Taking June and July "off" was intended to be a time to reconsider my current routine and regroup. The many months of everything changing before I could exhale was wearing thin on me, even if it was change I chose to implement. My stress levels have been high and my adrenals were on overload (it's been a lifelong battle with my adrenals). Just a couple weeks into the break everything we thought was "the plan" changed....again. I was busy looking into where we could live in Va and Matt continued looking for Rv's and trucks. We found what I can say is our dream RV, a 1972 Argosy Airstream that is in such good condition we could live in it as is, albeit not terribly comfortably because the current set up would mean we'd all be sleeping separately. The airstream was exactly the amount we'd hope to spend (since we'd been researching for so long we know the going price and we were looking to spend way less) and the best part? Instead of being hundreds of miles away like ALL the others we were finding, this one was less than 10 miles from us. We decided this was the one and got confirmation in the way of signs, dreams, and happenings surrounding finding the Airstream, and after all with the new Va job we could afford to restore it quickly. So, we took the risk. The very next week Matt was not only asked by his boss when he was moving, but told "I don't care if you sleep on a cardboard box and leave your family in MD, we want you here in a week." Very different from the conversation that was had when they offered him the job. I think the old Matt and Joanna would have twisted and turned ourselves inside out to find a way to get to Va within a few weeks.
I initially felt stressed out, and since my adrenals are used to firing at just about anything, I made the choice to play. Alex and I played hard. The slides at the playground were a hoot and he loves the swings as much as I do. I took him to the swimming hole I used to go to as a child and we skipped rocks, splashed in the water, and delighted in the many butterflies that danced around us. We ran through the woods, blew bubbles, took up a swimming class, joined a toddler group at the library, danced in thunderstorms and splashed in the puddles. Activities I haven't engaged in for a very long time became the norm for several weeks.
The more I played the more in tune I became with the messages of the natural world around me. I have always paid attention to omens, but this time I found they are closer than ever and their messages clearer than ever. The moths with eyes that followed me around for days, the frogs clinging to our patio doors, the wasps living in our bathroom, and the cicadas and their wings I find EVERYWHERE....all the messages and energies they bring are helping me to birth this creative life I am living...no...THAT I AM!!! I remembered what drove me to want to help others in the first place. It wasn't the chronic IBS or anxiety I used to suffer from, it wasn't the addiction that took hold for so much of my life. It was helping people get out of the abuse cycle....from being abused and from being the abuser. I've been involved with both and I've been both in my life.
*want more info on animal medicine? Check out http://www.spiritanimal.info/animal-meanings/ *
So much more happened in the last few months, but it would take a platform much greater than this to share it and none of it really matters. Not really. What matters is that I remembered what I am because I seriously forgot.
I'd like to share what I've been doing to keep my stress levels low during this period of transition in addition to the play:
1) Utilize Peapod for any grocery related item that is not purchased at a farm or farmers market. You can do your shopping in minutes and have it delivered or have it ready to be picked up (I actually prefer this option).
2) Compile a list of your favorite healthy whole foods and recipes once. It doesn't even have to be a long list of recipes, but it does have to be ones that you really love (I think I have 8 recipes on mine) and buy the same thing every week-yes really. You can change out vegetables with what's in season or what looks really good and swap out your recipe ingredients (whole foods) this way. This step alone has saved me a ridiculous amount of time. I've been cooking the same 5-6 dinners every week (again with varying up the veggies) for the last 2 months. You'll get a boat load of vegetables in your diet this way and it simplifies the whole planning and buying part of healthy eating.
3) Create a routine for yourself. I used to despise doing the same thing over and over again, so if you're cringing I get it. That said, routine creates a foundation for new habits to actually stick and if you're going through a lot of intense emotions or stress it's a good way to help ground your energy. It's a must for me!
4) Salt water baths several times per week and/or at the very least soak your feet in salt water each night. You can add some delicious essential oils for added benefit and relaxation.
Until next time <3
Yours in health,
Joanna Rose
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