Anna Seewald was forced to grow up quickly when a devastating earthquake killed her mother and destroyed her home town in Armenia when she was only 13 years old. Today Anna strives to live a mindful, slow-paced life that allows her to concentrate on enjoying every moment and being the best mom she can be. Listen to get some great tips on saying “no” to the unnecessaries, taking time to do nothing at all, and how critical it is that we as moms know ourselves deeply and choose the life that makes us happiest.
Anna Seewald is the founder of Authentic Parenting®. She is a speaker, author and a parent educator. She is a mom to a vibrant 8 year old who doesn’t approve of her fashion choices. With a strong passion for helping children, Anna has dedicated her life to working with abused, neglected, orphaned and institutionalized children and juvenile delinquents. After nearly 20 years she realized that it is through helping parents she can help children. Today she is supporting parents around the world by moving from traditional ways of parenting into more peaceful, conscious ways by helping them make sense of their past life experiences, heal from trauma, build effective communication, practice non-punitive discipline and learn to set limits with love and kindness.
"At times our own light goes out and is rekindled by the spark from another person. Each of us has cause to think with deep gratitude of those who have lighted the flame within us." -Albert Schweitzer
"'The past is never dead. It’s not even past. The past defines who we are.' (William Faulkner). We cannot forget where we come from, who we are. We bring in all our unresolved issues, our traumas, all that attachment history comes into play. If we forget and move forward, we never look back. The past will crawl out, and it will haunt you in your present day. So we need to make sense of our life stories, resolve our unresolved issues, and heal from our traumas in order to live vibrant, happy and fulfilled lives.”
Personal habit: "Just having alone time, solitude, in the morning. Every morning, I wake up, I make myself a cup of coffee, I sit in my favorite chair in my living room. And then I just sit there and do nothing for a specific amount of time. It could be 15 minutes, 10, 20. Even if I do not have that time in the morning, I still get up early, just to have at least a few moments with myself because looking inwards for me has been the most powerful and empowering, important life lesson. Because no one can make me happy. I cannot expect my husband to make med happy. I am happy. I have to be happy on my own before I have fulfilling relationships with others."
Easy meal: "Omelette. Any kind of omelette. I throw in some vegetables: spinach, feta cheese, mushrooms, or one with scallions and parsley."
Possession: Cuisinart Food Processor
Anna's Favorite Books: The Little Prince by Antoine de Saint-Exupéry
Best advice received: "Do not sweat the small stuff, and it is all small stuff." -Anna's husband
"Meaningful relationships, connections, attachments, friendships, family (one category). Doing the things that make me fulfilled. Expressing myself through art or doing something that I love. And perhaps, taking care of myself. We need to take care of our body first and foremost. To be healthy, to have good relationships and to do the things that you love most. "
"I want parents to take a piece of paper and write down five things, big or small, or it could be really big. Something in your eyes, in your own opinion that makes you a great parent. Be honest with yourself. Give yourself credit. "
The Little Prince by Antoine de Saint-Exupéry
15 Powerful things to Say To Your Kids
Parenting Conversations Authentic Moments with Anna Seewald
Learn how to feel proactive instead of reactive and to start your day feeling AH-mazing instead of overwhelmed...
Emily Cummins is passionate about partnering with churches and people to reach their full potential and effectively share their story through digital communication strategies. She also founded and leads a community and resource for women, BecomingMe.TV, encouraging, empowering and equipping women as they’re living to their highest God-given potential. Emily lives in Ocala, Florida and for fun she loves spending time on the beach and driving with the top down blaring the latest Taylor Swift song. She also enjoys reading and writing.
"Choose to become who God made you to be and daily choose to be her. Choose to become who God made you to be and daily choose to be her."
"My pursuit for this endless perfection that really was never granted, it was breaking me apart, and it was limiting from becoming who God made me to be."
"'Emily, you are not made to be perfect, and you do not have to be.' There is freedom in that. But you can wake up and choose to become who God made you to be no matter what you are experiencing."
