GOSSIP FROM THE GIRLFRIEND GATHERINGS

Learning from YOU to empower ME !

Happy New Year 2018

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May you all be prosperous in the new year!

I am wishing you all good health, great wealth, and an exciting life journey in 2018.

 

Merry Christmas – ‘Tis the Season for Good Cheer!

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Let us all strive to share those intangible gifts this season.   Love, hope, kindness, patience, and understanding is what is needed most in our society.

May you all have a blessed and beautiful Christmas celebration with your loved ones!

Don’t forget the REASON for the season!

 

Happy Thanksgiving!

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Be GRATEFUL for the small things in life because they are really what’s important!

May all of you have a blessed day with your families and loved ones.

Slow Your “Roll”

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Recently, I went out to lunch with a friend and coworker.   When I got into her car, there were four wigs in it.  One on her head and three lying in a pile on the front passenger seat.  My friend quickly grabbed the wigs and tossed them on the backseat.   I got in the car and looked at her.  I guess my look said it all because before I could speak my thoughts, she told me, “Girl, I know.”  It was clear it was time for some self-evaluation.

I asked her what the heck was going on in her life that she was riding around with wigs in the front seat of her car.   She told me how busy her life had been in recent months and how she would choose a hairdo to put on while driving to the office.   All I could say was “Girl, slow your roll.”

Now, for those who may not understand that statement, “roll” or “rolling” is an informal description (slang) that describes the movement of a person through their daily tasks, chores, etc.  My SisterGirlfriends and I use this term all of the time.   When we say to each other “slow your roll”, it is sufficient to gently admonish one another to stop and take care of ourselves.

There are times when life gets busy, and then there are times when a person is flat out overwhelmed.

   Here are some indicators that you’ve been zombified:

  1. You are dressing in your car while driving to your destination.
  2. You are warned and choose to skip car maintenance tasks until your vehicle stops working.
  3. You are eating out daily because you don’t have time to compile a grocery list and shop for food to stock your kitchen.
  4. You are losing your purse, keys, glasses, wallet…something…every other day.
  5. You are not managing your communication channels (voicemail box is full, don’t check email for weeks, missed calls).
  6. You arrive home and realize you should be at another destination.
  7. You are overly involved in managing other “grown folks” business instead of your own.
  8. You schedule vacation, but you take your laptop so you can log in to work/office.

Now, you may have to plan a few days of downtime just to regroup so you can think about slowing down but it will be worth it.   Once you get rested up, here are some tips to kick off and get you on the right track.

Tips for “Slowing Your Roll”

  1. Get organized. Make use of your smartphone with the apps to help you with making notes, tracking tasks, and keeping schedules/calendars.
  2. Plan your errand route, so you are not driving all over the city. If you have to go to the brick and mortar locations for shopping, banking, laundry cleaners, etc., use the locations close to your office so you can manage it on a lunch break or en route to/from the office.
  3. Spread errands out during the week and strive to keep weekends free for downtime or pleasurable activities.
  4. Acknowledge you can’t do everything yourself and delegate or pay for housework/lawn care.
  5. When you schedule downtime, stick with it. Plan something fun to do or just relax at a spa.  You need to place yourself first in your schedule because no one else will.
  6. Take a periodic vacation at least for one week a year. Stepping away from your daily life and doing something entirely different is very refreshing.
  7. Learn to say NO to anything that will drain your time and personal energy. Engage in the lives of others appropriately but not to your detriment.

The most important fact to remember is that TIME is the most valuable and irreplaceable resource…not money.   Spend some money to slow your roll and free up your life, so you will have TIME to enjoy it.

SisterGirlfriend Adventures in Punta Cana

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“It’s OK, SisterGirlfriend.  No one here really knows you.”

 

This statement was the official motto for the 4th Annual SisterGirlfriend Meetup in July 2017 in Punta Cana, the Dominican Republic where ten women joined to enjoy some free-spirited fun on the Caribbean beach in the sun.

