So, it’s 2020. Everything is pretty terrible. And I’m not gonna lie and say, here’s the secret! Here’s what we do! Because I have no clue. There are people who know, or claim to know. There are people I trust and I will refer to, and there are a few small areas where I know exactly what I’m talking about, but for the most part we are sailing into the unknown here, and we only know what we know.

That’s not super helpful, and I realize that, but it’s truthful so I hope that’s helpful in it’s own way.

I trust that most folks are trying their best. We’re all just doing what we can. And things have been hard for a long time but they got a whole lot harder in March. And a whole lot harder again this fall.

So, I’m a personal trainer and a health navigator. I’m an activist and a mom. I’m a wife and daughter and sister and niece and cousin and aunt and neighbor and Californian and American and human and I don’t know what else to say about myself.

I grew up in San Luis Obispo, my mom was a librarian in the public schools and my dad worked for the county. My siblings and I were all public school kids (until brother went private for law school), I was a dancer and an athlete and an academic. I’ve dealt with and deal with eating disorders and depression.

I’ve worked in lifestyle change as a health navigator and personal trainer for the past 7 years, after sustaining a neck injury in 2011 that completely changed my life, at first for the worse and then eventually for the better (but boy does that sound rosy af). I live with chronic illness, my amazing husband, and our fierce child.

Life is hard. Life is good. That’s what I got.

There was a woman in our church, growing up, Mrs. Carl.  And she was a tiny woman, a kindergarten teacher.  Her husband was a high school history teacher, I never sat in their classrooms, he retired before I got there but my brother had him.  They were both very smart, and fairly quiet, and kind.  Thoughtful and kind.  And she would harmonize like no other.  It was great sitting near them every Sunday. 

They came to my high school graduation party, and when I got married she gave me these great glass storageware things for food that I hadn’t registred for because I didn’t’ know how much I would need and use them. For everything.  They’re brilliant~ they’re glass so they can microwave and not leach, and go in the dishwasher if needed and they’re just the best, I love them.

When I found out I was pregnant, she made, along with the quilting group at church, a lovely quilt for my child. 

My amazing child who just dropped and broke one of the pyrex glass food containers from Mrs. Carl.  It broke cleanly and no one was hurt.  Greatest tragedy is that now she needs to wait for fresh mac and cheese instead of getting to eat cold leftovers. 

And my dish.

I know I shouldn’t mourn it, that’s silly.  Especially in light of everything that’s happening.  It’s a storage thing.  It’s a thing.  Everyone is fine, we didn’t even need a band aid, let alone stitches, so, really.  I get that, I have that perspective, I  KNOW that it’s not a thing to be upset by.

But I used that dish.  That container was useful and thoughtful and symbolic of knowledge from women that we were completely oblivious to until the after.  And I know that my reaction to the broken dish has very little to do with and everything to do with how much I love and value Mrs. Carl and Mrs. Deitchman and Ruth Bader Ginsburg and that dish, that I didn’t know I needed… that dish is now NO LONGER THERE FOR MY DAUGHTER. 

So I sweep up the shards and I weep . 

They tell me today is Wednesday.

Be yourself; Everyone else is already taken.

— Oscar Wilde.

This is the first post on my new blog. I’m just getting this new blog going, so stay tuned for more. Subscribe below to get notified when I post new updates.

Allow myself to introduce…myself.

Here we are! Welcome! My name is LC, I’m an autoimmune mama, health navigator and personal trainer. I’m a lazy cook and I keep things simple. I believe that exercise should be a celebration of what the body can do and not a punishment for something we ate. In 2011 I sustained a neck injury that changed my life, in 2013 I married the love of my life, in 2015 I gave birth to our beautiful daughter and in 2016 everything changed again.

Why I’m here:

• Because these are isolating times and I want to share what I can. I’m not going to offer any secrets or unlock any mysteries. I’m here trudging through it too.
• Because activism and motherhood are a funky balance.
• Because self-love is revolutionary. Positive change can only come from a place of self-love. If hating ourselves made us better, we’d all be healthy af.
• Because lifestyle change is simple. It’s HARD, but it doesn’t have to be complicated. We’re complicated enough. I keep it simple: Fuel, Movement, Restoration. Do some of the things most of the time. Consistency is more important than intensity.
• Because there’s a lot of negativity and false positivity out there. We could all use a little sanctuary.