Latest Blogs

Little by little, day by day, what is meant for you will find it's way... 
February – Curiosity
Week 5: One day at a time
Any change in our lives happens one day at a time. My toughest lesson of one day at a time arrived with grief. When I lost my son Ryan, I was young, naïve, and completely crushed by grief. Unable to wrangle how this could happen and finding little information on how...

Never break a promise to yourself 
Week 4: Keeping promises
Any new habit is a change in your lifestyle. While a goal can lead us in a new direction. It is not a destination to reach but instead, the transformation of who you want to become. When creating a new habit, look for a habit loop, trigger or anchor that provides accountability. Don’t leave forbidden foods on the counter, or in...

You're stronger than you know  
Week 3: Making a promise to myself
Why don't we follow through for ourselves? If I promise a friend that I will be there, I show up, yet often with my own goals I let myself down, as if a promise to myself does not hold as much meaning? Over time this pattern of not following through makes us skeptics of our own ability prompting us to give up before we begin.
As...

Redesign your life so that the actions that matter most are also the actions that are easiest to do
Week 2: The power of habits (good and bad) 
From drinking more water or drinking less alcohol, the use of habits can transform our lives. Eliminating bad habits like quitting smoking or starting a good habit like meditation, can help us thrive in positive ways. Often when I want to create...

 We spend January 1st walking through our lives, room-by-room, drawing up a list of work to be done, cracks to be patched. Maybe this year, to balance the list, we ought to walk through the rooms of our lives… not looking for flaws, but for potential.
Resolve to... 
Week 1:  Lessons in change
One of the biggest, most difficult and life changing habits that transformed my life was quitting smoking....

Scattering Kindness in Memory of Ryan
"It's not what you gather, but instead what you scatter that tells what kind of life you lived"
Over the last couple years it has become more difficult to see the good. With so much negative information, so much divide, I barely turn on the news. Family and friends do not trust that there are many kind people left.  But still, I remain steady in my quest...

Losing Ryan
When I write about the loss of Ryan, I share stories for both myself and to offer a glimpse inside the life of the bereaved. I will never know Ryan beyond the age of 5, yet today I will honor his 34th birthday with acts of kindness. 
Grief does not magically disappear with the passage of time. The loss of our son carries a constant vacancy we are left to imagine. I was only twenty-eight...

Foreboding joy 
Ever since the death of my son, whenever I feel joy, it is quickly followed by fear. The unease spirals into worry that nudges my thoughts towards the darkness lurking around the corner. Years later I learned the term foreboding joy, described by Brene Brown, it is a dress rehearsal for tragedy; preparing for the worst even when things are at their best. And I know exactly when...

A beautiful day begins with a beautiful mindset 
A mindful list to stay present throughout the day: 
Take a breath - I always find that paying attention to my breathing helps with my awareness. It is such a simple thing. To step outdoors and take a deep breath, and notice the scents of the season. That is why breath work is so important in activities like yoga. It helps you get in tune with your...

 
Week 2:
What we pay attention to grows
Drenched in sorrow while the storms of grief tug at my heart. Even after twenty-five years, losing my five-year old son, Ryan, still pulls me under. Sometimes a moment of joy can trigger a tsunami of tears. Melancholy sneaks in, and I step outdoors to a place of quiet where the pungent musk of the earth encourages grace in this squall of sorrow. Grasping...