Hey everyone!  This week's topic is Christmas stress and for me, it feels like it is almost time to switch from my everyday anxiety to my festive Christmas anxiety.  The shopping, baking, grocery buying, craft making, more shopping and subsequent added guilt of not focusing enough on the real reason for the season, it adds up!  Is my family experiencing Christmas the way I want them to?   I'm determined to make some changes this year to help minimize stress and be in a better place to enjoy the season and not just make things enjoyable for everyone around me.  I know things can be dialed down, so this episode explores ideas to start enjoying the Christmas season in new ways. The 7 topics we discussed in detail to help minimize anxiety during the Christmas season are: *Prioritize *Planning Ahead *Gift Giving *Environment *Clothing *Stuff *Reason for the Season As always, I'd love to hear from you!  In addition to subscribing to the podcast and providing me your feedback, I would love if you shared any ways you manage holiday stress and focus on what matters most! 

All The Things Podcast

Episode 22 - Christmas Anxiety

This short mini episode is a follow up to a full episode we recorded on mediation with Stephen Sokoler.  Today we dive into how to use mediation as a gateway to prayer to build a more intimate relationship with God.   Make sure to subscribe!

Episode 21 - Meditation for Prayer

Heather is a freelance makeup artist in the Quad Cities area. She discovered a passion for makeup having grown up with a disorder known as Trichotillomania, which led her to feel ashamed of her appearance for many years. Makeup gave her confidence again, and empowered her to use her newfound passion of artistry to serve others. She is the busy wife of her husband Justin, and momma of 2, Sage (5), and Riah (3). She has loved the transition from being a Doctor of occupational therapy to mommy/small business owner, and feels so blessed to be able to work from home while raising her children. If you'd like more information about the makeup Heather uses and sells, or her services, you can find Heather on Facebook (search Heather Ratliff) and Instagram @heathersratliff and her website https://www.heathersratliff.com/ If you would like to see Heather in action, check out this youtube video. She graciously taught me so much while she did my makeup and it goes along with everything we talk about in the podcast! This is also my youtube debut! HaHa! https://youtu.be/7mFhp05UryY?fbclid=IwAR2qDgyBPTt2a5d51Q2PelZQSJRTVOD5ui7NzelB6Nh2CbygzyTOc2p3XJY   Here is the link for the tinkle eyebrow razors we discussed. https://www.amazon.com/dp/B014HNOXZS/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_i_HxhTDb9XX27W9?fbclid=IwAR22Ni4zkTd7QEt16--Off3wfCvTX576uzT0rqM8rjU2xt9AHrWSMb8jcMQ   Heather shares a little about a disorder called Trichotillomania. If you'd like to learn more, here a link from the Mayo Clinic. https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/trichotillomania/symptoms-causes/syc-20355188#targetText=Trichotillomania%20(trik%2Do%2Dtil,body%2C%20despite%20trying%20to%20stop.   As always, I'd love to hear from you! Please subscribe to the podcast and and give me your feed back!    

Episode 20-Makeup for Mature Skin

 Jessica Jaramillo is an intuitive coach & facilitator working with individuals, couples, families, entrepreneurs, and teams, leading them through their struggles and growth so they can live their most joyful & successful life. Jessica is certified in the Integrative Enneagram and uses this amazing tool as the foundation of her coaching practice.  Jessica and her husband, Rodd, work with couples and the Enneagram in workshops, retreats and coaching. You can follow Jessica on Instagram at @coachwithjess or @enneagramforrelationships and also email her at coachwithjess.com   Jessica is giving you guys a great deal! This test is $267 value and you can take this test and find out your enneagram number for only $99! Not only do you get to find out your number, but you get a one hour coaching session WITH Jessica to make sure you completely understand your results and a chance to ask questions! Here is the link to her assessment. Use the coupon code is: ALLTHETHINGS for the special pricing. https://www.restoringrelationshipscoaching.com/bookings-checkout/enneagram-assessment-debrief/book   Here are some helpful Enneagram charts to help you get an idea of what we discussed in this episode. Once you know your number, this all starts to make more sense. If you want more in-depth information on each specific type, you can go The Enneagram Institute and read information on each type for free. To take their test, it costs $12 and takes about 40 minutes to complete. This is the test I took and it was very easy and kind of fun! Here is the link. https://www.enneagraminstitute.com/ I was actually able to read through the descriptions and I knew right away what number I was without taking the test. Some people, like Jeremy, are much harder to nail down, so he is planning to take the test and the 1 hr consultation with Jessica to make sure he is correctly typed!   Thank you for visiting the blog and make sure you are subscribed to the podcast, so you don't miss any new episodes! We love to hear from you, so take a minute and write us a review!!!   

