Mothers We Admire

In honor of mothers everywhere desiring to live simple, eco-friendly lives, this Mother’s Day, our Go Gently Nation team would like to celebrate you.  Inspired by our constant desire to better ourselves and care for our families and children while being mindful of others and our footprint. We decided to reach out to two mothers that we admire, one is focused on an eco lifestyle and the other is living simply and courageously homeschooling her four children.  We asked our Go Gently Muses to share some helpful insight into how they blend family and the eco-conscious lifestyle.  

“We hear from many Moms that wish they could live a more simple life, slow down and experience being a mother in this manner,” explains Kristin Coia, founder of Go Gently Nation.  Therefore, we looked to Chandra Fox of @these.native.goods, and Belinda Love of @raising.little.women for their advice on how to achieve more simplicity while raising children with this mindset.   

We are inspired by Chandra, of @these.native.goods, for her selfless, eco-conscious desire to encourage others to do the best to care for our planet and be a good example to the next generation.  In our effort to learn more, we asked Chandra to share with our readers some of the tangible ways she is teaching her daughter about eco-consciousness and sustainable living.

Chandra Fox: “I feel like one of the most important things to teach little ones, starting at an early age, is the value of our connection to the earth. Because the preservation of Mother Earth is the root of this whole movement and having an appreciation for nature makes you want to protect it. We spend a lot of time outside; learning plant names, checking out insects, talking about how things grow and where food comes from. Not to mention just enjoying the beauty of the outdoors.”

[Furthermore,]

“I am hoping that some of the lessons we learn will transfer over into other areas especially as she gets older. For example, she is very into picking flowers, sometimes rather aggressively. So I am trying to teach her to only take a little from the plant so that it can still thrive. We talk about how leaving some flowers for the bees and butterflies will help feed them; and will ensure that the bees come back to help make her berries grow. Now she says cute things like “Mommy I picked just one so the bees can eat and make honey.” Would love to parlay this into teaching her to only take what she needs in all areas of life.”

Our Go Gently team members also find ourselves inspired by Belinda Love of @raising.little.women.  Belinda is pursuing more simplicity, and living this out with her family daily, even homeschooling her children which is so commendable to us. Therefore we asked Belinda’s advice on steps we, and our readers can take to start living the simpler life like she demonstrates.

Belinda Love: “Living simply at first not only takes some adjusting but also some conscious effort. We are so used to having our calendars, closets, and homes full of activities and stuff. Lots of stuff especially when one has children. But we have found that simplifying our schedules and possessions has been wonderful for us. We get to enjoy moments with our girls instead of rushing through them. Don't get me wrong, at times I still fail miserably. Sometimes I get caught up in what others are doing, which is easy to get sucked into these days with social media. And we are still working on simplifying our entire home with only things that we truly love, use and are eco-friendly. But at the end of the day, I want to live these glorious mothering days of my girls fully present while making memories that they will take with them into adulthood and perhaps one day as a mother themselves. Being out in nature is always our cure on days when we are feeling overwhelmed or down. It is amazing what some fresh air or sand between your toes can do for the soul,” shares Belinda Love.  

 Thank you, Chandra and Belinda, for sharing your wonderful insight with our readers.  Happy Mother’s Day to all the amazing women that so selflessly give of themselves to their children and families every day.   

Happy Mother’s Day!