Who is Jewl - The Berry Tree

In all of life what you do matters!  Every choice we make has an outcome, some for the good and some not so good.

I humbly ask you to be aware of your choices and how they impact you, your family, and the world around you. 

I just got an email today from Project AWARE.  It is sad to see such senseless nonsense when this seals death could have been prevented.

Take care of Gods creation and it will take care of you.

For More information on how you can help go to projectaware.org

Amazing Grace has been a long time favorite song of mine. If you think about the words they are so powerful and freeing. It brings tears to my eyes when I deeply ponder how much God loves us by sending his son - Amazing. Before our daughter was born we would sing this song to her and to this day, almost 11 years later, it still has a calming effect on her.

Little did we know, that at age 2 1/2 she would be diagnosed Epileptic. Any of you familiar with Epilepsy know how trying it can be, needless to say we’ve had many occasions to sing Amazing Grace.

As I have been listening to the news, reflecting on the struggles most of us are having with the economy the way it is, and being inspired by a 12 year old boy who put others above himself by paving a way for handicap children to ride a train I wanted to share this song of great hope with you.

Here is a video of Chris Tomlin singing his version of Amazing Grace. And yes, for those who believe we have been set free.

I pray this song brings you a peace and opens up a world of amazing opportunities for you.

That’s right, I hate to admit it but I’ve been scammed.  I don’t know about you, but when someone is talking to me I try to be discerning in what they’re saying.  But I’m sure this time the person was thinking “gotch ya”.

We were at one of our favorite restaurants eating a late lunch.  We had the 2 kiddos with us.  We were ordering from our menus and the kids where ordering from the kids menu.  When the waitress took our order she asked “do they want lids”?  She was referring to the kids drinks.  For our 10 year old we said no, but the 8 year old we said yes.  (ok, our 8 year old is a boy – need I say more as to why he gets a lid (smile), and I mean that in the sweetest way.

When our waitress brought out our drinks I thought it odd that she brought our daughter such a huge glass of milk.  But we were talking and I didn’t give it much thought except for the initial shock. 

We had a great meal.  Got the check, double checked the bill, and long and behold, for my daughters drink we were charged a full adult price instead of the child’s price.  I thought wow, that was smooth.  Normally, you’re asked would you like a small or lager – if you say large you know you’re going to be charged more.  Never in a million years would I have thought by “do they want lids” that I was being upsized.  What a sneaky approach, we had been scammed.  Needless to say I was not happy – I don’t like it when people try to pull a fast one on me (or anyone else for that matter).

Yes, it was only $2.29 instead of $.99, but it’s the principle of it.  Deception is one thing I have a very low tolerance for.  It just goes to show us that in all of life we need to be aware of what’s going on.

As Ike prepares to hit the gulf coast we lift up our fellow Texans and all who may be impacted by this hurricane.

Austin caught a break on this one, we’re just expecting some wind and of course rain. 

Our prayers are with those who had to evalucate, who are caught in the path of Ike, and for all the first responders. 

Be Safe!

I still remember as if it were yesterday just turning on the TV hearing what had happened and then bam here came the 2nd plane.  I’m sure a lot of you can remember what you were doing as well.  Our prayers go out to the families who lost loved ones.  We honor those who lost their lives helping others, those who lost their lives serving our country, and those who defend her still today.  We want you to know - we have not forgotten!

I hope we all can use this day as a day to remind us on how the whole country came together.  May this day spur us to help our fellow man.  See someone in need - lend a hand. 

United We Stand!

Hello,

I hope you take this in the spirit it is given – and that is, our true desire to help people.

As part of working at home, one of our goals was to be debt free.  When I say debt free I mean all we own is paid for in full.  That means no credit card debt, no car payments, no mortgage payments – no debt period.  Today we are debt free.  It was not easy.  Just to give you a brief history our daughter is Epileptic and our son was 2 months early, with not the best insurance our medical bill added up.  We were very much in debt and there was a time we didn’t know where our next meal was coming from.  So, we know for a fact what I am going to share with you works.

One of our long term goals is to help all our team members achieve the same thing – to be debt free.  One mark of a good leader is wanting the best for their team and helping pave a way for them to achieve total success.  Part of being a total success is being debt free.  Is your team leader debt free?

It all starts with a budget.  When new team members join our team, we ask them what is their marketing budget?  We get a lot of resistance when we ask people to write things down.  This is just our human nature.  We are too busy to write things down, we try to keep it all in our head.  I don’t know about you, but I can’t keep it all in my head – more power to those who can.  Sixteen years ago when we started our first home business, we didn’t’ write things down either and we were knee deep in debt too.   

