Sunday SELF - C. 🎃 A. 🧶 R. 🤰 E. 🎙️

Hey 💌

Sunday SELF - C. 🎃 A. 🧶 R. 🤰 E. 🎙️

Below are last months faves for Cooking, Art, Reading, and Enthusiasm/ what’s bringing me joy lately.

Cooking: Pumpkin bread 🧡

This recipe is a copycat Starbucks Pumpkin Bread, but way more delicious and feel-good because it has zero artificial ingredients. 

It’s the little things 🍂🥰

like roasting an actual pumpkin and blending your own purée instead of using canned pumpkin…

… and mixing up your own brown sugar by adding a drop of molasses to white cane sugar…

… putting your love and joy into the food as you make it and enjoying it fresh rather than buying a slice that’s been sitting out in a display case for who knows how long…

That truly make all the difference.

Art: Knitting!

I’m learning to knit since we have sheep and I want to be able to make some socks, blankets, and even sweaters out of their wool soon. 

I totally get the “grandma hobby trend” because these classic and totally useful hobbies are so fun and feel so so relaxing!

If you struggle with racing thoughts or being able to rest without picking up your phone, I highly recommend starting a grandma hobby this cozy season 👵🤍

Reading: Nine Golden Months: The Essential Art of Nurturing the Mother-to-Be by Heng Ou

I resonate a lot with the ideas shared in this book on mothering yourself.

I’m not really one to sit around and complain about the fact that there’s no community or reverence for pregnant women the way our ancestors had.

I’d much rather choose to do what I can to feel my best and nourish myself.

So slowing down, and taking sacred moments to connect with the topic of pregnancy and nourishment as I read this book each morning is so so beautiful. 

This quote on health is perfection:

Enthusiasm: An easy, normal pregnancy

I’m excited that my pregnancy so far (at 16 weeks now) has been even easier and more enjoyable than I imagined. 

Most pregnancy conversations revolve around the negative symptoms like nausea, heartburn, cravings/ food aversions, extreme tiredness, etc.

I really haven’t had any negative symptoms at all, which I think is important to share for women who haven’t experienced this yet, so that they do not enter into pregnancy with dread or fear of all these “inevitable” issues.

The commonly discussed, unpleasant experience doesn’t have to be the case for you (at least not in the first trimester, like everyone says, ask me about the rest when I get there). 

I know that prioritizing health and releasing fears/ past traumas before I got pregnant created this experience for me now. 

Levi and I recorded a podcast all about the fertility journey and how we confidently stepped into this stage at exactly the month we had planned years prior. At a time when fertility issues are all that’s talked about, we have many, many thoughts…

We didn’t put out any new episodes of Cheers to Growth this month because all our conversations and excitement right now is around pregnancy, and we didn’t want to overshare so early into the journey or force conversations on other topics that we don’t really care about at the moment. 

So I’m thinking we’ll return with the podcast in January, maybe sooner if it feels right. That way I can continue being super present with this new experience and gather my thoughts fully before sharing.

If you haven’t listened to our past episodes, like the most recent one on gut health, go listen now!

And now that we’re in the thick of the holiday season, I highly recommend our episode on hosting and attending parties to help avoid holiday season stress and unhealthy habits.

What are you highlights from the past month? Reply and share with me 🫶

🤍 Jaclyn