Melody Ross Creative Life: September 2009 entries

I loooove what I am about to write about….hope you will too! I know it’s long….but I couldn’t leave ANYTHING out!

Yesterday marked the 2 week point til we leave for our first ever Brave Girl Camp – LIFE-CHANGING FUN FOR WOMEN (My sister Kathy’s, and my new business venture….women’s retreats…) www.bravegirlsclub.com ...and, folks…..this is a dreamy dreamy dreamy fact of life these days….that this big dream is becoming such a miraculous reality in such an easy, fun, amazing and light-filled way.

We hosted a very small practice camp last week….just to get a feel for it……and….WOW…there are just not many words that could describe it…Alison flew in from Australia and Janet flew in from Tennessee….and Camille flew over, wings a flappin’ from her nest in Boise….like I said…it’s hard to explain how amazing it all was….but I sure have tons of photos to share…and I will try as hard as I can to explain the magic of it all…and what can be expected at our actual camp in a few weeks…..

When things FLOW this much…and everything falls into place…and all of the right people show up…along with the right inspiration, the right goodies….the right spirit…the right EVERYTHING…you just KNOW it has to be right…and it is. I mean…in the middle of a recession….our retreat sold out in less than 2 weeks with just ONE emailing……………Brave Girls Club and everything that is planned to go along with it (including our 4+ per year retreats) is my new career path……with lots of product designing thrown in for lots of wonderful companies….but really, truly…….my heart is set with my sister….and we are determined to create a community of women who dream big dreams and live with big hearts and overcome big obstacles and lead ordinary, brave and wonderful lives…..in all of their forms….as one of our first Brave Girls, Jeanne Oliver said….

”I think anytime you can stand up for what you believe in and do it with respect you are being brave. I think trying to raise your kids the best you can is brave. Getting up in the morning and taking care of others when you want to be selfish is brave. Life in general can be tough. Cleaning a little boy's toilet is brave...I mean seriously....have you seen how bad that can get???”

I LOVE IT!!!! She is so absolutely RIGHT…..we are all leading lives every day of purpose and passion……and what some would even call “ordinary” tasks…..but moving forward every day on the path that YOU KNOW is just for YOU…whatever that is…..STAYING on that path…it’s so brave…..when the world is trying to pull you in all sorts of other directions….and even tell that what is in YOUR heart is too ordinary…boring….simple…………WE KNOW…as all brave women do…..that the best things are THE SIMPLEST things….and staying true to those things, as hard as it may be….is the key to an uncommonly amazing and wonderfully happy life…a brave life.

Our #1 goal is to help all of these women find EACH OTHER……

.....and inspire, lift up and encourage each other…make each other laugh…..give each other ideas….send each other chocolate……remind each other to just put one step in front of another and stop and smell the roses, too……….we have SO MANY WONDERFUL things planned….and our retreats are just one little piece of the pie…..there’s life-changing fun ahead for women everywhere YAY!!!!!

So…..with that said……..
Here’s some great photos from our practice retreat……..
I will give you a little recap of our adventure….

Well…..first….we did our practice at a different cabin than the actual brave girl cabin…..because we only had a few people and didn’t have such a big space…but I would love to thank the Merrill’s for letting us borrow their awesome lakeside cabin for our practice…it was magical and beautiful and perfect….

When we got there…….we immediately started setting up our loads and loads and loads of art supplies. I have decided to just take my accumulation of 20 years of artsyness…..and with it all sorted out into trunks and old suitcases and wonderful containers of all kinds……just put it out for everyone to use for their projects while we are there ……one of the luxuries of hosting small retreats……so…we set up….(at Brave Girl Camp we will have this all set up on tables and shelves in our Art Tent) www.bravegirlsclub.com

but, for now, we got to just put it all around us and it was absolutely heavenly!

While we were setting up….Kathy was in the kitchen making something wonderful for us to eat……as she was every 3 or 4 hours for our entire trip….mmmm….there’s nothing like being treated with home-cooked, love-cooked food…..beautiful food.…on pretty pretty dishes….

