current favorites {may}

Over here, May is all about being in the midst of moving and choosing paint colors and kitchen cabinets and getting the last of all the things from the old house into the new and putting that house on the market. It's a beautiful and messy time. (And I'm sharing peeks at the new house over on IG using #thehouseofmagicalbluesky.)

As lots of stories are stacking up, waiting to be shared, I thought I'd make a list today of my current favorite things. These are the things that are keeping me going over here - from helping me stay organized to inviting in some deep breaths.

The "hello" welcome mat from Target makes me smile every time I see it at the front door. It's possible this house is going to have just about every shade of blue in it.

I'm rereading the Inspector Gamache series by Louise Penny. I. Love. These. Books. She's an incredible, thoughtful writer who happens to write detective stories. They aren't gory mysteries. They're beautiful stories about what it's like to be human - the setting just happens to be a small town in Canada where murders seem to happen. Highly recommend them.

After visiting Lori Portka last month and drinking her delicious coffee, I bought a milk frother. (It's possible I can't stop myself from sharing photos of foam and froth on IG. It's crazy how happy it makes me.)

I'm using my Trust Yourself perfume oil from Anna Wingfield daily. Always. It is my favorite scent to wear (photo from Anna's shop).

I've been eying the "OK" vase from the Oh Joy collection for a while now and finally bought it. Those of you on my newsletter list know that our golden Millie died the day before we got the keys to our new home. These letters are helping me just remember that all is okay, even when it feels upside down, like it has without her.

My favorite go-to inspiration deck from Kris Carr with illustrations by my friend Lori Portka. I'm choosing one every day. Lori's illustrations are like balm for my heart.

Love using Staedtler pens in my planner and my journals. Whenever I share them on social media, someone asks about them. They are awesome for coloring too! And because I (mostly) keep them in their case, I can usually find them amidst the chaos.

My Get To Work Book is helping me hold it all together. From ideas for articles I'm writing to paint colors to notes for future ecourses to just noting the days I do my practice - I'm finally getting into a groove with using a planner. I'm so glad I didn't give up. I'm a person who holds my to-do list in my head, which really is never the way to go. And it's taken me months to finally use it (almost) regularly. The new school year planner is out and I'm loving the black covers! (In the next few weeks, I'll share a post about how I'm using the GTWB and what I love about it.

The beanbag pouf from Pier1 (shown above) is my new favorite chair. It's possible my mom bought one for Ellie's new room and then when it was our only chair in the new house, I couldn't stop myself from buying one for me. It's my current go-to perch for working.

And pictured in the photo at the top, my vintage suitcases are acting as tables and desks right now in my studio. I've found several at flea markets and antique stores, but Etsy has some awesome options too.

Note that some of these links are affiliates, which means I receive a small commission if you purchase through the link. All photos are copyright to the businesses and makers mentioned.

To check out other posts where I share my favorites including the "I heart makers" series, click here.

there are stories to be told

The blank page, the blinking cursor, the big white canvas, the camera in the corner.

They sit there waiting.

Always waiting.

But in that empty space, an entire world awaits. A world that you (yes, you) create by simply picking up your pen, putting your fingers to the keyboard, grasping your paintbrush, bringing your camera up to your eye.

There are stories to be told honey.

Stories waiting inside you that are ready.

And I want to help you tell them.

Come along for my newest ecourse: Tell It.

You choose the medium you want to play with - from writing to painting to journaling to photography to blogging or anything else that calls to you - and I'll give you prompts to help you put pen to the page, paint to the canvas, pick up your camera, and have some fun. 

Together, we'll cheer each other on and create connections that will last long after our 15 days together.

Tell It is just $25 and includes daily emails full of juicy goodness and a Facebook group that will stay open beyond the course for continued connection and sharing.

Learn more and register right here.

adventure is out there {i heart makers}

to be brave print

Another edition of {i heart makers} for you today! As the days warm up here in the Pacific Northwest, I can't help but start dreaming about little adventures to take with my family. While looking for a collection of goodies to celebrate getting outside, I was struck by how many awesome handmade designs there are the directly celebrate the adventures we experience in our lives. So I focused on that word and discovered all these goodies.

