Most of us spend a lot of our time on autopilot, missing the small moments that make up a beautiful life because we are too distracted or stressed to simply let it all go and be present. But over time as we practice being more mindful, we train ourselves to live more and more in the present moment. Here are 3 ways to practice mindfulness daily (and especially whenever you find yourself feeling stressed, anxious or distracted). 

1connect with your breath. Place your hand on your stomach, close your eyes and take 5 deep breaths in and out through your nose. As you inhale try to draw your breath all the way down in to your stomach so that you can feel your stomach expand outwards. Pause for a moment and gently breathe out, noticing how your stomach relaxes

2Connect with your senses
What can you see around you?
What can you smell?
What can you taste?
What sounds can you hear?
What can you touch? place your hands on your legs, give them a little squeeze and feel the fabric.

3Do any activity like going for a walk and notice every step you take or wash some dishes and notice how the warm water feels on your hands. Do anything simple and practice being fully present

 Love Tori

In a world that is so busy going, being doing and achieving (yang) - taking moments to rest, nurture, love and care for yourself is an act of courage. I call these moments of yin. Time for you to be. to tune in. to connect with yourself, with those you love and what you love to do. Our society isn't really built to allow for these moments so we need to create space for them ourselves.

Sometimes it takes a little planning, other times it is just about being present in the moment. Looking up at the sky. Listening to the birds. Putting your phone away and simply looking into the eyes of those you care about. Making the space around you beautiful. Taking a few deep belly breaths. 

When I read the beautiful book Pihl I hjertet by Camilla Pihl, a Norwegian blogger, model and designer, I was in awe of how beautifully she describes how it isn't really about finding the one quick fix thing you need to do, but rather about taking small moments throughout your day that will lead to healing and joy.

Jeg testet ut alle tenkelige behandlingsmetoder. Jeg leste alt jeg kom over av selv-hjelps bøker. Jeg prøvde alt mellom himmel og jord, på jakt etter en enkel of effektiv løsning. En hestekur. Men jeg fant den ikke. Det sies at det ikke er de store traumene som tar knekken på oss mennesker, men at det som setter oss ut av spill er de mange små tingene. Den jevne strømmen av hverdags motstand. Plastposen hvor håndtaket ryker på vei hjem fra butikken. Mobilen som ringer, men som du ikke klarer å finne i vesken. De fire røde lysene på rad. 

Etter mange måneder med prøving og feiling, innså jeg at om der var de små banale øyeblikkene av motstand som tok knekken på oss. Kanskje også løsningen lå der? Kanskje det ikke fantes noe enkelt svar, eller èn vidunderkur. Kanskje løsningen lå i de enkle o banale øyeblikkene. At det var bittesmå daglige endringer som skulle til, istedenfor en enkel stor? Små ting, som ga en jevn strøm av små gleder. Blaff av lykke, oppi alt stresset og kaoset.

- Pihl i Hjertet, Camilla Pihl

A beautiful book I really recommend you read (if you speak Norwegian). Let this be a reminder to take moments throughout your day, because that is where the true healing and joy can take place. 

Love

To do lists are great. But they can also easily create overwhelm when we put anything and everything we could possibly think of that needs doing sometime this week, month or year on them. And as the never ending to do list grows - because lets face it, for every item you tick off is quickly replaced with another one of four more items which can leave us feeling easily stressed and overwhelmed by all that "needs" to be done. So today I want to share a little 3 step process that I have personally found to be very useful when creating a to do list. I love to do this first thing Monday morning as it helps me organise and get clear on what I am doing that week. 

1. Do a brain dump. Basically write your never ending to do list - get all your thoughts out on a piece of paper. What this can do is help to clear your mind and create space for you to evaluate what is important now, and what can wait. And quite often it's a lot of the same thoughts going around and around in you mind making them seem a lot more pressing, complicated or stressful than what they perhaps really need to be. So get it all out on paper. 

