(photo by Extra Medium)

The best things in life are worth waiting for. Really.

A few synchronicities conspired to inspire me to write about this now.

These include:

1. A quote that recently swam through my  twitter stream: “Sometimes the problem has to mature before the solution can mature.” – Kent Beck
2. The New Moon (in Virgo) that’s arriving on Wednesday, September 8 at 3:30 am PDT: Astrologer Anne Ortelee says that NOW is the time to get crystal clear and launch those projects that are very close to your heart. (They won’t fully  culminate until December 2012, though,so be patient)
3. When I face some important matters pertaining to my career, my relationships, my next steps (my heart), I receive the inner guidance: Don’t act. Just WAIT.

And I can’t help but wonder, does anyone really have the patience to wait anymore?

We place linear, consistent progress on a pedastool.  Think snow plows and bull dozers. They keep at it, rain or shine, day or night, regardless what’s in the way. (My yoga teacher jokes: “It’s no coincidence that men created snowplows!”) No offense, men. They’re a great a great invention and I’m grateful. But so are labrynths–circular, unpredictable, intelligently nonsensical journeys to the center.

What would it mean to value patience, deep listening, and trusting in our own unique creative rhythms–even at risk of seemingly “falling behind”?

I’ve felt this in a really pronounced way this summer. Having chosen to drastically step back from most of my endeavors–personal and professional– to finish my manuscript, I watch others launching, sharing, moving forward. It makes me feel uncomfortable–like I’m missing out on something. Like I’m falling behind… Read Full Post

As a teacher, meditator, yogini, perpetual student, business woman, sister, daughter, mentor, and friend, taking time out for retreat and study is not optional. It’s essential. In fact, I can assure you that there’s no way I would be here doing what I’m doing if I didn’t make these “time outs” a priority.  They feed my body and soul, and, in turn, they benefit everyone around me (including you!). In fact, I think that regular retreats are crucial for all of us to be healthy, happy, and sane.

Why? Stress levels today are higher than ever before in the history of humankind. And, sadly, they’re only going up. Unless you’ve chosen to live unplugged and off the grid, you’re constantly bombarded by e-mails, tweets, texts, phone calls, pings, IM’s, facebook messages, and more. It’s now a challenge to be alone, much less to be quiet and face the wise mirrors of our own bodies and minds.  When we succumb to the continual onslaught of information and interruptions, stress hormones constantly flood our blood streams. We lose site of who we truly are and how to be guided by our inner wisdom. As a result we suffer from exhaustion, weight gain, depression, anxiety, and ultimately, disease.

It’s time to get savvy with our stress. To safeguard ourselves from the continual stimuli and to take responsibility for our own sanity.

The best way to do that is to take regular “time outs” to rest, recharge, unplug, and just be.  Lately I’ve been inspired by some colleagues who have taken “Read Full Post

(photo credit: margrett:) )

My love affair with an all-women’s learning environment started out luke warm and quickly heated up to a full-on boil. While I had grown up with 3 sisters–collectively known as “The Four Sisters”– (and a slew of female pets), it all really started in August of 1999 when I stood alone on the curb of 116th Street and Broadway in New York City’s Upper West Side. I was just outside the gates of my new home for the next four years: Columbia University’s all women’s undergraduate school, Barnard College.

My mom, who had helped me get moved in, had just driven off. A feeling of dread lingered like a brick in my belly as I watched her station wagon disappear in a sea of traffic. The dread of change, of heading back up to the 8th floor of my freshman year dorm to face not one–but two–new roommates. The dread of starting over.

But things shifted quickly.

Orientation and all the silly games that it entails as well as an exciting line up of fall semester classes (plus Manhattan’s never relenting excitement), swept me up with fresh passion and curiosity. The best part, however, was that I was in classrooms and on a campus surrounded by some of the brightest, boldest women I had ever met.

Some had purple hair, others had pink hair, some looked like they stepped out of the pages of Vogue magazine. These women wore anything they wanted, spoke what was on their minds, and inspired me to do the same. We had powerful alumnae like Anna Quindlen, Margaret Mead, Twyla Tharp, and Martha Stewart ahead of us, shining the light to how we could change the world–as women.

