​I'm a hot mess and I know it, but part of why I am is that I'm always trying to grow! I take a lot on, I want to learn, I want to make the most of my life! Just like you can't comfortably live in your house and have it perfectly clean all the time, neither can you freely live your life and keep it perfect and tidy either!
Don't let perfectionism and outward appearances keep you from getting messy and enjoying your life! It's ok to be a hot mess! ❤️
Since I've been working on my health journey, some things have had to give. My house isn't as orderly as it used to be and sometimes I go to bed with the sink full of dishes or I haven't vacuumed in a few days, but I feel comfortable in my own skin, I have energy, I'm happy! I finally made myself a bigger priority than the housework! 🙌 I'd rather be a hot mess on the outside than on the inside! Be free. Live life!

​❤️❤️❤️ It's never too late to make changes. It doesn't matter if your journey looks different from someone else's. It doesn't matter if you are slower or uncertain. Your age doesn't matter. Your past doesn't matter. The only thing that matters is deciding there is no looking back. From that moment on you make decisions as the person you want to be, making you that person. You can't change your destination overnight but you CAN change your direction. Believe the truth and have the strength to start over! It's worth it! We have one life, make it one you are excited to live!

​Being willing to see your own beauty is part of pursuing truth. You are an amazing creation with unique skills and abilities and the power to change lives. Start with your own!
#knowyourworth

​Perfectionism is a prison. As I struggled through it, half my time was focused on never making a mistake and the rest of the time was spent beating myself up because I couldn't do it. Gratitude was what freed me. It wasn't that I wasn't thankful for my life but I spent very little time focusing on my blessings because I was so focused on being perfect. Fear ruled my life and I was exhausted.
When I let the fear go and started letting gratitude lead me, my life became a much more joyful place. I didn't need the vices that used to make me feel better, because I feel wonderful. I don't have to hide my mistakes or beat myself up for them, I learn from them and feel grateful for the experience. I don't have to give up on everything I'm not good at and compare myself to everyone else. I get to chase what interests me and take joy in learning and growing!

It's an important and freeing lesson to learn all around but it especially served me in my health journey. I don't have to throw in the towel each time I fall off the wagon! I don't have to beat myself up for an emotional eating binge. I don't have to get angry at myself if I miss a few days of exercise. Being imperfect doesn't make me a failure, it makes me human! Instead, in those moments, I focus on being grateful that I get a chance to start again, that I have the tools and knowledge to redirect, that I have this incredible vessel of my own to navigate the world. It's a joy to care for it and to inspire others to practice self care. Today, focus on all the things that are going right in your life, focus on being grateful for your body, allow yourself to feel joyful and excited about your future because you are creating one that you are excited to live! Brush off your failed attempts and keep going. Don't look around to see who is watching or listen to what others say. Just do the things and do them for YOU!
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Whenever you are tempted to compare or criticize, choose, instead, to count your blessings and feel gratitude for them and the future that you are building as you do the work! It might be hard but, beautiful girl, you can do hard things! <3

​My grandfather passed away when I was only four years old, but all my life my mom repeated this phrase that he used to say to her, " You have to roll with the punches, kiddo!"

As funny as it sounds, it told me, even as a child, that punches were coming. Life isn't easy or convenient. It's messy and hard and wonderful! Part of the wonder is seeing all that you are capable of when the punches come.  The strength you have and the strength you gain through the fight are equally important.

It's easy to get envious of someone else's fortunate circumstances. When you are 16 and your friend gets a brand new car for their birthday, when others parents are paying for their college and you are waiting tables to pay for yours, when all your friends are getting married and your love hasn't come around, when your friends have had three kids and you can't get pregnant with your first, when jobs are lost, when loved ones are lost, when the punches just don't stop coming, we often start to feel forgotten or even cursed! 

In reality though, the punches form our path. The fight strengthens us and we find out what's important to us and what isn't. There will be things, experience and people you will fight for and there will be other punches that you choose to dodge and both of those things form your life and reveal what you are passionate about. The punches aren't what make life hard, they are what make you the best version of yourself. You have choices in those moments. Will you be down for the count? Or will you choose to get back up for another round?

I love this quote from, 'The Count of Monte Cristo',  "Life is a storm, my young friend. You will bask in the sunlight one moment, be shattered on the rocks the next. What makes you a man is what you do when that storm comes. You must look into that storm and shout as you did in Rome. Do your worst, for I will do mine! Then the fates will know you as we know you: as Albert Mondego, the man!"

How will the fates know you, my friend? <3