Greg in Wonderland

We did find our way into another world for Greg's birthday.  As was expected, nothing unfolded as expected.  An "Alice in Wonderland" ✨Greg in Wonderland✨adventure.  This valley of enchantment, called Las Vegas, is quite another world.

From one dimension to another.

Due to high winds, we decided to save our Red Rock Canyon and Valley of Fire odysseys for another day.  Instead, we took our Captain for a delightful walk in Sunset Park not too far from our home base.  Here we encountered a curious duck civilization, intriguing trees and a great walk in the park with my two guys.

From our lovely nature jaunt, we jumped into the altered reality of First Friday's at Fremont Street.  First Friday, Greg learned from his co-workers, is where the locals go to people watch and let their hair down.  Fremont St is considered the "Downtown" of Las Vegas.

After a luscious evening of people watching and letting our hair down, we realized how much of an appetite we had worked up.  Being near the strip, we navigated over to The Venetian for a revolutionary taste bud jubilee.  Greg and I know "Italian", it's our go-to restaurant experience when we are going to treat ourselves.  In our 40 years of tasting Italian dishes all over the US, last night took us to culinary new worlds.  We were too much in rapture of our delicious meals to take pictures but we did get a few pictures of our promenade to the restaurant.

Birthday Mysterium

We're going on birthday adventures today!!!  It's Greg's 40th time around the sun and we're gonna celebrate like it's 1978!  I'm especially excited about how we are going to navigate our day.  We have lots of captivating ideas, seeing that we are in Las Vegas and surrounded by mystical hinterlands all around.  🎉What a place to be to celebrate your 40th birthday!  🎉For starters we may journey into Red Rock Canyon...

Red Rock is only about a 30 minute drive from our home.  Or we may get a wild hair and drive to the Valley of Fire, which is about an hour away.  We may save this delicious escapade for day in the near future, when we start much earlier.

Then, tonight we may delight ourselves with our first Vegas show.  Maybe one of the Cirque Du Soleil..

Who knows what we will get into!  And that's half the fun...to just follow what light's our heart up in every moment.  We know we want to take our old man, Captain, out on a walk-about, we know we want to treat ourselves to something Vegasy and I know I want it to be incredibly special for the love of my life.  A day full of these enchanting experiences is a day fit for this magnetic and charming, Pisces man.  I'll be back tomorrow with a delectable description of our celebratory saunters in this mysterious desert land.  

Fierce Full Moon and a Spectacular Sister

Jessica came to Vegas!  From a few weeks ago.

Today's a special day!  It's my sister-in-law's birthday, a formidable full moon AND I got my hair cut from a place called, Radically Curly (pictures to come).  I love my sister-in-law, she has treated me like a sister from the moment she met me.  She's one of the reason's I started dabbling into my creative inspirations many years ago.  I'm honored to have her as family and proud of her many accomplishments (excelling in her career, bought her own home, lots of fun adventures and so much more).  Not only did I get the man of my dreams with Greg but was gifted an amazing family that came with him.

Speaking of my husband, his birthday is tomorrow AND it's a big one!  For that reason, tonight's blog post will be short.  I'll resume the treasure stories this weekend.

Happy Full Moon everyone!  Remember to shower yourself with much self-love and compassion today, because it was a wild one!

Lisa's Treasure Story

Lisa won the third treasure quest prize package by answering four of the riddles and applying the themes to her life.  I loved getting a glimpse into how the quest related to her experiences.  I met Lisa this past November at a canvas painting party.  She's one of those people you meet in life that you instantly feel a spark of connection and magic.  It's like she sparkles.  Above is her treasure collection.  Starting from the left, you'll see the herbal tea from my collection.  I chose Mint Tea for Lisa because they both (Lisa and the tea) are refreshing and delightful!  I wanted to include tea in the treasure packages to signify how important it is to take a moment and enjoy a good cup of tea when living an adventurous life.

