Simple Things #13

Here are 5 magically mundane things I've noticed this week...

I’m forever convinced that jetlag is worse going to the US from Europe than going to Europe from the US. I’m currently sitting with a child who has woken up at 4am two days in a row, and have a feeling jetlag will be a common thing for the next week or so. But, definitely worth it as we had a wonderful trip filled with seeing family, my sister’s engagement, and many memories made with Maverick. There’s also something so magical about coming back home and getting back into our regular routine. I’m the kind of person that absolutely loves to travel, but enjoys getting back home too.

I skipped last week’s simple things and honestly really missed catching up with you guys and sharing the things I’m loving, so I’m excited to be writing this today. Onto this week’s simple things…

1. Of course, I have to kick it off with our trip. Travel is not easy, especially when you have a little one, but there’s something that happens in those tough & special moments that can’t be replicated at home. There’s a camaraderie you feel, and you can literally feel these memories being created in the moment that you will look back on for the rest of your life. There were definitely moments of everyone wanting to kill someone else on the trip (😂) and lots of bickering, but the rewards outweigh the challenges by far. We were actually laughing last night at dinner about how my sister and I are used to traveling with my parents for months on end as we did growing up, and we’re a good unit. But then you add in my sister’s fiancé and my husband and baby, and they were fatigued of the Burgtorf unit by the end for sure 😂. Have you traveled with family before?

2. I have been thoroughly enjoying Lacy Phillips’s personal Instagram page lately. She shares about life in Topanga, California (and their Mendocino home occasionally) with her daughter that’s just a little older than Maverick, all their farm animals, her herbalism journey as well as her magick practice. She owns the wildly successful business, To Be Magnetic, on all things manifesting. I’ve listened to her podcast for years and loved it but have decided this year I’m going to dive into her membership. It’s currently on sale for the lowest price of the year, so I’d definitely sign up now if you resonate with her work.

3. I downloaded so many books on my Kindle for our trip, it was a little excessive. But I am always in a different mood with reading and love to have options. The two books I ended up really diving into and loving were Witch by Lisa Lister and Reclaiming Childbirth as a Rite of Passage by Rachel Reed. They actually go hand-in-hand with both sharing the history of witches, wise women, and midwives (all one and the same) and how they were treated, tortured, and killed as a result of patriarchy and the rise of men in these historically female-led rites and passages. It absolutely fascinated me and I loved both women’s takes. I honestly couldn’t put either book down, so I definitely recommend them (I started with Reclaiming Childbirth and then read Witch).

4. I know we are a house divided here on Substack when it comes to Instagram, and most of us are complacent with the app as a whole these days, but if you still have that desire to grow on Instagram, I have a course I want to share with you. I have taken well over 10 courses on Instagram growth over the last decade. I’ve always secretly wanted to be an influencer there but never could get the right niche/focus and consistency to do it. But, I have seen some great courses and some not-so-great courses. I’ve honestly spent thousands of dollars on social media courses as I’ve grown multiple businesses online over the years, so I wouldn’t recommend anything I didn’t fully believe in. I signed up for Helene’s Instagram course back in 2020 and honestly have not gone through a course on Instagram as effective and thorough as hers. She has grown her travel account to over 299k followers (with 100k of those being in the last year) and doesn’t run her page as a traditional influencer would. I am not personally in the travel space but her course doesn’t focus specifically on travel anyway. I swear I do not recommend this course lightly if you still have that inner desire to grow on the platform (like I secretly *not so secretly* do). I’m planning on following her course to a T this year and seeing what comes of it. Anyway, all this being said to share that her course Instagram For Success is only open one week of the year and I’ve decided to become an affiliate to share her course with you. It’s open for 3 more days and you can sign up for Helene’s free workshop to get a feel of what it’s like to learn from her. I’m happy to answer any questions if this resonates with you, and if it doesn’t then just pretend you never read this 🤣. But if it does, it’s a great course to learn how to create a brand and grow on Instagram.

5. I wanted to end this week’s Simple Things with a post I absolutely loved from Molly over at

   Slow Scottish Stories
   . She shares how to create your own slow morning routine and it’s such a great starting place for getting intentional with your mornings.

   How to create your own slow morning routine

And there you have it! I’d love to know what magically mundane thing you’ve experienced this week that has brought you joy.