Build Your Tribe Tuesday ~ Create Space to Write

Patrick said good-bye to me before I peeled my eye lids open this morning. Snuggled in bed with Lucas and a puppy at my feet I had to force myself to crawl out from the warmth to go sit with Chloe and Eli who were at the table coloring. Eli recreating an Eric Carle book for me and Chloe trying to coax him to make it better.

I put on the hot water for my coffee, filled a glass with water to sip and mentally prepared for the start of the day. Lunches to be made, breakfast to cook, backpacks to get in order, dog to walk, some fun toy out for Lucas (Playmobile today), emails to return, a program to finish, a blog post to polish off.  Beds to make, dishes to wash, dinner to prep.

This all happens within our rhythm, and I will admit to not flowing well when that rhythm is interrupted. I rely on it. Recently Lucas gave up napping, those two hours I relied on, vanished. A new rhythm is emerging.

Patrick's time is in the morning. Mine is late at night. We have our own space and quiet.

He has space in the early hours to be alone and read. He is ready for the early rising kids when they wake. We both sleep about the same, hours wise, but at different times. When everyone in my house is asleep I sit down with a cup of tea and I write. I crave this time. I thrive on its routine. I am an evening writer and I love it.

Patrick said to me, "I think the reason you stay up till midnight writing is because you need your brain to get so tired that you can start writing from your heart." xo

Whatever the reason, the beauty is that I carve out time to write. It becomes a part of my rhythm. It is how I connect to my business, my tribes, my creative side.

Every single Wednesday afternoon you can find me on the couch, in a quiet house (kids have dinner with a wonderful friend) and I am working on my Making Space letters. Sometimes I write for hours, other times for minutes. When it gets dark I light candles, do a little meditating, it is one of my favorite times ever. The only thing I write during this time is content for those specific letters. Rhythm.

The common struggle of blogging or producing content isn't that you don't know what to say, you don't know where to start. So you avoid. There is no rhythm for you around the practice.

Practice creates rhythm. Space is inside of that rhythm. The space is where you create.

How will you start to find that space?

Real Mama Eats Eggs For Breakfast

Chloe and I have been taking pictures of ourselves together since she was little.

I was inspired by a post on a beautiful blog I read almost every day. She asked for a bit of a conversation to help with her situation of her daughter wanting some privacy and not wanting to be written about on her blog. I thought it was a good time for her to focus more on sharing herself. So I am taking my own advise a bit (not that my kids mind being blogged about for now) and I will try to add more of myself to the blog.

I have been feeling a bit selfish lately. Starting to have some real work time has filled me deeply inside. I love going to the office, meeting with my amazing clients and getting lots and lots accomplished. I struggle when I am home with the feelings of "things" never being over. I sweep, the floor is instantly dirty. I pick up the toys, they are all over the house again. I remove the toys and my kitchen drawers get ransacked and become creative play. I love all this as it means I have a busy and fun family but sometimes it exhausts me. My work on myself has been trying to find my calm amidst the chaos. More often than not I do.

I am curious as to why when I feel this way I define it as selfish?

In my work with my clients we figure out what needs to be focused on and then we set goals. I know that I need to include the kids in daily maintenance of the house. Part of that means that I must be more consistent with them. I crave more rituals in our house and daily life. I am looking for a rhythm we can all feel satisfied with.

This was Thanksgiving day and Eli had an arrow drawn on his head. (photo and arrow art work by Chloe)

One thing that is consistent in my life is my three eggs for breakfast or brunch over greens. I eat pastured eggs which means that the chicken have been out eating grass and bugs and that the nutritional content of the eggs is perfect. It is my dream to have my own chicken. These eggs over greens will not harm my cholesterol or make me fat. These eggs give me energy and protein to nurse my little guy, drive kids to school, cook meals, walk dogs, work, play...nourish!

Three Eggs Over Garlic and Ginger Greens

Cook eggs in olive or coconut oil until the whites are firm and the inside runny!

Greens of any kind, chopped 1/4 cup water 1 TB olive oil 1 clove minced garlic 1 TB minced ginger 2 t tamari soy 1 t honey pinch of cayenne fresh squeezed lemon

Add all of the ingredients into a pan and water saute until the greens are soft. Serve eggs over the top.