327: Before the Year Ends, Take Yourself on This Date

Before the holiday whirlwind begins and our attention turns to all the things we want to do, change, and create in 2027, I have a little invitation for you —✨ Take yourself on a date.Not just any date, but one dedicated to looking back at the last year. The beautiful moments, the unexpected challenges, the things you’re proud of, the things that didn’t go as planned, and all the wisdom you’ve gathered along the way.In this episode, I’m sharing one of my favorite annual rituals and walking you through how to make it your own. Think cozy cafés, candlelight, a favorite journal, and some really good questions that will help you see your year (and yourself) a little more clearly.Because there’s something pretty magical about giving yourself the space to realize just how much you’ve lived, learned, and grown before rushing into what’s next.I hope this episode inspires you to make a date with yourself before the year is through. You deserve it. ✨The Reflection Questions:What brought me the most joy this year? What am I most proud of? In what ways did I grow the most? What was the biggest lesson learned?Where did I struggle most?What did I do well and what could I have done differently?Mentions:* Pumpkin Spice Fireside Chai by Magic Hour* The New Paradigm* My Substack, This Season* Become a free subscriber to This Season This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit blairbadenhop.substack.com/subscribe

Something about October feels a little… witchy, doesn’t it? And not in the Halloweeny way. I’m talking candles burning, herbs drying, moon rituals, old traditions, potions and elixirs, knowing what’s growing outside your door — that kind of witchy.As I’ve shared, I’ve been feeling this deeper pull toward the natural world this year. Where I want to know the seasons more intimately, learn about herbalism, and bring back some of the rituals I used to practice before kids and motherhood and life got so full. And something about October seems to be calling all of it forward — it might be the month where I finally start bridging the gap between wanting it and living it.In this episode, I’m sharing:* the energy and personality I think October carries,* my fascination with the wise, earthy, herbalist type of woman,* why I’m craving more ritual and a little magic in my life,* how I’m thinking differently about Halloween and the holidays,* and what it’s like to really know a season instead of simply moving through it.So, grab a cup of hot tea, cozy up, and see if you can tune into how October feels, too. You may find there’s an invitation waiting for you.✨ Mentions:* My Witchy October Pinterest Board* Magic Hour Tea: Pumpkin Spice Fireside Chai* Life Unlooped: The Fall Edition This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit blairbadenhop.substack.com/subscribe

Do you ever spend months looking forward to a season — imagining all the things you’ll do, the ways you’ll savor it, how good it’s going to feel — only to look up and realize it’s almost over?Me too. And fall, especially, seems to disappear in a blink. We wait all year for the crisp mornings, changing leaves, cozy dinners, sweaters, and slower evenings — and then somehow, life gets busy and, boom, we’re pulling out the Christmas decorations before we’ve really had a chance to take it all in.In this episode, I’m sharing what I’m doing differently this fall to actually be here for it. Plus, I’m sharing two resources to help you do the same.🍂 The Spacious Fall — a new seasonal guide I created to help you move through fall with more intention, presence, and space. It’s available to all free + paid This Season subscribers.blairbadenhop.substack.com/subscribe🌊 Life Unlooped: The Fall Edition — my 45-day experiment in giving less of your attention to your phone and more of it to your actual life. This fall, I’m introducing a new layer to the experiment that I’m especially excited about — and I’m sharing more about it in this episode.blairbadenhop.com/life-unlooped/Because the goal isn’t just to spend less time on our phones. It’s to have more time for our lives. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit blairbadenhop.substack.com/subscribe

Sometimes life is just… a lot. One moment we’re going about our business, managing it all, riding the waves and then, boom — a health scare, a move, a loss, a relationship ending, or a career change arrives and our perception of reality shatters. I’ve experienced them all! And after a particularly intense August that brought some of my own anxiety back to the surface, I’ve been thinking a lot about what actually helps when life comes undone. Our instinct is often to escape the discomfort. To scroll. To strategize. To figure it all out. To search for some piece of information or plan that will make us feel certain again. But what if the way through isn’t finding certainty at all?In this episode, I’m sharing the three things I keep coming back to when life feels completely unhinged — the simple practices that help me get out of the loops in my head, return to the moment I’m actually in, and keep living life even when I don’t know what comes next.If you’re navigating a tender, uncertain, or intense season of your own, I hope this episode gives you a little something to test out — to settle the nervous system, ruminating, and uncomfortable sensations.MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE➰ Life Unlooped: The Fall EditionMy 45-day seasonal experiment designed to help you spend less time scrolling and more time engaging with your actual life. We begin the week of September 28th.Learn more at blairbadenhop.com/life-unlooped🍁 This Season on SubstackBecome a paid subscriber for $5/month to join Life Unlooped and receive my seasonal guides and experiences.Subscribe here This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit blairbadenhop.substack.com/subscribe

In this week’s episode, I share what’s been happening in my life lately.How August has brought my family back to more structure and routine, which has felt really good. How the addition of working with a personal trainer has brought both sore muscles and a couple of important lessons. How a new vision for who I’m becoming has started to crystalize this month. And what it’s been like to compare her to who I wanted to be in my 30s. Hint: they are veryyyy different.I hope it reminds you how important it is to create enough space to check in with yourself and ask: who am I now? Because as I’ve discovered through my own experience, it’s so easy to live on autopilot — automatically chasing an old goal, an old ideal, or an old self. Instead of getting quiet enough to understand what’s true and authentic to you today.So, make some tea or start your walk, and let’s dive into this little catch up.MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE* Braiding Sweetgrass by Robin Wall Kimmerer* To Be Magnetic (TBM)* My Substack — This Season This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit blairbadenhop.substack.com/subscribe

