My newest children’s book…

Posted

I am so very happy and proud to reveal the cover of my newest children’s book Together We Sleep.


This is a book I not only wrote and illustrated, but I lived.

Though parenting books written by Dr. Sears and other attachment parenting leaders are full of advice on co-sleeping, there isn’t one single picture book that you could read aloud to your child about the natural beauty of sleep sharing.

Until today.

This book is gentle and beautiful and peaceful… filled with hand painted images of people and animals all around the world… animals in nature in every habitat sleeping in groups and litters and clans and packs.  And all over the world, people sharing sleep with their littles… in apartments and neighborhoods and villages and tents and RV’s and more… it is one of the most natural and effortless things for us mammals to do but something that doesn’t get illustrated often.

My favorite part of the book is that in the back of the book there is a letter from me, Dr. Laura :) talking a bit more about how sleep time is soul time, a time to integrate the days events, release them, and renew.

Nighttime can be a time for soul connections and for growth.  It is a very active time and the perfect time to nurture your little one.  Beyond co-sleeping, there are lots and LOTS of ways to nurture a nighttime bond with your child… there are lots of other great ideas for new parents and seasoned parents alike who would like some creative ideas on how to ease the nighttime transition and make the most out of the special time we have with our children at night.

Ideas that you can use right away, to start easing your nighttime routine into a time of peace and connectedness for your child.

As I wrote in my blog post about painting the images for the book:  (where you can see a sneak peek of the cover being painted…)

“No, you don’t have to share the same bed to foster a nighttime connection with your littles.  There are lots of things you can do as a parent to make sure nighttime is a time to reinforce your family bonds and help your little one feel secure as they sleep.

Restorative sleep is so important to the cuties who are growing and learning all day long… allowing their bodies to fully relax and their brains to cement the neuronal connections they’ve made during the day ensures that the next day begins as a fresh start, a new platform on which to leap forward.  Part of falling into that deep restorative sleep involves creating a safe and supportive sleep arrangement that benefits everyone.  It doesn’t have to be in the same bed, or even in the same room, although it could be.  In my book I talk about my very favorite ways to strengthen a nighttime bond with your child, regardless of where you sleep.

It’s not about sleep.  It’s about connection.

After all, night-time is soul time.

This is a great book to support any parent who seeks to strengthen their child’s restorative sleep and is a lovely picture book to read to every baby.   All babies intuitively love to see pictures of animals snuggled up as a family and people snuggled up with their children. This book fills a much needed void in the gentle world of heart centered parenting.“

 

I’ll be sharing more details with you next week about how you can get on of the very first edition, hand signed books directly from me!  Stay tuned… xoxo, Laura

 

PS — the winner of last weeks Intuition Card Deck drawing is…. drum roll… Gabrielle!!!  Congrats Gabrielle, my son picked your name!  I’ll be sending you the card deck this week!

 

 

Giveaway… Guiding Signs 101 Intuition Card Deck

Posted

I have a fun product recommendation for you today… I love mixing intuition with *fun* and Guiding Signs 101 guidance cards do just that.  I was contacted by Guiding Signs to review their card deck and when I got them in the mail I was so very impressed, it is my pleasure to tell you all about them today.

These intuitively based cards are so positive, sweet and uplifting that you would have fun doing these with your children, your spouse, on your own… even with your pet!  The real gem of these cards is in the included Guiding Signs 101 Guidebook, which is where you look up the deeper meaning behind the card that you (or your child, or your spouse, or your pet…) has selected.

I was so impressed with how thoughtful and well written the card suggestions are… you can go as light or as deeply as you’d like to go with it.

If you want to leave room for your own intuitive interpretation, you can just read the little poem that accompanies each card to get a general feeling for what the card represents, then open to your own intuitions as you work it into your own personal context.  For those that want a bit more directions, there is a “Deeper Meaning” section that gives you a full passage about each card, and what I love about them is that they are all extremely positive and full of gentle suggestions and analogies to help you really get to the deeper meaning in the card.  Lastly, there is also a small list of question prompts that you can ask yourself about the card you have drawn, to give you some direction to the day or a thought point for reflection in your meditative times.

 

One of the things I loved most, beyond the thoughtfulness and sheer positivity of the guidebook, is how sturdy the cards are and the larger size.  The quality of this card deck surpasses most that I’ve seen.  The cards and large and simple, with bright graphics that immediately make me think this would be a super fun, powerful tool to share with children… so I highly recommend all the parents out there considering this as a wonderful parenting tool to help teach your little ones about intuition and how to have FUN and PLAY with how you would like to intend and create your day, or for problem solving, or for any way you can think of!

