How have you nurtured your basic needs over the last week? Are you finding ways to get the sleep and care you need? It can be extremely difficult to keep up good habits this time of year. Do your best to eliminate what is working against you (lack of sleep, junk food) and add in things that will help you build joy (exercise, nourishing foods).

Keep up the great work- all of the good you do adds up!


Welcome to week 3 of The Winter Project!
(What is The Winter Project?)

Finding joy in the holidays: Leisure time

In spite of the modern conveniences that are designed to make us more productive, we have less and less time to simply relax these days. All of our things need to be maintained, cleaned, insured, stored, checked, updated, etc. The more “conveniences” we have, the less we have of what we really need- time.

With all of the extras on our to-do lists this time of year, it is easy to start feeling anxiety about having only fragments of time to do anything at all. When you finally do get a moment or two to yourself, you may find that you have forgotten how to relax or that you spend all of your downtime trying to decide what you want to do! Having an idea in mind that sounds deliciously restful can help you to make the most of your time.

Challenge for the week: Make a list of your favorite ways to spend downtime. They can be big or small- the point is to find ideas that give you energy just thinking about them. Looking forward to your favorite things can help you make the most of leisure time. Try to find a little time each day this week to rest, recharge, and reflect. It doesn’t need to take hours- even a few minutes can help press the reset button. Since happiness is cumulative, even little bits of time to exhale and take a break can do wonders for keeping the peace in your mind.

My list of juicy, winter downtime goodness:

My plan for the week: I will be making homemade (hands-on) Christmas gifts, watching holiday movies, reading a daily Advent book, listening to a serious page-turner of an audiobook while I’m doing chores and walking the dog, having a massage, and taking a family walk under the full moon.

What about you? What makes your heart smile?

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As we move through this project, I would love to hear about your survival skills, struggles, and success in the comments or by email (you can reach me at getnatured@gmail.com)!

Don’t miss out! Subscribe to receive free Get Natured updates so you can be included in The Winter Project. The weather outside doesn’t have to be frightful! xoxo

Other ways to follow along:
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*Important note: I am not a licensed mental health professional. This advice is not intended to take the place of therapy or medications. Please seek professional care if you are suffering from depression or anxiety symptoms.

How are you doing with connecting with the season? Have you found any new joys?

Welcome to week 2 of The Winter Project! 
(What is The Winter Project?)

This week we are going back to basics!

Finding joy in the holidays: Nurturing your basic needs

We are all familiar with the concept of the hierarchy of needs. We must do basic arithmetic before we learn calculus; food and shelter before fancy cars and trips abroad. Consider these basic needs in your life and think about how fulfilled you feel in each of these areas.

Don’t forget, happiness is cumulative! These things work together to keep you healthy and happy.

Consider these basic health needs and areas where you might need a little more focus:

Questions to ask yourself: Overall, how do you feel? Which areas are difficult for you to keep in balance over the holidays?

My plan: I will focus in getting to bed early enough to get a minimum of 7 hours of sleep. I’ll keep up with my exercise routine and not let workouts drop over the holidays. I’ll make sure to take a few yoga classes too. I’ll support my immune system with healthy clean food including a few new and old favorite things: magic mineral broth, green smoothies or juice, big ol’ salads, and soups like this immunity soup.

How will you nurture yourself through this season? 

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As we move through this project, I would love to hear about your survival skills, struggles, and success in the comments or by email (you can reach me at getnatured@gmail.com).

Don’t miss out! Subscribe to receive free Get Natured updates so you can be included in The Winter Project. The weather outside doesn’t have to be frightful! xoxo

Other ways to follow along:
Facebook
Twitter
Instagram

*Important note: I am not a licensed mental health professional. This advice is not intended to take the place of therapy or medications. Please seek professional care if you are suffering from depression or anxiety symptoms.

It is no coincidence that Pinterest and other social media outlets start to fill up with posts about pumpkin recipes in the fall and summer bucket lists in June. Tying our rituals and traditions to the seasons connects us to the world around us and brings new joy all through the year. Every season has its own routines, in the world and in our homes. I do my best to make my favorite seasonal things traditional and spend plenty of time in nature to observe the natural change and pace of things.

Don’t forget, happiness is cumulative! 

Try these ways to embrace the season and keep your joy bank topped up:

1. Food: Make something delicious but healthy, with warming spices like cinnamon, nutmeg, or cayenne. Think about using fresh seasonal ingredients like cranberries, squash, root vegetables, or mandarin oranges. Try:

*More recipes here, here, here, here, here.


2. Nature: Bundle up and spend some time outside. Explore with each of your senses noticing smells, sights, sounds, feelings, and the taste of a hot drink. Go big and go skiing, snowboarding, sledding, or snowshoeing or simply take a walk around your neighborhood. Some playful things to try:

3. Crafts or projects: Handmade holiday gifts are my favorite thing to give and receive and the decorations made by my kids are hands-down the most precious on our tree. This month we will be making gifts as well as ornaments for our Christmas tree. I am also using an advent calendar with daily holiday fun ideas that I wrote so we stay connected to the joy of the season. In addition to gifts and decorations, we also make sun catchers this time of year:

Welcome to The Winter Project!

We are heading into winter, the time when everyone seems to slow down to rest. It is time for blankets and fires and hot cocoa and it all sounds very cozy.

Until it doesn’t.

After the excitement of the holidays, or even during that time, we tire of layered clothing, dripping umbrellas, and muddy boots. We tire of being cold and of dark mornings and holing up.

For many people, the shorter days and cold weather can trigger the winter blues. Rather than thinking in terms of finding a cure, it can be very helpful to develop winter survival skills that you can turn to when you need extra support*.

Happiness is cumulative; fill up your tank!

I believe that happiness is cumulative. In my own life I have created what I call my “bag of tricks for staying buoyant” that I return to when I need to fill up my happiness tank. Just like too many negative things can drag you down, accumulating good feelings and experiences lifts you up. It is exceedingly important to keep up with regular deposits to your joy bank, especially in the winter.

Follow along with me while I introduce you to my strategy for staying happy and healthy through the winter and beyond. I will share my bag of tricks and offer some suggestions and challenges to help you develop your own.

• December: Finding joy in the holidays
• January: Surviving the winter with warmth and comfort
• February: Winter play!