An Antidote for Exhaustion?

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He kissed lepers, loved Lady Poverty, and had holes in his hands.

It’s the Feast Day of St. Francis of Assisi! In honor of him, I like to show my kids these basketball dunking, beatboxing, Jesus-loving Fransiscan friars. Got to love hooded, holy men. ⛹🏾

In today’s issue:

• Home Decor: They say it takes a village…

• Games: From screens to teams

• Jewelry: Get Two-Faced

• Leggings: It’s my newsletter, and I can get rid of them if I want to

• News: Just boys being men

ATHLEISURE: It’s your turn, leggings. We’ve ditched the skinny jeans, now it’s time to introduce some non skin-tight pants into our exercise repertoire. Let your legs breathe a bit with these cute, high waisted joggers. Here’s a fun budget option. This throwback track pant might remind you of gym class, but they look super comfy…and no one’s forcing you to run laps. If you still want a legging-feel, these wide leg pants might put some pep in your step. 🤸

FAMILY GAME NIGHT: Okay, are you sweating yet? If you live with a family of Paris’, you may want to opt for cooperative games. My little kids love Gnomes at Night and Space Escape. For the bigs— Forbidden Island and Pandemic. And if you need to have some fun competition, get up and move. Beat It and Monikers (definitely scan the cards before kid use) are excellent choices. There—at least two Christmas presents to mark off your list. I haven’t tried the game below, but it looks right up my kids’ alley.

Search Party: Chaos at the Park

Your search for the perfect family game is over. Search Party: Chaos at the Park is an epic 3-D pop-up search-and-find adventure. 

The people of Chaos City amusement park are in trouble and it's up to you to follow the characters around the park to help answer questions and solve mysteries! 

Over the course of 15 missions, you'll sabotage mad scientists, help parkgoers find love, and more. With fun pop-up structures and a highly intricate board packed with hidden objects and kooky characters, including 300 hidden items, the whole family will have a blast. 

The game is perfect for players 8+, so parents, siblings, cousins, and friends can all get searching together. Find it at Walmart, Target, Amazon, and Relatable.com. 

Brought to you by What Do You Meme? Family, a Relatable brand.

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HOME TRENDS: Move over Barbie, there’s a new Tiktok trend in town. Ditch the three inch heels for these three inch Lenox Spice Houses. Quirky, whimsical, and, if I may, practical, the porcelain spice canisters are super kitsch with a dash of class. How does it feel to be God’s favorite? This woman knows. 🏠

FASHION: Second place no more! Silver has been the star of 2023’s jewlery scene after being runner-up for a decade. But gold isn’t going anywhere soon. What’s the solution? Mix those metals! To get it right, focus on layering same pieces (rings on your fingers or necklaces of different lengths) and balancing the silver to gold ratio. Find one mixed metal piece to serve as a “bridge” between the two. Need some inspo? Here’s a sweet bracelet, a chunky investment earring, and a two-toned necklace (and a budget piece) perfect for layering.

• A football ritual I’d let me son get into ⚜

• An Alzheimer’s Odyssey and an honest, beautiful look at marriage

• Why homemakers matter—whether you work or not

• 🌲Need to boost health and happiness? Check out Norway’s secrect weapon: Friluftsliv

• How to see the “Ring of Fire” Solar Eclipse (You can uncross your legs now…IYKYK)

The antidote for exhaustion may not be rest . . . .hear me out. It may be “wholeheartedness”. A wise Benedictine Monk once said:

"The reason that you are exhausted is that much of what you are doing you have no affection for. You’re doing it because you have an abstract idea that this is what you should be doing. You are exhausted because your energies lay elsewhere. You have been ripening yourself, and you are ready to harvest yourself, and if you don’t, you will rot on the vine."

Wow. If you’re like me, you may need to chew on that a bit. - Mr6am

Signing off until next week! Please take a minute to let us know what you’d like to see in our next newsletters:)

I’ll just be resetting my Facebook Marketplace algorithm for tiny spice houses for the next week…wish me luck!

Ciao, bella,

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