Discovering How To Have Gratitude For Any And All Of Life’s Bounties
Hello my friends! As I was in the Lowes parking lot today, I had no intention of coming out with anything but a few cases of water. You see, I missed our last water delivery, so I’ve been needing to pick more before the next drop off. (I know I know, #firstworldproblems). However, I ended up leaving with an entire flat cart full of natures bounties. Although Lowes isn’t my go-to stop for indulging in new nature-inspired decor or plant-life, it just happened to be the best place I could have ended up today, because it taught me something. Let me tell you what that something is. Discovering how to have gratitude. What Does Gratitude Mean to You? Many moons ago, I relished in materialistic things as I made more and more financially. I didn’t grow up this way, and I don’t really need much to get by. But I did go through a short phase (which I’m sure a lot of us do), where I continued to raise my income and along with it, continued to raise my expenses on useless things. Sure, some of those items are still around, but as my husband and I chatted about this last night, (ironically enough), we both agreed that most of those things we purchased back then are basically nonexistent in our current lives. We’ve learned a lot over the years, not just about one another, but about ourselves as well. And, when we come together in a thought process like that, it’s really cool to be able to embrace the same feelings together to know that I’m not alone in thinking something. I’m not really sure what is so enticing about spending your hard-earned moolah, but hindsight is 20/20, and lemmmeee tell ya. There’s not a whole lot from my past self’s purchases that I would consider purchasing as my 33 year old self. Although I try to practice the whole, “it brought you joy at the time,” phrase…it doesn’t mean that I wouldn’t change things if I could go back. This way of living taught me more about who I am today, so it was beneficial, don’t get me wrong. BUT, I would have definitely indulged way less if I’d have known that the joy those things brought me would soon fade away. What are some instances that you have done the same? Do you have any regrets from past purchases or things you wish you would have done differently? Where I Found My Gratitude These days, I’ve noticed that I enjoy experiences MUCH more than anything else in the world. When I say “experiences,” you may be thinking things like concerts, events, dinners, double dates…but no. My perfect version of a great experience is simply one that I can travel somewhere adventurous with my partner. And, if I can’t go anywhere at the moment due to work obligations, family to-dos, or even just because we want to stay home for a bit, my next favorite experience is to stay home and enjoy my (now 6) furballs. I’ve worked a little bit every day at making it more inviting, more relaxing, and a more comforting space so that when I come home from wherever I was that day, I can simply sink into my comfy clothes and cuddle with my spouse and my pets. Lately, I’ve realized that there’s not enough nature and “life” living inside, (which is probably because we’re so immersed in it when we’re out hiking incredible trails). Because of those adventures, I feel an addiction to get more, but when I can’t go somewhere, I decide to add a little touch of it into my home instead. Adding things like new plant life, a cool fish, a leopard gecko or a bearded dragon (hopefully both of which to come), or even just as simple as grabbing some bags of dirt to breathe in the outside while I’m indoors, or planting tiny seeds into new trays for the spring time. Every year I grow tired of gardening by November, only to then crave doing more of it come February. This is the time that seeds begin to become available again, and my wants to create a beautiful garden once again arise. Today was that day. But not only did I realize that I was excited for planting soon, but just to smell the dirt and feel it with my hands was something that called to me. And, as I was driving home multiple plants in tow, I realized something else…I am so much different than I used to be. Find Gratitude In Yourself Finding yourself is basically the hardest thing you’ll ever do. I speak of this from my own experiences, as I’ve gone through quite a few of those “aha” moments. It’s accepting that change is okay, and that being your complete authentic self is freaking awesome, and when you do so, a whole new world awakens. I found gratitude on that drive home for recognizing the growth in my life. Not only in the difference of purchases, but in the difference of how I perceive things. No more am I led by decisions of others or worry, but finally by decisions of sureness and acceptance. I want you to start feeling the same. Start understanding when it’s okay to pivot and make a change that feels right. Recognize that gratitude can hold many forms and that becoming your best self doesn’t have to look like what you think it does or what the world is telling you it should. Once that feeling flowed through me today, I realized that I am truly happy in my home, with life all around me, and with nature in every corner that I can fit it in. I don’t think that this is embraced enough in the fast-paced, screen-filled world. Even though we’ve made huge strides in the last few decades, I think that millennials especially need to realize that self-love and slowing down is enough. This life
You Say Fatty Liver, I Say Eff That.