One thing I love about almost all of these is that they'd also make really thoughtful gifts for grads, new parents, and some would even be sweet wedding gifts.

First, the print at the top of this post is from Mae Chevrette, and I love how it celebrates the way we have that deep desire to connect with our bravery and make our way in the world. From big decisions, like moving across the country after college or starting a new business, to smaller ones that feel big ones, like simply moving into a new house, we all know this feeling. 

The Adventure Moleskine from The Wild Creatives would be a sweet way to keep track of the adventures you want to take and what you find when you get out in the world.

I'm also a little obsessed with their Breathe Adventure Drink Coffee mug. 

The Adventure Awaits globe from Everthine Designs is simply gorgeous. Hand lettering makes me happy and I'm pretty excited that this is a trend that is sticking around. You can customize a globe with your own wording too, which is so much fun!

The "adventure is a family value" sweatshirt from elSage designs delights me. I had the chance to connect with these makers at Urban Craft Uprising and this couple is the real deal. Awesome customer service and just a very sweet, genuine vibe to them.

This "Blessed are the curious" watercolor print from Winsome Easel is breathtaking. 

And while curating over on Pinterest, I've seen quite a few prints and other good things that celebrate this idea that "you are our greatest adventure" but I think this one, also from Winsome Easel, might be my favorite. A gorgeous gift for new parents.

You can never have too many bouquets of freshly sharpened pencils, and these Adventure Awaits pencils from Earmark Social Goods make me smile.

Here are two products that celebrate the adventure captured in the movie Up (which is one of my favorites ever...that first 10 minutes or so...hashtag I can't even). First, this sweet print from Wanderlust25 Paper Co.

And then this handmade "Our Adventure Book" journal by Akeidah is the sweetest!

The "life was meant for good friends and grand adventures" t-shirt by ShopAugustInk takes me back to the summer in college that I spent in Jackson, WY with dear friends from the boarding school I went to. Wish we'd had these for the iconic photo we took by the Welcome to Wyoming sign we stopped at during our cross-country drive. Also love their not all who wander are lost tee.

An invitation: Are you a maker? Share a little about you and your shop with a link to your site in the comments so I can visit. Would love to possibly feature you in a future post.

Note that some of these links are affiliates, which means I receive a small commission if you purchase through the link. All photos are copyright to the makers mentioned.

To check out other posts in this ongoing series where I celebrate makers and the good things they create and design, head over here.

the beauty of real

Words from March 17: Today was a little girl home from school and pink eye and cancelled meetings and cuddles and movies and working in tiny slivers of time and a very sweet pediatrician and bangs that made me happy and cherry tree blooms moving on to unfurling green and chocolate chip cookies and taxes and paperwork and several "holy cats!" moments of adulting and more complaining than I'd like to do and a list of joy made in my head and a list of real made right here while I tried not to burn the hamburgers on this gorgeous night where the light is luminous and I'm feeling gratitude for the inbetween moments that bring me back home.

Sometimes you have to snap a photo and pair it with pieces of the true stories that make up a day. Use the prompt "today" and just start writing down every word.

There is so much beauty in telling the true, real stories. 

(Imagine a journal filled with images + words. Now imagine reading your grandmother's journal like this. Or even a stranger's. I think of that song "Virginia Woolf" by the Indigo Girls and the idea that someone else's journal can become a letter to your soul. Yes. Yes. Yes. And writing it out, taking self-portraits, telling the true stories is like writing a love letter to your own soul. For real. Love that image. Love it.)

it is time.

Maybe you're in a space where the longing feels thick. Where the stuff that makes up each day is piling. Where the roles you're playing are pulling you in several directions and you secretly wish you could just step away for awhile.

Or maybe you're in a season where others need you. A lot. And you know you need to create space for you and you simply don't know where to begin.

Or perhaps you've lost the connection with the creative soul inside you - the soul who wanted to write more, take more photos, play with paint and color, or even just cook like she used to. 

If pieces of these stories sound familiar, I invite you to come along to Water Your Mama Soul.

