Giving thanks to past and present.. Happy Thanksgiving from Ixtapa

What is the first thing that comes to your mind when you think Thanksgiving? I think most would say  family. Time of re connection. For me it was a chance to be able to see my extended family that I didn't see for most of the year.

Thanksgiving is a big deal in my family.Before I can explain the significance of  Thanksgiving,  I need to give you a little bit of family history.

 My father, Monroe as he was lovingly referred to by most, was one of 4 Quick brothers. He legally changed his name from George Washington Quick (being born in 1919, you can take a wild guess what day he was born) to James Canfield Monroe.  All the rest of the family, have the last name Quick, except for the 14 children my father, um fathered. Yours truly is the youngest. Yes, you did read correctly, 14.

My Aunt Bobbie and my Uncle Blaine(youngest of the brothers) would host Thanksgiving every year. I'm not sure when the tradition started,taking on the huge feat of feeding the masses but I am thankful that Thanksgiving is her favorite holiday. Thanksgiving was the day when you were able to see all the cousins,second cousins aunts, uncles, close family friends, from near and far all under one roof.

 I have so many memories that put a smile on my face of craziness that happened on Thanksgiving. I want to thank Bobbie Quick for all the years of cooking amazing food and the many memories you gave all of us by opening up your home.

This is one of my favorites, because you can see my dad in the far right corner with his huge mustache .This happened to be my dad's final Thanksgiving. My cousins and I are in the moment.

As you can see in this picture the tables were always beautifully decorated for the occasion. When I see these pictures I giggle at what we wore oh and we cant forget our hair....

As I've gotten older and circumstances change, the hosting of the Quick's continue to remain the same. Bobbie has handed over the torch so to speak to my cousin Geoff and his wife Arie. Last year was my first year back in CA and introducing Steve and Lucas to the crew. This year I believe the head count is 38 and I cant wait to see the great family photo for 2014!

While I am going to be missing seeing these crazy Quick's, I'm writing today from Ixtapa Mexico.  We are here for the week celebrating  Thanksgiving with the Roger's family. With our new family 5, Steve and I  are fusing traditions and holidays while making new ones along the way. Ixtapa is just that. Changing it up and making many new memories for all. We took family photos yesterday,  here is a behind the scenes look from my phone of all the kiddos 

It is my hope that you all are able to spend quality time with your family this holiday making plenty of memories. If you happen to away from your family during this time of year, it is my prayer that you will be home soon. But in the mean time, make some good memories where you are and keep your loved ones close to your heart.

I want to personally thank you all for your support reading my blog. I am humbled by reader response. It is my intention to continue to write about my life, I am overjoyed that people want to read! I never had any expectations with my blog, so this is beyond anything I could have imagined.  I am looking forward to all that Bliss with Mac brings, but for today, I am thankful  for your support.

All the best,

p.s. we are having a family competition today, ending with a big color powder party on the beach.... photos next week... making memories ......:)

a very special week

There has been lots going on in our little  neck of the world. I have held off writing about our next home until now. Tomorrow is closing day for The Roger's resort Agoura.

this will be our view from the backyard...

I am thankful that I have watched enough remodeling shows to know about a house having good bones, all the rest can be modified....
                      oh and...
                                                                    Location, location, location

When Steve and I blended our families we moved into his house. His house was fantastic, except that with our growing brood, we needed another bathroom and most importantly, to live in the school district....We knew it was a  just a matter of time before we would put his house on the market. One month short of a year from the boys and I moving to CA the house went on the market. Thankfully, it was only 4 days before we were in 20 day escrow. Every realtor that previewed the house, said the same thing... " do you know how hard it is going to be to get this in Agoura?" We knew it was going to be challenging....

What I can tell you today is this, we close tomorrow, then permits are immediately being pulled for demo....Yup, a project and to say I'm excited is a bit of an understatement. To say this has been a long haul is also a huge understatement.

I am a firm believer that everything really does happen for a reason. There was a reason that we have been in our cozy bungalow since Aug. There have been many teaching moments woven throughout our time in the rental (that could be another separate blog  post)I know that all of us will have a greater appreciation for living closer to schools, friends and extra curricular activities.

Tonight, I have a thankful heart thinking about how much we have to withstand these last couple months. To be able to have gotten  the boys to their respective sports practices, games and  appointments was head spinning on occasions. My steno notepad was my guide. If you follow my bliss with mac Facebook account or instagram you would see my posts of my daily 3 that started when we moved into the rental. I personally needed to find things to be appreciative each day. That is how my #daily3 pictures of appreciation began!

I came across this great quote that I think of often and have  read it on occasion in my yoga class.

Sometimes yoga is fitness. Sometimes yoga is prayer. Sometimes yoga is on a mat, sometimes it is in the middle of rush hour. Sometimes yoga is very bendy and photogenic, sometimes it is very messy and private. Sometimes yoga is choosing peace under pressure or gratitude over grievance. Sometimes it is a hug, a high five or just being present to the miracle of right now... -Kara Egitto

I know that although closing happens tomorrow, moving will not be happening immediately. It might be after the new year before we actually are in the new house. I am looking forward to the process of watching the house become our home. The other exciting news is that we are leaving on Saturday to go to Mexico with Steve's family for Thanksgiving! Living with 3/4's of our possessions in storage has been interesting.... Let's just say, I am thankful to know the exact location of my passport (check #daily3  a couple weeks back)

Although I am going to miss my entire extended family's Thanksgiving silliness. I am looking forward to spending some quality time with Steve's family this year.  With every holiday we celebrate as a family, we are creating  new memories that will last a lifetime.