So guys. We’ve talked about getting older. We’ve raved about the benefits and boo-hooed about the bummers along the way. We have also discussed how we get tripped up in so many ways when it comes to preventing bad health because every doctor we go to just wants to treat it with Advil or Pepto Bismol or Tylenol instead. (Well not mine, because she’s awesome…get yourself a direct care physician, they cut out the middleman and provide one-on-one care by taking time to understand your full needs instead of shooing you in and out of an office). If you’re in the Pittsburgh area, check them out!) But anyway, I’m seriously tired of waiting around for an answer to my issues. I want to be able to do every single thing I can to start PREVENTING further complications when I’m 40, 50, or 60. So, who’s with me in learning all about our beings and making sure we can kick butt when we’re wrinkly. Leggoooo. Why Looking Healthy on the Outside Doesn’t Always Mean You Feel Good Inside Listen, I’m no expert in the medical field so please don’t go all cray cray on me in the comments. I’m just a regular (kind of) oldish lady feeling the waters of the aging process. It’s annoying to say the least. But we’re not here to say the least, are we? I’ve been in and out of doctor appointments for going on 2 years now regarding a pain in my side that has not gone away. At first I thought it was a pulled muscle, turns out it may actually be that (just a really, really deep one!), but alas, the nagging pain is still present, especially when I participate in the sports I love most. (Strength training, running, and BJJ). Anytime I hit the mats on that side, it feels like I land on a whole ass stress ball. It’s not super severe, but I obviously avoid it as much as possible, (therefore hindering my game, which is UNCOOL). It’s something I thought would have gone away by now, but it persists nonetheless. So I’ve gone through a handful of tests including blood draws, MRIs and ultrasounds. All of which to tell me that I’m *basically* completely normal and that I need not worry about my health since, on the surface, I’m a healthy, active, young woman. AHEM. Let me just bring back the old saying we all know and love. “Don’t judge a book by its cover.” Meaning simply, just because on the outside we look healthy and completely normal, does NOT mean internally we are doing “just fine.” And guess what? This goes for not only your internal organs and such, but also for anxiety, stress, depression, you name it. What you see is not always what you get. Some people just come out of the womb 100% present and confident in themselves and fully authentic from the start. And others, like myself, and maybe you too, come out scrambling trying to realize their own story and put piece by piece together of what brings them the most joy. I’m not saying it’s harder for us to find what makes us happy in life, but a lot of times, it really is that simple. So, don’t overthink it. But when it comes to my health, my internals that make me alive and beating, I want to ensure I’m doing EVERYTHING I can to make full use of all my years and not be bummed out at 50 because I can’t move as well as I used to. I need to feel better than that. I need to keep running, keep playing, keep competing every single day to feel alive and healthy in my current skin. A Safe and Confident Woman? We talked before about fatty livers, and how much more common they are than not. We talked about cysts forming from birth control and how it’s deemed “normal” among women in their 20s/30s in their “child-bearing years.” Like, wtf? No, sir or ma’am, that is not NORMAL. That is not cool, and not okay with me, and I’m sure to my fellow lady friends out there, probably not with you, either. I don’t believe that ingesting a pill for years on end that creates permanent damage to another organ is okay. I thought by taking that, I was being a “safe and confident woman.” And here, all along, I was just adding another problem in my life in the form of never-ending cysts that continue to grow. Whether or not that is the sole reason is unbeknownst to me at this time. However, I do know that it is chalked up to one of the “maybes” of why they are present right now on my liver. And it does not make me super pumped. Not only that, but whatever the issue persisting is, it’s growing. My instructions when I asked what I could do to help reverse the fatty liver or decrease the size of the cyst were simply, “continue doing what you’re doing,” or “there’s nothing you can do for it, we’ll check back in a year.” …To say I had fumes coming out of my ears was an understatement. I Won’t Stand Idly By I know there are likely medical professionals out there that know better, and by all means, I’d be more than happy to have one weigh in to drop some doc knowledge in the comments. But until then, I shall simply provide my two cents about why these statements cause me so much unrest. Why can’t I “do anything?” Why do I have no other options than to “continue doing what I’m doing,” and why the hell do I need to wait a full year to make sure it hasn’t grown more in size?! Like, no thanks, I’d rather stop it where it’s at now, mmkay. I try to stay a realist and understand that the medical field
Dealing With Change: An Uncomfortable Shift In Mindset And A Lesson Learned
I was standing in a beautiful stone built shower this evening with clean, hot water running over me. As I washed my hair with what some may call bougie shampoo, a question popped into my head. Why is it so hard to believe that I may have just changed? What is the real problem with dealing with change, anyway? Why does it feel so weird and why can’t we accept that it is a normal, part of self-growth…part of life. I Forgot I Could Change We backpacked through the backcountry for 3 days this week. We experienced outdoor showers, more than one secret oasis, howling coyotes on the hunt and a random horse pass our tent. We trudged through more than 30 miles of hiking, including up the tallest mountain in the state as well as the wilderness, the desert, the tundra, the forest, and a canyon. We viewed sunrise after sunset at some of the most stunning places we’ve ever been together, including great meals and many memorable moments together. We enjoyed talking, walking and even silence during hiking struggles. So, why is it that today, when the first thing went wrong, that my overthinking brain hit the roof? I wasn’t seeing clearly earlier, but since that refreshing hot shower, I’m a little more understanding. You see, I forgot that I could change. I forgot that it’s okay to adjust what you do as you get older, or how you approach new situations, or even situations that you previously were in. It’s okay to feel the hurt when something doesn’t go your way, we are allowed to have feelings when things just plain suck sometimes. But at the end of the day, we have to realize one thing. That thing is that dealing with change is always going to be present in our world, change is always going to happen whether we’re ready for it or not. The thing that hits hardest however, is how you handle the change that comes your