Red Dragonfly Studios: My Declaration of Celebration

I was invited to contribute a blog post for The Declaration of You’s BlogLovin’ Tour, which I’m thrilled to participate in alongside over 100+ other creative bloggers. The Declaration of You will be published by North Light Craft Books this summer, with readers getting all the permission they’ve craved to step passionately into their lives, discover how they and their gifts are unique and uncover what they are meant to do!

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{ Celebration }
Joy-filled and meaningful moments are a cause for celebration

“Celebrate the Sacred in the ordinary.”
― Sarah Breathnach

I grew up feeling that celebrations where rare events that centered around big accomplishments. It was reserved for birthdays, anniversaries, job promotions, etc. It was also my belief that if I celebrated little things or I celebrated too often, I would loose my appreciation for the accomplishment itself and possibly loose my drive to accomplish more. Too much of a good thing was bad and I had bought into the notion hook line and sinker.

In my 20's I hung out with a group of girls that did NOT have that belief. Thank goodness for those girls crossing my path. They believed that EVERYTHING was an event and cause for celebration.

Every party was an event, worthy of a new cocktail dress.
Every accomplishment was cause for a champagne toast.
Every milestone was worthy of a special treat.

We CELEBRATED all the time. I think of that time as one of the happiest times of my life. It created rich joyful moments that I will remember for the rest of my life. It taught me to celebrate regularly and often. It taught me that no matter how often I celebrate, the joy of the celebration doesn't diminish.

{ Celebrate Regularly and Often. }
There are certainly times when I forget how important celebrations are to my life. If I haven't celebrated enough, my life starts to resemble the movie "Groundhog Day". Each day is the same as the next. There are no intentional celebrations reminding me to slow down and "smell the roses". There is no conscious activity reminding me to experience gratitude for my accomplishments.

Celebrations allow me to slow down and bring intention to the moment. It provides me with a rich set of experiences that bring gratitude and color to my life.

{ Make Time to Celebrate }
Here are some of my favorite things to do to celebrate alone or with a few friends...

A beautiful cup of tea and/or dessert at the fanciest restaurant in town.
Drive to the ocean to watch the waves
Lighting all the candles in my house and turning off all the lights.
Pedicure
Long vacations to tropical islands ( Mexico and Hawaii are my favorites)
Mini trips to see local landmarks (being a tourist in my own town)
Purchase some new art supplies
Girl Friday...A friend and I pick a new restaurant to try almost every Friday.
Snuggie Movie Mornings ... I invite my friends to go to the movies in our snuggies or Pajamas.