It's been a while...

It sure has been a while since I updated my blog. It's been an interesting year so far... let me catch you up.

Health Issues

After not being well over the Christmas and New Year period I changed doctors and was finally listened to and heard. Basically, I was always tired, I was gaining weight even though I was exercising and eating well, I didn't want to socialise, my ankles and wrists were puffy, my eyes were puffy, I was having irregular periods, continually getting stomach bugs, waking up vomitting and going to bed with heart burn. And I wasn't pregnant.

In the end, I was diagnosed with Hypothyroidism, low levels of Iodine, Vitamin B12 and Vitamin D as well as Candidia, some sort of parasite and Depression. Nick said if I was a horse, they would have shot me a long time ago, but because he loves me and I'm not a horse, I'm safe with him. That's comforting!

My thyroid condition had been identified in tests back in 2006 but my then doctor, did nothing about it. They focused too much on my vitamin B12 deficiency and it was my thyroid that was causing my body not to absorb vitamin B12.

I'm happy to say that I am feeling better, have more energy, my symptoms have decreased significantly and I'm on the road to recovery. We're still working out the right dosage for my thyroid medication but that's standard because everyone reacts so differently to it. Once back to working order, my vitamin B12 and D levels should be good, and my iodine levels should be good.

I'm now off my anti-depression medication as it was a symptom of my underactive thyroid and it was caught relatively early. Phew!

Moving House

As you know we moved house early June and boy was that a big move. We had expected to come into a reasonably well kept house but it was filthy. It took us a whole day to scrub and clean. I spent a couple of hours getting sticky residue off the floor boards and had to scrub the cupboards 3 times but we got there. The first 3 weeks we didn't unpack much as we had people in plastering and painting

I am now very happy to say we've settled in nicely. There are a few things that still need to be done, but that will be over time. It's difficult to try and get everything done all at once.

To see photos, please visit my photo album, Our Home.

40th Birthday

What a milestone and I don't feel like, what I thought I would feel like, at 40. I definitely don't feel 40. Maybe the saying "I only feel as old as the man I feel" is true.

It was lovely that most of my family travelled to Hong Kong to celebrate it with me. I was rather spoilt by them. I think Nick was glad that my family were here because if they hadn't have been, he would have been the only male at the party as all the girls partners had to work or were called out to work. He was in his element ensuring all the girls glasses were topped up with bubbles.

Here are a few shots from the party.







Going Forward

With 5 months of the year left, we're heading to Australia late August, early September. We'll be going to Melbourne first, then Sydney and I head to Brisbane, when Nick comes back to HK.

At the end of October we head to Koh Samui, Thailand for a 10 day detox retreat. It's the same one we did last year so there will be daily walks, massages, meditation, yoga, swimming and nightly colonics. For 7 days we will fast, and the last 3 days we'll come off the detox program.

After that we head to Cambodia for 10 days early November. We're planning on going to Phnom Penh and Angkor Wat to see the temples.

I had stepped back from my businesses while I was focusing on my health so I'm now looking forward to stepping back into them. My businesses have been ticking over and particularly here in HK where most of my work has come from word of mouth. Hong Kong is like that, it's not what you know, it's who you know.

Anyway... that's my catch up. We're staying put at least until February 2010 once we're back from Cambodia. I would love to hear more about what's happening in your life, so please feel free to leave a comment or email me.

With love, Nicole x

Furry Reflections 2008

I thought I would share with you some of my favourite furbaby photos taken this year… Missy, Pirate (RIP), Osiris and Isis.

We think that Osiris is either the reincarnate of Pirate or Pirate is whispering often in his ear because he’s very familiar with our home, with Missy and with us, and displays a lot of the same antics as Pirate did but with much more confidence. This time he came with a feline companion, Isis because he knew Missy isn’t the cuddly type and he gets to cuddle with Isis.

