Staying Grounded: Practical Ways to Manage Stress Day to Day

 

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Staying Grounded: Practical Ways to Manage Stress Day to Day

Stress doesn’t always arrive like a thunderstorm. Sometimes, it seeps in quietly—through tight deadlines, constant notifications, the pressure to show up perfectly in every role you play. Managing it isn’t about mastering a secret formula but learning to create room for your well-being amid the chaos. You don’t need to reinvent your life to feel better; what you need are strategies that slip into your routine, ones that feel like something you’d actually do, not a checklist written by someone who’s never had to answer emails during dinner. The truth is, managing stress well is less about controlling your surroundings and more about learning how to ride the wave without letting it knock you off balance.

Lean Into Movement

You’re not being asked to sign up for an ultramarathon or do sunrise yoga on a mountain. Just move. That walk around the block, dancing in the kitchen while dinner simmers, even stretching while watching TV—these are little acts of defiance against stress. Movement doesn’t just release tension; it reminds your body it’s not trapped, that there’s still flow and freedom in your limbs.

Let the Small Stuff Stay Small

You already carry enough. Why pick up things that don’t belong to you? Letting go of minor irritations—like someone cutting you off in traffic or your partner forgetting the milk—frees up emotional space. It’s not about ignoring problems; it’s about refusing to let the tiny stuff set up camp in your head and act like it owns the place.

Explore Alternative Remedies

Sometimes what you need isn’t another productivity hack, but something gentler—something that speaks to your nervous system in a different language. Chamomile tea offers a calming ritual that helps you slow down and exhale after a hectic day. Ashwagandha works behind the scenes, supporting your body’s ability to adapt to stress over time. And THCa, a non-psychoactive compound in raw cannabis, can provide soothing effects without the high—this may be a good option for stress relief.

Rethink Your Digital Diet

It’s not news that scrolling endlessly through bad news and perfectly curated lives isn’t helping. But the solution isn’t to throw your phone into a river either. It’s choosing when and how to be online—turning off notifications for a few hours, unfollowing accounts that leave you feeling like you’re not enough, or simply swapping screen time for a real book. The world keeps spinning whether or not you check your phone every ten minutes.

Create Tiny Rituals

Not everything has to be efficient. There’s quiet power in building small, intentional moments into your day that have nothing to do with productivity. Maybe it’s making coffee slowly, lighting a candle while answering emails, or ending your day with a hot shower and zero screens. These rituals don’t just anchor you—they whisper that you’re worth a pause, even when life says go.

Talk, Don’t Just Cope

Bottling things up might feel like strength, but it often turns into weight you weren’t meant to carry alone. Having someone to talk to—a friend, a therapist, even just a coworker who gets it—can turn the volume down on your worries. It doesn’t have to be dramatic; sometimes just naming what’s bothering you is enough to shrink it. The goal isn’t to fix everything—it’s to feel seen in the middle of it.

Embrace Nature

There’s something about trees swaying in the gardeningwind, a quiet trail, or even clouds drifting by that puts things in perspective. Nature doesn’t ask anything of you—it just exists, and in doing so, invites your nervous system to unclench. Even if you’re stuck indoors, glimpsing nature through a window or even pausing to look at wall art with a nature theme can relieve stress and improve your mindset. You don’t need a cabin in the woods—sometimes, a park bench or a potted plant on your desk will do the trick.

Let Yourself Off the Hook

You’re going to mess up sometimes. You’ll forget things, miss deadlines, react badly, or drop the ball. That’s not a moral failing—it’s being human. The faster you forgive yourself, the faster you can get back to living instead of dragging around the guilt like a suitcase full of bricks.

Stress happens. It’s baked into life in a world that’s always “on.” But your job isn’t to eliminate stress—it’s to know yourself well enough to soften it, to take care of the person you are under all the pressure. With practical tools that feel like you—not some self-help fantasy—you can carve out space for calm, even when the day is loud. And that’s not just how you manage stress—that’s how you stay human.

Discover the beauty of nature with Hibiscus and More, where you can explore a stunning collection of fine art prints and greeting cards perfect for any occasion!

Hibiscus and More has written several books on gardening available on the website Click on Gardening Books to view. Landscape Gardening, Butterfly Gardening, and Houseplants.

