Nourished.

One of the best changes I’ve made this year (well, one month in) is the increase in time I’ve dedicated to reading each day.

I’ve always loved to read – always always always – but I’d fallen off the reading wagon over the past few years.

However, I’m back in the game now, and I’m thoroughly enjoying devouring one book after another.

I recently finished the book, ‘Nourished’ by Becky Johnson & Rachel Randolph, and it spoke to my heart in a lot of ways. One of the reasons I picked ‘intentional’ as my word of the year for 2015 is because I wanted to dedicate more quality time on things that nourish my soul, instead of wasting away my time on things that do not advance me intellectually/spiritually/emotionally/etc.

In the beginning, the authors (a mother and daughter) list the top 10 everyday stressors of women, which include:

• Stress of chaotic surroundings
• Stress of schedules
• Stress of negative body image
• Stress of negative self-talk
• Stress of food issues
• Stress of fitness
• Stress of friendship
• Stress of marriage
• Stress of raising children
• Stress of feeling like a spiritual slacker.

‘Nourished’ breaks down each of these stressors and discusses how this mother/daughter duo have each struggled with and worked on improving these areas of their lives. Some of the stories are humorous, some are touching, and all are relatable. 

I didn’t find this book to be overly deep or informative, but I did think it was a nice, easy, and enjoyable read and it further convinced me to take some action in various areas of my life which I feel need a bit more attention.

Specifically, I would like to pay a bit more attention to the clutter in my house and to my lack-of-routine and create an environment that better suits my (Type A!) personality type. Disorganization stresses me out. Stuff stresses me out. Inefficiency stresses me out. However, as I look around my apartment I see piles of papers without a home. I see books scattered about. I see ‘stuff’ everywhere. I also notice that I have no routines in place, which is a bit ridiculous for someone who loves schedules.

My major takeaway from this book was that I should have a morning routine that I look forward to each morning. This routine should be an incentive for me to get out of bed. Well, this spoke straight to my heart, as my mornings are more-often-than-not spent with me delaying getting out of bed other than to gather Clara in my arms and head back to bed to nurse her! I spend time scrolling my phone, I spend time gazing out the window, I spend time hitting the snooze button… but I do not jump out of bed ready to start the day, that’s for sure.

I really do think that having a routine could change all of that. My goal for the next week is to determine what would get me out of bed in the morning. I have a feeling this routine is going to involve herbal tea, a good book, a podcast, and some breakfast, but I guess we’ll see if those things make the cut, or if I need to be a bit more creative in jump-starting my day.

Do you have a morning routine? What does it entail?

I’m happy to tell you that I have a copy of this book to give away. I highly recommend you read it, but I also think it’d be a great ‘thinking of you’ gift for a friend or loved one. This is one of those books that I actually don’t want to keep on my bookshelf, because I want to pass it around to ensure others get some goodness out of it, too.