way. What change have you encountered lately? Related: What Are Your Pillars? Mental, Physical, Emotional Health Foundations Dealing With Changing Situations and How I React to Them It’s becoming more and more clear to me when I need to adjust my mindset. I often even realize it now in the middle of an actual conversation, where I’ll start to work on self-talk inside my own thoughts. It doesn’t always help right away, but reflecting on it throughout the day is where I find the most progress. Sometimes I’ll talk to my partner about it. Sometimes I’ll put away my screens and just sit to reflect while working on breath work. Other times, I’ll talk to you. As much as I’m hopeful these posts will enlighten another in the world to their potential and understanding of self, it helps me just as much to be able to use this canvas to paint new perspectives on how to adjust my way of thinking or being to better fit into tomorrow. Focusing on the good in our lives is often so much more difficult than focusing on the negative. If I had to keep a tally for this trip, the positive moments would far outweigh the negative ones. Yet, when someone asks me how it went, you know the first thing that will come to mind might just be this one negative one. Why is that? Why does our brain trick us into thinking that those moments are more important to highlight? Human beings like drama, and drama is memorable. My goal this year is to focus on becoming more aware of how I react in changing situations, such as when I was conflicted earlier about whether or not to get another campsite, or a tiny home. After MUCH back and forth contemplation, I decided I was in love with neither and that I should look some more. (All the while missing out on beautiful landscapes passing me by). Low and behold, I found another airbnb that was perfect. We decided to upgrade for the evening and clicked “book.” Changing Rooms and Changing Attitude When we got to the place, there was clearly issues allover. There was soot everywhere from an apparent fire from the person before us, broken things nearly all the places we checked, and just bad vibes throughout the room. The maintenance was kind enough to relocate us to an even more beautiful room, although I was initially upset since that was my perfect aesthetic carefully chosen place. I complained to my husband about the new one, how it was so different and how the patio view wasn’t as nice. I complained about the slowly draining jet tub that I’d longed for after those miles of hikes. I spent so much time complaining that I forgot to look outside and remind myself how magnificent of a place I was already blessed to be in… In that shower, I realized that I was complaining about things that I was taking for granted. Things that I’d grown accustomed to in our travels and things that I was craving so much after missing them for days, that when the slightest thing went wrong, I’d gotten angry, annoyed, even ignorant to my surroundings. Dealing with change is so difficult sometimes. Especially as an adult. We get so used to doing things one way for so long, or being used to how we did things as kids and teenagers, that when that adult life hits us, we expect to continue on with those feelings. I realized that since I’d loved camping so much as a child, that of course I must love it just as much now. And I do. But my back, my joints, my body, the cold, the up at night to walk 100 feet to a half-working bathroom (if there even was one), the constant reminder I was nearly alone in the wilderness, those were things I was not used to. Those things I needed a break
Understanding The Meaning Of Life & Letting Go Of The Chaos
Hello friends. I’m sure that none of us really know the true meaning to life, but this is my current take on it. Take it, leave it, or provide some context of your own in the comment section. Whatever journey it is that you’re on, let’s travel that road together and realize that it was created uniquely for each one of us, after all. Let’s take a look at what life and should be while coping with chaos. Navigating Your Own Chaos I’ve been dealing with a lot of chaos lately. I keep thinking someday it’ll just stop coming on, but then it creeps back in when I least need it to. This is pretty common in 2024, with anxiety and stress-related diseases on the rise. But, how do we control the chaos so that we can become healthier individuals? How do we cope with the constant angst that’s around us? That’s what I’m trying to figure out. How to prevent it, how to navigate through it, and how to overcome it once and for all. What does chaos look like to you? To me, chaos is clutter. Chaos is the messy room I’ve been meaning to get to for an eternity. Chaos is the dishes piling up or laundry overflowing or litter needing changed. It comes in the form of dust bunnies and streaks on the mirror and no zen in my home. It forms into a huge bubble of chaos instead of calmness and I’ve just simply had enough of it. The hardest thing to cope with though, is how to create a lifestyle of chaos-free balance. How do we get to the point of no return (meaning to me, no chaos longer present). Should we clean more? Should we dedicate even more of this precious life tidying up and ticking off to-dos? I used to be extremely one-sided on this idea. Yes, I thought, I need to always be working on having a clean home, a tidy living area, a zen feeling about my abode. You know that one house you always went to growing up that just exuded good vibes and near to no negativity. It had clean carpets and smelly-good aromas floating about the place. It embodied a clean, comfortable, consistently beautiful living space. I wanted that. I still want that. Related: Reigniting The Feeling: Visiting Your Previous Self & Understanding What’s Changed Reality Checks Can be Messy Many moons ago when I was just a kid, I told myself I didn’t really care much about tidying up. Cleaning was no fun and fun was all I wanted to embark upon. As a teen and young adult, I felt exactly the same. It wasn’t until I started a serious relationship that I really wanted to prove to myself that I was an adult, and therefore could aptly obtain a well-manicured home. I was wrong. All I’ve done since then was create more stress, more anxiety, and alas, more chaos. Imagine that. I don’t know what it is when you become a spouse that you have this feeling of “I need to get my shit together” and therefore need to change the way I am. Not that I was specifically trying to change the way I was, more so how I was attempting to appear that said shit was indeed intact. Let’s not beat around the bush here, nobody’s perfect. We all have our flaws, some more serious than others. One of mine is that I constantly strive for approval, a “good job,” a pat on the back to validate my actions…it’s bull shit and I hate it. There’s nothing wrong with needing validation in life, we need it in several ways each and every day to understand that we are in fact not crazy psycho people with a passion for seeking approval. However, I am here to tell you that doing so for an extended period of time is not healthy. At least for me, it hasn’t