Need floral stock photography?

https://www.shutterstock.com/g/Cheryl+Ann+Meola

https://stock.adobe.com/contributor/210785031/Cheryl

All photographs and digital images are ©Cheryl Ann Meola. All Rights Reserved. All photographs and digital images displayed in this newsletter are for viewing purposes only and cannot be duplicated or copied.

©

 

Building a Greener Tomorrow

 

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Building a Greener Tomorrow: Practical Ways to Transform Your Community

When it comes to making meaningful environmental change, there’s something uniquely powerful about starting local. The neighborhood you call home holds immense potential for progress, and your voice can be the catalyst for that shift. Greening your community isn’t about drastic overhauls or expensive investments—it’s about creating accessible habits, smarter systems, and tighter bonds between people and the land they share.

Grow Where You Live

Encouraging local food production does more than just fill plates with fresh produce—it stitches communities together. Whether it’s a backyard garden, rooftop planters, or a shared plot in a community garden, the act of growing food promotes healthier eating and reduces dependence on long-distance food transport. Organize workshops or seed swaps to empower more neighbors to dig in, especially those new to gardening or short on space. If you create a few visible, shared spaces where green things are growing, others will be inspired to follow suit.

Turn Scraps into Soil

There’s a quiet magic in composting that turns yesterday’s peels and coffee grounds into tomorrow’s soil. By encouraging households and local businesses to compost their organic waste, you help reduce landfill burden and methane emissions while enriching local soil. Coordinate with city officials or nonprofits to introduce curbside compost pickup or neighborhood compost bins if it doesn’t already exist. Even apartment dwellers can contribute with countertop composting systems or communal drop-off points, making participation easy regardless of living situation. 

Launching Your Eco-Friendly Landscaping Service

Starting your own eco-friendly landscaping business is a smart way to combine your love for the outdoors with a growing demand for sustainable services. Focus on practices like native plant installations, organic lawn care, and water-efficient irrigation systems that reduce harm to the environment while still delivering curb appeal. Word-of-mouth can be powerful in this niche, especially if your early projects show a clear blend of beauty and responsibility.

Make Recycling More Than Just a Blue Bin

Recycling works best when everyone understands what goes where—and when systems are simple and trusted. Set up community education campaigns to demystify recycling rules, like which plastics are accepted and why bagging recyclables can be counterproductive. Collaborate with your local waste management authority to host open house tours of recycling centers or info booths at public events. When people can see the process and understand its impact, they’re more likely to commit to doing it right.

Pave the Way for Cleaner Transport

Green transportation doesn’t have to mean giving up cars entirely, but it does mean expanding what’s considered normal. Advocate for bike lanes that feel safe and protected, and install bike racks around local businesses and public buildings. Help promote transit options by putting up readable, friendly bus maps in central locations or launching a local carpool group for school and work commuters. The goal is to make walking, biking, and riding the bus not just a last resort—but a smart, stylish, and convenient choice.

Bring Down the Energy Bill

Reducing energy use at home and in local businesses can have a huge ripple effect if enough people join in. Start by organizing neighborhood energy audits or DIY workshops on sealing drafts, installing LED lights, and using smart thermostats. Encourage landlords and building managers to invest in better insulation and energy-efficient appliances by showing them how it saves money long-term. Small upgrades become powerful when multiplied across a community, especially in older neighborhoods where energy waste can quietly skyrocket.

Support Green-Minded Businesses

Your dollars have power, and how they’re spent locally shapes your area’s economy and its carbon footprint. Spotlight local businesses that prioritize sustainability—whether it’s through plastic-free packaging, locally sourced ingredients, or energy-conscious operations—and give them a platform through newsletters, social media, or events. Work with chambers of commerce or small business networks to create a “green business directory” to guide residents toward eco-conscious options.

Making your community greener isn’t about perfection—it’s about momentum. Every compost bin, every bike lane, every energy-saving lightbulb adds up to a quieter, cleaner, more connected place to live. More importantly, these actions remind people that they’re not alone in caring about the planet. Your role is to help light the spark, offer tools, and create space for others to join in. The rest? It grows naturally.

Discover the beauty of nature with Hibiscus and More, where you can explore a stunning collection of fine art prints and greeting cards perfect for any occasion!

Hibiscus and More has written several books on gardening available on the website Click on Gardening Books to view. Landscape Gardening, Butterfly Gardening, and Houseplants.

