Reframing Indulgence to Pleasure

A mindset shift, the Black Friday sales worth a browse & non-Thanksgiving meals to make this week

FIRST:
Before we dive in, I wanted to take a moment to say thank you and tell you that appreciate you! I appreciate you subscribing, spending your sacred time reading here, engaging, and being part of The In-Between. As explained in the first newsletter, I started sharing on the internet as a 20-something running wild in LA which turned into a 30-something pursuing a life well lived and now here at 40, we meet again with this newsletter inspired by an existential crisis. A newsletter that I have loved creating. Feeling the keyboard beneath my fingertips as I write, share, and dive deeper in ways that I didn’t before feels really good, really right, and purposeful. And I hope it feels as good on the receiving end, a little delight every week when it hits your inbox. So again, thank you! I’m wishing you and your loved ones a Happy Thanksgiving!

XX,
G

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THE WEEKLY EDIT:
SHOPPING: Black Friday sales worth a browse

CLOTHING, ETC.:
DÔEN is up to 70% off
Jenni Kayne is 25% off sitewide (so is OAK Essentials)
The Great is 20% off sitewide
Freda Salvador is 25% off sitewide (the loafers!)
This Frankie Shop sale is so good!
Janessa Leone is 30% off sitewide
SHOPBOP is 25% off sitewide
Hill House is 30% off (this is a compliment magnet and I might need this skirt)
Lake Pajamas is 25% off sitewide (their DreamKnit fabric is the softest!)
Petit Plum is 20% off sitewide (I love their holiday collection - ordered matching holiday jammies for my girls)
Alo Yoga is 30% off sitewide

WELLNESS & BEAUTY:
The Oura Ring is up to $100 off (I’m taking the plunge!)
Bala is 30% off sitewide
Perelel is 25% off everything (excellent pre-natal or anytime vitamins!)
NuFace is 30% off sitewide (best time to make the splurge IMO!)
Merit is 20% off sitewide
True Botanicals is 25% off sitewide (the Extreme Cream moisturizer tho!)
SIDIA is 20% off sitewide (don’t sleep on the body duo!)
Kosas is 25% off sitewide
RŌZ is 20% off  (the best clean shampoo & conditioner!)

HOME & ART:
Boll & Branch is 25% off sitewide (the signature hem are my jam and so are the plush washcloths in grey for face washing)
Dalkin & Co spices is 15% off
Tappan Collective is 20% off
Lulu & Georgia is 25% off sitewide
One Wednesday is 20% off sitewide (great muslin throws and robes!)

And last but not least, for gift wrapping needs Dear Annabelle is 20% off sitewide!

WATCHING: Holiday classics
Home Alone, The Holiday, Love Actually, etc.! Feels right during Thanksgiving and Christmas, no?

WEARING: Arizona Big Buckle Teddy Birkenstock
My girlfriend Courtney sent me a care package in advance of having Jack which included these Birks and I’ve been living in them! So cozy.

DRINKING: Mother’s Milk
For the bébé!

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ALRIGHT, LET’S GET INTO IT: Reframing Indulgence to Pleasure

Thanksgiving always serves as a time to be thankful, but for many of us, it's also the time of year when we stress about what we're eating, drinking, buying, and so on. 'Tis the season for indulgence, you know? That is until the hangover, guilt, and negative thoughts that tend to follow indulging come creeping in, at times overpowering the happiness and serotonin that came with the initial indulgences.

I heard Liz Moody on Arielle Lorre's podcast recently and she referenced something called 'temptation building.' The general idea is to pair habits that are hard to incorporate with something you love. For example, she referenced saving your favorite podcast episode for your workout, or a new episode of your favorite show for folding laundry. It's not ground-breaking by any means but it got me thinking about the idea of indulging (in something you love) & how to find balance with it.

When you're a kid, indulgence isn't something you are aware of (or at least not something I can remember thinking of). I didn't stress about eating allll the desserts when I was a kid - I simply ate it and bathed in the happiness of the treats. I never knew about calories - I gobbled everything up and ended the day with a full, happy belly.

The guilt around indulging, or even the conscious thought of it, seemed to creep up sometime around college and has followed me since. Perhaps that’s when the cultural programming to equate self-denial with being good began, something Elise Loehnen talks about in her book ‘On Our Best Behavior.’ And, when talking to friends, seems to ring true for a lot of millennial women. It's something that takes up space in our minds, for some of us, obsessively, impacting our mental health and taking away from the joy that indulging CAN bring - when done mindfully.