Rachel MacDonald

You do, beautiful. This blog, this vibrant, rollicking community, would be nothing without YOU in it so I’m kicking off today’s gratitude list by acknowledging your presence in my world. I’m a lucky girl. THANK YOU – immensely.

I’ve wrapped up the magic of the past two weeks below and there’s plenty to feast on, but before we dive in, I want to share something I heard this morning on my walk while I was listening to the audio version of Michael Singer’s magnificent book The Untethered Soul.

The topic was ‘inner energy.’ Michael asserts that we go about our lives thinking, feeling and acting without paying much attention to where all that actually comes from, but in reality, every movement we make and every thought we have is an expenditure of energy. Recalling thoughts, generating emotions, controlling emotions, disciplining the powerful drives we have within all require us to expend a tremendous amount of energy every day.

So where DOES the energy to do what we do come from? Why is it there sometimes when life feels easy and joyful and we feel like we can take on the world, while others we’re left emotionally and mentally drained?

Heads up: it doesn’t come from calories from food.

It doesn’t come from external forces.

Where it does come is an unlimited source we can draw upon any time. The reason we don’t feel this energy all the time is that we (consciously or unconsciously) block it by closing our hearts and minds, which in turn, closes us off from the source. The energy is still there but it can’t get in.

Shakti, qi, ki, spirit – it goes by many names – but no matter what we brand it, the stunning reminder here is that we all have a wellspring of energy inside us. When we’re open, we feel it – love rushing up into our hearts – and when we’re closed we don’t. The more we learn to stay open, the more energy can flow into us.

Isn’t that so brilliant in its simplicity?

I’m putting it to you, babe: what could you do to open riiiiiight up to that pulsing source energy today?

Here’s what has been energising me lately…

Health + Cooking + Un-Baking

I’ve been spending more time in the kitchen in the past week or so and I’m loving it!

Organic market goodies, quinoa bowls (the secret to this one was roasting the pumpkin for so long it became pumpkin mash – an unintentional, but OHMYGODYES mistake) and this raw frozen banana and cacao cake from Kim Morrison, with a little tweak by me (I added mixed berries to the topping which I think took it to a whole ‘nother level).

I also made the incredible raw choc caramel bites below, and, well… they turned out so much better than expected. I’m a massive caramel fiend and you would never know this isn’t the sugar-laden version. Recipe below!

Raw Choc Caramel Bites

Base
1 cup raw macadamia nuts
1 cup raw almonds
1 cup Medjool dates

Caramel Centre
1 cup Medjool dates
2 tablespoons coconut oil
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
¼ cup water
Pinch of sea salt

Topping
¼ cup cacao
½ cup dates
1/4 cup organic shredded coconut
¼ cup water
2 tablespoons coconut oil

To make the base:

1. In a food processor, whiz the macadamia nuts, almonds and dates until combined.

2. Spoon into a square tin and put to the side.

To make the caramel centre:

1. Blend all ingredients in the food processor until smooth, adding water slowly as you go and as needed.

2. Spread on top of the base and freeze for 15 minutes.

To make the topping:

1. Blend all ingredients in the food processor until smooth, adding water slowly as you go and as needed.

2. Spread on top of the caramel layer and freeze for an hour until set.

3. Take out of freezer and cut into small bite-sized pieces. Enjoy!

Sol Cleanse

From Friday to Sunday last week I embarked on 3-day Sol Cleanse juice cleanse… and guess what? It was delicious! I thoroughly enjoyed it. (yep, I did just say ‘cleanse’ ‘delicious’ and ‘enjoyed’).

I’ve done a bunch of cleanses before and the juices on this one tasted the best by a country mile. I love green juices anyway but the green juice on this cleanse actually tasted like a banana smoothie (yum) and the lemon and cayenne pepper was an awesome digestion kickstarter. I can’t fault any of the juices in fact, and normally there’s one or two in the bunch that make you go hrmmmm (or more accurately, ‘ugh’).