2. Look at your piece of paper and divide them into different categories using coloured markers: So blue could be for work, yellow for family/home and pink for personal... Then one by one I look at each category and give it a number of importance (and simply scratching out anything that isn't necessary or needing to be done anytime soon...) 

3. Get out you planner or a new piece of paper to write your to do list for the week. Now be ruthless with what you actually allow to be on this list and realistic about how much time it may take. I only add the top 3 that are most important or pressing for each category (depending on how large a task they are of course). You can keep the other list near by as a reminder for next week, but instead of then feeling like you need to tackle the a whole world in a day (which is just overwhelming for anyone), you can have a clear focus and feel great when you tick each item off. You may even feel so motivated and on top of things that you tackle a few of the other items on your brain dump too, which is a bonus!

Hop this helps and please remember to put plenty of self-care on your personal to do list!

Love

These days I am all about taking plenty of time for self-care and today I want to share one of my favourite acupressure points known as the Glow Point. It is located in the centre of- and below your cheekbones

This acupressure point is said to relieve tension in the face, gently lift the skin, boost circulation and give you a healthy glow! Yes please...

So tonight while your taking your makeup off, give yourself a lovely little face massage and add some gentle pressure with your knuckles to the glow point.

Have a wonderful weekend, love

One of my favourite ways to start my morning on a Saturday (which also happens to be the day where I get to sleep in as Christoffer gets up with M), is to have a long shower and scrub my body with this super easy, homemade coffee scrub. Such a refreshing start to the day. To make it, simply mix:

- grounded coffee

- coconut oil

- a few drops of essential oil. I used wild orange

Put in in a cup or jar and leave in the bathroom ready for your next shower! 

Love 

Hi beautiful you.

I hope you're enjoying a wonderful last day of easter and I apologies for this blog post being a few days late this week. I took my own advice and spent quite a few days simply being present with my family. Our days have been filled with baking, drawing, painting, walks in the forrest, watching movies, snuggling and simply just being together. I have also made sure to get some me-time and self-care in (yoga , meditation and long baths being a must) to prevent me from going stir crazy! (Pictures below pretty much sums it up)

But today I really wanted to drop in and share with you 5 little reminders and things that I believe that we can all do to embrace this strange time that we are in. So here goes. 

1. Embrace the stillness. the unknowing. the Yin. 

On many levels I think that we all needed this. Not the actual virus of course! But being forced to slow down. To actually be present and with the people closest to us. See in Chinese medicine we talk about yin and yang and how there must always be a balance between the two. Yang is the active, going, doing, pushing and achieving. Yin is the opposite - the calm, quiet, slowing down, appreciating, reflecting and tuning in. The way our society is built, there isn't time or space for yin. 

"In a world that is busy, achieving, moving and accomplishing, rest is an act of courage" -Tory Eletto

And so I believe that this is mother natures way of creating balance and forcing us to slow down and tune in. We need more Yin (which is why I named my blog YinMama) in order to have balance within ourselves, in nature and in life. So let us try to embrace the not knowing and try to appreciate the time of yin that we are in right now. 

2. Ask yourself; what and how can I heal during this?  

See I believe that in any circumstance, we have a choice in how we allow it to affect us. We can give in to the collective fear, excessively monitor the news and stress about buying enough toilet rolls (which is ok too). Or we can choose to be curious and challenge ourselves to look out our own fears and insecurities (which may be related to the virus or perhaps something different entirely). We can sit in the uncertainty of not really knowing, and choose to actively release the fear and find the calm within ourselves. Sure we want to numb out sometimes and avoid actually feeling all the uncomfortableness, but if we dare to look at it with curiosity, without allowing the fear to swallow us, I believe this time can be a great time of healing for many of us. 

It has perhaps taken me until yesterday to realise that the past few weeks have been very healing for me as it has in a way given me a "second chance" to stay home with my son. See I loved becoming a mother but honestly, I also really struggled the first year (the colic and severe sleep deprivation was rough...). But spending this time together without really knowing how for how long, has given me so much room to reflect and heal the past, to connect and find so much joy in the present moment, and so I find myself feeling so grateful. Which brings me to reminder number 3...

