Well, once again, iSPA has outdone themselves!  This is the 17th annual conference and the largest ever as we reached 3000 attendees.   It is so exciting being one of the 3000 and having the opportunity to meet new representatives from new companies in the spa industry, being one of the first to hear about a new launch and reconnecting with old friends and making new ones.  There are people here from Canyon Ranch (www.canyonranch.com), Miraval (www.miravalresort.com), Lake Austin Spa Resort (www.lakeaustinspa.com), and it was so great to see Sheila Cluff again from the Oaks at Ojai (www.oaksspa.com) as well as meeting her daughter Cathy (who is also on the iSPA Board).  So many more and I’ll update you more about the others in my next update from the Gaylord Palms. 

Seeing my peers from the media field is also exciting.  Body and Soul, Organic Spa, USA Today and others are here as well.

New Product:  One of the new products I wanted to share with you is called Tauleto…it is a wine fragrance and has a wonderful scent.  I mostly wear lightly scented natural lotions and so it was great to see a company come out with a fragrance, which is the first perfume to be created from the natural essences of wine - the red Tauleto wine (a Sangiovese from Umberto Cesari).  It’s light, natural and I’m really liking it (and the fact that it’s from Italy is of course close to my heart!).

If you’d like to find out more about it, check out www.tauletousa.com or send me an e-mail and I’ll share more.

So, until tomorrow, enjoy your day and the spa lifestyle.  - Donna

Oh and I can’t wait to get to the Canyon Ranch Spa Club tomorrow for my Muscle Melt massage and I sure need it….I’ll tell you more about the treatment and the spa. 

I’m writing from the amazing Gaylord Palms Resort in Kissimmee (Florida), which will be my home for the next few days as I’m attending the International Spa Association’s Conference & Expo (iSPA).  As a writer, it is my favorite event as I’m in my element…..that of wellness, sustainability and everything spa related.  I’ll be updating you here from notes for my Dear Donna column and magazine related articles.  This is the largest expo in the history of this event and one of the most exciting opportunities due to the professional sessions and general sessions and of course networking with my friends and peers.

This resort is also home to the Canyon Ranch Spa Club (www.canyonranch.com) and you can be sure I’ll be revisiting that area and will share some news about all they have to offer here. 

Today’s ‘green’ tip:    We all love water and know the importance of consuming what our body needs to function properly, and bottled water is certainly preferred in my home, however here at our expo we have a focus on sustainability and will not be using bottled water.  Instead we will have water stations in our conference area and all of us will be using a water bottle so we can just fill up and go.  I encourage you to consider making that small change in your home and at work.   One small change makes a big difference. 

Check this out….Organic Style at www.organicstyle.com.  Organic Style is a eco-lifestyle shopping option for high quality products…eco-friendly flowers, organic bed & bath line, apparel, gardening accessories and more. 

Have a healthy week and think more about spa as a lifestyle.  - Donna

Here we are in November already.  Where did this year go…seems to go by more quickly the older we get and the years of saying “I’ll get to it tomorrow….I’ll focus on me after I get x, y, z done……Oh, I’m only 20, 30, 40……”  Well, the reality is that there’s no time like the present!    Sometimes we pay more attention to our vehicles.  We take them in for the maintenance that we’re supposed to follow for the optimum performance of our vehicle.  We take it in for 3000 mile oil changes, 25000 mile check-ups and so on.  We pay for insurance on our vehicle because in most states it’s the law.  I think you get my point.  We sometimes take better care of our vehicles than our own bodies.   We ‘feed’ our vehicles what it needs to perform at its best and we ‘exercise’ our vehicles most every day. 

So, what about us?  Hectic lives lead to mindless eating at times.  Eating on the run.  Drinking more coffee than we need or even want sometimes and we miss our fitness time because of late hours at work, staying on the computer longer than we really need to or other family obligations like getting the kids to soccer or tending to other family members or a multitude of other excuses…okay, reasons.

Why not consider tending to your own vehicle…your body.  We only have one and we all want it to perform well into the years ahead.  Canyon Ranch (www.canyonranch.com) offers many programs for self care and wellness programs.  Perhaps you’re in pretty good shape and you just need a few days for your tune-up.  Maybe you’ve been burning the midnight oil all year and want/need a week to reconnect with yourself.  Perhaps you’re out of shape, maybe you let your healthy eating habits fade and you want to spend more time getting a better view of your health. Then perhaps the Life Enhancement Program would be a good idea.  You can even get blood tests, meet with a physician, nutritionist, personal trainer, and behavior therapist as well as enjoy some pampering during your stay.   Whatever you decide, it’s a way to assess and reassess your life and create a plan that works for you that you can integrate at home.  Change begins with us.  One step at a time, however we must take that first step. 

There are so many reasons to integrate a healthier lifestyle now, however the biggest reason is you.  Think of it as an extended warranty.  Here’s to your health!

More information on the LPGA Cookbook, Canyon Ranch and the childhood obesity initiative: http://www.shapeup.org/orders/……order1.php