1) Trust Your Gut with Aging Parents
Getting together over the holidays with family is usually one of the year’s top events, but much has changed with the pandemic. With our aging parents, these gatherings would often expose another side of life that you can’t always see over the phone. It’s more important than ever that families pay particular attention to the details when communicating over the phone or Face Timing your loved ones this holiday season. If things have changed and you notice that your loved ones are struggling to keep up, please know that your parents will be the last ones to ever ask for help. If your gut is telling you something is not quite right with your aging parents, don’t wait for a crisis to occur! Learn how home care can help honor your loved one’s wishes to remain at home and provide you with the “Peace of Mind” you deserve! Allen Serfas Assistance Home Care www.AssistanceHomeCare.com 314-466-3227 St. Louis | South County | West County | St. Charles County | Washington County
2) Staying Healthy in this Day & Age is as Simple as Becoming More Natural
Try being most active during daylight. Scale your diet and activity to the seasons. Move every joint in your body every day. Eat food in its natural form (avoid jars, cans, boxes and packages). Eat at least 5 colors of produce daily. Avoid toxins and artificial substances. Take time to be still each day. Be connected with family and/or friends regularly. Notice that you cannot control much except your reaction to what happens. Treat stress as a toxin. Brian Harasha, Advanced Laser Therapy and Wellness. www.Advancedlastertherapyandwellness.com
3) Think About Setting a New Type of Resolution
I would like to encourage everyone to consider adopting a different type of goal this year. This is the goal of shedding the “limiting labels” that you place on yourself. “I’m not thin enough…… I’m not pretty enough…. I’m not successful enough…I’m not smart enough”, are some that are most commonly adopted. As someone who used to talk this way to myself as well, I also understand that the thought of shedding these internal labels can seem nearly impossible. However, some simple behavioral therapy techniques are all that is needed. Then, as the limiting labels begin to melt away and you begin to remove your self-imposed roadblocks, inertia will take over in many areas and you can achieve your self-designed life. Christine Kniffen, MSW, LCSW
314-374-8396 • www.christinekniffen.com
4) Live A More Healthy & Green Life
With the start of a new year comes new resolutions, and this year, Missouri Coalition for the Environment (MCE) encourages you to add living a more healthy and green life to your list! A healthy, green life can be as simple as spending more time in nature or purchasing healthy local and sustainable foods from the farmers in the Known & Grown STL program. From stress to sickness, 2021 was a tough year for many, so it’s important to remember to take care of your mind, as well as your body and start this year on a good note!
Courtney Casteel, Communications Specialist, Missouri Coalition for the Environment, www.moenviron.org
5) Consider A Co-Op Approach To Life
Consider the fact that it is always hard to sell umbrellas on a sunny day. So, we invite you to consider that there may be a silver lining in the current social, economic and environmental storm that we are experiencing. What if we transitioned our current businesses to Co-Op ownership and merged with other Co-Ops with similar missions under a new Co-Op Conglomerate umbrella so that we could ride out this and future storms together? This is happening in other parts of the country and worldwide, so why not here? Tom Braford, www.ArizmendiEcovillage.com.
6) Proper Ergonomics/Increase Physical Activity
With more people working from home, proper home office setup is crucial. Working from home reduces physical activity. An ergonomically poor work set-up, increases aches and pains. Many people are still sitting at the dining room table or worse, the couch. “This will be over soon” was the excuse some used to not purchase a good computer chair (money well spent to prevent musculoskeletal aches and pains).
Get the muscles working! Get the heart rate up! Get moving! Keep it simple. Being on your feet and moving stimulates bone density. Getting the heart rate up strengthens the heart and lungs and burns off calories. Let it evolve into something that you can do to blow off steam in a healthy way. Keep moving! Keep moving! A healthy life depends on it.
