The biggest lesson I’m learning this holiday season — build your traditions in the sand. I had a recent conversation with someone close to me who said she feels that when it comes to the holidays, most of us are just doing what’s expected of us out of an unwavering sense of obligation. And that…
No matter who you are, where you may roam, or how big and beautiful your life becomes, chances are you know a killjoy. A stick in the mud. A wet blanket. A doomsdayer. These people are the friends, families, or coworkers who have become so comfortable with their glass being half empty that they convince…
Today is International Day of Failure— isn’t that the absolute best thing you’ve ever heard? An entire day dedicated to reveling in all the things that didn’t go according to plan. A day, according to NationalToday.com that “encourages people to try new and daring things; motivates and inspires others to succeed through sharing stories of…
I’m not sure who needs to hear this. But, as a lifelong, relentless, deeply-resentful people pleaser, there’s one thing I wish someone had told me a long time ago: You are NOT plain yogurt. I can explain (I think). I spent years reading the room, taking in the social cues, trying to make myself as…
Originally posted on Rachel Adams The Love Offering Blog Series My husband, Scott, and I love taking hikes in the woods behind our house in the White Mountains, which, if you know me at all, is kind of funny. My not-so-secret secret? I’m terrified of nature. I don’t know if I was…
Originally posted on The Uncommon Normal It’s funny how we can breeze through our lives, believing so many beautiful, core truths about ourselves without ever realizing—some things are only true because they’ve never been tested. It’s funny how we can breeze through our lives, believing so many beautiful, core truths about ourselves without ever realizing—some…
“Freedom is the moment we grant ourselves permission to take the long way.” I’ve never been a fan of taking the long way — at least on purpose. I tend to be a shortest route, fastest time, quickest span between two points kind of person. But in July 2021, we sold our home. My husband, kids, dogs,…
“I’m giving myself permission to sit this round out.” It took me way too long to learn that it’s okay to write your own permission slip when it comes to relationships — for a lot of reasons. To start, I’m a first-born, recovering overachiever. I’m also a raging empath, which makes me especially prone to…
“Freedom is recognizing that healing is a journey — not a destination.” I’ve spent much of the last four years navigating through significant and unexpected trauma with several important, foundational relationships in my life. The losses piled up high and at a dizzying pace. When I finally came out of the haze and took emotional inventory…
So we deflected, diverted, and dodged that uncomfortable, nagging pull, steady in our resolve to do what we often did back then when faced with something that disrupted what we wanted — completely ignore it until it did our bidding and went away. It didn’t go away. Here’s a Soft Never I absolutely never saw coming: Selling our family home…