proved to be. As of late, I’ve been consistently stressing about my home. The way it was, the way it is, the way it should be. I stress about the mess and the clutter and the cleaning and all my spouse does is listen (while helping, mind you), and remind me that there are other things in life to be more concerned about. Now. I don’t like to admit it, but sometimes he is right… Why do I really care about the few dishes in the sink when the sun is shining and we’re both off early? We could be walking our furballs, embarking on a hike, enjoying our time over an early dinner out. But instead, I sit hesitating every decision wondering if I’m making the right one. And do you know what? By the time I’m done with all of that overthinking, we could have been doing what I loved most in past times. Having fun. Related: Habitual Growth: Looking Back And Moving Forward 10 Quick Ideas for Adulting Fun Fun is something we’ve forgotten about as adults. Fun is something we now forego in lieu of cleaning, cooking, and letting in the chaos. Why don’t we make a pact right here, right now, to start introducing at least one fun thing into our days going forward. You in? Here are a few ideas to get us started: 1. Kayaking – if it’s a beautiful day, check out a local lake to rent a kayak for 2 hours. It’s usually $15 or so and a well spent afternoon alone or with your significant other. 2. Baking – Cold outside? Learn to bake! It’s way more affordable and there’s just something so rewarding about enjoying a freshly baked loaf of bread kneaded by yours truly. 3. Crochet/knit/cross stitch – If you don’t know how to do this, crocheting is the easiest to start up with in my opinion. I used to spend several hours just letting time pass relaxing with some hot chocolate. It’s the most peaceful feeling when
Breaking Through The Pressure Of Society’s Expectations
Sometimes I wonder how I got here. How did my liver decline to the point of needing to reverse it? How am I nearly 33 years old without one single child? Did I do something wrong? Or is this somehow all actually more right than I would like to give it credit for? These are the things I think about as a middle-aged female millennial. These are the overthinking, anxiety-inducing, stress-causing burdens that blur out the everyday tasks that we all blindly walk through…can you relate? Do you feel pressured by society to fit into a certain circle? Do you feel like if you were actually your truest self that it may not sit well with others? Why are we designed this way? And better yet, how do we do better? The Pressures of the Grind and Burnout I stare blankly at my brick walled fireplace wondering why this migraine persists although I am “not stressed.” It’s as if somehow the longer I stare, the more I find answers from within. We talked about this recently on the blog. About how we are all so busy all of the time. About how it’s nearly impossible to find time to “self-care” let alone to let yourself think. Meditation comes in many forms… Today, I fear I’m still facing the burnout. It lasts awhile, you see. Because for some amazing reason the human body is resilient. For some reason, even though every single morning when my alarm goes off for the daily grind, and I promise myself if I’m out earlier than expected that I WILL ABSOLUTELY nap…I don’t. I wait and wait and push and push until the point where the migraine sets in, until the point where all I can do is blankly stare at fireplaces hoping for the next adrenaline rush to kick in. But eventually, those run out…or the Red Bulls do. Why do we do this to ourselves? We’re all guilty of it in some way. Whether you run miles each day or bike in the gym classes or work 3 jobs to make ends meet. It looks like a busy parent at the end of the day low on coffee and high on advil. It’s the teacher frustrated that they can’t do more to share their skills. It looks like the teller at the bank dreading the next workday in this monotonous world they live in. We skip from rock to rock, trudging through life as if we’re on one of those long moving walkways that you see in airports…(and other busy places). It’s a theme, you see. The more busy life becomes, the more we’re unknowingly put on autopilot. Do you really want to live that way? More From HB: Unlearning A Fixed Mindset: Leaving Old Habits Behind The Questions Society Puts On Us My guess is no. No, you do not. At least I’m not going to. That’s one of the reasons for starting this blog. To track, to understand, to learn and evolve and hopefully help a few others along the way. This is a health blog, both mentally and physically. This is a mindfulness blog, a fitness and gardening and foodie blog, a being a freaking human in the world blog. Are you with me? So many times we’re told we have to choose. We have to dedicate all or nothing to one sport, one activity, one hobby, one topic, one job. I call BS. We are beautiful beings made of stardust and water for effs sake. Why in the universe are we limiting ourselves?? What is behind the pressure I feel to be a mom at a certain age? Why do I feel like if I don’t have kids by the time I’m 35 all hell will break loose and my body “won’t bounce back?” Why can’t I just feel comfortable trusting the process that I’m on the path that I need to be so that I can get my mind, body, and spirit in check before bringing another life into this world? If you feel it’s right, it probably is. Go with your gut, it’s your second brain after all. What is it that you’re looking for in life? What is it that you want to do now, 10 years from now, 50 years from now? Think big. Who’s stopping you, really? I don’t know what to title this post yet. It’s still a mystery. That’s why I love writing. It’s basically like life, in tiny little letters on your digital screen. Changing, rearranging, fixing, undoing, adding. There’s always something different that comes to mind to improve upon. So, instead of continuing to redline on the verge of bursting out of your skin, find something you can create. Mentally, physically, spiritually, emotionally. Let it take over and just grow wild. Who cares what they think, no one knows who “they” is anyway. My two cents is to start focusing on you. Stop being busy for the sake of being busy and let the universe guide you into who you need to be in this lifetime. Who do you think you were meant to be, anyway? Finding the Right Outlet I want to be an emotional writer, a good wife, a pet mom furever and someday a mom of more humans, a kind person, a helpful daughter, a fun soul, a big sister. I want to start embracing myself in ways I haven’t yet done. I’ve come a long way on my journey so far, but I’ve got miles and miles to go to the finish line…and there’s a whole lot of doing I have yet to do. If you’re a creative you may understand what I’m saying. I call it the “squeezy head” syndrome. It was derived from my previous dog, he would literally get so overwhelmed at times that he would squeeze his little forehead in such excitement and anxiety. That’s exactly how I feel sometimes. I get this feeling that my head is just full of ideas
What Does Trust the Process Mean in 2024?
