September Coffee Date

It’s officially fall and even though it was in the 60s a week ago, now that fall is here the high today as I write this is EIGHT NINE in Boston…BUT I’m still ushering in fall over here by getting out my cozy sweaters, picking up unnecessary pumpkin flavored things from Trader Joe’s (like pop tarts) and buying ingredients for chili. We’re supposed to be back down to the 60s in the next week or so. Praise.

Winter is my favorite season, but falls comes in at a very close second. I stand in the 2% of people who claim winter as their favorite season. IT’S SO COZY. And the holidays. And then the start of a new year. And jeans and sweaters and scarves and hot cocoa and evenings spent around the fire with your closest people. And snow! What is not to love? When people talk about Boston winter, I’m always like “yea I love it, it’s like 17 months long and awesome” And then I lose another potential friend. Kidding. Kind of.

Ok, enough about the weather. Me and you are closer friends than surface level, we-talk-about-weather, kind of friends. Onto more meaningful things!

It’s 7:55am on Monday morning and I’m drinking my second cup of coffee (sleep was a little brutal last night..) with a candle flickering next me and the window open with the morning breeze gently blowing in. How’s that for illustrative writing? Let’s cozy up.

NPWH conference

I have been wanting to go to the annual Nurse Practitioner’s in Women’s Health conference for a few years now, but FNCE always fell the week after (and that’s way too much conference for me all at once) and I know a lot of RDs that go to FNCE and it’s fun so I always went to FNCE. Last year I didn’t go because I was super duper pregnant. This year, as I’ve processed how I want to grow professionally, the NPWH conference is a better way to invest my money and time even though I won’t know a soul going and I’m not totally sure what to expect. But I am SO EXCITED.

I feel pretty well networked in the RD space and I think some of that is because, overall, I feel RDs are more integrated into social media so it’s easier to network. The NP space, not so much. I’ve got some friends from Columbia I keep in touch with – my friend Meg is a pediatric NP and an IBCLC in training and my go for peds stuff, she also has taken on a HAES/IE philosophy so if you’re on Long Island and have a kiddo, you should go see her) – but other than her and a few other friends from school, I don’t know a lot of other NPs outside the ones I see at work. (I still work some weekends at the ED hospital)

So basically what I’m saying is …I know zero people going to this conference, but I’m hoping to meet some friends and get plugged in. There are several sessions I’m excited about & I’m signed up for a workshop on the last day that will certify me in several GYN procedures. It should be cool & hopefully a great learning experience. If you’re going to be there, be my friend!

I get asked sometimes how I travel for work with a baby. I’ve had a small handful of speaking events this year and have another one in November in Atlanta. My answer is that I take Cal with me. Even though it can be a lot logistically, it’s easier that way with him nursing and thankfully, I’ve always had good friends living where I’ve traveled to watch him for an hour or so while I give a talk. I’m taking Cal to Savannah for the conference and my mama and aunt are coming too and we are making a week long vacation out of it. The conference will be the last few days were are there. So they will be amazing help. It takes a village! In no way am I, “doing it all.” So, let me know all the good spots to eat and what to do while we are there! I’ve never been to Savannah, but I’m pumped about it.

Clean Mama

…as in the IG account and website, not what I refer to myself as lol. I discovered this account through Kylie and have found it so helpful. I don’t love cleaning and I don’t want to spend my Saturday afternoon cleaning. I’m probably not alone in that thinking. Nick is really helpful, but I do most of the cleaning because I’m home and he works FT. We live in 750 sq feet so it’s not that time consuming – but I’m not sure it’s the best use of my time. I also like a clean house. Enter, dilemma. About six months ago we decided on hiring a cleaning lady 1x a month for a deep clean and then we do quick cleaning in between. We shifted things around in the budget and it has been the best thing ever. I don’t stress or worry or dread cleaning like I used to. And that has been healthier for me and everyone else. I’ll forgo other spending for a cleaning lady anyyyyday. It’s working for our fam right now.

Ok, so why am I talking about this?! Really, because I started making homemade cleaners based off Clean Mama’s recipes and I’m in love. They cost pennies (pennies!) and take less than a minute to put together with ingredients you probably have laying around your house. I am not saying you should go make homemade cleaners – do you boo boo. And I haven’t fallen off the cliff into hippie dippy crunchy land (although I respect that land) …but these cleaners are just so cheap and I feel good about spraying our counters and floors with stuff I would actually eat so when Cal eats food off the table/counter or licks our floor I don’t worry ….because he puts his mouth on absolutely everything. He can shovel dirt into his mouth all day long (hey, immune health) but it makes me feel more at ease if he’s not ingesting cleaners…and the ones I would feel good about (like Aunt Fannie’s) are just out of budget.

Do what feels best to you! But also, don’t be intimidated by homemade cleaners. Nick thought I had fallen into hippie dippy crunchy land when I bought glass bottles and 5 lbs of baking soda off Amazon, but now he’s kind of into it because they actually work and save us $$.

What I learned this summer

Laying in the grass for hours under the trees with zero technology is so good for my soul. I forgot where I read this, but there was a study quoted that found people who spend 15-20 minutes outside in nature per day lower their cortisol levels. Or something like that – don’t quote me. Regardless of the study, based on my own experience, I feel like some amount of that is true! Cal and I walk to the Boston Garden several times a week in between his AM and PM nap – we meet friends there or Nick for lunch on occasion or we go with just us two and we lay on a blanket under a big tree and he crawls through the grass and eats leaves and watches squirrels and I lay there too with zero phone, just watching him or other people as they stroll through or talking with a friend. Weirdly enough, even though I’m chasing my speedy crawling 9 month old, it’s so relaxing. And so good for both of us. No matter what life season I’m in, I want to be better about creating a little pocket of time & space to sit in the grass under a tree and just be. Anything that relieves stress….sign me UP.

An apple recipe you should make

This might actually be my favorite apple crisp. The crumble topping to fruit filling ratio is so on point. Like piles and piles of crumble topping and sugary, cinnamon-y apples. I nixed the pecans because I don’t like nuts in my crisp, but other than that, this recipe should be in your fall food archives.

Thanks for listening & joining me. You are the best. And remember….you’re enough and doing a great job and have value and purpose to contribute to this world!