When you’re currently between WHO YOU WERE and WHO YOU’RE BECOMING — shedding an old life and stepping into something new…It’s so normal to feel like a snail without a shell — totally raw, vulnerable, and uncertain about almost everything.As someone who just spent a year living in that place, I can tell you that there’s one core thing that will help you find your way. And it’s not a magical wellness formula, personal growth hack, or life-changing retreat.It’s something simpler — something that’s actually always available, but harder to practice in our very busy, hyper-active modern world.In this episode, I’m sharing why it’s been the most powerful teacher and healer as I’ve navigated what’s next for me, and why I think it’s crucial for anyone navigating a season of change.Inside, I share:* This very important daily practice every human in transition needs* The concept of identity grief and why it’s more common than we realize* The surprising pattern I discovered about every decade of my life* Why getting to know yourself crucial to finding claritySo if you’re in the messy middle right now, give this one a listen.Mentions & Resources:My Substack, This Season. Check it out here: blairbadenhop.substack.com. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit blairbadenhop.substack.com/subscribe

We often assume healing should look obvious. Like taking time off. Going to therapy. Resting after burnout.But what I've discovered is that healing doesn't always look dramatic. Sometimes it looks like slowing down, enjoying your life, feeling content. And then wondering if you're doing something wrong because of it.Are you doing enough?Are you getting too comfortable?Are you falling behind?In this episode, I’m sharing the conversation I’ve been having with myself as I continue rebuilding my life after a season of major change. I'm unpacking the difference between healing and hiding, why contentment can feel strangely uncomfortable, and how I'm learning to question the old beliefs that still try to define my worth.I share about:* Why peace can sometimes trigger self-doubt* The lingering voice of hustle culture* Learning to trust a slower season of life* The difference between healing and hiding* How creating more space has helped me hear my own truthI hope this conversation reminds you that your pace doesn’t have to look like anyone else’s—and that sometimes the most meaningful growth happens when life finally gets quiet.Mentioned in this episode:✨ Life Unlooped — my 45-day experience designed to help you become less captivated by your phone and more engaged in your own life. Paid subscribers to my Substack, This Season, can join anytime and receive the full framework immediately.https://blairbadenhop.substack.com/subscribe💌 Subscribe to my Substack for weekly essays on slowing down, identity, and living more intentionally.https://blairbadenhop.substack.com/subscribe This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit blairbadenhop.substack.com/subscribe

We tend to think the biggest decisions in our lives are the obvious ones: where we live, who we marry, what work we do.But over the past year, I’ve realized there’s another decision quietly shaping our lives every single day — where we place our attention.Because our attention isn’t just what we notice. It’s what becomes our lived experience — our memories and our view of the world around us.In this episode, I’m sharing why I’ve become so much more intentional about what I consume, what I give my energy to, and why protecting my attention has become one of the most meaningful practices in my own life.I share about:* Why attention is our most valuable resource* The subtle ways distraction pulls us away from ourselves* How constant input changes the way we experience ordinary life* What I’ve noticed since stepping away from social media* A simple invitation to begin paying attention to what truly deserves itI hope this conversation leaves you wanting a little less noise—and a little more of your own beautiful, ordinary life.P.S. This episode is a little different. Instead of sharing an off-the-cuff personal journal, I’m reading a recent essay I published on Substack. It felt like one worth hearing out loud. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit blairbadenhop.substack.com/subscribe

It's my birthday week and I'm turning 43! Naturally, I've been reflecting on what my 40s have taught me so far—especially the last year because, wow, it was a transformative one. Some might call this season a midlife crisis (and there's actually science to support that, which I touch on in the episode). But I've come to see it differently: as a period of realignment. An invitation to question what's no longer working, reconnect with what matters, and begin authoring a new chapter. In today's episode, I share: What it felt like to question nearly everything after a major life transition The research that helped me understand why my priorities have shifted so much in my 40s How I went from feeling wound-up and irritable to calmer and more present The unexpected freedom that came from stepping away from social media Why this season feels less like a crisis and more like a homecoming Mentions: My Substack: https://blairbadenhop.substack.com The U-Shaped Happiness Curve: https://www.brookings.edu/articles/is-there-really-a-u-shaped-curve-in-happiness-over-the-life-cycle/ Laura Carstensen's Socioemotional Selectivity Theory: https://lifespan.stanford.edu/projects/socioemotional-selectivity-theory-sst This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit blairbadenhop.substack.com/subscribe

School is out and summer is here—and for the first time since becoming a mom, I'm heading into this season with a real vision for the next 8 weeks. It feels so grounding to have certain things thoughtfully planned while leaving plenty of room for spontaneity, too. As a sensitive mom who gets easily overstimulated, I know summer can quickly become disorganized and chaotic if I'm not intentional about creating space for myself alongside all the family fun. So in this episode, I'm sharing what that looks like in practice, specifically: how I'm planning our family's summer (without overplanning it) the specifics of how I'll create space for myself as a mom the small nostalgic moments I hope my kids to remember Whether you're a parent planning summer with little ones or simply thinking about how you want this season to feel, I hope this inspires you to approach the months ahead with a little more intention. And if this kind of conversation resonates, my Substack is where I explore this season of life more deeply in real time—writing about motherhood, personal growth, slower living, life transitions, and what it looks like to create a life that feels more aligned and fully your own. ✨ Join me on Substack: blairbadenhop.substack.com This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit blairbadenhop.substack.com/subscribe