Not long ago we talked about goals and ambitions for the year ahead. While those are still in the forefront of my mind, life steps in and takes over, therefore changing the many ways of thinking that we continually experience. Today let’s talk about how to move through these changes and what it takes to trust the process. When I Started to Trust the Process Oddly enough, “trust the process” was something I wrote on my whiteboard several months ago, perhaps even a year. It’s something that’s sat by my bedside to look at each morning and night so that I continue to remember how life likes to play itself out. It’s also something that I looked at differently with each day, understanding that with new times and days that it could mean new things and ideas. Trusting the process can be excruciatingly hard when life becomes uncomfortable, yet it’s a phrase that is known far and wide in the mental health community. What’s a phrase that hits home for you this month? Is it a keyword maybe? Our a full sentence or book excerpt? Related: 5 Steps To Achieving Your 2024 Goals and How I’m Planning Mine Trusting the Process is Different for Everyone When I began to let go a little more and start accepting the fact that life knows what it’s doing, the universe started allowing me more time to understand what its plan was. Trusting the process or letting go even a little is different for everyone but difficult for all of us. What does it look like for you? Changes in our lives can throw curveballs that we never expect either in a good or bad form. I’ve had a few of both this year and it’s only February! I’d like to say that all changes have been positive but unfortunately not all change is for the good. We age, our parents age, our pets age, and our children age. We grow new skin and shed it back off and all the while don’t notice a thing until it’s so quickly passed us by. As I age year over year, I begin to understand more of how life likes to kick you while you’re down…but also how it gives you amazing opportunities to pick yourself back up. How Do You Trust the Process? Do you trust your process? Do you even have a process?? Changes create conflict, but conflict creates resolutions. With each new journey we step into a new part of our soul that is created and molded into exactly what it needs to be. Through headaches, heartaches and anxiety we can come out stronger and more knowledgeable about these new challenges that are upon us. What is your most powerful challenge to conquer? Is it as simple as sleeping more soundly with background noises fluttering throughout your home? Or maybe it’s trudging through another pet with health issues that pulls on your heart strings. Is it a family member that relies on you for just a little too much or a friend that brings you down? The good news is that we can change the changes that are upon us. We can look in the mirror today and know that we are more intelligent, beautiful, and capable than the person we were 24 hours prior. Change is beautiful. It is necessary. And it is crucial to trust your process. Related: To Conquer Your Goals in 2024, You’ll Need To Become Your Own Teacher Thank You For Reading “What Does Trust the Process Mean in 2024?” Thank you for reading today’s post about what it means to trust the process. What has your path to balance looked like? Let me know what resonates with you. If you have a suggestion for what our next post should be let us know. Don’t forget to check out our sister site Rooted Drawers.
