I am a big, fat, hairy failure!! Like many other successful people out there, that is entirely true. To achieve success, you must and will fail, regular and often, and then, once you get the hang of certain things, maybe not so regular and often. Michael Jordan has made a very famous Nike commercial about what a failure he is, (insert eye roll) driving this point home very nicely. I think failure is kind of a harsh word. I choose to think of it as ‘Plan B’ and the point here is…there ALWAYS is one.

I challenge anyone to give me a scenario where there is not a Plan B. Some wise cracker may say death, and to that I would say, that’s actually when my party starts…much better than a Plan B so no, death does not even count. But for purposes here, we are not talking about death, we are talking about life, and how people respond to road blocks, criticism, rejection, etc.

I can’t say that I’m one of those people that is emotionally driven or motivated by those things. I mean, some people claim ‘it makes them want to work that much harder!’ I claim it makes me want to knock someone’s teeth out. But what it ALSO does to me is throw me immediately into thinking and planning mode. My brain starts going, like I mean, keep me up at night going, to try and figure out a solution. I’m just wired that way, in every single area of life. I’m sure it drives some of my loved ones crazy. Now I do realize that not everyone is wired that way. But that’s OK. Because when it comes down to it, it’s a choice. Now, if you’re not naturally wired that way it may not keep you up at night, and that’s not actually a bad thing. But there is always a way around, a solution, a compromise, a different path, another option…ALWAYS!!

I encourage anyone and everyone to start with little things but to start none the less looking for your Plan B's! DO NOT take no for an answer. Just don’t. If you’re starting a business, writing a book, baking a cake! I made cookies today with no eggs!! Why? Because I had no eggs!! And because there is such a thing as Google!! That’s really what this is all about…Google, it makes all things possible. No, but seriously, start training yourself to think this way, it might not even be Plan B, it might be Plan Q or R…but there always is one!!

(What does this have to do with Body Food? Absolutely nothing J But it’s still a great lotion!)

1. Only fart when in close proximity to a sibling or cousin, so as to share in the underwater bubble affect.
2. Do not jump on each other when jumping into the pool.
3. Every 5 minutes, everyone is to hold hands and sing Kumbaya.

These are my 3 pool rules when I am kid watching. A bit unconventional you might say. That is due to my '12 year old boy' humor and additionally my irrational fear of injury during pool play, resulting in the only REAL rule...#2.

Had to get my 9 year old out about 5 minutes after the rule announcement and ask him if he knew which rule he broke, whereby he exclaimed, "I didn't jump ON him I jumped NEXT to him!" I'm gonna guess he knows which rule. The options were 20 push-ups (one of his favorite past times) or 2 minutes out of the pool. He opted for the time-out...I would have gone for the pushups myself.

At any rate, all of this pool time, which has been every waking moment of our vacation outside the 37 theme parks we have visited in Orlando (OK, OK, 3!! But it feels like 37!!), inspired me to Google chlorine exposure. Don't worry, I'm not going to call for a 'hold hands across America' eradication of swimming pools everywhere. But it was kind of interesting.

Chlorine being something that we think of when swimming in a pool or relaxing in a Jacuzzi, you would be surprised to know how much chlorine we are exposed to regularly OUTSIDE the pool. I was.

Chlorine is one of the 10 most made chemicals in America because it's used to treat drinking water according to the New York Department of Health. Along with causing dry, flaky skin and even rashes on some more sensitive folks, it can also cause premature aging believe it or not. If you think about your daily shower even, nice hot steamy water, opening your pores up, perfect catalyst for the chlorine in the tap water to get into your tissues. Over time this can strip the skin of natural oils and cause it to dry and crack. 

Since we know the remedy is NOT to stop showering and swimming, naturally it needs to be to treat your skin with a gentle, all natural, daily moisturizer that combats these hazards. Visit the Body Food store today to get your tin of chlorine-combatting, whipped luxury!!

Hope everyone had an amazing fourth of July. I saw a post on Facebook by a friend from her British husband, "Happy Treason Day, Ungrateful Colonials," which I personally thought was absolutely hilarious! What was NOT absolutely hilarious was the amount of lobster red people I saw out on the beach. We spent about 8 hours on the beach on a military base and were, of course, camped out right next to the wildest group of marines on the whole beach. My son said there must have been "f-bomb radiation" from the nuclear testing or something...lol. However, it was great to see them let lose and have a good time, because after all, we have a fourth of July due to these men and women, who are willing to turn their lives over to our country.

All of that aside, if I had had a crystal ball I would have brought along about 56 gallons of sunscreen AND Body Food with me and started slathering it all over them upon arrival. Would that have been weird? Maybe. Would they have been in substantially less pain later? Definitely. Do they need some Body Food now for the aftermath of alcohol and probably 'too young to care about sunscreen even when sober' skin roasting? YES!!

O.M.G!!!! I cannot tell you the level of redness. I know, I know, how long can I go on about sunburn? At least another paragraph. But seriously! You know how you think you're doing really well in the sun, either not applying sunscreen but limiting your exposure, or only applying once in the morning and never again, only to go home and turn beet red in the evening? Oops! WELL THESE PEOPLE WERE ALREADY BEET RED AT 2PM!!!!!! I just keep imagining what they look like now. Brings tears to my eyes honestly.

So all of that to say...wear sunscreen people...help yourself. It's one thing to have the hangover of a lifetime, it's another to have it along with 3rd degree burns head to toe. Yeesh. And have some Body Food on hand just in case...(shameless plug).