Tag Archives: Gratitude

VISITING WITH ALEXANDRIA HOUSE TONIGHT

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Meagan and I at Seasons 52, on the way to deliver toys to Alexandria House December 23. We are returning tonight with Valentine’s Day sweets and to join our new friends for dinner. 



Good Morning to all on this beautiful Wednesday on the west coast. I feel for everyone else in the country who is dealing with frigid weather. I woke up to a stunning sunrise over the trees beyond my kitchen window. I love the sunrises and sunsets of Southern California, they have hues of magenta, indigo, purple, and gold. Makes me happy to be alive. Last night at the park the sunset was equally mesmerizing, it is enough to make me never want to move from this place ever.

Yesterday was my workout with my trainer Mike at the park. I am really now stepping up my hard work. I told him yesterday the last seven months were just a warm up for me, now the real work begins. We jogged, did the TRX, did stairs with free weights, and some other exercises that are new to me. We did this thing with ropes, you snap the ropes and drop in a semi burpee and jump back up and snap the ropes again. Yea, I was sore hours later, not a day but hours. I know I am working hard when the soreness comes on so soon. My flexibility is really starting to come along. 

After my workout, I had a quick bite and a hello to my hubby James and I went for a walk to the local grocery store to buy sweets for my visit to Alexandria House tonight to share some Valentine’s Day cheer. I thought I would have time to bake, but instead I bought a beautiful three layer cake and some Valentine’s Day cupcakes. Monica, Chef Jessica, Chef Roni, Chef Lee, Ishbak, Laura, Shane;  my management staff of Seasons 52 in Century City are donating their mini indulgences for our visit. Meagan my friend and co-worker is coming with me, and we are staying for dinner. Should be a lovely visit and evening with our new friends.  I really look forward to it. I have decided to do little things of service to the community as I wait, (no pun intended), for my next ten pound weight loss. 

Off for now, I must do some morning stretches before getting ready for my day. Tonight after my visit to Alexandria House I will do my 25 burpees and get on the treadmill for a bit. It will be a hectic day but I can do all of that later when I get home in the early evening. Yesterday I called an Uber Car to take me home from the grocery store since I could not walk with the cake, we love Uber. I told my driver all about my project and he was inspired and in return inspired me. I am so blessed  to be able to do all I am doing, these last seven months have been amazing and I look forward to the next seven months. I have changed so much, and I am very proud of that. I have met the most amazing people along the way, and I am moved beyond belief. Life is so precious, every moment and person a gift. I am incredibly grateful to all who have graced my life.

Love and Light,
Namaste’
Rose

I AM GROUNDED

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Last week after my outdoor workout with my trainer Mike, I went to the yoga studio. I was speaking to the kind staff member and he asked me where I work out. When I told him I exercise in the outdoors, he said how wonderful he thought that was. He said working out in the open space of a park is so grounding, leaving me connected to the earth. I could not agree more, I do feel extremely grounded and centered since I started this project last July. The last time I spent time outdoors on this level I must have been under the age of twelve. I have found my inner child, carefree and connected to the soil below my feet. I am doing more than changing my health and body, and helping others. I am evolving my soul. I practice mobile meditation when I work out. The soil is grounding my soul.

I was lucky to have a wonderful weekend. Friday was The Eagles concert, a band who often sang about California and the desert. Their lyrics seem to mimic my new found feeling. We have been in Santa Barbara for the remainder of the weekend, staying at the oldest hotel in California dated back to 1871, The Upham Hotel.  Talk about getting back to roots, it feels as if I have time traveled. I should be basking in the sun holding a parasol and not a computer. The people here are so lovely, and the scenery makes me breathless.

Speaking of getting back to my roots and feeling grounded, I got the chance to visit the largest Fig Tree in the USA, The Moreton Fig Tree in Santa Barbara California. It is a breathtaking sight, the root system is massive and like nothing I have ever seen ever. We had a surprise gift and met up with friends who joined us for the day. This lovely couple really seems to get the bigger picture. I think they were as excited as me to see this tree, they are just as obsessed with trees as I am. I am in awe of the trees here, and seeing this awe inspiring work of art from Mother Nature was such a gift.