The practices you'll explore and conversations we'll have during this 10-day class will begin to create the foundation you need to tell your story - to live your way into the longings while seeing and feeling the beauty of your everyday life.

Because we can hold two things at once: The longings in one hand and the beauty of our everyday life in the other. The joy of living this crazy, awesome life in one hand and the grief that life hands you in the other.

We can hold all the things.

And we can find our way to feeling grounded and like our true selves in the midst of all these feelings and experiences.

I really believe that.

There's this bridge I keep talking about - this bridge that takes us from our daily to our longings. And no matter the longings, this bridge is really between daily life and more "really good days."

Think about that for a moment. Each day, you're building a bridge to more really good days.

That kind of sounds delicious and not impossible.

But honey, before you build that bridge between today and your longings, you've got to have a foundation to hold it up.

The practices in Water Your Mama Soul will be your foundation. They will help you begin to tell your story so you can name those longings and decide which ones you want to claim as your path.

Come along. This powerful online class is just $25. We begin as a group September 14.

Register right here.

i let myself begin again.

(practice heart talisman in the shop)

Last week over on Instagram, I paired the above photo with these words:

What does your practice look like today? How are you deeply connecting to the hum of wisdom and love within you? :: This week I've been skipping my morning practice more than I'd like. I'm just letting the day get full from the start. It's been an upside down week. Not all bad. In fact, lots of good. But my rush to get it done, to fix, to figure out has sometimes pushed through the practice. So right here, right now, I let myself begin again. Yes.

This morning, I'm reminding myself of these words, "I let myself begin again."

What do you need to "begin again" today? 

Here's one of the keys to this idea, at least for me: It invites you to set down the shame.

Though my work in the world is to invite others to feel like they are enough just as they are, I'm not immune to trying to carry shame around in my pockets. When it comes to my morning practice, the shame swirls into phrases like, "You're supposed to meditate every day. You know it's good for you. Why can't you even do this one simple thing for five minutes? How can you teach others if you don't do this? Why are you avoiding the one thing that keeps you centered? Oh and you're avoiding your teacher too. Perfect. That's totally the way to go. Fine, just go ahead and go online instead of connecting with what you need." And on and on and on into thoughts I don't even want to type here in this space.

But as Brene Brown says, "Shame corrodes the very part of us that believes we are capable of change."

When I stick to my shame or perhaps let it stick to me, I can't get back to my practice. I can't get back to building that bridge between daily life and the life I long for. I just look at the metaphorical building supplies and go get a piece of cheese and then a Nora Roberts novel or scroll through Facebook.

However, when I greet the shame like, "Oh yes. I know you. Actually I have some really good stuff to get to today," then I get to walk through it to the other side. I can't ignore it because then I'm just stuffing it and it will sit waiting for another day, but I can choose not to let it drive my life.

I can make the choice to begin again. 

Right now, think about one way you can begin again today. Just one. 

Write it down. Or even share it with me here in the comments. Or send me an email. I really want you to know you're not alone over there as you walk this path honey. You. Are. Not. Alone. We'll keep beginning again together.

Big love,

Liz

*****

This is an excerpt from the newsletter I sent out today. If you'd like to join my circle of kindreds and have these kinds of conversations with me on an (almost) weekly basis, sign up right here. 

a morning ritual (how to smudge)

They walk out the door in a rush, in a flurry of "Please hurry and brush your teeth. You're going to be late. Daddy is waiting."

Some mornings I head to the kitchen window and watch them walk down the twisty steps, him carrying all the things, her chatting and chatting as she gets distracted by the colors of the sky or a tiny insect or the lines the fog makes against the trees.

Other mornings I sink to my knees in the living room and put my hands on the floor, stretching my back into chakravakasana. Breathing. Being. Coming home to me.

And then there are the mornings I plant myself on the red couch and dive right into emails and analytics and holding my heart out in my hand in a virtual invitation.

Lately, I've been adding in a simple clearing ritual to bring me back to center. Some days it's my practice. Other days it closes my longer practice. Always it feels like a prayer.

