September New Moon in Virgo

As summer sunlight begins to fade and the crisp fall air ushers in harvest season, we’re grounded in Virgo’s natural discernment and desire for improvement. The fruits of our labor are brought to the forefront, inviting us to evaluate what has flourished in our life and what may need readjusting. We’re encouraged to sift through ourselves, keeping what nourishes our spirit and releasing what no longer serves or highest good. The September New Moon in Virgo is a time to let go of self-doubt, self-criticism, and imposter syndrome as we step into our divine potential.

This is the season where our focus naturally shifts to reflection and making adjustments that will support our alignment through the colder, more introspective months. Now is the time to wrap up any undone projects or spiritual assignments we may have been putting off and ask ourselves, “How can I simplify my life and reduce any subtle chaos that overwhelms my mind or disturbs my nervous system?” It’s time to slow down, listen to the voice of our inner being, and acknowledge our limits. Have you been holding healthy boundaries, or are you pouring energy into something that no longer serves you? The more clarity and balance we find internally now, the more rest and graceful surrender we align with through Winter.

Whether you’re a ritual-ly person or just like to write down your intentions, I’m encouraging you to do your thing with clarity tonight. Then, dig deep this week, showing yourself and the universe why you want what you say you want, living that reality through your thoughts and actions.

Step 1) Clear OUT any old unhelpful patterns and thought processes,

Step 2) Bring IN habits and routines aligned with our best, most authentic selves.

My advice-
Take it slower this afternoon, calm your mind, and get clear on what it is that your soul desires most in this season and out of life in general. Don’t let past negative outcomes or experiences affect your vision. Hold your most feel-good vision for your life. As the sun sets and darkness sets in, get real with yourself about any limiting sh*t you might still be carrying around that blocks you from the reality you envision. As you become aware of the blocks through introspection and meditation, let them go with love and grace.

Everything you desire most is already here, happening right now. All it takes to realize it - to see it, touch it, taste it, smell it, etc. is a quantum shift (look into quantum mechanics and quantum leaping if you are skeptical).

What this means, as corny or “new age” as it may sound, is that you must align yourself in every way with the reality you desire. Universal laws and quantum science give us the secret code. They tell us that we have to deeply know that we are the creators of our own life simulation. We must believe it’s possible and that we are worthy of our desires. We must feel deep down that we are already living the desired reality. We must release any thought, subconscious belief or negative emotion that doesn’t align with the reality we want most for ourselves. Maybe most importantly, we have to feel genuine appreciation for all that we have in the now - today..where we sit - and make space with gratitude for all the blessings and healing we know are coming into our realities in the perceived future.

“Your vision will become clear only when you can look into your own heart. Who looks outside, dreams; who looks inside, awakes.”
— Carl Jung

Although we do have all the answers already, the limitations of our human avatars and the stresses of modern day life tend to get in the way of us remembering those answers often. So, if you’re ever unsure of where to start with yourself, or how to get back on the right track.. examining and realigning your habits is usually the best place to focus. What do you habitually think, eat, say, do, etc.? Tweak your habits to support the highest version of yourself. If you do, and you stay consistent, you will see magical results in the Spring/Summer.

**Link to Habit Tracker digital pdf

Corpus Christi and The Islands: Our First Trip as Part-Time Nomads

Loaded up and ready to hit the road - from Lake Hefner, OKC (our favorite hang spot at home)

Corpus Christi - Padre & Mustang Islands

If you actually know me, you know how fluid I am and how plans can change at the last minute, and actually.. most of the time the “plans” are just ideas without any concrete commitments anyway. This trip was no different. My son finished up his summer basketball league, I completed a photo shoot the day after, and with two weeks ahead without any real commitments, we launched! On the day of the first Lion’s Gate Portal (8/8), we loaded up the Jeep and headed south to do some tent camping. We just weren’t sure how far south we’d be going.

I had three different campgrounds in mind within a 30-40 mile radius in central Texas, and figured we’d snag whichever one was still available. Ya girl has ADHD though and I don’t always think about allll the necessary details. I’d forgotten how unusual it is to find a reservable campsite online so last minute, especially going into the weekend, since we’ve been camping primarily during the week over recent years. All three campgrounds I’d had in mind were booked up through the weekend! I discovered this not long into our trip, but was pretty unphased. Texas has 89 state parks…I was sure we’d find something to suit us. HA! Of the several, and I mean several campgrounds I searched, I couldn’t find any sites that were available for the days we were looking that weren’t dispersed camping with no water or restrooms (no thanks..not with kids).

