Let’s celebrate! 500 issues of the email newsletter have been sent to inboxes across the world in the past ten years! The newsletter and blog have had various names over the years: Renew You, This Lovely Place, Charlotte Siems, back to This Lovely Place, and now Value This Life. The blog and newsletter have grown up with me! A big…
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Even before your eyes open in the morning, what are your first conscious thoughts? Do you start thinking about what’s on your to-do list? Do you begin to worry about situations in your life? Do you start the process of getting stressed about what’s on your plate? Let me show you how just three minutes can change your day. Those…
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Our master bathroom has a jacuzzi bathtub, one of those deep tubs with jets. Although I don’t use it often enough, it’s a great stress reliever and relaxer: just fill with warm water, turn on the jets and relax. Bonus points for candles and a bottle of water to sip. The bubbling warm water creates a great atmosphere for relaxation….
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Being busy is almost a badge of honor these days. It’s fashionable to complain about it on social media, and talk about it with a loud sigh while standing in line with a friend. Believe me, I was skilled in blaming lots of stress on being busy. But after many years of wearing the “busy badge,” I’ve been working on…
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For years I worked at home in a corner of the living room, at a desk bought from a garage sale. We still had 8 kids at home and the youngest two were preschoolers. I needed to keep an eye on them so I worked in the midst of everything going on. Years passed, we moved, and for a few…
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I was fifteen the last time I was beaten. The burger joint where I worked part-time closed late. There were hours of cleaning equipment and mopping floors to finish the day. My shift was supposed to end earlier in the evening but someone didn’t show up for work so I had to close. It must have been after midnight as…
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Reading aloud is one of my favorite parts of family life and homeschooling. We’ve made many a good memory curled up together with a great book, even during all the years of being interrupted by noisy toddlers and diaper changes. There have been times when my children stared at me when I choked back tears while reading certain parts. Those…
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