2020 is off to a great start! I am grateful and thankful for the process I’ve chosen for this year.
New Years Eve I spent some time journaling, going through 2019 and how I wanted to see our 2020 shape up. It felt absolutely amazing reflecting on both the good and bad that happened in my life and pouring my heart into incredible intentions for 2020!
One of my favourite tools that has been helping me stay true to my routine I bought a fantastic yearly planner that is also an intention setting journal. The dailygreatness Original Journal, this year I went for the Vagami edition and I love it!!! It is the same as the original but has a beautiful reusable cover with pockets in it!!! Check out my 10% off discount code below!!! ⬇️
We are well underway with our next and final stages of renovations to our home. Its been a wild ride, but also so humbling. Yesterday was a big step in this process and as I stood looking at our house, this was my exact thought “This was the missing piece to our puzzle”.
Truth be told – everything falls in place when its supposed to! All in divine timing. Sometimes it isn’t when you think it should, but it is.
This process we began a few years ago with our plans back and forth with our architect, but it just wasn’t the right timing to get started, for us it made more sense to invest IN our house vs start with the additions. The basement had already been underway, so we finished that up and began upstairs in the main living areas. It was that June, just 3 months after finishing the basement that it flooded – while we were living among renos upstairs in the kitchen, dining room, living room. It almost broke me, it bent me pretty hard. All of us actually. We thankfully had some great contractors to work with who helped ease this as we had two massive projects now on the go and our family living in our bedroom and living room!
All in divine timing.
Spring of 2019 I reached out to our township inquiring about getting things moving on our addition process. As much as we needed a break, there was a part of us that just wanted to “get it done”! The permits were issued and it was suddenly GO time!
Patience truly is a virtue. We spoke with the township to figure out what had to be done as this process was pretty major, including us doing a LOT of prep work. Oddly enough this all fell into place. Being a snowmobiler it makes me sad we do not have snow, however on the flip side this has been such an incredible blessing! We received a call around the end of November that our framers, a local company who’s work we admire, wanted to fit our job in before the end of the year!!! I was out at a meeting and my husband messaged… my response “Its GO TIME!!!”.
With every single renovation we have made to this home, its felt like the piece that was missing, it also while during the process was much more heavy than I had ever thought it would be. However I look back over the 4 years and I am filled with so much gratitude. We truly love our home, our property, the layout and purpose of the house. Once the basement and main floor were complete… we saved the best for last! What I thought was not going to be too disruptive to our life, has been. With having very little snow, our dog regularly tracks muddy foot prints into the house, which is not fun when he likes to go out more than once a day. But once again its teaching us patience, everything happens for a reason and gratitude.
Standing in our driveway last night looking at the additions, looking at the work done to the front of the house… its exactly what was missing. Truly the missing pieces to our puzzle.
Last night I joined a friend at a local Women’s Circle. Where all these feelings were validated. It was incredibly refreshing, solidifying as well in that I am on the right path, we are on the right path and everything happens for a reason all in divine timing. As well the importance of setting your intention, positive words, surrounding yourself with positive people and experiences but also knowing how to support yourself through any negativity or turmoil.
Although Ive taken photos during every single process. I haven’t shared much. I am absolutely stoked with our progress and feel even more sure in our decision for our home. Its not just this project that was the missing piece, it has been everything thats got us to where we are today. All of our renovations were done while living here. Some not as disruptive, others extremely disruptive. They have all been created with so much love and purpose. Our kitchen, which was under way when the basement flooded, we had our main layout, but weren’t sure how to finish between the old kitchen and new kitchen. So we lived with an unfinished space for a while until we got a feel for HOW we truly wanted to use the space. Had we finished it off like how we THOUGHT we needed to use the space (when it was just on paper), it wouldn’t have been what we truly needed. While being patient we were able to finish off our dream kitchen, create a beautiful laundry mud room and it functions exactly how our family needs it to!