While I got all the usual benefits from cleansing my body for a few days – better sleep, weight loss, glowing skin and brighter eyes – the biggest bonus for me was the clarity. At the same time as I was cleansing, I was undertaking a “Power Weekend” where I was churning through a massive stack of work, and not only did I have the energy to do super long days on the computer, but it paved the way for a plethora of creative ideas to bubble up from the recesses of my mind. Win, win, win.

I’ve had the pleasure of getting to know Miriam, one gorgeous ‘sol’ in the Sol Cleanse duo, and I love the philosophy that sits at the foundation of this business. Highly recommend you check them out. It was about time we got a fab cleanse company on the Gold Coast!

Dos Ombre

If you’ve been following me on Instagram (psst, I love posting bright, happy things over there – come play!) you would have seen me gushing over the ridiculously cool Dos Ombre products I was kindly gifted a few weeks ago. Cue: shrieking. And incredulousness. Talk about quality.

I’ve been waiting for the Dos Ombre superstars to return from a trip to Bali – for my beautiful friend Soph’s wedding – before I posted this because I know their style is going to delight the socks off you too, so now that they’re on home soil let me begin lovingly singing the praises of this brand…

For one: I mentioned quality, but I have to dive deeper on this. You know when you buy something online, particularly something ‘tribal-y’ or ‘Aztec-y’, and you excitedly rip open the package, only to fit that gorgeous flowy blanket you thought you were getting is actually rougher than sandpaper? I’ve been a victim. Oh yes I have. These products are the opposite. You could wrap your naked baby (if you happen to have one on standby) in the In Rainbows Guatamalen blanket. It’s that good.

For two: Two sets of discerning eyes + two buyers with super taste = a range that make sense and is so damn cool it hurts.

For three: The cushions! Sweet mother of god! I’ll probably bankrupt myself buying 53297 more.

For four: (that sounds weird, doesn’t it?) I heart Dos Ombre. Fo’ life.

Follow them on Instagram for visual inspiration a-plenty.

Hunt around in their shop. Casually send the link to your husband/ boyfriend/ girlfriend/ family with a “So, these are nice, don’t you think….?”

Optional: say a silent thank you for these stylish sistas doing the hard work hunting for the best home treasures in the world so we don’t have to!

Sunshine Coast + Speaking (of the public kind)

This news is a couple of weeks old now but it would be remiss of me not to share my experiences at Carren Smith’s transformative public speaking course.

I’m going to summarise for ease, so here goes:

What I Learnt

So, SO much. We were taught everything you need to know to structure an excellent speech, and over the course of the 3-day event, were given instruction on how to pull together each section of a talk (intro, the middle including your compelling story, the call to action) and then given 15 minutes to go away, write that section and come back and present it. Gah! It was big, and you can bet that in 15 minutes you barely have enough time to write the speech let alone learn it, so there was a lot of “winging it” going on in the presentations. Nerve-wracking but incredibly powerful because it taught us how to trust in what flowed out when we were up on our feet.

I also learnt a lot about myself and my need to do things ‘the right way.’ It was uncomfortable at first, but I eventually loved sinking into the shoes of someone who was willing to throw off all the shackles and just freaking go for it.

What I Loved

Carren’s energy and her ability to hold the space and bring out the core of our very beings.

The people I met.

The courage, particularly from those that were sharing very real and very raw stories.

I also loved the NLP ‘anchoring’ exercise we did on the last day where we were told to think of a word that encapsulated how we want to feel and using NLP techniques, locked that baby in so we could call upon the feeling whenever we need. Brilliant.

It was an experience I’ll never forget, that’s for sure!

Afternoon Delights

With the turn of the season, the weather has been back to its usual gloriousness and I’ve been soaking it up whenever I can. Burleigh Heads, my love and I. Fills my cup, every time.

