A new year has arrived!
Along with a new year often comes chatter of big goals, the desire for significant change, and resolutions. We start our year with high levels of motivation and confidence. As soon as things don’t happen as fast as we want or life happens and throw our plans and goals for a loop, it is easy to fall off track and throw in the towel.
What if we started small?
What if we didn’t aim for big change all at once?
What if we made several small changes over time?
What if this included introducing taking NEW habits rather than jumping right to eliminating the old?
Something I learned over 2022 was the impact that consistent, small changes can have over time! Small changes, small goals, or small habits over the course of the year can lead to big change over time. Save yourself the burnout, shame, and pressure to meet big goals so quickly. Appreciate the small milestones and introduction of new, healthy habits that will compound over time and lead to sustainable and consistent transformation!
The first step in starting your journey for the year, is to decide on the focus. From there you can break down small habits that you can address monthly. I say, pick one habit a month. The more you practice it, the more it will become like second nature to you. Adding another habit to the mix after 30 days won’t seem so daunting because you won’t be thinking twice about the habit you introduced the month prior.
If you are struggling to brainstorm 12 habits for the year, start with 6. You can always address the final six habits as you experience change with the first six.
Here is a list of 12 habits to assist you in creating your personal list of 12.
- Drink ___ water every day.
- Put my cell phone down 30 minutes before bed. Do not pick my cell phone up for 30 minutes after I wake up.
- 20 minutes of movement every day.
- Take a multi-vitamin & probiotic daily.
- Go to bed a certain time every night.
- Journal before bed or when you wake up.
- Declutter a space in your home every week.
- Eat dinner at home _ nights a week.
- Take lunch to work every day.
- Do 10-15 minutes of stretching/yoga before bed.
- Make a healthy product swap.
Ideas for kids:
- Eat a fruit/vegetable every day.
- Practice daily gratitude.
- Make bed.
- Help with a task around the house daily.
- Read 20-30 minutes daily.
- Say something kind to sibling or parent daily.
- Go to bed by a certain time.
- Play with or walk the dog daily.
- Limit screen time to _____ each day.
- Family walks.
- Ask others about their day daily.
- Journal at the end of the day.
Remember, these are just ideas to get your wheels turning! You know yourself and the outcomes you desire. Again, all 12 may not come to you now. Be sure to check in with yourself from time to time! Grab yourself a habit tracker to help yourself stay accountable.
You’ve got this! Happy New Year!
We have all heard of a gratitude journal. If you are like me, you have started one and loved it but then somehow life creeps up on you and the journal falls to the wayside. Somehow that habit that was so good for our mindset and that we enjoyed so much has fallen through the cracks and we hesitate to jump back in.
The truth is, a journal is not necessary to sit in gratitude. I am not saying that gratitude journals aren't great, because they are. However, I want this to be a simple practice that my kids can understand and implement on their own for a healthy mindset. I want something that can encourage positive conversation and reflection over meals or while riding in the car.
To get in the habit of being mindful and practicing gratitude simply, I created a simple print out that I can keep on the fridge, at my desk or in the bedrooms to remind us of questions we can be asking ourselves to reflect at the beginning and at the end of the day.
In fact, it is so simple, that you probably won't have to glance at it after a few run throughs. You may even add your own reflection questions to the mix! My hope is that this becomes a simple habit for our minds when we wake up and when we end our day.
I hope the printable below helps to stir up some reflective conversations in your family!
This is a fall and winter favorite for the entire family!
Sore throat? Grab a honey drop!
Annoying tickle? Grab a honey drop!
Nagging cough? Grab a honey drop!
My kids will gladly go to the freezer and just pop one for the heck of it as well. I have no problem with it because these little drops and packed full of simple and health supporting ingredients.
I started making these when my kids were younger. They were too young for cough syrup and an effective cough drop wasn’t going go over well with their picky tastes.
I love that these drops do not have dyes, artificial flavors, and unnecessary sugars. Each ingredient serves a purpose, and I can customize the essential oils that I need in them.
For younger kiddos, you may just want to stick to Lemon Vitality oil.
As they grow older, you can add Thieves Vitality and/or Peppermint Vitality oil.
You can also change the oils you use based on what you are trying to address.
You can use your tummy Vitality Oils.
You can use your calming Vitality oils.
OR
You can use your seasonal sniffle Vitality Oils.
What do you need?
A silicone mold (This one is great!)
Organic Coconut Oil
Honey
Essential Oils (I am particular about the essential oils we put into our body, and we use the Vitality Collection from Young Living Grab oils here!)
