Do you have unpacked moving boxes from a move a year ago and every time you see them they scream “Unpack us now!” Do you beat yourself up for procrastinating? If you do, you’ll feel way better about your procrastination when you read what Judith Robinson, a longtime SHE (Sidetracked Home Executive) had to say. 

She began her email to me with this:

Our New Year has begun with enough challenges to remind us we are alive. Once those challenges end, I suppose we will not be. I hope your entry into the New Year has been an easy slide.

Procrastination: A Fascinating Aptitude

By Judith Robinson

I’d no sooner shuffled my youngest child off to pre-school than I was sniffing around for a way to avoid unpacking the moving crates stacked floor to ceiling in our breakfast room. Being a creative procrastinator, I decided to go to college.   

Do you know what freshen up means?

What does it mean when a woman says, “Excuse me, I’m going to go freshen up"? Does she just say that because it’s not lady-like to say she has to pee, or does she actually do something special? In the movies when a woman says, “Excuse me, I’m going to go freshen up,” she shuts the door and you don’t get to see what she freshens. 

If you have a home-based business (38 million Americans do and $427 billion per year is made by them), or you are a full-time peacekeeper and peacemaker at home, or you’re doing both, this blog is for you.

When you think about it, every institution has its “costume.” Prisons, hospitals, courtrooms, restaurants, car repair shops, beauty salons and the list could go on-and-on. But if you Google, Dress for Success at Home you’ll get a gob of photos of people in offices, outside big city buildings and walking on sidewalks all dressed for success for business outside the home.

Hey, you don’t need to look like a Wall Street tycoon to work at home, but there are some important rules for you to follow if you want success and to feel good about your work and yourself. 

When you’re home all day, if you’re not careful you’ll end up in recluse attire! You know, your pajamas. God knows they’re comfortable and cozy and if you don’t have some style boundaries, you could hang out in them for days. That’s probably what’s happened when you see an adult in the grocery store in pajamas. Just remember, this person could be contributing to that $427 billion dollars! 

Actually working at home as a full-time caregiver or an at-home entrepreneur or both, you actually need a wardrobe that changes during the day. Before you panic, the changes are simple, and will save you time, money and peace of mind in the long run.

Rule 1   Pajamas are for sleeping.

Dress in your jammies right before bed as part of your before bed routine. In the morning, get dressed for the next activity which might be exercise, housework, office work, yard work depending on your daily schedule. When you work at home, if you stay in your nightwear, you invariably have that somebody-might-come-over monkey on your shoulder. For your peace of mind, get dressed first thing in the morning.

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Did you ever watch the Slob Sisters play with Gary Collins on national TV?

We had so much fun with him and we miss him. In this video, with romance in mind, we came up with some pretty good ideas for Valentine's Day.

Judging by the audience laughter, it's a very funny video. 

This blog was written for both men and women, so no matter which one you are, listen up! With Valentine’s Day in a few days you might consider this very important tip. It’ll not only perk up your marriage (if you’ve been in it a while), you'll be happy and more healthy! You can tell by the title it’s a pretty simple suggestion, but wait until you understand why such a little “event” is so valuable. 

Attention Men:

Hey guys, for your information a woman loves to be touched and you should be touching her ten times a day, BUT that doesn’t mean she wants to have sex every time you rub her shoulders.
One scientist explained that as children, boys and girls both have sensory receptors all over their bodies, but with the onset of puberty, boys are the only ones of our species whose sensory receptors congregate in just one place, while the girls continue to enjoy touch just about everywhere. 

Experts claim romantic love lasts from 18 months to three years. Mother Nature must know this, so once she makes a connection, she has to work fast if she wants more babies!

In 18 months she can put out one baby and one on the way (giving the mother a little recoup time) and in three years she can produce three. Done!

That’s what happened to me anyway and I blame it all on Mother Nature. 

This will date me, but I have three children thanks to Johnny Mathis. When he sang Misty and those luscious tones flowed from his lips, “Look at me, I’m as helpless as a kitten up a tree,” bang…I was pregnant with Michael and wouldn’t have been surprised if he’d come out bi-racial I was so in love with Johnny. Chances Are (one of Johnny’s biggest hits) rang in Peggy Ann and Wild is the Wind pulled Joanna from her non-physical place in the Universe to a place in our home. 

My sister and I almost had our own  cooking show on television, but we would've had to be in LA four months out of the year and our six kids were young.

In cleaning out our warehouse I found the master tape of the opening for the show and thought you'd enjoy watching it. The show was going to be called, The Phony Gourmet after the name of the successful cookbook of the same name. Had the show materialized, we would have shared all our short-cut cooking recipes and ideas. 

When you read autobiographies of famous people who had absolutely horrible childhoods, but survived and are happy, productive and successful adults in spite of it, doesn’t it give you faith in knowing that each of us has a guidance system within?

In the cases of Jeannette Walls, The Glass Castle, Jewel, Never Broken and Drew Barrymore Wildflower, these women survived unimaginable child abuse.

Now, as adults, they are beacons of light, proof that the Universe has your back if you’ll only become aware of the guidance that waits for your recognition. In every one of these autobiographies, these women had forgiven their parents, when it would be so hard to do! In that forgiveness they were able to use their God-given talents for the good of all.

Dr. Wayne Dyer is another example of a child having a father you’d like put in the slammer to rot, but Wayne was able to see clearly (part of the title of his final book) and pardon and even thank his father for his part in Wayne’s birth (sperm).

Reading forgiveness literature opens doors for those who have been unable to do that. Books like these with unbelievable stories of child abuse, can put into perspective petty grudges we might otherwise have and tend to rehearse from time-to-time, involving our parent’s parenting.

Do you love the thought of a romantic get-away up in the mountains in a rustic cabin?

What is it that draws us to want to go to one, or, better yet, have a cabin of our own?

Is it the thought that cabin life is simple, restful and peaceful? Does that thought of life is better at the cabin make you think of a crackling fire, the aroma of hot chili on the wood stove, the sound of the wind in the tall firs and no telephones? Peace and rest, away from the chaos of modern life definitely calls us to retreat and enjoy a simpler time.

There are romantic mountain cabin get-aways all over the Internet and just perusing the ads can slow your heart rate and let you breathe deeply. But life is better at the cabin is just a thought. Did you know you can mess with your mind and make it think you’re at a cabin when you’re not? Well you can! Our subconscious minds don’t know the difference between reality and fantasy and that truth is so much fun to play with.