I love how the entire feel of the deck is positive and joyful… nothing in here that is negative or heavy in any way.  I love the safe feeling these cards give to the user.

The author and creator of the card deck and guide book, Kathleen Plant McIntire, is the founder of MoonBear Sanctuary in norther California.  She specializes in leading women’s retreats to sacred places all over the world and put her intention of transformation, empowerment, and healing into creating Guiding Signs 101.  I thought it was also very interesting that the artist Erin Cote (of www.ULaughAlot.com) is a play and laughter therapist and brings Laughter Therapy to businesses and hospitals… she is definitely a “feel good” soul!  I can feel this intention in the card deck very clearly.

 

Kathleen stopped by my blog to tell us a little more about how and why she created this tool:

“My very first inspiration for Guiding Signs came about 10 years ago while I was living in London and teaching a course on creativity, using the book The Artists Way as a backbone for the class.  At one point we were working on intuition and synchronicity and I realized that most of the women in my course were corporate wives who didn’t really “get” these concepts.  I asked what would be an easy and fun way to help people really understand intuition and synchronicity and I immediately received an answer, like a download from the universe.  I was instantly shown how everyone knows road signs and what they mean. Just as the signs on the road guide our driving I could clearly see that they could help people in understanding the signs that continually show up in our lives.  We just need to remember to pay attention and also to listen.

Using the Cards to Create the Cards: My first step in creating Guiding Signs 101 was to find a gifted and inspired artist who shared my vision to bring my idea to life. I created two cards that were merely a green circle (to symbolize yes) and a red circle (to symbolize no). I asked the cards about working with the first person who came into my consciousness; my friend Erin Cote. I got a Green light. Later I had the idea that I should instead work with a professional artist with a well-established reputation. Each prospective artist I asked about–no matter how many times I would ask–revealed a Red Light. And every time I checked back about working with Erin, it would be a Green Light. As you can see, from the very beginning, I valued and listened to the guidance from the cards.

Together, Erin and I knew that the cards were already created on another plane, and we were simply listening for guidance and direction. It was the future–where they already existed–that drew us toward them.  Our job was not to “create” them. Our job was to open ourselves so we could be a portal for what wanted to come through. Our job was to listen with our heart’s ears. Yes, the ears of our heart! It is no accident that the word ear is in the word heart. We held a trust that the universe would deliver the perfect answers and direction to us.

Energy of joy, love and fun:  The energy that has gone into the cards has been one of joy, love and fun. We allowed ourselves to be in a state of wonder, curiosity, and service to humanity. We discovered being in a playful state is a great way to access ultimate, free-flowing creativity. We set intentions to play while creating them as we knew that play naturally brings us to the creative right side of the brain. Erin lead us in silly playful exercises that would make us laugh. Or I would have us move energy through our bodies by being fierce and getting into our warrior selves. This would also get us grounded and connected to the present moment.

We discovered a greater part inside of us that knows far more than our mere minds! We realized how many things are created through striving and effort, often resulting in a negative energy running between the people doing the creating.  It was important to us for the creation of every aspect of the cards to be done through love and joy and getting ourselves out of the way so we could listen with our innate intuition, with our hearts.  We had such a beautiful connection to each other and to something far greater than ourselves in the creation of the Guiding Signs 101 cards.  The feedback we are being given by many who are using the cards is that not only is it helping them tune in to their intuition and guidance, it is creating connection and intimacy through sharing the cards with a partner, children or friends. You can visit www.guidingsigns101.com to learn more.”

 

Kathleen was generous enough to send me a card deck to look over and then use as a giveaway!  That means one of you gets this lovely set for free!  Just leave a comment below and I will select one comment by next Monday in a random drawing and mail it right out!  Anyone can enter, so tell your friends!  xoxo, Laura

 

 

Thoughts On Health… The one health constant you can trust… and bonus: an easy test you can do right now to determine if you are getting enough barefoot time!

Posted

Every single day you hear conflicting health information and conflicting health advice.

One moment one food is safe to eat, the next moment it is not.  Or a supplement that was highly recommended is now under fire for being unsafe.  One doctor tells you one thing and one tells you another.  What your accupunturist advises is different from what your chiropractor recommends.

It’s hard to find one single thing that you can totally trust… is the FDA reliable?  Are the organic foods you purchase at the supermarket truly organic, with GMO seeping into all of our crops?  Is that medication the right one for you?  In the right dose?

Sometimes it feels like we can’t trust the food we are eating, the supplements or medications we are taking, or the people advising us along the way.