Dr. Paul Hyland, Committed to Health Chiropractic Center, www.committedtohealth.us
7) This is a Good Year to Make a Vision Board
A vision board is a visual representation of changes and goals you want to achieve. The visual collage is a great way for visual learner to manifest what’s best for you by shifting the energy you are sending out around your intentions. Since the last eight months have taken such a toll on us, making a vision board can help turn the energy around for us and others! You can do this by cutting out pictures and words that are meaningful to you and putting them on a board of any size. Your board can have pictures of places you want to visit or things you want to do or recipes you want to try or pictures of people you want to see or anything that you are pulled to. Put it on a board and you can look at it throughout the year or put it away and look at it in a year and see what manifests for you from it.
The Center for Mind, Body & Spirit, Deborah Zorensky, MS, RD, LD, CCN, dzorensky@centerformindbodyspirit.com, 314.725.6767
8) Practice Mindfulness Every Day
Ninety five percent of the mind is on autopilot filled with patterns and beliefs you are not aware of. These patterns create dysfunction and they negatively impact your health.
Practice staying in the present moment. Worrying about the future and regrets about the past, neither of which you can control, keeps you from enjoying today.
Start each day with time for you to reset your mind. Breathe, create positive feelings, imagine how you want your life to look and feel. Practice daily and you will transform your life! Have a Healthy New Year! Dr. Amy Davis M.D. Crossing Back To Health, 636-778-9158. www.crossingbacktohealth.com
9) Treat Your Mouth Right in 2022.
You may have already begun to think about your New Year’s resolutions. Why not make your New Year’s resolution to improve your dental health? For this new year, resolve to treat your mouth right by getting a comprehensive dental exam followed by regular dental hygiene appointments. Improve your oral hygiene habits, your teeth will thank you for it!
Joseph S Grimaud, DDS. Watson Pointe Dental, 8537 Watson Rd, Webster Groves, MO 63119, 314-963-2000. Visit me at www.mywatsonpointedental.com
New patients are always welcome! Joseph S Grimaud, DDS
10) 2022 Can Be Your Year For Better Health
You have complete responsibility for your health. If you are unhealthy, you have 2 choices. You can choose to stay unhealthy, or you can choose to do something about it. Sadly, most of you will choose to stay unhealthy. For the few of you who will do something about it, you will likely have to step outside of the conventional medicine insurance model of care. Do not let that stop you. Find a functional medicine doctor that will address the root cause of your condition. Your 2023 self will thank you.
T.J. Williams, DC, PhD, The Institute of Natural Health, 1034 S. Brentwood Blvd., Suite 415
St. Louis, MO 63117, 314-293-8123, www.inhstl.com
11) Learn how to Grow your own Veggies
The most cost-effective (and some would say the most enjoyable) way to enjoy fresh, organic fruits and veggies is to grow them yourself. EarthDance Organic Farm School is offering a 5 week quick-start course for beginning to intermediate gardeners this spring! You can just take the interactive classes virtually, or you can do online and hands-on, and also join for the on-farm workshops as well. Grow your way to better health with Spring Training ^for Gardeners!
More info at www.EarthDancefarms.org or call 314-521-1006.
12) Enhance Mood and Mental Clarity by Focusing on Your Gut Health in 2022
Did you know that 95% of your serotonin is produced in your gut? Digestive issues can affect both your physical and emotional health. In 2021, take charge of your health by focusing on your gut to help heal your physical, emotional, and mental well being. Colon hydrotherapy is a safe and effective way to gently cleanse your body of hard matter naturally with warm water. Clients report having more regular bowel movements, less bloating, clearer skin, relief from brain fog, enhanced mood, and more energy from treatment. 314-347-8612 www.essentialhealthstl.com to schedule your consultation.
13) The Power Of Turkey Tail Mushrooms for Your Dog and Cat
Start off the New Year by adding Turkey Tail Mushrooms to your pet’s nutrition routine. The power of mushrooms are well-known for humans and just beginning to be understood for our animals.
Turkey Tail Mushrooms help our pets in a number of different ways including as a natural therapy in conjunction with conventional treatments for cancer, as a powerful anti-oxidant combating free-radicals and oxidative stress in the body, as an immunity modulator helping to regulate your pet’s immune system and as a natural prebiotic helping to improve gut health by feeding the all-important probiotic bacteria in the gut. Our double liquid extract contains a range of full-spectrum compounds compared to dried powders.
