Category Archives: Self Improvement

A Late Friday Morning!

Good morning!

I am late this morning! I have been online with my cell phone carrier for quite a while now, trying to fix my cell phone’s e-mail service. My e-mail account was hacked into the other day, and although I have fixed it, my Blackberry doesn’t seem to want to get with the program and accept my e-mails! SO, here I sit trying to fix it, hoping that this upgrade will do it! We will see!

Tonight is Jason and my special date night where we are going to a glass fusing class!! I a still so excited!!! I can’t wait to see what this entails! Plus, I get to leave work a little early to go, so that is going to make my Friday afternoon, all the more sweeter!!! YEAH!!!

I know this post is VERY SHORT this morning, but I wanted to make sure that I at least touched base before I headed out for the day!! I will tell you all about our glass class this evening!!! WHOO! HOO!! 😉

Have a FABULOUS day!

Belly Dancing Night!

Good evening!

I’m here! I’m here! I am sorry, I had forgotten that my e-mail account was hacked into a couple of days ago and it broke my connection to my Blackberry, so I wasn’t able to blog today like I had wanted to. To make it up to you, I will make this one a little long to tell you about all the things going on with my day!!

I did not get a post up this morning, I was running around like a buzy bee trying to get out the door in time this morning! I am not sure why but time seemed to pass really quickly, and before I new it, I had my flat iron in my hand and it was 7:30! AAAACK!!! 10 minutes AFTER I normally leave for the office!!!

Then by lunch time, my day had completely flipped, and was now going SOOOOOOOOOOOO VEEEEEEEEEEEEEEERY SLOOOOOOOOOOOWLY!! I almost couldn’t stand it!!! 😉 I was soooo jazzed about my belly dancing class tonight – I just wanted to get out there and get to it!! It was supposed to be veil night!

 VEIL NIGHT!!!

WHOO! HOO!!

I mean, come on! What little girl didn’t dream about playing dress up and being a little Indian Girl layered in veils, dancing beautifully, while being adored by her audience??? No? Not you?? Oh, so it was just me then?? Oh. Ok. Man I am so wanting to learn how to do an actual dance, and I realize we are learning all of the kinds of moves you can do so that way when you do put dances together you know what you are doing – BUT, PUT ME IN COACH!! I AM SOOOO READY TO PLAY!!! 😉

My co-workers were SUPER UNDERSTANDING this afternoon, seeing that even the boss wasn’t too into the idea of getting any work done, so they spent a little time talking about all of their plants that are coming up in their vegetable gardens, and I was soooo jealous!! I want a garden too, but that is kind of difficult when you live in a condo. However, they gave me all sorts of ideas on how to grow plants in my own container gardens, or even in small greenhouses that I can use year round! Isn’t that just DIVINE??? Really! I am so inspired! and you HAVE TO KNOW, my hubbie would just LOVE that!!! I can’t wait to tell him all about it!!

After work tonight, I started my artist date with myself and did a lot of walking around downtown, going from craft place to craft place looking for art or craft classes that I could take, and I have to tell you I found quite a bit of them that I am going to look further into. One is an encaustic painting class. I had seen an artist doing that on a craft program some years back and it has always intrigued me, so I put it on my life list! It is the one about painting with wax – that is was encaustic painting it. I also found a quilting class I want to take and a collage class that I am going to take!! They all sounds REALLY FUN and EXCITING! and I am sure they will be, but what I am most excited about is a class that I have signed Jason and I up for tomorrow!! We are going to be taking a glass fusing class at one of our local art studios here in Salem. This is going to be a first for both of us, and I JUST KNOW we are going to have A BLAST!! My co-worker was just SHOCKED that Jason agreed to do this for our date night, but he WAS TOTALLY GAME!!! Jason has a bit of an artistic streak running through him too!! I told you we were MFEO!!! (Made For Each Other!!)

We will do all of our glass cutting/designing/assembling tomorrow evening, and then the studio will kiln fire it for us, and we will pick it up in 7 days! I hope they turn out looking FABULOUS!!! I can’t wait to share pictures!!!

Oh, talking about pictures! I spoke to my belly dancing class mates tonight, and besides myself, the vote for me taking pictures of the class was a RESOUNDING HELL NO!!!

