Is it Tuesday? Where has the last week gone?

Is it Tuesday already?? The last week has been filled with just hanging out and doing much of nothing. Well, not completely nothing.. Let me take a look at the calendar so I can remember :)

Shane went out to his Elder's Quorum Presidency Meeting on Wednesday evening. I relaxed at home.

Well, I have been back to researching for german shepherds. I also helped a couple from church - the Gauderets find a possible GSD for their family. I had a feeling to contact Alpenhof Kennels and Occa is available to them. (V Occa vom Kirschental HGH KKL1 Lebenszeit "a" normal ZW 81)
She's a beautiful, fantastic girl and should make a great addition to their home. With her title in herding, she'll probably focus on rounding up the children.

Of course, Heidi is still in heat for another week and a half. Messy, messy. But she is a patience girl, hanging out in the kitchen. I'll be contacting Bill and Joanne Randall - our co-oweners, afterwards to see where we are at in terms of getting her championship or if we will purchase her outright this fall. I get our passports too as I'd like to take a trip down to Leader Dogs for the Blind in Michigan that we will be working with for our future puppies this early fall.(Did I say Fall? Is it coming already?)

I also spent time freezing up some broccoli, cauliflower and peaches. yummmm.

Sunday was church. We have been bringing some families that are newly here from Nepal and Bhutan. It was sooooooo hot that day. And steamy. Shane did some home-teaching later on with his new companion Br. Staniforth. In the evening, we had quite the lightning and thunder storm. It was so humid that our bathroom floor refused to stay dry and we had to take out the battery in our fire alarm because the humidity kept making it go off. So we finally had a real dose of southern Ontario summer. The humidex made it feel like in the 40's. (Celsius). Yesterday was a little cooler and this morning is nice.

We were upset yesterday with some news but hopefully it's settled. I used some prayer and meditation, walking, talking to help relieve some of the stress. Below are some good techniques I use when I am really stressed (these copied articles are from realage.com but I knew about them before):

Meditation Tool
Meditation may help control your vagus nerve, and controlling that sucker can help improve everything from your memory to your immune system.

So carve out a little time each day to meditate. Before bed is a good time, or when you feel stress is starting to get the better of you.

How to Meditate
The goal here is to clear your mind of all thoughts. Yep, all of ‘em.

The first step: Silence. Find a quiet place where you can sit comfortably without being disturbed.

Step two: Close your eyes. You don’t have to do this to meditate -- some people like to focus on an object -- but closing your eyes may help you stay focused, especially when you’re just beginning.

To help clear your mind, pick a simple word…and repeat it to yourself over and over. Slowly -- there’s no rush. Savor the word until it fills your mind. Why? Focusing on one word helps keep distracting thoughts -- like your to-do list -- from seeping into your gray matter and stressing you out.

Over time, you’ll develop your own personal focus and style of meditating, so try to figure out what works best for you. Remember the objective is to search for a path that gives you comfort and offers an opening that allows you to find deeper meaning in life. So whether you focus on breathing, a prayer, or the inside of your eyelids, try to squirrel away at least 5 minutes of silence every day. (What works for me is prayer, a line or two from a favourite uplifting hymn or song, focusing on the nature around me, imagining myself in some nature spot I’d like to be right at that moment from my past or one I would like in the future or a made up one)

Take 10 . . . and Breathe
Aim for 10 deep breaths in the morning, 10 at night, and as many as you need in between to help relieve stress. Here’s how to do them:

Lie on your back, flat on the floor, with one hand on your belly and one hand on your chest. Lying on the floor at first when you practice is important, because if you stand up, you’re more likely to fake a deep breath by doing an exaggerated chest extension, rather than letting your lungs fill up naturally.

Take a deep breath in -- slowly.

Imagine your lungs filling up with air; it should take about 5 seconds to inhale. As your diaphragm pulls down your chest cavity, your belly button should move away from your spine as your lungs fill with air. Your chest may also widen and rise ever so slightly as you inhale.

When your lungs feel full, exhale slowly -- taking about 7 seconds to let all the air out. (I personally have done this standing or anywhere if I have been really stressed and it really, really works!)

Focus on your muscles. By tensing and relaxing your muscles, you can help relieve some of the physical stress that’s stored in your body. Start at the bottom: Tense the muscles of your feet and then relax them. Tense and relax the different muscle groups of your body one at a time -- your legs, stomach, back, neck, arms, face, and head. And breathe.