The bonus… the additions are exactly the pieces that were missing. Not just for our lifestyle, but for the look of the house! Before we began the renovation process, we contemplated selling. We weighed the pros and cons of renovating vs building including location. I am so thankful we chose to #makeourhouseahome and create our #zmijanest. It may have taken us time, but it suits our family and lifestyle SO amazingly well! When I was absolutely terrified about the cost, this… this right here makes it ALL worth it! Every single dollar we have and will be spending. This was meant to be, this is what the house and our family was waiting for!
Do not ever be afraid of following your dreams. We went through SO many designs for so many years, weighing the pros and cons of each, pricing out, then even thought we should skimp on somethings to save a few bucks. In the end we jumped right in and although it felt super scary, last night everything was validated for me. When my husband asked me what I thought, my response was “Its what the house was missing”.
Always follow your dreams, no matter what those dreams might be. Set your intentions, write out what you want to see manifest and be grateful for the process! Regardless of where you live, your space should be a reflection of you! Whether you own or rent your home, take a look around and ask yourself how you really feel in the space. If you aren’t completely at peace in your space – which you should be – how can you shift it! It could be as simple as decluttering, rearranging the furniture, changing the paint colour to massive projects like ours ;). Let your space be a reflection of YOU!
And thats ok… but at times that can be hard to grasp, depending on the circumstance.
We learn from other people and their lives. We have the power to create our own ultimate life. Opinions can be very strong, but just because that is someone’s opinion does not make it “right”!
Life lessons and learning. #makingourhouseahome project #zmijanest has been a true test on our lives. #renolife alongside “everyday” #reallife can at times prove challenging! The ultimate compromise at the time to each think about what the other suggested, or the way it had to be lol!
The other night when discussing reno things, my immediate response was “no” to a suggestion of my husband’s. I had been very clear at how a certain design had to be or I didn’t want it. He agreed and suggested an alternative, which I immediately – without thinking said ‘No!’. Thankfully my husband asked why and I quickly re-thought about what he said and opened my mind to a new possibility!
Life lesson… seriously because we worked together with a new design and possibilities, we were ok with making a shift, staying true to our budget for this aspect! Interestingly enough, we are back to our original plan for this part of the project which we both loved in the first place.
We have had multiple of these conversations during this process. Being reminded to be humble and kind. Honestly this has pushed and pulled us, in some of the best ways! Creating what is ours, what we have figured out as a family, not just me or my husband. We welcome our kids input, obviously we figure out the “big stuff” but anything we can ask our kids opinions on, we do! Figuring out life together and being open to always be learning!
I love to let my husband know in front of the kids when I think about his ideas and can see the benefits of his thoughts! I want my kids to know that even though we may have challenges, we can continue to rise up! I also want them to know that I respect him.
So I felt compelled to share this life lesson! As we travel through this journey of life, we will continue to rise up the more we are open to learning. We can learn so much from each other!
I’m going to share a photo of my daughter and my dinner’s the other night. What is right for me, isn’t right (or what she likes) for her. I really enjoy cooked spinach with other veggies like mushrooms, garlic and green onion. We also had salad options for a build your own. My kids do not enjoy the hot vegetables and prefer cold cut up veggies. As a parent we can provide guidance to our kids. Age appropriate life lessons and opening up to a more reasonable way of thinking and options that really in truth is the exact same option!
Just because its my opinion doesn’t mean it’s right for everyone! Living an authentic life over here 🙌! Enjoyed my hot veggies and have some for lunch the next day!
2020 is all about flowing with ease and grace.
The last 10 years have been some major growth years. Facing challenges and choosing to rise back up, every single time. Grateful for the love, fun, progress and direction in life.
Choose to be grateful that you are not always right. I know I am! It didn’t always feel so great to not “be right”. Lately it’s been a humbling grounding experience to genuinely ask what the other options might be!
I feel like this is becoming my “new year title”, because that’s what it really should be! Always striving to be better than the person we were yesterday (not someone else)!