3. Practice gratitude 

It is ok to feel: Frustrated, Happy, Sad, Grateful, Anxious, Calm, Confused, Relieved, Tired, Energised or (Insert any other emotion here...). Accept the strangeness of the situation and allow yourself to feel it all.. but choose to always circle back to gratitude. See choosing to focus on the positive in our life and showing appreciation for all that we are and have, is possibly the fastest, simplest and most powerful way of improving our own well-being and happiness.

Research suggests that feeling grateful can help reduce stress, improve our mental and physical health, increase empathy, ease depression, improve our relationships and foster long-term happiness. All pretty good reasons for making it a part of our daily lives! So take a moment in the morning and evening to think about or write down all that you are grateful for. 

"When you trade you're expectations for appreciation, you're whole world changes in an instant" - Tony Robbins

4. Make time for me-time and self-care

So Important. Do more of what brings you joy and calm. (Here is a little list of ideas taken from my instagram, but the social one needs to be adjusted a bit):

5. Be kind and notice the little things

This is a strange time for all of us and having watched way too many romantic comedies and Disney films myself, i can't help but quote Cinderella; Have courage and be kind. Remember to be kind to yourself and others. Focus on the things you can control and choose to do things that light you up and bring you joy and calm. Look up at the sky and breathe the fresh air. Listen to the birds and try to embrace the stillness of not being able to do much.. (such a contrast to our usual busy lives..). Be present and mindful, take care of yourself and loved ones, and embrace this much needed time of yin. 

I hope you have a wonderful day and week, sending so much love

English:

There is something so cleansing and relaxing about taking a bath (or foot bath if you don't own a bathtub). This is my favourite way to de-stress at the moment after a long day at home... I like to take my time and create a little ritual around it 

Deborah Hanekamp, author of the brand new book Ritual Baths, talks about how you can use something so simple as a bath filled with ingredients you have in your house, to be your own healer. It is a lovely book that i would absolutely recommend! 

So today I want to share this lovely relaxing and loving self-care bath recipe that i have been using recently. To the bathwater, add:

- 1 cup of milk (any kind, i alternate between almond and coconut)

- 1tbs honey

- rose quartz crystal (or any type of stones you have that help you feel calm)

- chamomile essential oil (or brew some calming tea if you dont have essential oil and pour it in the bath!)

- A handful of himalaya salt (or any type of salt)

I also like to use sage or palo Santo to cleanse the room before getting in the bath to remove any stagnant or negativ energy. 

If you don't have the ingredients above or you're not in to the woo woo stuff, no worries! Get creative and add whatever you feel like and happen to have at home. Things like green tea, spices like rosemary and cinnamon, different types of salt, flowers... can all make lovely baths.

Make a little ritual around it by lighting some candles, putting on some music, setting an intention and spending some time simply relaxing in the magic you have created for yourself

Norsk:

I dag ønsker jeg å dele mitt favoritt selvpleie tips for tiden - å ta et deilig bad (eller fot bad hvis du ikke har badekar) om kvelden. Det føles så rensende og avslappende etter en lang dag hjemme... Jeg liker å ta meg god tid og skaper et lite ritual rundt det.

Deborah Hanekamp, forfatteren av boken Bath Rituals forteller at man kan bruke bad sammen med ingredienser man ofte finner hjemme, til å skape mer balanse og "be your own healer". Nydelig bok som anbefales!

Min favoritt bath ritual oppskrift for tiden er; 

- En kopp med melk (hvilken som helst type, jeg bruker mandel eller kokos melk)

- honning

- rosen kvarts krystall (eller hvilke som helst stener du tiltrekkes mot)

- kamomille eteriske oilje (Har du ikke eterisk olje, så lag gjerne te og hell oppi badevannet!)

- En håndfull himalaya salt

Jeg liker også å rense rommet med palo santo eller salvie for å fjerne negativ eller stagnert energi fra rommet. 