"Sometimes our weaknesses can become our very strengths."
"Life is hard. We go through lots of low points and lots of valleys. But we do not ever have to live there."
"It reminds me that other people are on this journey too. And when we share who we are and what we are doing, we become stronger together."
"Strip off all the labels and the lies that you have told yourself or that you have listened to from other people. We have to dig through the junk that is in our hearts and in our minds first. And many times that is just stuff we tell ourselves. Second, you have to choose to love you. If you do not love yourself, there is really no way that you can really genuinely love those around you well or even love what you are doing. We have to love who we are in order to become whoever you want to be. Last, you just have to choose to be her."
"The decision to be free really lies with me."
"I think we are all strong to an extent, but I do believe in that power, and for me that is God. "
Personal habit: "Writing is my favorite habit because it keeps me centered. It keeps me balanced. It helps me think through things objectively. It
clears my brain."
Easy meal: "Breakfast for every meal."
Possession: "Spatula."
Ruth's Favorite Books: Bittersweet by Shauna Niequist
Best advice received: "You know who you wanna be. Just choose to be her."
"Lacing up my warrior boots. Pursuing & becoming who God made me to be. And daily choosing to be her."
"No matter what you are facing today, you can rise above it. The power and the key is already inside you. Just choose to be who you are."
Vibrant Happy Women Facebook Group
Bittersweet by Shauna Niequist
When you figure out your top 4 priorities and let go of the rest, everything gets so much more productive (and happy!)
After going through years of severe depression Ruth Soukup made her way back to a place of light and hope. She said, “I made a choice to be happy and not spend the rest of my life feeling broken.” Fast forward to today: Ruth is a blogger, author, and entrepreneur, as well as the New York Times bestselling author of Living Well Spending Less: 12 Secrets of the Good Life and the founder of the Living Well Planner™. Through her popular blog, LivingWellSpendingLess.com, she encourages more than a million monthly readers to follow their dreams and reach their goals, sharing easy-to-implement tips and strategies for saving time and money while focusing on the things that matter most. She lives in Washington State with her husband Chuck and two daughters, Maggie and Annie.
"Success is not final. Failure is not fatal. It is only the courage to continue that matters." -Winston Churchill
"Life is just a journey that we're on. We have ups and downs. We have highs and lows. And it is just a reminder to me that when things go right, it does not mean that that is the end, and I can be done. And when things go wrong, it is not the end of the world... you've got to keep moving, and you've got to keep going forward."
"I slowly began to figure out how to live again, and it took awhile. But it was that conscious moment of saying, 'I am not going to dwell in the past anymore.'"
"There is hope. I think that was the thing that for me, especially when I was in that really dark place. I love my story just in the sense that I am one person that you can look at and say, 'She was there. She was in that dark place and things got better for her.' There is hope, and believe that there is hope and there is light at the end of the tunnel and hold on to that hope even if you cannot see the last light and you cannot feel the hope for yourself."
"That is really where my heart is: encouraging women to set goals for themselves and to figure out practical ways to handle those other things that keep us so busy, so that there is a little more margin for those things that really get us excited."
"As humans, we do not need somebody to preach at us and tell us all the things we are doing wrong and the other people are doing it better, but to realize that there are other people out there who have struggled just like we do and maybe have a rough time and have some solutions along the way: 'Here's what helped me, this might help you too...'"
"Give yourself permission to dream for 20 minutes or half an hour about all of the possibilities and write those things down, and start thinking, 'Yeah, you know what, I could maybe do this.' I like to encourage people to dream, or to set goals that are so big that they scare you a little bit. Because I think that when you feel that little tingle of excitement inside yourself, like, 'Oh my gosh, I cannot believe I just said that. I cannot believe that I just admitted that to myself, that I really want to do that...' -that is where you start to like feel that passion, to feel that fire inside. And then from there, once you have given yourself permission to think big and dream big, I really like to encourage people to dream big and plan small. Instead of starting with a day to day thing, starting with your grand vision. And breaking it down to your goals for the years, and then break that down into your goals for the month. And then break that down for your goals for the week. And then for your goals for the day. Doing that makes you realize what is really important. Because the reality for us is that there is only 24 hours a day. We can only do so much and none of us can do everything. You start with your big things, and you make those the first things on your list rather than the last things on your lists. You will accomplish more..."