We rang in the new year in a nice low key, great company, relaxed evening. I was given the gift of time to really get centered and grounded into my intentions for the new year.
Moving into 2020, carrying forward Authenticity from 2019 I will flow with ease and grace. As a result I know I will need to be much more purposeful with life. Enjoying every moment. Being my authentic self, is being the real me. In an effort to share my story as the architect of my own life, I want to feel like I can also empower those who may be facing any challenges.
Our family household and health shifted just over 5 years ago. I love the direction of this path and feel it came at the exact time I and we needed it most! During a challenging time in my life I lost my spark, direction, my health was a big frustration and I was unsure of my purpose. This journey has had me dive deep, truly listen to myself, to my body and how I am feeling to guide me both physically and mentally. To find my path, which proved challenging at times. Hint… follow your own heart and dreams, let everyone else follow theirs!
2020 is a year of flowing with ease and grace, completely natural without pushing or challenging, letting it happen.
Some of my biggest shifts I am striving towards…
Morning Routine – Journaling, Setting the Intention for the Day, Writing down any tasks that I need to complete. Everyday! My @dailygreatness journal is my sidekick for this!
Meal Planning – Our family thrives with organization, as well as healthy home cooked meals. My brain is grateful when these meals are planned for and we have the ingredients, everything flows so much better! Our meal planning tends to be different than what others do, which is ok! We like to plan out meals we will have that week and then go with the flow. Rather than holding to a strict meal plan we have some flex which works great with our family when our schedules can sometimes be shifted in an instance!
Mindset and Empowering! – This is a big one for me, for all of us. We are always learning! One big shift is how I am going to support my oily customers and clients! I truly believe education is power, we are all capable to learn whatever we set out mind to. I also respect time so very much, more than ever actually! Moving forward with my oil customers in 2020 I will not be updating in my Facebook group. Social media isn’t how I want to focus. I’ve made this decision for a couple reasons… the internet is FULL of info, much of the info being shared in a lot of groups circulates alot! I respect you and your time for not simply just duplicating the same thing over and over. My customers all receive an email with product info from doTERRA. For those of you who I’ve worked with, know I love to share REAL life. How we use our natural health care options and oils in real life. That’s how I want to empower. I will be available for assurance via email, Insta DM and Facebook on my page or PM! Plus I love blogging and photos, that’s me! That’s how I want to shine! That’s how I willbshine into 2020 and beyond. Being ME!
Follow Dreams & Visualize – This year is big for our family, it means finishing off some massive renovations in our family nest! A complete transformation that is truly us and becomes more us every single day! Visualize what you truly want, no matter what! Trust me the details will work themselves out, all in Divine timing!
My personal recommendations if you feel like you need direction…
What are you drawn towards
Who are you drawn towards?
How do you want to feel?
Do you enjoy writing?
Does your energy need to be shifted? How do you currently feel? I can honestly say when your energy is free flowing in your body, and house, you do feel different in a very good way!
Do you feel you need to work on anything in your life? Your gut response may be no. That’s your ego talking! We all have something we can improve in our lives.
Gabby Bernsteins Manifesting Challenge which just started today! You can join until tomorrow and it’s only $37! This challenge is for 21 days and will walk you through step by step, even how to be sure your desires are truly authentic! Check it out here http://www.gabbybernstein.com/manifestingchallenge/ Gabby is someone I was introduced to last year with her book, The Universe Has Your Back! Incredible book!
Invest in you! However that is for you. What is right for me, may not align with you and that’s OK! For me and my health, my body loves to be supported my natural ingredients, gluten free, lactose free and high quality supplements. Naturally supporting our health also with nature. Customizing our home to our lifestyle, yup consider this investing in you!