But there is always one thing that you can turn to for your health.  One thing that, no matter how smoggy and polluted our cities may become, no matter what drug meets what criteria for the FDA, no matter what specialist advises and no matter what food is hot one moment and not the next… direct contact with the earth is always available to you.

Directly touching the earth… sometimes it’s the one and only thing I can turn to in my day, knowing that the soothing current of the earth’s electrons is washing over me and literally neutralizing my free radicals and reducing inflammation in every single organ system in my body.

It doesn’t matter if you have a million things going on or nothing wrong at all… directly touching the earth… not consuming anything, not waiting for a medication to kick in and not waiting to feel guilty about the food you just ate… just touching the earth with your feet or sitting on the grass with your body or laying on  blanket watching the clouds drift by or walking by the ocean with your feet in the waves… imaging studies and blood tests and common sense and ancient wisdom all agree… the earth is ever there for you, ever supporting you, ever washing away the inflammation from your day and the damage done to your body, ever renewing you and ever ready.

Some days within 1 second of touching the earth I can feel the relief washing over me.  My headache soaks down into the ground or my shoulder tension melts away or my nausea vanishes or whatever stress I am holding onto leaves.

There is nothing that the earth can’t hold.  From the tallest skyscraper to the smallest blade of grass.  From your joyful dancing under the sun to your secrets whispered into the ground to your tears soaking in under the nighttime sky.  If you don’t feel well and you don’t know where to turn… if you feel great and you want to celebrate… just touch the earth every single day.

You don’t need permission from the government and you don’t need to know the latest medical news and you don’t need to read the scary headlines and you don’t need to double-check the label and you don’t need a pharmacy to hand it to you and you don’t need a doctor to recommend it… although I’m doing just that!

The one thing you can always turn to is the earth.

The one thing that reaches every organ system and every cell in your body is the earth.

The one thing in our entire universe that supports life and exists to allow life to blossom all over it’s entire being is our earth.

When you are out of contact with the earth your body feels the build up of inflammation and free radical damage and feels stressed and out of sorts.

When you come back in contact with the earth your body feels relief that is so intense it can be addicting!

Strive to contact the earth every single day.

Are you trapped in shoes?  Here is a simple video I did that will encourage you to kick those shoes off and have you freeing your feet.

If you live in an area where the earth is hard to access… or if you have an illness or condition and you’d like access to the earth’s soothing energy flow for more hours in a day then you can spend outside, check out these earthing products that help bring the grounding of the earth directly into your home.  From sheets and mattresses to keep you grounded all night long to computer pads to seat pads and more, click on over to Earthing.com to find out more!

xoxo, Laura

To The Moon And Back…

Posted

That’s how lucky I’ve been feeling lately.

My son literally just asked me “How come we meet the nicest people?” and I totally agree with him.

We have just spent the past five days meeting new folks… from men who have walked on the moon to the sound and camera crew, the movie director… everyone was just so amazing and the experience was such an honor for me.

Thank you so much to my friends and family (you know who you all are!) who were thinking of me and sending me comforting and positive energy as I took a deep breath and just plunged into it all.  I could feel your support and it made all the difference in the world.

I’m still traveling, now up to visit family in VA, but I wanted to share some of the lovely images my husband captured for me of my interview with the Apollo astronauts.

 

Walking down to the beach with Apollo 14 astronaut Edgar Mitchell, 6th man to walk on the moon.

ON THE MOON, PEOPLE!!! 

There have only been 12 human beings to EVER walk on the face of the moon, ever.  I just met two of them and am still speechless from how kind, intelligent, generous, and humble they both are.  Walking on the beach with them last weekend was definitely one of the highlights of my life!

(Oh and kindly ignore the square bump on my right hip from the microphone battery pack under my dress in all these pics..)

He spoke about his famous moment of being in space and looking around at the universe and feeling this overwhelming sense of unity and oneness with EVERYTHING… not just the earth but even the stars and literally the space in between. 

Upon returning home he used this inspiration to create the Institute of Noetic Sciences to research the link between science, philosophy and spirituality.

This is the amazing movie director, Steve Kroschel, greeting Apollo 16 astronaut Charlie Duke, 10th man to walk on the moon. 

Charlie Duke was, in my mind, the key scientist and astronaut of the entire Apollo mission.  From being CapCom on Apollo 11 (the very first lunar landing) through backup astronaut for Apollo 13, Lunar Module Pilot for Apollo 16, and backup astronaut for Apollo 17 (the final journey to the moon) Charles Duke is the epitome of a warm heart mixed with the passion, intelligence and bravery to literally pioneer space exploration.

