Georgina Castellucci

Brightly is the new tool in my kit that provides insights on new clean beauty brands, food & kitchen tips/brands, highlights sustainable fashion, the Good Together podcast chock full of help tips, information on how to create an eco-friendly home and lifestyle, and even gift guides The first few pages prompt you to create a theme for the year, set annual goals, identify key actions, create milestones, and then it breaks them down into palatable monthly and weekly bites. Through Peloton I have also found community in the #BGM group, a wonderful collective of Black women who like me chose to take a pivotal step and invest in their health and wellness. It also helped me create a more reasonable cleaning schedule, just three tasks a day, and then at the end of the week, I never have to spend an entire Saturday or Sunday scrubbing!

all embracing the holiday season a little differently this year and that has prompted me to find a bit more comfort in my festive touches around our home. Make your home smell more like the holidays using candles or boiling a nice big pot of cinnamon, the citrus of your choice, sticks of vanilla, whole cloves, and ginger! Use festive pillowcases, burlap table runners, seasonal art and more functional items like decorative tissue boxes to add both color and cozy festive vibes. The collection includes nature-inspired textures like birchwood, cozy knits, and even festive metallics to brighten up any coffee table, sideboard, countertop, or mantle (because during winter months, can you ever have enough tissues on hand?)

However, there are some traditions I’d like to uphold, one of those being celebrating Friendsgiving with my chosen family, my incredible group of friends. Make it a fun cocktail (or mocktail) hour and come prepared with the points you want to cover in order to create a cohesive Friendsgiving. Whether you’re keeping it simple and all making the same cocktail, or if everyone would like to contribute recipes for various dishes, it’s wonderful to have some shared experience to unify you virtually. If you’re doing an all-out dinner, think about sharing a doc to organize who will be creating what, link recipes, and ensure you’re not doubling up or finding yourself with 7 sides and no main dish!

During world events over the past several months, it has been a bit of a struggle to maintain that healthy momentum and find the motivation to prep these healthy meals ahead of time but finding balance and including the flavors I love most, helps a great deal. Today I’m introducing you to the new Newman’s Own Avocado Oil & Extra Virgin Olive Oil Dressings that are now available in Caesar, Greek, and Ranch and all of them are dairy, gluten, canola, soy, and *sugar-free! I have a steady routine of salads and bowls I prepare on Sundays including my favorite I’m sharing with you today: my Vegetarian Taco Bowl with Newman’s Own Avocado Oil & EVOO Ranch Dressing! The perfect salad for when you’re craving the comfort of Mexican food on a taco Tuesday, and the walnut “meat” is actually filling (I like to make larger quantities to use interchangeably in other recipes), bursting with flavor, and chock full of good for you fats from the nuts.