After we got the gals all set up on their very meaningful project (which I can’t tell you about yet because it would spoil the surprise for our upcoming camp) I got to sneak downstairs and decorate the dining room for dinner……amongst the aroma of my sister’s cooking and her beautiful voice singing and humming……….

NOW THIS, my friends…..made me giggle and get all giddy and smiley for an hour……………I took down the plaid curtains and put up lime green gossamer and white lights on the cabin windows….and Chenille tablecloths…and pretty, bright, wonderful dishes…and goblets….and REAL FABRIC napkins that we sewed up for everyone….and I covered the chairs in the chair covers we made……and seriously….I could NOT stop giggling…..dreams coming true feel just like that……..

When we were ready….we called the gals down for dinner………….OH I LOVED THE LOOKS ON THEIR FACES when they saw our dinner all set up….made me so happy…I think I mighta even shed a tear amongst the giggles I was still giggling.

We enjoyed some lovely lovely appetizers……..including some delicious chocolate treats and tarts (dessert first is a great rule sometimes!) and….we sat down for dinner….

The food was amazing and the company was even better………we learned so much about each other….how big and small our dreams are….how much we have in common, how we are wonderfully different….how good it felt to voice things that we had forgotten about (like…how we all got stuck on the question “what do you love to do?”) we realized there were so many important things that we don’t to think about often enough as women………..we laughed A LOT…we cried a bit…….we bonded BIG TIME…..we shared a common love for all things chocolate.

Then we worked our project til late into the night…..and enjoyed a midnight snack of freshly torched Crème Brulee…thank you very much……do I even have to say how great THAT was?

We woke up the next morning to the wonderful aroma of fresh hot chocolate and the crisp breeze of mountain air coming through the windows…..if you have never experienced it…there’s absolutely NOTHING like waking up in the mountains. Seems like you are just so close to Heaven that nothing can touch you, bother you, worry you…..with nature ALL around you to remind you of the special love and care that went into creating this planet for our joy………and you can’t HELP but feel it……

Cami went running…..I sat out on the porch just soaking in the miracle of it all…Kathy was in the Kitchen with the girls…I could hear them laughing and talking …..and then we all sat down for breakfast…and then went for a walk up the mountain…..at the top……FOR REALS…was this sign…that simply said “FLY” ….what a gift straight from the sky……..so amazing.

We came back and got artsy again………..so amazing. We all just went into our worlds of reflection and had really amazing breakthroughs while experimenting with lots of paint….glitter…ribbon…paper……ribbon……..you name it…….

Everyone had such very personal books when we were done……this book is a treasure to me.

We stopped to eat….but not for long…then we went back to painting….

And then we stopped for dinner……….and then we went for an amazing evening walk.

We walked by the lake, through an ENTIRE field of 4 leaf clovers….WHO KNEW??? Yes, we felt very very LUCKY……..there were birds EVERYWHERE…and when I stooped down to take photos of the clovers……I saw these beautiful white wings…..so so so beautiful…

We trekked up the hill again and then decided to drive across the lake to the beach…this was Cam’s idea…and what a GREAT idea. The lighting was perfect, the magic kinda light that even makes you look good when you are in your PJ pants and have not really put on any make up…and have had a long, lovely day………..so, we took advantage of the light and took lots of photos…..funny thing is…you might think that we all knew each other really well before we took off for the mountains together….but, in reality….we all really only knew each other casually…..mostly through Facebook…..we have all been writing to each other for months and years….but this was our first time meeting in person in most cases…..by the end of that first 2 days….we knew we had found soul-deep lifelong friends….that is the magic of spending this kind of time together.

Birds flying over us, high in the sky, were the only other friends on the lake……….we kinda had the whole place to ourselves.

MAGIC, I tell ya….MAGIC.

