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being brave

She did it anyway

I’ll never forget the first moment I remember meeting Vanessa.  She was sitting in the front row during our “Bravehearted Cookie GNO”.  The entire night was about courage, in the face of fear.  Yes, we made cookies, but we did it while we heard Christie Halverson share her story about going from baking cookies out of her kitchen for friends to opening up her first storefront Cookie Rack in Frisco.

Vanessa was so brave that night. 

The question to hold for the night is “What is calling you to be brave in your life right now?”  We shared a behind-the-scenes clip from The Greatest Showman, we read the Theodore Roosevelt (Man in the Arena) quote, and of course, we quoted Queen B:

“The idea that you’re either brave or afraid is a lie.  The truth is that most of us are both brave and afraid at the exact same time.” ~ Brené Brown.  

I …

by Crystal Gornto Community Girl's Night Out Inspirational Women Love In Action Loving Others Loving Yourself Our Story The Journey Through Life Leave a comment chat
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The only way through

On Monday, this photo came flying in like a blast from the past.  My friend Courtney was apparently archiving some old photos to digital format and paused long enough to send me on this trip down memory lane.  It’s funny how photos remind you of moments you’d likely never think of again, but as soon as I saw it, I remember that night like it was yesterday. .  It was Halloween 2007 and we were (OBVIOUSLY) expecting Oaks to arrive any day.  Outside of the fact that our little golfer doesn’t look very happy to be there, we were doing pretty good.  How crazy is it that I remember that one of my biggest challenges at that time was blow drying my hair? (Oh, how life has changed!)  It was exhausting.  My arms were already tired from carrying that 15 month old chunky monkey around and by the time I finished, my …

by Crystal Gornto Girl's Night Out Inspirational Women Inspirational Words Loving Others Loving Yourself Motherhood Roadblocks in Life The Journey Through Life Leave a comment chat
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A plan for brave conversations

In follow-up to yesterdays post about the magic of connection for people to feel safe, a friend sent me an article with this little nugget of gold regarding being a safe place for your kids:

“Sit your kid down and tell them this, word for word: You can come and talk to me about anything and I promise you that I will not be mad at you.  No matter what it is.  I will not get mad. ”  ~ Heather Armstrong

This is gold, of course.

If we can keep this promise to our kids, our spouses and friends, we will be the Holy Grail of safety to them.  They will know they can come to us with anything, any circumstance, any screw up and we’ll be there for them.  They’ll know they’re never alone, and that can be the difference between life or death.

But how in the world can you …

by Crystal Gornto Girl's Night Out Inspirational Words Love In Action Love in Family Love in Friendship Loving Others Motherhood The Journey Through Life Leave a comment chat
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It might scare you at first, but it will free you

Back in 2013, my friend Carol was turning 70 and for her birthday, she wanted to go skydiving.  A few days before the dive, things got complicated.  Carol was still scheduled to dive, but she needed a friend to go with her.

You know I put my name in that hat. 

Carol picked me up on a beautiful Saturday morning and we headed out to the training center, in what seemed like the middle of nowhere.  We talked and laughed on the drive, catching up on life and our thoughts about the dive.  We were both excited for the experience, but neither of us fearful.

Until the first divers jumped out of the plane.  

Our little plane had a group of formation divers who were practicing that morning. . . and lucky them, they get to jump a lot lower than the rest of us newbies.  Eesh.  Watching them fling their bodies out …

by Crystal Gornto Love in Friendship Purpose The Journey Through Life Leave a comment chat
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You’re meant to leap

On Saturday, I got the privilege of leaping across rocks with these two lovely ladies.   It was unexpected, but quite an exhilarating adventure on a beautiful Saturday morning.   I went over to my friend Melanie’s house with the sole purpose of finally meeting her sister, Michelle.   We’ve been trying to meet for such a long time, so we squeezed it in just before she left town.

The sun was shining, so all the boys left to play basketball at the courts across the creek.  We watched them daringly leap across the rocks and make it safely to the other side.   After some time passed, we decided we should go check on them.  So we walked further down the creek to the safer little bridge in the rocks.   When it was time to head home, we looked at the path they took.  We debated, laughed about it, and then …

by Crystal Gornto Love Love In Action Love in Friendship Loving Yourself Roadblocks in Life The Journey Through Life Leave a comment chat
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She wants you to be brave too. Meet Bethany Tran, Founder & Designer at The Root Collective

This girl.  If you know her and don’t love her, you have a heart of stone.  She is hysterical and kind.  She’s brilliant and creative.  She’s one in a million.

Meet Bethany Tran.

Bethany!  What a joy it is to tell your beautiful story! Thank you for pulling back the curtain for us.  
We’ve talked about how hard it is for many heart-centered female entrepreneurs to step up to be the face of our companies. We want the attention to go the cause and people we seek to serve. When really, people are looking for someone who will say, ” I’m the one who cares enough to do this. It’s not easy, but I’m not giving up.”
What’s that journey been like for you?

Gosh, being the face of my passion hasn’t been easy! I don’t at all see myself as any kind of a hero or visionary. I just saw a need that wasn’t being …

by Crystal Gornto Female Social Entrepreneurs Inspiration Inspirational Women Love In Action Purpose The Journey Through Life Leave a comment chat
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