But when it comes to wanting to be debt free, if you truly want to be debt free and be free from the bondage of owing people money you have to have a budget.  And to do a budget you must first start by writing things down.  The point is if you refuse to do a budget than chances are you really don’t want to be debt free, you’re just doing lip service.  Some of you may not like that, but it’s the truth.  That is one principle I hold very dear and that is honesty.

Most of us don’t even know where all our money goes.  We were no different.  When we first started this journey years ago, we fought tooth and nail from doing a budget.  We had a general idea of where our money went, but once we started writing things down we had a few surprises.  When we first started, we didn’t see the real power in writing things down - We do know!

Before you can have a budget you need to know where your money is going.  Start tracking every penny you spend – and YES I mean every penny.  When you do a budget it’s best to do a zero budget.  So if you spend 65 cents on a pack of gum write it down.  Do this for a month, really see every aspect of where every cent goes. Carry a little notebook around or keep it in the car to capture your spending.  Once you do this, you are in a better position to have a budget that actually works.

So, the first challenge is if your true desire is to be debt free, start tracking where you spend every cent for a month.

This is not easy.  It takes a determined mindset.  You have to commit to your goal.  (sound familiar, this is a key principle in building a successful home business)

To Your Success!

Julia

As Gustav approaches and is on the minds of all most everyone, we too wanted to wish those still left on the coast and those who remain to protect and help the very best.  Our prayers are with you.

We are also mindful of those who have already evacuated.  It was great to hear that 90-95% of the people have already made it to a safe shelter to wait out the storm.  Here in Austin, we have already received a couple hundred people from the coast to wait out the storm.  Our prayers are with you as you wait in such uncertainty.

It seems the governement is on top of things this time.  President Bush has arrived here in Austin to first hand see how things are being handled.  I was glad to here the Mayor of New Orleans (and all local bodies of gov.) step up to the plate.  Our local governing bodies are our first responders and need to be proactive and on top of things so they can best help their citizens.

Again, my hats off to all those who stay in harms way just to protect the empty cities and aid those who need assistance - these are real life heros who put their life on the line for the common man - Thank You!  May God grant you a hedge of protection as you serve in the path of destruction.

As we go thru today, may we be ever so mindful of those in need.  I would encourage all of us to put out our helping hand to someone in need.

Yep, it’s true there is a Star amoung us…  My very own hubby.  I’ve talked about Atria before and I must say this is by far the very best Skin Care System we have ever used (and I’ve been getting facials since I was 19).  Our whole family uses it.

Well, Robert who was very reluctant to try it had such dramatic results in just 20 minutes he has made global headlines.    We were so stunned at how much of a difference there was, my dad snapped a picture.  We had no idea Robert would go global.  Atria is using Robert’s mug on their Global Wide Advertising Postcards.  There is absolutely no hype here - the stuff works! 

Here’s the front part of the card -

Pretty Cool!  And yes, Robert is hooked on it now.  Sometimes, you never know where the road will lead. Take action and anythng is possible!  Always, shoot for the stars!

Julia

ps. for more info on Atria look under skin care — male, female, young adults, teens with acne -you want younger, smoother, clearer, and more radient looking skin I can help you out.  Results Guaranteed!

Have you ever been Scuba Diving? It has been one our dreams to Scuba Dive, so we finally decided to do it.

We were both so excited. As I read thru my instructional book I became very nervous and started questioning whether or not I could really do it. I actually cried almost the whole way to class, fear and uncertainty were setting in. Then, came time to get into the pool and practice what we had been learning. Let’s just say my husband described me as a cat in water. Have you ever seen a cat dunked in water for a bath and all four’s come out - well that was me. The instructor actually pulled me by the arm around the deep end. I was in sheer panic - all I could think is “I want to live”. Have you ever seen the movie “Pacifier”? There’s a scene in the movie of the little girl kissing land after her older sister drove them to school - that was me. As you might imagine it was very intense. Of course, my hubby was like a fish in water.

Before our next confined dives, I asked a few people to pray for me to help me overcome my fears. I met with the instructor before class and he worked with me one on one. By the end of the night I had conquered my fears. I was doing it. I got so jazzed, it was incredible! After our open water dives (that went great, by the way), we were certified. I had not only survived, but really enjoyed it in the end. (Okay, I didn’t enjoy the Perch nipping at the top of my head)

As I was reflecting on my experience, it reminded me of how some of us are in regards to starting our own business. We’re excited at the concept, but once we take the first step and spend a little money we get scared and bail out before we give ourselves a chance to succeed. I almost bailed on diving, but I stuck with and it paid off. The same is true with Network Marketing. In my business, the ones who fail are the ones who bail. And just as our dive instructor worked with me, we will also work with you. We’re a Team!

We all have those moments in life where we doubt if we can do something or not. And sometimes these are the very moments in which define to some extent who we are. Don’t let fear keep you stuck where you are. If you want to change your financial future - then DO IT!

To Your Success!