Here is my newest installation of Refresh Daily Rewind, where we get back to the basics of activating our creative center. In this video, our topic turns to the Heart. From my  sincerely refreshed heart to yours! 

I also wanted to show how the main featured top has the cut outs by the collar, the red tank I layered with as well as the necklace I chose for the jewelry enhancement (an Avon selection gifted to me by my sister) of this particular outfit.  I love red for its vibrancy so I wanted to accentuate the reds in the top with the tank and the necklace. I'm also wearing earrings that match the necklace not shown in the photo above. 

Now it's YOUR TURN! 

Journaling Prompt:
What kind of colors inspire you? Are they vibrant, bright and fun? Or are they more subdued, interesting and mysterious? Do you have these inspiring colors in YOUR wardrobe? What do these colors speak to you? What kind of action do they inspire in you? What Creative expression can you initiate with these colors? 

Art Journaling Prompt:
Take the same colors that inspire you and feature them especially in your next art journal spread to honor your preferences and show what they speak to you, either in cut out letters, stamped quotes, or a doodle dedication to all colors that you love and why you love them. 

Remember to give yourself permission to try some new combinations in your wardrobe. You never know what will make you feel absolutely fabulous! 

@2015 by Dawn Herring
@2015 Images by Dawn Herring
@2015 Header by Dawn Herring

Here is another installment of Refresh Daily Rewind video series with a focus on the unexpected and creativity. Journaling and Art Journaling prompts are offered. 

I love going for walks in my neighborhood. Although, right now, it is the middle of summer (in Texas), so I do try to get out earlier so I'm not dealing too much with the summer heat. BUT my walks are very important to me for several reasons. For one, it IS exercise! Yay! I enjoy being active, even if it's just a short time to get my legs moving. I also know it's important to get out into nature; it's a refreshment that I know I truly enjoy. But one of the most recent reasons I've wanted to go on my walk is to practice Staying Present. 

When I first started walking in this neighborhood (which was just last year after a major move), I was so taken with the tree-lined streets, that I was fully absorbed whenever I would go out. And any nature-based action was just icing on the cake. Such as listening to and recording my local mocking birds with their delightful song, sometimes several of them going at the same time! 

 I would also be taken with the appearance of any mocking birds, whether directly on homes, on fences, on mailboxes or anywhere else they might be perched. Plus squirrels would often end up in the mix, especially when one would check me out and pose for pictures! Yes, all of these fun nature friends would keep me occupied while getting my footsteps in. 

But in the past couple of weeks, I have noticed myself getting lost in thought, staying in my head, instead of being fully present with what was going on around me. So I decided to really pay attention to why I might be getting distracted from my surroundings. I suppose I could just be getting used to where I go, so I'm not paying as much attention. 

I often find myself thinking too hard about whatever project I might be working on, or maybe a conversation I had with someone, or what my next blog post would be about! Ha! (In other words, I'm sometimes thinking about YOU, Dear Reader!) 

What is one to do about Staying Present?

I'm making it a point to notice when I drift off into my head and Get back to center after I've clarified whatever point I was trying to make or problem I was trying to solve and move on to my surroundings once more. 

I think it's all about awareness. Most of us don't even realize when we are lost in thought or when we're not really paying attention to what's going on around us. It's as if we're on auto-pilot. Not exactly fun and certainly not Present! 

It also helps to Look Up...into the trees, listening for bird song and being very deliberate about where I put my attention. I also sometimes think about my feet and the process of walking itself (something else we usually do on auto-pilot). 

Where we focus can make all the difference in helping us Stay Present. 

Journaling Prompt:
Describe the last activity you did on auto-pilot. How did you feel about that task afterwards?
Now describe the last activity you did when you were fully present? What do you remember about what you did and how you felt as you engaged in this activity? Would you do it again? Did you find it more enjoyable than the task you did on auto-pilot? Why do you think you focused more on the latter activity as opposed to the first activity? How best do you Stay Present? 

Art Journaling Prompt:
What color is helping you stay present right now? Use it in an art journal spread and listen to what that color says to you. What image is helping you stay present right now? Use that image as a focal point in this art journal spread and determine what that image is saying to you right now. Use that message and either cut out letters to spell it out or stamp with with alpha stamps. Or doodle it with markers and pens. 

You can also use the words, Stay Present or Staying Present, and use that as your focal point. 

Stay Focused and Pay Close Attention to what helps you Stay Present. And Honor it in your life in whatever way keeps you centered and aligned with Who You Are. 

@Copyright 2015 By Dawn Herring
@Copyright 2015 Photo Images By Dawn Herring
@Copyright 2015 Doodle Header Image by Dawn Herring  

Here is my first video in my new series, Refresh Daily Rewind: Getting Back to the Basics of Activating Your Creative Center. I pose a question about what you're paying attention to and offer a journaling exercise with the purpose of helping you create a greater awareness of what matters to you. 

 I  wanted to share a Fabulous Find of mine that I had been looking for in the last couple of years. Yes, it took that long, considering how picky I am about design, color/fabric and price. For the past few years, I used a tote I purchased at Walmart for $10. You can see it at the left. It has a couple of pockets and a zippered section and the rest is all open. It worked well for me until I added a journal to the mix. Then it felt like chaos reigned in my purse! I seriously needed some organization. 

So I was on the lookout for a new handbag that would help me get organized--you know, a place for everything. I would notice handbags that stood out to me which pretty fabrics and larger sizes when out and about. I noticed the ones I liked the most were Vera Bradley bags. Then a friend recommended I sign up for Zulilly  which hosts fabulous finds for great prices. So I signed up and waited patiently for Vera Bradely to be featured. 