Turkey tail mushrooms for dogs and cats provide a wide array of benefits, both for preventive, proactive care and to help support an existing condition your pet may already have.
Four Muddy Paws – The Healthy Pet Market, 1711 Park Avenue – St Louis, MO – 63104, www.fourmuddypaws.com, 314-773-7297. Also in Edwardsville, IL, Shop On-Line – Shop In-Store – Curbside Pickup – FREE Local Delivery.
14) Shop At Local Markets
Shop Local markets that carry fresh local products and provide the best personal service. Freddie’s Market stocks USDA Choice, aged, hand-cut meats, grass-fed beef, fresh seafood, natural chicken and
pork, honey-glazed boneless baked hams and Amish Turkeys. All of which can be prepared for customers in Freddie’s oven or smoker. Farm-fresh produce is hand selected and they carry pasture-raised, natural, antibiotic-free feed, farm fresh eggs from local farmers. Freddie’s stocks over 100 local products and has an outstanding selection of wines, liquors, beers and Stringbean Coffee. Freddie’s carries a wide selection of KETO Friendly products and LOCAL Elderflower Honey, Elderflower Honey with CBD, and Elderberry Syrup from Elder Farms. Homemade breads, gooey butter cake, pies, bagels and cookies are baked fresh daily. Delivery is also available. 314-968-1914. www.freddiesmarket.com
15) Can We Be Ourselves Especially Around Our Family?
Recently I organized a family zoom before the holidays. I hadn’t seen my family, by zoom anyway, for nearly a year. In-person, it has been probably 3 or 4 years. These last couple of years have been wholly unique from other years prior. During the call, I noticed that one of my family members seemed different. Was she depressed, was she melancholy, did she even want to be on the call? These were some of the thoughts that passed through my mind. What struck me was how her inner light had been dimmed. My memories of her were of a child and then young woman filled with verve and passion. Yet, she was never, or never seemed to hold her light within. Did this change? Is she allowing herself to be who she is even though some would not like her passion?
We all have a few defining needs: to be heard, seen, and loved. What if when we were small, we didn’t feel seen or heard? Or, what if when we were small, we thought we had to be someone or something different from who and what our true natures are?
Sometimes I watch little children playing, and I notice the little boys and girls who sit quietly drawing or playing with their blocks. Other children run around and go from one activity to another, not staying with anyone for very long. There are the quiet ones, the loud ones, the bossy ones, the shy ones, etc.
Then I notice how a parent or parents relate to them. I hear things like, “Shush, you are too loud.” Or, “Can’t you act like everyone else?” Or, “What is wrong with you?” Every parent has at times said things like that to our children. What if we say those things a lot? Those words have an impact on us. What a dilemma; we love and need our family. How do we keep their love? Ah, we have to tone ourselves down, or pretend to like what they like, or……
Every child wants to be loved. We need to belong to our tribe, our family. But, to belong, we don’t realize how we might be sacrificing our very selves for us to feel loved.
Watching my family member hide her light made me think of all these things and of how and what I did to myself so that I would be loved. It has taken me years to undo a lot of my early training. So much of the reason it takes so long is that we believe that is who we need to be.
Please take a good look at the kids who yell, say what is on their mind, dress wildly, see how you feel inside as you watch them. Do you wish you could shine your light and not dim yourself? Do you feel like you want to quiet them, or feel jealous, or feel uncomfortable? All of our feelings are clues to what happened to us. How they molded and shaped ourselves so that we would be “loved.”
So, one goal for us is to be ourselves, especially when we are around our families, often the source of our dimming. As we can shine our light, there is a freeing feeling. At first, we might feel uncomfortable. But, the more we shine, regardless of what and how others react, the better we feel. The better we feel, the better people feel around us. Indeed, being who we are is all anyone can ask of us.
Gail Cloud, D.C., Healing the Root of the Matter
BodyPresencing; be-ing through presence
To make an appointment with me call: 314-995-9755, or email: gail@bodypresencing.com. www.bodypresencing.com.
