

If you don't consider yourself having a green thumb, please raise your hand (*raises hand*). If you love plants but can't seem to get the hang of keeping them alive for long, raise your hand (*raises hand higher*). Well, you are not alone.
Recently, taking care of a plant has been a new way to enhance your home space and a great way for self-care. According to EcoWatch, having plants in your home can improve your mental health, your immune system, your productivity, and your relationship with others. No matter if you have a "green thumb" or not, we all deserve some nature that will improve our health in some way.
6 Easy Plants To Grow Indoors
Air Plants
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These plants have been trending for the past year and they are ideal for easy plant care. Air plants are considered epiphytes. This means that they naturally grow on other plants. No soil needed. That's right, y'all!! Here is a plant that you do not need to pot and repot after a certain amount of time in order for it to blossom. Even though air plants still require water and sunlight just like any other houseplant, they are a top choice.
Spider Plants
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Now the spider plant is a plant I have had some experience with. Spider plants are one of the most adaptable house plants you can find. With well-drained soil and enough sunlight, spider plants produce like no other. They grow little spiderettes everywhere which can be transferred from the mother spider plant to water or soil, where they can start to root. The good thing about spider plants is their resilience. These plants are able to grow in various ranges of environmental conditions and sprout successfully.
Aloe Vera
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Most of us should be familiar with this one. Aloe Vera is not only a plant that is easy to take care of but a plant that you can use its gel-like juice to relieve pain from cuts and burns. You can also use this plant as a natural hair product! For my fellow curly girls, this plant is a great conditioner and it can reduce dandruff. Why shop for a haircare product when you can save money and grow it right in your own living room?
Peace Lily
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Let me just say, the name of this plant makes me feel better already. These beautiful plants can grow up to 16 inches indoors. If they are grown outdoors in a warm climate, they can grow up to six feet tall. Since these are tropical plants, they need bright indirect sunlight and consistent moisture. Outside of the name, these beautiful plants will be great to grow in your home and bring a nice aesthetic.
Christmas Cactus
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We are slowly approaching holiday season, so this one seemed like a good fit. This cacti blooms red, white, pink, or purple flowers at the tips of its branches. Despite its name, you are able to keep this plant around past the holidays with the right temperature (around 55 to 65 degrees) and keep the soil barely evenly moist. This plant will definitely make your home more festive for guests and brighten up your home overall.
String of Pearls
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Last not but least, this cool-looking succulent is a must to add to your list of home plants. They grow fast in warm and cool climates. While this plant looks like tiny little green buds, these buds actually bloom into tiny white flowers that smell like cinnamon! To get your string of pearls to blossom these lovely flowers, you can cut back a little on the watering and keep the temperature a consistent 60 degrees during the winter months.
There are more "easy-to-grow" plants out there that you can add to your home. We can all practice our green thumb with great plants with the right tools. There is one app I found that is really helpful for people who are new to house plants. This app is called Planta. Planta will be able to identify the type of plant you have, get care schedules for each plant to follow, and a special feature that can help you solve possible plant growth problems.
To my beginners and non-green thumbers, WE GOT THIS!
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Adrian Marcel On Purpose, Sacrifice, And The 'Signs Of Life'
In this week's episode of xoMAN, host Kiara Walker talked with R&B artist Adrian Marcel, who opened up, full of heart and authenticity, about his personal evolution. He discussed his days transitioning from a young Bay Area singer on the come-up to becoming a grounded husband and father of four.
With honesty and introspection, Marcel reflected on how life, love, and loss have shaped the man he is today.
On ‘Life’s Subtle Signals’
Much of the conversation centered around purpose, sacrifice, and listening to life’s subtle signals. “I think that you really have to pay attention to the signs of life,” Marcel said. “Because as much as we need to make money, we are not necessarily on this Earth for that sole purpose, you know what I mean?” While he acknowledged his ambitions, adding, “that is not me saying at all I’m not trying to ball out,” he emphasized that fulfillment goes deeper.
“We are here to be happy. We are here [to] fulfill a purpose that we are put on here for.”
On Passion vs. Survival
Adrian spoke candidly about the tension between passion and survival, describing how hardship can sometimes point us away from misaligned paths. “If you find it’s constantly hurting you… that’s telling you something. That’s telling you that you’re going outside of your purpose.”
Marcel’s path hasn’t been without detours. A promising athlete in his youth, he recalled, “Early on in my career, I was still doing sports… I was good… I had a scholarship.” An injury changed everything. “My femur broke. Hence why I always say, you know, I’m gonna keep you hip like a femur.” After the injury, he pivoted to explore other careers, including teaching and corporate jobs.
