Category Archives: Lifestyle

Mid-Week Update!

Good evening!

This is going to be a short post, someone has got a lot of homework that she is wanting to get done this evening! Yes, I am talking about myself in the third person, you will have to forgive me – I have a lot going on at the moment! 😉

Anyway, yesterday was the first day of Brave Girls’ Soul Restoration II class. If you remember, I had just finished doing the Soul Restoration I class last week, and I have been impatiently waiting for this second class to start. Well, it has, and the homework for this week has me delving deep into who I am and what I want! Even though I have done this kind of work in the past, I can tell that this time is gonna be different! I am not sure if it is because Melody Ross, our fearless leader,  is so amazing, or if it is because I am pairing this soul-work with creating art, or if it is because I am really truly ready for this!! Who cares? I am ready, and I am so excited to see what the next few months brings!! and of course,my lovelies, I will keep you all posted!!

Here is to a FABULOUS evening!! 😉

 

 

If you want to have a different life, you have to live differently!

Back in the Art Studio!

Good evening!

I have been busily and happily arting away in my little art studio, and am very happy to finally be able to share something that I have finished with you! 😉

This piece is made on a square of plywood, my sweetie cut for me, and the materials I used were: acrylic paints, tissue paper, stamps, ink, gel medium, and fine tip marker.

This saying is something that I have been really focusing on while taking my Brave Girls Club class, “The real you is still in there you just need to give yourself permission to come out and play”. It is something that I really needed to hear, and something that I have always known, but had somehow forgotten along the way. It was a message that I am so thankful that I have stumbled upon again, and am actively working on putting it to good use in my life!

This piece came about because I wanted to paint something happy! I also wanted to play with some new techniques I have been learning, and one of those that I am really, very glad with the way that it turned out, and that is the little doodles that are all over the piece. I think the doodling really adds a little more of me into my art.

I actually started this piece over many times, remembering that I could always change something that I didn’t like about it at any given time. This was something really hard for me to do, because I am such a perfectionist and always want to have everything done perfectly the first time. I think, in doing that, this piece has really helped me give myself permission to love the imperfections that may come out, they may add so much interest that they become your favorite parts!

After this piece was finished, I was so excited about it, I put my bravery muscles on and took it to display at work, and I am so glad I did! It is really exciting to look up from a very technical job, and see something that you were able to come up with in a 100% creative way!

Life is good!!

I would love to hear your thoughts about this in the comments section! I am hoping to have more to share in the next few days!

Here’s to a FABULOUS evening!

If you want to have a different life, you have to live differently

Coming Up For Air!

Good Evening!

Queen Christina here! Yes, proudly wearing my royal crown this evening!! Having a great evening, finally getting my peppy-self back to living again!!!! I wanted to make sure to check in this evening! After being down sick for the past two weeks, I am still not 100%, but I am back up and running! and REALLY READY to get back to BLISS!! 😉

As many of you may know, I love sharing everything that is going on in my world, which I realize might seem contradictory since I have been posting very sporadically lately, but I do have a reason! You see, besides being sick for the past 2 weeks, I have been doing something REALLY EXCITING!!! For the past 5 weeks I have been taking the Brave Girls’ Club Soul Restoration class online. This amazing class has forced me to delve into the inner workings of my soul and, through arting, discover more about myself  than I ever thought possible. Truly!

If you have never hear of the Brave Girls Club, or the Soul Restoration I Class, I highly recommend popping over to the Brave Girls’ site and checking them out!!! Better yet, pinch your pennies together and sign up for their next available class ASAP!!! I have been ah-ha-ing every step of the way, through every tutorial, every lesson, every homework assignment. I honestly feel AMAZINGLY BLESSED to have found this class when I did! I am so enamored with the whole process, Melody Ross (our lovely and fearless leader), and the entire Brave Girls Club team, that I have already signed up for part two of the class, which starts in April!! YEAH BRAVE GIRLS!!! 😉

The art I have been busily creating for the past few weeks, unfortunately, is not shareable! Because these pieces are so powerful, and yet so personal, I had made the decision that these pieces would be just for my eye eyes only. That way, I can completely take the fear factor out of arting, and just create what is truly going on inside of my soul. The good news, however, is that in the simple act of just creating without fear of judgement, I find that I am growing braver, and am inspired to start arting again to share with the blogging world.

In all of this, I am not sure where I am going to end up, but right now, I just want to be happy, and free, and arting has really opened that door for me, which I am soooo thankful for!! So, although I have nothing I can share this evening, I am happily, and busily spending time watching tutorials, trying new things, and hopefully within the next couple of days, I will have some new to share with you!! 😉

I truly can’t wait!! 😉

So, without further ado, I am going to get back into my art studio, and get to creating!! I can’t wait to talk to you again soon!!