Found this image on etsy

The mint tea in Lisa's treasure has many benefits and here are a few:  boosts immunity, improves digestion, treats nausea and headaches, reduces fever, treats respiratory disorders, freshens breath, weight loss, prevents memory loss, reduces stress levels and fatigue.  Next, in the treasure picture above, you see Lisa's serene card.  I chose this card for Lisa because it's how I envision her soaring into her dream life - peaceful, confidently and with abundance all around her.  On top of the card is  the tree doubloon ~ there is a special place in my heart for trees and this celtic tree has a sacred message on the flip side of coin that was chosen specifically for Lisa.  The heart is found in all quest winner packages as a emblem of our heart being such an important guide in our life.  The word printed on Lisa's heart charm is "shine", as a reminder to her to shine her brilliant light.  Next, is a journal with glowing gold letters and a message we all deserve to hear, "I believe in you".  I chose this journal for Lisa because her presence in the quest instilled this very message within me.  I wanted her to know, I believe in her too.  On the journal lies an arrow and a key.  To me, these treasures point to an exciting and fulfilling quest is being lived or on the horizon.  The arrow speaks of focus, determination and being in flow in our journey.   The key ~ found in every package sent, represents each adventurer being able to access the many gateways to riches in our individual journeys.  Something I have yet to explain is the Louise Hay affirmation cards that were sent to most of the treasure receivers.  I was introduced to this author's wonderful works many years ago.  I included affirmation cards in many of the packages to represent how powerful our minds are in our journey.  They're like a boost of positivity!  These cards can be kept for oneself or left as little acts of kindness in random places for someone to find.  On top of Lisa's affirmation cards are six treasures.  The rose quartz, gifted to each of the treasure winners symbolizes unconditional love, compassion, nourishment and a sense of fulfillment and contentment.  As we all navigate this wild ride of life, the rose quartz treasure reminds us to make sure we gift ourselves the self-love and nurturing that we need along the way.  The clear crystal quartz was an intimate piece of mine and Greg's collection gifted to each fellow quest mate.  Greg and I mined these clear crystals ourselves during our 9th anniversary adventure in Hot Springs, Arkansas last year  I wanted each person to know how special they are to me for traveling along this quest path.  The green onyx dragon figurine represents Lisa's fierce ability to overcome any obstacle in her path and her gumption to live life to the fullest.   The stone dragon speaks to courage, confidence and positive support.

The medallion, "Slay Your Own Dragon" was the cherry on top for Lisa's treasure package!  It made me think of some of conversations that were sparked during the quest.  This medallion represents Lisa's ability to overcome obstacles, especially the self imposed ones.  I relate to this and I hope it made sense to Lisa.  We are able to slay our own "dragons".  In her treasure, the dragon represents her power and also that which she triumphs over (looks like I'll be writing a separate post to this subject).  The bright pink stone charm personifies the beaming charisma I felt when I met Lisa.  The hematite ring - as in the epic movies based on Tolkien's books, there was a powerful ring involved, this hematite ring was given to each of the treasure quest winners as a symbol of powerful connection to this planet, to each other and to the world.  It symbolizes us making way for more positivity into our life through our logical thinking, self-esteem, focus and being grounded.  And the casino token represents the luck we find in our life when we strive for our dreams - when we stretch, play and leap out of our comfort zones to live life to the fullest.

Katie's Treasure Story

What is impressive about Katie's quest win is she had taken a sabbatical from Facebook during the time of the quest.  Instead of letting that stop her from coming along for the fun, she made the decision to go directly to my blog spot to participate.  I think she enjoyed the challenges of the quest but I believe the main reason she was such a consistent presence was because she wanted to support one of her best friends.  💗My heart overflows with the gratitude of having a friend like her.  Katie answered every riddle and was the only treasure seeker to to give the extra credit riddle a shot.  There is nothing in this world like a friend who joins you for your wild excursions with a smile on her face and an open heart.

The story behind her treasures begins at the top left corner of the picture above.  Her card, the Rising Phoenix, a mythical bird in the colors of fire (red, orange, yellow and blue) symbolizes Katie's indestructible spirit, creative abilities, strength and the clarity, transformation and renewal that she is experiencing in her life at present.  Below her Phoenix card is "The Goonies", one of the movies that inspired my obsession with quests, adventures and intrigue (post coming soon about the Goonie club and obstacle course of my youth).  Giving her this movie is fitting on many levels.  One, her and I have been on countless escapades that would make the Goonies proud (stories of these should be upcoming posts).  Two, I envisioned that once her and her Boulder, CO buddies had enjoyed a movie night, that this adventure movie could go on it's own adventure.  It could be the traveling Goonie movie, finding it's way to treasure seekers all over.

