I have always done really well with a challenge. It’s why I lose weight every time I count points or calories. It becomes something I need to do to prove something to myself. My problem usually comes when the challenge ends. It’s way too easy to slip back to “normal” once you’ve reached your goal.

That’s why I’m approaching these monthly Wellness Challenges as both challenges and habits. Yes, I plan to focus on something specific each month. But once that month ends, I’m not going to drop it. Instead, I’m going to build on it. I’m going to take the challenge I’ve worked at and add something on top of it.

Last month I did really well drinking more water, thanks in part to the deliciousness of iced green and herbal teas (this one has been my favorite). I used my Fitbit app to track my intake, mostly because it’s really simple and just requires me to put the amount of ounces I drank into my phone (for me, that’s much easier than logging it on paper). I have ended up getting to a place where I drink just about a gallon every day. That is a huge improvement for someone who used to go through most of the day without finishing my glass of water.

Now I want to take that momentum and add another layer to the challenge.

This month I want to move more.

So much of the health and fitness content I see out there in the universe focuses on the wrong things. I’m tired of continually coming across the best ways to get a bikini body or the skinny on getting skinny. Blech.

I’m sorry, but the world does not begin and end with a thigh gap.

I would much rather feel healthy and know that I’m strong than fit into a teeny tiny bikini. That’s why I’ve decided to look at my heath and wellness from a whole new perspective—and I want to bring you along for the ride!

I’ve always been a big fan of baby steps. The smallest little changes can slowly turn into habits that completely change our world. So let’s use that to benefit our health. Starting today, I’m going to run a series of monthly wellness challenges that I hope will slowly but surely help us make healthier choices.

This month’s challenge?

Drink more water.

Sometimes when I’m reading a book to one of my girls, a line will pop out at me that sort of blows my mind. It’s so honest and so to the point and something adults so desperately need to hear and to remember—and yet it’s tucked away quietly in the pages of a kid’s book, where no one is likely to go out in search of it.

But children’s books are often little treasure troves of truth. Everything is broken down so simply, which is something adults generally have a hard time doing. We think and rethink and then overthink some more. But sometimes—most of the time?—it’s much easier than that.

I collected five of my favorite quotes from children’s literature that can serve as reminders to grown-ups and kids alike. If you like them, you can sign up to have them sent directly to your inbox where you can print them out to hang around the house. Otherwise, pin them for later when you can use a pick me up. 

Hey girl. Treat Yo Self is a series (inspired by my beloved Parks and Rec) that focuses on inexpensive indulgences that make you feel good without feeling guilty. Because when momma’s not happy, nobody is happy.

A couple of months ago, when I was particularly stressed, my husband ordered me an adult coloring book. He thought that unplugging, turning my brain off and concentrating on coloring in those teensy little lines might help me regain some sanity. I don’t admit it often, but he was right (sort of like that time I accused him of breaking something that didn’t exist).

Coloring puts me into a weirdly meditative zen state and there’s something about the small spaces in adult coloring books that only enhances it. Since then, I used a few free printable adult coloring pages at my crafty tea party and I’ve decided that all grown-up get togethers taking place at my house shall henceforth include the things.

Because they’re awesome.

If you’re feeling the least bit stressed, you need to download one of the five free adult coloring pages I’m linking to below, print it out, and scrounge up your kids broken crayon bits (or climb on board the self care train and order yourself a nice set of colored pencils that you can hide away and save just for you). If you haven’t done it in awhile, you’ll be shocked at how calming it is. And if you have, well, you probably stopped reading to check out the goods a long time ago. 😉

When I was younger, I never really gave a second thought to the ingredients in my cleaning products. As long as they did their jobs, who cares, right? But then I had a baby. And babies? They bring out the neurotic in people. Suddenly I was really thinking about my cleaning products. It started with the bathtub. The thought of cleaning it out with harsh chemicals and then plopping a fresh new human inside made me a little crazy.

When she got bigger, I started to think twice about the products I used to wipe down toys and tables and her high chair tray. When everything finds its way directly into her mouth, did I really want it coated in chemicals?

For me, the answer was a big, fat, bold, NO. And that no got bigger and bolder once my second (much messier) daughter was born.

Since then, I’ve tried a bunch of different products and found some that I loved and some that I hated.