The other night, my friend and I were creating vision boards. In case you aren't familiar, a vision board is a collage of pictures, words, sayings, etc. that people usually create at the beginning of a new year. It's a visual way of reminding yourself what you want for the upcoming year and helping to bring it to fruition.

"Did you ever wonder....?" That is what the famous TV presenter Andy Rooney would often say during his few minute snippets at the end of the TV show "60 Minutes".

The names are getting better. The names of all the balls I carry around with me, that is. If you follow my blog, you will already know about "The Big Green Ball", and about "Heavy Pink Ball".

When you think about the phrase "sense of self", what image does that conjure up for you? Maybe you think about yourself, and what your place is in the world. Maybe you think about your child and about how they see themselves. Or maybe you're like me and think of someone going off to "find themselves".

Remember that saying- "The man behind the mask" ? Of course, with Covid-19 that has probably taken on a whole new meaning for all of us. But anyway- I've been thinking about that saying a lot since I started the facebook page for Brain FUNdamentals.

Each new year can bring with it hope, optimism, and a chance to start over. Do you think?

As I approach the end of the calendar year and the beginning of a new phase of my life, I feel fear. Not the "I'm scared that there's a threat to my life" kind of fear. It's the kind of fear that moves you forward. The kind of fear that pushes you out of your comfort zone and into where the magic happens. The kind of fear that fluctuates between excitement and fear in a matter of seconds.

Have you ever read the book Who Moved My Cheese? By Dr. Spencer Johnson? It's a simple, yet profound story about change and how we handle change.

Sometimes it feels like magic- this work of ours at Brain Fit Academy. 

This little six year old girl had had a rough morning. It was now afternoon and when she arrived with her mother for her session, she didn't want to come out of the car. 

Vulnerability is a raw emotion. And trust is a needed emotion. 

I recently attended the annual Breakthroughs International Conference for the first time. The conference took place in Malaysia, but was online this year due to COVID-19. Since many of you may not be aware of this organization, let me explain. Breakthroughs International is the over-arching organization under which Brain Gym® International falls. 

In a previous post titled "Roots", I talked about how the brain stem can be likened to the roots of a tree. And how at Brain Fit Academy, we build the brain from the bottom up by working on the primitive reflexes, those early motor patterns, the "roots" so to speak.

"Boy, you really understand our son/daughter!" This is a phrase we hear a lot from parents that come to Brain Fit Academy. Very often, we hear words like that during (or after) the screening. 

Sometimes, it's hard to find balance. It's too easy to shut the world off, pretend like things aren't there. Responsibilities, problems or situations that easily bop you ''out of the loop".

Being a mom of a child with special needs, or a child that struggles, is hard. Now, I'm not discounting dads, but today the focus is on moms.

"It's the only thing that's helped." These are the words of the mother of my six year old client.

You know when you finish something you've been working really hard on, and when you get to the end you have mixed feelings about it?

Yesterday, I finished my last required course in order to become a Licensed Brain Gym® Instructor/Consultant and with that, comes mixed feelings.

Balance is such a big word. And by big, I mean used in so many ways.

People talk about balance in life. We talk about balance in our emotions and in our bodies. We talk about balance in our relationships and balance in the world.

Yesterday, the governor of our state (Massachusetts) announced that all remaining COVID 19 restrictions will be lifted in about 10 days. As you know, I don't write about politics-or viruses, but I do write about lives.

I've mentioned before about how at Brain Fit Academy, we talk a lot about babies. And, how could we talk about babies without talking about pregnancies?