The Month of Love
Ah, February, the month of love. It’s the time of hearts and chocolate and gift-giving and greeting cards gushing with sentiments that are seldom expressed so openly. We’re absolute fans of any and all expressions of love, but we thought it might be fun to talk a little about how we take care of ourselves this month. The term self-love has different meanings for each of us. We want to talk, not about outrageous extravagances, but the little things we do to nurture and care for ourselves. We’ll link some of the favorite products we use and places we frequent, not as part of a paid endorsement or professional partnership, but just because we think you may like them too. As busy women running two businesses, self-care is vital to our overall wellbeing.
We’re both early risers, and love to start our day with 15 minutes of meditation. It helps to clear our minds and prepare us for the busy day ahead. Ronnie starts her day with a big glass of water followed by a protein shake with supergreens and collagen. She likes Sunwarrior as it comes highly recommended by her son Colton, a Los Angeles fitness professional. We both are careful to keep our immune systems strong and love getting our daily dose of zinc and vitamin C from drink tablets by Feel Goods.
We start almost every day with some form of exercise. Ronnie likes to get her daily Vitamin D and fresh air by walking her dogs Clive and Banjo before work. Evan has a varied routine depending on family schedules. She loves a long morning hike with girlfriends on her days off, rides a Peloton bike at home, and loves the pilates classes at Fitwise Pilates right here in Mill Valley.
Having worked over 40 years (yikes!) collectively in retail, we are VERY familiar with the physical demands of the job at times. Standing, lifting, and even steaming new arrivals can be taxing. We both agree that one of the important ways we can care for our bodies is through regular massage therapy. Kari Iverson at HELLO Modern Massage is absolutely fantastic. She can help relieve tired legs, neck pain, a sore back (it’s not the heels, we’re sure), or even some chronic illness. Evan has been getting great use out of one of her favorite Christmas gifts, an infrared sauna blanket by Higher Dose. If you haven’t heard about the benefits of infrared saunas, they are reported to help with sleep, detoxification, joint pain, circulation, and even weight loss. Miracle in a blanket, we’d say.
Probably one of the purest forms of self-love is making the time to spend precious time with those you love. Morning coffee at your favorite San Francisco coffee shop, a nightly stroll, no phones allowed, to download about the day, a day-long birthday hike without the distractions of work, a manicure with your teenager. Time is precious. Allow yourself what could be the greatest gift to yourself.
xo,
Evan and Ronnie