Sometimes I think there's a reason we tend to get sick during the wintery months; other than the bitter cold air. It's a time that we are forced inside and for good reason! It's time to look inward and reconnect to your intuition. Gift yourself time to rest so you can reflect, refine and redefine your life. 

For those of us living in the northern hemisphere winter coincides with new year traditions like resolutions or goals. We are gifted a new calendar year; a fresh start. Often our resolutions are a reflection of what we want to see changed in our current lives. A refinement of bad habits and a redesign to welcome newer habits that will serve us better. Whether you're limiting alcohol or cutting out sugar this is a renewal of sorts and we're feeling it!

Astrologically speaking you may have had a good time tracking your habits through January's Capricorn season as Capricorns are known for their hard work and dedication to a goal. Seems like the right time to set new resolutions, to me. As January flows into February we moved into dreamy Aquarius, who reminds us of those lofty goals and tend to start to think outside of the box a bit perhaps visualizing an entirely different lifestyle. Since February 19th we have stationed in Pisces Season and it's a big one with Mercury in Retrograde for most of it. 

While Pisces Season already asks you to check in with your emotions, Mercury Retrograde is reminding you to look deeper into why you feel that way? Are you being reactive or proactive? Is this really something worth your time, effort and emotional attachment or can you redesign where to put your energy an time? 

Let yourself grow through the darkness and redefine what comes next. You are the author of your life so be sure to write out exactly what you want to see. You got this. 

- Jenn Rose

(Photo by Soulful Stock on Unsplash)

As we draw close to the end of another year I'm excited for all the things that 2020 will bring; the new adventures, inspirations and growth. Looking back at these photo blogs each year stir up thoughts on why I chose each image and TBH I'm really enjoying it.

Would love to know if you make one of these too or if you have other end of year rituals.
So without further ado, my Gala Darling inspired photo reflection of 2019...

​2019  SUMMARIZED IN ONE PICTURE…

First up, It's been a while and a whirlwind.
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So much has been happening in my day to day that I haven't been able to keep up a regular blog schedule; which should be a reminder to check in with my priorities/goals before I became overwhelmed! Needless to say the Universe replays messages until we get them and if we learn to lean into the seasons we're about to learn how good it feels to let go of things just like the leaves on the trees. 

Sitting with the Seasons is a concept I've been toying with for some time. Autumn is such a good example of this concept. I'm all about feeling the vibes of the seasons and Fall is about letting go. We often know we should let go of things when they no fit, are useful, etc. However, I find it's often the memories associated with that thing/pattern that we have a hard time releasing. 

This is where the trees can teach us a thing or two. ​

I've always liked to write and while I love my blog, there's just something beautiful and magical seeing your own handwriting on paper. Growing up I kept a diary to help process my thoughts and keep track of those exciting moments. Now-a-days I see my journal work as a key component of my self-care practice. ​

​How, you ask? Check out these four different ideas on how to use your journal for self-care.

Today is my birthday and I'm super excited to continue my yearly self love tradition as a gift to treat myself. We all deserve a little extra love and care on our birthday and who better than you to treat yo'self?! (Cue Parks & Rec Tom & Donna montage).

I'm all about simple self love rituals; whether its buying yourself flowers or treating yourself to the "fancy coffee". Self love and self-care do not have to be about expensive spa days--though it could. It's about taking the time to acknowledge yourself and gift yourself some "me time". ​

This ritual is simple but requires a few items to amp up the ambiance. If you don't have the exact item, try substituting whatever makes sense via your beautiful intuition. This ritual is designed to happen before you shower, but if you're pressed for time you can at least bring that sugar scrub in the shower and feel luxurious afterward. Or treat yourself to a long hot bath after complete with rose petals, your beverage of choice and a good book. 

Those of us who keep track of Mercury's crazy cycle know how much we dread hearing those words, "Mercury's in Retrograde." Mercury is said to rule over communication, travel and technology and in our fast paced world those things going haywire can cause quite a few issues. Have you ever experienced flight cancellations and tech failures during a mercury retrograde? Those things alone can cause some communication issues...

But what if we took Mercury's patterns as a sign for us to look backwards and slow down?

When Mercury goes "retrograde" it appears that Mercury is moving backwards in the sky and lucky for us we just started another round on Sunday, July 7th.