Phew! That’s me sweet pea, and what about you? What’s been going down in your neck of the woods? Let’s get a convo going below.

Is anyone else experiencing the effects of Mercury Retrograde?

On the technology front I certainly have been for the past two weeks and I actually “lost” this post after updating a link yesterday, so here it is again – with added positive juju and some questions for you to answer in the comments. Everything happens for a reason (right?), and as it turns out, the beautiful reason here was that it gave me the opportunity to load up on mo’ love. A planetary blessing in disguise!

The past week has been.. well… epic.

I’m finally getting that when I approach life from a place of ‘slow, deliberate action,’ the Universe steps in to support me. Old habits (and when I say habits, I mean pushing through, taking on way too much, sacrificing to just “get it done”) are being released and I’ve felt more grounded and ‘steady’ than ever before. I had my last kinesiology session* on Monday and Anita (kinesiologist extraordinaire) said she was blown away by the change in my energy from November, when I walked through her door frazzled and over it, to the present where my blocked chakras/ meridians have been tenderly aligned and my body responds easily to the “goals” we set. I’m really feeling that too and have been saying ‘thank you’ – out loud when I’m at home alone, and scribbled in my Moleskine – a lot. 

I also know that there’s still too much incoming work for this one-woman band, and I’m working on ways to reduce that. The daily life of a blogger/ entrepreneur is prone to changing on a whim, I’m getting very clear on how to structure my time and how much extra padding I need to ensure that a change of plans one day doesn’t blow out the rest of the week’s work. It’s all part of the process!

* I still need to write a separate post on my experiences with kinesiology. It’s on the list. 

On to the things that have brought joy to my life over the past week. I’m feeling enormously grateful for…

Date Day with the Husbo

ty

On Saturday, Ramai and I headed out for what we called our “date day,” which involved a cruise down the Tweed Coast to enjoy the sunshine (momentary as it was, but still… SUN!), lunch in Cabarita by the beach, a jaunt through Hastings Point and Pottsville and then a trip through the valley on the way back.

As we were driving down a – thankfully – pretty isolated road, we spotted something black hanging out in the middle and after circling back we found the scared little Ninja Turtle you see in the photos. Isn’t he gorgeous? (I’ve named him Michaelangelo). So happy he made it back to the water safe and sound.

On our drive, we also found a (random) ramshackle old tin shed – the perfect backdrop for an impromptu photo shoot.

5000!

Holy moly, thank you SO much for your Facebook love. Beyond grateful. Things seem to be happening/ growing at breakneck speed at the moment and again, I bring it back to this sense of being ‘supported.’ It’s a beautiful thing.

Gwinganna Lifestyle Retreat

From Friday to Sunday this week I’m going to be retreating it up at the glorious Gwinganna Lifestyle Retreat with two of my soul sisters and I cannot wait!

We’re going to spend three days compleeeeetely unwinding and disconnecting, eating delicious organic food and slipping into a (much) slower pace to nurture our minds, bodies and spirits.

Keep and eye out for the full rundown on the blog. This place is heaven on earth and I’ll try my best to take lots of photos and notes for you all!

Our B-school Babes

The biggest thrill of the past week has been the incredible response to the B-School bonus offer Tara and I released last Thursday. HOLY MOLY, you should see the group of women we have in our private Facebook community (the support, already! The conversations! The energy!)

Above is just a small snapshot of what’s been going down. We’re kinda crazy about our girls! Marie Forleo has created a phenomenon with B-School and I know we’re going to be making waves of our own with the crew we have assembled.

Read this if you want in on the action – there’s ONLY 4 DAYS to go before enrolment closes. 

Bits and pieces:

Yoga and Pilates (feels so good to be back on the mat regularly) + celebrations + playing bigger and knowing there’s so much more to come (limitless is a word I’m digging right now) + visualisations, meditation and bolts of brilliance in the shower.

