The new year - lots of people have resolved to get healthy and fit. To keep up the momentum, we all need positive re-enforcement, and women are tempted to sneak a little treat, or a big one, like ice cream, chocolate, a bag of Oreos (hey, I was really good for two weeks!)You can choose from 14 ways to reward yourself without calories or guilt.

Set personal goals to demonstrate to yourself how much progress you’re making. Each time you reach a goal, reward yourself. Here’s a list of fourteen things you can give yourself that won’t sabotage your good intentions.

1. If it has to be food, find a healthy and fit recipe for a sumptuous dessert that isn’t loaded with calories.
2. Buy yourself a new handbag or tote bag. Always a cool feeling.
3. Go to a movie with a friend who absolutely shares your taste.
4. Buy some new music, slap on headphones, and listen to the album all the way through.
5. Buy a new sweater - bright, warm, and natural fabric.
6. Get a new coffee cup that’s 100% only for you. A big one.
7. Go out and play - find a venue that provides everything you need for an afternoon of noodling around. Our community has a little ceramic shop where you buy a piece, rent a table space, and paint your chosen item. They fire it and call you a few days later when it’s done.
8. Find a set of colored pencils, paint, or chalk and create something colorful.
9. Do the proverbial bubble bath with all the accoutrements.
10. Shut off the phones, lock the door and meditate or do creative visualization in total silence.
11. Put fresh flowers on your desk or work space or table. Bury your nose in them and breathe deeply.
12. Take a day off. Don’t work. Don’t clean. Don’t make calls. Rest. Relax.
13. Spend half a day in the park, reading a wonderful book.
14. Take a nap in silky pajamas.

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Feel this good at home.

The doldrums of winter - a blah time for everyone once the holidays are gone, winter has set in, and chances are the kids have colds or are whiny. You have cabin fever. TV is a vast wasteland - and you don’t give rat’s patoot about Jay Leno, O’Brien, or Daly. Here’s my recipe for an instant spa in a pretty little tin - a way to feel better:

I got a sample tin of Clear Mind Balm from my Twitter friends at Badger Balm. They had me when I read the ingredients:

Extra virgin olive oil, beeswax, essential oils of lemon, rosemary, grapefruit, cardamom, calendula, rosehip, and ginger.

The tin is a beautiful warm pink shade and the aroma is deep and inspiring. The company advises that it’s for clarity and focus. They call it portable aroma therapy and that’s what it is. I used half a tin in about a week. I kept stroking it on my writs, sniffing, and saying, “Ahhhh.” You can try  Badger Balm Headache & Clear Mind Duet Set if you’re interested.

I used it on my cuticles - a continuous problem in the winter. I dabbed it under my nose and my three-year old grandson’s when we had the sniffles together.

What about the spa part?

Assemble a nice candle. A relaxation video or CD. I used a CD called Celtic Spirit Meditations - a true journey that took me out of my living room and into the Ages. Headphones. A cup of scented tea -  Ginger Lemon Grass Tea by The Republic of Tea?

Sit in a cozy, soft chair in a warm room.

Mix all the assembled ingredients to your taste and do what you will with them. After 30 minutes or so, you’ll feel like a new woman. Do it again tomorrow. Blessings on you.

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On Twitter New Year’s Eve, someone said, and I’m paraphrasing, “Just reviewed my 2009 New Year’s resolutions, and I have five hours to lose nine pounds, put $5000 in savings, and find a better job.” Women tend to make more resolutions than men do, but are we just putting a bunch of pressure on ourselves?

I used to make resolutions - I thought you had to. I couldn’t keep them. They parrotted what the media seemed to think I should resolve - get htinner, get prettier, find a man, dump a man, work more — that kind of thing. Made me feel a bit Briget Jones-ish.

Now, at my advances baby boomer age, I know these things”

• If I want to change, I prefer to make small changes, quietly, day by day, as I feel the need.
• I like myself pretty much exactly the way I am (I realize that’s an odd construction, but it’s how I feel).
• I’m too busy enjoying what I’m doing to try to make myself over.
• Life changes you. You don’t have to change you. 
• I never negotiate my truths anymore, and if my truths don’t meet others’ expectations, I’ll survive, and so will they.

So, that in mind my New Year’s resolutions for the auspicious year 2010 are the following:

1. I resolve to be as healthy and wholesome as I wish to be.
2. My time will be spent doing things that give me a sense of pleasure, peace, accomplishment, centeredness, and joy.
3. I will treasure and value my family, loving them unconditionally.
4. I will sing, often, no matter what the neighbors say.
5. I will make sure to observe and honor the first day that spring happens - and each day that unfolds it.
6. I will not apologize for enjoying television programs - the few that are worth enjoying.
7. I’ll read more.
8. I won’t go out when the temperature is below 20 degrees F.
9. I’ll give and get lots of hugs.
10. I’ll enjoy the bounty the Earth gives us and do something to protect Her.

Just writing these down made me feel awesomely powerful and fulfilled. Ain’t life grand?

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