So..along we went, further and further south. About three hours into the trip, with the kids asleep completely unknowing, I (or Source, rather) decided on Corpus Christi. We have relatives there and I’d been a few times before but not since I was a teenager. I knew that the beaches are pretty clean and the water is clear. Mustang Island State Park had some available campsites with electric if we decided we wanted that, or we could camp on the beach for free with admission to the park. Corpus had already been an idea of mine, but I didn’t intend to go until October when it wouldn’t be so hot. Buuut I brought my big portable battery and our portable AC, and I knew the kids would be stoked about the beach..so I thought “why not?”. This simple question governs a lot of my travel choices and I think it makes traveling with me so much more adventurous (disastrous if you ask my family), but I guess that’s all up to perception.

When we got there we drove right onto the beach. It was dark and the kids were still asleep, but they woke up pretty quickly to the sounds of crashing waves. We rolled the windows down and sat in tranquility for maybe two good minutes before realizing we had no less than twenty mosquitoes in the car. Huh uh! I’m not proud of what happened next, so I won’t go into detail, but after handling the situation we pretty quickly decided on a hotel for the night. Shoutout to Priceline and the sweet front desk clerk.. we actually ended up getting two nights for the price of one. Not in the original plan, but again…we’re fluuuid baaabyyy.

We were on the beach for the better part of three days, swimming, building sand castles, finding shells, taking fun photos and observing the aquatic life. We spent the first couple nights in the hotel then a couple nights camping on a much less mosquitoey beach at Mustang Island State Park. We ate lots of fruit and got allll the sun, swimming at sunrise and again at sunset, breaking only now and then to eat or take a drive and cool off.

The locals seem to like fishing a LOT, so I imagine if that’s your thing.. you may like to visit the area with your gear. We heard some cool stories about big catches near Flour Bluff/Laguna Madre. We didn’t get out and visit the Navy ship, visit local shops or eat at any cool restaurants, as we tend to opt for easy, close to nature, and budget-friendly when I’m the only adult along (which is usually)… but the Salty K laundromat on Padre Island def gets a five-star rating for vibes and cleanliness!

Most scenic sunrise view I've ever experienced from my tent window - Mustand Island State Park

I’m describing the adventure in pretty surface level terms, but it wouldn’t be very Rambling Hippie of me if I didn’t get at least a liiittle deep. Well that’s easy to do because aside from the obvious excitement and relaxation of the ocean waves and beach time, it was absolutely magical. I know...it’s Texas…Dirty Third Coast.. That probably doesn’t sound magical to everyone, but from start to finish this trip was exactly what my two littles and I needed after a big move and life transition.

Spirit led us to the perfect place, aligned special people with special messages for us while there, and even hooked us up with a free night at the hotel. Three times while there, GPS took us for big detours..for no apparent reason, leading us in perfect counterclockwise circles around entire neighborhoods and even a loop around the core of the city. This was grid healing work. I know grid work is part of the reason I’ve always felt called to travel, but I didn’t expect to be led in the way I was on this trip. From the route we took to get there and all of the signs along the way, to the stunning synchronicities while there, and even on the way back - our higher selves did their thang.

Sunrise swim and beach play

We stretched by the beach at sunrise, meditating to the sounds of the ocean waves and talked about how grateful we are for life and the magic of the moments we were experiencing. We swam while gazing at the golden light reflecting off of each others faces. We held tiny hermit crabs, followed sea snails until they disappeared into the sand, and I got to watch my son and daughter marvel at nature in a way I hadn’t seen in a while. Netflix and YouTube were forgotten, and the arguing between siblings went away for a while as they played and danced and splashed. Even in the heat of the day…sticky, hot, sandy…we were all content.

It felt like liberation. I’m looking forward to a lot more of that.

photo gallery

The first half of this set was taken with my DSLR, the rest are straight off the iPhone.

