I am writing on day eight of being in isolation with Covid. As I look out my window there is fresh snow on the ground and a crisp chill in the air, it’s the end of May. Many emotions arise inside me wondering when the official start of spring will begin. Yet, as a collective motto of the state right now, I am grateful for the moisture.

My life from that moment has become one of a continuous honoring of myself. Discovering and exploring the darkness so that I can find the light. I’ve spent the past six years healing and always reminding myself, that I am not alone. My twenties were challenging, beautiful, expansive, and full of the greatest lessons. Many of those lessons I’ll share below.

A welcome to May unlike any other. Snow greeted us just yesterday. It feels as if a never ending winter here. My heart aches for the sunshine, yet is brought to ease by more moisture soaking the earth before warm days and deep fears of forest fires arrive. As the winter lingers, and my twenties too, I am excited. My thirties are approaching in just a few short days. I am standing with my arms wide open, ready to welcome this new chapter of my life.

I’ve noticed during this past week, that I have more on my plate. We are preparing for guests in our home, travels in the near future, turning 30 next month, and big shifts to Simply Bare,  I’ve been picking up my phone more. Instead of focusing that energy on completing the task, I am numbing. I am avoiding that to-do list, thinking unconsciously if I don’t do it, it might not stress me out. Yet in reality, by not facing it I am becoming more stressed. 

Spring isn’t sure if it wants to fully arrive here in the mountains. One day it is sunny and warm, the next, 30 degrees cooler and snowing. It isn’t sure what it wants to be quite yet. I know what I want to be, bathing in the warmth. I am practicing some rituals to honor the spring in hopes of summoning the warmth to arrive and stick around for good, well at least until next season. I hope you enjoy these rituals and find warmth and light in them. 

One day, I knew in my bones that I needed to start getting in the cold. It was January of 2022 and I was experiencing terrible period pain, chest pains, stress, anxiety, and chronic fatigue and knew my body was consumed by inflammation. I told Kyle, “we really need to get a cold plunge, I know it is going to help us.” Within two weeks we headed out and got ourselves a metal horse trough to use as a cold plunge.

I cannot believe I am typing this… I am feeling nervous about being out of limbo. In this place of the unknown, I’ve found peace, joy, and appreciation for feeling present. Yet it’s all becoming very real that we are leaving this space. As we head into Kyle’s appointment tomorrow, and then another on April 4th, These will lead us into this next phase.

Spring arrived on Sunday with the spring equinox, a day of equal sunlight to moonlight. Now we begin to thaw our wintered selves out, and reignite the fire within ourselves. This time is a gift to relish in the fluctuating weather; an uncertain time in nature. When winter still feels to be with us, but signs of spring are beginning to greet us. It’s a time to savor the ups and downs that transition brings, reminding us that growth is not linear.

In January of 2021, Kyle called me while I was sitting with the women inside Root Home. He knew I was sitting for tea ceremony and I knew something wasn’t right. I got up, took the call, and in a matter of moments my stomach sank, and my life changed forever. Kyle’s cancer had returned.

This month brings the welcoming of spring with the equinox on March 20th. As we begin to move out of our wintering and into our blossoming it is important to honor this time of great transition. I love to use this time to declutter and nourish on a physical, mental and emotional level. I invite you to join me in the practices I will be doing, to do just that, in the coming weeks.

Sunny, warm days are upon us here in the mountains. My heart is expanding and my body is relaxing from the warmth. February was a challenging month, it brought a lot of uncertainty, health challenges and many cold days. This March, I am focusing on giving myself more time.

It is a constant place of the unknown. We truly have no control over the outcome. We, humans, want control… control that isn’t actually available to us. I’ve sat in that place this past year, learning how I can be HERE, in the present moment, right now.

I believe every day should be a day of love. Our life is short and choosing to not fill every day with love seems odd to me. I want to share a self-love retreat with you, to help you start loving yourself today and every day. I suggest following this as an at home retreat, and if that's not available, break into smaller rituals that fit you and your time. 

Slowing down allows us to find a deeper connection to everything around us. Instead of a continuous consumption mindset that can easily disregard how things came to take form in our lives. This slowing down invites us to have a connection to the process of creation and bringing anything (physical or non-physical) into our lives. 

My evening routine has changed and evolved so much over the years. I am continuously trying new things and experimenting with what truly cultivates a great evening and night’s sleep for me. Yet these five practices always seem to be the ones I return to. These rituals are simple but they ground, nourish, and recharge me.

Meeting tea was the most pivotal experience of my life thus far. My life changed and started to form into the life I had dreamed of.  She has been the greatest teacher and my new way of life. She has forced me out of my comfort zone and brought me back to my true nature.

We have billions of neurotransmitters in our bodies they control our brain function, heartbeat, how we learn, and our psyche (joy, anxiety, pleasure, and fear for example). Take away, breathing through your nose day or night is going to positively impact your overall wellbeing. So start mouth taping for sleep today!

As the weather begins to move from those warm summer days to cold moody ones this season is the time to add warming foods into your diet. Warming foods help warm you from the inside out which helps ground, nourish and strengthen your immune system. Enjoy this round-up of my favorite vegan autumn recipes.