BUMMER!!

I was shocked (doesn’t EVERYONE put there life out on the internet for public perusal??? LOL!), and a little bummed (boo! hiss!), but I will respect the wishes of the class, and refrain from taking , for now! HOWEVER, if we should ever perform, you had better believe that I am going to task Jason to take as many pictures as he is able to, and HONEY I AM SHARING THEM ALL WITH YOU!!! 😉

So, I will be taking pictures of our glass class tomorrow! (I hope that is alright???) and I will share them with you tomorrow! They should be GREAT!!! Until then…

Have a FABULOUS evening!! 😉

NOTE TO CHUNKY DUNKERS: I did 1/2 an hour of walking downtown, and an hour belly dancing class today! I at a strawberry smoothie for breakfast, a small whole wheat english muffin ham sandwich for snack, mini-bite Crunch candy bar, baked carrots, a baked potato with sour cream, and some baked turkey for lunch, a large chocolate chip cookie in the afternoon, and then I had a super healthy chicken, veggies, and rice for dinner! Looking at this, I can see that there is a lot of room for improvement, so I will be conscious and try to do better tomorrow! GO CHUNKY DUNKERS!!!

The Chunky Dunker’s Club, Week 9

Good evening!

Welcome to week 9, of the Chunky Dunker’s Club!! Welcome back to those who join us every week, including those of your who silently follow us, and welcome to those who may be new to my blog this evening.

Every week I post a new Chunky Dunker’s article ever Wednesday evening, and you have the opportunity to comment, and cheer each other as you each go through your journey to get fit and healthy!!! We will discuss hints, tips, and ideas on losing weight, staying motivated, and achieving your fitness goals, whether that is to lose 5 pounds, to do 10 sit-ups, or just incorporate some healthy habits into your daily life!!

Last week we talked about visualizing your fit, healthy, and vivaciously energetic, most perfect self. This is still one of my favorite exercises because all it takes is closing your eyes, holding still and visualizing yourself as that person. Did you notice anything in yourself that would need to stop or start doing to get to that person in your mind??? I know I did, and still do.

Tonight’s topic: Hitting a Plateau

I am not sure about any of you, but have any of you hit a plateau in your fitness/weight loss goals? I really have!!! I am not sure if it is my lack of motivation, lack of face-to-face support, or if I have just have myself too busy learning to tap back into my creative self, or it could be that I am just sore! Besides my belly dancing class once a week, I really haven’t done much in the way of exercising! BOO! HISS!! I know!! I can’t believe it either!!!

AREN’T I SUPPOSED TO BE OUR SUPPORT GROUP LEADER???
AAAACK!!

Ok, that might be a little melodramatic, I know that I am human just like all of you are too! So, instead of kicking my booty about it, I am hopping back on the bandwagon! I am making my fitness a priority, and I have got to start making healthy eating more of a priority – although I have to say that most of my fruits and vegetables are now organic, so that has got to count for something, I think!?!?! 😉

So, I recommit!

Here is my contract with

you,

but even more importantly, my contract with

myself!

I, Christina, hereby solemnly swear to move my body with some kind of an aerobic activity for at least 1/2 an hour every day.

I, Christina, also vow to make sure that I carry a small journal with me at all times so that I can write down whatever I eat or drink, no matter how horrific or terrifying my food choice is at the time. I will not berate myself for what I write, but will use the log as a learning tool to do better next week.

I, Christina, will treat myself nicely, gently, and lovingly, as if I were my own best friend. I will keep an eye on my self-talk to make sure that I remind myself that I am happy, I am blessed, and I am healthy, because I deserve it.

I, Christina, will remember that this process is a journey, and not a destination; that once I hit my ideal weight/size, that life doesn’t stop there. This is about living and loving life to it’s fullest, and looking for ways that I can be a blessing to those around me every day!

Signed & Dated this Wednesday, April 27, 2011, at 6:00 pm.

Do you need to make a contract with yourself?? If so, that is your homework!!

GO CHUNKY DUNKER’S!!!

Have a FABULOUS evening!

A Happy Week Night Date Night!

Good evening!