Working From Home And How It Has Molded Me
Once in a while we get blessed with an “Aha” moment. Those moments can be big or small, mind-blowing or just a newly discovered thought. Working from home off and on the last few years has been a journey to say the least. It’s pushed me to new levels of being, helped me to understand more issues about myself that I didn’t even know existed, and showed me that sometimes, you just have to fail a bunch to understand that you are staying true to your individual course. My Journey To Today Nearly 11 years ago I met my husband. I was waiting tables on the late shift when the man of my dreams walked in and sent chills and butterflies throughout me all at once. It was a feeling I never knew before, and if you’ve had them, you totally understand. At that point, I had no goals, no real ambitions, and no feelings on how I would be spending my next years let alone my next days. I was living for the moment, enjoying the spontaneous, and not caring much at all about my health, let alone my life ahead. This month at Habitual Balance, we’re looking back. After looking back a lot at this year in the last few posts, I’d like to go way back and travel with you on my journey to becoming a full-time reseller and blogger writing to you today snuggled on my couch with my two poofballs curled up next to me. Life has changed a lot since then, but alas, so have I. Related: How Self Reflection Helps You Grow as a Person A Little Bit About Me When I say that I’m not an emotional person, I have to explain it a little more. Death doesn’t phase me much anymore, and sadness comes in many different forms. However, when I sit back and think about where I was in my life during our initial meet, and where I am now, tears pool in my eyes…I should probably invest in some teeny tiny umbrellas. They’re not tears of sadness, but not all of happiness either. They’re more of a disbelief that life has led me to this point in such a weird and winding way, and I’m just overwhelmingly grateful for that. Once I met my partner in this life, I realized a few things. I’d need to focus more on my well-being, understand who he was, and learn how to become better together as the years flew by. Working from home was never on my to-do list, I didn’t even know at that point that it was a thing, let alone going to be what I did primarily in my future years, and mainly because of the fact that I wanted to do all I could to find something that would allow me to continue providing as a part of my family during and after my childbearing years. I longed to stay home with my pets, and in the future, our kids. So, after a bunch trial and error, I finally figured out something that I could make work. It felt incredibly refreshing. Reselling And Blogging – Working From Home I grew up selling things. Anything and everything that I could get my tiny entrepreneurial hands on. I wanted to make ends meet before I knew what it meant. Give me a plastic cash register and I’ll give you my business plan. Once sailing through 20-30 dead end jobs, it struck me that one thing remained obvious throughout them all. I was bored. I’d start every job, every career, (including my career as a 2x college dropout), elated and prepared af. Then, a few weeks would turn into months, and before the years end I’d always make a run for the next opportunity ahead of me. This got old after awhile, causing me to grow more bored, and in turn, burnout from misunderstanding what was staring me in the face. I would be respectful to my employers, but would grow irritable on the way home knowing that I could offer so much more than I was. The “Aha” moments started to come one after another, far spread throughout years but finally after several ideas failed, one ultimately stuck. Reselling became my thing, and blogging was where I grew fond of writing once again, just as I did as a child. Once I had dealt with family members passing, a sick pup and heartbreak of many forms, there was one consistent thing that remained at the top of my thoughts each one of those nights as I lay awake staring at the ceiling. “Thank God I work from home.” Related: Path To Productivity: My Struggle With Planning And The Perfect Hot Cocoa Recipe Working From Home Benefits If I never had the opportunity of doing so, with the help of my husband working alongside me to build my dreams, I may not have gotten to be with my loved ones in their last days, or take care of my dog when he needed me most. I may not have been able to grind all day and all night on my business, so that my dreams that are still unfolding could ultimately be fulfilled. I also may not have began to understand mental health and how important it is to us all. How our physical and mental strength play off of one another, and I may not have had time to read about, listen to, and learn of the ways that I can improve all of these things before becoming ready to welcome another life into the world. Working from home has many ups and downs, although many think there are solely ups. I’m here to confirm that I’ve been through a lot of both, and although there are days where I still get frustrated at my employer (lol), I bring myself back to reality by reminding myself that through this all remains the fact that I get to work for myself. What
Fall Into New Crops For Your Garden
Hey ladies and gents! If you’re wondering how to implement more in-season veggies into your life, I’d like to give you a hand! As we move into Fall and out of the Summer heat here in the Northeast, fewer things become available to harvest. There is still a lot of options for you though! Let’s check some of them out, shall we? What Are Cole Crops Again? We talked a little bit about “cole crops” in the last post, but I’ll provide a quick refresher if you missed it! Cole crops are perfect to plant when the Summer growing season is winding down and the cool, crisp air is picking up. They provide a great option to keep your gardening hands busy and to embrace some serious sweater weather! Cole crop are those which are in the Cruciferous family, such as broccoli, cabbage, cauliflower, collards, brussel sprouts, kolhrabi, and kale. When I first started gardening several years ago, I didn’t like most of these. I “icked” at them as a teen and a child, and definitely didn’t feel like going anywhere near them as an adult. But then as I found out how fun they were to grow, (especially during my favorite time of year!), and how little work they required unlike other crops, I began to fall in love with tending to them and with finding new recipes to make them delicious. Even though I’ve gone through a ton of recipes over the years however with adjusting tastes and trying new cooking methods with these veggies, one thing has stuck true. They’re best, in my opinion, with plain old extra virgin olive oil and salt and pepper, baked in the oven. Try it sometime! It’s super easy to throw them in a baking dish, toss some oil on them and pop them in. Less is more, people! Related: How Gardening Is Good For Your Soul What Garden Zone Do You Fall In? Of course your location will play a big part in knowing when is best to plant these