I like weather in the 60s. Even cloudy days. It seems like the zinnia colors pop even more on days like this.

I like our front garden. Yesterday I let a bumble bee land on my knee. I’m a little bit scared of bees (PTSD from stepping on wasps nest as a child!), so this was a big deal. Sitting in our pollinator garden is helping me develop a better relationship with these amazing little critters.

Also monarchs. So many monarchs. I love this.

The amazing and beautiful Sarah made a beautiful and amazing mask storage bag for us, organized by height! Now our masks (3 sizes, all made by Sarah) are easily accessible when we leave the house.💜 I mean, it also doubles as a nesting place for stuffies, so that’s magical in its own right. 😊

I love that we’ve been able to keep the bunnies and squirrels fed all summer (peas, cucumbers, tomatoes, squash, and beans). It’s fun having a nature preserve in the front yard.

And yet… I am equally glad that they’ve so far overlooked a couple squashes and one pumpkin. I hope they keep ignoring them!

I also really love learning more about our brains and nervous systems and the things we can do to change our lives even when there’s a lot about our lives that we can’t change…And then organizing and editing that information into fun, interactive classes! 😊

(HINT: My next series, Rewire Your Brain – Grow Your Happiness Practices for Greater Resilience, starts October 15th!)

In case you want a little break from 2020’s, well, 2020-ness. 😊

Oh, and in case you want more tools to help you work with what life is throwing at us right now, October’s 5-week series, Rewire Your Brain – Grow Your Happiness Practices for Greater Resilience, is filled with tools you can use to increase your well-being and resilience. Classes start October 17th!

One of the really fun things about recording appreciations over for a long time is going back to revisit them. Today I came across an appreciation for our windowsill menagerie from 2017. It still makes me smile today!

The players have changed, but the game still remains!

If you want help getting into your own appreciation practice (oh, and want to meet some cool new people and have some fun!), join us for our Rewire Your Brain — Appreciation Practices for Challenging Times class on Tuesday, August 25th. It’s the last time I’ll be offering this class for awhile, so be sure to register if you’ve been meaning to check it out!

REGISTER HERE

SPOTS STILL OPEN FOR TOMORROW’S CLASS
There are still spots open for tomorrow’s Rewire Your Brain class! Saturday’s class was excellent. Lots of laughs and lots of learning. I even got a new gratitude buddy out of it! Details about the class are below. Or you can take the leap (there’s no actual risk. 😉 Suggested donation is $25, but everyone is welcome!) and register HERE.

SCREENS FOR HAPPINESS
In other news, I was re-listening to one of my favorite podcasts, The Happiness Lab this week and came across an episode I’d missed. Score! This episode, Good Screens and Bad Screens, offered an interesting idea (beyond “limit your screen time”) for improving our relationship with screens — which given our need for screens right now seems like a great plan.

Here’s the idea: think of categorizing your screen time as different food groups in a screen time “diet.” There’s “healthy food” screen time — like connecting with loved ones through video chat or watching a show that lifts our spirits. And there’s “junk food” screen time that drains us. (For me, it’s scrolling through countless news articles or repeatedly checking my email).

I so appreciate this novel way of looking at my screen life! Now when I spend time on a screen, I take a minute to think about whether it is nourishing or depleting me. It’s already made a big difference in my sense of well-being. Thanks, cool podcast!

I know the screen time I spend doing tomorrow’s class will fill me up with all sorts of good feelings. It is definitely on MY “healthy foods” screen time list. I hope you’ll join us and get the same kinds of rewards!

However you spend your screen time this week, I hope it nourishes and energizes you!

REWIRE YOUR BRAIN
Appreciation Practices for Challenging Times

Date: Thursday, July 23
Time: 7:00-8:00 pm CDT
Location: Online everywhere
Suggested donation: $25 – OR pay what you like after the class! ️❤️