Summer is the perfect time for fresh starts. Everything around us is spilling over in full life, and it’s the time my heart is most receptive to growth. I’m not striving to keep up. I’m not hustling to get to the finish line. My reset takes place during the slow, quiet exhale of summer. I feel it in the warm hugs of sunshine and in the cool rumbles of afternoon thunderstorms. It’s a soothing, open awareness of all that’s alive and new around me and in me. I think of summer as my seeding season. The time that aligns with my soul’s most natural active growth. I’m sure it stems from motherhood and intentionally protecting the summer for both myself and my kiddos to completely decompress. To hang loose and do whatever felt right at the time, We woke when the sun was higher on the horizon Continue Reading
Find Yourself by Losing Time
Summer in our home has always meant losing track of time. We stay up later and let our body wake us instead of our alarm clocks. Our meal schedule is relaxed, and we eat when we're hungry. Leftovers seem to taste fresher and the never-ending supply of lemonade and ice tea carries us through the lazy afternoon hours. We do everything we can to NOT follow a normal schedule because our souls need to do more than breathe - they need to exhale. Slow and easy. It's been this way for more than 20 summers, and it's one way we refresh and reconnect with ourselves...by intentionally losing time. Summer is too short to not learn the value of losing time. And the benefits are too great to throw away. ~sharper thinking and out-of-the-box clarity ~increased creativity ~more Continue Reading
Refresh with the Small Things
This week, I'm committing to refreshing my life with the small things. I've tucked away my To-Do list and pulled out my "creative-small-things" list. When I take inventory of my typical day, I realize there is very little time for the small creative pleasures. And I've had a few things on my list for quite some time. They aren't time consumers and they aren't costly. But the happiness and fulfillment they provide is a big payoff! My goal this week is to spend some intentional time being creative in small ways because creativity helps us grow and feel alive. It inspires and enriches our sense of well-being, and it sprinkles hope and joy to the deepest parts of our soul. Perhaps you have some creative projects sitting in your someday pile, and summer is a great time to dust Continue Reading