Hvis du ikke har ingrediensene over eller hvis det blir for alternativt for deg, så gjør det som passer deg! Vær kreativ og bruk det du har hjemme som du føler for. Blomster, grønn te, tørket salvie eller kanel, vanlig salt, etc funker flott. Skap et lite ritual rundt det der du demper lyset, tenner lys, setter på deilig musikk og setter en intensjon for hva du vil oppnå med badet. Hell oppi alle ingrediensene, slapp av og nyt.

Love 

Today I want to share with you one of my favourite self-care tips: Dry brushing!

Before stepping into the shower in the morning, I always do a quick face and body brush. It leaves me feeling energised and more connected to my body, so absolutely something I recommend doing.

If you're new to dry brushing, it is just that - gently brushing your skin. Starting under the soles of your feet and legs, you use gentle long brush strokes from the outer parts of your body, inwards towards your heart for a few minutes

It is said to remove dead skin cells without damaging the skin, prevent cellulite, smooth the skin, increase energy levels, and stimulate the nervous system, blood circulation and lymphatic system. Um yes please.

Mine are from the brand karmameju and I love them I purchased them both through the Norwegian website skinlove.no which is where I buy most of my products as they only stock non-toxic, organic and healthy for you products.

So this weeks self-care tip; take a few minutes to yourself and dry brush your skin before taking a relaxing shower or bath. And remember to hydrate after to help your body flush out the toxins... 

Lots of love

At yesterdays yoga class my teacher talked about change and the importance of going with the flow, and it got me thinking...

So often we resist change and hold on to something so tight. Perhaps because it feels so good we don't want things to change. other times it is out of fear of what might happen if we do change course, let go and try something new...

It's human nature to want to feel safe and our mind will do almost anything to keep us in our comfort zone. But the truth is; you don't grow when you're comfortable and life is all about flowing with it, embracing change and accepting (although it is oh so hard sometimes) that things, experiences and people come and go. We can either flow with it, adapt and learn. or resist. 

The latter will really only cause stagnation and keep us feeling stuck.

We spend so much time clinging to the past and planning/trying to secure the future... when life is happening in the present moment.

So be willing to look at what no longer feels "right" to you or in alignment right now, and be open to change. Be curious.

Try to see challenges as an opportunity to learn, grow and to discover new things about yourself and other people in your life. Be kind and patient with yourself and try to trust that the universe (or God or Mother Nature or something greater than you) has your back and that by letting go of something, you may receive something so much better than you could ever have imagined.

I have found this to be so true again and again. And I recently found myself completely stuck because I couldn't bear to let go of something I had worked so hard on! (just a tip; if you have to push and struggle and force something that isn't bringing you joy and peace over time in the process. it may be time to re-consider what you're doing and spending your valuable time and energy on. At least that's how I know I'm not in alignment). 

But the moment I accepted it, embraced the change and decided to go with the flow by letting it go (trusting it would all work out), it felt so freeing. And in this space came clarity and being able to see the bigger picture. I was then able to take a step in a new direction-one that felt energising, exciting and so much better than what I was clinging on too.

Because in this acceptance you may find that the exact answers you're seeking just come to you naturally because you allow things to flow.

Change can be scary so be kind and patient with yourself. And remember that the saying "it takes a village" is true in so many ways. You don't need to do everything on your own and it's ok to ask for support when feeling stuck. 

I hope this email helps you in some way wherever you are now, and I encourage you to check in with yourself and be curious. Where are you pushing and resisting, and where can you learn, grow and flow with change ?

Have a wonderful day! 

Love

Monday was mothers day here in Norway and today is valentines day - both a lovely reminder to show yourself and those you care about some extra love!

Wanted to share with you 3 of my favourite quotes that I recently posten on instagram;

The best things in life are free so celebrate today with extra hugs, kisses and gratitude for all that you have, all those you love and all that you are

Have a wonderful weekend, love