For the last few weeks, I’ve been talking about self-love and self-worth, and of course, you’ve heard me talk before about self-discovery, finding Purely You, and continuing to grow and evolve. This is my bread and butter, one could say. Without people who continue to want to be better versions of themselves, I’d be out of a job. 

Despite all of that, there is one thing I haven’t really talked about before, that I think is important for you to understand. 

Self-Acceptance does not hinder self-growth. 

Sometimes on this self-growth journey, we begin to judge ourselves for where we are at now. Or get impatient with where we want to be. This is one of those times, we have to take a lesson from our toddlers. 

At that age, your little one is not shy about their feelings, the good, the bad, and the ugly. They do not care what people think of them. And they are not in any hurry to be something other than exactly who...

Did you ever watch the show Suits? It was a lawyer show running from 2011 to 2019. One of the lead characters, Harvey Spector, often had some great advice. He was a tough-love kind of man, and maybe even a little selfish once in a while, but man did he share some wisdom. I ran across a quote from him the other day and thought about you. 

As a kind-hearted human, you are so quick to share your love with others. To pour your energy into someone else in their hour of need, or just to put a smile on their face. 

You work so hard to put good into the world. 

You would move Heaven and Earth to ease the pain of someone you love or prevent that heartache altogether. 

You sacrifice your time and energy to lend a helping hand. 

And you do all of this without thinking twice. Because, why wouldn’t you? 

If someone has ever asked you why you do the things you do or told you you were crazy for putting in that much...

Have you ever heard it said that kids grow better with love? Research has shown us that our children’s brains actually grow bigger when they are loved. There’s also research stating children grow up to be happier, more resilient adults if they are shown love in their childhood. How cool is that? Something as simple as asking about their day, hugging them before they leave for school and after they come home, and taking an interest in the things they are interested in, helps them become less anxious and more resilient. I do firmly believe in doing our best to raise our babies in such a way that they don’t need to heal from their childhood when they’re grown, but that is not why I bring this up with you today. 

We talk about love and growth because you never really stop growing. Just like we talked about in this post for as long as you are here on Earth, you are growing and evolving. I pray that the person you are today is not the same person...

Transition is hard! Change is hard. It’s not impossible, but it is hard. My family just moved to a new home about 5 miles out of town. As I’m coming back to my roots and making adjustments to how I’ve been living for the last 10+ years (the grocery store is no longer 5 blocks away, turns out I had become a bit accustomed to that), I’m having to work hard to stay grounded and continue my practices of self-care.  It’s been beautiful, but it is a challenge. Deciding where to keep the plates, which drawer the silverware should go in, and deciding where the linen cupboard should be are just some of the struggles that come with moving into a new place. It’s a transition, and the transition is never easy, but it is so worth it. Sitting on my back porch with my dog, the cats that came with the place, and watching the sunrise as I write this make it oh so worth the challenges.

With this transition in my personal life, also comes a transition in...

My husband and I have this great arrangement in our marriage. If I’m working at the hospital, he cooks supper, if I’m not, I cook. I had mentioned this at work one day and one of the ladies told me how lucky I was that he would do that. For a while, I thought she was right, I am pretty lucky, not every husband would cook for his family while his wife worked 12+ hour days. And then I thought… wait a second. Although I have a great husband who is loving a supportive, I’m not "lucky" that he cooks supper 3 times a week. It’s not about luck as much as it is the things we value. We have an understanding of each other’s time and energy… Don’t go all thinking that my husband is more evolved than any other man because truthfully he is not. He calls all my work woo-woo and has never once read a personal development book in his life. However, from day one in our relationship, I knew that my time, my energy, and my financial contribution...

I don’t know about you but as a child, I thought that my family knew what was best all the time. What we did and believed was elite and any other opinion was “wrong.” I’m talking about things like Chevy trucks, John Deere Tractors, and Pepsi. I remember the first time I saw my older sister drink a Dr. Pepper and my 8-year-old sassy self told her that in our family we drank Pepsi so she needed to make a different choice… and yes that is read with ALL THE SASS. My sister was aware of something that I didn’t know at that time. She had lived enough life to learn that it is okay to choose something different than those before us. 

As you grow and evolve, you may find that you are ready to make some choices that look different than those of the people around you. Maybe even different from the choices you’ve made in the past. I’m here to tell you, THAT IS OKAY. The apple may not fall far from the tree, but it is still an...

It has been said that you become the average of the people you surround yourself with. That you should always try to be around people who are the type of people you want to be. There is conflicting research to this point,  but I like the sentiment. The idea that we are influenced by what and who we are exposed to makes perfect sense to me. We’ve talked about how the media you consume changes your vibration. We’ve talked about how some people just suck the life out of you. So it would make sense that the people you spend your time around will affect how you show up in the world. 

Take a quick inventory of your friends. Who in your life pushes you to do better? Who teaches you things? Who challenges your ideas or holds you accountable for your actions? Anyone? Maybe you’re the person who holds others accountable in your life and challenges them to be better and do better. If that is a one-sided street, then you are likely not reaching your full...

Self-care, self-love, me-time. These phrases are ones we hear often. But do you have any idea what that even means? Do you hear yourself saying, “must be nice” when someone talks about taking some time for themselves? We’ve all been there. Some days it feels like there just isn’t any time for you. Some days it feels too expensive, wasteful, or even selfish. But every day, it is necessary.  

As a society, we always find the money, the time, the x,y,z to make things happen that we really want and need. The most heartbreaking example of this is when a loved one is ill. In your day-to-day life, you don’t have the time or money to go visit. But when that person becomes ill, you make the time. You find the money. You find the way and get there. Immediately, this becomes a priority, and we always figure out the way for our priorities. I challenge you to make your own health and well-being a priority this month. Sure, life is crazy and busy...