I will take this grounded, centered feeling with me as I return home and back to my routine of working out, yoga and life. I shall revel in the simple moments as well as the grand, and I will always have gratitude for life. My husband James told me yesterday he has never seen anyone more full of life than me, which is the biggest compliment a woman can receive from her husband.

Wishing you a very Happy Martin Luther King Jr day. We are all connected to the core that is out humanity, connected to the earth and one another.
Love and Light,
Namaste’
Rose

WEIGH IN SATURDAY

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It is a busy weekend and I have not had much time to post. Yesterday was the Eagles concert at the Forum in Los Angeles and today we are in beautiful Santa Barbara staying at the oldest California hotel, The Upham Hotel. We are here through the weekend, and the building leaves me completely speechless. Right now I am just sitting by a warm fire in the main area of the hotel as I post this blog entry. I could get used to writing in such a setting.

This morning I did weigh in, and I stayed exactly the same. Well, I lost about a half of a pound but that is it. I am happy with it, since last week I did lose four whole pounds. My weekend will consist of walking since I will not have a chance to workout or do yoga.

There is something so serene about sitting in a room dated as far back as the 1800’s. They have tea, coffee, cocoa, and milk and cookies set out for the guests. I think I am in wholesome heaven. I just want to sit here all night and write til my heart is content. Right now James has retired back to the room and I am still sitting in front of the fireplace. I am soaking in every last ember, my soul is all warm and fuzzy.

Wishing everyone a wonderful weekend. I believe tomorrow is never promised so live life now. Get out there, do what makes you happy. Make others happy. Give in, give back, give a care to how you spend your days. Less complaining, more gratitude. Appreciating the simple as well as the grand moments in life. Life is a gift, so live it now in the present.

Namaste’
Love and Light
Happy weekend
Rose

KICKING OFF MY BIRTHDAY WITH A BANG

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CALIFORNIA CHARLIE BROWN CHRISTMAS TREE



It is my birthday, the winter solstice, the day with the least amount of light yet I feel like I am surrounded my the radiant wonder above. I am so blessed beyond belief, and as I get ready to kick in my Birthday with a class at Richard Simmons. He is having his holiday bash and there is no other way to begin my birthday than with a holiday dose of health with my guru himself. I am excited beyond belief, I love the energy that comes from those four walls. You could bottle it up and raise a mint for charity.


I am also going to Musso and Frank’s tonight with James for dinner, it is a bucket list must. Read my post about Huell Howser and you will understand why. More to come later, and lots and lots of photos.

I feel like I am celebrating life and making dreams come true. The Toy Drive is coming along with the amazing assistance of Seasons 52, and more on that tonight or tomorrow. I am happy to say as the New Year approaches I do not have one regret. I am making it happen, with a lot of help from my friends. Without them I would not be where I am today, or get to where I will be tomorrow. The sun does always come out tomorrow, even on the shortest day of the year.

Namaste’
Lots of love and light
Rose

GRATITUDE, FOOD, PASSION

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Happy weekend to all, I hope everyone has a wonderful Thanksgiving. I am so grateful for life, living, breathing, love, family, friends. I can go on and on.  My dinner turned out wonderful, and I cheated but not really like I planned to. Cooking took all day, and by the time I was finished I was not as interested in the food as I expected to be. I had allowed myself to be over hungry and tired and I really did not eat too much. I did not even finish my dinner, but I did have a piece of my pecan and chocolate pie. 

Today I went to Trader Joe’s to stock up on some healthy essentials, so I can eat the turkey and avoid the fattening sides. I knew I needed a plan of action to get through the weekend on track. I picked up all of my essentials so I should be good to go.



Cheating is a tricky thing. I had every intention to cheat and I did but according to my husband I did not eat like he thinks I should have. Your body gets so accustomed to eating healthy, to fueling your temple with only the best material to ensure the construction of a healthier body. You are afraid one day of deviation will trash your temple and the whole thing will come crumbling down in a pile of rubble. I am happy I chose not to overdo it, and I can go into the holiday season with the reassurance that I will not undo five months of hard work with a month of mindless eating. I can deviate in small ways without going overboard.

Francie joined us for Thanksgiving, and we loved having the company. We talked and talked and she gave me some wonderful ideas to add to my fitness bucket list. She once took a Fire Dancing class at Firegroove here in Los Angeles. At first I questioned the sanity and safety of such a thing, but once we watched the video I was hooked. I am definitely going to take a class and learn the art of dancing with fire. Passion requires you to live a life of light, and dancing with flames sounds like the perfect metaphor for passion.

