Happy Mother’s Day to all the mums. I hope you’re being spoilt and having a fun day with the family.

I thought I’d give a short history of the tradition of Mother’s Day. It’s known by different names around the world, ie Mother’s Day, Muttertag, La Festa della Mamma, Mothering Sunday, Fête des Mères, Día de las Madres… however the love and heartfelt appreciation is the same the world over.

Most mothering festivals in early history were held in the springtime to celebrate the rebirth of the land and the beginning of the most fertile time of the year. In the land Down Under where European settlement began only a couple of hundred years ago, we celebrate Mother’s Day in autumn - which doesn’t make sense really, when the celebration is about fertility and renewal. But anyway…

The modern version of Mother’s Day with families bringing flowers and gifts (wanted and unwanted but all appreciated) to their mums, can be traced back to 17th Century England. Mothering Sunday was the fourth Sunday in Lent…even the strict rules about fasting and penance were forgotten on this special day. Children who were away from home learning a trade or working as servants were allowed to return home for the day. The family gathered to share food and drink with Mother as the special guest. Mothers were given treats of cakes and wildflowers.

In the US in 1914 President Woodrow Wilson declared that Mother’s Day should be celebrated as a national holiday on the second Sunday in May. Here in Australia, as with many other countries, we celebrate Mother’s Day also on the second Sunday in May. In the UK Mother’s Day, or Mothering Day, is held on the fourth Sunday in Lent, which is difficult for hubby Richard whose mother lives in the UK - he always forgets!

It’s a celebration of mothers…dedicated to honoring the mums who give so much to their families without asking for anything in return. Perhaps every day should be Mother’s Day, but most families are too busy with everyday things to say thank you for every meal, every good night kiss or every piece of ‘advice’.

Once a year, the world stops being busy and says thank you. Flowers, cards and gifts are just the outward signs. What we mothers love most is the fact that our families really do notice all that we do and on this one day we are queen … and this mother’s 20-something year old sons have offered to cook dinner tonight!

Happy Mother’s Day!

Until next time, this is Julie Vale from Own Your Life Club.

Red Wine Is Good For Your Brain - I Knew It!

Recent research has shown that drinking red wine helps you think. Who’d have thought?

Men and women both did better in mental arithmetic tests after being given ‘resveratrol’, the wonder ingredient in red wine, or more precisely in the skins of red wine grapes.

The plant chemical, said to have abilities from burning off junk food and warding off heart disease, to being an anti-inflammatory and preventing as well as curing cancer, is believed to increase blood flow to the brain.

These are big claims. In the meantime, I’ll just pour another glass of red wine. I used to drink red wine because it tastes so good. But now I’m drinking it purely for medicinal purposes!

Cheers!

Until next time, this is Julie Vale from Own Your Life Club.

I checked the date on the newspaper today and it’s definitely not April 1 - so it must be true!

A university in Liverpool, the home of the Beatles, is the first academic institution in the world to offer a Masters Degree on the life and legacy of The Beatles. How cool is that!

The new course at Liverpool Hope University is called The Beatles, popular music and society. It begins later in the year and will cover four modules of study. I guess that’s one module for each Beatle!

I was one of their biggest fans and there was a time when I knew everything there was to know about the Fab Four. That would be one University Degree where I could probably get top marks!

Hmmm, I wonder whether they do a correspondence course…?

Until next time, this is Julie Vale from Own Your Life Club.

Happy Australia Day 2009

Here’s a short video that we filmed just a few minutes’ walk from where we live and I’ve added highlights of how the day unfolded in Sydney and elsewhere around Adelaide.

We decided this year to join our Local Community for an Australia Day Breakfast on the glorious foreshore of Hallett Cove, South Australia.

It was a morning spent chatting to friends and watching young families enjoying their time together.

I was fortunate to have been given the opportunity to become an Australian Citizen and to be able to enjoy the kind of lifestyle that this great country has to offer. I am very proud to be an Australian.

I’m also grateful to be happily married to a ‘Dinky Di Aussie’, Julie, who taught me the Lingo, how to cook a shrimp on the Barbie and Aussie Rules!

We hope you had a wonderful Australia Day wherever you celebrated.

Until next time, this is Richard Beazley from Own Your Life Club.

Do you live near a beach? Have you ever thought about having breakfast on the beach?

Well Julie and I consider ourselves very fortunate to be living within walking distance of the beach and on this particular morning decided to have breakfast on OUR beach.

You know we often take our surroundings for granted, and I guess even we are sometimes guilty of that, as we tend to get a little caught up in the day to day chores of life. However once in a while it’s well worth stepping back from your daily routine, and do what we did. Have a look at this little video on the day…

When was the last time you had breakfast on the beach? When was the last time you did something different? Enjoy Life, enjoy the time you have in this wonderful world.

Until next time, this is Richard Beazley from Own Your Life Club.