Below "The Goonies" movie in the picture at the top is Tulsi Tea.  I chose for almost all the treasure winners a tea from my collection of herbal teas.  For Katie, Tulsi Tea, also known as Holy Basil - "Queen of Herbs".  Here's a few health benefits that Tulsi is known for:  reduce stress, weight loss, headache relief, respiratory benefits, skin and hair benefits, digestive system benefits, cardiovascular benefits, reduces fevers, dental and oral health, dissolves kidney stones, reduces risk of diabetes, anti-cancer, aids in quitting smoking, aids the nervous system and helps with arthritis.  Beside the tea is the Las Vegas casino token as a reminder of the luck we create when we strive for our heart's desire.  Next to the token is the marvelous sea urchin spine connecting Katie to her love of the ocean and reminding her of her immense strength.  These sea urchin spines are so strong and uniquely architected by Nature that scientists are learning how to utilize their intelligent nanostructure.    In the area of the urchin spine is also the heart found in all quest winner packages as a emblem of our heart being such an important guide in our life.  Each heart has a word specific to the individual receiving it, Katie's word is Bliss.  Continuing to the right is a fascinating "cycles of the year" moon calendar.  It is read from the center, outwards in an expanding spiral.  It's a nod to how in-tune Katie is with nature and her rhythms.  Above the cycle calendar is Katie's journal, "the journey is the adventure".  She has lived some epic adventures that have taken her all over the globe and this journal reminds me of the indomitable spirit of fun and exploration she embodies every day of her life.  On top of the journal are five treasures.  The tree doubloon ~ as I've mentioned, trees are very special to me for many reasons and this celtic tree has a sacred message on the flip side of coin that was chosen for Katie, alone.  A key ~ symbolic for all treasure questers that represents each adventurer being able to access the many gateways to riches in our individual journeys.  The hematite ring - as in the epic movies based on Tolkien's books, there was a powerful ring involved, this hematite ring was given to each of the treasure quest winners as a symbol of powerful connection to this planet, to each other and to the world.  It symbolizes us making way for more positivity into our life through our logical thinking, self-esteem, focus and being grounded.  There is an arrow with a blue point.  Katie and I share sister arrows.  They represent our connection to each other and how we stand beside each other in our pursuit of our life's purpose.  The arrow also represents our laser pointed focus on our intentions and how in the flow we are with our dreams.  The rose quartz, gifted to each of the treasure winners symbolizes unconditional love, compassion, nourishment and a sense of fulfillment and contentment.  As we all navigate this wild ride of life, the rose quartz treasure reminds us to make sure we gift ourselves the self-love and nurturing that we need along the way.  The clear crystal quartz was an intimate piece of mine and Greg's collection gifted to each fellow quest mate.  Greg and I mined these clear crystals ourselves during our 9th anniversary adventure in Hot Springs, Arkansas last year  I wanted each person to know how special they are to me for traveling along this quest path.  Beside the journal, a green onyx(also known as Chalcedony quartz) lion representing Katie the Leo, the lionhearted and her fierce ability to excel at anything she puts her mind to.  The stone boosts her super powers of positive energy, confidence and courage.  The butterfly, in the same colors as the Phoenix card and like the Phoenix, symbolize the transformation and expansion that Katie has attained and is continuing to attain.  Beneath the butterfly and lion, is a painting with a quote that reminds me of how Katie lives her life.  Above the quote is another painting that reads "Great Creator".  A few years ago, Katie lived with Greg and I in our nomadic travels for a few months.  Her and I were able to have some amazing experiences together, including "The Artist's Way", which is where that treasure came from.  💖

Tomorrow, I'll explore the story and meanings of Lisa's treasure package. 

Treasure Trove Tango

Today I want to spend some quality time exploring the symbolism in the mystery, magic treasure packages that were sent to the three winners of the quest.  I also sent honorable mention treasure packages to six adventurers who played a significant role in the quest, as well.  I am assuming (but not completely sure) all treasures have made it to their rightful owners with the exception of our international winner (hers has to travel across the "pond").  I will follow up with a post in the next few days describing the meaning behind the contents in the honorable mention treasure packets.  