Charlie Duke was joined by his wife Dottie, and they were absolutely glowing with joy and vibrancy of spirit. 

They talked a lot about how finding their faith in the Lord changed their lives and I could literally feel and see a glow around them as they talked.  They were full of love, very connected to each other, very very kind… and simply inspirational.

I think this is my favorite picture of all the ones my husband captured that day… simply because I think it is so lovely to see them with their arms around each other.  Touches my heart more than any other picture.

These interviews are part of the movie “The Grounded,” which is going to be a mind-blowing, life changing movie about the healing power of the earth.  Directly connecting to the earth, as I highly recommend privately patients and publicly to readers on my blog, works as a whole body anti-inflammatory… so naturally we stood barefoot on the beach for each interview. 

I absolutely know that standing there barefoot helped me feel centered and have the presence of mind to speak clearly when talking to such inspirational human beings.  I had stars in my eyes the entire day! 

And how lucky for my children too, who both got the chance to meet two men who had walked on the moon!!!!

After these interviews, we continued on to the Hippocrates Health Institute in West Palm Beach, FL, where we toured the facility there… and then it was back to my home with the director in tow, for a few days of filming in my office and around Charleston. 

This is in my home office… with my kids helping!  Steve Kroschel is the amazing director of The Beautiful Truth… a film that explores the Gerson Therapy and the connection between food and health.  He is full of life and as genuine and sincere as you can possibly imagine.  One of the most unique people I have ever met.  

It was such an honor to have him in my home… surreal, really… I can’t believe how lucky I am to be included in this momentous film “The Grounded.”  He is so multi-talented… he runs the Kroschel Wildlife Center in Alaska on top of filming for Disney, Columbia Pictures, Paramount, Lionsgate, National Geographic, BBC, Discovery Channel, PBS and more! 

And I had the honor of having this lovely human being meet my entire family and journey with us for several days!  We talked about my intuitive approach to healing and how the earth is such an important factor in maintaining the health of our body… as well as providing resiliency from disease and injury.

More details about the movie (expected to release by spring of next year) and my role in it, plus a huge slew of guest posts, health topics, intuitive and inspirational snippets and more to come once I’ve returned home again.

Thank you for your patience as I have been on the road so often this month and I hope to see you back here very very soon!  xoxo, Laura

Big Things A’Coming…

Posted

So peeps… I have an amazing line up for you all coming on my blog.

Health posts about everything from “Preventing Alzheimers” to the “Best Foods To Eat For Brain Health” to how to “Beat Yeast Overgrowth.”

I have awesome healers to introduce you to and inspirational products that I really believe in (including some new intuition card decks I’ve had so much fun experimenting with!)

I’m sharing some of my garden pics with you today, because just like my life this spring, big things are happening to the earth too… lots of energy shooting up all around.

So how come I’m not launching into it?

It’s gonna have to wait about three weeks… for the next three weeks I’ll be out-of-town either on a top-secret mission or up to visit my family to bury my lovely grandfather at Arlington National Cemetary.

The top-secret mission?  I can’t give you any details.

But let’s just assume, and I’m not saying anything specific here, but what if it had to do with a movie?

And let’s assume further that I would be being interviewed in this movie.  And what if, just say… I was actually going to be clothed in this interview and I needed to decide on an outfit to wear.

Now let’s assume that in this pretend scenario I would want to appear natural and earthy, but also intelligent and professional.  Not “white coat and stethoscope” kind of professional but just “knows what I’m talking about” kind of professional.

Let’s pretend further that I was going to be filmed walking along a beach for this portion of the movie.

If this were not hypothetical but actually happening (and I’m not saying it is!  You can’t make me!  Bamboo sticks popping my eyeballs couldn’t make me admit it!) what the heck should I be wearing?

 

If you have any ideas (shop links would be amazing!!!) shout them out to me at heartsong@primary-plus.com and I’ll be ever so grateful.

ASAP please, as I’ve gotta pack in about a week and a half and some outfit better be in my suitcase.  And pretty much anything would be better than a bathing suit, which is about the only other thing I’ll be sure to pack!!!

In the meanwhile, I’m likely to pop back occasionally to share some pics and touch base, but look for my blog to resume full force by the end of April.

If you’d like to be notified by email when my blog posts are posted, just fill out your email in the email sign up space in the sidebar and you’ll get them delivered to your in-box.

Or if you prefer FB to stay connected, like me here!  I’ll be sure to give a shout out when I’m back… and maybe a few details along the way…

xoxo, Laura