Episode 19-The Enneagram

 This week I had the wonderful pleasure of interviewing a fellow podcaster, April Fallon. April is the mother of 4 beautiful children that she and her husband brought home through the process of domestic infant adoption. April has a background in broadcasting and has worked for CBS, and radio broadcasting before starting Adoption Now. She currently records at the I Heart Radio Studio in Colorado. I know, its' crazy awesome!   April is the host of the Adoption Now Podcast where she features a different adoption story each week. April has a HUGE heart for adoption and through the process of adopting her children, has realized that there is a great need for current adoption information. Each episode is a huge encouragement to adoptive families, birth mothers, adoptees and anyone who's lives have been touched with adoption. If you'd like to share your story on her podcast, go to her website and submit an application to www.adoptionnowpodcast.com April and I laughed at the end of the show because April said, "I've shared all my secrets today!" We talked about what's like being a trans-racial family, hair care, some great information for adoption awareness, some personal stories, and how to grow more compassion for birth mothers.   ADOPTION NOW “Telling Your Adoption Story” is a podcast that shares real stories about adoption. April Fallon, the Host, has 4 adopted children and a backround in TV and radio broadcasting. This program shares every aspect of adoption told by the adoptive parent, birth parent or the adoptee. ADOPTION NOW offers encouragement and understanding into the adoption world and gives hope to those in the adoption process.   You can hear about all four of April's personal adoption stories if you listen to Episodes 1 and 2 of her Adoption Now Podcast.   The ADOPTION NOW podcast can be found by searching “ADOPTION NOW” on iTunes, Soundcloud and Google Play, and YouTube, making it accessible to listeners worldwide.   Adoption Resources: The agency we work with is America World Adoption Agency (AWAA) https://awaa.org/   Make sure you subscribe so you don't miss an episode!   

Episode 18-Adoption with April Fallon

 I am thrilled to introduce my friend and all around great guy, Rob Galloway. Rob is husband, baseball coach and father to three awesome kiddos! He graduated from St. Ambrose University with Honors in 2016 and has been with COUNTRY Financial for 13 years this October. During his career with COUNTRY Financial he has reached All-American Status 8 years (Top 100 in the company) and reached Executive club in 2011 (Top 50 in the company) He also has received Honor Roll recognition 8 years, as well helping more than 4 families per month, 12 months consecutively with life insurance needs. A huge accomplishment was reaching Master Agent status in 2013, 2016, and 2018. This award goes to less than 30 representatives in the company each year. He is licensed in Illinois, Iowa, and Nevada to sell life, health, property casualty products as well as being a Registered Representative with COUNTRY Capital Management Company. You can find Rob on Facebook, Instagram, or email him at rob.galloway@countryfinancial.com   This Acorns app is great for saving money, when you think you don't have any extra to save. Basically, it's linked to your account and every time to use your debit card, it rounds up your purchase to the nearest dollar and saves it for you. I think you'll be surprised how quickly the change adds up! This is perfect timing since the holidays are right around the corner! When I researched the app a little further, it looks like it also helps you invest your money and a few other pretty cool functions. It's definitely worth checking out!   The Everydollar app is the Dave Ramsey budgeting app that I was hearing from several friends that they use and love. Some friends use the free version, which you manually enter in your money spent in each category, and some use the paid version that links to your account and automatically updates your spending. This is the app I plan to start using ASAP to get back on track with budgeting. I'll keep you guys posted on how I like it!   I would like to try the paid version, since it's so inexpensive. No more time spent entering paper receipts or checking your bank account. Simply log in to view recent spending and drag transactions to your budget categories. All new users receive a free 15-day trial. I believe the cost is $99 per year.   Here are more links to some great budgeting apps that were recommended to me. Mint: https://www.mint.com/ Spending Tracker: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.mhriley.spendingtracker&hl=en Personal Capital: https://www.personalcapital.com/land/getStartedExtended/?cl=_k_Cj0KCQjww7HsBRDkARIsAARsIT5B5NSpylkTr6t5hIh-Dk-XjsT0LSRq-KX--TqxQwpvApT8Q5yekDAaAkLWEALw_wcB_k_&c3apiks=kwd-1977342457&utm_medium=cpc&utm_source=google&utm_campaign=Google_Search_Brand_Brand&utm_content=personal%20capital%20-%20exact&gclid=Cj0KCQjww7HsBRDkARIsAARsIT5B5NSpylkTr6t5hIh-Dk-XjsT0LSRq-KX--TqxQwpvApT8Q5yekDAaAkLWEALw_wcB   If you loved this episode give us 5 stars and write a quick review on Itunes or wherever you listen to podcasts! We love hearing from you and it makes us look legit! 

