Our Intentional Farm

November 19, 2020December 10, 2020

3 Intentional and Easy Lifestyle Changes for Healthy Weight Gain

Committing to intentional lifestyle changes for healthy weight gain has been a slow and not always steady process. It’s funny how we can confess to wanting something so badly but our actions don’t reflect our confessions. And implementing anything, even if it is easy, is difficult without commitment.

A few years ago we cut animal protein from our diets. Ever since my weight has dropped significantly. I then had to cut back on my sugar intake and my weight dropped again. One of my favorite hobbies is running. But whenever I ran, I felt like I was only contributing more to the weight loss. So I switched to primarily lifting weights – inconsistently. Before I knew it, I was the smallest I had been since childhood and feeling less than comfortable in my own skin.

Over the course of three years, I lost about 30 pounds.

November 16, 2020December 10, 2020

Minimalism Is a Journey, It’s Not All or Nothing

I confess I have failed. Haven’t we all failed at something in life? Minimalism has intrigued me for many years but somehow the practical application continued to evade me. That’s because I was thinking about it all wrong. I had to remind myself that minimalism is a journey, it’s not all or nothing.

Minimalism is a journey that takes you through a path of self-discovery. A place of intimate awareness of oneself and intentionality that helps to focus your energies on what truly matters to you… to me.

All of this time, I was focused on purging to get rid of as much stuff as possible. Only to get frustrated when I seemed to always end up right where I started – with a bunch of stuff still hanging around. I never got to a place where I considered myself a minimalist.

November 12, 2020December 10, 2020

Pandemic Parenting: Helpful Strategies to Get Through Difficult Times

Pandemic parenting is by far the most exhilarating yet exhausting experience. We are challenged daily to not only provide guidance and structure for our kids but doing that all while trying to accomplish our professional and personal goals is hard. But then they lather my face with kisses and I realize that I’m fortunate to watch them grow.

I get to witness their milestones instead of getting the play-by-play from their teachers. Baby boy is now walking and I got to see his first steps. I have been teaching baby girl site words and she is now reading complete sentences.

They’ve been at home for seven months. Though baby boy only got to experience school for a couple of weeks, baby girl still quotes her teachers and talks about her school friends almost every day. Occasionally she asks why they haven’t yet found a cure for COVID. She misses storytime at her favorite children’s museum. She misses her teachers and friends.

November 9, 2020December 10, 2020

Resolutions Don’t Have to Wait for the New Year, Start Today!

As the year wraps up, the New Year resolution pins and posts are going to ramp up. Our screens and sound waves will be inundated with challenges and gadgets claiming to help us conquer them. We all tend to like firsts – the first of the month, the first of the year. They mark the beginning and seem like the perfect time to get a fresh start on our goals. But there is no perfect time. Resolutions don’t have to wait for the new year, start today!

November 5, 2020December 10, 2020

Monthly Debt Update: October 2020

We will be sharing monthly debt summaries to show our progress and use it as a way to reflect and keep us accountable and motivated. This month we paid off less than expected. A bit disappointing but we had some extra expenses. Hopefully, we can make it up in the coming months. Let’s get into it. Below is our monthly debt update.

November 2, 2020December 12, 2020

One Act: Restoring my Confidence in the Democratic Process

My confidence in the democratic process has fluctuated over the years. In the current climate, it’s easy to lose hope and we have to be intentional to seek out moments of gratitude and optimism.

As a nation, we are at a critical juncture. The pandemic continues to wreak havoc, hospitals are scrambling to treat the influx of patients and physical and mental health challenges are increasing in number. The economy continues to struggle as governors maneuver between phases 1, 2, and 3.

To add to it, social injustices keep recurring and wildfires continue to sweep throughout parts of the west. People are hurting, families are hurting, and there seem to be no clear signs of recovery in the weeks or months ahead.

Despite all of this, there is a silver lining. The American people! They are turning out in record numbers not only to vote in person but sending mail-in and absentee ballots as well.

October 29, 2020December 10, 2020

Our Simple Plan to Pay off Almost $400k of Debt

Now that we have shared our debt summary, it’s time to set the plan in motion. The past few months we’ve been attacking the debt with gazelle intensity. We want to keep the intensity up and sharing our plans here will help us do so. Let’s cut straight to the chase. Here’s our simple plan to pay off almost $400k of debt.

October 26, 2020December 10, 2020

Journey to 40: The Invaluable Life Lessons Worth Learning

The Journey to 40 has been a very interesting ride. In recent years I’ve learned the most, grown more than ever, and continue to learn life lessons as I approached this milestone.

This past decade has been the most life-changing for me.

I traveled internationally a few times, married my love, and became a father of two beautiful and intelligent children who bring me immense joy. I found new hobbies, tried being vegan, settled into being vegetarian, and left a job after nearly 15 years.

Today, at 40 years on this earth I am more reflective. Much more methodical in my approach to just about everything including how and with whom I spend my time. I have thought more about how I want the rest of my life to unfold rather than just being a byproduct of life. There is such a difference in those two things.

October 22, 2020December 10, 2020

Building Confidence & Trust in our Kids with Simple Words of Affirmation

Baby girl and I started the practice of saying ‘Good morning, I love you’ as our official morning greeting. They are the first words we say to each other every day. Well, most days. She’s a toddler so sometimes there’s whining first thing in the morning. But once we get past that I steer her back to our morning greeting. She actually says, “Good morning, I love you, I love you too” as if she’s speaking for both of us. It’s adorable. We believe in using words of affirmation to build confidence and trust in our children.

I started doing this because our family was simultaneously experiencing a lot of transition. Simone gave birth to baby boy, I started a new job and we were staying in a rental house while our primary home was being renovated.

Our attention was divided more than ever and I wanted baby girl to know that she is loved unconditionally.

October 19, 2020December 10, 2020

Need Motivation to Get Out of Debt? Let’s Shock Your System!

Halloween is right around the corner but we aren’t afraid of goons and goblins. What we are afraid of is debt. There is something so unsettling about debt and the only thing in life that’s for certain is that there are things out of our control. Hello pandemic!

Need some motivation to get out of debt? We’ve got you covered.

If you are considering a debt-free journey and you are having trouble getting started, calculate the interest you will pay over the life of the loan. We don’t think you’ll need much more motivation than that.