Sometimes when you are coping with illness it is nice to have somewhere to escape to. Maybe you can’t always physically go to someplace you love, but you can certainly take a mini-vacation just by closing your eyes. I have a cherished spot in my imagination that I have crafted…
For many years I felt shame about having an illness. Not shame in the way you would think: that I was embarrassed or ashamed of having to go to the doctors and take medication. For me, it was deeper than that. I grew up around many of the ideas in…
Two weeks ago I was craving Healthy Happy Life’s vegan pesto, but I didn’t have basil or pine nuts, or the will to drive to the store for that matter. I did have broccoli on hand and figured it’s green. Thus, the broccoli pesto was invented. To my surprise, it…
Here is my quick solution for looking awake and refreshed when you don’t have the energy for more than 2 minutes of makeup. Before…yikes! After…better! Everything is more even and fresh. I’m awake. I use this quick routine most days. It is simple and really can be done in a…
I would never say that I’m grateful to have chronic health issues, but there are blessings that can come out of challenging health, if you know where to look. Here are my top 10: Acceptance. Acceptance is one of the most important skills we can cultivate. It is inevitable that…
Saturday morning things began to go downhill. Phillip and I were in Breckenridge on a ski vacation with a friend of ours. We arrived in town on Thursday and had a gorgeous day of skiing Friday. I felt great. I hadn’t skied in ten years, but things came back smoothly.…
Each afternoon, around 3pm, I just need a little something. Either out of restlessness or true hunger, the kitchen always calls to me in the afternoon. When I make my grocery list, I think about what I have on hand to snack on. Because I keep my diet low-sodium, this…
Five years ago I was sitting in our family room in Portland, staring out the window and chatting on the phone with an old friend when he swooped in. A gorgeous spotted owl. I could hardly believe what I was seeing. He perched on a tree at the edge of…
Packing for a vacation is always an involved process. You have to consider what the weather will be like, and what activities you have planned: fancy dinner or no fancy dinner? Then there is the space issue. Can you fit all of your shoes in just one piece of luggage?…
Your morning can make or break the whole day. Sleep in, forget to eat breakfast, get stuck in traffic and everything will seem off. I pay special attention to how I begin my day so that I can have the energy and optimism necessary to make it productive and enjoyable.…