"That failure has actually taught me so much about myself. Because I realized failing was not the end of the world. I thought dropping out of law school would have been the end of the world but instead it allowed me eventually to... find what my passion is, which is what I am doing now. But I would have never been doing what I am doing now if I finished law school. "
"Sometimes the process of trial and error, and the process of just putting yourself out there and trying new things allows you to find what you truly love and what you are truly passionate about."
"Keep doing the best that you can and you will be fine."
Personal habit: "Getting up early."
Easy meal: "I love breakfast for dinner. And freezer meals."
Possession: "Cheese slicer! Gouda."
Ruth's Favorite Books: " The Power of Habit by Charles Duhigg, Smarter Faster Better by Charles Duhigg, and Good to Great by Jim Collins"
Best advice received: "Everybody feels that way and we are all just making it up as we go along. And the best thing that you can do is just keep plugging away and keep making it up as you go along."
"My kids and my husband. Being able to do the work that I do. Being able to get up early in the morning and work at something that I love. Helping people along the way and making a difference in people's lives. "
"Take the Crushing It mini course."
Living Well Spending Less (Ruth's Website)
The Power of Habit by Charles Duhigg
Learn how to get out of the trees so you can see the forest by taking regular Mountain Moments throughout the day.
Have you ever ended the day by realizing everything you ate that day was all junkfood?! Cassie Piasecki had that experience and decided to change her life, get healthy and then start sharing her journey of health and wellness with others. Cassie created the Wheel of Wellness (WOW) nutrition program and has helped thousands of women to be their healthiest self. Cassie also has over 25 years of experience in the health and fitness industry, as a certified holistic health practitioner and teaching Pilates, indoor cycling, dance. She has taught fitness to over 10,000 people! She lives at the beach in Southern California with her husband Jack and 2 dogs and 22 old daughter who rarely comes home from the east coast.
"Physical fitness is the first requisite of happiness." - Joseph Pilates
"If I can get up in the morning, even it has to be really early, and get my body moving, I am always happier during the day."
"If I take care of myself, my health is good, my body is moving and relatively pain free at the age of 48, I can handle everything else pretty much with a smile on my face. "
"You can do anything for 3 weeks! You're a woman!"
"I quit the sugar, and I quit the gluten for 3 weeks. And within 7 days my moods leveled out. Within 2 weeks, my skin cleared up. And within 3 weeks, all of the things, like stomachaches that I thought were just because maybe I was stressed out or whatever, all went away. So, it was the combination of the sugar and the gluten.... So, after those 3 weeks, there was no way I was going to go back. I mean, I just felt and looked so much better that there was no way I was going to go back."
"The fact that I was not moody anymore, and I did not have to worry that I was going to spout off or, you know, get upset, my patience, just all of that, got so much better. That was a big enough reason for me to stay the course."
"I wanted other women my age to feel and look and act as wonderful as I found that I could eating a very whole foods, low sugar, low-processed food-type diet. I do not like to say diet, it is just a lifestyle."
"The first step is acknowledging that they just do not feel good. And stepping either on a scale or taking a look in their closet at all the clothes that used to fit and do not fit anymore. And just acknowledging, 'Hey, this is not working for me anymore, and I need to do something about it, and I need to do something that might take a little bit longer, but it is going to last a lifetime.'"
Personal habit: Exercise. "When I wake up first thing in the morning, I meditate. And get up and then I throw on some lycra, and I go and I work out."
Easy meal: "Spaghetti Squash. I cut it in half. And then I bake it and roast it in the oven. And then I put them in the refrigerator. And then, everyday for lunch, take the half of the spaghetti squash and fill it with whatever leftover vegetables I have. I just fill the center of the spaghetti squash with whatever I want. And it is so yummy!"