Let the energy flow in your home! It’s incredible how I can feel this shift now. Years of planning. Literally years, it began in our first house! Feel your heart. If you feel out of alignment, shift it! Been there done that! Honestly. In all the homes we’ve lived in, this home, especially now, feels like its us, it’s my heart, my heart is home! 💗 Shifting the energy can be as simple as decluttering, re-arranging furniture, changing paint colour, etc! When I got home yesterday, my husband had rearranged our living room, a way we had talked about the previous night and my first reaction to his suggestion was ‘No’. I quickly realized I was blocking my flow, and also by immediately responding with no to him, I was also blocking his. Similar experience when he told me his idea for the laundry mud room… I had to push past the “norm” and open up. Best thing I did because I LOVE our new space, it fits us perfectly! When I arrived home and saw the new arrangement, I could feel the energy flowing so much better, without visual blocks, opening up to even more ideas that has me so pumped! That also wouldn’t have been possible if I had stayed stuck in my previous mindset of a “traditional layout”!
Positive talk, such a simple thing to do but often forgotten. It can sometimes be easier to sink into a negative mindset, especially if someone around you at home, work or in your social circle is negative (yup also means social media!!!). When you feel yourself slipping into a negative mindset, shift it. YOU have the choice!
Be conscious of what you are doing, when you are doing it etc… goes along with the positive thinking. Learn to become more aware in all that you are doing! If you slip into negativity simply shift back, if someone calls you out on being negative, accept their support and shift where needed.
Honestly… do what works for you! It’s easy to follow what she or he might be doing. That’s when you loose yourself! Be real to you. Something my soul has been bursting at directing me in for a while now.
As the new year is upon us, my heart is feeling so very full! 💗 Sharing this life with my best friend and raising our kids. Our experiences traveling. Our family and friends. Our health and growth experiences. Our home. 💓
As we release 2019 and move into 2020 I am so grateful for where life has got me to, today! I am grateful for the challenges that have helped to grow. I am thankful for my willingness to learn. I strive to find a positive in any negative situation. I’m grateful for trusting and taking a leap, even when it feels so scary. I’m thankful for following my heart and gut, they really know what’s up! I am thankful for any difficult people, you help steer me back to kindness. I’m grateful for patience, being vulnerable and knowing that life sometimes doesn’t give us what we want, but what we need. I am thankful for realizing the importance of investing in myself mentally and physically! I am grateful for “allowing” myself to dream and go for it!
Our family oil routine is something I treasure. A moment in the day to slow down and connect with each of the kiddos! In prep for New Year’s I switched up the oil routine for them the night before! An oil back massage with 2-3 drops of each oil on their back. I like to layer my oils, meaning add some coconut oil and then drop 1, 2 drops, rub those oils in and then drop 1, 2 drops and so on for each oil. Started first with a chakra balancing and soul cleansing smudge with palo santo! Soul connecting, immune boosting and cleansing in prep for the new year!
I release anything that may have caused a negative attachment and welcome in 2020 where love, positivity, good health, relationships and abundance of money will flow with ease and grace.
I am excited for and welcome any opportunity for growth.
Dream big and love the life you live! 🥰 Every single day we are given the opportunity to choose the direction of our life. I’ve found it truly incredible ‘the power of thought’! 🙏 What do you choose your 2020 to be? Cheers to 2019! 🥂
In becoming stronger as a person, individually, one must also recognize that individual growth is exactly that – individual. It is custom to every single one of us and rarely do we all grow at the same rate – even if we are under the same roof, in the same family or besties.
We all have our own life path and experiences which create our reality. One of the best gifts you could ever give someone else is peace, kindness and understanding. Remove any judgment, control, negativity, expectations. To simply allow someone to flourish as they are meant to.
For some this can come easy, as second nature. For others, especially those who have experienced trauma or abuse (physical, mental, emotional), the process can be much more lengthy.
Dont compare yourself to anyone else, the mirror is not your enemy!
I also tend to begin to feel overwhelmed with the process, even before it begins!