Directions:
You will want to whip ¼ cup coconut oil with ¼ cup of honey. If you need to soften the mixture in the microwave, do so. Then add your essential oils.
Kids: No more than 20 drops total of the oils you select.
Adults: 30-40 drops total of the oils you select.
Mix oils in and let mixture turn opaque once more. Make sure it is room temperature. If it is too much like a liquid, the honey and coconut oil will separate. Once the mixture is opaque, whip once more.
Then, spread or pour mixture into silicone molds. Place your molds into the freezer for 5-10 minutes. Next, pop your honey drops out of the mold and place in a freezer safe container. Store the drops in the freezer and use as needed for daily support or to assist with seasonal changes.
Take this up a notch by adding lollipop sticks into your mold after being in the freezer for several minutes. This will turn your creation into a sweet pop!
These mini morsels will quickly melt in your mouth and provide a sweet treat while serving a purpose. I hope you enjoy!
As a mom, packing for a vacation can get those stress levels rising! Not only are we packing for ourselves but we are also responsible for the kids and sometimes, the fur babies. Now that my kids are a little older, I thought it was time to pass some of the pre-vacation responsibilities to my boys.
I needed a system that was simple, straight forward, and easy to read and explain to my kids. This "Pack Your Bags!" free resource, provides written text for readers, pictures for non-readers, and gives them the control of checking things off the list as the get things done.
If there is one thing I have learned from my background in child development, it is that kids love multiple forms of sensory input. This resource provides, visual cues as well as the gratification of a check box using a marker or pencil to mark completion!
This resource provides kids with the opportunity to:
-Work on their counting skills
-Work on identification skills
-Learn the written word for the objects
-Provide a sense of responsibility
-Provide an opportunity to work with colors if you want to get more detailed. My kids need all the help with matching they can get!
You can grab your FREE PRINTABLE HERE!
I can't wait to hear how you use this resource.
A simple tool to help you balance life’s indulgences and a healthy gut...
It’s summer and all the refreshing treats are making their way into your life! Let’s face it though, life’s indulgences are always there. I am a firm believer in indulging when balanced with healthy eating habits. However, when it is trickier to keep those healthy eating habits in check, there is one tool that will continue to support a healthy gut.
A healthy gut supports a healthy immune system, right?
Well, consider this, we send our kids back to school and dive right into those fall and winter months with an unbalanced gut from all the fun food we consumed over the summer. Not to mention, heading into fall, those sweet treats don’t go anywhere. They just shift from cool refreshing treats to comforting sugar and spice. Not really the healthy balance your gut needs to keep your immune system strong. Not to mention, you want to keep those tummies comfortable and moving, if you know what I mean.
So, what can you do?
Well, you can balance your treats with foods high in probiotics! Some food ideas would be yogurt, kefir, sauerkraut, kimchi, kombucha, or you could even add some apple cider vinegar into a refreshing beverage.
In the morning, try this drink:
8 ounces warm water
1 teaspoon Apple Cider Vinegar
2-3 drops Lemon Essential Oil (I want to avoid the acid of lemon juice but you can always use lemon juice)
1 teaspoon of honey
Consistency with the above food ideas can be tricky. That is why my kids and I choose to supplement with a probiotic. We take them on an empty stomach right before bed. This way, the good bacteria and do it’s work while we aren’t continually introducing food into our stomach.
Before we started probiotics, we would experience bloating after meals, occasional stomach discomfort, skin irritations, and occasional irregularity. After several weeks of consistent use, we no longer struggle with bloating, excess gas, skin is back in check, and irregularity is much more regular!
For the boys, we have fallen in love with Kidscents MightyPro Pre+Probiotics. Notice, it is prebiotics and probiotics! Afte a day of sweet treats, those prebiotics really help those probiotics multiply!
For myself, I use Life 9 probiotic. As someone who has struggled with gut health for a good chunk of my life, I wanted to make sure I was getting the most out of my probiotic. This formula has 17 billion live cultures. How is that for gut balancing???
Now, if you struggle with remembering to pick up the monthly necessities at the store, you will love what I am about to tell you. You can have these products delivered to your door monthly! You pick the date, and they will automatically head your way. No extra though required!
You can view the products at the link below! When you purchase probiotics for the family, you will notice you start to accumulate product points to cash in for future product. You can’t beat improving your health, convenience, and rewards for your healthy choices!
(Adjust quantities as needed)
