What I Plan to Keep from 2020
2020 has been a challenging year for reasons I don’t need to rehash. Instead, I’ll focus on the positive things gained over the year, the things I’d like to keep with me beyond 2020.
Sitting with Discomfort
It is exactly in times like this–pandemic, political turmoil, racial tensions–that we need to learn how to sit with our feelings of discomfort.
Where to go from here…
I hate writing these stupid, “well it’s been a while…” posts. But I can’t ignore that it’s been two years since I published my last post on the self-styled life. […]
More
If you’re trying to downsize or simplify, here’s a simple way to approach your effort.
Q&A with Rowenna Miller, author of “Torn” + BOOK GIVEAWAY!
On Monday, I posted a review of Rowenna Miller’s novel, Torn, the first book in the fantasy series, The Unravelled Kingdom. She very graciously agreed to answer a few questions […]
Book Review: “Torn” by Rowenna Miller
In the fall I wrote about the restorative power of literature, and on that theme, I recently had the pleasure of reading Rowenna Miller’s Torn, the first book in a series […]
Productivity Hack: Context Zones
Ever searching for ways to streamline my efforts and up my productivity in this weirdly slow-yet-also-chaotic time in my life, I recently came across this idea of “context zones,” conceptualized […]
Speaking Truth to Oprah’s Power
I wrote this letter nearly 4 years ago, and never received a response. It is my plea to Oprah to address the fact that a man she promoted, James Ray, […]
When You Can’t Take a Vacation… take a mental one.
If I had unlimited funding and if life didn’t require my regular presence in one place, I’d travel on vacation at least once a month. Maybe go away for a […]
The Never-ending Effort to find Balance
One of my yoga instructors likes to talk us through class with anecdotes and reflections. Today, as we teetered into (and fell out of) dancer’s pose, she talked about balance. […]
And you just begin…
A fun thing happened to me recently. I started doing some freelance writing and have actually gotten paid for it. (!!!) This is a major milestone for me. Milestones are […]
Postcards from Beyond
Do you love postcards? I do. I love receiving them. I love sending them. Mostly I am bad at that second part and end up with a stack of unwritten […]
Small Wonders–Appreciating the Ordinary
My husband is currently on 15 weeks of “parental leave.” (In Canada, mothers are entitled to 15 weeks of maternity leave. Then 35 weeks of parental leave is typically also taken […]
White Walls
We’re currently in the process of preparing the baby’s room for his or her arrival in October. As we’ve been planning and readying the space, I find I’m drawn to the […]
“Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt” – Seek Safely
Have you seen Netflix original series, Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt yet? It’s a lighthearted sitcom starring Ellie Kemper (The Office, Bridesmaids), created by Tina Fey. It follows the main character, Kimmy, as she […]
10 Year University Reunion!
My group of friends had been emailing for months. Our 10 year undergrad reunion was coming up, and we were all planning to go! It was an especially big trip for […]
Taking the First Steps
When you have a goal in mind, big or small, what’s the most important element in achieving it? For me, it’s always about taking the first step. But though it’s easy to acknowledge, […]
Signature Style, the Next Steps: Capsule Wardrobes
Have you heard of this capsule wardrobe thing? Probably owing to Pinterest, they’ve become very popular in the last few years. What it is: a limited, intentional wardrobe of usually about 35-40 pieces (often excluding accessories, […]
Changing back into What You’ve Always Been
In the yoga series I follow at home, Namaste, each episode ends with a bow and a quote from Kate Potter, the developer and narrator of the TV series. The […]
The truth about being a stay-at-home parent
A while back, I gave some tips on how to become a stay-at-home parent for the many parents I know who are struggling with going back to work after having a baby. […]
Feature Friday: Bruce Mau on the Power of Design
“Design is… a method of leadership… you can design the life that you want to live.” -Bruce Mau on CBC’s The Current Yesterday, I again heard CBC’s The Current talk […]
Developing a Signature Style
Mommy Slob As a stay at home mom, my daily wardrobe consists of comfy, easy-to-clean, not-too-dear pieces of clothing so that I am unencumbered as I crawl, climb, and cuddle […]
Make a Plan to Actually Keep that New Year’s Resolution
We must always change, renew, rejuvenate ourselves; otherwise, we harden. Johann Wolfgang Von Goethe Do you set New Year’s Resolutions? I’ve talked about them before, about the process of reflecting […]
The Stranger: Creepy Song, Solid Message
The Stranger: I actually kind of hate this song, but it’s though-provoking.
Feature Friday: Productivity Habits from Pick Any Two
You may have noticed that I’m a little preoccupied with being productive and organized–probably a common obsession for anyone who is driven to make the most of their lives. Judging […]
On Meditating (and a beginner-level meditation technique!)
