HAPPY MAY! We’re a third through our year - crazy! But I’d argue these next two thirds are the best. We’re about to encounter and embrace glorious summer. My first southern summer non-pregnant. And then comfy-cozy fall and all-the-best holidays. Basically, there is so much to look forward to - and that feels really good.
Being a third of the way through is also a good reminder to check back on our original goals and intentions for the year. For me, that was embracing a year of ease. While I’ve stayed true to that for the most part, I have to laugh because I’ve completely strayed from that in other areas of my life. One example? This month I decided I want to have a goal of running a half marathon. But I find myself incorporating ~ease~ with a slow and steady approach to training. Stay tuned for how that goes, I suppose!
I’m using this check in as a reminder to take things slow, easy, and keep things simple.
Now let’s dive into the good stuff!
A Good Idea: Replace Mothers/Fathers Day Cards with A Sketchbook
I forget where I stumbled upon this idea initially…but I am so happy I did. Instead of having your kids make cards for Mothers or Fathers day, you can purchase a sketchbook and have kids decorate/write a page each year. They all stay within the book, making it a sweet little memento for years and years to come. I did this for my husband last year and made a golf-inspired page out of her footprint. I can’t wait for the days when the girls are old enough to try and draw something themselves - adorable scribbled-filled pages.
Good Morning: First Hour Phone-Free
This was a personal rule I had for awhile and then let myself slip away from. But I am recommitting, friends! For the first hour that I’m awake, I don’t touch my phone. I’ve actually even started leaving my phone to charge in the kitchen overnight and don’t even take it up to my bedroom with me. Which helps avoid falling into the habit of waking up, rolling over and grabbing the phone and scrolling. The first hour of my day feels much more invigorating when I’m mindfully sipping my coffee, washing my face, getting myself ready for the day or even just enjoying some reading in silence.
Good Night: Magnesium
I’ve never slept better than when I mix a little magnesium into a glass of water and sip it before bed. I use MoonJuice Magnesi-OM and honestly, I think it’s expensive. So I don’t use this every night, maybe once or twice a week. But the sleep I get after having it is straight-up heavenly.
Contrary to the TikToks, you can just have this with water…Sure, the sparkling water and tart cherry juice is fun and I’ve used those before for an “elevated-more-mocktail-like” feel, but I think it’s the magnesium itself that works the magic.
(Psssst, magnesium before bed also helped me immensely with overnight charlie-horses I’d get while pregnant).
In Good Health: Create A Dopamine Menu
A Dopamine Menu is a list of activities that help boost…you guessed it, dopamine! The neurotransmitter that is responsible for pleasure, motivation, reward. The feel-good feelings! The ‘menu’ aspect is that you separate the activities based on how long they take. You can create your own menu of items and ideas that you personally feel drawn to. You can read more about dopamine menus here, but here’s a quick breakdown and ideas to help you brainstorm:
Appetizers - Things that take 15 minutes or less (Think: face mask, journaling, sitting outside, stretching)
Main Course - Things that take up a larger chunk of time in the day (Think: Going for a run, yoga class, cleaning out your closet, reading a book, baking cookies)
Side Dishes - Used to help complement the ‘main course’ (Think: podcasts, playlists, lighting a candle, sipping on a delightful drink)
Desserts - Guilty pleasures, delightful to indulge in and doesn’t happen all the time (Think: Date night with drinks/dinner/dessert, A tv binge, shopping)
Specials - Big ticket things + requires more planning! (Think: A vacation, concerts, sporting events)
Take time to craft your own dopamine menu and incorporate it through out your weeks and days!
A Good Recipe: Dense Bean Salads
mentioned these in her Meal Prepping post, and so I tried it out one week for meal-prepped lunches and then I became OBSESSED. And went down an entire rabbit hole of how many different bean salad recipes there are.Bean salads are a dish with some sort of beans as the main component (garbanzo, black, kidney, edamame…) and then complemented with veggies, herbs, and a dressing.
I love these because:
Beans are full of fiber - helping me feel full and satisfied!
Minimal work - the only real chopping is the veggies you wanna pair with it and can put it all in a big bowl and easy just scoop some out through out the week.
You can easily mix up flavors - Greek, Mexican, Asian! I love that I can change this up every week so I’m not getting sick of the same-old-meal-prep.
Here’s a whole page of bean-salad-inspo from one of my favorite recipe websites.
A Good Book: The Wedding People by Alison Espach
The Wedding People is witty and fresh and heartwarming and wise. A wonderful nonfiction novel where you get sucked into the characters as they embark on unexpected, personal journeys. But not in some grandiose-melodramatic way. Just really sincere, with a great dash of humor sprinkled in too!
Synopsis:
It’s a beautiful day in Newport, Rhode Island, when Phoebe Stone arrives at the grand Cornwall Inn wearing a green dress and gold heels, not a bag in sight, alone. She's immediately mistaken by everyone in the lobby for one of the wedding people, but she’s actually the only guest at the Cornwall who isn’t here for the big event. Phoebe is here because she’s dreamed of coming for years—she hoped to shuck oysters and take sunset sails with her husband, only now she’s here without him, at rock bottom, and determined to have one last decadent splurge on herself. Meanwhile, the bride has accounted for every detail and every possible disaster the weekend might yield except for, well, Phoebe and Phoebe's plan—which makes it that much more surprising when the two women can’t stop confiding in each other.
Good Songs
Good Company: Brittany’s Notebook
An incredibly cozy and bright corner of the internet! Brittany shares great posts on book recommendations, recipes, and ‘simple joys’. She shares ideas and recommendations that are simple, but impactful! Her recent post On Cultivating Contentment is one of my favorite things I’ve read on Substack.
Good Moments
Thanks for reading a long! See you next Sunday!
Brittany is the BEST.
I never read Wedding People, and I've been meaning to--just ran and put on my library reserve list.
Love your Feel Goods!