Monthly Archives: November 2016

Three Practices to Cultivate Gratitude

Over the past few weeks I have been talking to my yoga students about what we actually need to practice in order to cultivate gratitude.  It’s easy to just say, especially around this time of year, ‘be grateful’ or ‘think of three things you are thankful for.’

You can easily spew out a few things around the Thanksgiving dinner table that you are glad to have in your life, right?  In order to truly reach this state of gratitude I think there are a few other steps on the road to getting there. img_3708

Presence.  Are you really present for your life?  In your conversations with loved ones?  On your drive to work? Continue reading →

Why Eat Local?

It’s been almost a full year since Andy and I decided to start buying our meat from a local farm right here in Connecticut.  Despite the fact that we have a giant freezer chest in our guest bedroom, it’s been one of the best decisions we’ve ever made for our wallets, our health, and (now I’m realizing) our environment.

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Photo from http://www.stuartfamilyfarm.com

After I processed last week’s election results I realized that real change starts with us individuals right here at home.  We can’t sit around and wait for our leaders to enact change.  It is absolutely necessary that all of us as citizens of this country and humans of this earth begin to make changes that will reverse climate change and start to improve our environmental conditions.

By the way have you seen the new documentary ‘Before the Flood?’ Bonus…Leo is in it.

So I went to Facebook and asked my friends, what can I do to get more involved?  I received a list of organizations to look up from helping clean up our shores to learning more about solar energy.  And while I do want to investigate all of these avenues, I realized that my first step should be to share what we are already doing in our household, that 99.9% of people are not doing. 

Purchasing local, grass-fed beef and pasture raised poultry and pork, is one of the best things you can do for the environment. 

When cows are able to graze in open pastures and are rotated frequently, a natural process occurs.   Continue reading →

Our Honeymoon in Greece – Part Two

One thing I absolutely loved about our Honeymoon in Greece is that it just kept getting better and better.  If you haven’t yet, head over and read about how fabulous Athens and Mykonos were.

From Mykonos we headed to Santorini via high speed ferry called Sea Jet. It took just under two hours and was a very smooth ride.  We were so excited as we pulled in to the port in Santorini.  As you arrive there are swarms of tourists, buses, taxi’s, and rental car booths.  I would suggest coordinating a private transfer with your hotel which most will be happy to do. Because Santorini is literally all built on top of a volcanic ridge you have quite the journey to get up to where everything is.  It looks like this…

And then on to the good stuff.  We arrived at our little boutique hotel, Altana Traditional Houses, after walking through what felt like a cliff-side maze of white washed walls.   As we turned the corner to walk in to the lobby, our jaws dropped, and stayed that way for the next five days pretty much.

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We were so warmly welcomed by the staff at Altana.  They gave us a little orientation of the island, the hotel, and things to do while we sipped on a delicious local wine.  Continue reading →

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