During… Read Full Post

“And by the way, everything in life is writable about if you have the outgoing guts to do it, and the imagination to improvise. The worst enemy to creativity is self-doubt.“

~ Sylvia Plath

“The uniqueness that allows us to be creative is also the place where we stand absolutely alone and are, therefore, most vulnerable“.

~Martha Beck

“A novel is often a longer process in handling self-doubt. “

~ Robert Sheckley

Confession: this has been a hard week for me. And it feels really good to admit it.

This morning I had a coaching call with one of my yogini clients. I’m guiding her through a big creative professional project that she’s in the thick of this summer. During our talk today she revealed that she’s welling up with self doubt: “Who am I to do this?”, “I’m not good enough,” “No one’s going to like it”…and on and on the tape plays.

Sound familiar?

Yeah, I thought so. It does to me, too.

As she shared with me her vulnerabilities, I couldn’t help but smile. Not because I want her to suffer, but because I have been going through the very same things this week–and I told her so.

She felt so relieved, and suprised–saying she always got the impression that I had a handle on it all.  Wrong!

Since  I was so shocked that she was shocked, I thought it would serve all of us if I let you in on what’s true for me right now, which is that I’m coming up against some very old, limiting beliefs… Read Full Post

Anyway, I thought you might like to know that there’s a huge summer sale going on there right now (40% off until July 30th). All you need to do is go to their website, shop for what you want, and then at checkout enter the coupon code “SUMMERTIME.”

I just stocked up on a few choice items from my “wish list” (see one of those in the picture on the left)–it’s a tremendous deal! I absolutely adore her clothing–the softest and most versatile I have ever worn. Plus, they’re perfect for travel (hardly take up any space, can wear them in many different ways).

Here’s some more info about TranquiliT (from their website):

1. All of our products are made of rayon made from organic bamboo. The bamboo that is used in the process is a fast-growing native species that is entirely renewable.

2. All TranquiliT pieces are sweatshop free and sewn in the USA.

3. TraquiliT donates a percentage of profits to Tranquil Space Foundation which brings yoga, creativity, and leadership to women and girls.

4. A tree is planted for every shipment that is sent out to help offset carbon emissions from the delivery process.

5. We will be offering an eco “shipping package turns to tote” option at the checkout process shortly. This new mailer can be turned inside out after the shipping process to be used as a canvas tote (made of recycled content), eliminating all waste from our shipping process and allowing you to have a lovely reusable tote for all your shopping excursions.

… Read Full Post

I think that every woman deserves the same. Our menses are a time for rejuvenation and tapping into our inner wisdom. It’s not a time to be exercising vigorously, cooking for our families, or buzzing around town doing errands. We need to use these days to stay home and slow down; for a major ingredient in women’s happiness is making sure we’re well rested. When our batteries hit “low” we’re of no use to ourselves, much less to others.

Here’s a mini yoga practice that any woman can do during her moon time. I’ve chosen the two essential postures that will help you to rest and ensure a healthy menstrual flow. They’re practical–meaning you can do them at work during your lunch break, when your children are napping, or on your bed before you go to sleep at night. No previous yoga experience is required!

I hope that they serve you to recharge during your moon time; and, as always, leave a comment below to let me know how it goes!

The behind-the-scenes magic making at the Way of the Happy Woman™ wouldn’t be possible without the generous service and enthusiasm of several key players. Since I know many of you interact with these angels in various ways, I wanted to give you a chance to get to know them on more of a personal level. Over the next couple of months I’ll introduce them all to you, but this week we’ll start with Anna.

Anna Hanson joined the team in March; and she’s responsible for all the TLC in the orders that we ship to members of our community around the world–from the Yoga for PMS CDs, to the Women’s Yoga Kits, to the I Love My Body Kits. She’ll be helping out more in the coming months, too.

Aside from her involvement with TWOTH community, Anna works primarily as an actor in both musical theatre and film. While she has done yoga off an on for about ten years, she truly tapped into her love of yoga only a few years ago.  She is so thankful to be a part of the Way of the Happy Woman Team™ and tries to live the life of a happy woman every day.

SARA: Where do you live and why did you choose to live there?

ANNA: I have just recently moved from Boulder, Colorado to Los Angeles.  I have always been passionate about acting and performing so I decided to take a leap and move out to LA!

SARA: What are you most passionate about in your life right now?