Our Poor Christmas Tree

I put our Christmas tree up on the 1st December because we received a whole bunch of Christmas presents from my parents and I was having Adele and Melissa over for lunch as an early Christmas celebration due to Adele going away.

The photo above is what our tree looked like on the night of the 1st December. Below is what it looks like tonight... the kittens love the Christmas tree, and Cyrus loves to box the dangly decorations. I had to put the presents away due to them using them as toys.

More...

Size comparison... Missy and Cyrus. Missy allowed him to sit beside her while he behaved but once he started attacking her tail, that was the end of her being nice to him. You can see she's not too impressed with him sitting next to her.

Here is Isis... she's sleeping behind my computer.

Here is Cyrus... he was asleep but when he heard the camera he opened his eyes. He often sleeps like this.

Update On Kittens

I thought I'd share some cute photos of Cyrus and Isis.

This is Isis with one of their toys. She loves to carry it around with her so proudly. The stick that it's attached to drags behind her.

Here's Cyrus boxing the ball on their new cat pole. You can see his little black marks, they look like horns.

Here they are zonked out after running a riot around the house.

It's been a week now since we came home with Isis (little girl with ginger) and Cyrus (little white boy) and they are full of life.

I forgot what it's like to have a kitten around, and now we've got double the trouble. However they are keeping me entertained. Missy on the other hand is not impressed at all. She's met Cyrus face-to-face a couple of times and he has no fear... she was hissing at him and he still walked straight up to her as if she wasn't bothered by him. She gave him a light tap on the head to say "go away" but he just shook his head and stayed put.

Their personalities are starting to come out. Initially Isis was the adventurous one but Cyrus is showing that he is happy to dive head first into anything. He runs around like a mad man and sounds like a baby elephant while doing so. Isis is not far behind him but isn't as willing to jump in feet and all.

Isis is a little more independant, where as Cyrus does like attention when he wants it. I've noticed a pattern of a night time, once they're both ready to sleep for the night... Isis will talk for a little bit and so I give her a cuddle, she purrs away and then is happy to settle in her bed for the night. Cyrus on the other hand wants to smooch. It takes a while for him to settle because he's too busy smooching, rubbing up against me, sitting on my lap etc and the whole time his motor is going. He really wants a big cuddle before he's happy to be put to bed but tonight he wanted to sleep up on my desk next to me so he's claimed my sarong and stretched out on my old laptop.

They are very playful and really full of beans. It's so much fun having kittens around, now I wish for Missy to adopt them so she has some friends to hang with since she's still missing Pirate. We all miss Pirate because he was such a sweet, sweet boy.

New Babies

We went to dinner at a local Thai restaurant and came home with these babies...

They are brother and sister and at the moment living in my office until Missy accepts them as house mates. We are yet to give them names but we think we'll give them Cantonese names that are based on their personalities.

The little girl (ginger and white one) is curious and likes to explore, where as the little boy (white one with tiny black patches just near each ear) is placid and loves Pirate's old black and white ball. He's claimed it and is already carrying it around with him like a dog with a ball.

They are both very playful and full of beans. Definitely will keep Missy on her toes.

With Elizabeth and David (friends visiting from Australia) encouraging us we reacted... these 2 little babies needed a home and Nick and I stepped up and took them in.

An Aunty Again

I sent out an email showing off my new nephew but didn't write about him in my blog. I received photos of him this week and he is a cutie. Mum say's he's the image of Cooper when he was a baby and Dad thinks he looks like Shaun, so I'm guessing the Castle gene is shining through again.

My new nephew's name is Jayden Shaun Castle. I'll meet him when we're in Australia in March.

Life in Hong Kong

The past couple of months have been emotional for me and as I've said to Nick, I've been in some sort of "funk" - the word "funk" doesn't say much but at the same time says it all.

My parents visited during the early stages of my funk and it was nice to have them around as it stopped me from getting really down, and since then, Nick has been a champion through this time offering me options from moving back to Australia and commuting to living in the city to suggesting I go home for a holiday. However I felt it was better for me to stay and work through my emotions rather than run away.

