Category Archives: Self Improvement

My Ah-Ha Moment!

Good evening!!

My sister, Alex, just left to go home, after a VERY LOVELY visit this evening!! She has a way of helping me focus my thoughts, and making things that I’d previously thought would be near impossible seem strangely simple. How does she do that? AMAZING!!! You see, I had a really, REALLY bad stress headache at work today, and I IM’ed my husband and jokingly said that I should become an art teacher. Well, he laughed, I laughed, and I felt better enough to get back to work! When I stopped laughing, I kind of froze and said to myself, “Well, why not?”. My mom taught craft classes, I’ve taught craft classes,  maybe it is genetic!! I LOVE crafting, and I would LOVE to have a reason to do it, as often as possible!!! Anyway, I am not sure exactly how this is going to come to fruition but one way or another, with a little help from my friends, I am going to MAKE THIS HAPPEN!!! 😉

Have a FABULOUS evening! 😉

A Leisurely Morning!

Good morning!

You know that leisurely morning I was hoping or yesterday? Well, I have finally found it this morning!!! YEAH!!! 😉

I have gotten up early, showered, dressed, worked a little on decorating my journal (glitter-glue may be my NEW OBSESSION!), and now I get to spend some of my morning with you, before heading off to work!! 😉

I was thinking last night as I was in bed ready to fall asleep about something that I have been running across a lot lately, and that is forts. Do you remember making those in your house when you were little?? Forts were a BIG part of my childhood!! I remember stealing my dad’s wool blankets, (he was in the Navy, and we had TONS of these!!!), and my mom and I would rearrange all of the living room furniture and we would build a fort out of those blankets that seemed to cover E-V-E-R-Y-T-H-I-N-G!!! We would fill the thing with every pillow we could find, and if it were too dark inside, my mom would even set a small lamp inside so we could see. I remember her letting me read in there, and she would always bring me some kind of snack or something (sliced apples and peanut butter were a fave!) I FELT LIKE SUCH A GROWNUP!!!! LOL! 😉 This was a tradition we continued until I was about 10 or 11 – I just LOVED small snuggly spaces – I still do, matter of fact!! 😉

In honor of those memories, I thought I would peruse the internet and see what pics of forts that might be FABULOUS to hang out in now as an adult!!!

I think I am inspired to create a fort in my house this weekend! If I am feeling froggy and REALLY do it – I will take pics and post what I was able to come up with, with the assistance of my sidekick!! 😉 What kind of fort could you create in your house now? Will you?

Have a FABULOUS day! 😉

That’s More Like It!

Got home from work not too long ago, and I am happy to report that, TODAY WAS SOOO MUCH BETTER THAN YESTERDAY!!! WHOO!!! HOO!!!!!

Less stress!
Less yelling!
Less anxiety!
Less headache!
More work done!
More smiling!
More laughing!!

That makes me a very HAPPY GIRL this evening!!! My sweetie and I stopped off and picked up some made-to-order salads, which were quite delicious. Then we made a b-line for home so we could have our dinner, and get started with our evening!!!

I am going to do some more crafting on my journal this evening, and maybe do a little reading, although I am having some trouble getting into a new book. That is one of the dilemmas of having so many books – especially when almost half of them are yours because you inherited them. Their genres are TOTALLY different than what I am used to reading, which I know could be a REALLY GOOD thing, but I am having a hard time falling into a story.

Does anyone have any good books that they have read lately???  Talking about books, that reminds me – I have been talking with my sweetie about starting a book club, but I am not exactly sure how to go about finding book lovers like me! I had recruited one person, but now she is moving back to Arizona, *SNIFF*, so I am going to have to start over!! I LOVE reading, and I ESPECIALLY love reading books that have adventure, mystery, intrigue, some action, a lusty romance is always good, you know – kind of like one-stop-shopping!!

Some of my favorite reads are:

  • The Harry Potter Series
  • The Vampire Diaries Series
  • The Twilight Series
  • The Divine Secrets of the Ya-Ya Sisterhood
  • Fried Green Tomatoes at the Whistle Stop Cafe
  • The Mortal Instruments Series
  • The Percy Jackson Series

But, what I would REALLY LOVE to read with a book club is all of the Jane Austen books! Jane Austen has written some of THE BEST heroes and heroines EVER!! They are complex, tortured, and ABSOLUTELY LOVEABLE!!!! Has anyone ever started a book club before??? How do you go about doing it?? How do you find people to join you?? If anyone has any ideas, or if anyone is in the Salem area and would like to join me – THAT WOULD BE AWESOME!!! 😉

Anyway, I am off to go get get crafty for a little while before bed this evening! I am hoping to have a picture of my new journal to share with you by Friday!

Have a FABULOUS evening! 😉

60 Day Life Makeover, Day 33!

Good morning!

Today is Wednesday, the day that I give you an update on where I am with my 60 day life makeover progress.

My 60-day goals are:

  1. Lose 20 pounds.
  2. Find a church home.
  3. Clean, organize, purge my house from top to bottom, so everything in it has a home.
  4. Purchase, refinish, and sell one piece of furniture to slowly but surely get my business off the ground.
  5. Put $1000 extra away to help build my wealth.

