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I cannot believe I am writing this post because I still am wondering where summer went, but alas, here we are, almost to the middle of December, so it’s the time when I start looking back on the year, and reflecting on everything. It’s a practice I like to do in order to stay grounded in my journey, cultivate a sense of gratitude, and identify room for improvement as the New Year approaches.

January, 2019

In January, Buckles and I started moving our stuff from Hartford to my boyfriend’s place. It just made sense - my boyfriend and I had been dating for a while and the hour long drive to see each other every weekend was starting to get to be a lot. Since he owns his place, and I was a renter, and since he lives a short commute from his work, it made sense for Buckles and me to move out of our place. I had lived there for just over three years, in the Colt Building - where they used to manufacture Colt guns, and it was a gorgeous building. I loved everything about our little oversized one bedroom live/work space, but if I’m being honest, the surrounding area wasn’t the safest, and I am happy to be in a safer area, and of course be living with my boyfriend.

In the Cayman Islands - wearing cami, Bobi Romper (now on sale!), Celine glasses, PS1 bag

February

I turned 36 on February 15th, and we went to the Cayman Islands to celebrate. It was the first true vacation I’ve had in a long time, and it was the best. We did literally nothing - just read and hung out on the beach. It was perfect. I also did a bucket list thing, and started the Invisalign journey. I got fitted for them in February but wouldn’t get them until March.

March

In March, Marketing Director Lauren and I went to Kenya for our yoga retreat, which was amazing. We had the best time, and two of the women who were on the retreat with us ended up coming to different Namaslay® Yoga Teacher Trainings with us, so we got to reconnect in different parts of the world again, and that was awesome.

At the end of our yoga workshop in Zurich

From Kenya, Lauren and I traveled to Zurich, Munich, Berlin, and London for a yoga workshop tour. It was so much fun meeting everyone on the ma!!

The day after I got back from Europe, I had a dentist appointment to get the Invisalign on. They had to shave my teeth on the sides and I literally walked out of there in tears because I looked SO crazy and felt like I’d made a huge mistake. But, they really do know what they’re doing because my jaw was so crowded that in a day, the gaps from shaving the teeth had closed up! The Invisalign wasn’t really uncomfortable at all, it was just a pain to travel with, and I had a pretty awful lisp for a while.

In March, we also got an incredible opportunity to work with Audible, but the catch was that they wanted to film in a studio space. Now, we had already signed the papers for Namaslay® Studios, but we hadn’t planned on opening for a few weeks. I didn’t want to lose this opportunity to work with such a major brand, so we signed the contract and finished decor and setting up the studio in literally one. full. day.

My boyfriend and his dad designed and made me two yoga mat holders which came out beautifully. We installed them, and luckily I had a bunch of mats to put on them (#bloggerperks). We needed a group of people who were cool to be filmed for this project, so I reached out on Instagram, and luckily my peeps came thru for me. Here’s a photo we took together afterwards. I went on to hire Kait, the third from the right, to teach at our studio. She was our first hire!

April

In April, it was time to travel again. I headed out to Santorini for our 200hr Intensive Namaslay® Yoga Teacher Training. It was a fantastic experience because this was my third training, so I really felt like I had a solid understanding of what to expect as the leader of the training, and my team was solid, and we all knew exactly how to run things so they were smooth and seamless for the students. Here I am above with Debi from Switzerland on graduation day.

May

In May, I finished the bulk of my 300hr Yoga Teacher Training, and this is actually the final straw that broke the proverbial camel’s back. That is, sitting for hours on a flight, then driving four hours to training, then sitting on the floor for 16 hours each weekend, I just really, really injured my back. My right SI joint came out of alignment, and I was in the world’s worst pain.

At the studio in: joggers, old NSF sweatshirt, sneakers, IRO jacket

I came home briefly, but spent most of the time in North Carolina for my training. All the while, Invisalign was going well. They were a huge pain to travel with because you have to brush and floss between eating and drinking anything that isn’t water, and you have to brush the trays themselves and rinse them - which is nearly impossible in a tiny plane bathroom. But, I wasn’t complaining - if that was one of my bigger issues, it wasn’t a big deal. The back thing, however, was really getting to me.

June

We did a soft opening for the studio in June to gauge interest and see what people’s schedules were like. In hindsight, I would’ve waited until the fall because summer is a tough time of year to open a business since most people are away on vacation.

I also held a back care workshop in Chicago because I had a job to do out there with Vital Proteins, so it was just smart to combine the trip with a workshop. I had SO much fun debuting the back care workshop! In this photo I’m showing this cool psoas release move you can do to help with muscle imbalance.

July

In July, I had a job to do in Amsterdam, so we turned it into a little mini vacay after that by going to France. We started in Nice, France, where we spent some time by the sea, exploring, and we recorded a podcast with Erin from Bad Yogi! She was just as kind as can be, and I was so happy to meet up with her!