Part of my recent effort to take better care of myself and not fall into a pit of mommy self-neglect has been adding meditation to my daily routine. Benefits of […]
Organizational Tools: Paper or Digital?
When I was growing up, my mother was rarely found without her agenda planner. She was particular about the style–an 8.5″x11″ spiral-bound book with a gold embossed, black leather-look cover. […]
Go to the Dentist Already! and other notes on the importance of taking care of yourself
I always said I wouldn’t “let myself go.” I would stay healthy. Stay in shape. Keep up my appearance. Keep my wardrobe age-appropriately on trend. Get regular check-ups. Do things […]
Book Review: “Wild” by Cheryl Strayed
The at times scorching, at times freezing, frequently wet and always heavy surface of Cheryl Strayed’s memoir Wild is enough to be engaging: a hapless, amateur hiker taking on one […]
When our Dream Life appears rather Ordinary…
I have to laugh sometimes when I take stock and decide I’m living my dream life. Is this really what I imagined for myself? Staying at home with a toddler, […]
Five Years of Grief and Getting On
From the moment that I stood in the receiving line at the wake–watching shocked face after shocked face go by, grasping their hands, hugging them–I somehow felt like I was the one […]
Happy Birthday to my Two Year Old!
Though you were born on October 2nd, it’s October 1st I will always think on as the day you decided to be born, finally making your grand entrance at midnight. […]
The House that Taught me Style
Even as a busy child I knew there was something about my best friend’s house. My own house was comfortable and cozy, clean and styled in its way. A fairly typical country […]
Blog Hop Part 1: Peering into the Lit Window
Whenever I’m walking down the street at night, I can’t help but look into the houses I pass–the light within standing out in the darkness so that you can see […]
The Open Letter to Oprah: A Follow-up
About 3 1/2 months have passed since I posted my open letter to Oprah. Many people have asked me for a follow-up, so here it is. My sincerest thanks again to […]
Why I’m Signing the SEEK Safely Promise
A big push at SEEK Safely, the non-profit organization my family began in response to my sister’s death at a self-help event, has been getting the self-help industry to adopt the […]
In Defence of Aging
Recently, I made my husband promise that he would support my effort to embrace a natural aging process rather than spending the rest of my life trying to look younger. He squeezed my […]
How to Become a Stay-at-Home Mom/Dad in 5 Not at all Easy Steps
I love being a stay-at-home mom. It’s definitely not easy. It’s exhausting, messy, maddening, solitary (and did I say exhausting?). It’s really and truly the most taxing and tiring job […]
Hatching a Plan to Live Small
After sharing a room with my older sister, I moved into my very own room when I was about 5. It was a glorified closet. I picked out the wallpaper […]
Defining Moments: The Moments about which I will Forever Write
Last week, Caitlin Kelly at Broadside wrote about life-changing moments: the events that divide “the moments before and the moments afterward into two very different lives.” Check it out–it’s a beautiful […]
How Often do You Praise Yourself?
One recent afternoon, Linden was (suprisingly) contentedly sitting in her stroller on the way home from the park. We passed by another mom and child combo, and the mother looked […]
Notes of An Exasperated Would-be Home Buyer
I recently came across two different reports/commentaries in the media relating to millennials and our financial situations that made me want to break things. Those Rich Millennials, buying all the houses… […]
An Open Letter to Oprah, Regarding Your Silence on James Ray
Dear Oprah, In 2006, you questioned James Frey, author of A Million Little Pieces, to find out the truth. You had promoted his book, and after the allegations mounted against the veracity of […]
Make Time: How Digital Communication is Turning Us Into Shitty Friends.
One of the things I find really interesting in the time-spending of some of the great minds in history is that many of them set aside time for “correspondences.” They […]
On being an Ok Mom.
I’m not a perfect mom. Definitely not. I’ve yelled at my kid (who’s only 18 months.) I’ve given her french fries for a meal (or two.) I’ve changed her diaper, […]
Wondering what to be when you grow up? Get some perspective.
What do I want to be when I grow up? I’ve asked this question on the self-styled life before. And if you’re new here, read this, or this, or this, […]
Homesickness: The Chronic Illness of an Expat
I just booked our summer vacation–a week in Scotland followed by a long weekend in Germany. I am Excited. We’ve been to Scotland before. And we loved it. My father’s […]
The Adult Gap Year: Sabbatical
A while back, I discussed the virtues of a gap year — a common practice in Europe in which students take a year off between high school and university to travel. […]
Long Walks
My 18 month old daughter, Linden, started walking in mid-January. While the muck and ice of winter kept her bundled in the stroller for all outdoor adventures, she sharpened her […]
the self-styled life 