I stand at our often dusty sprawling family altar and begin to chat to Ganesh. As the words swirl in our little house, as Millie snores in her spot on the rug behind me, I light the sage. Watching the smoke begin to swirl, my voice gets louder. I gently move my hand, enveloping the smoke, and let it encircle me.

And then I begin to walk. Chanting. Clearing the space with my voice, with the sage. 

It's a whisper. It's a roar. It's one woman in her little home asking all that is greater than her to support her in this day, to clear space for all that is to come, to clasp us gently in its grasp.

Yes. 

*****

How to Smudge

If you're new to working with sage or smudging, here are some simply steps to follow. I've included some links to supplies as well:

1. Light your bundle or smudge stick until it flames. It will usually burn out and begin to smoke. If needed, you can blow out the flame, but it should still be smoking. This smoke is what you'll use to smudge.

2. Smudge yourself by wafting the smoke toward you, getting your whole body and then step through the smoke. You can use your hand or a feather or feather wand. If you're smudging another person, make sure they turn around so you smudge both their front and back.

3. If you're smudging a space or your home, begin to walk around slowly, wafting the smoke into the space, being sure to direct it in all four directions in each room. Some traditions say you should walk around your space or home in a clockwise manner. As you're walking, be sure to also carry a small bowl or an abalone shell to catch any ashes. (Lately, I've been using my favorite heart bowls.)

4. As you're walking, think positive thoughts, even say a prayer, or sing or chant. The intention is to invite in what you most want to come into this space. You might even want to write a blessing that you say in each room (or to each person if you're smudging yourself and others).

5. When you're done, remember to gently put out the smoking smudge stick/wand. Do this by pressing it into your abalone shell or a fire-proof ceramic bowl. You'll want to make sure that it is no longer smoking and then leave it in the shell or bowl for a while.

Resources:

There are so many great sources for sage and other smudge sticks on Etsy. You can often find it at Whole Foods and other natural food shops too. Moorea Seal (one of my favorite Seattle shops/sites) also carries some sage and other good things. The sage wand in the photo is from the wondrous Jennette Nielsen.

Using sage is something I first learned about from my teacher Laura Yon. She also taught me the Ganesha chant I sing daily (if you'd like to listen to it and learn it, here's a short audio of me chanting). Additionally, Pixie Lighthorse's teachings have invited me to deepen my experience with the smudging practice.

As always, if you have questions, share them in the comments.

With love and light,
Liz 

All photos by Lauren Oliver Photography

get outside

It's that time of year where we begin to hover between winter and spring over here in my corner. Some days the rain just falls and falls and the grey can really start to get to you. 

But then the sun will appear. 

But then you'll notice the crocuses about ready to bloom.

But then you'll notice the tulips are starting to push upward.

And suddenly that fierce belief that spring will return appears again.

I've learned though that the only way I can stay connected to that belief is by getting outside.

You have to do the practice.

You can't just talk about how you're getting back to your practice if you dive right into email first thing in the morning and don't stop multi-tasking until you fall asleep just after checking email one more time.

You have to do the practice.

You can't just write articles about why people should start practicing self-care and mindfulness.

You have to do the practice.

You can't wonder why you feel so full of all the stuff that swirls around you when you know the very remedy that would help you feel connected to all that you believe in.

You have to do the practice.

So I stood outside breathing in my own backyard as someone used a jackhammer down the street (yes, a jackhammer on a Monday) and the cars whizzed by on the highway in the distance and the hummingbird chirped down at me from the plum tree and Millie the wonder dog sniffed in circles and the cherry trees preened under the sun's warmth and I realized I hadn't yet brushed my teeth and I started counting all the shades of blue in the sky and then I started counting my own heartbeats...

and I pushed aside the lists and the changes to come and the dream that won't stop tapping me on the forehead and the emails I need to answer and the realization that if I don't get in the shower soon I'm going to be that mom at the Valentine's Craft Fair who works from home and sometimes doesn't remember to shower...

and I stood outside and took five deep breaths and then five more. Just being right here. Noticing. Creating space within. Letting it all just be for a few minutes. Uncovering that connection to all that is greater than me for just seconds at a time.

You have to do the practice.

Yes, honey, I'm talking to you.