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Author: Dr. Erica Peabody
Fenton, MI is a great place to be from and to move back to. Serving this community the "Exceptional Chiropractic Experience" at Cafe of LIFE Chiropractic is my favorite way to spend my days. Cafe of LIFE (www.cafeoflifefenton.com) is a Family Wellness Chiropractic Center located in the heart of this great little town. When I am not at my chiropractic practice, you will find me at the yoga studio, the gym, in my running shoes, with my family, on my snowboard, on my mountain bike, surfing, on the lake or some local restaurant or hiking trail. My ultimate goal and life purpose is to make a small difference in this crazy world...and have some fun while I am doing it.
HALLOWEEN
The fall has been so wonderful and the end of October marks one of my most favorite holida
ys, Halloween.
This year the Cafe of LIFE was bustling with people on our Trick-or-Treat event with the Chamber of Commerce. The Cafe of LIFE was open on Friday the 29th from 1-6 and we had loads of fun. I want to get some of the pictures up so you can check it out. We probably had around 200 people swing in that day. It was Teri’s (one of fabulous massage therapists) birthday and there was a little extra celebration for that. Fun times. I hope yours was safe and fun as well. 
I will post a few more pictures from our Halloween celebration soon.
I AM A RUNNER
I am a runner.
Ok, so now I find myself in a serious mind over matter situation once again. I will be running the Detroit Half Marathon this coming Sunday and am not quite sure how that is going to go. I have been running and walking though the summer and the fall and am pretty well trained for the weekend ahead of me. The biggest challenge is that my longest run as of recent is 9 miles. My plan was to get in an 11 mile run 2 weekends ago but I ended up under th
e weather and couldn’t make that happen. So this past weekend, with lungs still compromised, I made a 9 mile happen on Friday and an 8.25 happen on Sunday (Choco did the full 8 with me as well, what a rockstar he is!). I will head down to the expo tomorrow to pick up my number and I am sure at that time my body will start to get into the race mode. They do a great job with the expos for these races and really gets you in the mood. Sunday I will wake up early and head back down to Detroit for a 7am start. Think of me around 8am when you are thinking about getting out of bed as I will be well on my way over the Ambassador Bridge to Canada. Around 9:00am when you are making breakfast, I will head back through the tunnel to the United States and finish hopefully somewhere around 10am. Ever think of doing a Marathon or Half Marathon? Maybe start with a 5K race around the holidays this year. Lots of Turkey Trots and Jingle Jogs happening around the southern Michigan area. So back to this weekend…and not knowing how it is going to go…I guess there is only one way to find out! Wish me luck!
I am a runner.
MOMS
Moms are the superheroes of the world.
Over this past weekend, my body was expressing some serious symptoms and I spent most of my time in bed resting. You know those days when stuffiness and congestion takes over and it takes so much energy to do anything? Friday night I was driving back from Rochester and started a sneezing fit and that is where it all began. From that point the coughin
g started and body aches. I decided to retire early since I had a lot planned for Saturday. When Saturday morning rolled around, I just couldn’t imagine doing anything that I had planned. I barely made it out of bed but I figured if I just get up and take a shower, I will feel better…and I did. Then I thought if I just get in my car and drive down to the convention in Dearborn I will feel better…and I did. Then I sat for 4 hours and listened to an amazing lecture and could just barely get myself home I felt so horrible. I retired early again that night with hopes that Sunday I would wake up feeling great…no such luck. I finally dragged myself out of bed around 1pm and got in the shower. The entire weekends meals consisted of dried fruit and nuts, due to lack of energy to do much more, and at one point a can of soup. So after my shower, and in tears, I got myself together and drove out to my mom’s house. She met me in the kitchen and made me a great breakfast. It was a simple eggs and toast breakfast with a little bit of pesto and it was probably the best I had ever tasted. Of course I was so hungry and depleted at this time, I instantly snapped out of it and have been feeling better ever since. I don’t think there was any healing magic in those eggs and toast, nor the pesto for that matter. It was the whole concept of being taken care of by my Mom that made the difference. Thanks for being there Mom!!! Hopefully I can return the favor, either back to her or pass it on to my children, when I have them someday. Moms…they make all the difference 🙂
g started and body aches. I decided to retire early since I had a lot planned for Saturday. When Saturday morning rolled around, I just couldn’t imagine doing anything that I had planned. I barely made it out of bed but I figured if I just get up and take a shower, I will feel better…and I did. Then I thought if I just get in my car and drive down to the convention in Dearborn I will feel better…and I did. Then I sat for 4 hours and listened to an amazing lecture and could just barely get myself home I felt so horrible. I retired early again that night with hopes that Sunday I would wake up feeling great…no such luck. I finally dragged myself out of bed around 1pm and got in the shower. The entire weekends meals consisted of dried fruit and nuts, due to lack of energy to do much more, and at one point a can of soup. So after my shower, and in tears, I got myself together and drove out to my mom’s house. She met me in the kitchen and made me a great breakfast. It was a simple eggs and toast breakfast with a little bit of pesto and it was probably the best I had ever tasted. Of course I was so hungry and depleted at this time, I instantly snapped out of it and have been feeling better ever since. I don’t think there was any healing magic in those eggs and toast, nor the pesto for that matter. It was the whole concept of being taken care of by my Mom that made the difference. Thanks for being there Mom!!! Hopefully I can return the favor, either back to her or pass it on to my children, when I have them someday. Moms…they make all the difference 🙂(the picture is taken at my brother’s wedding early September as we are all bundled up trying to stay warm in the wind)
BEST CASE SCENARIO
I work with hundreds of people on a regular basis. It is the most wonderful and rewarding work and I feel blessed to be able to serve in the way that I do. Lets talk about best case scenario.