Possession: "A set of odd measuring spoons."
Cassie's Favorite Books: "The Dip by Seth Godin"
Best advice received: "If something is not working, it is okay to quit. There are some diets that you should quit."
"When I am done working out, and I eat a really good breakfast, and then I get to do one of three things. I either get to put on my bathing suit and go down to the beach, or I get to walk around Paris, France, or I get a message from my daughter that everything is going right in her world that day."
"The challenge is not to get them to eat less sugar today. The challenge is for them to add up how much sugar they eat over the course of 5 days. So, everyday, write down all the sugar that you eat. Even sugar from an apple. And see how much you are really consuming. And just sometimes that way of doing it is kind of a wake up call that you are consuming too much."
Free Guided Meditation from Jen
It's Me Cassie (Cassie's website)
The Wow Life (Wheel of Wellness) Program
Why the low points & hard times are a good thing...
In this episode Katie shares her story of overcoming the death of her mother, as well as living in one of the most isolated areas of the United States. This high-energy mom will inspire you with her stories of raising 4 boys and staying connected with other women.
Katie Dilse is feisty and spontaneous and loves to laugh. She is a business owner, wife of nearly 20 years, mother of four boys, farmer, and Big Rig driver. Katie inspires audiences around the nation with her heart-to-heart presentations focused on making the most of balancing the demands of work, the tugs on personal life, and community obligations. Katie was listed as one of the Top 40 under 40 business leaders in the Midwest. Katie lives in North Dakota with her husband Stewart and 4 boys.
"I am good enough because I am the daughter of a King."
"I learned to learn on my brothers and sisters and that we are each other, we are there for each other and that God will not abandon us. We felt abandoned that God took mom but that is not all that it was - God actually replaced her love through a deeper love for us to be united to Him. And realize that mom was a blessing to us on earth but there is so much that she can do from heaven for all of us."
"I very much struggle with loneliness because my fuel tank requires people. A new stimulation and interaction. And when you live where I do, you have to learn to seek that. So, once I became self aware enough to recognize that my heart needs to be filled with people and filled with interaction and I need new stimulation, I found ways to fuel that without feeling like I am a bad person because I required that. I struggled for that for a long time where now, it is like, 'No way, that is what juices me!'"
"I do things that just randomly stay connected with people often... And that is fueling me but I get to fuel their hearts too."
"That is how the ball rolls, that is really how I have learned to grow and improve by having enough self awareness inside."
"Whether you are in a small town like me or a big city, make sure your middle circle ties into what is the most important to you in your life. Whether that is the relationship with your family or maybe it is that relationship with you and your God and how much you love Him and if that can be in the circle in the middle, and all the other circles are coming together, that is what makes a happy, vibrant, beautiful woman. "
Personal habit: "I need to exercise every morning. It is super important for my mental game to get up and get moving. My other favorite personal habit is my nightly prayer. I need rest, I need my ritual of quiet time."
Easy meal: "I love noodles and marinara sauce."
Possession: Pampered Chef chopper.
Katie's Favorite Books: Daring Greatly by Brene Brown
Best advice received: "Those 20 minutes before the kids get home on the bus, I want you to make sure that you take time to sit down and really adjust your mind into becoming a mom. So that when they come home, I can just completely embrace them instead of being halfway into supper or into something I am doing... into the computer or switching laundry. I try to be there. I try to be right at the front entrance, greeting them with a hug and really sitting down to visit with them, to hear what has happened with their day."
"I am happiest when I allow others into my heart, and I surround myself with good people, and I listen to God."
"I would love if all of you took a little bit of time to make eye contact with a stranger, and make that stranger's day with your smile or with just one little compliment that you can give them. Because it will really, really make them feel loved. And if we feel more loved, when we live love and when we live with the conviction that we are a daughter of a King, we will live so happy, so vibrant and so full of zest."
Facebook: @KatieDilseSpeaks
Pinterest: @SpeakingofFun