Wow! May has gone by so quickly. Actually, each month seems to be whizzing by at lightening speed. All the more reason to be in as many moments as possible.

We had a wonderful family vacation. During the train ride from Silverton to Durango, which was definitely about the journey and not about getting there quickly, Leah fell asleep with her head on my shoulder. Sitting there watching nature go by and enjoying that moment, I had the same feeling I had when she was 5 or 10 or 15 and she was doing the same thing. Wistfully, I wondered how all that time seemed to pass so quickly. I closed my eyes and took a deep breath, savoring that moment and realizing how fleeting it was. Just blink and she might be 40 so best to be in that moment and not elsewhere lest I miss something.

I've thoroughly enjoyed doing a writing challenge in May. I wrote for 30/31 days. Not too shabby considering I was on a trip for six of them. For those days, I wrote a short poem in my journal capturing my awareness and feelings of the day. It turned out to be a great log of our trip and was really fun to write. Writing longhand was definitely different. I let go of needing to edit and edit and edit and mainly went with my flow.

This month, I've enjoyed blogging, writing for an online creative writing club, writing articles for Autism OZ, the Ipad magazine, and writing poetry. Most importantly, I cultivated the writing habit. I'm hoping to continue even after I move on to the June challenge. And that is? It's not June yet so I'm still undecided.

Would love to hear from anyone that has taken on a challenge in May. I know, I know our kids are enough of a challenge, aren't they? Well, most definitely yes. But these challenges are a lot of fun and a great opportunity to create a habit you have always wanted to have. They make each day interesting as long as they are done with a light hearted attitude vs self inflicted pressure. They are meant to be challenging and also enjoyable. June anyone?

On another note, I am excited to announce that I am training to be a Certified Life Coach. I am taking a course of study through ICA (International Coaching Academy). It is self paced and flexible which is perfect for my lifestyle. It is also intense and very interesting. The classes are teleclasses in which I get to interact with people from all over the world. So far, I am really enjoying the process. Lots of reading and thinking but feels good to be at the beginning of a new chapter of my life.

What is a life coach? I will answer this with a question. Is there anything (large or small) in your life that you've always wanted to do or be and something stood in your way? Through powerful questioning and stellar listening, a life coach helps people get where they want to be. A life coach is a person who helps another person find their own answers. A coach is an advocate, a sounding board, a cheerleader, an accountability partner, a truth teller and a supporter.

Sounds pretty cool, huh? Actually, in many ways I have been doing informal quasi life coaching with parents and friends for many years. So this seems like a more formal way of learning to do what comes somewhat naturally to me.

In addition to teleclasses and reading, part of my training will be to participate in the coaching process as a coachee and a coach. Sometime within the next year, I will be practice coaching with other students within the program and also with some outside clients. Coaching is often done over the phone which has the advantage of enabling me to coach people anywhere in the world.

So, if there is anyone who is interested in working with a life coach (for free, since I will be in training), that possibility will be available in the future. I will need guinea pigs.

And finally, I really appreciate the emails I receive from readers. Honestly, they make my day. Sharing from my heart to yours is very powerful. And when I know it makes a difference, even for one person, my heart is happy.

PS I made this poster (using one of my own photos) on a cool App called Insta Pep Talk.