Episode 17 - Financial Planning

I'm thrilled to introduce my friend, Kim Ricketts. Kim is a wife, mother, daughter, sister and friend. Kim is currently 47 years old and has been married to the most wonderful human being, for almost 25 years and has 3 grown beautiful children. She also has a gorgeous and smart grandson, who truly has a giant piece of her heart in Florida. She loves to spend time with her family and travel to visit her children. Kim likes to binge watch "junk TV", drink coffee, bake, yoga, meditate and workout. The only thing that makes her a little different is that she's currently living with Ovarian Cancer (OVCA). Kim's cancer is stage 3C Ovarian Cancer for the second time in 18 months. Once Ovarian Cancer returns it is no longer curable. Kim wants every woman to know the symptoms and be persistent with your doctors. There is no early detection for this cancer! In 2019 22,530 women will be diagnosed and 13,980 will loose their life. Only about 15%-20% of women will be diagnosed in the early stages, so this number needs to change in order to save more lives! If you'd like to get in touch with Kim, you can find her on Facebook (Kim Ricketts) and Instagram @berly95.

Episode 16-Ovarian Cancer

 Ashley graduated from the International Academy of Design and Technology in Chicago, IL with a Bachelors of Fine Arts in Interior Design. She worked for 8 years as a Senior Design Consultant for Ethan Allen in Davenport Iowa before opening Panoply Design Studio. Ashley has vast knowledge in many different design styles and appreciates the individuality of each of her clients and their preferences. “There is no project too small or too large. I can help a little or I can help a lot. I challenge each of my clients to branch out of their comfort zone and choose some areas to be bold. You only live once! Don’t be afraid of a little paint color!"   If you'd like to contact Ashley, you can go to her website http://panoplydesignstudio.com/ You can also find her on Instagram @panoplydesignstudio   I first met Ashley on a girls trip to Chicago. I knew right away from her great sense of humor and style that I wanted to be friends! I started asking her for some help with some house projects and now she can't get rid of me! I think there's always something we are working on, but once she makes one beautiful space in my home, I just want another and another...lol!   If you enjoyed this episode, please become a SUBSCRIBER! That way each new episode will automatically download each week and you will never miss a show! In order for this show to grow, we NEED YOU to help us do that! Please leave us a comment and give us a 5 star rating if you liked the episode!! We appreciate you listening!! 

Episode 15-Home Decor

 I am thrilled to bring back Marli Apt for our season one finale episode! Episode 8, All The Things Fitness, had the greatest number of downloads by FAR! I thought if fitness is something that you all are interested in learning about, why not bring her back and dive into more!   Marli grew up in Macomb IL and has been living in and loving Geneseo since 2009! She has 2 boys, Hayes and Callen and another (Kinnick) son of my BF(boyfriend/best friend) who she calls hers and loves him as if he were her own. Marli graduated from WIU with a degree in kinesiology (exercise science) and has been in the health and wellness field ever since!! She is the Group Exercise Director and Program Manager for the LiveStrong at the Y Cancer Exercise Program for the Scott County Family YMCA. She has been a certified personal trainer for 12 years and works with individuals of all levels from those who are healthy, to those with cancer, cardiac disease and people with Parkinson’s disease. Marli is also a natural pro figure competitor. Her world revolves around her family and living a healthy, active lifestyle!!!   This episode we spend a lot of time talking about fad diets, and why they fail. Marli also spends time talking about some realistic, small changes you can make to your diet that can make a huge difference. HIIT (high intensity interval training) is also something Marli took some time to explain and why she feels it is one of the best ways to get in shape, and why she uses it to train for body building competitions.   I am also a huge advocate for HIIT workouts. I am a member of the Geneseo SWEAT Fitness Studio and love it! These workouts are keeping me coming back each week and the people and trainers are exceptional. There is a family atmosphere, with an area designated for child care and classes offered seveal times throughout the day to give you many options for getting that workout in! I highly recommend you giving it a try!!!! http://sweatfitnessstudios.com/ 