crops. Check out which Zone you’re in to determine a best date! This website will let you simply plug in your zip code and find out within seconds! Hooray for the internet! Once you find out which Zone you’re in, you can then determine which seeds or seedlings, or starter plants to invest in. I recommend going to local farmer markets to find some quality ones or if you’d like to stay home and enjoy your newest crocheted sweater indoors, then check out this top list of 2023 online to have them shipped to your door! After you have what you need from shopping online or locally, you can dig in. Literally! You can head outdoors with your gardening tools and your new plants or seeds and get ready. From our experience, we’ve had the best luck with rototilling in the Fall again, before planting our new cold season crops. This allows the ground to be broken up a little more after pulling all of the old crops out, and also gets anything leftover mixed into the soil again. (Here’s where we find our free tomatoes the year after! From mixing up the garden, many seeds that dropped along the way will find their way back upwards next season. Replant those suckers! Save their little plant lives and save some moolah at the same time! Related: Working Through Self Expectations & Limitations How to Plant and Grow Garlic In-Season Another popular crop to plant in the Fall, and particularly one of my favorites, happens to be garlic from the Allium family. Garlic is one of the simplest crops to grow as a “set it and forget it” type plant. This is something we’ll be working on quite soon since our best time is to plant in the September/October time frame! If you have garlic bulbs leftover from the year before, simply break those bulbs into cloves. Someone long ago taught me that using the bottom of the palm of your hand on the head of garlic can crush it just enough to make the cloves come off way easier. I still use that trick and highly recommend it! Keep the papery covering on the garlic cloves and then follow these instructions! Make sure your cloves are planted approximately 3-4″ deep. Always ensure that the pointy end is facing upwards! You’ll want to water just enough to let the soil settle around the cloves, then simply cover them up with 4-6″ of leftover Fall leaves or straw from your Halloween haybales! There are lots of ways people go about caring for and harvesting garlic, but we like to keep it simple and usually come out on top with a pretty hefty harvest. After planting, we just wait. When the garlic is ready, it’ll tell you! Side Note! Snip of the heads when they get curly, use these as garlic as well for an extra helping! After it’s wilted and died down, feel free to bust out your shovel again to dig those new beautiful bulbs! Related: Introducing Habitual Balance Implement More In-Season Veggies This Fall Between pulling old crops, rototilling, and planting new ones again, we know we’ll have a busy next few weeks! How do you plan your Fall planting? Do you prefer to end after Summer and look forward to next year? Or do you prefer to maximize your growing season with cole crops?! Let us hear about your gardening journey in the comments below! Happy planting! Thank you for reading “Fall Into New Crops For Your Garden – Implement More In-Season Veggies”! Thank you for reading today’s post about how to implement more in-season veggies! Let me know what resonates with you or if you have a suggestions for our next post by commenting below. Don’t forget to check out our sister site Rooted Drawers.
How Gardening Is Good For Your Soul
Hello friends of the online realm! Today we’re starting out a new month in Fall and a new topic for the next few weeks! October will be all about gardening. How we got started, what we do to maintain, resources that we hold near and dear, and finally anything that you may (or may not!) need to get started! Which leaves us today to talk all about how we first got into gardening in the first place, and how far we’ve come thus far. Yay for growth! The Gardening Girl Ten years ago (or so), I met my husband. That’s when I really started taking this whole “gardening” concept seriously. Before that though, I grew up gardening and didn’t even realize it. Until of course I recently reflected on it all while writing this post for you! Back in the day, I was a hardcore bug-smooshing, garden growing teeny bopper. Today, I’m still a hardcore garden growing lady, with much less of the bug-smooshing, since any harm to mother nature now pulls those good ol’ heart strings. When I was little, I used to garden quite frequently with both of my grandfathers. They had pretty decent sized gardens, and I got to be a big *little* part of it. I picked tomatoes, weeded around them, watered what I could, and watched and learned whatever it was that my tiny brain could absorb. Funny isn’t it? How much we learn as young children that we don’t even coherently remember. We take it all in, learn each new intricacy, but never fully embrace it until one day as a thirty-something year old it hits us just how exactly it is best to tie those darned old tomatoes up properly. An “Aha” moment, if you will. Weird. Being human, is weird. Related: Developing Routines & What is Sleep Hygiene Down on the Farm In the last decade though, I’ve actually had the honor of working on a farm nearby my home. It was such a beautiful time in my life. Right before my last big job, but right after the first “green light” of my working career. I had just quit a different day job (none of them ever felt quite right), and had been dreaming of being outdoors more often and in the bright sunshine and in the not so bright office light much less. I welcomed new feelings of freedom once I stepped out onto the gravel into dirt driveways that I would drive the old trucks on and felt right back at home when getting my hands in the good smelling fresh soil. At first, it was blissful. I could do this every day, all day, I thought. But then it sank in after the second season that I wasn’t cut out to do this as a full-time job. I hated the cold, hated the hot, and needed that Goldilocks kind of “just right” feeling. So, yet another job bit the dust. Starting Gardening at Home Once I had my home that we still reside in today, it was clear to me that gardening was going to be a big part of it. I loved it and still do. We rototill when necessary, put black plastic down instead of weed til the cows come home, and have learned oodles of tips and tricks that we will dive more into as the month goes on! Before working on the farm however, I never knew that “cole crops” were a thing. Did you?! Here’s a tidbit on its meaning if you’re still unsure: “Broccoli, cabbage, and cauliflower are known as cole crops. Several other vegetables belong to this group, including Brussels sprouts, Chinese cabbage, and kohlrabi, but these are considered minor vegetables. Cole crops are cool season vegetables that grow best at temperatures between 60 F and 68F.” This is what we’ll be diving into soon enough during the month of October, since planting these bad boys will soon be in season for us here in western PA. They’re the coolest. See what