I am glad you have joined me at The Thoughtful Thicket! My name’s Ashley and I made the long overdue decision to slow down my life and release the pressure that had inadvertently piled up inside me by living with a mindset of “should be and should do’s”.

I live now on a small plot of forested land in a home my husband and I built ourselves. I am surrounded by trees with a view of the sunrise over the river from my front porch. It was during the building of this house that my mindset began to change. As the possibilities for our future began to appear the excitement for a simple life of growing our own food, sipping tea on the porch, and nestling into a life of just enough rose inside of me.

Follow along as I learn how to slow down. In this blog you will find the real side of moving against the grain. Join me for my ups and downs while I share with you the things that worked for me and the things that didn’t.