WHEN A GIFT INSPIRES AN UPGRADE Recently my mother generously shared some money with us when she sold her house. I wrote about it a few months ago and how we passed some of it on to our children, and my husband also enjoyed the windfall by upgrading his motorbike to a newer and sleeker version. I was happy for everyone, but felt like I missed out because there was nothing I really wanted.  What do you do when you love what you have, don't like to waste money on unnecessary purchases, but feel like you'd like to have a treat too? Read more ..read more

ROOTS AND FRUIT I've been thinking a lot lately about the fruit we produce in our lives and what that feels like and looks like as we grow older. What I've come to realize is that good fruit comes from nourishing the qualities we want to grow in ourselves - and that nourishment depends on where our roots are planted. You can only get good, healthy fruit if you plant yourself in fertile soil and tend yourself well. So what kind of fruit do we want to produce, and what soil do we need to be rooted in to achieve that? Read more ..read more

image via Freepik TURN THE PRESSURE DOWN When I chose Equanimity as my Word of the Year, the driving thought behind it was how to centre and ground myself in quiet confidence and truth. I don't want to be striving after all the bells and whistles this world parades in front of me, I want to live a life that's free from stress and juggling too many balls. Retiring from work has given me the opportunity to move away from performance based living, I don't have to jump through someone else's hoops anymore. Life is on my own terms - as long as I remind myself of a few simple home truths n ..read more

image via Freepik INTRO Today on the blog I have a really interesting collaborative article about getting a good night's sleep - something that seems to be harder to attain as the years go by. Getting adequate sleep is essential to supporting our best life during retirement. Sleeping soundly is often overlooked in favor of more tangible lifestyle choices, like eating healthily and exercising regularly. But if we want to complete the health trifecta, then ensuring we have ample sleep is paramount to a happy retirement. Let’s explore the benefits of sleep in greater detail, and how y ..read more

image via Freepik WHO ARE WE BECOMING? Towards the end of each year, my mind turns towards what my Word of the Year will be for the next year ahead. One word that comes up regularly is "Becoming" - I've come close to using it several times, but it always gets pipped at the post by something else. Despite that, it still holds a lot of meaning for me because Midlife has been all about becoming my true self. I had no idea that the second half of life would be the beginning of putting away the old me, and replacing that way of thinking and doing, with a whole new mindset and approach - b ..read more

Image by frimufilms on Freepik LETTING GO GIVES US SPACE In a world where we surround ourselves with so much 'stuff', so many commitments, so many people, and so much busyness, what would we gain if we let some of the superfluous go? How much more peaceful would our lives be if we released some of the excess and focused on what really matters? What would  you like more of, and what can you release to create room for it? Previously, letting go was an issue for me, now it's something quite different.... Read more ..read more

image via vanitjan on Freepik SCARCITY VERSUS SIMPLICITY I have a strong aversion to scarcity. I lived with a scarcity mindset for most of my adult life - the fear that there wouldn't be enough....the concern that our income wouldn't be enough into, and through our retirement, the unsettledness of never being sure how much would be left over each month after the bills were paid. It wasn't a restful way to live, there was constant striving and juggling. Despite that, I'm a lover of simplicity, simple living, and less is more. There's a huge difference between scarcity and simplicity ..read more

image via stokking on freepik INTRO Today on the blog I have a really interesting collaborative article on how to begin preparing for a financially secure retirement. I remember that finances were my biggest concern when I decided to leave my job, and knowing that we had sufficient funds to get us through the years ahead was the deciding factor on permanently retiring and getting to enjoy this new lifestyle. So without further ado, let's launch into some interesting tips that I hope you find helpful and encouraging.... Read more ..read more

image via stokking on freepik PLEASE CLICK HERE FOR MY POST ..read more

WHEN YOUR WORD OF THE YEAR EVOLVES I spent a lot of time trying to drill down to one all-encompassing Word for 2024 that included being more calm, centred, and at peace with myself and the world. As I mentioned in my January post, I chose Equanimity (with a bit of help from my daughter). Because it's a complex word, it seems to have made me think harder, and in the process it's attracted me to other words that have begun to resonate. I thought today I'd share a little bit of what's been going through my head in regard to all I've been processing.... Read more ..read more