Healthy & Simple Swaps for Summer!
By Jennifer Svendsen, Health & Wellness Committee 
As spring draws to a close, we have an opportunity to create those bucket lists for our health and enjoyment for the summer. The Health & Wellness committee is here to help! In the clinic space, we think about “simple swaps” when helping patients shift away from processed foods, such as trying out chickpea pasta instead of regular noodles (Goodles anyone?!?) to increase protein in your day for more sustained energy.
While we often focus on physical and emotional health topics, this summer H&W Committee wanted to prepare you with some “Simple Swaps” for our spiritual growth. My husband, Mike, & I wear many hats in helping foster our faith amidst the chaos of real life (sports, school activities, work, illness etc). I recently had the opportunity to talk with our fellow Faith Formation families about our journey of “getting our kids to heaven”, as Lukas Steffensmeir has so aptly named. This theme has really struck me, especially when I learned we are literally becoming saints in heaven after death. (Not canonized Saints perhaps, but regular saints; we are not angels, but saints in heaven with our Lord!). What more empowering platform than that to engage now in ours or ANY family’s healthy faith transformation!
In conversation with our friends and family, here’s a few Simple Swaps for this summer to consider for living more liturgically! My hope for you is that this list lands at whatever stage of your journey- for singles, married, parents or not, aunts/uncles, grandparents, GODparents, friends etc!
- Summer Book club? Swap out the romance novel and start with Kendra Tierney’s Catholic All Year book to learn more about falling in love with liturgical living at home! (aka examples to follow!)
- Traveling to the cabin? Swap out sibling squabbles or silence and say the rosary out loud instead (on your own or with the family)!
- Planting a garden? Make it a Mary “Marian” Garden with a Mary Statue and flowers named after our mother Mary (or blue/white flowers).
- Couples or Kids Game night? Swap out Pandemic or Spot It for the Catholic Card Game or “Catholic Name It!” from holyheros.com.
- Movie night? Swap out the usual picks for a movie/show on Formed or Angel Studios - The Chosen is our current nail biting thriller
- Long car rides to see grandparents? Swap out screen time for the Saints Alive podcast - this is a dramatized incredible recreation of stories of Saints ; feels like you are watching a movie but it’s a listening activity as a family!
- Coffee break on the road south? Swap out Starbucks for a trip to James Catholic Coffee in Rochester, MN
- Strawberry shortcake summer tradition? Swap this INntentionally- Serve this on the Solemnity of the Most Sacred Heart of Jesus and Immaculate Heart of Mary; weekend of June 27-28, or try these fruit/veggie platters!
Hope you enjoy some of these summer swaps for healthy Spiritual GROWTH~
As a member of the H&W committee and physician mom, I’d love to meet/chat with anyone learning more about living liturgically together in this busy world! It’s been a more recent journey for us that definitely grew from friendships and support! Feel free to reach out!
Jennifer Svendsen MD | Family Medicine/OB