Episode 14-Season 1 Finale with Marli Apt

 I'm thrilled to introduce you all to Stephen Sokoler! I've learned a great deal about meditation the last couple weeks in preparation for this interview and what I have learned during my brief meditations on his company's new meditation app! It was truly a pleasure to get to know Stephen and learn about his passion to help others through meditation.   Stephen is the Founder and CEO of Journey Meditation. Journey is on a mission to help all people live happier, healthier, less stressed lives. Journey is building the world’s largest meditation community, both online and off. The Journey LIVE app offers live-streamed group meditation classes uniquely designed to leverage the power of human connection by mirroring the experience of a physical meditation studio. A diverse cohort of experienced teachers guide meditators in real-time, offering support to help new meditators form healthy habits and experienced meditators deepen their practice.   Prior to starting Journey, Stephen was the Co-Founder and CEO of Altrum Honors, a company dedicated to helping organizations celebrate and inspire their employees. Through organic growth and multiple acquisitions, Stephen built the company into an industry leader with a 35% global market share and over $20 million in annual revenue. Stephen successfully sold Altrum in September 2014.   This episode explains what meditation is, how it can be helpful to pretty much everyone and also how it can be a useful tool for prayer. You definitely don't want to miss this one!   The Journey Live App is a free app that allows you to join live meditations almost anytime throughout the day! Most of the meditations are 15 minutes and you can even type in a specific question and the instructor will answer it! You can choose from several different instructors and there is even a mom's meditation group every day at 12:00!   You can find Journey Live on Instagram and also the App Store. We love hearing from you! Please consider writing a review on iTunes and let us know we are doing!!!   

Episode 13-Meditation

Happy Father's Day to all the Dad's out there!! In today's episode, Jeremy gets to share his love for All The Things, The Big Green Egg! He gives a rundown of what they are, why he loves them, rationalizes the investment, and gives some great advise that ranges from the beginner to the seasoned griller! For more photos and recipes go to https://jesicabries.com/ Make sure to give us a review on iTunes!!

Episode 12- The Big Green Egg

 Devon Schaaf is back on the show! We recorded episode 1 together about following our God-Sized dreams and agreed to be on the show with me again!! Devon is a mom of three kids here on earth, and two sweet babies in heaven. She is married to her high school sweetheart and lives in the amazing small town she grew up in. She is passionate about her Arbonne business, helping others on their journey to better health and wellness, and her newest dream, The Well Holy Yoga. She is a big time dreamer, always full of new ideas and never afraid to dive into them.   This week is all about morning routines, which kind of turned into learning about habits in general! We shared some of our new habits and talked about how making very small changes can add up to Big changes over time! If you feel like you need to add some value into your mornings or habits in general, we have some great tips and tricks to get you started today!   So, all I am really using right now is my planner because it has a space for everything I need...but had to show my beautiful hand-painted bible that Jeremy bought me for my birthday and the journal my bestie gave me for jotting down all my podcast ideas! They aren't part of my "morning routine as much as the planner, but definitely get a lot of use! Here is a link to the planner if you'd like to own one! The are not cheap, but I 100% recommend the investment! (not a paid ad!) https://www.prayerfulplanner.com/collections/all/products/prayerful-planner-undated-pink-stripe   I wish we could have talked about every word in this gem of a book! There is so much more in here that we weren't able to get to, so it's definitely worth the read! To listen to some OUTSTANDING sermons on habits that also go along with this book, Dr. Christopher Ritter, Pastor of First United Methodist Church in Geneseo, IL has a series on SoundCloud that I'm linking here. His messages are so relatable and full of wisdom!!!   Habits Part 1 https://soundcloud.com/geneseofirst/habits-part-1 Habits Part 2 https://soundcloud.com/geneseofirst/habits-part-2 Habits Part 3 https://soundcloud.com/geneseofirst/habits-part-3#t=0:00 Habits Part 4 https://soundcloud.com/geneseofirst/habits-part-4   I have been using Arbonne’s protein powder for years. I have tried at least 10 other protein powders and these by far taste the best. Every time I have run out, and pick up another brand to try, I always go back to Arbonne. The vanilla smells like vanilla cake and the chocolate is so chocolaty without being chalky or tasting like artificial sweetener. They also pass the husband and kid test. My family makes shakes almost daily for breakfast, snacks or after workouts. (While typing that last sentence, my son walked in the kitchen and asked me if he could make a shake...lol) Arbonne products are all amazing products with healthy ingredients. They are Vegan, GF, and made with pea protein, so they meet the needs if allergies are an issue. They taste great with water, milk, fruit…I love to add chia seeds, and coconut oil for added fiber and fat. I love that Arbonne has so many great products to help you on your health journey, but the protein is by FAR my favorite! To save 20%-40% off your order for a year, be sure to click "REGISTER" to open a preferred client account. Here is a shopable link if you'd like to try it out! www.jesicabries.arbonne.com 