Just Go: Full Surrender to Adventure

In true Ladye fashion, I recently made a BIG jump. We (as in my two younger kids and I) have already been unschooling and traveling more often over the last few years as I’ve been running my creative business in a way that supports flexibility. Now, we’re kicking the adventure up a notch! As things have shifted in my career recently and nudged me to expand my online business, ideas and intentions are coming full circle. It’s time to put this Rambling Hippie show on the ROAD!

The plan in late 2019 was to launch Rambling Hippie and travel domestically in an RV/AirBnbs for a year or so while unschooling/roadschooling, then move on with other plans from there. After a major pivot during the pandemic where I changed careers, moved, gave birth to my baby girl AND a new business endeavor - our travel year dreams were postponed. I figured when my oldest son graduates HS in a couple years, we’d move out of our home, put our things in storage and hit the road for several months…deciding in that time where to buy land and settle down. *If you’re interested, there’s two old blogs about this: Unschooling Dreams and Travel in the Time of Corona

Fast forward a bit-
I’ve been doing business primarily in the Oklahoma canna**s industry for the last four years. I’m very passionate about plant medicine and the work I do to support it, and building a business in this space has been freeing and life changing in so many positive ways. However, with increasing regulatory changes and a number of other industry-wide issues, it has also become a very unstable market and many, if not most of us left have been feeling the squeeze. So while I still love working with my canna**s business clients, I’m shifting to more remote work and offering courses, guides and intuitive coaching for those ready to radically transform themselves and/or their way of doing business.

Digital Marketing Course

Working remotely

Rambling Hippie Weekly Planner

In this transition, big decisions have needed to be made. After much prayer, fasting and meditation, I accepted that the best decision for me and little family in this season was to put our household things in storage and embark on our Rambling Hippie adventures sooner than later. Although not perfectly planned or under the best cirumstances, this decision relieves a significant financial load while giving me the mental and physical wiggle room to get some big projects off the ground. We still have a landing pad in OKC and will be around each month to serve local clients, but we will be also on the road about half of the time.

Can't believe I fit the contents of my entire life in here

Locked and loaded, ready for launch

We’ve already embarked on the first leg of our journey, and will post blogs and content about our travels and adventures! (First trip recap coming soon!) If you’d like to follow along be sure you’re subscribed to e-mail updates. For more real-time content, follow Rambling Hippie on social media platforms like Instagram, Facebook and TikTok.

If you’d like to support our adventures, I’d LOVE for you to book an intuitive guidance session with me, purchase my digital products or cop some merchandise! I also humbly accept donations sent to $ramblinghippie / @ramblinghippie.

Thanks for simply being here! If you’d like to share what you like about Rambling Hippie and the kinds of content or information you enjoy most or want to see, feel free to drop a comment!

Love, light, and shadow,
Ladye

There are multiple paths to the same destination.
— Ladye, Rambling Hippie

Growth Group Workshop Packet PDF

**Updated in 2024 Growth Group Workshop packet with assessments, habit tracker, and other tools for self-exploration and alignment. This is a digital product I sell own my shop for $27, provided at no cost to Growth group MEMBERS ONLY. Print and work through the worksheets at your leisure, or make it a whole self-care sesh and put on this Rambling Hippie Podcast episode to walk you through it!

Abundance Flow - Conscious Vibes YouTube Music Playlist

This is my personal high vibe music playlist & I'm adding new stuff to it all the time. These are the songs I'm playing every day in my car and home, and my kids know most of them word for word lol. Most of them are conscious and encourage positive introspection. It's so important to me to make sure what I'm feeding myself what keeps my spirit in alignment, whether it's food, social media content, or music. If you enjoy this playlist, let me know some of your favs!

Abundance Flow - Conscious Vibes YouTube Music Playlist

Peace and blessings,
Ladye

Empowerment Playlist - Motivation & Inspiration to Be the Best You

One of my private YouTube playlists filled with motivation and empowering videos that make me want to be a better me. I go back and re-listen to them often. We all need to be reminded sometimes of our greatness, and this contains plenty of self-empowerment GOLD. If you're new to a healing/self-improvement path, or even if you've been working on yourself for a while and need some great reminders, I encourage you to dive in and find some inspo that makes you want to dig in deep and keep going. YOU ARE CAPABLE OF LIVING THE LIFE OF YOUR DREAMS.