After Nice, we went to Paris. My aunt and uncle were in town for work, so we got to meet up with them for lunch even though we were only in town for 24 hours! It was so, so nice! From there, it was time to head home and get to work. I was starting to work on the curriculum for our Namaslay® 300hr Intensive Yoga Teacher Training, and we also had to get ready for Tennessee, where were holding our 200hr training.

August

We spent three wonderful weeks in Tennessee for our 200hr teacher training. Buckles came along, which was probably my favorite part of the whole trip. He loved being outdoors and being a part of the group! Here is a typical scene from an afternoon arm balance workshop I led. The views were to die for!

September

In September, there was quite a bit of travel. Ashley and I went down to Austin, TX, to lead a Business and Marketing Retreat, which was so much fun. I love getting to connect with other people who do similar work, and this was no exception.

Ashley taught the yoga classes while I taught the business and marketing classes and did the photography for the photoshoot (we send each person home with marketing photos they can use for their offerings). I fell in love with Austin and my only regret is that I didn’t have more time there! But by then, my back pain had really taken over. I was in so much pain from the constant sitting that I woke up in the middle of the night at the retreat in tears over the back spasms I was having. I had a massage therapist come twice to our venue, and she really helped, but I felt like something was really, really off.

After Austin, I went home briefly and then hopped another flight, this time heading to Minnesota. Minneapolis was the kick off point for our fall workshop tour through the mid-west. It was so much fun, but I was in so much pain, my mood was really off. I feel so badly about it now because Lauren and I usually have such a great time together, but this trip I was just so salty due to the physical pain I was in. She took it like a champ, but Lauren, I am so sorry for how angry/down/miserable I was this trip. It’s really amazing how physical pain can affect you in such a way. My anxiety was at an all-time high, too, because I knew that I had a huge trip overseas coming up, and I was really stressing about sitting on a plane for 8+ hours.

October

Honestly, I considered cancelling the retreats I had planned for October in Santorini and Italy due to my back pain, but I knew that Eva would be there. Eva is a woman I met at teacher training in Thailand in 2018, and she is a massage therapist and movement specialist. I knew she would be able to help me with my back. And, I’m telling you - tears, anger, constant pain - that’s the world I was swimming in when I arrived to Santorini. Obviously, it’s not the best headspace to be in, but definitely not the space you want to be in when you’re about to lead two retreats! Lo and behold, Eva realigned me in ONE session. I cannot speak more highly about her - she is a miracle worker. My pain was GONE. Not only that, but she identified the root of my pain - my right foot, which I’d sprained three years ago and never properly rehabbed, was turning out a bit when I walked. That was throwing my sacrum out of alignment. Further, I was sleeping face down with my right knee rotated out to the side which only further perpetuated the external rotation of my leg, and therefore, threw my sacro-illiac joint out of alignment even more. She taught me how to sleep and walk in a more optimal movement pattern which would help eliminate the pain for good. I am beyond thankful for her help. She does one to one work via Skype, if you have pain issues!

I was also so happy to see familiar face and dream right hand woman Ashley again. She is honestly so great when it comes to retreats - she’s from the south, so care and motherly love radiates from her. I was thrilled to have both by my side for our retreats, and they went off without a hitch!

What’s more is that we got a really exciting project completed while we were together that I cannot wait to unveil in the New Year!

November

In November, Lauren and I went down to Costa Rica. For anyone that’s been following the YBC® journey for a while, you know that I love Costa Rica. I lived there when I was 16, where I completed a study abroad program. It was there that I met Juan Diego, second from right, who became like a big brother to me. We have known each other since then - 20 years (!!!!) - and it was such a treat to get to spend some time with him, his boyfriend, and Lauren. I love when friends feel like family, and these three truly do. While together, Juan Diego and I also got to talk about some ideas for Costa Rica retreats in the future, and scope out location ideas.

I’m excited for what we’ve got in the pipeline. The two stayed the night at our venue, and gave a Costa Rican vegan cooking class which was well received. It was so nice. I hadn’t been to Costa Rica in years, and we really had such a nice time in the most gorgeous venue.

December

With December here, we’ve focused on finishing the year strong. We have been promoting our Namaslay® merch, and working on growing the studio.

This year has been full so much - there’s been a lot of travel, which always increases my appreciation for other cultures, and an appreciation for my health because I’m always reminded of when I was battling Lyme disease and couldn’t even get myself to the grocery store, never mind travel out of the country. It’s been full of friendship - I feel so lucky to have the friends I do, and have the opportunity to work with some of them makes work I love that much more joyful. It’s been full of pain - lots of physical pain from my back issue - but also of knowledge because I feel I’ve learned so much from this issue that’s not only helped me but will help others as I start to infuse the teachings into my workshops and trainings. I’m also filled with so much gratitude for the life I have. It may be tiring at times, it may be exciting at times, it may be depressing at times, there may be uncertainty at times, but I truly feel so thankful for all the ups and downs. I truly feel like I’m living my dreams, and it feels so good.

I’d love to hear about your 2019 in review, what you’re grateful for, and what you’re excited about moving forward! Feel free to share in the comments!

Year in Review: 2019