We had chicken out for dinner tonight. I hadn’t thought much about what to make with it, until I remembered my son had asked me to make chicken parm the other night. That night I caved into my humdrum of “not having enough time”!
Our chicken parm meal is a process! We use gluten free corn flakes, egg and then add a boost with some Italian dried spices in with the crushed up corn flakes and 2 drops of basil in with the eggs.
Here is what I did differently today… actually yesterday as well.
I started the day setting an intention. Not just what I wanted to accomplish at work. That’s obviously in some way on my list, I am loving feeling so efficient! I set my intention for the entire day! To flow with ease and grace. To attract love and positive thoughts. To shield myself from any negativity.
This afternoon I decided we are having chicken parm! I am dedicating to the process. I think we did pretty good to as dinner was served before 730pm!
Glueten free and oh SO yummy! Chicken parm served with penne pasta and feta ceasar salad! 🤗
When we truly believe there is more than enough time we come back into the, what I think of as the rational calm brain. I think of the opposite of seeing something on sale and really wanting it but stressing out it wont be there for you or there wont be enough for you to get what you want. 🙋♀️ That used to also be me at the grocery store. I’ve learned, there is always more than enough!
Same goes for time. When you believe you have an abundance of time, you do! Its interesting though because it’s not all the time. It’s interesting how the universe directs you. Because ultimately just because you think or want to have something, doesn’t mean that’s what’s best for you. It means sometimes letting go of the control. This world needs so much more love and kindness in it. Not division.
When we sink into this scarcity thinking, for example me if I had of thought “I dont have enough time for this or that…” the entire tone of the evening would have been completely different. The meal experience would have been. I wouldn’t feel as calm and accomplished as I do now.
Let it go.
Whatever “it” may be. Let the shit go.
Embrace and trust living in the now. Honestly this life experience is short for some. Live and enjoy the moment.
Like we did tonight with our home made, delicious, chicken parm and alfredo pasta! 🤩
Yesterday I fell into a trap. A negative trap. That as soon as I did, I knew it just sucked my energy down in a very big way!
We were at a local hockey game, I left after the 1st period to grab some groceries and came back to see the last period. Unfortunately, I instantly regretted going back. Even though our town team was winning, they were not playing well. It was so rough and they were falling into the other teams negative trap. They were mouthing our team, chirping the players as they skated by the away bench and even up in the stands, one of their fans were yelling to and calling on people from our town, from one corner to another.
I got sucked into the negativity, simply because of the language being used in front of kids but not just that there was NO need for it. Our team was winning, let them chirp, let them drag down into their own negativity. I spoke up to the male fan from the other town, that there was no need for the language they were using or calling each other on to fight. Of course I got told to F off. I get it, the heat of the moment. Its not like Im a pure person who never swears, lord knows I do ;)
For whatever reason, it really rubbed me the wrong way. Im not a fan of violence and if the team is winning, which ours was, just play the game and win gracefully. Which unfortunately also didn’t happen. Yes our team won, but they fell into the other teams trap and there were multiple fights with big consequences. I left feeling like I had wasted my afternoon in going back to watch it. What really happened was I let my walls down. I also let their massive negativity into me which shouldn’t have happened.
While making my lunch today, I did what I typically do, turned on Joel Osteen on our google mini. He is a brilliant speaker in a nondenominational church in texas. If you are looking for someone motivational to listen to – honestly look him up! The sermon that came on I had to look up the title, it hit the nail on the head.
Joel Osteen – Keep Your Walls Up! I want to talk to you today about “Keeping your walls up”. It’s easy to go through life letting everything get on the inside, offended by what somebody said, worried about a problem at work, upset because of a negative report. We can’t stop all these things from happening. The key is to have walls built up so we don’t allow everything in.
Exactly what I did yesterday, let my walls down. I let the negativity in. Did it directly affect me? Nope. But I fell into the trap myself.
This was exactly what I needed to hear! So timely. Thank you Universe. You work in amazing ways! You do not have to prove anything to anyone. Just continue being authentically you!