Rambling Hippie Empowerment Playlist

If you enjoy this playlist, let me know which are some of your favorite videos! I’ll add to this playlist periodically as I come across more aligned inspiration.

Complete Samadhi Series - Pt 1, II, and III

Samadhi, (Sanskrit: “total self-collectedness”) in Indian philosophy and religion, and particularly in Hinduism and Buddhism, the highest state of mental concentration or awareness that people can achieve while still bound to the body and which unites them with the highest reality.

Below is a link to the three part Samadhi series. If you are on a path of ascension, curious about consciousness or simply remembering the truth of oneness and who you are, these hold something beautiful for you.

Samadhi 3 Part Series on YouTube

Samadhi 1 – “Maya, the Illusion of the Self”

Samadhi Part 2 – "It's Not What You Think"

Samadhi Part 3 – “The Pathless Path”

This series can be found on Gaia and YouTube, and I recommend it to those just beginning a spiritual path or experiencing an awakening, and anyone who wants to learn more about spirituality and the nature of our reality. It will either blow the lid off of your preconceived notions about this life, or it will confirm all the things your inner being has already shown you.

If you enjoy this series, I'd love to hear your thoughts in the comments here!

DIY Medicine: Herbal Tinctures

Making herbal tinctures at home

There are a plethora of plants that can be used as medicine, from foods to herbs with medicinal properties. I'm going to share with you one of my favorite methods to make medicinal tinctures using some of my favorite plants. If you like the idea of keeping a stocked natural medicine cabinet for yourself or your family for a fraction of the cost, this may be for you.

Many people don't realize that a lot of the prescribed and OTC medicines we see today that have plant origins. For example, aspirin was originally made from the bark of willow tree sapplings. Since then, the recipe has evolved and aspirin is made in labs. Personally, I'd rather use plants and natural alternatives to chemical-laden "medicines" that often come side effects and/or a hefty price at the pharmacy.

For tincture making you will need:

  • medicinal herbs/plants

  • mason jars with lids

  • parchment paper and cookie sheet (only for certain herbs that require drying/heating)

  • high proof clear grain alc*h*l (I prefer a particular brand that is 190 proof. It seems to work best.)

  • tincture bottles with droppers

  • a dark cabinet or pantry

1st Step - Learning. Gather information about medicinal plants in your area.

You may take some time to search different symptoms or ailments you'd like to be able to treat by Googling "herbs or plants that treat ______" ex: inflammation, sore throat, infection, aches and pains, sinus infections, headaches, etc. You may also choose to go out into your backyard or local nature area and take photos of plants and "weeds", then image search them to identify their name, then edit the search to see if they offer any medicinal value. I'll do this sometimes when I see new plants pop up in the yard. My searches are often formatted like this: "dandelion medicinal benefits" or "does goldenrod offer medicinal value?"

Once you identify the plants you'd like to use, make sure you know whether to use the flowers, bark, or others parts of the plant, and whether they can be used fresh or if they need to be dried. If you're using c****b*s, you can make tinctures using any part of the plant from the buds to leaves and stems.

2nd Step - Gather your chosen herbs/plants

Harvest (or purchase) your chosen herbs/plants and make sure you rinse them well with water. You may way to chop them down so they fit well into jars.

3rd Step - Dry or decarb in oven you're using c****b*s or herbs that require drying

You can SKIP this step if you're using fresh herbs/plants.

For c****b*s, you'll need to decarb in order to activate all of the cannabinoids for medicinal use. You can break down your stems/flower/trim leaves and place in a thin layer on a parchment paper lined cookie sheet. Put the cookie sheet into your preheated oven at 245 degrees for 35-45 minutes.

For other herbs/plants that require drying (I do this with Yaupon Holly leaves), you can roast in the oven using the same settings. **Some dried plants also make great medicinal teas

4th Step - Place herbs/plants in mason jars

5th Step - Pour clear grain alc*h*l over plant matter until fully covered

6th Step - Secure lids on mason jars and place in dark cabinet or pantry

7th Step - Allow to cure in dark cabinet/pantry for 4-6 weeks, giving a good shake every 2-3 days

8th Step - After 4-6 weeks, drain the liquid and discard the plant matter

Final Step - Place liquid into tincture bottles (preferably amber or other dark color to keep light out) with droppers. You can find these online (Amazon or other) in packs of 12-50 that come with funnels and labels.