I did there…They give you a second chance of sorts to continue eating in season, even during the Fall and Winter months of the year when the frost hits and the snow flies! What a wonderful opportunity! The best part about it all (in my opinion) is that there is SIGNIFICANTLY less bugs, heat, and little annoyances of such. I’m more comfortable in a sweatshirt and muck boots, not sweating buckets while breaking my back! Speaking of which, instead of bending over, I highly recommend investing in a nice kneeling mat. Don’t bother with knee pads. Those are MUCH more uncomfortable than you’d think after needing to bend up and down a zillion times in jeans. Related: Why I Chose Courage & It’s Endless Reservations What are Cole Crops? Do you know anything about cole crops? How has your summer been? Did you harvest a lot or just a little? This year we did great in the start of the season, but as life happened we began to slack off some. Our lettuce is now seeding along with most of our herbs, and the kale has basically taken over whatever it could by now. Our sunflowers are drooping and the broccoli looks more like broccolini these days. The good news is is that we’re coming to the change of season. Soon, it’ll be time to harvest the seeds and pull out the old plants to make space for new crops. The garden is ever-changing once you get the hang of it, kind of like life itself. We’re always going to go through changes and seasons in our lives, learning each day what is best to hold on to and what can be thrown to the outside of the fence. As we grow, we learn which battles are worth fighting and which tomato plants should just be pulled out before they cause a disease to travel to the rest of the plants. Keep working toward your goals and add just
Looking Internally – Rediscovering Your Why & Why It’s So Important To Growth
Greetings fellow humans! Today I’m coming at you from a quaint little spot in the heart of town. It’s quiet, it’s peaceful, it’s the old timey gives you good vibes feeling kind of place. Stumbling upon this tiny gem of a restaurant got me thinking, a lot more than what I thought I actually went in there for. Let me tell you about it…and how it’s affected my mindset behind why I do what I do, and the importance of rediscovering your why too! Related: Introducing Habitual Balance Why I Needed to Change My Mindset Today I had a doctors appointment. Just a checkup but it was frustrating nonetheless. I had to take off work, (yes, I still call it that even though I work for myself!), and drive way out of my way to get to the cold and white box of a doctors office instead of my own comfy couch with the pups. Irritated most of the way there, I decided to try and change my mindset on the way back. After all, I’d be making another stop to thrift and that was bringing some feel good vibes in itself! Side Note: If you don’t already know, we have a sister site that talks all about thrifting and how to break out into the reselling biz! Check out Rooted Drawers! On the way home though, I decided to stop and grab a bite to eat. I don’t mind eating alone. It’s become obvious to me though that over the years of meeting others, not a lot of people enjoy doing so. To me, it’s rewarding in so many ways. It gives you a chance to actually develop a relationship with yourself, and learn how to become more independent, outgoing, and attentive. I googled the restaurants on the way home that I’d pass, and discovered a Greek restaurant along the way. Now, I was actually craving some Pizza Hut, but as I’ve been trying to do better this year with my eating habits as I get older, I thought it may be best to opt for something a bit more Mediterranean. So, off I went. Related: Looking for a new side hustle? Finding Clarity in a Dim Room The parking was a hassle in itself. Everything was jam packed on the street, there was construction and detours due to an event happening that night in the city. The parking garage was my only hope. Great, I thought. Those always give me anxiety. I thought about saying never mind and going somewhere right off the road instead that would have been easier to get to. But I found a spot and backed in, (back in my friends! best to be prepared to pull out in case of emergency!) Then I found the elevator, but decided on the stairs instead. Why not get a little cardio in, eh? Little things add up, so implement them when you can! Using GPS again to find my restaurant, I walked towards the little dots on the map in that direction. I went under more construction, only to miss the place I was seeking out! I backed up, and realized it was tucked inside just a bit. The door was open and the sign said so too, so in I went! It was quiet, empty, and dim. The lights were turned down like the old Italian restaurant I worked at as a teen. It was homey, with black and white pictures all over the wall, Greek symbolism everywhere and vintage mirrors between each set of tables. The smell was wonderful, and the setting was just right. The perfect setting for rediscovering your why accidentally. I walked up to the counter and rang the bell, once…twice…three times. I was about to walk out when a man came around the corner. So, I inquired about some lunch and grabbed a menu. Just then, an older man walked out to greet me, making a great sales pitch about everything that was delicious in his restaurant. After choosing 3 more things that I originally wanted from the menu online, he sat me down at a table nearby. It was so cool. What a great experience I thought to myself. Customer service has really gone by the wayside these days, and here I was, getting top notch care in a little tiny restaurant that I never knew existed. It was so refreshing. Related: Practicing Gratitude in 2023 Rediscovering Your Why Through Outside Experiences The old man brought out his homemade red wine that he talked me into on his great grandmothers copper serving tray. It was 250 years old. TWO HUNDRED AND FIFTY. Then he brought my meal and set it down as well. He asked if I needed anything else then left me to be for the most part. It was great. Just enough, I thought. Being a waitress for most of my life, I really value a good customer service experience when dining out, especially alone. Since I now am one of those people that bring a laptop everywhere, I often get quick service because I’m “just another person with a laptop.” The wine was impeccable. So great in fact that I bought a bottle for my husband and I to share. The food was delicious, and made me realize that yes, I do in fact love hummus. The chocolate cake was just as good, with whipped cream and chocolate sauce topping it off. My quick stop for lunch turned into an experience. This is what moves me. What sparks the passion behind working for myself, behind writing for others, and behind understanding more of my why. Getting Lost in the Shuffle For a while now, I feel like I’ve started to lose that. I kept reaching for the stars and following the trends, finding the new niches and hopping on the bandwagon. And then I kept stumbling. Why in the world was this happening? How was it so difficult to continue on this path? Rediscovering your