Well, where do I begin?? Looking at this list, as if it were the first time I have ever seen it, and I realize that not only have I NOT made any more progress on these goals, some of them I have either stopped trying or have gone backwards in my progress!! BUMMER!!! I think I want these things, but I can’t seem to get my behaviors and choices to back me up on these things!!!

If I had to choose only ONE THING off of this list to accomplish, it would be #1. Lose20 pounds. You know how most people’s weight might fluctuate up or down by maybe 5  pounds?? Well, my normal to fluctuate by is 20 POUNDS!!! UGH!!! I literally take off and put on the same 20 pounds over, and over, and over, AND OVER again!!! So, here I am, back at the starting line, at my top weight – AGAIN! So, this is my reality. I am going to carry a 3×5 card with me today, so that whenever I do ANYTHING that supports my goal of moving towards health and fitness, I am going to write it down as a BEHAVIOR OF SUCCESS!!! I figure if I accumulate enough mini Behaviors of Success, then wouldn’t that also bring about the goal that I have been dreaming of??? I sure hope so!!

As for all of the other goals on this list, I realize that I may have to re-prioritize and decide what is really important to me, and what I am willing to work for to get. Everything has a price, am I willing to pay the price to accomplish everything on my list?? I don’t yet know, but I will! One way or the other HAPPINESS is the ULTIMATE goal, but I am learning that happiness is a choice, and not necessarily something you get – YOU CREATE IT YOURSELF!!! 😉

I am off to another long day of work, but remembering to practice my exercise of EXTREME SELF-CARE! I am optimistic that it will be a GREAT day!!

As for all of you…

Have a FABULOUS day!!! 😉

A Sleepy Tuesday!

Good evening!!

I am SOOOO TIRED this evening!!! The past few days of staying up too late, and getting up crazy early has finally caught up with me!! SOOO, tomorrow, I am planning on practicing some EXTREME SELF-CARE!!! What I mean by extreme self care, is that I am going to treat myself like my own best friend tomorrow!! Taking some much need time and effort to take care of myself and treat myself with the same kind of care that I want my best friends and loved ones to be treated with.

Some of those Extreme Self-Care things are:

  • Get up early and have a leisurely morning getting ready for work
  • Pack some calming tea and take a break mid-morning to get away from the office and have a nice cuppa
  • Take some time to go for a walk, maybe take some pictures of some beautiful things while I am out
  • Take a much-loved fiction book to work, and spend my lunch  reading something fun that takes my mind off of work
  • Keep telling myself over and over that it is alright, I am doing a great job, and this will be soooo worth it
  • When I get home, have a simple, but candlelit dinner with my husband, while we listen to some calming music
  • Spend the evening, reading, or walking outside, or playing with my sweetie and the girls – STEP AWAY FROM THE TELEVISION!
  • Slip into a well made bed, early, maybe read a little, snuggle with my honey, and fall asleep peacefully!!!
  • HEAVEN! HEAVEN! HEAVEN!!!

Basically anything, ANYTHING that makes my health, and happiness a priority!!! I really need that, because I have been treating myself a little rough lately!!! Maybe some of you might need that too – what kinds of things would be on your extreme self-care list? Tell me in the comments above!! 😉

I did pick up something tonight, that really MADE MY DAY!! I picked up the latest copy of the magazine ‘Where Women Work’. I am not sure how many of you have seen that, but it is SOOOO INSPIRING!!! It has made me start thinking about getting back on the ball and keep working on getting my office/craftroom beautiful!!! I have made the decision that wherever my career ends up, I know it is going to have something to with computers, creativity, improving people’s lives and beaing surrounded by beauty!!! I KNOW, sounds DIVINE, doesn’t it????

Anyway, I do have a big day ahead of me tomorrow, including a super-early am meeting, which means I have to get up a little early tomorrow morning to get my booty out the door!!! So, that means I have to dash and get a few more items checked off of the to-do list before I hit the hay!!

Have a FABULOUS evening! 😉

A Morning of Thanks!!

Good morning!!!

I wanted to stop and tell you that blogging, for me, was an activity that started out as a hobby and has quickly morphed into a PASSION!!! Because of this blog, I am now constantly searching and thinking of new things to share with you, which in and of itself has really forced me to ‘think outside the box’ on a daily basis! I also LOVE having a venue to express myself, no matter what mood I am in on any given day. Whether I am feeling ecstatic or blue, creative or literary, introverted or social, blogging has been a forum where I can just be my true self!!

What a GREAT FEELING!!

My hope for this blog is that it may inspire you to try something new, look at the world in a new way, or simply bring a smile to your day. If I have been able to do that for even one of you, then all of my hard work has been TOTALLY WORTH IT!!!

AND for whatever reason, my readership has been going up, up, up, which just JAZZES MY DAY!!! The number of ‘hits’ on my blog for January 2011 was more than double my previous BEST month – and that was August 2010!!! WOW!!! Thank you, to all of you who stop by and read my posts every day!! YOU inspire me, and keep me going!! I pray, even if it is in only a very small way, that I am able to do the same for you!!

THANK YOU, and have a FABULOUS day!! 😉