Mango and Golden Beet Smoothie

Last night, we returned from five glorious days off in Florida. It was a much needed break from a recent busy period and the epic winter we've been having here in Boston, and a great place to celebrate my love's thirtieth trip around the sun.  But there was one thing that was missing from our trip south: the sun.

Gloomy skies aside, we had a wonderful visit filled with quiet island adventures, meditative walks on the beach and some good vacation indulgence. We also had the pleasure of devouring delicious citrus in their natural locale. And now that I'm back, I'm craving more of those fruits and a return to my weekly health routine. 

This mango and golden beet smoothie is a variation on what typically makes up my daily breakfast: a blended mix of fruit and vegetables, nourishing powders and a mixture of seeds.

Beets are a wonderful detoxifying food, and in conjunction with mango, are filled with antioxidant-loaded carotenoids to help support eye health. Maca is a hormone-balancing root vegetable native to Peru and known to help boost fertility and control adrenal activity. These ingredients are combined with orange, raw sprouted protein, my hemp, chia, and flaxseed mix and immunity-boosting bee pollen to provide the right kind of sunny energy needed on a winter morning.

Mango and Golden Beet Smoothie

1 small banana, sliced

1/2 naval orange, peeled

1 small golden beet, peeled and diced

1/2 a mango, cubed

1 packet of raw protein powder (I prefer this kind)

1 tablespoon Maca powder

1 tsp hemp seed

1 tsp chia seed

1 tsp flaxseed

1 tsp bee pollen

Combine first six ingredients in blender, and top with water or preferred nut milk and 3-4 ice cubes. Blend until combined. Add in hemp, chia, flaxseed and bee pollen and pulse until combined. Drink immediately, or if storing, reserve seed and bee pollen mixture until serving, as they will absorb much of the liquid and thicken the smoothie.

Weekly Words: "Your Heart Knows the Secrets"

“Your hearts know in silence the secrets of the days and the nights.
But your ears thirst for the sound of your heart's knowledge.
You would know in words that which you have always known in thought.
You would touch with your fingers the naked body of your dreams.

And it is well that you should.
The hidden well-spring of your soul must needs rise and run murmuring to the sea;
and the treasure of your infinite depths would be revealed to your eyes.
But let there be no scales to weigh your unknown treasure;
And seek not the depths of your knowledge with staff or sounding line.
For self is a sea boundless and measureless.

Say not, "I have found the path of the soul.” Say rather, "I have found a truth."
Say not, “I have found the path of the soul.”
Say rather “I have met the soul walking upon my path.”
For the soul walks upon all paths.
The soul walks not upon a line, neither does it grow like a reed.
The soul unfolds itself, like a lotus of countless petals.”

- Kahlil Gibran

Shedding Winter Skin

In four short days, we're trading our wool sweaters and boots for some sand and sea. And while I'm thrilled for a break from the snow, I truly can't wait to feel a little sun on my skin. Before I do this, however, some targeted exfoliation is in order.

On a weekly basis, there are three tools that I use to boost circulation, encourage cell turnover and slough off dead skin:

• A washcloth
• A good body brush
• May Lindstrom's "Clean Dirt" cleansing clay

On a daily basis, I cleanse my face with a variety of oils, and use a warm washcloth to gently remove before patting dry. Before showering, I also spend a few minutes dry brushing my entire body, in a circular motion and always upwards towards the heart, which helps remove dead skin cells and stimulate circulation. 

Several times a week, I also use May Lindstrom's "Clean Dirt" as part of my scrub routine. This divine product is a dry powder of clays, herbs, and spices which foams up when mixed with a few drops of water. Once combined, I paint onto my face and neck, let sit for an invigorating minute or two, and then gently massage for another two to three minutes before rinsing with warm water.

As you've likely noticed, I'm extremely passionate about my personal self-care rituals. I love researching, purchasing small-batch or single ingredient products, and combining to formulate my own potions. That being said, when I discover a company with values and ingredients that I can get truly get behind, I'm all in. May Lindstrom's line falls into this camp, and I've been equally impressed and obsessed with her line since discovering it last year. A true alchemist and artist, May's products were formulated through her own kitchen experimentation, and contain a wonderful mix of wild-crafted, organic, and consciously harvested ingredients.