This post is getting done much later than I normally like to get my posts done! Matter of fact my bedtime is actually in 8 minutes!! I feel so OLD all of the sudden!!! LOL! Ok, not really, but I was excited to tell you about our evening!!

Sometime late this afternoon, my sweetie texted me to find out if I wanted to go across town tonight, and go hang out at our FAVORITE bookstore, and he would will treat me to dinner afterward! Well, NORMALLY, I would say

“No way! Not on a work night!”

but I found myself saying,

“Sure!”

That, my friends, is GROWTH!!! LOL! 😉

I realized that this could be an opportunity to dip my toes into being creative tonight by reading any and all of the new Somerset Publications that Somerset produces, and the do have A LOT! and MAN AM I EVER glad I did that!! I am filled with so much inspiration for art projects to try, and adventures to take, and I am even now on the hunt for some Oregon-based art/craft classes so that I can immerse myself more into the creative community. Like I have been saying for the past couple of posts, my chosen medium is still in the works to be decided upon, but right now I am pretty open to whatever possibilities might present itself!!

Does anyone know of any classes, retreats, workshops, artsy/crafty get-togethers in the area? Please let me know in the comments above!

If I can’t find any, or enough to keep me busy, I am going to have no choice but to put some together myself and make a call to all of the Artsy Gutsy Chicks I know!!! There have GOT TO be more women out there taking the same creative journey that I am!!! If you might be interested, let me know in the comments, and I will put together a list of ladies, and if demand is high enough, I will get a class going!! 😉

What a GREAt NIGHT!! My sweetie really outdid himself in the brownie-making points department tonight! He really went out of his way to treat me like a lady and make me feel special!! Thank you, my love!! After 16 1/2 years of marriage, I am ALWAYS just so THRILLED that we not only love each other, but that we are still IN LOVE!! What a blessing that man of mine is to me!! Love, I hope I can make you just as happy as you make me!!! Thank you for tonight!! 😉

My cup runneth over!!! 😉

I have a meeting at 7:30 in the morning, which means I have to leave the house about 1/2 an hour early, so I am going to go get ready for bed for the evening!! I just KNOW I will have to keep a journal by my bed this morning, so that I can jot down any project ideas that pop into my head!!!

Have a FABULOUS evening!!! 😉

A Productive Tuesday Morning!

Good morning!

I have had a pretty productive morning, this morning! I am busy learning about all sorts of features in WordPress that I have just been too chicken to learn previously. I am realizing that if I take it one change at a time, it is a piece of cake! 😉 I hope that any and all of the new links/features I am adding will be helpful to you as you continue to read my blog, and hopefully share with your friends!! 🙂

I am trying to decide what my creative task will be this evening. I have been trying to devour the information in quite a few blogging books, and also still trying to get all of the The Artist’s Way program assignments completed, and this week there are a lot, however I am only supposed to do half of them!! I have my camera with me, so I need to continue to look for the beautiful and interesting to share, and I think that today I will take a nature walk, and dry some flowers for some Spring and Summertime Artwork! I have decided that my banner, although perfect for Winter, is a little too heavy for my tastes for Spring, so it is definitely time for a change in that dept! I need to rotate artwork, create some new pillow coverd and maybe make a small quilt to cover and lighten up the couch! That should be fun, and make for a PLEASANT change in our little place!!!

Well, I see that it is almost time for me to head out to the office today, I have a busy day of work ahead of me today, but I am optimistic that it will be a good day!! I am just hoping to keep my head down and knock out some assignments before I leave to come home today! 😉

Have a FABULOUS day!! 😉

Note to Chunky Dunkers: Please don’t forget that tomorrow night is Chunky Dunker night! I will see you all a little after 6:30 om, tomorrow!! I can’t wait to hear how everyone is doing!! Until then, TOODLES!!! 😉

A Monday of Positivity!

From Tiffany's "Happy Girls are the Prettiest Girls" Shoot

Good evening!

Work did get a little bumpy today, but I knew that it would, right? And it did, of course! There are a lot of changes going to be happening in the next few months, but that is alright. I know that everything is going to turn out alright, it always has and always will.

