All posts by R.C. Liley

I'm an ex-mutual fund accountant who left the cubicle world to be a stay-at-home dad to my beautiful little girl, Avery, who entered our life on 11/15/13 and handsome little boy, Wes, who joined our family on 11/19/17. Also happily married to my wife, Kelley, as of 8/17/07. Sorry ladies... :) Fitness and nutrition is of the utmost importance in our family and we strive to reflect this in our daily life. I always prepare our meals at home and only go out if it's a special occasion, and even then I tend to not get much. Food should be fun and a joy to eat, not something quickly consumed from a fast food chain or scarf down before the next meeting. I have come from strictly logging high miles to train for the next marathon to keeping exercise varied and focusing more on strength. I still enjoy going for a run when I can, but nothing crazy, and I prefer hill sprints while pushing my daughter, Avery in the stroller. She loves it and I get a great workout! I want to show the world how to appreciate their body and feed it real, wholesome food while moving more throughout the day. In doing so, everyone would be healthier, happier, and we'd all live in a better place as a result. I blog mainly about my life as a stay-at-home dad and frequently include reviews, participate in campaigns, and share my thoughts on fitness and nutrition. If you ever have any questions or thoughts to share, please reach out as I'm always open to listening or helping others however possible. That is, when I have free time since Avery is and my wife are the number one priorities!

Benefelence the Elephence and the Wonderful You – Children’s Book

Reflect on the way you’re living today and going about your business.
What if the Wonderful You lived it too? What do you think you’d witness?

Benefelence the Elephence and the Wonderful You is a unique, magical, and fun story that will entertain, engage, and enlighten readers of all ages. It’s a beautifully presented adventure and activity book that teaches readers how to use Wonderful Words to meet challenges and spend more time being true to our Wonderful Selves.
The Story

Traveling through a shimmering world tethered to a cluster of bright balloons, Benefelence (“Bene”) visits a family in crisis. Everyone has a problem! The dog ran off with the boy’s shoe, the daughter wants to play but has homework, the mother discovers the cat stuck in a tree, and the dad is working way too much. What are they going to do!?

Bene shows the family that sometimes being Wonderful simply means being calm and kind with your misbehaving puppy, patient and wise with your homework, reliable and resourceful with your stranded cat, or balanced and rested with your work life.

Thanks to this simple yet effective thought exercise, each family member gains a new perspective on their situation, and in choosing to be Wonderful (by selecting and thinking about one or two Wonderful Words), they prevail over their respective challenges.

In a joyous celebration, Bene rewards everyone with special balloons to commemorate the various ways they were wonderful with their situations.

As the sun begins to set and the eventful day draws to a close, Bene imparts a few final words about the importance of trying to be wonderful, and the positive effects it can have on the self and the world.

Reflections

Being Wonderful is when we connect our actions to our true values. Wonderful Words are the words that represent those values. Benefelence the Elephence and the Wonderful You encourages using these special, Wonderful Words as tools to help us spend more time being our Wonderful Selves.

Readers tend to love the book’s positivity, message, variety and usefulness. They also comment on the beautiful artwork, playful rhyming voice, and fun activities and extras. Notably, parents and teachers often comment on the uniqueness of the book’s premise and approach, and find that it often prompts conversation with the little ones they read it with.

“My daughter would ask me about what the words meant. The Wonderful Words glossary page was helpful for both of us!” – Parent of 5 year old

“this is a wonderful and much-needed way to introduce children to mindfulness” – Teacher, Parent and Grandparent, Literary PhD, and Private School Founder

Audiences will turn the pages to see how the family deals with their problems, enjoy the beautiful artwork and bouncy rhyming text, and explore the many activities such as the picture find hunt, the illustrated and rhyming glossary page, the drawing activity, the crossword puzzle, and the removable ‘Bene award.’ The last of these is intended to give the reader a way to appreciate someone else in their lives who they feel deserves to be recognized for being wonderful.

