Thankful Thursday

I am in the midst of a 10-day Workplace Wellness Challenge. One of our tasks that we can perform everyday to earn points is to make a list of 10 things that we are thankful for and share it with a friend. Today is Thankful Thursday so it only makes sense to blog my list :) So, in no particular order:

1. Sunshine. Even though I am getting none currently I am thankful for it when I do.
2. The color pink. I love it. I don't know why, but it makes me utterly happy.
3. Love. It's almost Valentine's day and in a time where I should hate V-day I just can't. I love hearts and flowers and romance and love even if it's just me I'm loving.
4. Co-Workers. I haven't been a great co-worker since I started at this job. I started out like I always do a bit shy and stand-offish while I get to know the lay of the land. A month into that my life fell apart and getting to know my co-workers or even interacting with them was the least of my concerns. That is beginning to change and I can at least have a good time around the office with them. Maybe that will blossom into friendships, but, for now I'm thankful that they are willing to give me a chance even though I've been all wrapped up in me lately.
5. Family. I swear that I have the best family in the world. I could not survive without them. I'm so thankful to have been born into such an amazing family.
6. Technology. Cell phones, computers, websites, texting, email, gadgets. I'm not a tech geek, per se, but I really enjoy technology and I am thankful for the opportunities that it provides.
7. Football. I really like it.
8. Warm vanilla sugar. I love that scent. It makes me smell all warm and sweet and reminds me of baking cookies (which is something that I love to do).
9. Fresh sheets. I put sheets fresh out of the dryer on my bed last night and I was so excited for bedtime. I love the feel and smell of freshly washed sheets.
10. Rain-literal and figurative. It may seem strange that my list started with sunshine and ended with rain, but life wouldn't be life without both. I like to walk in the rain. I like to listen to the rain. Sometimes I even like to watch the rain fall. Without the rain we wouldn't have flowers, green grass, pretty rivers and lakes and streams. Without storms in our life we would never grow, never change. So, for the rain I am thankful.

What are you thankful for today?

Take me away Tuesday

I love to travel. I haven't traveled much, but when I do I love it. I love airplanes and airports and hotels. I love being away from the everyday. I love new places and seeing what they have to offer. So, today I am going to dream of new places to see.

This is Harbour Island Bahamas

I want to be on that sailboat right.now...if only. Harbour Island is gorgeous and even has pink sand beaches

Does that look like a place that I need to be or what?

So, that's where I want to be taken away to. Maybe you should join me. Where do you want to go?

Motivation Monday

So, these alliterative blog titles may not be consistent from week to week, but they are kind of fun, so maybe they will :)

Today is Motivation Monday. I had a rough week last week. I got into a pretty dark place...a place that I don't really ever want to go again. I tried to pull myself out of it, the blog helped, but it was ugly and emotional and horrible. On Saturday I determined that I would let myself wallow in my pity party (I refer to it as my pity party, although I know it goes much deeper than that) until Monday and then it was time to do something about it. Well, I wallowed for a little while, but by Sunday afternoon I was ready to be proactive. I set up a plan for the week and I went to the library and checked out some books for this week...anyway, I was ready. By the time I put Riley to bed I was ready to wallow a little more. I flipped back and forth between football and glee and found myself crying...a lot...over nothing.

Side note: I've decided to stop taking the melatonin for now. It definitely helps me sleep, but it gives me really, really vivid dreams and, for now, the content of those dreams are making me in real life a pretty big mess.

I woke up this morning with new resolve. I am ready for a new week...but I may still need some motivation. Here are my goals for the week:

Work out 4 days this week. I realize that when I consistently get to the gym I feel better. I feel emotionally better because I have accomplished something I set out to do. I feel physically better because...well, I think that doesn't need an explanation. It helps me to eat better because I don't want to out-eat my workout. When I don't work out I not only don't get those benefits, but I get the opposite, my mind and body feel crappy. That should be motivation enough, right? Here's a little extra


