today, i am...

heart path . penrose state park, wa

today, i am giving myself the space:

to eat hot biscuits right from the oven while standing at the kitchen sink
to not get to all the emails quite yet
to sit with the beauty that was hosting five retreats this year
to rest during ellie's naptime
to tuck this real, true poem right inside the pocket of my heart 
to listen to music with my eyes closed
to know that it doesn't have to be perfect 
to remember to choose love 

the re-entry part is a bit different each time. this time it has included a pretty thick layer of exhaustion combined with such profound, deep gratitude. i can still hear their laughter and stories and brave truth sharing and silliness. i am sitting with the memories and unpacking them a bit at a time as i also rest and honor all that has been and all that is to come.

more soon...

*****

Create Space is an online experience that invites you to give yourself the gift of being present in this moment. During this four-week course, you will slow down, take a deep breath with intention, and notice what you need. Through video and audio lessons, stories, writing and photography prompts, and weekly creative adventure assignments, we will explore self-care and being-present practices to use in your everyday life.

Come along this fall and connect with the space within you that houses your true nature. Find out more here.   

mingle and other good things

a glimpse into article about Be Present Retreats in the new, fantastic Mingle magazine

I am delighted to share that the article shown above is in the current issue of Mingle magazine. It is written by my dear friend Jenna McGuiggan, and she beautifully captures the feel of these retreats with her words as she shares about the 2011 Pen & Paper Retreat. (Thank you Jenna!) And the photos (oh those photos!) taken by Vivienne McMaster and Kate Inglis are gorgeous. A big thanks to all, including Christen Olivarez of Stampington. I hope you will head to your local bookstore and find a copy (or order one here). 

In this moment, I am in the midst of the Create Magic Retreat, and again, I find myself so steeped in gratitude to be doing this work. Truly looking forward to sharing more in a few days...

Coming in 2012

I am also working on the retreats for 2012. My partner in crime Kelly Barton is getting used to me saying to her first thing each the morning here at Frog Creek Lodge, "I had another brainstorm...." We are really coming up with some juicy ideas for the 2012 season. My current plan is to send out a newsletter late next week that will include dates and sneak peeks of several of next year's retreats. The best way to get a heads up about future retreats and workshops (along with Etsy shop news and other happy things) is to sign up for the newsletter.

Hope your day is full of light and wonder in your corner of the world...

Liz

a september afternoon at the fair

words

words written on a window . susan wooldridge workshop . fall 2010 be present retreat 
(steal a few and write your own poem. dare you.) 

A year ago, I was in the midst of the Fall Be Present Retreat while being days away from Ellie Jane's open-heart surgery. A year ago, I sat in a room in Frog Creek Lodge surrounded by so many souls living with their hearts wide open, souls who would teach me so much, souls who would become friends. A year ago, a dear friend came along on the retreat to support me and take care of Ellie Jane. A year ago, I had no idea what the first few weeks in October might bring. A year ago, I wrote these words during Susan Wooldridge's poetry workshop.

*****

parched bones

outside, i am a tree's sturdy blueprint
inside, i am a swollen canyon of january choices

outside, i am a balanced seasaw of chocolate happiness
inside, i am shattering, shifting parched bones

outside, i am a mute, screeching fire 
inside, i am sunlight's twirling laughter

inside, i am breath
i am space
i am light

*****

I am over here getting ready for Create Magic, the last Be Present Retreat this year. As I was bustling about a few minutes ago looking for safety pins in the random places they might be hanging out in this messy wondrous house of ours, I came across this poem written on the back of a page from a draft of one of Susan's writing projects. It was tucked in a drawer that was also housing receipts from 2009 and 2010 (don't tell the new accountant), adorably small pink tags I used for price tags when doing craft shows a few years back, polka dotted ribbon, a scale for mail, random bits of tissue paper, about $10 in change, safety pins, and a few other "why do I still have this?" little things.

And before I head off to bed, I just really need to tell someone this: I love poetry. Big.

september through the instagram lens

a peek into the last 30 days through a few of my instagram photos. i think i once said i would never need an iphone. ahem. love being able to so easily document our world over here using it. 