16) Green Home Challenge
We challenge everyone to better manage your home energy use to start saving money and reducing your carbon footprint! Start by tracking your energy use with ENERGY STAR’s Home Energy Yard Stick to see how you compare to other homes. And then consider an energy audit to learn more about ways to save energy. Actions can be as simple as changing your heating and cooling system air filter, choosing efficient appliances, and air sealing around windows and doors. Green Buildings are Better for your pocketbook and the planet! Go to www.usgbc-mogateway.org/green-home/. U.S. Green Building Council – Missouri Gateway Chapter. Usgbc-mogateway.org.
17) Reduce Waste With the Use of Reusable Items
The environment appreciates a good re-gift, something to be used again. That’s why at the Green Dining Alliance, we are always trying to figure out ways for our member restaurants to reduce their waste by replacing common disposables with reusable items. For our New Year Tip, we invite you to do the same! You can bag your groceries with reusable bags, carry your own reusable water bottle instead of purchasing bottled water and you can use reusable cutlery for your take-out. Simply replace your single-use items with reusable options. Visit https://earthday-365.org/shop/ to get started with reusable bamboo cutlery and folding reusable bags! For more tips about recycling Christmas trees and lights, check out our recent blog post A Sustainable Holiday.
18) Take Action for the Animals
Will 2022 be the year the plight of animals is eased because of YOU? Volunteer at an animal shelter! Whether you are motivated because of sadness regarding conditions animals face, an inspiring story of a rescue or anger resulting from an abuse case, take action. Some shrug the stories off, some say “what a shame” and some shed a tear for the suffering but YOU stepped forward and decided to ACT, to HELP, to MAKE A DIFFERENCE! The animals will benefit because you gave your time, your most precious commodity. May you always know the joy of caring and sharing!
Humane Society of Missouri, 1201 Macklind Ave., St. Louis, MO 63110, 314-951-1578. www.hsmo.org
19) New Beginnings Bridge Old Endings
I think of holidays as bridges. As the river of time rapidly flows, holidays can bridge happy memories of the past to future moments of joy. Although 2021 was another very difficult year, it may be helpful to edit our memories. It is healthier to remember your moments of happiness and joy rather than your negative ones. This New Year, remember that gratitude and thankfulness are the roads to physical and emotional healing and wellbeing. “Thank You” is the best gift anyone can give. It expresses gratitude, humility, and understanding. We thank you all and we hope this New Year becomes your bridge too much happiness and many sweet new memories. Ian and Beverly Wahl, St Louis Allergy Relief Center
Stay healthy, Ian Wahl, St. Louis Allergy Relief Center, 1415 Elbridge Payne Rd Suite 135, Chesterfield, MO 36017, 314 384-9304, www.StLouisAllergyRelief.com
https://www.facebook.com/StLouisAllergyRelief
Natural Allergy Relief for All Ages No Shots. No Pain. No Pills. No Avoidance. Just Results!
20) Enjoy Yoga & Meditation
One of the best things you can do to create optimal mental and physical health is yoga and meditation. Meditation can be simple: Here is a five minute practice: 1. With eyes half open or closed, be aware of your body 2. Be aware of sound. 3. Stop the train of thoughts by focusing on your breath. Say a thought to yourself when one comes up. Let go of future and past tension/ worries and thoughts. Notice sound with the same technique- name the sound. 4. Stretch out your breath from deeper inside/ abdominal area and make the breath about five -six counts – same length on inhale as exhale. After awhile just experience your normal flow of breath and sound. 5. Be centered and at peace, where there are no problems, regrets or worries 5. Repeat several times a day or continue for 10-25 minutes. Jan Herzog, 314-323-1990.
http://janherzogyogaandmassage.com https://www.facebook.com/JanHerzogYoga
21) Three Thanks a Day
Gratitude is one practice that can unlock a wealth of well-being, for yourself and All Your Relations. Some people keep a Gratitude Journal, some surely post their thanks for all the world to see. I simply write on the next spot in my personal notebook, Three Thanks a Day. Numbered. Brief. Sometimes with an explanation, sometimes just a single word. Over time, thanks add up to an Attitude of Gratitude, a practice worth doing over a lifetime. Thanks for considering this! Thanks for reading! Thanks for all the ways you are staying Healthy and Green. Jean Ponzi – KDHX Earthworms, Missouri Botanical Garden’s EarthWays Center and Earthworms Castings in THP.