I’D LOVE YOU TO JOIN THE CONVERSATION!

Magic shared, multiplies and this week I’m putting these questions to you:

+ Who are you celebrating? Who in your life deserves a shout out – and why are they so awesome?

+ What are you proud of personally? Give yourself a rap gorgeous, we’re all about self-love and cheerleading around here!

I don’t really know where to start with recapping the last two weeks of my life. Revolutionary. Monumental. Heart-starting. Freaking wild (in the best way).

Mostly, I feel like in the last fortnight – since our trip away, turning 30, working with a kinesiologist and a beautiful coach, resigning from my job and starting a business (this all needs a separate post, I know) – I’ve circled back to me. I feel blazingly alive and more sure about All of It than I’ve been for a long time and let me tell you, it’s a heady, exhilarating, feeling. I could get seriously hooked on this gear – ’tis a potent mix!

Everything has been moving so quickly that I’m finding it hard to ground the hyper energy whipping up dust around me, but at my core sits this deep calm and I just know – with every inch of my being – that this is the right time. 

There’s nothing more fulfilling than doing the thing you know you’re meant to do. 

Once I anchor my energy I promise I’ll give you the full run down (we’ve got lots to catch up on!) but for now, check out the other bits and bobs that have put stars in my eyes of late and most importantly, tell me all about the wonders of your world in the comments. 

Gorgeous Gifts

I’m sharing these for two reasons:

1 // To publicly acknowledge the gifters because I’m insanely grateful for their thoughtfulness (not shown is a 5 hour Gaia Retreat & Spa package, a Harpers Bazaar subscription, frames containing our wedding photos and a kayaking tour. Just… wow, I seriously don’t need b’day presents for the next 50 years after all that spoiling!)

2 // Considering all these presents absolutely rule, I thought they might make handy Xmas gift inspiration. An unofficial gift guide, with added half-dying Baby’s Breath (I swear it looks better in real life).

Interweb Love

My best friend Megan wrote a recap of her child-free adventures at my birthday on The Cub Club, while Caz from Mojito Mother/ yTravel Blog was kind enough to interview me recently.

I also wrote a guest post about celebrating the person you’ve become over on The Wellness Warrior that you might not have seen as yet.

* Fun fact: I smiled the whole way through writing that post, imagining hordes of big-hearted souls just like you celebrating victories and wins and the special moments of 2012. Writing with a smile on your face makes the words dance. Do you ever do it?

iPhone 5

Oh hai Ramai! Whatcha doin’?

Alright, so I’m nerding out with this one but I have to confess that I’m totally enamoured with my new iPhone. My old iPhone had seen better days – the menu button was stuck, the camera was scratched (soft-focus lens, anyone?), Safari crashed constantly, the back was shattered – so in contrast, you could say this fancy new version is absolutely rocking my world.

Apple, I adore you.

The Beginning of Xmas Festivities

Last Friday – also known as The Day My Business Was Born – was my work Comms team ‘end of year’ celebration, organised by myself and my friend Alana (a job we undertook with glee).

For the styling, we went for a neon take on the traditional Christmas green and red theme. We were working in a space with really terrible views as you can see (ha!) and because I’m a massive fan of succulents as you know, everyone left with a little friend for their desk. Good times.

Must say though, the night was definitely bittersweet for me, as it’s the last team catch up I’ll be involved in after 4.5 years with the same company (on that note, I hope you guys will join me for a virtual end of year celebration next year!)

Love + Support

(a snapshot of support from my personal Facebook page)

If I thought my heart was full before, it’s now positively flooded.

Starting In Spaces Between has honestly changed my life and I’m wrapping up 2012 with the knowledge that alongside my husband, family and the friendships I’ve enjoyed for years, there’s a whole army of glorious women that have come into my life via the blogosphere that I am truly blessed to know. These are solid, beautiful friendships of the highest order – the type that make your heart sing on a daily basis.

