Back in February, I unintentionally disappeared.

Life got busy. Really busy.

I launched Scottsdale Golf Van, and between building a new business, coaching clients, being a mom, church, sports, and life in general, something had to give.

Unfortunately, it was this blog.

I also realized something else. I honestly hate social media.

Creating video content is exhausting for me. I know everyone says it's what you "have" to do these days, but it never feels natural. Meanwhile, blogging has always felt like sitting down with a cup of coffee and having a conversation with a friend.

Over the past few weeks, I’ve felt like God giving me a little nudge to get back at it… so here we go.

Before I dive in, though, there’s something I really want to say.

I know that because I talk a lot about food, exercise, ingredients, and health, sometimes people assume I’m quietly judging what they eat or how they live.

I’m not.

I don’t think the way I eat or live makes me better than anyone else. Not even a little bit. I’ve learned a lot about health over the years, and that knowledge has changed the choices I make for myself and my family. That doesn’t mean I’m sitting at dinner judging what everyone else ordered or mentally tallying up the ingredients on their plate. Truly.

I’m way less concerned about what’s on your plate than you think I am. Your health choices are yours, just like mine are mine.

I’ve spent years learning about health because at one point in time, mine was suffering. So this is important to me. That doesn’t mean it has to be important to everyone else in the same way.

Everyone is in a different place. Some people are actively trying to change their health. Some know they probably should but aren’t ready yet. Some simply don’t care right now. That’s their business, not mine.

I share what I know because there are people who do want to learn. Many people are frustrated with how they feel, confused by all the conflicting health advice, or ready to make changes but don’t know where to start.

Those are the people I’m here for.

So if you see me talking about emulsifiers, lifting weights, protein, the gut microbiome, or whatever rabbit hole I happen to be down that week, please don’t mistake conviction about how I choose to live for condemnation of how you choose to live.

I’m not keeping score.

I’m just here to help anyone who wants the help.

Okay. Now onto my summer of breast implant removal, staph infections, antibiotics, and homemade yogurt.

At the beginning of summer, I had my breast implants removed.

Twelve years ago, I was a very different person than I am today. At the time, getting implants totally felt like the right decision. A decision I was stoked to make.

Over the last several years, though, something changed.

I didn't have breast implant illness. I wasn't experiencing mysterious symptoms. I don’t think they were destroying my health in any way. I just felt like it was time.

Our bodies don’t like having foreign objects inside them. And like any manufactured material, silicone loses integrity over time. Living in Arizona, where I sunbathe in 110 degrees and regularly use infrared saunas, made me think even more seriously about removing them before problems start developing.

After everything I’ve learned over the past decade or so, I don't believe adding unnecessary foreign materials to our bodies is ideal whenever we have a choice.

For me, it was simply time.

The surgery went well, and I'm genuinely thankful I finally had the courage to get them out.

As if surgery wasn't enough, that same week I developed what I thought was a painful popliteal cyst behind my knee.

It turned out to be a pretty nasty staph infection, likely picked up from a hot Pilates studio.

It required drainage and, unfortunately, multiple antibiotics.

If you've followed me for any amount of time, you know I avoid antibiotics like the plague.

But I couldn’t pull the crunchy card in this situation.

Sometimes antibiotics save lives, and I’m incredibly thankful for modern medicine.

The problem is how casually we've come to use them for every little thing.

There's a huge difference between using antibiotics when they're truly needed and relying on them over and over again for years.

Preventing sepsis, shock, and potentially losing a leg were enough reasons for me to be a good patient and listen to a doctor for once.

While recovering, a lovely friend of mine recommended the book Super Gut by Dr. William Davis.

During a road trip, I listened to the entire audiobook. By the time we got home, I had already ordered what I needed to start making the yogurt he talks about.

Since I had just finished multiple antibiotics, rebuilding my gut microbiome suddenly became a very personal project.

So...what's the big idea behind the book?

Here's the short version.

Your digestive tract isn't supposed to be sterile.

It's supposed to be home to trillions of bacteria that help digest food, produce vitamins, train your immune system, communicate with your brain, and even influence mood.

The modern world has done that ecosystem very few favors.

Repeated antibiotics, ultra-processed foods, poor sleep, chronic stress, pesticides, emulsifiers, and disinfecting everything in sight have dramatically reduced the diversity of many people's gut bacteria.

The goal is rebuilding an entire ecosystem, so simply popping a probiotic won’t cut it.

One of the biggest takeaways from the book is using long-fermented yogurt made with specific probiotic strains.

Unlike many commercial yogurts that contain relatively small amounts of bacteria, making yogurt at home allows those beneficial bacteria to multiply into much larger numbers during fermentation.

I've been experimenting with several different strains over the past few weeks, and honestly...it's become a bit of a hobby.

The bacteria need food, too.

That’s where prebiotics come in. Prebiotics are certain types of fiber that we don’t fully digest, so they make their way to the gut where beneficial bacteria can basically eat them and multiply.

Foods like onions, garlic, asparagus, slightly green bananas, legumes, and cooked-and-cooled potatoes contain different types of prebiotic fibers.

Think of probiotics as planting seeds.

Prebiotics are the water and fertilizer.

You need both.

One reason I really like this book is that it connects gut health to things far beyond stomach issues.

Our microbiome influences immune function, inflammation, blood sugar regulation, hormone metabolism, mental health, and even how hungry we feel.

Is every claim in the book proven beyond question? No. Some ideas have stronger evidence than others.

But the overall message is one I think is worth paying attention to: taking care of the tiny organisms living inside us matters.

I'll be experimenting. I'll be learning. I’ll be making yogurt. I’ll be having fun. And most importantly, I’ll be helping people who want it.

Hopefully, time allows me to keep writing again because, truthfully, I missed this.

If there are health topics you'd like me to cover, send me a message. Chances are, if you're wondering about it, someone else is too.

And one last thing...

I currently have room for one new coaching client.

If you've been following along for a while and have been thinking, "One of these days I'll reach out," maybe this is your sign.

I'd love to help you build better health in a way that's practical, sustainable, and rooted in both good science and biblical stewardship.

Thanks for reading.

It's good to be back.