With gratitude,
Todd H. William, thw@benefelence.com

Todd H. William has always been fascinated with the concepts of mindfulness, healthy living, purpose, psychology, philosophy, physics, and pretty much everything in between. He’s been a teacher, designed and implemented best-in-class award-winning business intelligence systems for corporations, composed and performed music, written screenplays, and designed, built, and prototyped a variety of novel multidirectional wheels. He’s constantly writing, and when he’s not, he’s trying desperately to remember all the ideas that he needs to write down before he forgets. It was his work on a gentle prioritization app, combined with his commitment to achieving good mental health and a satisfying work-life balance, that helped spark the idea to write Benefelence the Elephence and the Wonderful You, his first children’s book.

The Amazing Artwork
Ilya Fortuna is an illustrator and game creator based in Ukraine. He enjoys working closely with authors and game developers to bring their words and stories to life in vibrant images. He is a graduate of the Ukrainian Academy of Arts, and served as the illustrator on many children’s books, including Marvelous Machines, which was the focus of a successful Kickstarter campaign. Ilya has re-skinned his own game, The Adventures of the Water Knight, for the Cartoon Network. His artwork appears in the successful game, My Lands, and he has created or contributed artwork to many other games, including Cowboy vs UFOsBrave AstronautAdventures of Water Knight, and Slumdog Billionaire (2048).

Book and Contact Details
Title: Benefelence the Elephence and the Wonderful You
Format: Large Print Square Paperback and ebook 29 pages
ISBN: Paperback: 978-1778094224. ebook: 978-1-778094217
Ages: 4–400
Author: Todd H. William
Illustrator: Ilya Fortuna
Publisher: Dizkorce
Publication Date: November 10, 2022
Price: Paperback 9.99 USD. ebook 2.99 USD.
Contact Email: thw@benefelence.com
Links (also available in many other marketplaces such as .ca, .uk, .au, etc.):
https://www.amazon.com/dp/1778094228
Suggested Tags: Mindfulness, Picture Book, Words, Balance, Kindness, Patience, Resourceful, Virtues

Holiday Footwear Essentials: What To Pack When You’re Heading On Vacay

Crocs and sandals in the sand at the beach, vacation, travel, holidays, ocean, weather, heat

We’ve all been there. Staring at an empty suitcase and a huge pile of clothes and shoes, thinking ‘how is all of that going to fit in there?’. Slimming down your wardrobe and picking the right items for your holiday can sometimes make or break your time away, especially when it comes to footwear.

Don’t worry though, as you’re not alone. Plenty of us come up against this conundrum, and we’re here to help you pack smart with no stress and maximum style!

Holiday Footwear 101

Depending on the type of holiday you’ve booked you’ll need to have a good think about what you need to pack. For example, if you’re heading on a city break, then you’ll want to go for something comfortable and stylish, like a pair of trainers or loafers. For beach holidays, you can’t beat the classic sandal or flip-flop combo, either opt for something minimalistic and chic or if it’s a super sunny destination, then why not go full-on and get a pair of fun patterned sandals?

For longer holidays, you’ll need to think about versatility for your footwear options. Think about the type of activities you’re likely to be doing and what kind of climate you’ll be in. Boots are always practical, especially if it’s cooler or rainy, but if you don’t fancy lugging them around, then a pair of loafers and sandals are the perfect combo.

No holiday wardrobe is complete without some evening-ready shoes, whether that’s heeled sandals or a classic stiletto, you’ll be sure to find something for every occasion

The main takeaway here? Comfort over style is key! No one wants to be in pain when they’re away, so make sure you try your shoes on properly and look for styles with cushioned inner soles. That way you can have the best of both worlds – comfort and style.

At the end of the day, there’s no right or wrong when it comes to choosing your holiday footwear. So make sure to pick something that goes with the rest of your wardrobe, is versatile for whatever activities you have planned and, most importantly, comfortable enough to last the whole trip!

