Thank You Week Love Letter No. 4: Loco for Local Community

Isn't it the worst when a company's marketing looks completely different from what your first-hand experience is with that company?  There's a house plant company called The Sill, which literally markets itself as the friendliest, happiest plant company in the world, making plants accessible and fun for all.  The concept was fresh two years ago, so I followed the company online as they grew from an online-only store to a real store.  When I excitedly went into their actual store a year ago for the first time, I was met with silence, curt answers to questions, a snide remark to a basic plant question, and an unwelcoming vibe.  The store felt nothing like the online marketing.  When I feel tricked by marketing, it's like, bye.  But when a company is what they say they are, I'm all in.  That's the idea behind this thank you series where I've been thanking the authentic companies in my life all week.  I want to do a little something to spread the word of people who are doing good and doing good business.

On day 1 of thank you week love letters, I recognized fitness companies that encourage real wellness, not shrinking bikini sizes.  On day 2, I pointed out a site that helps cut out the (physical and emotional) excess in our lives.  On day 3, I talked about early education resources that have been invaluable to our family.

Today, I appreciate organizations in my community: Capoeira Brooklyn and the Park Slope branch of the Brooklyn Public Library.  These are super local to me, whereas my other posts have mostly been nationally or even internationally accessible.  More than ever, though, I'm thinking about community on a smaller scale and wanting to surround myself with positivity...in my family, on my block, in my neighborhood, in my city, in my state, in my country!  But, community starts small.

I'm lucky to have Capoeira Brooklyn on my block.  My son has been learning this Brazilian martial arts with Mestre Foca since Greyson turned 3.  This capoeira studio isn't just teaching a skill or a sport to make a buck.  When a child or adult takes capoeira with Mestre Foca, he's also buying into a lot of good energy, a spirited community and a group that truly embraces all people.

Mestre Foca and his wife teach and practice capoeira and their two kids also practice the sport.  They don't just preach, they live it.  To me, this family represents the spirit and energy of capoeira.  I love that the whole family is dedicated to capoeira and they all share the love of it with the world.  Capoeira is not just martial arts, but it's also dance, music, culture and Brasil...and it's all the energy that those things represent.  It's love, it's community, it's fitness, it's so many things in one sport.

Tudo bem, Mestre Foca!

Thank You Week Love Letter No. 3: Education Is Where You Find It

We made this quinzhee in Tinkergarten

The concept of Tinkergarten is simple:  early childhood learning through group play outside.  For me, the magic piece is that the nationwide parent-child classes are outside, in all but extreme weather conditions, allowing room to discover all the possibilities that the outdoors bring and connecting children with our environment.  Tinkergarten shows us that learning doesn't have to be in a classroom full of bought supplies...learning can be in nature's classroom with all the supplies you need right around you.  Tinkergarten encouraged our family connect with nature on a new level.  We now not just enjoy nature as a beautiful thing, but we also see nature as full of resources for fun and learning.  Through its simplicity, Tinkergarten changed our perspective for the better and has given our family a lifelong gift.

This is the third day in a week of shout outs and thank you's to outlets that have improved my life and my family's life.  (see Day 1 and Day 2)  I wanted to do my little bit to recognize companies that are trying add value to this world and do good business at the same time.  In a world where it's extremely hard to tell what's authentic and what's all facade and in a period where manipulation and deceit are standard business practices, I can't tell you how much I value authenticity, positivity and substance.  These things are hard to find and I latch on when I do.

Thank You Week Love Letter No. 2: Maximalist about The Minimalists

We played the minimalism game and posted the stuff we got rid of on Instagram

The Minimalists say that living with less stuff (physical and emotional excess), makes room for the things (including physical objects) that add the most value to our lives.  Minimalism isn't about living like a monk, but about focusing on what adds real meaning.  What a radical concept.

This is the second day in a week of shout outs and thank you's to outlets that have improved my life and my family's life.  I wanted to do my little bit to recognize organizations that stand out to me as trying to do good and do good business at the same time.  In a time when it's extremely hard to tell what's authentic and what's all facade and in a period where manipulation and deceit seem to represent standard business practices, I can't tell you how much I value authenticity and positivity.  It's hard to find and I just latch on for dear life when I do.

Today, I'm sending an internet hug to the Minimalists, the two dudes who inspire people to live more meaningful lives with less stuff.  This post is actually inspired by the Minimalists in that they really make me appreciate the concept of non-material gifts and this post is a little gift to them.

The Minimalists reframe the idea of happiness and it has nothing to do with the collection of more stuff, more expensive stuff, bigger stuff or the latest stuff.  The Minimalists represent one of the few voices that challenge a world that screams that consumption will make us happy.  And equally important is their idea that the "keeping up with the Jones's" mentality not only leads to a vicious cycle of misery, but that focusing our energy on stuff acquisition keeps us from the experiences that truly add meaning to our lives.  If we're constantly chasing the thing to buy that will make us feel a sense of high for a moment, we'll have less energy to channel to our ideas, events, relationships, and experiences that are truly valuable.

Thank you week love letter No. 1: FitnessBlender.com is the real deal

My daughter trying a squat with Kelli from Fitness Blender

Do you celebrate when you find something that is making a positive difference in your life?  Me, too!  In that spirit, this is the first day in a week of shout outs and thank you's to outlets that have improved my life.  I wanted to do my little bit to recognize organizations that stand out to me as trying to do good and do good business at the same time.  In a time when it's extremely hard to tell what's authentic and what's all facade and in a period where manipulation and deceit seem to represent standard business practices, I can't tell you how much I value authenticity and positivity.  It's hard to find and I just latch on for dear life when I find it.

This end-of-the-year thank you week idea evolved out of a stream of thoughts that started during a workout I did online with FitnessBlender.com the other day.  I have been doing their free workouts with my husband for a year and a half and ever since then, I've been floored by how professional the videos are and that they're free.  I appreciate the couple who run the site as good people who really understand fitness and health, who are trying to add something positive to the world in an honest way. And as I've seen the site's popularity grow exponentially, they haven't lost their way, which is crucial.  So, as I was working out, I was feeling the holiday spirit and thinking it'd be nice to thank Fitness Blender.  It also hit me that there are several companies I've encountered and really love that are run by honest, genuinely good people who are inclusive, positive, ethical, and want to add something good to the world.  My way of thanking these companies is to spread the word online this week.  Sure, I've probably told 10 people I know about Fitness Blender in person, but I wanted to put it out there in the universe and give it a digital footprint.