Wishing you all the best,

the rule of 10-10-10

10 minutes, 10 months or 10 years...


I know the first time I heard this concept. It was after we had bought the truck and I had free XM radio. Oprah has a station (I don't have XM radio any longer but guessing she still has the station). Her long time friend  Gayle King had a show that somehow was always on while I was driving. She mentioned this concept specifically about when making decisions dealing with her adult children. I'm certain  she mentioned the author etc, but I have to admit, I was having a light bulb moment and all that sunk in was 10 minutes, 10 months, 10 years.

Ever since that first day I heard the concept, I have used this in making decisions. I decided to do some research to see where in fact this idea had originated from so I can give the author rightful acknowledgement. Suzy Welch wrote the book and devised the concept. Suzy Welch, thank you.

I decided  to write about 10-10-10 today because  I can say that at the age of 44, I have learned many life lessons. One of most important, is that that I will continue to have an issue or situation arise until I learn what lesson I need to learn. I am a firm believer that you will be put into or given situations where you are there to learn a valuable lesson. If you don't learn the lesson, it will return. Maybe not looking exactly the same, BUT the lesson remains unchanged. It is simply wrapped up in a different package.

 As a young girl I was never told this sage advice. As a parent I have been very intentional about planting seeds of  this concept in the boys.'Trust me boys, learn your lesson the first time or you will have the issue re-visit you again and again'. I use these times during these life lessons as teaching moments. It helps them to not wallow in the poor me mode (the pity party must be brief) and focus on what they are supposed to be learning from the given situation. Some are more significant lessons that need to be learned, while others are the smaller irritating ones of teenage boys growing up learning life skills.

It is my experience when raising kids, there are lessons being learned left and right.  I look at difficult decisions keeping 10-10-10 in mind. The concept allows me the ability to make decisions with far less deliberation. I think of times where the boys acted as though it was THE MOST IMPORTANT thing.... yeah, not really. When you project out 10 minutes, yes, they will be upset, 10 months, probably not, 10 years, not a chance they will even remember.

The issue arises when the lesson has not been learned. When you being to feel like you are having a Groundhog day moment.  You know what I mean, you are thinking to yourself, or maybe verbalizing  out loud, 'you've gotta be kidding me'. Again? As parents we have all been there. It is not a comfortable place to be. As far as the  kids, I don't know if they see it as the same lesson coming back  for another go at the lesson, or that they are simply in  a crappy place.

I know that we all have been given 10-10-10 moments in life. Turning points that last far longer than 10 years. Moments that will stay in our gray matter until our last breath. They create who we are and what we become. I believe that these moments and how we learn and proceed mold us into the beings we are meant to be.

I welcome you to try 10-10-10, notice if it changes your decision making process.

All the best,
Mac

10,000 hours

In the fall of 2013 I was introduced to the author Malcom Gladwell. I had never read any of his books until last fall. Technically, with all the driving I was  doing, I listened to him on audio book while shuttling boys.

The first book I listened to was Outliers. Amazing read if you haven't read. Among many topics that he writes about is the idea of 10,000 hours. That a person needs to dedicate 10,000 hours to a given sport, musical instrument etc. With those 10,000 hours comes honing of skills where a person  could achieve a certain level of mastering or success. 

I am a firm believer that some people are blessed with God given talent. Musically, there are prodigies. Athletically, there are people that walk this earth that can do amazing things without too much effort. For the rest of us, it takes time , patience, perseverance and more importantly a mindset to never give up. 

So when looking at my own life, I think about how many hours I have worked with patients in physical therapy. I knew when I graduated back in 1999, I was new and had much to learn beside what I was taught in class and  read in books. The real learning for me happened on the clinical floor. I have put in my 10,000 hours. Am I an expert? Heck no! But what I can tell you is that I am confident in what I have learned and know. I believe that when you stop learning you stop living. My dad always taught me that I should learn 3 new things each day.(Interesting to think about now as an adult..)

 I too have been given a gift. This gift comes in the form of being able to communicate and connect with people. I have a true sense of my own calling at this point in my 44 years on this earth. I am here to help others, in whatever form that takes. Earlier in my life it manifested in physical therapy. Now,  it is health/wellness coaching and yoga They all fall under the umbrella of making a positive difference in peoples lives. 

.

So today as I write this blog. We are coming to the close of football and water polo season. Mitchell has never played polo before this summer. He is a strong swimmer. He was on a huge learning curve in Agoura since most boys he is playing with have been playing as long as he has been swimming laps! It has been interesting to watch him develop and learn from coaches and other players. As a mother, I have had to remind him on a few occasions ,that he is playing with boys that have put in their hours.

Jack played football for the first time this year. As a mother, I really didn't want him to play. Jack on the other hand was all about the idea.... Steve thought it would be a good structured environment for him to learn about the game and accountability.  Being the second to the smallest was tough as a mom to watch while he was on the line.. I knew I needed to learn from the experience as much as Jack.

So both my boys have put in hours in something new this year. Not even close to the magic 10,000 hours. As the season ends, it is the time where decisions need to be made about winter season. What sport will be next... Mitchell will continue with water polo in club until swim season begins for high school in the spring. Jack? Maybe water polo is next on his list of sports to try.  He is more of a team sports kid... who knows, maybe being a lefty could be helpful.

Have you heard the song by  Macklemore 10,000 hours? 

Before Fall of 2013 I had never used the reference 10,000 hours in conversation. Now? you guessed it... plenty... 

What have you done in your life for 10,000 hours?

Wishing you all the best,