Thankyouthankyouthankyou Universe.

Gizoogle.net

The most hilarious thing I’ve seen on the Internet in… ever. Don’t walk – run.

More glitterbombs:

Mini neon Post It’s + irrepressible joy (“Super Energiser Rach is back!”) + manifesting like a wild woman + Tara Bliss,  Julie Parker + Chantelle Ellem (get amongst these women ASAP if you haven’t already) + KINESIOLOGY (total life-changer) + Abundance flower essence + the kindest of words from work colleagues + fun chats with my Mum about Jane Fonda videos, obsessive house cleaning, the Scarsdale Diet (“I can still remember exactly what we had to eat”) in the crazy 80’s + air con on scorching hot Queensland days + sending out the prize to my birthday giveaway winner and knowing how much she is going to LOVE it + excitement to work with my new clients – seriously can’t wait to start + somebody stop me, I could go on for days!

YOUR TURN, BEAUTY:

Leave your comment below – what’s lighting up your life (like a fabulously over-decorated Xmas tree?)

Poster: Striking Truths

We’re heading off to ‘Spirit Retreat’ it up in Byron shortly, but before I go, I want to put it to you that you carve out some time of your own over the next little while to think about what you really, really want and what you’re going to invite into your life. Think of it as your Xmas wishlist – soul-style.

If you haven’t done this little exercise for a while, the answers may surprise you. See what comes up and remember that it can be just as satisfying letting go of things you * thought * you wanted, as it can be manifesting those juicy optimal experiences that align with your highest self.

We spend so much time looking towards (what we imagine are) greener pastures, but the super powerful thing about present moment self-enquiry is that it shines a light on what you already have manifested (and this is where the gratitude part comes in).

On a personal level:

+ Since last year, I’ve been manifesting a soul-tribe of like-minded ladies. There they are below. I am blessed. 

+ I set an intention to work with a company I adore and – after being approached by them recently – we’re teaming up to do some awesome work. I am grateful.

+ I declared I was ready to embrace coaching in a way that fits with my current full-time workload and I’m working with a beautiful soul who is definitely my ‘ideal client.’ I am open.  

What about you? Take a moment to acknowledge what has already arrived in your life. If you’re thinking “I’ll be happy when….” or “I’ll relax when…,” ask: why not now? You don’t need to wait until X lines up with Z so you can feel like your life is ‘sorted’ or like you’re living your purpose. Your purpose in this lifetime is to live gloriously as yourself. As you already are.

Soulful Women

On Sunday I met the incredible women pictured above – Nadine Lee, Maria Golding, Susana Frioni, Jess Ainscough, Yvette Luciano and Tara Bliss – at one of my fave restaurants on the Gold Coast, Cardamom Pod for four hours of amazing food, giggles galore and heart-centred conversation around where we’ve been, where we’re at and where we’re going.

Buzzing the whole way home, I woke up on Monday feeling so grateful for these kindred spirits and the way they’ve come into my life this year. If I could sum up the collective vibe/ mood/ mantra of the group, it would be:

Watch this space gorgeous, next year is going to be off the richter.

Are you feeling that big energy in your own life too?

Gypsy Juice

A joy-full email bounced into my inbox from Sommer, the creator of Gypsy Juice a little while ago and I’ve since received the exquisite hand blended products pictured above, which I’m loving.

I’ve been spritzing the rose mist (made from certified organic hand-picked rose petals from the Bulgarian “Valley of the Roses”- wow!) a couple of times a day and dabbing the oil on the fine lines under my eyes. Yum.

If Xmas shopping is on your mind and you’re looking for well-packaged, natural skincare goodies, definitely check Gypsy Juice out.

Feathers! Magazines! Awesomery!

Two rad things: Real Living’s beautiful Xmas edition (in fact, any edition – I adore this publication) and secondly, these gorgeous lovers arrows by Britt Bass.