While these are all elements that I support, what I love most about this line is that it encourages and celebrates the type of personal rituals that encourage overall wellness. I'm a firm believer in the magical power of feeling like you are taking good care of yourself, as mindful self-maintenance can better encourage overall health and self-esteem. Simple techniques like self-massage and aromatherapy lift your mood, lower cortisol levels, and promote good health and immunity. Combine them with a gentle scrub, and you've got yourself fresh skin and a nice routine.

For more on dry brushing, read more here. For May Lindstrom, click here.

Happy Weekend...

Happy Friday, from sub-zero degrees Boston! I'm celebrating this as the last weekend in February that I'll spend shivering. We're off to sunnier climates in a few days. In the meantime, here are a few things that have been keeping me warm this week:

• Compiling a "Warm Up" playlist filled with upbeat groovy jams to keep you toasty.
• Loving this ScienceTake on the mechanisms of popcorn by The New York Times, which depicts what goes on in our kitchen about three times a week. Our preferred topping is a melted butter, maple syrup and pink sea salt combo. Stovetop popcorn addicts unite!
• Doing a little research on the best natural sunscreens for our trip down south, thanks to EWG's comprehensive guide.
• And finally, a beautiful and humbling quote from the Oliver Sacks essay regarding his diagnosis of terminal cancer, released this week:

“I cannot pretend I am without fear. But my predominant feeling is one of gratitude. I have loved and been loved; I have been given much and I have given something in return; I have read and traveled and thought and written. I have had an intercourse with the world, the special intercourse of writers and readers.

Above all, I have been a sentient being, a thinking animal, on this beautiful planet, and that in itself has been an enormous privilege and adventure.””

— Oliver Sacks

Thoughts on Building Home

Lately, I've been spending a little too much time thinking about what makes a place feel like home. This could be because some apartment-dwelling woes have been bringing us down. Or perhaps it has to do with bearing an inevitably long winter in a new city that still doesn't feel quite like my own. But whatever the reason, I find myself racking my brain - yearning, even - to think of a place to come home to.

“The narrow streets,
the houses,
the past, the future,
the doorway that belongs
to you and me.”

— Mary Oliver, "Coming Home"

As a child, I loved my home. More than just a roof and wood shutters, home was a collection of images and emotions. It was the safe space created after dark in the winter, falling asleep in a dark bedroom while my parents were still awake - a fact I knew to be true thanks to the soft glow of the holiday candles keeping watch in our bedroom windows.

In the summer, home extended past man-made foundations and into the streets around our house. Friends' houses felt like home, but so did the woods that surrounded the brook behind my cousin's backyard. And when we rode our bikes, barefoot, through hot neighborhood roads, steaming after the August rain, they felt like interconnected highways making up the intricate map of my domain.

I've felt home while climbing mountains in Vermont in February, peaceful and empty, with the only sounds being my boots in the snow and naked branches of trees bending together in the wind. I felt home on the Upper East Side, while jogging around the dusty path of Central Park's reservoir at dusk in late spring, with the knowledge that this city was just as much mine as anyone's every time I walked out the door. And I've felt home at the far tip of Cape Cod, as we filled up our Jeep's tires after a day of driving on the beach, The Eagles blaring on the radio as we bathed in the golden sun, setting in every direction around us.

We live in a transient time - an era when many don't have a home, albeit a safe one, and others never return to the places that they were raised. It's a generation of rented apartments, couch-surfing, starter homes and AirBnB. But still, I find the concept of "home" to be critical.

Our memories, through space and time, help us define where we come from. And if we're fortunate enough, we leave those homes and are forced to create walls around us to find solace, and to help us define what home is in the present. But we can never fully go back to where we came from; the only path from here is onward.

I love the words of Pico Iyer, who said that "movement is a fantastic privilege, and it allows us to do so much that our grandparents could never have dreamed of doing. But movement, ultimately, only has a meaning if you have a home to go back to. And home, in the end, is of course not just the place where you sleep. It's the place where you stand."

