Five Things I’m Loving for Fall
I was sitting at dinner with my best friend last summer. She was on the west coast for work, and I had driven over from Bakersfield to see her for the afternoon. We had a lovely and precious few hours together, drinking tea and walking along the beach. We ended up at a restaurant overlooking the Pacific Ocean and were enjoying a fantastic meal and meaningful conversation. At one point, she looked at me and said,
“You don’t really have any vices anymore”.
As of that day, I had been alcohol free for almost a year. She and I have been close ever since we met one rainy weekend on a couples’ church camping trip gone awry. She has known me for almost 20 years. She leads a naturally disciplined lifestyle and has a strong relationship with Jesus, one of the things I love most about her. Removing alcohol from my life had also naturally increased my own discipline and made my walk with Christ more consistent. I was no longer feeling like I was struggling with lack of discipline in that nebulous alcohol-y area of my life. Not drinking meant not throwing up my food, not picking fight with my husband, not waking up at 3am and staying up for hours a few times a week which led to not being too exhausted to care for my family well. There were a million ways I was feeling better, but she knew that for me, getting rid of alcohol in my own life helped get rid of some of the other strongholds I struggled with.
I looked at her and thought about what she said. There were many vices that just fell by the wayside once alcohol was gone.
But.
I countered, “well, there’s shopping“.
To which she replied, “Everyone needs a vice“.
And we moved on.
I know that not everyone needs a vice, friends. But I have to be honest- if shopping is wrong, I don’t want to be right. I think it’s a primal urge for contemporary women to essentially hunt and gather. Since we don’t have to go pick berries off wild vines anymore, and we don’t have to pluck our own chickens, shopping may fulfill a deeply seated need to get our proverbial ducks in a row and feel settled in our roles as nurturers and caregivers.
As I tell my husband, “It’s like sports, for women”. There’s a thrill, an unknown outcome, and the feeling of victory as one…scores.
So today, I’ll share some of my current favorite things with you. Maybe it will help you fulfill your own primal urge to settle your house. And maybe I’m just overthinking. But I tend to do that 😉
Let’s dig in.
The Whole Feast Butter Vanilla Protein Powder
My girlfriend Heather turned me on to this protein powder. She was experimenting with the carnivore diet and had been feeling pretty good. She liked that this protein powder was “nose-to-tail”. She said it tasted fantastic. I ordered it and we have been using it exclusively for almost a year now. It is tasty and chock-full of easy to digest protein. I’m not a fan of whey protein powders because they are hard to digest. I am not a fan of plant protein powders because they are also hard to digest. This one keeps you full, happy, and not bloated. It contains beef protein, colostrum, whole bone, liver, heart, kidney, pancreas, spleen, and blood. It sounds weird but it tastes delicious and I love that my kids are getting the benefits of eating a whole animal.
Kiala Nutrition Greens
My kids struggle with acne. They also struggle with getting their greens. We kill two birds with one stone with Kiala Nutrition greens powder. My daughter actually found them on TikTok and bugged me to order some. When we finally did, we were all really happy. The greens taste amazing (which is unheard of with a greens powder!). My teenagers drink 1-2 servings a day when their acne is flaring up, and the greens powder helps their detoxification capacity kick into superdrive. After a few days, their acne starts to fade.
Rebecca likes the Tropical Greens flavor. Use our link to get a discount.
ThredUp
It’s the Ultimate Hunt and Gather. Thrifting clothes feels so right. I like good quality items but I also like saving money. I buy most of my Lululemon, Anthropologie, and Alo on ThredUp. If I need a fancy dress, I look to ThredUp first. I also like to send them boxes of our clothes, kids and women. ThredUp will pick through your pieces and list things it knows will sell. When your clothes sell, you get a credit to use toward more thrifted items. It’s recycling at its best.
Here are some of the fun pieces I have gotten recently.
Anthropologie dress via ThredUp
Zara sweater via ThredUp
ALO sweatshirt via ThredUp
Lululemon shirt via Thred
With my link, you can get 45% off your first order. That’s insane. I want that coupon code! Happy thrifting.
All photos by my friend, the amazingly talented Lorie Chambless Photography.
LifePro Sauna Bag
Where have you been all of my life, Sauna Bag? Infrared saunas help with detoxification and cellular regeneration, purportedly. But honestly, I just think it feels amazing to sweat and rest after a heavy lifting day. I need the short period of intentional renewal to help manage physical and mental stress.
I try to carve out 20-30 minutes 2-3x/ week to snuggle into my sauna bag, throw on my Spa Radio Pandora station, and work on deep breathing until I inevitably fall asleep for 5-10 minutes right before I start to sweat.
I have recently started gifting these saunas to some of my private clients who need to work on parasympathetic nervous system activation. It is a fun intervention to get to send their way.
Julva Cream
I know, the name is off-putting. But the effects are fantastic! I recommend this cream for women who are struggling with vaginal dryness (after we look at DHEA levels with the DUTCH test, of course!).
But I also have a secret use for it- I put it on as a face cream and a hand cream. Topical DHEA stimulates new collagen production.
“Topical DHEA tends to improve skin brightness, to counteract papery appearance of skin and epidermal atrophy, a characteristic feature of hormone-related skin aging. Topical DHEA could also act on skin process related to wrinkles...” (source).
It works well for me, and it might work well for you, too!
So happy, healthy hunting, friends.
Love,
Jennifer