ANNA: I am passionate about life in general.  Most of all I love music, dancing, reading, singing, drawing, collaborating, being silly, traveling, crafting, learning, meeting new people, watching movies, adventuring, trying new things,… Read Full Post

(photo credit: Gwen’s Experiment Hobby)

My older sister, Shaw, and I used to have contests each summer about who could read the most books (our favorites were V.C. Andrews and the Sweet Valley High series!). But this instilled in me a real love of reading which I’ve sustained until today. So, once again, this summer I’m enjoying getting lots of reading done. I’m also stocking up for my upcoming family vacation at the beach in two weeks (yay!) so that I’ll be looking like the woman in the above picture soon…

Here’s what I’m diving into this season:

1. Delivering Happiness by Tony Hesieh. This has been #1 on the New York Time’s non-fiction bestseller list since it came out–written by the former CEO of Zappos. It merges 3 of my loves: shoes, conscious business, and, of course, happiness.

2. Women Food and God by Geneen Roth. I first stumbled upon this one in the bookstore of Spirit Rock Meditation Center in California a couple of months ago. It’s been on the New York Time’s bestseller list and has become a real favorite of Oprah’s. Looks really good….

3. The Happiness Project by Gretchen Rubin. This started as a blog, which I followed, and has (notice a theme here?) now made the New York Times bestseller list. Can’t wait to dive in.

4. Women’s Bodies, Women’s Wisdom by Dr. Christiane Northrup. A classic and a must-read for every woman! And an important go-to bible for your home library. So inspiring and informative…

5. Creating Sacred Space with Feng Shui by Karen Kingston.… Read Full Post

Let’s be honest: the times we’re living in can be a little rough. I personally need to infuse my life with all the inspiration I can. Here are some simple ways that I do it–all are daily e-mail reminders of the innate brilliance of humanity. I hope that they help to keep your heart open and spirits high, too.

1. Abraham Hicks: Get daily affirmations to trade in negative beliefs for positive ones.

2. Mama Gena’s School of Womanly Arts: These little morsels of pleasure always put a smile on my face. They remind me that I need to make delight my number one priority EVERY day. NO excuses!

3. TUT: These “Notes from the Universe” come personally addressed to me and somehow always seem to address what’s going on in my life. Plus, they usually make me laugh and remember how ridiculous I am when I get worried or stressed out.

4. Doreen Virtue’s Angel Card Readings: I don’t get these delivered to my e-mail inbox, but I check the website everyday to hear Doreen’s card reading. They help to guide me in how to relate to the day ahead and open up to larger sources of guidance and protection.

5. Daily Enneagram Reading: As I mentioned earlier, I’m all about the Enneagram now. Wow, it just explains so much about how we operate as human beings and how to better relate to ourselves and others. If you don’t know your type (I’m a 4 if you’re curious), you can take a quiz on this site and then get a daily e-mail sent to you, designed specifically for your type.

Once I finish my book project, I’m hoping to start a daily dose of… Read Full Post

It never ceases to amaze me (or make me crackup) each time I re-remember how simple it is to shine.

There can be evenings when I’m going out with friends and I feel tired and run down. It’s been one of those weeks and no matter how dangly my earrings are or how much gold eye shadow I apply, I’m just not as juicy and full as I could be.

Then, there’s days when I wake up feeling that little somethin’ sparkling inside. You know, that feeling that everything’s right in the world. That you’re in synch with it all. That everything’s humming along. I can jump in and out of the shower, throw on some cargo pants, a white t-shirt, and flip flops and dash into the grocery store and turn heads left and right. People feel me coming and stop to look.

Now, what’s this all about?

It goes to show you that true magnetism and glow come from the inside out. It has more to do with how you’re feeling inside your own skin than what kind of shoes or what color nail polish you’re wearing (not to discredit those things because sometimes they can miraculously lift a bad mood!).

And, I know it sounds deceptively simple, but the #1 ingredient to regain your girly glow–from the inside OUT–is by getting good sleep.

By good sleep I mean a) 8-9 hours of uninterrupted sleep during nighttime hours on a regular basis b) you fall asleep within 15 minutes of your head hitting the pillow c) you sleep in a dark, quiet space d) you sleep at least 3 hours after eating e) you do all of the above without the aid of a pharmaceutical sleeping pill.

Now, let’s be honest, how many of us… Read Full Post