22) Don’t Stress Over Resolutions
As 2022 begins, people are making resolutions to be a healthier “You”. However, it’s okay to make resolutions; but try not to stress out about it. Getting healthy by changing your current habits takes time and is a slow process. So…. take your time, keep the stress down, slowly remove ‘bad’ health habits, replace with better ones and you will eventually get there. Let’s enjoy this Journey to Good Health. Have a Happy and Prosperous New Year. From the staff of Kim’s Herbs & Detox Center. 314-395-3767. www.herbshopstl.com.
23) Find Your ‘Fierce Love’ In The New Year
The year 2022 calls us to be the best of humankind. We face many challenges: our hurting earth, our fractured country, threats to our democracy, the lingering Covid pandemic and many other challenges. It is a time to find our own inner fierce love that helps and heals, that goes beyond the small self to the helping and healing of other people, other life forms and our planet. A fierce love that is saturated with hope and highest imagination for a better world lies within us all. It ignites actions that bring about a better world. That fierce love was described by Frederick Douglas in 1852, “ For it is not light that is needed, but fire; it is not the gently shower, but the thunder. We need the storm. The whirlwind and the earthquake…”. His words were a call to nation building, but they fit today’s building of a better world. May 2022 be a year of fierce love and action for our own highest humanity to help and heal our world.
For info about Linda’s blog, Instagram and workshops in Forest Bathing, Mandalas, Creativity and more visit www.CreativityForTheSoul.com.
24) Get Out, Have Some Fun, Food, & Drinks Safely with Friends/Family in the New Year.
Stop by Llywelyn’s for great Celtic food and libations. Dine-in, carry out and curbside pickup available. Five locations to serve you. Visit www.llywelynspub.com for more information.
25) Do Things Differently For Change To Happen
Do you desire change in your life? What actions are you setting your intention to make? If we want different results, we have to do things differently! I would like to suggest that you look inward. We cannot change other people, only ourselves. We need to Be the change we desire. Maybe you are not sick, but are you enjoying “optimum” health? Why not schedule a thermography screening to monitor your health from a Holistic, Preventive perspective? Learn the self-help tools of meditation, self-hypnosis and imagery to be your emotional best and enjoy life the way you really desire. Linda Weber Spradling, Medical Thermography of Metro St. Louis, medicalthermography-stl.com and Hypnosis of Metro St. Louis, www.hypnotherapymetrostl.com.
26) Better Hearing In The New Year
Have you had your hearing or hearing aids checked against your target score recently? If you have an untreated hearing loss, you are up to five times more likely of developing a cognitive issue like Dementia or Alzheimer’s according to the most recent medical research. Make a commitment this New Year to take control and care of your hearing health. It can be a “New Year, New You!” Make the commitment to schedule your hearing test or hearing aid target score verification today go to www.miracle-ear.com/onlinebooking or call (314) 200-0888.
27) Enjoy Beauty In All Four Seasons
Beauty in all four seasons. That’s what you’ll find at the Missouri Botanical Garden, Sophia M. Sachs Butterfly House, and Shaw Nature Reserve. But there’s something else. We are working around the world and close to home to conserve plant diversity and preserve the pollinators they rely on. Every visit to one of our three sites not only provides a wonderful, welcoming experience for you and your family, from a quiet stroll through the Japanese Garden to the delightful sights and sounds of our signature events like Garden Glow and Best of Missouri Market. Your visit also helps support plant research and conservation, creating a better world for us all. Come be our guest, and know that you are making a difference. www.MOBOT.org.