Most of the women that attended were well-seasoned, global escorted-tour travelers but had not tried the lazing on the Caribbean resort vacation experience.  For me, I had traveled to Punta Cana back in 2003 and was curious to see how it had evolved since that time.  So, there was a thread of excitement among us about traveling to the Dominican Republic.

The Resort Experience

Our resort, Majestic Elegance, had that WOW factor that we desired for our sun and beach vacation.    It had an impressive lobby, eight restaurants, and multiple luxurious concierge areas with a full-service deli to munch from while you checked email.  There were beautifully well-flowered grounds with swaying palm trees and a magnificent ocean view.

Upon arrival, our group was whisked away to a private check-in area after we relinquished our bags.   We lounged in this private area eating great food and sipping marvelous drinks while the reception staff checked us into our rooms.

Soon, we met the personal butler for our group, Eriksson.  He gave us a tour of the property and escorted each one of us to our rooms arranging for our bags to be delivered.   Eriksson provided fantastic service for us.   He made dinner reservations for our group; he lit incense in our rooms, sent extras to our rooms, and handled everything we needed.

Accommodations

Most of us had swim-up rooms with patios.   It was wonderful.    I’ll let the pictures speak about those.

The Food 

Here is the most important thing I can say about the food. I ate cake every day.   At the seafood restaurant on the beach, they made an incredible, different, cake every day for lunch.   Judy and I ate it daily.   We also ate Caribbean lobster, steaks, Japanese food, Italian food…anything and everything.   You did not get bored with the food as it was a variety and well-seasoned.   Another favorite was a drink called “The Majestic” which was like a melted dreamsicle with rum.   The second favorite was Mimosas which is how we started our day every morning at our group breakfast.

SisterGirlfriends Keeping Busy

So, how did ten women keep busy for seven days on a beach resort?   Let me count the ways for you.

Activities on the Resort

  • Aqua Aerobics in the Resort Pool
  • Salsa, Merengue, and Bachata dance classes
  • Daily Pool Party in our private pool near our rooms
  • Conversational Spanish class
  • Local Shopping
  • Sand-watching/Relaxing/ChitChatting under a Cabana on the beach
  • Afternoon SisterGirlfriend “Chat” Sessions in the resort open lounge area

There were many other activities that we did not experience because we simply ran out of time.

Excursions (Viator)

We did add a mix of adventure in our trip with a couple of great excursions.

  • Punta Cana Party Catamaran Cruise (Thomstours S.R.L) – This tour was a blast. We sailed out on a catamaran for a dip in the ocean, to swim with the stingrays and docile sharks, while dancing to tropical music.
  • Higuey Cultural Tour from Punta Cana (by Sol Cana Tours) – This tour was very informative as we learned about the culture and economics of the Dominican Republic. We visited one of the oldest Catholic churches in the Americas.  Even though the church was moved to another site in more modern times, the original one, which was built in the 1500s is still open for worship.   The altar still has the original mahogany wood and tiles.  Antonio was an excellent tour guide, and his passion for informing tourists about his country was evident on this tour.

There were many other activities that we did not experience because we simply ran out of time.

Nightly Entertainment

What I loved about this resort was there was a different flavor of after-dinner nightly entertainment.  There was live music on the plaza and a live show in the large open theatre on the property.   Each night there was a different theme for the show in the theatre.   There was a rock show, a Michael Jackson show, a Circus show, a rendition of Broadway musical show and a karaoke show.   I volunteered Judy as our lead singer for karaoke because she is an excellent singer.   I told the others she had sung to her husband-to-be while walking down the aisle at her wedding and they were thoroughly impressed.  We became excited about the performance, selected our song, and practiced our steps.  Judy led our group in “Ain’t Too Proud to Beg” while four of us backed her up as the Lady Temps.    The audience loved it and gave us high-fives.   The next day Judy was approached by a professional singer who was vacationing there and asked if she ever considered a singing career.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Overall, we absolutely LOVED our Punta Cana experience.   I HIGHLY recommend the Majestic Elegance Resort to anyone who plans to visit there.   It has been almost a month, and we are still reveling in our stay there.   I try hard not to compare my vacation experiences, but I have to state that this was the BEST SisterGirlfriend MeetUp yet.