Use 1-3 dropper doses daily as needed. I recommend putting in your beverage (coffee, tea, etc) because it makes the taste much more tolerable, but you can also place directly under the tongue.

This is honestly my favorite way to medicate with c****b*s, but it has also saved me a lot of money and stress to have several different kinds of medicine on hand for my family. I use garlic, rosemary, and oregano pretty regularly and recently even got rid of a gnarly tooth infection within 2 days! Yes, these tinctures are made with alc*h*l (because it is a great extracting agent), but rest assured that in such small amounts the alc*h*l alone is not going to cause intoxicating effects. Don't quote me on that, but I have used oregano and rosemary tinctures diluted in teas for my children when they have a cold or infection, with great results and no negative side effects. Just use with caution.

If you are very sensitive to alc*h*l you can try a glycerin tincture. It may not be as potent, but can be helpful nonetheless. The intention of this post is really to expand perspective and remind peeps that we CAN make our own medicine and it’s not nearly as complex or expensive as big pharma would have us believe.

Comprehensive Audible List: My Personal Self-Empowerment Library

In 2015 shortly after having my second child, I was at a cross-roads in my life. A lot of things seemed to be not working and I was ready to transcend my unfulfilling reality. I was sick and tired of being sick and tired, unhappy in my work and relationships, and feeling like I was being called to be a completely different version of myself as a woman, mother, and divine being.

As a pastor's kid and grandkid, this part of my journey led me back to church and deeper into biblical texts and Christian-based books. The more I read and listened to books about Jesus and spiritual freedom, the more I could see that something else was happening.. for the first time in my life I allowed myself to question my beliefs without shame or guilt. I was losing my religion, finding my truest self, and embracing deeper, bigger truths about my personal reality and everything/everyone around me.

This path led me to knowledge about fasting (which I will talk about in another post), meditating, giving up old ways of thinking, doing, and being. I embraced my unbecomin, my deprogramming, and the possibility that all I had learned in church/scripture growing up was merely part of a much bigger truth.

I don't remember exactly how I found Audible. Aside from indulging in several WWII books as a child, I was never really a big reader. Few topics were able to keep my attention, as I found myself getting bored or rereading the same lines over and over trying to process and remember. Audiobooks unlocked a whole new world for me. I started listening to them at work and in the car, and found myself more focused on tasks, less bored with my work, and growing into a more empowered version of myself all simultaneously.

Very early in my Audible journey, a good friend of mine and someone I respect greatly suggested the book The Alchemist by Paulo Coehlo. If you've read The Alchemist, you know that although it is fiction, it contains a message of truth that calls for your spirit to realize itself. That is exactly what started to happen for me. After digesting this title, it was like I jumped into a rabbit hole of learning, healing, journeying through my spirit, finding love in the places that previously hurt, getting my sh*t together and embracing the notion that my life was about to radically change.

This was the beginning of a painful season of falling apart so I could ultimately become something greater. I want to share with you many of the titles I've listened to from 2016 to now, as they have impacted me in ways I may never have words to accurately describe. These books (in addition to those I physically read) carried me through myself, through my dark nights of the soul, through my triumphs over sadness and despair, and lifted my soul as no one or no thing ever had.

My personal Audible list contains a range of genres, not just self-help or books on spirituality. Some are novels, some financial how-to's, history, political memoirs, religious texts, regenerative agriculture, psychology, psychedelics etc. I've left out several business and niche-specific titles, though I may put together a separate list for those later. Together, they form a library of thought that comes together beautifully to assist in my unlearning and relearning. It's a fairly long list (90 titles currently), so I hope you find some wisdom here. As with anything I share, please take what resonates and leave what doesn't.

If you have already read or listened to any of these books, or if you do so after reading this, and were/are as deeply impacted as I, I'd love to hear from you in the comments. I'll update it semi-frequently to keep the list current.

Love, light, and truth to you all <3, Ladye


RAMBLING HIPPIE AUDIBLE LIST

Titles listed in the chronological order in which I consumed them.