Keep in mind that this was just a little TEST…a tiny little sampling of what our retreat will actually be………our schedule at the retreat is a little more organized, ok, a LOT more (you can see the schedule HERE)…and our projects are more in number….and you certainly won’t see me in PJ pants…..we will have 5 set tables instead of 1……and SO MANY MORE surprises to come…..www.bravegirlsclub.com

I feel kinda bad sometimes talking about all of this…..because I wish EVERYONE I KNEW and even those I DON’T KNOW could come…….it is a life changing bunch of days……an experience that will stay with us forever………..I hope you can come next year…..the spots are already starting to fill up…..

BUT, I ALSO want you to know……and this is my biggest reason for sharing this…is that THIS DREAM has been on my heart and in my mind for more years than I can remember…and that it was an ABSOLUTELY RIDICULOUS idea to do this, considering where I was in my life, where my sister was, and where our economy is…….but the FIRE would not go out in my heart……….or in hers…….and so WE JUST DID IT…we put EVERYTHING we had into it…..EVERYTHING…..and, our hearts were on fire the whole time……so many smiles….jumping out of bed every morning to get things ready (and so much more now that the real deal is only 2 weeks away!) We are doing this because we KNOW we are supposed to. This is our path….it is!!!!!!

And so….I challenge you to DO THAT THING…..THAT CRAZY, RIDICULOUS, WONDERFUL THING that is in your heart right now….that thing that scares the heck out of you but excites every part of you at the same time….that thing that you think you might have been created JUST to do in your lifetime…….that thing that would make you sooo happy……………….even if it scares you. Take a step….do one thing to get you closer…..and when you are ready….JUMP IN…DO IT!

AND….I hope with everything that is in me that we get to see you and meet you at one of our Brave Girl Camps in the future………but, know that we are working on a worldwide, interactive blog…with online classes and events that EVERYONE can participate in….and in creating a catalyst to help all of you brave, brave women to find each other…wherever you are…..we need each other, gals…we really do.

HOORAY FOR DREAMS COMING TRUE!!
xoxoxox
melody

It's pretty bad when I can't even remember my username and password to sign in to my blog!!!!!

I HAVE BEEN SOOOOOOO BUSY!!!!! Living and planning and making it happen....enjoying and savoring and loving my family and friends...and...designing up a storm......

Made a plan 6 months ago to have several new product lines out by 2010.....to get our life back to "stabile"....to NOT work on Sundays....and take one more day off somewhere in there every week to find joy and fun (I am a TRUE yellow, and totally MOTIVATED by FUN).....to get Brave Girls Club off the ground and our first retreat underway (sold out in 12 days from our emailing!!!!)

SOOOOO, that has meant that I have had to work just about every free second to make it happen. BUT....the planning has paid off.....several wonderful product lines in the works......Brave Girls Club totally underway (and starting an AMAZING NEW BLOG as part of it...with life-changing fun for every woman alive) and LIFE IS GOOD. I even feel life stabilizing.............and NOW.....part of my goals are to blog more often. I have done so great at keeping up on all of my goals...I think it's finally time....PLUS...I will have more to talk about now that things are moving and shaking..........

So, my friends, my dear, brave friends.....please don't ever give up. I do not have words for how dark and painful and scary and horrible my life was for the better part of 4-5 years....it was VERY HARD to get up every day and face my life. Sometimes that's all that I could do....sometimes I couldn't. BUT....I AM SO THANKFUL for the fire of hope that was still in there..........that I was able to believe still existed.....and....that angels and friends and MIRACLES happened every day.....and.....

HERE WE ARE. We are ok! We are on the other side of it!!!!! WE REALLY ARE!!!!!!!! WOOOHOOOO!!! A new chapter has started...and these are the first words:

GO WHERE THE PEACE IS.

That's my new slogan..............I will be telling you much, much MUCH more about that later...but now, I have to begin writing 3 blog posts about 3 different things that are amazing and wonderful.......

xoxoxoxoxoxox
I have missed you!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
melody