Here we are at last- our first blog post. We have been planning this for a few months now and over the past few weeks we’ve been on an adventure, working out how to set up a website, designing a logo and signing up to a whole range of social media platforms etc. So to actually get to the bit where we write something is exciting!! Because this is our first post it will be a short one to let you know what we are about. I guess what we want to say first up is that Life is Good but not without its challenges. But of course navigating the ups and downs can be much easier when we have some help – and that’s what we would like to do for you i.e. provide some help!
This blog is the first in the Category called Healthy Households. So first, what do we mean when we say ‘healthy households’?
We believe that a healthy household is one where everyone’s physical, social, emotional and spiritual well being are considered and looked after. The way this happens will be different for every household, but of course we all have lots of things in common too. For example, we all need exercise, good food, enough sleep and down time to play! We also need to work on developing and maintaining relationships with family, friends and neighbours. And finally we should all be mindful of our environment – including our own household environment.
So you can see there is quite a lot to write about!!
We want to share about what we are doing right now. But we also want to write about some of the challenges we have faced over the years and how we worked together to provide a healthy environment for our family. We didn’t always get it right – our children would be the first to tell you that!! But with the benefit of hindsight we can share some stories, strategies and recipes that will hopefully help you take a considered look at your own households to help find a healthy outcome of your own.
What does our life look like now?
Our lives are quite simple now with only one of our children at home and the hope of an empty nest in June this year. We have had our years of navigating the weekend sports events, the school run, and the everyday ups and downs of raising a family and find ourselves in a new season where we get to discover each other again.
Some might say we are boring now (and perhaps always have been!) but what we find ourselves doing more and more is going back to a lifestyle that mimics our childhood households (although with a few modern versions of appliances to help us – I’m not going back to a washing machine with a manual wringer!!).
So we eat well but simply and nearly all home cooked, and we don’t buy new clothes and ‘things’ just for the sake of it.
Oh, and we keep our computers and phones for years and we live in a house where the furniture doesn’t match but it is meaningful – for example, we eat at a beautiful old oak table that I inherited from my grandparents.
One other recent but major change in our lives has been the move to detox our household through the use of essential oils and the removal of commercial cleaning products etc.
Making this change has been huge, confusing, frustrating at times, emotionally challenging and educational. But we are so happy we did this and now want to share our journey with you.
We hope you will also join us at Helpful by Nature by subscribing to our email list. We would love to hear from you, take your questions and provide answers if we are able.
Until next time,
Gillian (and Andrew)