5 Holiday Footwear Essentials To Pack In Your Suitcase

Okay, so we’ve given you a broad idea of the types of shoes you’ll need for your holiday. Now let’s take a look at what styles you should definitely include in your suitcase.

1. Trainers – A great all-rounder, trainers are perfect for days when you want to be comfortable but still look good. They come in so many different styles and colours that you can easily find something to go with any outfit. Plus, if you want a cool hybrid, then sneaker slippers are well worth checking out as they combine the best of both worlds when it comes to comfort and style!

2. Sandals – Whether you opt for the classic flip-flop or a dressier, heeled version there’s no denying that sandals are an essential piece of holiday footwear. Wear them around the pool, on the beach or when mooching around the local town but be aware they’re best for short walks and not hikes or long trips.

3. Loafers – Classic and chic, they’re also surprisingly comfortable. A good pair of loafers can take you from day to night with ease and look great with jeans, shorts or a dress. Loafers come in plenty of styles, colours and materials to choose from, although you can’t go wrong with a classic style and colour.

4. Ankle Boots – If you’re heading somewhere cooler, then a good pair of ankle boots are a must. Not only do they look great with jeans, dresses and skirts, but they also provide plenty of support for your feet and ankles, which is especially important if you plan on doing any walking or hiking. Adding after-market inner soles can also help to make them even more comfortable.

5. Slippers – This may come as a surprise, but whether you’re at home or on holiday, there’s nothing quite like sliding into a pair of comfy slippers when it’s time for bed. Not only are they great for keeping your feet warm and cozy, but they can also help to prevent you from slipping on wet or slippery surfaces, which is always a bonus!

So, there you have it – five essential pieces of footwear that belong in every suitcase! If you’ve been struggling to decide what shoes to pack for your holiday then hopefully, this has given you some ideas and helped you narrow down your choices. Now all that’s left to do is get packing!

What Can We Do if Our Kids Are Sick All the Time?

sick child resting on couch, sickness, illness,

Pixabay – CC0 License

There is nothing more difficult than when our children are constantly unwell. If you think about the time it takes for you to recover from an illness with your robust immune system when your kids are sick all the time, it can easily make you dread every time they start having a sniffle or a cough. Common colds, fevers, and ear infections can easily upend our routines, making it difficult to work or even to get a meal together. So what are the things we need to remember when our children get sick?

Know the Numbers

It might not be music to your ears, but if you are barely making it 3 weeks without a child getting ill, this works out to the average amount of times they could get sick in the space of a year. There are many common questions about ENT specialists, specifically in relation to ear infections, and if your child has 8 or more ear infections within the space of 12 months, this poses a major problem. The reality is that when it comes to ear infections, anything less than 3 is fine, and if your child is getting up to 10 colds a year, this is still in the normal range. It’s when a cold lasts more than 10 days, fever lasts more than 5 days, and difficulty breathing beyond a stuffy nose is when it becomes a problem and you need to seek medical advice.

Ensuring You Get the Balance Right

The fact is your children are going to be exposed to a variety of germs and bugs when they are in school or in daycare, but it’s essential for you to make sure that they have the right tools to fight off these things more effectively. When you have your first child, the number of bugs that you will catch from your children is incredibly surprising and can wage war on your own immune system you will find you are in a better place to help your children fight these things. The best thing you can help your children with include some of the following: 

  • Making sure your children get lots of sleep. It can be difficult, especially if they are waking up a lot at night, but ensuring that they feel as rested as possible makes a big difference. 
  • Increasing their vitamin intake. Vitamin C is incredibly important, and low levels have been linked to more severe colds. 
  • Improving their gut bacteria. If you have taken your child to the doctor a few times this year resulting in a number of courses of antibiotics, this could have an impact on their immune system. Improving gut bacteria is one of the best ways to improve the immune system overall.

It is incredibly difficult when our children are unwell, but it’s important to recognize that their being sick is more common than you think. If your children are unwell every few weeks, this is par for the course. The best thing you can do is to make sure you and your children are more comfortable so they can ride it out.