I sit at my kitchen counter sipping my morning half-caffeinated coffee. I’m bundled up in layers, soaking up the sunshine beaming through the single-paned windows, staving off the cravings for flaky croissants, lemon-blueberry scones, and similar comfort foods. As my sourdough rises in the temperature-controlled space (the microwave with a stainless-steel bowl of hot water), I rack my brain and body for whole food dinner inspiration.

I’m not going to encourage New Year’s resolutions for 2023. Why not? Because too many of us fail. Why? Because we’re not truly committed. Why? Because we may not possess a deep desire for change, or we don’t believe we are actually capable of the goal. Despite the new year, we make changes when we have a deep, inner knowing that we’re ready. That readiness makes change inevitable; we can be unstoppable.

The eve of these 2022 holidays is also the eve of the launch of my first memoir, “Clean Food, Messy Life.” While the title may evoke our visions of seasonal feasting, how might we balance the desire to eat well with indulging just enough? As the big moon illuminates this week’s long nights and the holiday lights sparkle under fresh snow, I reflect on ways to remain present to what lights us up while not getting caught up in the messiness of the festivities.

On a waitlist to see your therapist? Have you noticed “mental health” is driving conversations across all wellness fields? Not surprisingly, the annual functional nutrition conference I attended two weeks ago focused on nutrition and mental health. Surprisingly, although Americans’ interest in personalized nutrition increased 27% after the peak of the pandemic, there was only a 1% increase in people seeking personal guidance from a nutritionist.

Food is a leading cause of dis-ease, yet it also heals…

If you’re like me, you indulge in a dark chocolate mint truffle after lunch (which I’m eating as I write this blog), or you crave something carb-rich or caffeinated during the afternoon lull (yep, that’s blood sugar asking for a pick-me-up). Perhaps your kids plead for dessert after not touching their healthy dinner, thereby tempting you to partake for the third time in one day (or forth, if you sweeten your coffee). What to do!?

With last week’s Harvest Moon and day soon to equal night, we are invited to turn inward. With school starting and chilly weather arriving, we are beckoned indoors. With the abundance of fresh food still bursting in gardens, some of us are busy coring, chopping, paring, dehydrating, juicing, simmering, and canning.

Or not. Perhaps, like me, you’re simply prioritizing the farmers market every week, ensuring you arrive early so the eggs, goat yogurt, and cantaloupe don’t run out…

In my teens, I lost my palate for flesh after killing our chickens and butchering the cow our neighbor raised to share with us. Wild game was somewhat more enticing yet, as an adult, I became veganism for environmental reasons, only sometimes missing wild game and (when pregnant) cured pig. The most prevalent question during those 16 years was, “Are you getting enough protein?”

“Yes!” I assured everyone. I truth, I didn’t know until…

I realize summer isn’t exactly “shroom season,” but I’ve been toting around a bag of dried morels and a jar of porcini salt while house-sitting. I mowed down some lawn mushrooms, inadvertently chose a mushroom-patterned cloth napkin, have been inundated with psilocybin ads on my Facebook feed, and was delighted by the colorful felt mushroom my daughter made at art camp. I’m surrounded by fabulous fungi!

Have you been drawn to the trails to revel in the wildflowers? Or magnetized by the energy of last week’s “strawberry” full moon? And did the solstice mesmerize you to marvel at the colorful evening sky?

I have been rearranging my schedule to get outside more and enjoy the magic of spring, witness the river’s powerful flow, soak up the rain. Vegetable gardens may have been stressed by last week’s frost, but nature’s vegetables are abundant. Yes, wild vegetables!

My son just turned 10, and while reflecting on a decade of motherhood and nourishing my kids and myself, I ache to slow down. I want more time with my kids, less time on the computer and, yes! less time in the kitchen. When cooking, I’d prefer quality time instead of rushing through dinner prep while simultaneously making lunches, considering breakfast, and failing to be present.

The universe must have heard my plea because the next day…

If you’ve been reading my blog, you’ll know I look to nature to help guide my food choices. Seasons. Soil. Science. Solar eclipses. Yep, astrology, too. This Saturday we’ll experience both a new moon and a solar eclipse. What does that mean for us nutritionally?

First, some astrological background…

Some say spring equinox is the real New Year, when we rise with more light than yesterday to start fresh. So why not begin each day with a new morning ritual? Many books and personal guides teach about the importance of a morning routine that can literally change the pulse of our lives with a few subtle shifts.

Where to begin?

Now that masks are optional in most places around the mountain valley where I live - and elsewhere - perhaps I’m not the only one smiling more. Or maybe it’s the spring-like weather.

Regardless, there’s an underlying essence of freedom has been restored (Smiles! Faces! Choices!), but I’m cautious about being overly hopeful because while walking around mask-free feels carefree, freedom lies within our own hands. Or, perhaps, our own health.

A week into 2022, I’ve put away holiday decorations, reorganized toys, and marked boxes of “old stuff” to give away. I’ve cleaned out cupboards, making space for my new pasta maker and fluted tart pan. I’ve tested my frother. Eaten buckeyes. Now: time to assess achievement of 2021 goals.

What were they, again? (Do you recall yours?)

As a kid living briefly in Reno, Nevada I was enamored by the Hot August Nights festival – classic cars and roller skates, hot dogs and root beer floats. Today in my native state of Idaho, I associate hot August with wildfires and unpredictable smoke that may extinguish end-of-summer camping and hiking plans. I certainly never associated auto exhaust, grilling wieners, or wood smoke with human health. Only cigarette smoke was bad for us, right?