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Thought for Today

“Learn to flow with life like a stream. Change is the only constant in our world, everything and everyone is in always in a constant state of change. Learn to flow with life, relax and enjoy the ride. Remember, Row, row, row your boat gently down the stream…”–Kemmy Nola

Thought for Today

“All that is gold does not glitter, Not all those who wander are lost.”—J.R.R. Tolkien

Shadow Play

An oldie but goodie from 2013.

Remember when you were a kid and used to play with your shadow? You can still do that, you know. Lighten up and have a little fun!

Thought for Today

“What you’re missing is that the path itself changes you.” — Julien Smith

Thought for Today

“Sometimes we become so focused on the finish line, that we fail to find joy in the journey.“ —Hussein Nishah

It’s National Ice Cream Month!

Carrot Cake Fruit Cream Copyright 2015 by R.A. Robbins — Carrot Cake Fruit Cream
Copyright 2015 by R.A. Robbins

July is National Ice Cream Month by Presidential Proclamation 5219, signed by then President Reagan on July 9, 1984. But did you know that today, July 17 is also National Ice Cream Day? Ice cream is certainly one way I enjoy my journey through life.

Let’s think about ways we can celebrate ice cream.

Try a new flavor.
Give homemade a try. There are many different ways and recipes to make homemade ice cream. It is fun. Homemade tastes better than store-bought. Try it.
Create a new recipe either for ice cream or using ice cream as an ingredient.
Do you know the history of ice cream?
Make kick the can ice cream with the kids.
Love chocolate sauce? Try my Dark Chocolate Sauce.
Can’s eat dairy? No problem! There are non-dairy options made with alternative milks (such as alm0nd, rice or coconut). Some are even made with frozen fruit such as bananas. Try my Carrot Cake Fruit Cream.
Set up a sundae bar. Let the kids help. Don’t forget to include healthy toppings such as fresh fruit and berries.
Get social with your ice cream. I’m not talking about social media here, invite people over for homemade ice cream or a sundae party. Get the neighbors involved and have a block party. It often seems that food divides us, but I believe it can still bring us together.
Finally, be sure to check out the new recipes in my e-book Frozen Fun. We have added a section on smoothies. Of course we still have the regular ice cream and fruit cream recipes. Frozen Fun is available from the Amazon Kindle Store or Espirational Books.

We’re celebrating with a little peach fruit cream I whipped up in the Ninja. How are you celebrating?

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Thought for Today

“Stop rushing. Slow down and enjoy the beauty of life.”
― Debasish Mridha

Thought for Today

“Hope everyone is enjoying life out in the world. It’s goes by pretty fast!“ — Scott Disick

Thought for Today

Azaleas in Lendonwood Gardens. Copyright 2016 by R.A. Robbins

“Life is pure adventure, and the sooner we realize that, the sooner we will be able to treat life as art.”
Maya Angelou

Tools for Defeating Fear: Breathe In, Breathe Out

I realize I talk about not giving into fear a lot. Some of you may have been wondering, but how?

When we encourage people to not give in to fear, we are talking about what some people refer to as “spiritual warfare.” This is not an earthly war that can be fought with conventional weapons such as guns and bombs. This is a great spiritual conflict which has been ongoing throughout time and as such our “weapons” must be spiritual ones.

So how do we “fight” fear without being overcome by it? There are very practical, specific tools we can use to put fear in it’s place and walk in the light of God.

Let’s begin with the breath. Bringing conscious awareness to the breath is one way to help the mind and body calm down. I know to some of you this may seem just too simplistic. Have you every tried reminding yourself to breathe when upset, fearful or angry?

There are a variety of breathing techniques available, but let’s begin with simply noticing the breath.

Breathe in slowly through your nose, feeling your belly rise as you inhale. Exhale, feeling your belly slowly fall. You may place your hands on your belly to feel it rise and fall if this is helpful for you. Continue breathing, paying attention to your breath as it goes in and out of your body. If you are upset and breathing rapidly or heavily it may take some time to slow things down.

This is something I have used while waiting for Bob to come out of doctor appointments or surgery. I am slowly getting to the point that if I feel myself becoming stressed, or my breathing starts speeding up and becoming shallow, I can simply say to myself “breathe” and watch everything start to slow down. This is one of those “simple disciplines” that is worth developing so it will be available when you need it. Paying attention to the breath is the beginning of meditation which we will discuss at another time, but just a few minutes of taking the time to stop and intentionally notice the breath will help calm things down when you are upset or fearful.