Here is to a FABULOUS evening! 😉

 

 

“If you want to have a different life, you have to live differently!”

It’s Official I’m a Techie Geek!

Good evening!

Tonight I am posting from my very new gadget – my new iPad!!!! Whoo! Hoo!! Ok, so I realize that this officially confirms that I am a total techie geek, but now that I have said it out loud, is that really so bad????

I’ve just now decided that I am ok with all that! 😉

Being comfortable with who I am is something that I have been learning to come to terms with, and the reality is, is that I am a bit of a techie geek! I love getting anything that helps me organize this crazy, zany, sometimes insanely busy life of mine. I also love if these pieces of technology just happen to look fabulously sleek, are easy to use, and they also have the ability to entertain the masses, ok just me and my family, then, well let’s just say it’s perfection!!!!

With that said, I have a lot left to get done this evening before I am able to go to bed, so…

Here’s to a FABULOUS evening!

~ Christina 😉

“If you want to have a different life, you have to live differently!”

Finding Comfort in My Own Skin!

Good evening!

I don’t know if you know this about me, but I very rarely watch live tv, but my girlfriends have been ranting and raving about this television show called The Voice. I happened to stumble upon it this evening, and mamma, I am in love!!

Kim Yarbrough

Need I say more??

When she first came out, with her plus-sized-glamorous-sassy-self I said,

“HOLY CRAP!! DO I HAVE TO WAIT UNTIL I AM IN MY 50’S BEFORE i FEEL THAT COMFORTABLE IN MY OWN SKIN???!”

She is my new hero, and I mean she is a diva with T-A-L-E-N-T!!!

You go, Kim!!!

I am going to have to take a lesson from this uber-talented-woman, and even if I have to fake it until I believe it to the very core of who I am, I am DETERMINED to feel comfortable in my own skin!!!

Here is to a FABULOUS evening!!

“If you want to have a different life, you have to live differently!”

Random Monday!

Good evening!

It is so good to be back online again! I have spent the last 5 plus days being sick! Chest cold, hacking, wheezing through all sorts of yuckiness, sick!! I am still not back to my old peppy self quite yet, so I will making an appointment with my physician, and hopefully back up and running soon!! 😉

In the meantime, I wanted to catch up on some much needed chatting with you this evening!  I have been anxiously waiting to tell someone about a surprise my sweetie brought home with him, last week as he was returning from a weeklong stay at the coast helping some friends as handyman extraordinaire! While he was on the way home from this trip, he texted me to say that he had a surprise for me that was going to knock my socks off! (That was me paraphrasing, what he actually said wasn’t quite a…hmmm..well, let’s just say eloquent!) Anyway, when he finally got home, I was already so excited to see him, but when I remembered that he had a gift for me, I felt like a little kid running down the stairs on Christmas morning! When he pulled out my surprise, I was SOOOO SHOCKED!!! He bought me  new camera!!

 

Because I have been sick, I haven’t really had a chance to pick it up too much and figure out how all of it’s bells and whistles work, but I am really, REALLY EXCITED to figure it all out!! I will have to warn all of my friends and family – they are going to be my practice subjects for photography practice!!! Look out my lovelies, here I come!!! 😉

On a change of subject, this week is going to be a busy one! I literally have a 60 hour work week this week, so that is going to be interesting! Hopefully our go-live will be quick and trouble free so that we can get back to our normal work week. Plus, I am happily enjoying the Brave Girls’ Soul Restoration I class! I am in week 3 of this empowering class, and really look forward to each new week of lessons, and this week it might be a little tricky to get it all done!!

Not to worry, I will have to get out my old, dusty, and well-used red “S” underoos and make it all work, and then crash by taking a few well-deserved vacation days!!! Aaaaaah!! Sounds perfect already!! 😉

Here is to a FABULOUS evening! 😉

Here’s to a FABULOUS Friday!! ;-)

“If you want to have a different life, you have to live differently!”

A Random Monday!

Good evening!

I am home! YEAH!!! You know, I thought my life was pretty regimented before, but it is even more now! Who knew that was even possible!?!??? 😉 Just a warning, I can tell that tonight’s post is just going to be a jumble of random thoughts! Ok, so now that you have been warned…

I left the office this evening, a little later than I had originally planned, and headed straight to the grocery store on the way home. I had to get my grocery shopping done for the week. My list really kind of startled me, and the fact that it only cost me a cool $22 was quite a nice surprise! I picked up:

  • a half gallon of milk
  • sour cream
  • yogurt
  • a loaf of French bread
  • ground sirloin
  • fajita seasoning
  • a bottle of Baby Ray’s BBQ sauce
  • a six pack of Top Ramen (the lazy person’s yakisoba noodles (just add lean grilled protein, and a bunch of sauteed veggies)
  • Oh, and a box of tic-tacs (my sweetie stole my last box!) 😉

Ok, so I realize there is not much in the way of fruits and veggies on this list, but I just stocked up on all sorts of healthy goodies a few days ago, and my freezer is packed with more than enough lean protein to last me quite a while.