After listening to his sermon while making my lunch, I went into my sacred space to ensure my heart and soul really heard this. I start by smudging myself with dried sage. I also like putting Frankincense (Frank is a very high vibration oil!) on my crown chakra and any other oils I might be drawn to on my wrists to ground. Today I used a custom blend I made which includes Neroli, Vetiver, Cedarwood, Wild Orange and a few others. Ahhhh back on track even better now than I was before <3
Making intentional shifts in your life can have it’s up’s and down’s. Especially as you are learning to navigate a new way of living.
Labeling sucks. Honestly why can’t all products list exactly whats in it. Why can’t all companies be honest and ethical with the ingredients they use? I wont solve the worlds problems so what I can do is be more conscious myself in the products I do buy. Always honor yourself.
Ive learned that unless a package of something says “Gluten Free” you should just assume it has gluten. Life lessons. Sometimes they are the best when they are based on our own experiences. Im reminded how good my body feels when eating gluten free and foods my body enjoys.
Friday I enjoyed a late lunch of left over chicken with some fried brussel sprouts (as I always do in a small frying pan with some EVOO). Within 20 minutes I was suddenly visibly bloating in a very painful way. I was confused. The day before I had eaten out every meal, including the night before. I was conscious. I did slip up when I ordered an omelet for breakfast and specifically said no toast. The omelet was served with with a small baked tomato which was delicious. After eating I felt my stomach begin to shift, it suddenly hit me, the baked tomato had a garnish on top, that I suddenly realized was bread crumbs. When I began to feel the discomfort after eating the chicken and brussel sprouts I began to blame it on the bread crumbs… Im sure this contributed towards it, as I felt off before eating. Then I realized I hadn’t tested brussel sprouts yet on my FODMAP Diet. Rookie mistake, one that I can heal from but it would take and is taking time. Ive realized with my body when I get thrown out of balance, it can take me time to get back on track, which is why its so important to acknowledge the slip and move forward.
Investing in yourself honestly is a physical and mental contribution. You have to pay the money for the product, but you also have to be ok with spending the money, use the product by creating new habits and rituals and power through with your mindset. I understand with investing, it can be one of the bigger shifts in your lifestyle. Do your research with products, ingredients and testing. Look local, living a holistic life is becoming so much easier. Buy for quality. From my experience the better quality products, last longer. Same goes for food the healthier the food the less you actually eat and longer you feel full.
Yesterday late afternoon I was thinking about what a great day it had been. My daughter and I were SO productive accomplishing even more than what I had thought we could. Simply by doing it and not even thinking about it. Im a lists person and sometimes those damn lists can be the devil’s fuel to anxiety!
As I was thinking about how great of a day it was, it then hit me how our day started, slightly heavy but manageable on our end. Then I thought of a loved one who is going through something way heavier than I was and I had a moment of prayer to send them some love.
Life truly has power in perspective. Although my day didn’t start as I thought it would, it provided me an opportunity for connection that had my day not started like that, wouldn’t have happened. A few hours with someone so very close to me, an opportunity to give another loved one some much needed hugs and then the afternoon to just be which morphed into being an awesomely productive and also relaxing time finished off with a good family dinner and hockey game!
As we are heading into the holiday season, I urge you to be in touch with the power of perspective. Living this beautiful life, is so much more beyond you. You are the base of your life, however its also the people in it. Maybe this year you show a bit more compassion, you have a little bit more understanding, you love on someone who needs it that much more, you give to those less fortunate than you, you put your kids needs ahead of your desire to “do nothing” or to not be “inconvenienced”. Even if its just for the next few weeks I challenge you to rise up, when in the moment of feeling frustrated or angry to challenge yourself as to WHY. And I don’t mean the surface meaning why, because many times that’s the ego in us talking. I mean diving deep.
Just think how much more amazing this world would be with more kindless and love <3
