Stories from Kristina + Breanne

  Shared by Kristina Smedley       #MindfullyEvolving Check out what we're up to now!

  Shared by Kristina Smedley “Mind and Body Delivery…” I’m a little nervous to publicly share this, but here it goes… Throughout my life, whenever birth or babies’ weights or things like that came up, I would always share some version of the story, “Yeah, and my mom is amazing! She had 3 babies, all vaginally and without epidurals, and one of them weighed over 10 pounds!!” I have been in amazement of this my whole life and have told the story countless times, starting when I was pretty young! However, I never really thought about it for myself. I have always just figured, “I’ll go as long as I can without meds, and then do what I have to do in the moment.” I didn’t really even plan to look into any other options. That is, until a coaching colleague and friend recommended that I read Ina May’s (an American Midwife legend) Guide to Childbirth. This book opened my eyes and my heart in a way I didn’t expect. First, around the power of the woman’s body. That most women’s bodies are made...

  Shared by Breanne Smedley My initial and immediate response to that question is a quick, “no.” Because that person who cut me off in traffic, then flipped me the bird…couldn’t he have done a better job controlling his anger? Or that student that was rude to me and rolled her eyes after I held the door open for her…was that was the best response she could have mustered? Or that email that came across as curt and snarky…was that really the best that parent could have done? The real answer, when I really look at these scenarios and countless others in my life where I feel like I’ve been “wronged” is that I don’t know. It’s easy to fall into the trap of thinking that people actually aren’t doing their best. It’s easy to look at life through the lense that others are to blame for our unhappiness. That if only she could be nicer, I’d be happier. That if only that incident didn’t happen, I’d be content. If only people actually did their best, things would be better. But, what if they ac...

  Shared by Kristina Smedley “Honoring Our Parents” Sennad and I attended a workshop a couple weekends ago called “Bringing Baby Home,” but it wasn’t your typical pregnancy/labor/newborn class! Like a lot of things, I didn’t do a ton of research before signing up… I just saw some key points, thought it sounded good, and clicked the button! I don’t need to know all the details. Don’t get buried in analysis paralysis. Don’t waste a ton of time weighing all the options.  I just get a sense and go for it. And typically this pays off. Thankfully, this was one of those times! The workshop was developed by the Gottman Institute, based here in Seattle. You’ve probably heard of them… they’re famous for their “Love Lab” and being able to predict divorce with a 95% (or something like that) success rate with just a short period of interaction. As Sennad and I walked in the classroom door, I was a little nervous. See, the workshop was all about maintaining your relationship with a new litt...

  Shared by Breanne Smedley I remember playing in one of my first soccer matches in elementary school. Our team was called the Dragonflies, and we were fierce! At least that’s what I remember about fifth-grade soccer… I also remember the feeling I would get before every game. An uneasy feeling in my stomach My mom told me they were “butterflies.” That made perfect sense, it’s exactly how I felt. A bunch of butterflies fluttering around my stomach disrupting things. Making me feel like I either had to go run around or race to the bathroom before I took the field. I remember trying to tell the butterflies to calm down in my head. I would try to imagine them slowing their wings down and eventually stopping, then disappearing from my tummy. I didn’t want butterflies around. They made me feel different. Fast forward to today, and my mindset around those little guys has shifted entirely. I now see them as a measure of my daily growth. Butterflies, nervous excitement, a little bit of fear...

  Shared by Breanne Smedley     #MindfullyEvolving Check out what we're up to now!

  Shared by Kristina Smedley “Unexpected Nerves…” Yesterday was the kickoff call for our ConfidenceFactor™ Challenge. A 45min Zoom video meeting, hosted by Breanne and I, with 32 ladies invited, to kick off the challenge that we’ll be facilitating over the next 21 days. And I was nervous! What if no one showed up? What if I forgot everything I wanted to share? What if they thought… I don’t even know what they might think! I host video meetings at work all the time and they’re no big deal. But this felt different. This was personal. This was more vulnerable, around the work Breanne and I have been doing together and for ourselves around our Inner Critics. This is where my passions lie, and where it would really hurt to feel rejected or like I failed. But nervousness doesn’t always have to be a bad thing. In fact, we can frame this energy as excitement and look at our situations from a completely different angle. And we are definitely excited! Excited to have 32 ladies join us on thi...

  Shared by Kristina Smedley “I don’t have time…” I’ve been catching myself saying that a lot lately… I don’t have time to work out. Don’t have time to cook dinner or make my lunches. To hang out with friends. To meditate. To journal. To write my stories. To read all of these baby books. Make all of these baby decisions. Oh, and take good care of myself for this little baby! And then the guilt comes in… one of my Inner Critic’s go to tactics with regard to how I spend my time. “You need to be a loving and supportive wife, a healthy pregnant lady, a good Boeing teammate, a great friend, good business partner, and present to those following your Mindfluent® Leadership journey. You’re letting people down!” But I don’t have time!! Sound familiar?! Truth be told, I hate this excuse: “I don’t have time.” We all have the same 24 hours per day. What we do with them differs. And even more than that, our mindsets differ. As many of you know, I’ve been doing a lot of work with my Inner Critic...