The month of May reminds me of gorgeous flowers blooming. My irises are blooming right now and they are so beautiful. The most beautiful they’ve been in the six years I’ve lived on our homestead.

As I look back on those six years and beyond, I think about the long transition I’ve endured in calling this new location home. I realize I’m not alone. Maybe you have moved to a new place and realize: This is going to be my home for the next 70 years! Was it difficult for you to settle down in a new home and location knowing your family and friends so far away?

ME!

My advice to you is to bloom where you are planted. It sounds like a simple concept but your mind really needs to be in the right place. Here’s what I mean.

When I first moved to our homestead after college, I had a hard time facing the fact that this would be my new home. My heart was three hours away and I missed my family and friends so much. I was feeling very depressed, negative and lonely. I was wilting! My husband was concerned.  How was I going to overcome this and be happy?

How did I overcome my homesickness? Well, there were four ways I started to bloom and become a human being that others want to be around:

1. I got healthy and fit. I joined the local YMCA and began going to a Zumba class. I gained so many new and wonderful friends from this class. As I started to feel better and thrive in the class, I was actually approached and asked if I wanted to be an instructor as well? Of course, I did! To make a long story short, I did become an instructor. I started teaching a Boot Camp Class and later became certified as a Les Mills BODYPUMP instructor. As the participants come rolling in every morning, I feel humbled to be able to help these fabulous people to become healthier and overcome their struggles.

Photo by Leah Hammer

2. Nutrition is the heart of any lifestyle and it was time to for my family to change ours. Especially since we wanted to eventually have a baby to influence! So, we did that little by little. As we changed our meal plans and looked healthy meals at home, I was looking for healthy supplements for myself that I could use during pregnancy and nursing. I found exactly what I was looking for in Herbalife.

Of course, there is always skepticism when starting any program you have to pay money for and I will admit I was a skeptic! But, my coach didn’t push anything. She allowed me to try products at my own will and let me take off with it on my own. This is exactly the type of coach I want to be. I’ve grown with Herbalife for three years and my coach has been there every step of the way.

Now, I’m ready to start coaching and sharing with others the benefits of Herbalife. I can’t wait to see what Herbalife has to offer for me and my team. I plan to combine workouts with a great nutrition program based on sound science and created by doctors for those who desire to be healthy and change their life. Another way Herbalife has helped me is through the personal development and positivity it offers through our team leaders. I get a positive and motivating quote via text every morning to start my day.

I’m in love with the way my mindset has changed thanks to my friends in Herbalife. All they did was listen, respect me, and help me succeed. I want to be pass it on to others and help them bloom the way I have bloomed.

3. Agriculture on the Move is a brand new program designed for young kids in the classrooms. It is a 10-week hands-on curriculum where the kids learn about one commodity each week from production to plate. There is a hands-on activity along with each lesson. The kids get to eat or make something, which they love of course!

The end of the course was so rewarding knowing that the kids learned from me. I’m so passionate about teaching agriculture and I want to get into more schools reaching more kids. I found that many kids don’t know much about where their food comes from. As an advocate for agriculture, I feel it is my duty to tell kids the truths and facts about how their food is produced before other groups fill their little minds with lies. As I reach more children with this program, I will strive to give them a call to action to spread the facts about what they’ve learned.

Agriculture in the US is really the safest food supply in the world.

4. The final way I’m blooming where I’m planted is probably the most important. I realized it first that my commuting job was not allowing me to get involved in the community and that I was feeling mostly disconnected from even the neighbors. So, now, I’m getting involved, meeting people and staying active.

Mylee has been taking gymnastics classes through the YMCA since January, which benefits her but it also benefits me since I am able to meet more parents through the class. I love building relationships and networking with people who have the same interests as I do and it helps me bloom more. It’s like the fertilizer and energy I need to take off and bloom where I’m planted.

Well, there are they four ways I’m blooming where I’m planted and I want to encourage you to get involved in your community, take care of yourself and make some friends! But the simplest advice I have is to just pick something you love to do and see how it could make an impact on someone. Then, just go for it!

~Much Love~