Losing Pirate hit me hard and to come home from the magical experience of our South American holiday and lose him 1 month to the day was very difficult. Missy has also had a difficult time adjusting and is still missing his presence. It might be difficult for some people to relate but when Nick is away for work, which varies each week and can be up to 4-5 nights a week, my cats are my companions. Pirate was more so than Missy as Missy has always been independant and likes to do as she pleases, whereas Pirate was always close by - he loved to sit on my lap, cuddle up beside me on the lounge, sleep in his basket under my desk or on top of my desk while I worked. He was never too far from me.

Anyway... my "funk" has now passed and while being with my topsy turvy emotions, I realised that I've been "existing" in Hong Kong, instead of "living" in Hong Kong. I'm not sure if it makes sense but I was living my life around Nick's schedule and feeling like I was losing myself in the process.

My life is blessed and I have nothing to complain about. Nick supports me in all that I do and loves me for being me, but that was just it... I was not always being me and I was starting to become a bit of a recluse, not wanting to socialise or move forward. I started to notice that when Nick left on a 2 or 3 day trip, that I wasn't leaving the apartment - that's definitely not healthy.

It's not news to me that we have another 15+ years here in Hong Kong however this process of "being" has helped me to accepted that Hong Kong is my home. Thankfully, business ticked over due to word of mouth, friends organised social get togethers that were hard to say no to and Nick just allowed me to be.

Allowing me to be, has allowed me to move through this funk and come out the other side feeling better about myself and ready to embrace Hong Kong as my home.

During my awakening I realised that my small business coaching and consulting work (100% of my clients are women) is what is sustaining my business, and as much as I would love my personal development workshops to be the crux of my business, Hong Kong is just not ready.

In accepting all that is, opportunities have presented themselves.

1. A yoga centre who want to expand their services asked if I would like to exclusively offer my soul coaching and workshops out of their centre. They would promote me to their clients, manage my schedule, take all bookings etc and I can use their space instead of having to rent venues each time I run a workshop. 80% of their clients are women.

2. One of my small business clients asked if I would facilitate her Cross Cultural workshop for new expats living in Hong Kong on an as needs basis. The majority of her participants are women.

3. My online presence has introduced me to many amazing women around the world and by late September I will have my own online radio show that compliments my online magazine. These are both aimed at women.

4. Through my online contacts and my soul coaching colleagues, there is a possibility that I'll be facilitating workshops for women in various locations throughout the US late next year.

Once I stepped out of my own way, I could see that the Universe was providing... My passion is to work with women on a more personal level however I never considered that my small business coaching or consulting was on a personal level. It took one of my small business clients to say how much I've made an impact on her life, for me to realise that the Universe was providing, I just wasn't recognising it.

I now need to let go of control and be in the flow... I actually love coaching and whether it is small business women or a woman wanting to make a change in her life, it doesn't matter... I'm still doing what I want to do, it just doesn't look how I thought it would look.

I look around me and I'm truly blessed to have people in my life that believe in me, even when I wasn't believing in myself. The smallest of communication touched my heart and now I find inspiration every day.

All I did was shift my perception and a whole new world opened up for me. That is a blessing in itself!

In love and gratitude,
Nicole x

Full Moon Circle

At very short notice I organised a full moon meditation with a circle of women spread out all around the world. We had 18 women participating over the weekend and it was so special.

To make it work I put everyone's name on a map showing where they were located throughout the world and then sent it to those participating, along with instructions. Each person used the map to energetically connect with the other women in the group.

At the end of their meditation they sent their wishes out into the Universe, and then granted the wishes of others by saying "As (insert person's name) wishes for herself, so I wish for her also."

I'm going to be doing this each month so if you're interested in participating, please let me know.