At the Cafe of LIFE we see people that are really struggling with their health as well as people that are feeling good and want to remain that way. I learn a lot about people by interacting in the way I do and helping them 
to express a better them. All kinds of wonderful things come up for people and I love that there are some real break-throughs happening on a daily basis.
I do see a pattern happening that I want to address. I think it is simply a human thing, though I am sure it is largely influenced by our culture. Whether people are starting from a place of feeling really good, or feeling really bad, when something happens, some sort of new symptom or aggravation happens…the human mind goes automatically into “WORSE CASE SCENARIO” mode. Some people have taken very minor things that have been going on for about 2 hours and seriously talked themselves into this may be the end of their lives. I am not sure when we lost the faith in our body’s ability to adapt and heal from just about anything, but we did. Instead of saying “Oh this sinus infection has been going on for 2 days, but my body can fight this off and I will be better in the long run for letting my immune system kick in”, people are running out for some remedy that will help with the symptom, which almost always compromises the immune system and doesn’t allow it to do what it was designed to do. Or “My wrist hurts, but it has only been an hour or so and I am sure my body will handle it” they go to the MD and immediately get it x-rayed to make sure there isn’t a tumor. These are just a couple examples to give you the idea of how extreme our thought patterns are.
My point being…let’s start giving our bodies the benefit of the doubt. The body’s ability to heal is much more powerful then anyone (and especially the media) has lead you to believe. We all have within us an inborn, recuperative power that is in charge of proper adaptation and integration of the many stresses we encounter every day. When things come up, let’s start thinking BEST CASE SCENARIO and that have a mindset of “my body can probably take care of this” and watch and wait. If you are doing all the right stuff with diet and exercise, getting good rest, keeping a positive attitude, staying away from toxins, and getting regular checks for your spine and nerve system, a large percentage of the time the body will do just that…TAKE CARE OF ITSELF. When the body is given the opportunity to take care of itself, and it does, we are better off than if we continue trying to combat symptoms with drugs and surgery. We only get one chance…let’s keep focused on BEST CASE SCENARIO.
BACK TO SCHOOL
Wow the town is buzzing with back to school energy. This is a time that our lives take a major shift and a routine is re-established. Even for those of us who do not have children, the back to school time is still a great time to re-organize. It is a perfect time to set some new health goals, a perfect time to check back in with what resolutions you had set in January this year and have confidence if there are things still left undone from that list…there is still time to take action. 2010 is far from over and no matter how far you may find yourself off track, it just takes one step to get back on it. I have a very wise yoga instructor (and you know who you are) that I go and visit 2-3 times a week and she continually reminds me to come back to my breathe. When life gets crazy (or the class becomes ridiculously challenging) all it takes is one thought of getting back to my breathe to pull me through and bring me back into the current moment. If we stay in the current moment, things are simple. It is memories of the past, and thoughts of the future that make things complicated. So sit for a moment and check in with yourself. Are you at a satisfying place with the goals and resolutions you set for 2010? Did you find success so far or do you need to check back in. Here is an idea…tell someone about your goals. When we put it out there to a friend, something happens in the mind that we become more diligent at working towards them since you have to be a little more accountable. And remember, no matter how far you strayed, it is just one step to get back on track. Back to school and back to health. Make the most out of your days and live an extraordinary life…we only get one chance…
THE WEDDING
The wedding.