Off for now, I am writing some new poems and feeling the creative surge and the time to do it in. Wishing everyone love and light. 
Namaste’
Rose



CORE OF THE MATTER

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Good morning Wednesday. I am up extra early today, savoring a few precious moments of sunrise, solitude, and silence and trying to gather my thoughts over a delicious cup of coffee. I greet my day with a heart filled with gratitude for everyone that has graced me with their positive presence. I am grateful for this beautiful planet we reside in and of course for my beloved cats and this cup of coffee. I am grateful for the sheer blessing of being alive, tired yet so alive.

I am really getting much stronger and more balanced in my workouts with Mike my trainer and friend. Yesterday he stepped it up a few notches, He said he has been too easy on me and it was time to make things more difficult, and he and guaranteed I would be sore today. I woke up sore of course, but it is that job well done type of soreness that comes with accomplishment. 

We jogged a lot, or for me it was a lot. The hardest part is my breathing, and some of that may be due to allergies. Nothing that the neti pot cannot cure. I actually did more than I thought I could, and I will continue to improve on the jogging part of the workouts. I will do some jogging this week when I do my walking.  I have also been googling breathing techniques. I will get this. He plans on us jogging longer distances. Nest week we are going to video tape me doing simple beginner burpees for Melissa @ Melissa Bender Fitness so she can post them on her blog. We figured out a way for me to do them using the bench as a prop so I can ease into them without straining my knees. 


My core is pretty darn strong. I was a dancer and of course your “center” as we called it in dance is the most important part. You have to constantly pull up, suck in, relax your shoulders and do not arch the back with your hips tucked in. I still walk like this to this day, head high. I guess some habits stick over time and this particular dance habit is really helping me with my core. The core matters!  My sit ups are getting so much more fluid, I was really proud yesterday. My hard work is starting to really pay off and I feel so motivated to continue. I am very grateful to Mike, he teaches as well as instructs and I can feel my body changing. I am so much stronger than I was over six weeks ago. 

When I got home I did some yoga poses to stretch, but of course doing yoga poses at home with cats is a challenge. They are mesmerized by the mat, and attack your feet as you are doing downward dog. Tonight is yoga with Nicole. I will be sure to drink enough water and eat enough so I do not get lightheaded or sick like I almost did last Wednesday. I still need to get to YogaWorks and use my month unlimited Groupon, it doesn’t expire and works from the first day you use it. I will begin there either this week or the next. I am really enjoying the process as well as the results, and that is what keeps me going each and every single day. This is my lifestyle and I absolutely love it.

Wishing you a Happy Wednesday
Love and Light
Namaste’
Rose

MONDAY GRATITUDE

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Happy Monday to all.  I am on my first cup of coffee and smiling already, coffee and the fact that I wake up each and every morning is enough to make me smile. I am alive and able to drink this hot creamy cup of perfection, so I greet Monday morning with a big thank you.  I prefer to savor the little things in life as well as the grand.  I have chosen to make my life a happy adventure, full of creative endeavors. Yes, it is Monday morning but I am up early and ready to embrace my day with an open mind and heart. I am creating the life that I wish to have.

Tomorrow is my weigh in and my weekly workout with Mike. We are going to videotape me performing burpees either this week or the next. Melissa at Melissa Bender Fitness is going to post the video, with future videos of me improving on the move. We all know I need to improve on the move, since I feel so awkward doing them. She is such an amazing motivator. I am so grateful for her help and for Mike’s help. Mike really is a one of a kind trainer and I am so lucky to have his help.  I feel incredibly blessed to have such positive people in my corner. I could not go it alone, no one can. 

I have been working hard on my My Change For A Ten project and I am just around the corner from volunteering with my first charity The Monday Night Mission. My plan is as soon as I reach my first ten pound loss, I will give my place of employment heads up two weeks in advance so they can order the food that they are donating to the Monday Night Mission on my behalf. Then we are going to join the lovely people at the Monday Night Mission to help feed the residents at skid row. So the actual date of my first charity volunteer work with be a few weeks after I reach my first ten pound goal. Mike is going with me, and any other friends are welcome as well, I think Francie may join us. The more to help the merrier. Compassion for others is contagious.