The full moon's for the rest of the year are:-

* Monday, 15th September

* Tuesday, 14th October

* Thursday, 13th November

* Friday, 12th December

Our New Car

We've finally upgraded our old, free car to a fancy, smancy Mercedes SLK350 convertible sports. Initially I was really nervous driving it but now I'm loving it.

Our old pug didn't like me much... it always took me 3 or 4 tries to get it started, it would break down on me and it didn't have airconditioning. It liked Nick. I didn't drive it very often because it was so temperamental with me, but now with our new car, I'm driving it more than Nick.

Sight Seeing

While my parents were here we spent a day on a tour around the New Territories of Hong Kong. Hong Kong is made up of Hong Kong Island, Kowloon, Outlying Islands, Lan Tau Island and New Territories. They are similar to states but due to Hong Kong being a small country, these areas are close to one another and connected by bridges (except for the outlying islands).

The New Territories is a large area mainly covered by National Park and driving from one side of the New Territories to the other could take 2 and a bit hours depending on where you go.

During the tour we visited a temple that is shared by 3 philosophies - Taoism, Buddhism and Confusim. It was such a beautiful temple and I could have spent more time there exploring the different areas dedicated to the philosophies. The photo below shows the 3 philosophers sitting together.


The temple has this amazing round room that had all the dieties that represented different years. Based on their calculations, I could find my god based on my birth year, time etc and give him offerings for a safe, happy and prosperous year.

My Angel

I'm devastated as I write this... Pirate, my sweet boy is now in cat heaven. I'm blessed to have spent an hour cuddling with him prior to going to the vets. Unfortunately his tumor got worse, very quickly and he was struggling to walk. I couldn't bear to see him in pain, the kindest thing for me to do was release him to Spirit.

For everyone who has been in touch, and sent prayers and healing... Thank You!

Update on Pirate

The results came and it's not good... Pirate has a cancerous tumour that is spreading. The vets said they could try to chop it out but there is no guarantees he'd make it through the surgery and if he did, the surgery would be very traumatic for him. They've recommended that we just let him live his life as comfortable as we can and once he is in pain, we send him into spirit.

For my birthday, my mum painted this:-

The painting was based on this photograph:-

She opened his eyes and showed his tail. She's very clever. So now we're keeping an eye on him and at the moment he's still got his healthy appetite and getting around relatively easy. However once I see he's in pain, I'll do what is best for him.

Here he is... I took this today:-

Sad News

Upon returning from our holiday I noticed that Pirate was limping. Initially I thought he might have hurt himself while rumbling with Missy but after taking him to the vet, this is not so. The vet found a large lump on the top of his back leg and due to the size, it's difficult for him to walk properly or sit with his leg closed.

After looking at it more closely and guessing that Pirate is actually 14 years old, not the 10 or 11 we thought he might be, he thinks it's cancer. He did a biopsy and we'll get the results in 10-14 days but as he explained, there are no guarantees that the biopsy will tell them anything.

We are keeping our fingers and toes crossed. The drugs didn't agree with him so he's been really groggy and also very sore from the biopsy. Today he's looking a little bit brighter and I'm hoping in a couple of days time he'll be back to his normal self, running down the stairs keen for his breakfast.

In the meantime, please send him your love and healing energy. I would really appreciate it.

Animal Communicator

I recently had a fellow Soul Coach, Sandra Larson, who is also an Animal Communicator chat with Missy and Pirate. The purpose was to tell them about our upcoming trip and for Pirate not to stress so much as he frets and doesn't eat much.

I thought I would share the conversation with you. Nick and I had a good giggle and could see their personalities in their words.

To give you a little bit of background, Sandra had returned home from being away for a couple of days. She had opened up my email and saw their photos, and then made a few phone calls before communicating with each of them.

Below is the communication with both of them, in separate posts. Enjoy!

Communications with Missy

Nicole, I'm not sure if you do Feng Shui, have clients come to your home or just have a lot of visitors, but Missy has a very important job that she does to assist you in your work. Below is the conversation I had with Missy:

Missy: I've been waiting in queue for you all day!