I have to tell you that all of this tapping into my creativity has given me hope that there is light at the end of the tunnel for my life! I feel like I am learning what my true purpose for being placed on this earth for. I can not yet articulate what I am thinking, but I am learning that it is ok to be creative, and to use my creativity to somehow make the world a better place. I honestly didn’t think that was possible before. I thought creativity was something that you stole moments of while your life takes a break from chewing you up! Sad, really!! I realize that I don’t have to be “chewed up any longer” that I am allowed to take time for myself, without guilt, to replenish and recoup what is the best of me, so that I am ready and able to better take care of others!! That, my friend, is called growth!!! LOL! 😉

I had quite the surprise right before I left the office today! Sometime last week, I had taken a leap of faith and had e-mailed a couple of my FAVORITE photographers/bloggers, not really thinking that any of them would EVER write me back. It was more for the action of stepping outside of my box, and doing something I wouldn’t think I could do. Well, today, quite unexpectedly, I got a return e-mail!!!! When I saw the name of the person sending it, I can not tell you how excited I was to see her name – I literally started jumping up and down inside of my own head!! YEAH!!! WHOO!!! HOO!! I can’t believe she wrote back!!! Anyway, it was Tiffany Kirchner Dixon of The Fancy Farmgirl, and she very graciously answered all of my questions, plus gave me some very lovely encouraging words of advice for getting myself started with photography!!! To say that I was jazzed, was a HUGE UNDERSTATEMENT!! It gave me proof that I was on the right track. I am still not sure what my “art” is, or how it is going to manifest itself, but I KNOW that I am heading in the right direction!!!

Tiffany’s blog (I feel like we are at that place now, you know, first name basis!!) is ABSOLUTELY SCRUMTIOUS!! I love the ebb and flow of her postings, reading about her family, and perusing her DREAM-LIKE photography!! I KNOW that my sis, Alex would REALLY like her work too!! PERFECTION!! The photo above is one Tiffany’s and you can see more of her photography here!

I have to confess that even though that was the MOST PLEASANT SURPRISE to my day, I was soooo thankful to get home today! I had been hankering to get home the entire work day, kind of like a little kid pining for recess during an especially difficult math test!! My sweetie and I finally scheduled some time to have some quality time for right after work! It has been a while since we have both been able to get away from all of the work and distractions of life, and just spend some much needed time together! It is ALWAYS so much fun to spend time with him, sharing out laughter and dreams! He is just such a genuine human being, and he really had this way of bringing out the playful kid out of me!! He is my own personal gentle giant, and really makes my life so much better!! Thank you, Love! You mean the world to me!!!

Well, before I ramble on for the rest of the night, I am going to close up shop for the night so that I can go climb into bed with my love and do some reading before we slip off to la-la-land and have some SWEET DREAMS!!!

Have a FABULOUS evening!! 😉

Creative Affirmations!

Good evening!

I know I have already posted my blog tonight, but I am going through my Artist’s Way Chapter for the week, and I realized there are a couple of thoughts that I may want to call upon later during this week, and maybe longer. So, I had thought, seeing that this is my online journal, I would share them here so I may refer back to them!

Taken from Julia Cameron’s book, The Artist Way, pgs 37-37

Creative Affirmations:

  1. I am a channel of God’s creativity, and my work comes to good.
  2. My dreams come from God and God has the power to accomplish them.
  3. As I create and listen, I will be lead.
  4. Creativity is the creator’s will for me.
  5. My creativity heals myself and others.
  6. I am allowed to nurture my artist.
  7. Through the use of a few simple tools, my creativity will flourish.
  8. Through the use of my creativity, I serve God.
  9. My creativity always leads me to truth and love.
  10. My creativity leads me to forgiveness and self-forgiveness.
  11. There is a divine plan of goodness for me.
  12. There is a divine plan of goodness for my work.
  13. As I listen to the creator within, I am led.
  14. As I listen to my creativity I am lead to my creator.
  15. I am willing to create.
  16. I am willing to learn to let myself create.
  17. I am willing to let God create through me.
  18. I am willing to be of service through my creativity.
  19. I am willing to experience my creative energy.
  20. I am willing to use my creative talents.

Have a FABULOUS evening!