“It just did not get me—even with any success that happened in anything—those times, back then, I was so unhappy. And you know, to a different degree. Like not just like, ‘I really want to be a singer so that’s why I’m unhappy.’ Nah, it was like, it was not fulfilling me in any form or fashion.”
On Connection Between Pursuing Music & Fatherhood
He recalled performing old-school songs at age 12 to impress girls, then his father challenged him: “You can lie to these girls all you want, but you're really just lying to yourself. You ain't growing.” That push led him to the piano—and eventually, to his truth. “Music is my love,” Marcel affirmed. “I wouldn’t be a happy husband if I was here trying to do anything else just to appease her [his wife].”
Want more real talk from xoMAN? Catch the full audio episodes every Tuesday on Spotify and Apple Podcasts, and don’t miss the full video drops every Wednesday on YouTube. Hit follow, subscribe, and stay tapped in.
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Self-Validation, No Meals After 5 P.M. & The Wellness Rituals That Helped Lizzo Take Her Power Back
Don't let the "weight release" fool you, Lizzo's transformation wasn't just physical. It was spiritual, emotional, and deeply personal. In her Women's Health cover story, the "Good As Hell" artist opened up about the low point that became the catalyst for radical change in her life, inside and out.
In the summer of 2023, Lizzo found herself at the center of what she calls painful allegations when some of her former dancers filed a lawsuit against her. The 37-year-old singer has denied their claims, and though she has experienced "backlash my entire career," going through such legal woes coupled with public scrutiny proved to be detrimental to her mental health, leading her to one of the darkest periods of her life.
She told Women's Health, "I got very paranoid and isolated. I wasn’t even talking to my therapist. I wasn’t present. I wasn’t open. I wasn’t myself anymore."
After spending months in isolation, Lizzo, whose real name is Melissa Viviane Jefferson, decided to go to a tour stop on the Renaissance World Tour. She was nervous that the public would shun her, boo her, or reject her, but instead, she was embraced. It shifted something in her and after feeling so in the dark, she saw the light again. "It made me feel like, wow, maybe I don’t want to die," she shared with Women's Health.
"That was the kick-starter to me being like, ‘Okay, Melissa, get your ass in gear and take your f*cking life back.’"
Her first step in Operation Get Your Life Back? Cutting out the external noise. She gave her team total control of her social media and stopped looking at comments. "My validation was from external sources, people telling me they loved me, or that I look good, and accepting me," she explained. "But if that’s all I’m getting my validation from, when it changes—and it will, because people are not always going to like you—what happens? Where are you going to get your love from?"
Lizzo continued, "I can convince myself that I’m beautiful, my body fine, no matter how big or small. But reminding myself that you can’t let others tell you who you are—that was hard work."
Lizzo started going to therapy again, she started practicing quigong meditation, reading books, journaling, and doing sound baths. She released unhealthy relationships, drank echinacea tea, and began incorporating Pilates as a means to "feel sacred" and "be gentle" with herself.
But what many have interpreted as a "weight loss transformation" after she popped out sharing she met her "weight release" goal earlier this year, Lizzo has clarified that it has been something deeper for her than the aesthetic of a smaller body. "I wanted to be big-girl skinny," she told the mag. "Every big girl knows what I’m talking about. Big-girl skinny is 250 pounds." According to her, it was her back issues that inspired her to take the physical part of her wellness journey seriously.
I DID IT! #weightrelease
@lizzo I DID IT! #weightrelease
Through her friend Kelly Rowland, she linked up with her now-trainer Marvin Telp and developed a fitness regimen that prioritized strength and intention. Her weekly schedule now includes moves like single-leg deadlifts, reverse flies, and lateral lunges, along with infrared sauna sessions and cardio. Add to that a change in eating habits after realizing her vegan diet no longer served her (to be fair, she wasn't doing the vegan thing the "healthiest" way).
All the meat substitutes, bread, cashew cheese, and soy left her bloated and lightheaded, so now she's switched things up a bit to fill the nutritional gaps. When it comes to diet, it's heavy on the protein and vegetables for Lizzo. A typical day eating looks like scrambled eggs and cauliflower hash browns for breakfast, Thai chicken salad or lettuce wraps for lunch, and turkey meatloaf with greens for dinner.
She also has a strict cutoff of no meals after 5 p.m. to support her GERD and give her body the time it needs before bed to digest her food sans the acid reflux. Of her relationship with food and wellness, she told Women's Health, "There's a balance. I think that's what true health is."
Read Lizzo's full cover story with Women's Health here.
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Featured image by Stephen Lovekin/Shutterstock