D Rose was such a force in the unfolding of the treasure quest.  From day one, she did not miss a beat or post.  She tackled each riddle with detective eyes and a playful heart.  Her joyful participation fueled me along in the quest.  I was honored to have her take such an avid interest in this experience. Starting from left to right in the picture above, I would like to tell the story of her treasures.  The card is a colorful, vibrant, full of pizazz "thank you" card.  This card's personality reminds me of D Rose.  She is bright, strong and full of vibrant love.  I wanted her to know how much I appreciated her presence in the quest.  Next, you see a turquoise calendar with the bible verse, "Be Still".  This treasure item symbolizes many of D Rose's super powers - intentional, dedicated, faithful, playful and  dynamic.  She approached the quest as I imagine she approaches all things in life - committed, thorough, infusing her own unique flair and full of vitality.  On the calendar are three small but special treasures - a cross for her incredible faith, a key ~ symbolic for all treasure questers that represents each adventurer being able to access the many gateways to riches in our individual journeys and the tree doubloon ~ there are a few treasures that have connection not only with the recipient of the treasure but also the connection we now have through our journey together.  This tree is very special to me for many reasons and there's a sacred message on the flip side of the tree coin that is unique to the treasure winner.  Next, you'll see a journal with a tropical bird on it.  I wanted the three winners to have journals that reminded me of them.  This journal is classy and quality with touch of vivacious fun.  A journal for each quest winner to use in their journey as they see fit.  On the journal lies seven treasures.  The rose quartz, gifted to each of the treasure winners symbolizes unconditional love, compassion, nourishment and a sense of fulfillment and contentment.  As we all navigate this wild ride of life, the rose quartz treasure reminds us to make sure we gift ourselves the self-love and nurturing that we need along the way.  The green onyx(this stone is known as a quartz and an onyx) bird figurine represents D Rose's soaring strength, joy, benevolent spirit and her enthusiasm for life.  This stone bird is a beacon of balance, self-confidence, happiness and good-fortune.  The sea urchin spine personifies the spunk, moral fiber and fortitude that D Rose exhibits and that we all need in our expeditions of life.  The clear crystal quartz was an intimate piece of mine and Greg's collection gifted to each fellow quest mate.  Greg and I mined these clear crystals ourselves during our 9th anniversary adventure in Hot Springs, Arkansas last year  I wanted each person to know how special they are to me for traveling along this quest path.  The hematite ring - just as in the epic movies based on Tolkien's books, there was a powerful ring involved, this hematite ring was given to each of the treasure quest winners as a symbol of powerful connection to this planet, to each other and to the world.  It symbolizes us making way for more positivity into our life through our logical thinking, self-esteem, focus and being grounded.  There is a heart in each of the treasure quest winner packages with one word that reminded me of the specific winner.  In D's treasure chest, her heart says Joy.  The heart speaks to much in our quest as I described here.  Unique to D Rose's gift of treasures is the rose that is lying on her journal.  I wanted to make sure there was a special rose incorporated into her treasure as a way of honoring her name, and was delighted when I found this one.  As we travel right in the picture above, you'll see a colorful painting with the bible verse, "Love Never Fails".  I thought this was a beautiful tribute to D Rose's essence.  And her treasure package would not have been complete without a flamingo somewhere in the mix.  I was overjoyed when I found, "Embrace Your Inner Flamingo" piece.  I hope when she sees this flamingo she is reminded what a wonderful impact she has on those in her life by being her.  Almost all the treasure recipients received a tea from my own healing herbal tea collection.  I chose the bursting with color, full of nourishment, Hibiscus Tea for D Rose.  Here's a few of the health benefits of Hibiscus:  manages blood pressure, lowers cholesterol, protects the liver, anti-cancer properties, anti-inflammatory, anti-bacterial, relieves menstrual pain, anti-depressant qualities, improves digestion, satiates thirst, etc.  Last but not least is a piece my husband wanted to make sure was incorporated.  We made sure each package had a vivaaaaaaaa Las Vegas token.  The token represents the luck we find in our life when we strive for our dreams - when we stretch, play and leap out of our comfort zones to live life to the fullest.  

When I envisioned describing each treasure piece for the three winners, I did not realize the extent I wanted to write about them.  To make sure Katie and Lisa's treasure stories get as much attention and quality time, I've decided to dedicate tomorrow's post to describing each of their magical treasures.  Thank you for your patience!  xoxoxo

Our Inner GPS

The last ten plus days, I've been describing how each of the riddle answers from the treasure quest have a special place in my life.  Day ten's riddle answer was this compass rose:

It was hidden in all ten posts of the treasure quest.  To me, the compass rose is symbolic of being guided from within.  Our amazing navigation system made up of our heart, mind, feelings and our connection to that which is much larger than ourselves.  When I see this image, it reminds me that we are all on our own amazing life adventure.  Each day, we listen to the call of our dreams and walk toward those brilliant colored horizons.  No matter where we are in our lives, each day presents to us a brand new leg of our journey.  It's a gift we receive from the moment we open our eyes.  Yes, even those foggy, challenging days are a grand part of this epic odyssey.  They sure don't feel grand in the moment, but each experience has treasures to be discovered.  The obstacles and our times of struggle usually have hidden some of the most valuable booty to be found.

Today wraps up all the riddle answers and how meaningful they are and have been to my life's quest. Tomorrow, I'll write about the special meanings behind the treasures that were sent to our quest winners and honorable mentions.

Hope everyone has had a delightful weekend and that you were extra sweet to yourself with a lot of self-compassion and self-love.