Beautiful Babes

We celebrated the first birthday of little angel Mabel (my best friend Megan’s daughter) over the weekend. Seriously, could she be any cuter? GAH!

Shiny snippets: 

Audiobooks (I get them from Audible.com) + giant green juices with coconut water + sunshine after the rain + receiving gorgeous goodies in the mail + throwing away my to-do list over the past couple of weekends in favour of CONNECTING (with real, live people!) + being spoilt at work yesterday for my birthday.

What’s on your gratitude list? (bonus points for declaring what you really want!)

Image: Gabbyb.tv

I’ve just finished a group training exercise session by the beach, the sun radiating overhead on this incredibly special solar eclipse day, and driving home I suddenly felt tears well up in my eyes (and not because I’ve been doing sneaky peeks straight at the sun all morning).

Life, nature, this spectacular world we live in – it’s all astonishing. Mind-blowing, rich, breathtaking, laden with possibility and miracles and magic. Seriously guys, we are so, SO blessed.

Us just being here is a triumph, and with the sun burning up blue skies early this morning (I didn’t see the darkness,* just bright, bright, WOW), all I could think was don’t we owe it to the world to shine on like the crazy diamonds we are? 

The time is now, light beam. Blaze.

*Seriously I wish I had the amazing goggles or was in Far North Queensland – are you up there? Did you see it?

And now, ze list! This week I be lovin’…

Diego Pedro Alejandro Gonzales

Is this guy not the coolest thing you’ve ever laid eyes on?! My awesome friend Alana whipped up this gorgeous son of a gun for me as an early birthday present… and I’m totally smitten.

Look at him being all chilled with his colourful compadres. What a dude.

Crafting

As I mentioned in my last post, I’m all about making stuff at the moment. I have a little “creation station” set up on the balcony – towel on the ground, paint and paintbrushes out – and I love that I can take five before or after work and just, you know, craft. In the zone. Ramai calls me “Construction Babe” (haha) when I get the drill or the saw out and put my hardhat on (kidding, I don’t have a hardhat. I do however enjoy power tools).

Anyway, over the weekend I made the above wall hanging for my besty’s daughter who is turning one and it was such a joy to immerse myself in the project and infuse my gift with love. Nothing says I love you like handmade.

Cheryl Strayed x Anne Lamott = YES!

Two of my favourite writers, shooting the shiz.

Awesome eBooks!

Gorgeous Julie Parker from Beautiful You has released an eBook that’s a stunning blend of encouragement and blog/ biz know-how and I hiiiiighly recommend you get your hands on a copy today if you’re looking to (lovingly) stick up rocket up your offering!

Jam-packed with insights from contributors like Jess Ainscough, Alexandra Franzen, Tara Gentile and Rachel Cole (and many more), this beauty is 95 pages of pure wisdom and the best part is, Julie’s offering it on a “Pay What You Want” basis.

Click here to grab your copy (you’ll also be able to read my official testimonial over there).

Bed Chats

How awesome are deep and meaningful chats in bed with your beloved, faces right up against each other, excited thoughts swirling like dust particles?

I adore my husband and his wise, thoughtful approach to life. Uh huh.

Shoulder Taps from the Universe

It never ceases to amaze me how many random occurrences happen each day and how many “signs” are sent our way when we’re open to them. It’s like a little “Hey girl, I’m here for you” from the Universe (said in a Ryan Gosling voice – of course).

On the miraculous spectrum, these can vary, but for me they can be things like seeing sequences of 1111’s (I see 11:11 and 1:11 every day, and at least once a day a 1 sequence will show up somewhere – on an invoice, on my speedometer, all over the place really) – which I take as a reminder I’m on the right track – to a series of very clear signs that make sense of something I’m pondering.

Do you tune in to these messages too?

Now over to you!

Sink into your gratitude today – let it rise up and wash over you. I’d LOVE to hear what’s making you happy in the comments below!

Images: Gretchen Jones