Eat better. What does that mean? I have no idea. Lately my nutrition has been awful. Some days I don't eat at all and some days I eat far too much, it just kind of depends on how I feel that day. Today marks the beginning of a 10-day workplace wellness challenge at my job. We are on teams of 3 and we have 20 tasks that we can accomplish each day. The team with the most tasks accomplished at the end of 10-days wins. Some of them are really easy like give a compliment or wear your seatbelt. Some of them are a little tougher like walk 8,000 steps (about 4 miles) or put down your cell phone while driving. Some of them are really hard like no soft drinks for the day or eat no foods with partially hydrogenated oils (hello label reading!) 9 out of the 20 challenges are about food or drink both what you should and shouldn't eat. I think this will help me to eat consistently and healthier which is a good thing. So my motivation for eating better is easy (at least for the next 2 weeks)...I want to win!

Get out of this funk. I have books to read to help me understand my emotions in going through what I'm going through. I want to finish at least 1 of these books this week. I have "homework" that will help to me deal with some of my self-worth issues that I am having right now. I have to make a list of 20 things that I should be proud of myself for. Right now this seems daunting, but I'm hoping that once I get started it will be easier than I thought it would be. I have to press in and seek God. I was pretty mad at God last week. That seems ridiculous now. He didn't go anywhere. I'm frustrated because I feel like I am doing everything that I am supposed to do, I am doing everything "right" and it's still not working (meaning it's not working the way that I think it should). But, I have to get to a place of complete surrender. Where it doesn't matter what my life looks like as long as it looks like what He wants it to look like. I have to surrender to His will and His way. I never considered myself a control freak, but I feel so out of control right now that I guess I'm grasping onto any semblance of control in an effort to not lose it, but in reality I just need to let go and realize that nothing I do can fix my life. He has to. Words are easy, meaning them are hard.

Trust God


Love myself


Learn from life


Hope you have a Happy Monday!

Frilly Friday

I am a girly girl. I love to fix my hair and put on makeup and if I could wear ribbons and tutus and glitter everyday I would. In case you didn't know I am a princess (you can check that out here). Today is officially Frilly Friday-a day where I get to show you all things girly. "Why?" you ask...because frilly, girly things make me happy...hopefully they will make you happy too!

Since today is my very first Frilly Friday I have 3 things for you...they all kind of go together though.

First is this tiara ring

I love this! It's a tiny tiara for your finger. Of course, if it is a tiara then I like it! You can find it HERE and it's under $50. For something so pretty and shiny I think it's a fabulous deal!

Second is this gorgeous dress


I love this too! It's like a tutu and a grown up dress all rolled into one! I would look great in this :) you can find it HERE Hmmm...I just read the description and it looks like it is actually just the skirt that is being sold. Apparently it is not a dress. Oh well, it's still gorgeous!

For my third Frilly Friday item I choose these


Magic Wand salt and pepper shakers!! I want these so badly! You can feel like a fairy everytime you salt and pepper your food! What a fantastic idea! You can find them HERE and they are only $15!! I guess I should probably just buy them and stop pretending like they are unattainable, huh?

Anyway, there is my first Frilly Friday. I hope you enjoy it as much as I do!

Thankful Thursday

Sometimes when we go through a hard time it's hard to remember to be thankful. We get so bogged down in our trials and so self-focused (i.e. selfish) that sometimes we can't see any good in life. When we start not seeing the good in life we begin to grow bitter roots and turn farther and farther into ourselves...it's all bad. So, today is Thankful Thursday and I will choose to find 3 things to be thankful for today.

1. My amazing little boy. Riley is awesome. Is he a perfect kid? No. He has a lot of energy and doesn't always know how to control it, he has a bit of a bad attitude at times and knows what buttons to push to get me annoyed in no time flat. But he is so many good things as well. There are times that he will come and snuggle up in my lap and hug me and just be. He is smart and funny and is truly a huge part of how I am surviving everyday.


2. My shoe collection. I know it may sound silly, but those 50+ shoes make me smile. There is nothing like having a bad day and coming home and putting on some super cute high heels just because they make you feel good (yes, I strut around my house alone in yoga pants, a tank top and polka dot heels).


3. My puppy. Minion is an awesome dog. We got her last April because our previous dog, Ava, was killed by a car. We took a chance on a shelter dog that we didn't know anything about and she ended up being amazing. She wants to play when you do and is calm when you don't. She is a great bedtime snuggle partner. She can always make me smile.