Sandra: I know, I've been feeling you with me all day!

Missy: I'm happy doing the work I'm here to do. When I'm walking around our home, I'm purifying the air. When people come to our home they think I'm talking with them when I make noise. Actually, it's my way of breathing on them to help them clear their energy. When Pirate gets too close to me while I'm doing this work I get irritated with him. I try to set up a boundary or barrier, but he doesn't respect my space, so I have to give him a warning. This is important work! This is how I help!

Sandra: Is there someway Pirate can help you with this work you do?

Missy: First, he could stay out of my way, but unless you can get through to him, I doubt he'll do that!

Sandra: I can talk to him about it. Is it possible Pirate may just want to connect with you and be close to you?

Missy: He is much less confidant and independent than I am. So yes, he may be looking for companionship.

Sandra: Could you possibly try being kinder to him? I'll try to ask him to respect your boundaries.

Missy: Yes, but you must understand my work is the most important thing!

Sandra: Again, is they anything more Pirate can do to help you with this work?

Missy: The subtle energies are there for him to see. If he would stop being concerned with his personal and basic needs, he could see, feel and work with this energy. But cats, just like people can't work in this realm as long as they live in fear and worry.

Sandra: Thank you Missy for helping me understand this. I will communicate this to Pirate and Nicole, too! Nicole would like to know if you prefer to be shaved for the summer.

Missy: Yes, but not too closely. Please ask them to leave a light coat of fur behind, kind of like peach fuzz.

Sandra: How are you feeling?

Missy: (At this time she showed me a picture of her coughing. Does she have any problem with her throat or throwing up on occasion? She is showing me her throat is scratchy like a steel wool pad. I always like to tell people I'm not a veterinarian, so check out any concerns with your vet.)

Sandra: What would make you happy?

Missy: For you to slow down and take time to clear yourself and meditate more. You have important work to do Nicole, and I am here to help you be strong and centered. But there are things you must do for yourself. You are really a good person. Sometimes too good! Please take good care of yourself. I want to be with you for a really long time. You can do your best when you are rested and care for yourself. I love both you and Nick and I guess Pirate's not so bad.

Sandra: About Nick and Nicole going away.

Missy: I know all about the people coming to care for us. Who knows, perhaps I can help them, too! Thank you Nicole and Nick for not sending me to a cat kennel. You know I would hate that. We should be OK.

Sandra: Thank you for talking with me Missy.

Missy: Thanks for talking with me, too! It's great to be heard. I know most cats wouldn't say this, but I'm happy to move to 10 more places if I can be with you Nick and Nicole. My place is with you. We do good work.

Sandra: Yes, you do Missy! Thank you!

Communications with Pirate

Sandra: Hello Pirate!

Pirate: Am I in trouble?

Sandra: No sweetheart, you're not in trouble!

Pirate: Well Missy seems mad at me!

Sandra: Missy is just very focused on the work she is doing in your family. She feels you don't respect her boundaries and give her space to work.

Pirate: I just want to be close to her the way I am with Nicole. I feel safe with Nicole. I wish I could feel safe with you, Missy.

Sandra: Pirate, I have an idea for you that might help you with Missy. Perhaps you can spend time with Nicole and really get centered when you're with her. Then, when you're with Missy, you can try to see, feel and do the work Missy is doing. And try to give her more distance and space. Then, when you think it is the right time, you can ask her mind to mind, 'Is this a good time to take a break and play for a bit?' Just remember is she says, 'No' honor that and try again later. What do you think about the idea?

Pirate: I will give it a try! I hope Missy can lighten up and play a little.

Sandra: (I was telling Pirate how much I love him and how he touches my heart and he said)

Pirate: I wish I could come to visit you!

Sandra: Other than your problem with Missy, are you happy?

