Inspiration for the laundry room turns it into a secret retreat

I noticed that I was complaining a lot about doing the never-ending loads of laundry but, my griping wasn't getting me anywhere. I've been dreaming about the laundry fairy making a stop at our house for a long time. One day I finally woke up and faced the facts - I'm the laundry fairy. And, if your hubby is one of those that helps out with the laundry, treat him real well this Valentine's Day!

So, it was time to take serious action - I decided to bring some photo inspiration into my laundry room area. Adding fun and dreamy photos has changed the entire laundry space and my feelings around it. They take the focus away from the monotonous chore of doing laundry to being inspired by gorgeous photos of places and things I love! The self-portrait is by my 5 yo daughter, Ava :) The BIG smile just radiates sunshine! The photo of the boat on the beach is Maya Bay in Thailand (I'm an island girl at heart!). The trees standing tall in the meadow of yellow flowers is in Germany on Fehmarn Island. Of course, I completely drink my own kool-aid so love to have my goodies from the Inspiration Lounge store all around!

And, it's easy to do....

Materials: 2 magnetic strips or one big one

A few photos of places or things you love. I pulled a couple of gorgeous and dreamy photos from my Islands desktop calendar.

Fun art you have floating around the house. If you have kids, it's everywhere!

I will mail you a Breathe postcard if you like! Just send me your address through the contact form. 

Voila, a laundry room that has now become your secret retreat.

Click to explore more inspiring ideas for home decor and organizing tricks.

Make sure to visit MyInspirationLounge: a one-stop shop to find the best inspiration on the web, to help you create change in minutes!

Subscribe to InspireMail for a burst of fresh air in your inbox!

Inspiring music: Mary J. Blige and U2 get soul crazy singing One

I was digging through the best 90's songs and started to get nervous that I would be limited to Baby Got Back, Whoomp! There It Is or Total Eclipse of The Heart!! Songs better left for dancing to on a rainy day with your Wii and Just Dance!

Then I stumbled across One, a gem released by U2 in the 90's. You can't help but get charged up watching Mary J. Blige throw her soul into singing this song!

To continue honoring the greatest songs of all time, next week I will post one from 2000.

What is Inspiration Monday?  Inspiration Monday music videos help us kick our week off right and take our Monday's back! Music has a way of inspiring and lifting us up when we need it most!

Great song from the 80's: Girls Just Wanna Have Fun

Great song from the 70's: What's Going On, Marvin Gaye

Great song from the 60's: I'm A Believer played by the Monkees

Inspiration Monday music video greatest hits

Shhh.....

Misty's Note: This is a guest post from Lance who inspires it up at The Jungle of Life.

"The best cure for the body is a quiet mind" — Napoleon Bonaparte

Silence – how often do we really have it? The sounds of cars passing by, or television, or MP3 players, or phone calls, or computers, or a dog, or a lawn mower, or whatever else we have in our life that makes sound. Rarely do we have the opportunity for true quiet moments.

With all the "noise" in our lives, we can become numb to what our bodies and minds are trying to tell us. We can’t hear what they are saying. So what are the effects of this? The effects are that we don’t really come to know and understand ourselves. We continue to go through life without actively, and truely, deciding the direction we want to go.

I had an experience to attend a retreat a couple of years ago. One of the most moving moments for me was during the first evening at the retreat, where we were to spend the evening in silence from evening through the next morning. What a great lesson in the power of silence. During this time, I was able to reflect upon my life, and really think about what mattered to me. As we discussed the weekend after it was over, this moment was the most powerful for me. This was powerful, because it had happened so rarely for me before this. And I was able to begin really knowing who I was.

But how often do we do this in our regular lives? We can caught up in our everday tasks, and pretty soon the day has turned into night, or Sunday into Saturday, or January into December. And we continue on, doing what we’ve always done, letting our lives be determined by others.

Find time to have quiet moments in your life. These are reflective times where you get to know yourself better. And in doing this, you will lead a more fulfilled life.

********************

More inspiring thoughts:

Great book read: Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Society

Life is Short

Have you yapped with your yoni lately?

Cards for Valentines Day worthy of framing

Kiss Me Card by Corella Design

Click to read more ...

Wear RED to help fight heart disease in women, the #1 killer

A GO RED magnet at ShopHeart.org

National Wear Red Day is tomorrow, February 5th! Show your support for the fight against heart disease in women by wearing red. It’s an easy, powerful way to raise awareness of cardiovascular disease and stroke. The #1 and #3 killer for women! Cancer is #2. At Mayo Clinic, here's a very useful post on Preventing The Top 10 Threats 

A few eye-opening facts you might not know about heart disease...

Click to read more ...