Well, I FINALLY found what I was looking for! Yay! 

Again, I was picky about design, structure and price. I got this bargain for $30; it has sections to keep everything organized with zippered and pocket areas. It's absolutely perfect. 

I wanted to emphasize to you the importance of honoring your preferences (based on whatever budget you follow, of course). I saw many bags with colors and patterns that didn't suit me. 
Here's a list of what I didn't want:
Paisley
Dark backgrounds 
No organizing sections
Totes 
Backpacks
Too small or too large

Here's a list of what I DID want:
Vibrant colors like turquoise, gold, orange, and reds
Organizing sections with pockets
Large florals

It does take patience to find what you want when you're picky like me, but I still found it and now that I have it, it was worth the wait. Honoring your preferences is a way of appreciating yourself for Who You Are and What You Love. And not thinking you should like what everyone else is buying. Sometimes what you love may be hard to find. Keep looking until you hit the jackpot! Then Celebrate!

Journaling Prompt: 
List the qualities of something you really like that you've been looking for. Get as detailed as possible and express why these qualities are important to you. No detail is too silly or minor or dismissed. The more, the better! This is a way to see deeper into who you are and why you like what you like.  

Art Journal Prompt:
Get an image or draw an image of what you are looking for right now and use it as a focal point in a journal spread. Cut out words or doodle the qualities you love about what you want. And when you get it, celebrate with another spread focusing on your happiness and how you feel now that your desire has been met. 

Copyright 2015 Dawn Herring 
Copyright 2015 Images by Dawn Herring 

Ah, Summertime! Swimming, BBQs, Ice cream, family and friends. And did I mention Swimming??

I wanted to tell my dear readers about a very special place that I frequented that I hold very dear in my heart that was the center of as many summers as I can remember; it was called Terrace Lake. Just thinking about what it used to be makes me smile and sigh at the same time. 

The Sigh is due to the fact that Terrace Lake as it once was no longer exists; it is now full of condos. No more monkey bars, or gorgeous shady trees, or picnic tables ready for lunches or dinners to cook on the Habachi grill. 

Of course, the Lake itself is still there, being preserved. But the 25 foot high slide, the middle slide as I termed it, and the children's slide are no longer there. 

But the MEMORIES, oh they remain embedded in my brain! From the hot black streets that stung the bottoms of my feet since I didn't have my flip flops on coming from the beach after a long, fun swim with friends to the warm metal of the monkey bars I sat on as I chatted with my companions. 

I can still see my Dad putting chicken on the grill, trying not to burn it on the outside while cooking it thoroughly on the inside. YUM! Then there were the homemade batches of macaroni salad and potato salad Mom would make as well as the Tupperware containers in orange and green with the middles you would press to the get the air out, full of potato chips and pretzels. 

And of course Mom would put down the checkered table cloth with the metal brackets so it wouldn't fly off in the wind. 

We always took the same picnic area toward the back of the Lake grounds where there was less foot traffic. Dad would bring his folding chair and sit to read the newspaper he brought. 

Once our place was set up for the day, we'd head to the beach, where Mom turned on her Oldies station on her portable radio, as she sat in the shade, crocheting her latest project to keep her hands busy, sitting in her beach chair close to the sandy ground. 

My favorite activity at Terrace Lake was the swimming, of course. It was always fun to dive under water and stand on my hands while plugging my nose to keep the water out. 

Then there was the times Dad would teach me how to dive off the diving board, keeping my feet together, which I tried to do so many times...and he would applaud my efforts. 

Once the swimming was done for the day and dinner arrived, I'd pull out my activity bag full of books to read, or my art notebook filled with paper and images to draw. Sometimes I'd bring my recorder and play music. 

On Saturdays, when our friends came too, we'd play fun card games till the sun went down and enjoy lots of laughter and suspense, with a game called Clothespins. Keep an eye on those cards to get four in a row, but if you don't grab a clothes pin after the first person does, you might be left without one! Yikes, don't get your fingers smashed in the attempt! Ha! 

Oh yes, in the good ole summertime, when fireflies come out to play, when the Sunday School Picnic comes to town with those wonderful foods at the vendors where you have to buy tickets to get what you want. 
And the pavilion where we hung out when a thunder storm arrived but we didn't want to leave...we'd just wait til it blew over...

Terrace Lake was my summer time gift to play and face my fears (that high slide!) and have fun with friends and make awesome memories buried in my heart. And speaking of hearts, I remember bringing my hubby when he was still my boyfriend to the Lake for dinner after he worked all day. 

Yes, my memories stretch many years of fun, food, friends, family, and a far reaching love for my man that continues 26 years later. 

Thanks, Terrace Lake, for everything (and for the parents who paid for my membership!). It's been real and you'll always have a special place in my heart. (Sniff.)

Journaling Prompt:
Detail the atmospheric loves of your summer haven, whether at home or in another location bringing yourself back in time to sweet summer memories. What stands out the most to you? What pleasures did you find there? Honor your preferences by detailing what you loved the most. 

Art Journal prompt:
Dedicate a spread to your summer haven, using color, text and image in whatever form pleases you that captures the essence of the place, even if it's just in your mind. Enjoy the visceral feeling you may experience as you attempt to capture that sense of safety and pleasure a haven can bring. 

Copyright 2015 by Dawn Herring
Copyright 2015 Header Graphic by Dawn Herring Collection