tmm // dec 23 newsletter
welcome to the mindful minute
hi friends,
and it comes to an end. Good riddance 2023.
This month has had alot of excitement. My legal issues have been resolved, they found the man who assaulted Jess and he has been arrested (YEY), Jess is healed from surgery and we went on a few staycations in Mt Hood. I’ve also begun planning our first big trip for 2024: Australia + New Zealand! If you’ve been, please send me all your recs!
Fostering puppies has taken over my life in the last two weeks, and we’ve already had one successful adoption. Three Little Pitties is an organization based in Houston that transports dogs and cats to the PNW and Northeast every three weeks, allowing thousands of pets to find new homes each year. We used to foster puppies in Cincinnati, so its a great way for us to give back and help pitties find a better life. Our first foster was a four month old pit, german shepherd chihuahua mix. SO smart. She was in love with Sampson and they had a great time together. On Sunday we drove her up to her new home, and it felt so gratifying to be a part of her journey. Our next pup is a pitty, lab, collie mix named Canyon, but we call her Moo Moo. If you’re interested, you can see more of her on my instagram stories.
We also sold my car this month, so we are officially a one car family. This is bringing back memories of when we first moved to the PNW, sharing a Honda element we paid cash for before we moved. It was more of a sacrifice to share a car then, but with the climate crisis being what it is, I think its the least we can do. Our goal is to make the transition to an electric SUV in 2024. It will be a big transition in many ways, and while I’m hesitant to have a car payment again, it will be worth it as its been a dream of mine for a few years.
In haus updates land, we added new lighting in the hallway, outside, two lights from the Sabine Marcelis x IKEA collection- a wall light I’ve been drooling over and a pendant for the dining room that I’m excited about. We finished the primary closet elfa system, and painted the kitchen cabinets and counters. We also completed a fun fireplace whitewash project to modernize the living room space.
We ordered the custom dining table back in November, and that should be arriving in January. A new mattress arrived a few weeks ago, and we should be getting our new bed frame any day now. Which means we also now have a guest room! First time ever. We also ordered our first custom sectional. I’m counting down the days until that arrives in mid February. At this point, we just need to order a few rugs, some dining chairs and a few finishing decor elements in the living + dj room, and we will be at a good place with the haus. I’m so so excited to see it all come together.
Next up on the agenda, updating the shelving in the office closet, and planning the kitchen remodel. I’ve finally found an ikea custom cabinetry option I love, so I’m really excited about getting started with planning this.
I’ve shifted one of my offerings to being called home therapy. In the past words like organizing + decluttering have been used to describe my primary service, however they’ve never been a perfect fit. If we’ve worked together, you’ll understand the shift to home therapy. Its about alignment of space + finding yourself in the process. Its magical, and I love doing home therapy with clients, for nearly five years now.
The Container Store sale is back, with elfas at 30% off. If you have a custom closet project in mind, you know where to go. Now through February 19.
If you’re curious to see how much this could save you on an upcoming project, schedule a call here to talk about it. Or you can ask me questions in comments.
This month I made it through one book that I think everyone needs to read, this one wild and precious life, by sarah wilson. It gave me hope in an increasingly hopeless feeling world, and addressed everything that has been consuming my thoughts for the last few months, and years.
Some interesting tidbits and quotes from the book:
people are 50 percent more likely to experience loneliness if someone they are directly connected to feels lonely
loneliness kills twice the number of humans as obesity per year + smoking 15 cigarettes a day is healthier than living on your own
‘we struggle to determine what matters anymore, and whether our own caring can make a difference. We buy more and more things, throw out food, use the clothes dryer, and disengage from the political process because… our disconnect from the matrix has rendered us paralyzed. And dehumanized’
‘connection-lite is the cheap, diet version of showing up to others and to life. Its when we answer a message with a wink emoticon to avoid giving our opinion or feedback. Its a copy paste forward ‘hows it going’ text to six people late on a Friday afternoon instead of mindfully asking if they’d like to meet for an after work drink. Connection-lite can provide us with fleeting, marshmallowy dopamine and oxytocin hits. And a vague sense of satisfaction that, tick, we’ve attended to some commitment or other. But like the diet version of anyting, it leaves us hungry for the real thing. You know, full fat life’
‘capitalism is a cult’
the arabic version of how are you translates to how is the state of your heart in this breath
‘you buy less, you become more’
‘In a world where we buy our way to solutions, we assume there is a price for this kind of freedom. There is, but its not a pecuniary one. It’s having to stand as yourself wihtout yoru things, and then walk your own path’
‘When I stand back, in my middle years, in all my yearning aloneness, in my grief, in my endless and aching love of humanity, this is what I know. This darkeness we’ve found ourselves in might just be the very thing that reconnects us to life again. Its taken me to my ultimate edge. I lost friends on this journey- which I had to accept as part of the growth deal. I had to let redundancies drop off. But these strange times that we can’t quite believe are here, also demanded that I step into my biggest, most alive self. Its made me look around and love life in a more intimate way. It’s made me quetsion what matters and hunt down… my true north. I had to find my resilience, my grit, I had to come to terms with how appropriate and necessary my rage is. I stopped apologizing for my Kali-esque rage too. And I realized perhaps it had to get to this terrifying and lonely before I- we- could connect as deeply and truly as I- we- hope we will’
puppies! we started fostering puppies with three little pitties. Canyon (or Moo moo as we call her) is available for adoption now!
holiday european sweets from world market. One of the perks of living out in the burbs now, we are closer to a world market! I’ve been in one probably twice in my life, but its the closest thing to jungle jims (IYKYK) in the pnw.
Love has won. what a wild ride. Its a cult, but a very poorly organized one, and a great watch. Also season 2 of our flag means death is out. I am obsessed with all things Taika Waititi, and this is a lovely comedy to watch.
rewatching rupaul’s drag race (season 13 specifically). We rewatch old seasons every year, and it never fails to be the most joyful show on television.
theres a few ways we can work together.
1 hour consult -a virtual option for home therapy, design projects, or business mentoring. Ask me anything, truly!
design consult- a 2 hour option for creating a plan for 1-2 spaces. Maybe you have a vision, but need to partner with a designer to take it to reality. You’ll leave this consult with a roadmap, and plenty of resources to do so. Can be virtual too!
custom closet design- offered for local or travel clients, we create a custom closet system with tcs, and elevate with product upgrades. Totally customizable to your needs.
Schedule a call here to get started.
Curious about working together in a way I haven’t mentioned? Send me an email with what you’re thinking.
this space is still brand new. I’m always open to hearing your feedback. What you’d like to see, topics that interest you, posts you’d like to see more of. I’m open to your suggestions on how to make this a great community space.