As soon as I got home, I ran upstairs, got into my jammies: plaid flannel pajama bottoms, and a black comfy tank made out of a sumptuous t-shirt material!! Next, off to say hello to my girls, put groceries away, and get started on dinner!!

Tonight I made myself a few meals this evening. I had chicken fajitas with sauteed onions and peppers – YUM!! I had enough of that left over that I was able to make myself a bowl of chicken fajita soup, and I also made a couple of meals worth of baked stuffed bell peppers, all of which will make EXCELLENT meals to take to work for lunch.

I did all of that, not because I am some kind of a super-woman, but because I really am not a big fan of cooking. I did so much of it growing up, that I kind of think of it as a really big, yucky chore!! Well, that is until I am on vacation, then put me in a great big old kitchen with someone to cook for, and I LOVE it!! 😉

I am actually having a hankering to make some brownies, or some rice crispy treats, but since I already have so many cookies in the house – THANK YOU GIRL SCOUTS – I’ve decided that I am not even going to bother!! It may take me another month or so to get through the 5 boxes I have in the house. I keep them all in the freezer so that I actually have to think about getting into them. I know that sounds crazy, but it really works for me!

Anyway, what other randomness can I share with you tonight? Well, I am totally on a Angel bender at the moment! You know the tv show? I watched episodes almost all day yesterday, and I am planning on watching a few this evening, while Pinteresting my little heart out!! 😉 I have only one more season to go, so my addiction will be over soon!! Does anyone know if there is a 12 step program for people like me??

“Hi, my name is Christina, and I am an Angel-aholic!!”

“Hi, Christina!”

Yes, sad, I realize!! 😉

Do I have anymore  randomness to share? Well, I started a new book today? Well, it is really an old book, it is Deception Point by Dan Brown. I have only gotten through the first few chapters of the book, but so far it is intriguing!! I will keep you posted!

I just got a text that my sweetie has gotten himself his first counseling appointment next Monday – YEAH!!! Now, I just need to make one for myself!! A marriage takes 2 people, and that includes me too!! We are determined to work this all out! 😉 Living alone isn’t fun, I am sure, for either of us!! 😉 When you have 17 years of loving someone invested, it is not that easy to just walk away!! 😉

Onto another topic, I have gotten my chores done, except for a couple of loads of laundry that are going at the moment! I love having a clean house. It is so relaxing! That might be one of the biggest perks to living alone!! No one to clean up after!! Aaaaaah!!! 😉

Ok, that is enough of my random blathering for one evening!!

Here’s to a FABULOUS evening!! ;-)

“If you want to have a different life, you have to live differently!”

 

Chunky Dunker’s Night!

Good evening!

It is that time of week again, Chunky Dunkers!! WHOO! HOO!!! 😉

Chunky Dunkers is a group of friends who get together every week to cheer each other on as we all work towards our own personal health and fitness goals. Some of us want to lose weight, some want to become more flexible, some of us would love to be able to run a mile, and some of us would just be happy if we could just reach our long-lost toes!! 😉

The name Chunky Dunker’s came from my sweetie and my two youngest sisters joking that we don’t skinny dip, we chunky dunk, and after all of the laughter finally died down, we realized that that would be the perfect name for our newly created support group!! We have been going for about 8 months now (if not longer), and it is still a group that I get excited about meeting with every week.

I try to post the Chunky Dunker’s post every Wednesday evening between 7 and 7:30, Pacific Coast time, and after I post, we “meet” in the comments section of this post where we can all share hints, tips, ideas, recipes, and encourage each other to keep on keepin’ on!

If you would like to join us, please feel free to do so by speaking up in the comments section, or feel free to be an anonymous reader – that is alright with us too!!

So, without further ado…

Tonight’s topic: Heart Health!

I am not sure if all of you knew this, but this past Friday was National Wear Red Day, for Heart Health. I, of course, wore red that day, and unbeknownst to me, I would become a celebrity. Ok, that might be an overstatement, but I did make the cut on our hospital’s Wear Red video that they put out on the web. I honestly didn’t know anything about it, except that one of the multimedia guys stopped me as I was eating a piece of celery (thank you, I was being very good!!), and asked if he could take my picture. So, being the ham that I am, OF COURSE I SAID YES!!! Well, little did I know that he was actually taking a video. So without any further explanation, here is the Salem Hospital’s video on Wearing Red for National Wear Red Day for Heart Health!! BTW, I am near the end of the video, and don’t you dare blink, because you will seriously miss me!!!

