From an ashram in Nepal to going on "mystery trips" to all things parenting...here are some of my thoughts.
Why Every Parent Needs More Headspace
Meditation carries the answers to so many issues facing parents and yet many of us are too busy to slow down, let alone sit in silence for 10-15 minutes.
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Finding Myself on the Edge
When I feel the “mommy guilt” overtake me (often), or when I can’t seem to get off the hamster wheel of life’s commitments, rushing to and from work or school activities (more than often), I stop and ask myself two questions.
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5 Lessons I Learned While Guiding The First Blind Runner Across The Grand Canyon
As a working mother of three, I share the daily struggle of thousands of women trying to achieve an elusive work-life balance.
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Grand Canyon Run: An Epilogue
We all face some degree of adversity and it’s easy to let perceived impediments keep us from pursuing our dreams.
READ ARTICLEMystery Trip - What if you went to the airport without a ticket or a plan?
What if we picked a week at the halfway point between our 45th birthdays and planned a mystery trip together? The catch? We couldn’t plan it.
READ ARTICLEMystery Trip - My friend and I went to the airport without a ticket or plan and ended up in...Madrid!
In early January 2016, I went out to dinner with Allison, my closest friend and business partner, and she presented me with an idea. What if we picked a week halfway between our birthdays, went to the airport without a plan and let fate decide our destination? What if we could finally go on a “mystery trip” together?
READ ARTICLEThe Hardest Thing We've Done With Our Son Turned Out to be the Best
As I hiked past the majestic Grand Teton mountain last August while camping and rock climbing with my family in Wyoming, I looked up at the summit and asked my guide what it would take to get to the top.
READ ARTICLEI Spent my Spring Break in an Ashram in Kathmandu and This is What I Learned
How can I explain just how quickly I embraced a country that begins every greeting with ‘namaste’ - prayer hands to the third eye, with a serene look accompanied by a respectful bow?
READ ARTICLEHope at the Base of Mount Kilimanjaro
Twelve-year-old Priella called out to me as I walked out of the overcrowded classroom in Moshi, Tanzania and simply said, “Wait, Alison, before you go…” I turned to approach her with a smile and in that moment I knew she was a kid who believed she could do more than her circumstances allowed. She wanted to fly.
READ ARTICLESchool the World
My twin daughters Maddie, Sydney and I recently got back from Chinique, El Quiché, in Guatemala. Since our return, I have had a hard time finding the words to describe our experience together. It was a life-changing immersion that will no doubt inform their choices - and perhaps their lens on life - forever. To rewind this story a bit...
READ ARTICLELove Like Liam
The name Liam means strong-willed warrior or protector. When my friends Gretchen and Larry Witt named their son nearly 10 years ago, they could not know just how aptly that name would apply.
READ ARTICLEWomen Helping Women
My unbelievably generous mother-in-law, Dr. Maria Boria, started a women’s health clinic on the Eastern Shore of Maryland 10 years ago this month. Over the last 10 years, she has worked entirely for free, providing health care to the poorest of citizens, mostly to the uninsured and to many of the immigrants who work the farms in her rural community.
READ ARTICLEThe Inca Trail to Machu Picchu
Last week I completed what can only be described as one of those life-changing experiences, one where you find yourself kissing the sky with gratitude. It was a moment when the world faded away and everything I felt I had given up to get here in NYC to take on my great adventure became, in a blissful moment, utterly worth it.
READ ARTICLEHelp Make a Difference for Countless Women in Nepal
This posting is not a typical apple seeds posting. It’s sad, but it’s reality. It’s happening every day in so many parts of the world and it’s a reminder that we can help. The hope is to share my friend Manju’s story and encourage support to her amazing organization, Pourakhi.
READ ARTICLEHelp Us Turn Our Sadness into Answers
Today would have been Liam’s 11th birthday. There are 40,000 children like Liam actively battling cancer right now. Liam’s family has made it their life’s mission to protect other kids and families from suffering the same tragedy they faced. They have started an organization called Cookies for Kids’ Cancer.
READ ARTICLELove is Blind
As I cradled 18-month-old Qiushi in my arms, he squeezed my left pinky finger and seemed to say without words, please don’t let me go. He had just completed surgery in one eye and was preparing for yet another. His arms were locked into casts, to protect himself from touching the good work of the doctors and ensure his healing. His mind was no doubt wanting to be the active boy that lived inside.
READ ARTICLEDo You Have Too Much Stuff?
I have too much STUFF. Way too much of it. I needed to move into the new year with a practice that yogis call aparigraha, and then hold that within me. Aparigraha is the concept of non-possessiveness or non-greediness. It’s about letting go of things we simply don’t need to hold on to.
READ ARTICLESupport Cookies for Kids Cancer
Every year we write to tell you about Cookies for Kids’ Cancer, our connection to the organization and to the boy, Liam Witt, that started it all. Our sweet friend Liam battled cancer for 4 years. He was only 6 ½ years old when we lost him. He would have celebrated his 10th birthday this month.
READ ARTICLEWant to Own Your Own Business?
We would like to share some exciting news. We are franchising our award winning music program and most popular class, songs for seeds, so that we can bring the songs for seeds magic to communities across the country.
READ ARTICLEChefs for Kids Cancer
Chefs for Kids' Cancer event, an annual event hosted by Cookies for Kids' Cancer, an organization the four of us care deeply about. We supported our dear friends Gretchen and Larry Witt and watched their team put on an outstanding evening… a night to remember. More than 40 of New York City’s most renowned chefs took part,
READ ARTICLEThe power of Big Words Written by Little People
There has been a lot of media follow up about the Grand Canyon adventure and my blind friend Dan’s journey losing his eyesight, facing depression, but then fighting it to become a runner and an inspiration to many.
READ ARTICLEWhy Every Parent Needs More Headspace & Meditation
Meditation offers a safe space for each of us to start a conversation with ourselves, however afraid we might be to have it. What parent doesn’t long for the time to explore the musings in the mind and simply observe them, without judgement? Meditation can be exactly that “pause button” we crave as busy parents.
READ ARTICLEPaddleboarding: The Hottest Sport of the Season for All Ages
Co-founder Alison Qualter Berna and her family recently went paddleboarding on a family vacation! Check out the article on New York Family's website
READ ARTICLEWatching my girls spin for the Progeria Research Foundation
Last weekend, I watched my 9 year old daughters enter the Team Zoey Spin-A-Thon in Mountain Lakes, NJ to raise money for Progeria, also known as “rapid aging disease.”
READ ARTICLEHelp Make a Difference for Women in Nepal
About 1800 people leave Nepal each day to find work outside of their country. Women who become domestic workers are particularly vulnerable, as they typically do not go through an official government registration process. They most often go to the Gulf region in search of work and money, and their average stay is 2-3 years.
READ ARTICLEDo What You Love
I decided that “mommy guilt” was neither productive for me nor beneficial to my kids, so I try my best to let it go.
READ ARTICLEThe story of My Life: An Interview with Alison Berna
In her interview, Alison shares the challenges of being a working mom, how she became a budding entrepreneur from her days working at NBC and UNICEF and how her passion to help others achieve their goals has given her a second wind to live a more meaning and inspiring life.
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