Hi there, I'm Leah.
I'm a mountain grown, free spirited wild woman navigating this thing we call life with curiosity, compassion and the urge to push myself out of my comfort zone. Every week, I sit down at my computer to write my thoughts, process my feelings and share them here as a way to keep myself accountable. I hope the stories I tell bring you comfort, a new perspective and the craving for a grand adventure.

 
Hola from Rincon, Puerto Rico!
When planning the trip, my sister and I looked for an airbnb that’s cute and clean, but not so nice that you don’t want to leave the house. That kind of searching landed us in a three bedroom cottage one block from downtown and two blocks from the beach. We arrived Saturday evening, quickly changed, then all six of us, all hangry, set out to find a quick, cheap and authentic meal. After passing a handful of English-named, busy restaurants, we landed on a street stand run by a man named Gus who specialized in meat on a stick (it was delish!). We slept in on Sunday morning and took our time getting to Steps Beach, just down the road, which was full of coral, tropical fish and coconut trees. On Monday we woke up early (for us) and got a move on to drive 90 minutes from the north west coast to Cabo Rojo on the south west coast. The road to get to the point put our rental minivan to the test, but we managed to make it all the way there. The beach was located in a horseshoe-like cove and lined with shade trees, which was perfect for chilling, but the snorkeling was subpar. It took about 5 minutes before Josh and I were bored and decided to explore the coast of the horseshoe. After a 10 minute walk, we crossed a land bridge leading to a little island that overlooked a private lagoon. Once we figured out how to access the lagoon without swimming through coral, we hustled back to get snorkeling gear and the rest of the crew. We swam for what felt like hours and saw an array of fish, including one that was a gigantic dory looking fish. I’m not sure which one of us was scared more, but we both took off in different directions (lol). On the way home from the beach we hit up the pink salt flats. This was definitely a tourist trap, but cool nonetheless. I’m grateful to have seen it in the off season because we pretty much had the whole thing to ourselves.
 
This morning we headed further north, but still on the west coast, through towns like Isabella, to check out more beaches. I personally liked this area a little more. There were more locals and less tourists, which is definitely my kind of vibe. We arrived that the trailhead of survival beach which was basically a sandy parking lot, ideal for car campers (or so I would imagine), full of shady palm trees and home to some of the most beautiful waves I have ever seen. If I was to come back here, I would plan to rent a surfboard and car camp here for a few days! We headed down the seemingly simple trail that led to a rocky coast. We hung out here for a bit until we realized that the trail continued further up the mountain and around the maze of broken boulders. THIS is why they call it survival beach, if you could make it to the beach, you survived! The path to the beach and scenery there was absolutely stunning, but the waves crashed hard so swimming was out. We hung out for a while, ate some snacks and then headed back when almost everyone hit either their head or knee on a rock or tree. On the search for a beach to swim at, we moved onto Guajataca beach tunnel, which was highly unimpressive and a major tourist attraction. We weren’t able to walk on the beach because of turtle nests (thank goodness for the multiple signs warning people!) and the tunnel was, um, a tunnel? We left with exactly enough time to drive home, walk to the beach and catch the sunset, which was stunning.
 
We leave for the east coast tomorrow and plan to explore the mainland, rainforest, caves and as many waterfalls as I can fit in. Even though our trip isn’t over, I would call this trip a success! The flights, rental car and airbnbs are very reasonable. Almost everyone speaks English, they use the dollar and you don’t need a passport to get here. If you’re looking for a cheap and easy escape from reality, I highly suggest Puerto Rico. Also, It’s very important to note that on the list of cool things that require no skill, it goes 1. Slot canyons 2. Snorkeling 3. Cross country skiing (at least in my mind).
 
I can’t wait to tell you about the rest of the trip next week!