Well, there you have it!! My nano-second of fame is officially up *SIGH!*

I can’t wait to hear how all o f you have been doing! I will “see” you in the comments section!! GO CHUNKY DUNKERS!!!

Here’s to a FABULOUS evening!!! ;-)

“If you want to have a different life, you have to live differently!”

The Salem Oregon Train Station

Good evening!

Yesterday, after work, I had some time and I decided I would make good use of it by going down to the Salem train station. It is one of my absolute favorite buildings in all of Salem, matter of fact, if it weren’t for the fact that it is right next to the train tracks, I could imagine myself and my sweetie converting this building into our home.

I did a little bit of reading this evening to see what I can find out about this building, and I discovered that not only is it on the National Historic Registry, but it is actually the third train station built in this location, the first two having burnt to the ground in both 1885, and 1917.

This building was actually built in 1918, and is one of only 5 of the original masonry buildings that still exist on the original Southern Pacific West Coast Line.

Although quite small on the inside, at least from where I was standing, there are some really beautiful architectural details on the inside of this building too. I especially loved the light fixtures, which there were two of, hanging from the high ceilings of the depot.

The outside isn’t too shabby either! There was a massive restoration project done by the Oregon Department of Transportation that was completed in 2000. The style of this building is called Beaux-Arts-style.

There are so many architectural details to see, that I walked around this building 3 times catching new elements with my eye and camera each time I circled the building.

It was such an amazingly sunny afternoon, and I was absolutely struck how vividly blue our normally grey sky was. It was quite breathtaking.

Another fun fact about this building is that Amtrak rents this building from the government for only $1 a year, in exchange for building and ground maintenance. Isn’t that amazing??? I think that is PHENOMENAL!! 😉

Here are some more of those great architectural details. I am absolutely in LOVE with these pillars, have been since I was a little girl, but it was only by taking these pictures that I was able to notice the detail at the top of these stately columns.

See what I mean? And I just adore the molding around the top of the building too. They don’t make buildings like this any longer!

These are the original light fixtures. They are ginormous! And although I don’t really show it well here, the arched windows are really quite astonishingly beautiful!

Here is some more detail at the base of the pillars.

Finally, here is one of the front corners of the building! I had so much fun investigating this lovely piece of Salem’s history.

I literally drive by this building every day, and I almost forget that it is even there. This experience has inspired me to make an effort to purposefully go out and find out what other great buildings from history are out there just waiting to be rediscovered!! Who knew history could be so fun!?? I can’t wait to see what I find next!!

Have a FABULOUS evening!!! ;-)

“If you want to have a different life, you have to live differently!”

Chunky Dunker’s Night!

Good evening!

Welcome to Chunky Dunker’s Night here at Christinaville! Chunky Dunker’s night is a casual, but fun group for people from all walks of life to get together online to support one another in their health and fitness goals, whether it be to lose a few pounds, or to do one situp; I am very happy to welcome you here every Wednesday evening, where we “meet” in the comments section to catch up, share hints, tips, and ideas and to just encourage each other as we go through our health &  fitness path together!!

Well, this week…ok, let’s face it, I am not doing so hot on my consistency, so I am sure my weight is not quite heading down in the right direction yet. I do great throughout my workday, where I have pre-packed lunch box ready for my healthy breakfast, snack, lunch, and snack to get me through my day. I have always had an easy time drinking my water, it is generally about the only thing I drink, so that is not a problem. The places where I am really struggling is dinner, and the weekends, and not getting enough exercise, hardly any, matter of fact!

Dinner is hard, by the time I get home, I am hungry, and if I’ve had a bad day I want to comfort myself with food, if I have had a good day, I want to celebrate with food. We are doing better at cooking healthy meals for dinner, but I am sure that our portions are still much too large. As for the weekends, I find that I do not enough structure in my days to make sure that I am eating regularly – I have a very bad habit of skipping snacks and meals, and ending up so hungry that I don’t care what I eat as long as it is yummy, and if it is a comfort food, all the better. At least in the moment – not so much for trying to lose weight!

As for the exercising??? Well, in all honesty I am so sore all the time. I know this can’t be a new story for everyone, there has to be others out there who feel the same way, but my knees, ankles, feet, and now my lower back seem to almost constantly hurt. It really is a problem. You know the ironic thing is that I have an indoor pool at my house. I could swim every evening – if I WANTED to!!! Maybe that is the problem, I haven’t gotten sick enough of being overweight to really take some serious action on getting it taken care of!!

But, I am recommitting myself to get back on my own wagon, and to get moving, even if it is just for single digit minutes at a time!!! I am worth it, and I really can do it – with patience and CONSISTENCY!!!

Go Chunky Dunkers!!!

🙂

Have a FABULOUS evening!!! ;-)

 “If you want to have a different life, live differently!”