Episode 11-Morning Routines

Today my husband Jeremy and I are talking about All The Things our Haiti Adoption Journey. This episode is full of raw emotion as we talk about how our journey began, our fears, peaks and valleys, and where we are now. Our hope with this episode is to share some awareness around adoption and give you a personal insight as to what our journey has looked like for us. We hope you will add us to your prayers, as this process isn’t even close to being complete. We hope you enjoy the show! Don't forget to give us a rating and comment on iTunes! We love to hear your feedback!

Episode 10-Our Haiti Adoption

Ashley grew up on a farm in Sublette, IL with 3 older brothers and is now a wife and mom of two daughters (Cam 9 and Eden 5) now living in the Des Moines Metro. Ashley has been in numerous healthcare roles for the past 15 years and has been an Urgent Care Nurse Practitioner for the last 5.  Early on in her career she knew she needed a creative outlet and in 2015 she opened Mabel., a curated vintage shop in Geneseo, IL. She designed and launched a website for the shop along with a signature collection of apparel. Since moving out west she has taken on a slower pace, enjoying more time with family and exploring new creative outlets while connecting with other like minded creative women. She believes in being multi-passionate and living outside the box to live your best life! We'd love to hear your feedback! Please write a quick review and let us know how we are doing!

Episode 9-Defining Success

Marli grew up in Macomb IL and has been living in and loving Geneseo since 2009! She has 2 boys, Hayes and Callen and another (Kinnick) son of my BF(boyfriend/best friend) who she calls hers and loves him as if he were her own. Marli graduated from WIU with a degree in kinesiology (exercise science) and has been in the health and wellness field ever since!! She is the Group Exercise Director and Program Manager for the LiveStrong at the Y Cancer Exercise Program for the Scott County Family YMCA. She has been a certified personal trainer for 12 years and works with individuals of all levels from those who are healthy, to those with cancer, cardiac disease and people with Parkinson’s disease. Marli is also a natural pro figure competitor. Her world revolves around her family and living a healthy, active lifestyle!!! Starting off this episode, Marli shares with us how she uses fitness as medicine to help people with cancer, senior citizens, and Parkinson's live longer, and more independent lives. These special populations that she sees weekly help motivate her to see that fitness is so much more than what you see on the outside. These clients truly FEEL better, move better, and are able to walk, sit, stand and do daily tasks because of her ability to help them improve their strength and mobility.   My favorite encouragement that Marli shares with us is "you will never regret when you go to the gym, but you will always regret when you don't!" Such a wonderful reminder to not let those excuses get in the way!   What I love about tracking macros is that it isn't a diet! It's a great tool to look at what you are eating and maybe not eating, and fill in the gaps with the types of food that will fuel your body the most! Here is a link for more information. You can also download the app on your smart phone. https://getmymacros.com/ To help you figure out how to calculate your macros goals, click here: https://www.bodybuilding.com/fun/macronutrients_calculator.htm   For more information about the Scott County Family YMCA and the programs they have available, click here: https://www.scottcountyfamilyy.org/   I would love to hear your feedback, so please leave an iTunes review and give me a rating of 5 stars!!!!  

Episode 8-Fitness with Marli

All the Things Podcast is a place to share our hearts and minds about our Christian faith, marriage, adoption, fashion, beauty trends, fitness, body image, social justice issues, etc. The show is an interview format and each episode we will discuss different topics with various co-hosts.

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All The Things Podcast

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