28) Believe in 2022 To Reach Your Highest Potential
Why do you believe what you do? Is it your experience? Or were you told? Tomorrow can be your new highest potential. Remember, all is well. Your reality is all about how you structure it. Let that understanding lead the way. Start building the foundation. Be disciplined. Six months in, revisit your belief about what you want to do, be or have. How close you’ve come to realizing it. Continue until you prove it to yourself. Until you have installed a new better belief. Practice. Repeat this in all aspects of your life throughout the rest of 2022 and beyond. Enjoy! By Jon Frieda, Vice President of Marketing and Sales, Neels Pharmacy. 314-849-3123. #8 Crestwood Executive Center, Crestwood, MO 62126. www.neelspharmacy.com.
29) Use Vitamin C
Pat Bauer, Nurse Practitioner, recommends using Vitamin C to heal yourself. Whether it’s taking tablets orally, 1.000 – 10,000 mg daily; or liposomal Vitamin C, 1,000 – 5,000 mg daily; or through IV if you need a higher dose, Vitamin C aids in the prevention and treatment of many different ailments. For more information contact Pat Bauer at Wildwood Integrative Healthcare, 16111 Manchester Rd., Ellisville, MO 63011, 636-489-2000. www.wildwoodintegrativehealthcare.com
30) Get Out In Nature!
The intelligence within the plant can deeply influence your life and aid your journey. Plants are not innate objects but living, growing green beings that react to your presence, your energy and your thoughts. My work with the plant and Nature is a lifelong process and has been key to my personal welfare. Plants are incredible tools for self-transformation. Making wreaths and remedies from the wild native plants living on our land has furnished me with the tools to heal my body, mind and spirit.
Plants are wise teachers and faithful friends. It is a rewarding and sacred relationship. Get out in Nature!
Pat Tuholske, nature guide, wildcrafter, wreath artist.
31) Experience Past Life Regression
Past Life Regression is a great way to start off your new year as it taps into your inner wisdom and creativity, and leads to the healing of old dysfunctional patters. It has the power to open up your inner world to guidance from your higher self. Quantum healing Hypnosis Technique (QHHT) is an amazing journey of your consciousnesses and truly is a way of finding that all answers lie within. Take the first step and call Peggy at 314.644.3339 for a free fifteen-minute phone consultation. Peggy Has trained with Dr. Brian Weiss author of Many Lives, Many Masters as well as Delores Cannon(QHHT}.
Peggy Levinson LCSW, LMFT, Peggy@claytontherapy.com, www.claytontherapy.com
32) Wellness in the New Year: A Practical Approach
As the New Year approaches, most of us make resolutions to live better. For many, that usually includes eating better, exercising, and adopting other healthy habits. Here is a tip to help in your quest for wellness: Improve Your Intake. H2Whoa! Simply increasing your water intake will help detoxify your body and motivate you to be more conscientious of what else you’re ingesting. Try adding tasty essential oils to your water make it more interesting. Lemon, Lime, and Tangerine are all favorites, but don’t forget Grapefruit, Lavender, and Peppermint! In fact, try making your own Grapefruit-Mint Spritzer to enjoy a great blend of flavors that may make sweets and sugary drinks a little less appealing. (Young Living Vitality oils are FDA approved as supplements.)
Sandy Rausch, 618-304-2466, www.facebook.com/sandy.rauschyl.
33) Support Local Restaurants
Even though it may be harder to go out and support your favorite local restaurant, there are still easy ways to support local restaurants. One of the easiest ways is to buy gift cards. It provides a good source of income for the restaurant and an investment for you to use whenever works best for you. Curbside pickup and takeout are also essential ways to support and still satisfy your cravings for your favorite local spot.
The Schlafly Tap Room, 2100 Locust Street, St. Louis, 63103, Schlafly Bottleworks, 7260 Southwest Ave.
St. Louis, 63143, www.schlafly.com.
34) Think Outside, No box Needed! Adventures in the Shawnee
Hike more, worry less! Get the family back outside and take time to reconnect with nature and one another. The fresh air is good for your mind, body and soul. There’s no better place to do that than with an adventure to the Shawnee National Forest in Southernmost Illinois, only a few hours from St. Louis. Take time to enjoy one of the many beautiful hikes in the forest, which range in difficulty to accommodate hikers of all ages and experience. Hiking isn’t the only way to enjoy the Shawnee Forest. Families can also enjoy canoeing and kayaking on many of the 11 lakes in the forest, enjoy the miles of equestrian trails, with horse and pony rental at Giant City Stables or Lake Glendale Stables. See www.southernmostillinois.com or call 1-800-C-IT-HERE.