Need floral stock photography?

https://www.shutterstock.com/g/Cheryl+Ann+Meola

https://stock.adobe.com/contributor/210785031/Cheryl

All photographs and digital images are ©Cheryl Ann Meola. All Rights Reserved. All photographs and digital images displayed in this newsletter are for viewing purposes only and cannot be duplicated or copied.

©Carrie Spencer 2025

March Gardening Chores 2025

 

Florida Flame Azalea is available as stock. Check the link below

In March the weather teases gardeners into believing spring is almost around the corner, with lots of continuous sunny and warm days. During this time of year, the weather is very unpredictable for planning and the weather is like a roller coaster, one day it’s nice and sunny, then the next day it’s cold and rainy.  As gardeners we get antsy, we want to get out in our garden and play in the dirt. But we know better, the last average frost date is still a month or two months away, depending on your gardening zone. This is when we can start planning for this year’s spring garden. Spring is a good time to check out new gardening books. There are three gardening books I would like to recommend Southeast Style Gardening, Gardening for the Butterflies, and Grow Fresh Air. The books are for sale on the Hibiscusandmore.com website. The books can help you plan your garden for spring.

March Gardening Chores

As we patiently wait for spring to arrive, we can start preparing by starting seeds. Start spring flowers and vegetables from seeds indoors. It takes about 6 weeks to get strong seedlings. To make starting seeds easier several horticultural companies have designed and marketed seed germination kits. The kits can be bought at local nurseries, Home Depot, Lowe’s, and online. There is a kit that includes 2 grow lights, seedling heat mat, growing tray, base tray for excess water, 2 vents on the cover, garden tools, and plant labels. This kit is just one that was listed on Amazon that I found.

Spring is a good time to prune your shrubs and vines. Just be aware that some plants bloom on new growth where as other plants bloom on old growth. When in doubt prune after flowering.

March is the last month recommended to prune Roses to half their original size. After pruning rake up last year’s mulch and replace with new mulch. This should be done especially if your roses had black spot because the black spot spores are lying dormant on top of last year’s mulch. Fertilize with Bayer Advanced Rose Fertilizer after pruning and apply once a month. Click Here for More Information on Roses.

Prune back Holly shrubs that have gotten too large. If needed, you can prune back to 4 feet or higher, but if the holly shrubs are 10 to 15 feet you can do the pruning in stages until you find the height that you like.

Flowering shrubs such as Winter Honeysuckle, Quince, and Forsythia can be pruned after flowering.

Is your Liriope looking at little tattered? The leaves can be cut either with a weed eater or your lawn mower set on its highest setting.

Trim back deciduous grasses before the grass breaks dormancy.

Add fresh layer of mulch on all trees and shrubs to prevent weeds. To prevent future weeds from growing add pre-emergent weed preventer on top of the mulch. Check the label to see how often you need to re-apply for continuous protection.

Fertilize winter flowering annuals with a blooming type fertilizer. Water in all granular type fertilizers.

Lawns should have lime at least yearly. Have you limed your lawn lately? Use 40 pounds per 1000 square feet.

Fertilize Pecan Trees with a fruit tree fertilizer and water in well after.

Fertilize shrubs with a shrub and tree fertilizer and water in well.

Need to divide your perennials? When the leaves start to show you can divide and plant elsewhere in your garden. Use a mixture of SuperThrive and Recharge, professional strength microbial superpack as a root stimulator for best results after planting.

One of the best times to plant fruit and nut trees is in early spring. Nurseries have a good selection of these trees in spring, but hurry the selection usually goes fast.

Peach and Apple trees need to be sprayed with a fungicide recommended for fruit trees, and spray the trees while the blossoms are on the tree.

Check for scale insects on Camellias and Euonymus. Spray with a horticultural oil, if you detect the insects.

All photographs maybe purchased as fine art prints at HibiscusandMore.com  

Cheryl Ann Meola Art

Butterfly Gardening

Houseplants - Grow Fresh Air

Need floral stock photography?

https://www.shutterstock.com/g/Cheryl+Ann+Meola

https://stock.adobe.com/contributor/210785031/Cheryl

All photographs and digital images are ©Cheryl Ann Meola. All Rights Reserved. All photographs and digital images displayed in this newsletter are for viewing purposes only and cannot be duplicated or copied.