Growth Mindset 
While in the airport I realized I didn’t have an audiobook downloaded onto my phone. I looked through my audible library and found a book only 2hrs long and clicked download before reading the title, “Self Care by the Signs”. I didn’t remember adding the book, but I’ve been on a woowoo kick lately, so anything is possible. I love the idea of this book. Before listening, I imagined that self care would talk about massages, bubble baths and playing with crystals, but instead it touched on the positive traits of each sign and leaned into how we can use that as a yearly ritual to care for our bodies, minds and souls. One of the signs was all about being present and they offered this ritual: Grab a hot drink (I prefer Moonflower relax tea with cbd and lavender) and look into the steam, what do you see? Stick your face over the steam, how does it feel? Take a big whiff, what do you smell? Take a sip, how does it feel going down? As you finish your cup, close your eyes and notice what you hear. This ritual entices all the senses, which I am a huge fan of. This was a wonderful way to start my vacation, and it might be a nice way for you to start your day tomorrow.
Moon Cycle Tracker
Josh and I were driving to my sisters, having an argument about something very unimportant when I raised my voice and explained that it didn’t matter what he was trying to communicate with his hands in a dark car while I was driving. I was right and I didn’t give a shit. A few seconds of silence passed before he said, “what’s that phase called? Luteal?” Before I could get irritated with him for very politely pointing out that I was unnecessarily being a bitch, I realized that I was in fact entering into my luteal phase sometime that day or the next. I wondered how many times in my life I have been short, irritated, impatient and labeled a bitch instead of a woman with a cycle of emotions preparing for death and deconstruction in the body. I am incredibly grateful for this new found awareness.
Dating
Wanna test your relationship? Take a trip somewhere, see how you travel together, test navigation skills and assess their mood under pressure. Wanna REALLY test your relationship? Go on vacation with your family. You can have the best family in the world (I personally think mine is up there), but having a plethora of personalities, parenting styles and kids in the mix asking “are we there yet?” every five minutes can really add to the whole experience. Most of my boyfriends have not liked my family, some have mildly tolerated them, one looked like he was physically in pain when I asked if he wanted to spend the weekend with them on a 40’ sailboat. One actually drove me to my niece and nephews first birthday party, saw the amount of cars parked on the street and told me to grab my luggage because he wasn’t coming in. I had to walk into a house full of over 100 people and explain why I had a bag of clothes instead of the handsome man they were excited to meet (embarrassing). While my expectations were set extremely low for a long time, my new partner Josh has blown past them without hesitation. I’ll let you know next week if he’s still around after a week of hanging out with two 11 year olds.
 
High mindset / Low Budget
airport food
When Josh dropped me off and picked me up from the airport this spring (cali trip) he came prepared with breakfast burritos both times. I’m sure if it was the stress of flying into lax and renting a car, but it was the best damn burrito I’ve ever had, so I requested them for this trip too.
You’ll need maple sausage, eggs, butter, cheddar cheese, soft tortilla wraps, salt and pepper and taco bell sauce packets.
 
First, cook your maple sausage, then make your eggs in the same pan to soak up all the meat juice (ew that sounds weird). Add the eggs and sausage to your wrap then sprinkle cheese on top, wrap it up and put the burrito back on the pan with a little butter to crisp it up (this is the key). Wrap it in foil and take it wherever you want with your little hot sauce to go packets. 
BossBabe
The Societe
I’ve been a huge fan of the BossBabe podcast for years and I joined their online mentoring program for female entrepreneurs in January 2021. This platform is so valuable that I have kept my membership, even with extremely limited internet. Once a week you get a live call for either mindset coaching, goal setting or questions answered by an industry expert. You get actionable steps to move you towards your goal by addressing purpose, audience and systems. You also get access to a library full of monthly masterclasses highlighting leadership, legal, marketing, sales and social media. This is a wealth of knowledge for someone like myself who is trying to navigate this business world without a business degree. If you are interested in joining yourself, click the link below and get ready to feel inspired.
 
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TREAT YOURSELF
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Holy shit you made it!
 
 If you have any thoughts, questions, or suggestions, I would love for you to send me a message and start a conversation. :) 
 
 
 
I'm so grateful you're along for the ride.
Until next week,
 
Leah Staley