I stumbled onto a site, looking for the lyrics of a Sixpence None the Richer song. Whenever it comes up in my iTunes shuffle, I sing along, whether I know the words or not. Since Puedo Escribir is in Espanol, even my abilities to butcher the real lyrics were hard pressed to make sense of it. What is this haunting melody singing about? An epic story of love lost, words of praise or teen angst amid a storm of grief.

The first website I found indeed gave me the lyrics. The words only alluded to something deeper.  Read more... (741 words, 3 images, estimated 2:58 mins reading time)

Cartoon Network recently announced a new 2 hour block of programming targeted at 2 to 5 year olds. In response, the Campaign for a Commercial-Free Childhood (CFCC) publicly lambasted the channel for being,

“The latest attempt to get young children in front of screens — which is exactly where marketers want them.”

This raises several important questions on both ethical and parental sides of the issue. Is this another ploy to plop children in front of a tv and endear them to colorful characters and their merchandise? Can television programming actually be beneficial to a child’s development, or more importantly – is it even needed for wholesome development? Read on for the major arguments from both sides, and contribute your own answers to these vital questions.

A visit to Forever Florida and the Crescent J Ranch is like a romp through the terrain that once dominated this State. The unfortunate part is trying to figure out where we will show our children this amount of unspoiled land in the future?  Read more... (368 words, 3 images, estimated 1:28 mins reading time)

Of all the challenges facing organizational leaders today, the biggest may be engaging and motivating people to embrace the organization’s mission and vision of the future. We all know the difference between staff who are punching the clock and biding their time and those who come prepared to be part of a team that is building something great. How do we get people to see that future and want to be a part of it? It comes down to communication.  Read more... (476 words, 2 images, estimated 1:54 mins reading time)

With our busy schedules we often lose sight of how often we “work out”. If it is not a late meeting on Monday it is a school play on Wednesday that keeps us from exercising.

Our intentions are always good. We really, really want to exercise but something always seems to interfere. Friday comes and we ask ourselves “how many days did I exercise this week?”  Read more... (448 words, 2 images, estimated 1:48 mins reading time)

When Exercising Remember: Rome Wasn’t Built in a Day
The old saying goes “Rome wasn’t built in a day”. Make this your mantra as you step on the scale or grab your sneakers after a long winter hiatus. There is a very good chance that you did not put on those extra 10 (even 20 pounds, YIKES!) overnight. Rather, a pound at Thanksgiving, one more over the holidays, and now after just finishing the last of the Valentine candy, your favorite Easter treat is on the store aisles calling your name.  Read more... (744 words, 2 images, estimated 2:59 mins reading time)

Who wins the food fight? You might be right if you said that low fat dieting is outdated and low carb dieting is just a fad. Most of us are waiting for the final answer. Don’t be surprised if your doctor doesn’t even know which direction you should turn for healthy weight loss.

Cutting back on dietary fat has helped millions of people shed unwanted body fat for as long as we can remember. I myself have said no to butter and cheese and reaped the benefits of a slimmer figure. So why have we turned our backs on this proven method in lieu of the new carb controlled craze? I’ll tell you why I did.  Read more... (871 words, 2 images, estimated 3:29 mins reading time)

Coping with Autistic Spectrum Disorders

Through tears running down his face, Andrew tells his mom, “I can’t think when I’m angry, it is just like a big rocket blasting off!” His mom’s heart breaks for her child as he struggles to make sense of the world around him. Andrew, like an overwhelming number of children today, has Asperger’s Syndrome, an autism spectrum disorder sometimes called High Functioning Autism.  Read more... (704 words, 2 images, estimated 2:49 mins reading time)

Last month you were introduced to Plus-ing up your life with Emotional Intelligence. This article will focus on the ‘me, my’ aspects o

f the model. The crux of this part of the model is the ability to recognize the “what” and “why” behind our feelings.

Plus-ing Up Your Life With Emotional Intelligence, Part II
How many times do we go through life out of touch with our emotions only to have a sudden rush of emotion? When we have the rushes, it’s usually a generic “mad” or “happy.” To understand the “what” of our emotions we need to start by increasing our emotional vocabulary!

Kris Urquhart is the publisher and editor of Natural Awakenings, a healthy living magazine for Brevard and Indian River Counties. Mother of two energetic boys 8 & 10, wife & manager of their household in charge of miscellaneous life duties. Kris is an amazing person, energetic, focused, and always working to promote health and wellness. We spoke with her about Balance.

How do you keep everything together?
As the editor of a natural health magazine the topic of balance tends to surface with many subjects. We try to keep our diets in balance, our work and home lives, our fitness routine, our relaxation time, even our finances. It seems that just the effort exerted to stay in balance is a full time job waiting to happen.  Read more... (995 words, 3 images, estimated 3:59 mins reading time)