Pirate: Oh yes, it feels good to be in a home where people love and care for me. It hasn't always been that way you know. Hiding was a good survival tactic that I learned and have used often. I'm really good at hiding. When I hear the vibration of feet on the floor, I take off! Being safe is very important to me. I don't find it easy to trust.

Sandra: How are you feeling?

Pirate: I feel OK in my body, but I have a lot of emotions that run through me. I am concerned sometimes that someone will take m away from Nicole and Nick and I don't want that!

Sandra: I can tell you this Pirate they love you and want you to stay with them as their forever cat! Pirate, they wanted me to tell you they are going away for a little while and will have kind people take care of you.

Pirate: Will they come back?

Sandra: Oh yes! (Sandra counted the number of days we'd be away and told me to reassure him we'd be coming back)

Pirate: Please have them tell me how long they will be gone and when they will come back. And please ask them to think about me and send me love often.

Sandra: I will pass the message on to them. Is there anything you would like them to know?

Pirate: I'm so thankful for the love you both give me everyday. I love my home and I love you! You are the important thing in my life. I would be so lost without you. I love you!

Nearly There!

With just under 2 weeks before we head to South America, I'm getting excited. I spent last night double checking our itinerary ensuring we have accommodation everywhere, and all our flights were right.

I do have a few loose ends to tie up but all in all, we're ready to go. I got my vaccinations this morning - they didn't hurt as much as I thought they would, however, my left arm is aching which they say is to be expected.

I look forward to showing off the photos upon our return.

Busy, Busy, Busy

Everyone is busy... busy, busy, busy. I don't know if people are not getting my emails or they are just not responding... mmm...

Anyway, I thought I would update my blog and people can read it when they have time etc.

Over the past couple of months Nick and I have both been busy working... Nick is enjoying being a captain and I've just been refining my services, promoting my guided writing journal (oh yeah... congratulations to Tara and I... we've sold over 200 journals within 3 months - that is a big feat in itself) and trying to plan for the next year.

In between we have been bumming around, socialising and planning for our next big holiday - South and North America. I'm very excited about our holiday and am counting the weeks... 9 weeks tomorrow!

I'm off to Singapore over Easter. I'm going with Melissa and we're there to catch up with our friend, Juria. Melissa has some other friends living there as well so it could be a very social weekend.

Nick and I are heading to Sydney early April for a wedding - we are flying in, going to the wedding and flying home... a very, very short trip and during the time I'm hoping to see a few bookstores in town about stocking our journal so sorry I won't be catching up with anyone while I'm there. I'd prefer to save catching up for when I've got a bit more time and I've got some transport.

Nick and I head off to Peru on the 5th May - we are going to Lima (the capital), Cuzco and the surrounding areas, Machu Picchu, Lake Titicaca. Then we head to Argentina to see the Laguzua Falls and Beunos Aires. Then we head to Santiago in Chile and will be traveling the wine regions. From there we head to New York for a week. We get back into Hong Kong on the 4th June.

I promised myself that when I finished my University degree I would go to Peru as a gift to myself, to celebrate achieving my Bachelor of Adult Education, majoring in Human Resource Development... as I'm leaving Hong Kong, I'll be handing in my last Uni assignment, for my last subject so effectively I will have completed my degree - YAY for me!

Oh yeah! While in in the US, I've also been invited by Pink Heels, a business in Michigan to run a workshop for her clients and do a book signing. That's so cool!!! I'm not sure if I'll do it, it's a great opportunity but it will mean cutting some of my time in New York. We'll see... I'm just going to be guided and wait for the Universe to give me signs.

Between now and then I'm concentrating on my last uni subject, limiting my workload for my business and leading an online discussion group for the book 'A New Earth'. If you didn't know, I was asked by the organiser of Oprah and Eckhart Tolle's 10 Week Online Course, if I was interested in leading a discussion which is aligned to the course. We've gotten off to a slow start due to the fact that there were over 500,000 people tuning in online last week but hopefully this week's discussion will pick up.

With love and light, take care!
Nicole x