I wish you a sunshiny day full of everything your heart desires. Yes, that may be a tall order for a Monday morning but greatness has to begin somewhere. Just order yourself a tall latte’ to inspire caffeinated creativity, after all a little coffee always helps.  Think it, believe it, and make it happen. 
Namaste’
Love and Light to all
Rose



FRIDAY 8/23/2013

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Good morning and Thank Goodness it is Friday. I am so happy the weekend is almost here. I hope everyone is having a wonderful Friday. I am a little sleepy but upbeat at the same time. My thoughts are not quite here for me yet though, so this will be a short and sweet post. I love to write but I have to be clear in my mind and fully awake so sometimes posting at this hour can be challenging.

I think it is time to take some updated full length photos, people are starting to mention I look smaller and I have not had any recent photos since the last Richard Simmons class a few weeks ago. He has been out of town. I will do that soon and post them. I walked into CVS yesterday and the guy who works there said what I am doing is working. That always makes me want to work even harder. Results are not always visible to our own personal reflection of ourselves, but when others take notice you know then you are doing something right. I did take a selfie, to see if my face looks thinner. My Mother objects to it because she thinks it is too revealing, which I find hilarious, sorry Mom.  It is a little blurry but I can totally see my face slimming down.  My face is the first place I show weight loss.



I walk at least five days a week on the treadmill for about 45 minutes to an hour, along with the other things I am doing. Yesterday I did the incline thing that Mike taught me. After speed walking for a half hour, I walked one minute at a time raising each level for each minute until I reached level ten. After I  reached the top I reduced the incline one level at a time until I was back to level with one no incline. It is a major challenge but I did it, and I will continue to add that to my regimen as well as adding a little jogging in between my speed walking. Mike said things are getting too easy and I have to work harder, and he is right. So just when you think you have mastered a movement, you take it up a few notches. Burpees I have not mastered but I am practicing. I will do the video for Melissa at Melissa Bender Fitness but I probably will not have the stomach to watch it. 

I am also super excited that I bought a Groupon for one month unlimited yoga classes at YogaWorks in West Hollywood, thanks to Francie my friend from the Richard Simmons video shoot. It was a steal for $35.00. She sent me the link. I am so happy we have met, we call each other our secret twins since we have so many similarities. This project has introduced me to new friends and I feel completely blessed and grateful.

I have had issues lately with food and my husband. He is on board with everything I am doing, but sometimes he wants things like Pizza and I just do not wish to have anything that may derail me at this point. I am too soon in the game, and I need to keep the momentum going. Pizza I guess is not as fun if you are not sharing it. I am also trying to drink the whey protein shakes I bought for work so I will not get so famished and lightheaded anymore. It is a subtle but important change. I love my hot pink shaker, it is so cute. It has three compartments, one for the powder, one to shake it in, and one for vitamins. I am very excited about it. It is the little things in life as well as the grand that make me happy.



Wishing everyone a Fantastic Friday
Namaste’
Rose



























I DO NOT TAKE LIFE FOR GRANTED

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“Good-by, Good-by, world. Good-by, Grover’s Corners… Mama and Papa. Good-by to clocks ticking… and Mama’s sunflowers. And food and coffee. And new-ironed dresses and hot baths…and sleeping and waking up. Oh, earth, you’re too wonderful for anybody to realize you.” ― Thornton Wilder, Our Town

I woke today in a very peaceful yet reflective mood, lamenting about how fleeting life can be, thinking of the beauty in the grandiose as well as the mundane. That made me start thinking about cemeteries. Have you ever visited a cemetery for no reason? Maybe you visited a historical site and found yourself strolling amongst stones of strangers who lived far before your time. Walking around a place where nature lives on yet people do not is a humbling experience. It makes you realize whatever worry that had occupied your mind really doesn’t matter in the scheme of the universe. As I continue on with My Change For A Ten, I think it is important to look at things from a different vantage point every now and then, that is where you find the courage to go forward, that is where you find your perspective.  Gratitude sometimes comes from knowing how lucky we really are. This poem I wrote it a little dark, but sometimes you have to face the eyes of ebony without fear, and then the sunshine will finally reveal itself to you;  but only when you have learned to appreciate the light of daily life. 