You know, I had been having a pretty bad day when I started this blog, and now I can think of a whole lot of things that I have to be thankful for. I guess once you start it's hard to stop.

In the words of James "Consider it pure joy, my brothers, when you are involved in various trials,because you know that the testing of your faith produces endurance.But you must let endurance have its full effect, so that you may be mature and complete, lacking nothing." James 1:2-4

Mr. Sandman

Lately I have been having a lot of trouble sleeping. It takes me forever to fall asleep and once I do finally fall asleep I am awake every hour or so. It sucks! I am exhausted every day which is not what I need right now! I've tried a few little things to see if maybe it was a schedule and/or environment issue. I've been to bed early, I've been to bed late, I lay down when I'm not sleepy, I wait to lay down until I'm nodding off on the couch, I have the tv on, I have the tv off. It doesn't matter. And then it seems like everytime I might be having the potential for a good night's sleep I get woken up by the kid or the dog and it starts all over. So, what was a girl to do?

I did some research. I knew I didn't want to go to the doctor for sleeping pills. I am a strong believer that being drugged to sleep and actually getting rest are two very different things. I found that a good place to start would be with melatonin. Melatonin is a hormone secreted by the body to help control your sleep and wake cycles. Small amounts of this hormone are found in certain foods and you can also buy it as a supplement. So, I trotted down to Walgreens and bought some. Since I started taking it I have noticed a difference. It's been easier for me to fall asleep and last night I only woke up once!

There are possible side effects of melatonin however. According to Web MD they include sleepiness (I thought that was the desired effect?!?), lower body temperature, vivid dreams, morning grogginess, and small changes in blood pressure. The only side effect that I have noticed are the vivid dreams. That is actually what woke me up last night. I'm not having crazy dreams that don't make sense or anything, but they are so real that it's almost scary. I don't know what I think about that.

I feel lucky that my sleep issues are already starting to be solved just by supplementing a little melatonin. I will continue to supplement for now and hopefully as my stress levels lower (who knows when that will happen) my need for the extra melatonin will lower as well.

Sweet dreams!

Intention

About a year ago my cousin Anna wrote a blog about her one word for 2011. You can check that blog out here. I didn't follow suit last year, but I did realize that I have a word I want to live out in 2012. That word is INTENTION.

Have you ever wondered “How did I get here?” Have you ever stopped, looked around and thought “How did this house get so messy?” or looked in the mirror only to see 30 extra pounds and wondered “Where did this come from?” I have. I have gone through most of my life mindlessly. Eating mindlessly, talking mindlessly, mindlessly watching tv…before I knew it I looked up and I was 29 years old, 50 pounds heavier than I was on the day I was married, my house was a disaster, my marriage was falling apart, and I was unhappy. I looked around and wondered “how did I get here?” My answer? “It just kind of happened.” That seemed like my answer to everything. And it was true. Because I didn’t pay attention to what was going on in my life-to what I was feeling, to what I was doing, to what I was saying-little problems were able to compile themselves into bigger and bigger problems. Mindlessly drifting your way through life is easy, it takes no effort…but there is also no reward. You aren’t able to truly take responsibility for any of your actions, good or bad, because you aren’t putting any thought into them, however, you still receive the consequences and when you have put no effort into life the consequences are never good!

So, how does one live a life of intention? I have no idea. I think it starts with self-awareness. Being aware of how you feel in different situations. We all respond subconsciously with emotions in various situations. You may not realize it, but everything affects you. Think back, how did you feel the last time you saw an older couple holding hands? How about when you heard a child yelled at by a parent at the store? What about when the weather man says that a tornado has been spotted? If we can recognize our reflexive reactions then we can begin to control them and then we are able to be aware and take control of our subsequent actions. It takes work and it is not easy, but it allows us to take the first steps to intentional living.

This year I intend (lol) to learn about this thing called intentional living. If I can focus on why I feel the way I do and on having intentional reactions to the situations I find myself in the chances are that I will find myself successful and fullfilled. At very least I will be able to own my choices, to be responsible for my actions.

It should be an interesting year :)