35) Create Micro-Challenges For Yourself
Want to grow resilience to help carry you through the New Year? Create micro-challenges that give you a positive stretch – physical, emotional and mental – into something new and slightly uncomfortable. Perhaps you explore a new creative outlet like painting, guitar or metalwork; choose to speak publicly even though the thought of doing so frightens you; or ramp up your workout with full-out 45-second bursts that really push you to persevere (safely, of course!). Then give yourself a pat on the back, and resolve to stretch your limits again tomorrow. Every time you guide yourself through these small victories, you become a little bit stronger and build resilience. We welcome you to try something new within our positive, supportive community of fellow learners, creators and movers. STLCC’s Continuing Education classes span a variety of personal and professional topics and goals for all ages and stages of life.
Learn more at www.stlcc.edu/CE.
36) Manage Pet Waste Without Single-Use Plastic Bags
Go beyond using reusable bags at the grocery store! You can eliminate single-use plastic from your pet waste pick-up process in many simple ways! If you have a cat, use paper lunch sacks, biodegradable bags, or old bread, snack or newspaper bags to clean out their litter box. If you have a dog, you have a few additional options. You can flush dog waste using flushable bags, or use a scoop to deposit the waste directly into the trash. Learn more about conservation practices at www.stlzoo.org/conservation/byetobags. From the #byetobags program at the Saint Louis Zoo.
37) Bring a Little Bit of Spring Into Your Home
by forcing branches to bloom. Simply place fresh cut stems of Crabapple, Forsythia, Pussy Willow, Quince, Pear, or flowering Cherry in a vase of water. Change water every 4 days. Ann Lapides. Sugar Creek Gardens. 314-965-3070. www.sugarcreekgardens.com
38) Learn T’ai Chi To Relax.
Relax … it is the first and most important principle of our T’ai Chi practice. A person who is relaxed is more able to approach life with an open mind and attitude. Relaxing allows for better posture and improved balance which in turn results in less back and joint issues. For example, learning to relax your breathing has a calming effect on your whole body. The St. Louis T’ai Chi Ch’uan Association, www.taichistlouis.org, taichistlouis@gmail.com, 314-961-1355.
39) New Year – New Tea?
Let 2022 be a year you try new things that YOU initiate (rather than being forced to by external circumstance). Changing even small habits can create ripple effects in your life or open you to new awareness, if you allow them to. Keeping yourself flexible and open to new experiences and opportunities allows chi to flow in your body and in your life. Try a new one (or more) of our 80+ varieties of tea in single serving trial size – Tell us you saw the suggestion here and we’ll even give you one for free!
Kateri Meyer, Traveling Tea, 2707 Sutton Blvd., Maplewood, MO 63143. 314-647-8832
40) See The Forest & The Trees
A “treemendous” year starts with getting outdoors and enjoying the wealth of benefits trees provide. Trees work for our well-being as much as they work for wildlife and the environment. Studies show that people who spend time around trees concentrate better. Contact with nature helps children improve their creativity, intellectual development and social relationships. Whether it’s a walk in the park, playtime in the backyard, or a hike through the woods, get outdoors and see how trees work for you and your family. Discover all the ways trees and forests are working for you at treeswork.org. From the Trees Work program at the Missouri Department of Conservation. www.treeswork.org
41) Enjoy YMCA Trout Lodge
YMCA Trout Lodge is a year-round not-for-profit resort. It is situated among 5,200 beautifully wooded acres that include one and two-mile hiking trails, a ranch, arts & crafts center and a 360-acre lake. The location is only a 90-minute drive from St. Louis. Rates include lodging, three cafeteria-style meals a day and many activities. Discounted rates are offered for kids and teens and ages 0-4 always stay for free.