It has been a couple weeks since my brother got married, but I still wanted to write about it. This Michigan summer has been a fabulously warm and 
sunny one…except for that day. The wind was blowing and the temps came close to 63 degrees as a high. The wedding was planned to take place outside and that is exactly what happened. The ceremony was on the small island on Runyan Lake where my parents live. It was a small and short ceremony that was as sweet of a wedding ceremony as I have been to. We all wrapped up in blankets to witness their vows and just as they were completing them, the sun shined through the clouds. The reception followed right after and the wind stopped. There were some big heaters which helped to keep those that weren’t dancing, warm. This reception was
a party that so many were looking forward to. Not only the bride and groom and family, but the different sides of my family that hadn’t seen each other in 10-15 years were also very excited. It was an evening wonderful conversation, reconnecting with family and friends, great food, an awesome DJ, a beautiful setting, and a very happy bride and groom…and Charlei. I look forward to having another sister to share in whatever live brings this family and just making the most of this life…we only get one chance. Congratul
ations Nate and Rachel!!! The wedding was beautiful!!!
sunny one…except for that day. The wind was blowing and the temps came close to 63 degrees as a high. The wedding was planned to take place outside and that is exactly what happened. The ceremony was on the small island on Runyan Lake where my parents live. It was a small and short ceremony that was as sweet of a wedding ceremony as I have been to. We all wrapped up in blankets to witness their vows and just as they were completing them, the sun shined through the clouds. The reception followed right after and the wind stopped. There were some big heaters which helped to keep those that weren’t dancing, warm. This reception was
a party that so many were looking forward to. Not only the bride and groom and family, but the different sides of my family that hadn’t seen each other in 10-15 years were also very excited. It was an evening wonderful conversation, reconnecting with family and friends, great food, an awesome DJ, a beautiful setting, and a very happy bride and groom…and Charlei. I look forward to having another sister to share in whatever live brings this family and just making the most of this life…we only get one chance. Congratul
ations Nate and Rachel!!! The wedding was beautiful!!!RECYCLING
My dog Choco cracks me up every single day. He has so much personality and he is incredibly expressive. Yesterday at lunch time I sent him back behind my house to do his business. He usually runs back there, does his thing and comes full sprint back to the front of the house. Sometimes he will stop and grab a pine cone along his journey as he is a retriever at his core and has high hopes that I will throw to him for a while. When he came back to the front of the house yesterday, he had picked up an empty plastic water bottle that someone had left back there. He comes bolting back, head held high, as if to say “Hey Mom, is this one of those bottles that can be recycled?” (I am pretty sure he probably wasn’t actually thinking that but I like to think he is a bit smarter than he actually is). The recycling bin sits right by his kennel and so I showed him where to drop the bottle and he did it. He is so stinkin’ cute. Thanks for being so environmentally conscious Choco! I wish more people would think like you do! We really need to start checking in with ourselves and making sure we are doing as much as we can on a daily basis to help the planet. We were put on this earth for a reason and we only get one chance…
ANOTHER FAMILY MEMBER
I am really excited about this week as it is the week my older brother gets married. He is marrying a wonderful girl named Rachel that some of you may remember because she worked here at the Cafe of LIFE for almost 2 years while she attended nursing school. I am really excited they found each other. I remember when they firs
t became a couple and I thought to myself, “he is a lucky guy” and then the next thought was “she is one lucky girl”. They have a great thing going and I am looking forward to welcoming another sister into my world. As most of you know, I grew up with three brothers, one older and two younger. As with most siblings, I was not a huge fan of any of them. Over the years I have come to really appreciate their unique traits and how much they add to my life. I love spending time with all of them and watching them learn and evolve. This life is about sharing and experiencing things and learning and growing from the lessons that are presented along the way. Life is not easy, there are some hills and valleys and we all go through some interesting times, my family included. But we grow together and become more and more connected as the years go by. I am grateful to be having this life experience and if I had it to do over again, I would pick the same group of guys to grow up with. I look forward to the years to come and we all have such wonderful experiences awaiting us in the future. I love participating in their lives and being the best “Aunt E” that I can be to all of their children. Nate and Rachel have the cutest daughter named Charlei that I had the chance of spending a lot of this past Sunday with. She is 4 months old now and her personality is really beginning to show. I am not sure if she has ever seen puppets prior to Sunday and when she saw these stuffed animals talking to her, she giggled a little bit. As we played she was laughing and squealing so loudly, my brother and I were crying we were laughing so hard. Life is about those moments…and we only get this one chance. I am glad we are extending our family circle by one this week. Welcome to family Rachel! I can’t wait to celebrate that with you guys on Saturday!!!
MORE PICTURES
First picture is me in my haz-mat suit after the ceiling was sprayed. The paint is designed to fall and become a dust that vacuums up. It is like fine drywall dust only black and gets all over everything.
Second picture is me standing in the reception area just prior to putting down the cork flooring.
Third is Ted and I on one of the 5 flooring days.