Photo Linda Monteleone’ who is contributing photos for my poetry book



DISEASED
Everyday we awaken, we are terminal.
Temporarily renting our bodies,
forever coveting our souls.
Our breath, countdown
to our very last gasp.
We dine, maybe eating our last supper.
Our insides weep, yet we hold
a stellar performance of smiles and satisfaction,
withholding the inevitable outcome.
Death looms in the shadows
stalking us, living prey with plans
to be abandoned with cold wreaths and stones.
Cemetery holds the final court,
waiting for yet another of times demise;
Still as the silence that surrounds
the mausoleum at midnight.
Left behind and forgotten,
as a lone barren tree
taunts with its lingering longevity;
shadowing the pillars and graves
that lie void of life and energy.
(c) Rose Bruno Bailey

Taking life for granted – we are all guilty from time to time. It is easy to get lost in self pity and forget how magnificent it is to awaken each and every morning to the sunrise and the aroma of a fresh pot of brewed delicious coffee. As I continue on with my My Change For A Ten workouts, I realize I may not be the best runner but I am thankful for  my two legs that can walk; running will come soon enough. The little things make up just as much satisfaction in our lives as the major moments. Forget fearing the future and live in the present. Loving, being loved is the absolute greatest feeling we can experience ever, no matter a prince or a pauper. This we should never forget, even in our lapses of appreciation of the blessing of life and this perfect earth we call home.
Love and light
Rose Bruno Bailey


RICHARD SIMMONS 8-8-2013

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Wonderful dancers inspire me
Trying to remember his name, so nice.
Five pounds down
Me with Richard and this nice lady Barbara

The most patriotic girls hamming it up with me after class

I was really tired yesterday, but after class the fatigue had lifted. I had made myself a promise to not skip anything I say I am doing. I have stuck to that vow. Class was completely electric and so was Richard Simmons. The music was so fun, he started off with Madonna’s Vogue, and then he played a lot of rock music. He had everyone dance with people from across the room,  ACDC You Shook Me All Night Long makes people really boogie on down. Nothing like classic rock to get you in the spirit of things.  There was a professional photographer there snapping photos as well, it was really a hoot. And yes, we all played the air guitar.

I met this lady Barbara a few weeks ago, and we decided to take our photo with Richard together. She is really sweet and loves to ballroom dance. She pointed out this dancer who had been there before, she told me to watch him dance. Sure enough he did a few pirouettes and of course that stole my heart. I had to talk to him, being a former dancer. I told him to never quit, my one dance teacher who was 60 and ageless told me dance will keep you young. We took photos together, he was so sweet. I am embarrassed to say I cannot remember  his name for the life of me, or I think I do and I do not wish to post the incorrect name. He goes to Slimmons regularly according to Barbara, so I will get that name and post. Come fall, I will be in dance classes again, so inspiring. Who cares what age you are, as long as you are alive and breathing you can do anything your heart desires. Only we hold ourselves back, and I have decided I will no longer ever hold myself back from anything. I choose to feel ageless.

There was a group of friends dressed in patriotic colors who are spending the summer living together here in Los Angeles. They were too cute, and we took a photo together after class. They are all a little sad since soon they will be going there separate ways, but I am sure they will remember their memories together forever. Richard Simmons gathers people from all walks of life together, it is like a big party. I love it.
At the end of class Richard showcased some wonderful people who have lost anywhere from fifty to over one hundred pounds, it was so inspiring to see their proud faces as he announced their individual weight loss achievements. If that does not inspire I do not know what does. 

I walked home, a little extra exercise. I think it is about a mile walk, and I had a protein shake for a healthy meal replacement before bed. I know I need my protein so I am making an effort to make sure I get enough protein.

When I started this My Change For A Ten I had two goals, to lose weight the healthy way for myself and get back to my former dancers shape, and to help others with each ten pounds. I never knew it could also be this fun adventure. Do you remember Susan Powell, the stop the insanity woman with my  platinum blond hair, she was once a weight loss guru on TV. She once said you must enjoy the process as much as the end result, and I see that is completely accurate and true. This process is such an fun journey, and I am having the time of my life making my goals a reality, each baby step of the way; never forgetting my gratitude to those who guide my steps.

Namaste
Love and light
Rose