It takes hammer and nails to build a life we love. This has been true for me and my family. It’s also taken a lot of blood, sweat and tears, but mostly lots of LOVE.

We often think life, love and self-care should come naturally. This is a myth–or at a minimum it’s a paradox. As Gretchen Rubin points out, truths can be funny. Sometimes what seems to be the opposite of one truth can be equally true. So it may be true that “All we need is love,” but it’s also equally true that we need to build our lives and our families and our homes with “Hammer and nails.” This is where I choose to focus for today’s blog post.

I am using a family photo for today’s post. It’s a new picture taken just in time for the holidays. You might look at it and see a happy family, which is true. Because of our photographer’s skill and our children’s cooperation during the photo shoot, you might also be tempted to “make up a...

“Kindness Matters” is the theme at my daughter’s elementary school this year.  The teachers recognize students who have been “caught” by another student performing a random act of kindness.   They are teaching students to look for kindness in everyday life. As adults, it’s important for us to notice when we see acts of kindness.

It’s also important for us to notice when we see someone in NEED of kindness.  This isn’t always as easy.

We may need to walk into or stay in an uncomfortable situation–maybe hang out with someone who is a little different from us.  We may need to engage in a dialogue with someone and ask them questions about their life.  We may need to “just listen,” to be present with someone while they are going through a difficult time.  We may even get “burned” if we open up to someone or ask them to open up to us.  They might take us for granted, or...

My name is Leslie Marchand. I am a clinical social worker, yoga instructor, and life coach. As a helping professional it’s easy to give so much that you feel like you have nothing left – for yourself, for your loved ones or for the next person that walks into your office needing some guidance. I have learned through trial and error how to take care of myself while caring deeply for other people. Now I spend my time helping others to find this same balance.

As the saying from Robert Fulghum goes “All I really need to know I learned in kindergarten.” We all start learning self-care tools at an early age, we just have to remember them, implement them and build on them as we get older. So today, I go back to the beginning – to share my journey of developing self-care tools that work for me.

* When I was young, I loved to play outside in nature. I still cherish any opportunity to sit in nature, to listen to the sound of the birds, to see the sun rise or set,...