The Power of Now

My talented friend Ann told me about the book "The Power of Now". I must say this book is quite revolutionary!! I am shocked at how often I am NOT PRESENT in the moment. Check it out. This has really helped me deal with overwhelm lately. Thank you, Ann!

Zen Howl

And last, but not least... I've been listening to another great book by my dearest mentor, Natalie Goldberg. I absolutely love her! She is not only an amazing writing teacher (from whom I still ought to learn a lot from), but also a warm and wise human being. So after reading some of her books, I've started to listen to them as well. Pure indulgence! I often listen to Natalie on my way to and from work, and this ritual never ceases to fill me with joy and insight.

"Zen howl is the sound of our masks falling away. When the masks we hide behind wither and die, there is immediate intimacy between ourselves and the world. This hint of intimacy - of touching something out of reach - is what ignites our longing to write and our desire to practice meditation."

That is all I got now, folks! Keep howling and smiling!

Hugs & Cupcakes ~