(you can find me on instagram as lizelayne.)

simple ::one bead:: necklaces {in the shop}

new simple one bead necklaces for layering now in the shop

While working on orders over the weekend, I decided to create a new simple necklace for myself. Something in a favorite color that I could wear all the time (and maybe not ever take off); something that would lend itself to layers when I want to wear one of Kelly's girls or a necklace by Jen or something by my other dear friend Jen or my current favorite necklace by Nina or one of my own soul mantra lockets (or all of them layered); something that would remind me of beauty and joy and make me smile.

So I pulled out this blue bead because this shade of blue makes me so very happy, and I created a simple "one bead" necklace. And after wearing it for several days and falling more in love with it, I thought I would add a few like it to the shop. Five colors are available at this time (two blues, green, purple amethyst, and red), but if you see a bead in the shop that you would love on a simple necklace like this, send me a note and we can talk about it. 

Please note: I will be closing the shop on October 3 for about ten days or so while I get ready for and host the Create Magic Retreat. When the shop reopens, my plan is to have a bit of a reorganization of things, including a few new locket designs and a plan for holiday season custom orders. If you have questions while I am away, just send a note as I will be replying to emails as I can.

Thanks for your continued support of my little shop. I am so blessed to be able to do this work...

Blessings and light,

Liz

::we stood::

puyallup fair . september 24, 2011 . instagram iphone photo

on saturday, as we stood in the midst of the laughter and the bright hot sun and the elephant ears and the sheep and the chickens and the rainbows of color everywhere and the root beer floats and the "you must try these oh my goodness they really are that good" scones, i suddenly could feel summer saying good-bye.

i want to remember how this summer pushed me to let go and open my heart to joy.

create space (the online experience)

I have been up to a little something over here and I am so delighted to tell you all about it...

Create Space is an online experience that invites you to give yourself the gift of being present in this moment of your life. During this four-week course, you will slow down, take a deep breath with intention, and notice what you need. Through video and audio lessons, stories, writing and photography prompts, and weekly creative adventure assignments, we will explore self-care and being-present practices to use in your everyday life.

Some of the topics we will explore include:

• Creating internal space through accessible meditation and being-present practices that will help you find your breath, sink into your body, and quiet your mind. We will spend time discovering our personal soul mantra phrases and connecting to the heart space within us.
• Creating sacred space within our homes through gathering the treasures, inspirations, and words that speak to where we are on our journeys. We will look at ways to create small altar spaces to honor who we are, where we have been, and where we want to walk next on our paths.
• Creating space for ourselves throughout our days with writing practices, getting out into the world for short creative adventures, and using our cameras to capture who we are and what we find in this moment.

We will explore ways to integrate these practices into our day-to-day lives, and I will share stories about the ways I do this in my corner of the world. Note that this class is more about the experience of slowing down and noticing than it is about lots of homework and “doing.” That said, along the way I will gently encourage you to work through the lessons in the course so that you can give yourself the gift of using these practices as you walk through autumn (or spring) toward the holidays.

Additional details:

Dates: Create Space begins October 24 and ends November 20.

Where: The course will be hosted on a private blog and private Flickr group. The course will stay up on the blog until December 31 to give participants time to soak up the information. The Flickr group will be available indefinitely for continued connection after the course ends.

Lessons: There will be three main posts per week on the private blog plus downloadable audio meditations, inspiration and resources, and other goodies along the way. Participants will have the opportunity to ask questions and check in about their experience during our time together. 

Supplies needed:

• Journal/notebook
• A camera (any camera is fine, including a camera phone, but if you use film, you will want to be able to scan the photos to share in our Flickr group)
• A Flickr membership
• An additional supply list will be shared after you register for the course. This list will include items you might want to gather before our time together that we will use as we create sacred space in our homes. More than likely you will have these items on hand, but I will also supply a resource list of my favorites. 

Cost: $70

Register: 

• Registration has begun! To participate in the Create Space online experience, click the PayPal button below.
• Your confirmation email from PayPal confirms your spot in the class.
• Within a few days of your registration, I will send you a welcome email that includes a resource list.
• Note that I will use your PayPal email address to communicate with you. If you prefer that I use another email address, let me know when you register or via an email to liz [dot] lamoreux @ gmail [dot] com (or click here to email through this website).

Questions:

Feel free to email me any questions.