I haven't determined if Boston is my forever home. We have dreams of warmer weather, of backyards, and even travels abroad. But I mostly hope to create a place that imbues the same feelings of safety, comfort,  and relief that I've felt in the past, whenever I walk in the door.

So in the meantime, it's a shift in perspective. I'll stop looking for familiarity and comfort in the way the light hits buildings in our neighborhood, and how it reminds me of another city's home. Instead I'll work to find a community that I can connect with to help build memories to place my cornerstone on. I'll explore new spaces and build rituals. And most importantly, I'll keep reminding myself that sometimes, something as simple as a person, a moment of stillness and an embrace, can help us feel safe and home.

Weekly Words: "Life is Transition"

"Life is transition, and transitions are powerful times, true opportunities for absolute transformation. However, transitions may also be painful, chaotic, disorienting and isolating. American culture lacks the ritual solidity to bolster and fortify those in transitory life experiences.

Many times, transition may cause alienation from our previous circles and communities - at least for awhile. But these liminal in-between periods can offer insight and tremendous growth if we develop the tools to ground us, to build a foundation of self-love, self-care, positive storytelling and rich daily living."

- Lara Vesta and Deva Munay

Nourishing Winter Facial Steam

I love pampering.

The rituals of wellness are something that I inherited from my mother, a beautiful woman well-versed in the craft of holistic self-maintenance. Growing up, the casual mention of "needing to take care of myself," was a line I heard frequently, and began adopting myself as I got older.  Today, I generally use this phrase when life gets a little bit crazy, when I need to de-stress, or even as I'm looking to find balance before approaching a new week.

As a teenager, I was fortunate to be treated to the occasional facial, and in turn, experimented with many of the techniques I experienced at home. Steaming was one of these tactics, and as I've gotten older, have learned to appreciate as a great weekly delight, even if it's just done while boiling water for morning coffee. As a side bonus, it does one hell of a job clearing stuffed winter noses too.

Steaming, when performed periodically, is divine for boosting circulation, breaking up any dirt or debris in your pores, and plumping up your skin. The glow it imparts is nearly instantaneous, and when combined with nourishing and relaxing herbs, the relaxation experience is magnified.

Below is a recipe that I've used to bring a little warmth and love to my cold winter skin. It combines lavender and lemongrass, which are both awesomely antimicrobial and antibacterial, Vitamin C-packed dried rose hips, and chamomile, which soothes irritation and delivers calming vibes. After steaming, follow with a gentle facial massage for an extra-pampering boost.

Nourishing Winter Facial Steam

2 parts dried chamomile

1 part dried rose hips

1.5 parts dried lavender

1 part dried lemongrass

2-3 drops sweet orange essential oil

Combine the first four ingredients in a glass jar, and store in a cool place for use. When ready to steam, place a heaping handful of the mixed herbs into a pot and fill with several inches of water and 2-3 drops of sweet orange oil. Bring to a boil, and remove from heat. Drape a towel over your head, and allow the steam to fill the space for 5-7 minutes, inhaling deeply and taking cool air breaks as needed. When complete, rinse face with cold water and finish with a facial mask and/or facial massage.

Note: As with everything, steam in moderation, as overdoing it can damage and age skin. Also, steaming on extremely active acne can also have the opposite effect, so avoid during major breakouts.

Weekly Words: "Love: What Life is All About"

"Most of us never learn to love at all. We play at love, imitate lovers, treat love as a game. Is it any wonder so many of us are dying of loneliness, feel anxious and unfulfilled, even in seemingly close relationships, and are always looking elsewhere for something more which we feel must certainly be there? “Is that all there is?” the song asks.

There is something else. It’s simply this — the limitless potential of love within each person eager to be recognized, waiting to be developed, learning to grow.

It’s never too late to learn anything for which you have a potential. If you want to learn to love, then you must start the process of finding out what it is, what qualities make up a loving person and how these are developed. Each person has the potential for love. But potential is never realized without work. This does not mean pain. Love, especially, is learned best in wonder, in joy, in peace, in living."

- Leo F. Buscaglia