Tag: mindfulness

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Friday Favorites

Friday Favorites #34

Hey Guys! We made it to Friday! I donā€™t know about you, but I am ready for SPRING. Iā€™m ready to say goodbye to the snow and hello to fresh blooms. As we wait for spring, hereā€™s some favorite things Iā€™ve been loving this week as I link up withĀ ErikaĀ andĀ Andrea.

Carrie Soto is Back– My Taylor Jenkins Reid kick has not slowed down. I finished Carrie Soto is Back and enjoyed it more than I thought. It follows the story of a tennis player looking to return to the court to claim her title as champion. I learned a lot about tennis, endurance, and hard work. I really appreciated the relationship between Carrie and her father. Thereā€™s a lot about female empowerment, family ties, and some romance too. Itā€™s a bit different than some of TJRā€™s other books, but I really enjoyed it.

A Path to Well-Being: Embrace Silence for Stronger Mindfulness– I came across this article and was immediately intrigued. I have been practicing mindfulness for a few years now in the morning and at night. I always try to start and end my day with some quiet time. This article shines light on the importance of mindfulness and meditation. Definitely a fascinating article.

Flatbread crackers-I am always on the hunt for different crackers or snacks. I found these everything flatbread crackers from Target and fell in love with them. They go great with dips, sauces, sliced fruits or veggies. Plus, everything bagel seasoning is the perfect extra flavor.

Hair Thickening Spray-I am currently on a mission to use products that I have on my shelf instead of buying new. I have really been loving this hair thickening spray. I apply it after the shower and it leaves my hair feeling thicker and it adds volume. I got it from Target and have been happy with the results so far. 

Rice Krispy Treats– I have been craving some homemade treats and the cold weather was the perfect excuse for some Rice Krispy Treats. This was the recipe I used and it turned out great. The sweet treats didnā€™t last long, they went fast and thatā€™s when you know you made a good batch. 

I hope you find something that brought you joy to you this past week. Depending on when you read this, I’ll either be watching Daisy Jones and the Six or have finished it already. For those watching, what are your thoughts? Let me know in the comments below!

Have a great weekend and fingers crossed spring comes soon!

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Fabulous living

Apple Watch Review

Hey guys!

Happy Wednesday! I’ve held off on this post for a while but I’m excited to share it with you today. 

I always love reading people’s different reviews of products. Whenever, I’m on the fence about buying a product reading someone’s review always gives me the push or pull into getting a product.Ā I’ve always been a HUGE fan of fitness trackers, especially Fit Bit. You can read my past Fit Bit reviews here and here.

For Christmas I got an Apple Watch and while it took a little bit of getting used and trying it out, I’m excited to share my review with you today!

My new Apple Watch SE.

A few notes, this post is not sponsored at all, this is just my own thoughts and opinions on Apple Watch.

For starters, I got the Apple Watch SE.Ā 

It took a little bit of getting used to compared to my Fit Bit Versa Lite (the set-up, the notifications and the look) but once I did , I automatically fell in love with it.

For my job, I’m always on my phone, so having my calls, texts, emails, and social media all synced to my watch is huge!

I love that I can see who’s calling or texting me from my watch without picking up my phone.Ā  The Fit Bit Versa Lite had these features too, butĀ I like how on the Apple Watch you can read the full text message and not just the preview compared to the Fit Bit Versa Lite. You can also respond to texts through Siri or microphone or by writing a message out. I typically donā€™t respond to too many texts unless itā€™s a one-word or short response that I can quickly type or speak using Siri.

With the Fit Bit Versa Lite you can see when someone is calling you, but on the Apple Watch SE you can answer calls from it as well. I also like how you can get way more notifications from different apps. I can see when I get notifications from social media, to emails, calendars and emails.

I am always using my Apple Watch to set timers or alarms. I also use Siri a lot more on my Apple Watch compared to my phone. I also can get a quick check of the weather without going on my phone. Major wins for me!

Besides work, I really enjoy working out. I try to workout at least five days a week if not more. I use my Apple Watch to track my work out sessions, track how many calories Iā€™ve burned, see how many steps Iā€™ve gotten and see how long Iā€™ve stood. There’s different programs you can start tracking when you workout from yoga to walking, running or lifting weights. Closing my rings is always a highlight of my day.Ā 

If you have been following for a while, you know how I have started to incorporate mindfulness and meditation in my daily routines. One of the apps on my Apple Watch tracks Mindfulness, another favorite! I practice Mindfulness at the start and end of every day.

Now that I have raved about the Apple Watch, hereā€™s a few things that I have noticed that I donā€™t love about it. 

The battery goes faster on the Apple Watch compared to the Fit Bit Versa Lite. If I start the day with 80 percent by the end of a 12 hour day, itā€™s around 30 percent. It makes sense since Iā€™m using it constantly and since I sleep with It on at night, but it still go faster than the Fit Bit. I typically charge it when Iā€™m showering at night or when Iā€™m sitting down or doing my hair in the morning.

You also need a specific charger and charger block for the Apple Watch, so thatā€™s something else you should be aware of.

The other thing that makes it questionable is the price, or more accurately is it worth it? In my opinion ā€¦yes! Since I use it for multiple reasons, all day every day. It’s definitely worth it. But if you are on the fence about investing, I would suggest maybe starting with a Fit Bit and working you way up to an Apple Watch, just a suggestion.Ā 

The pros outweigh the cons but A LOT! Overall, I am thrilled with my Apple Watch and I use it all day, every day! In next weekā€™s post, Iā€™ll be sharing some of my favorite accessories. Until then, if you have an Apple Watch, what are your thoughts on it? Let me know!

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Fabulous living

Self Care in Daily Routines

Hey guys!

Itā€™s Novemberā€¦these next few weeks are a weird for me, Iā€™m not ready to get ready for Christmas, but itā€™s almost getting too cold for fall fun.That means these next few weeks call for curling up and staying inside and enjoying indoor activities, whether it’s reading watching shows or doing something creative.

One thing Iā€™ve gotten better with over the last year is finding hobbies/forms of self-care and sticking with them. At the end of 2020, I wanted to prioritze my hobbies in the upcoming year of 2021. Yes, I enjoyed reading and blogging and exercise, but I wanted to make sure I was taking the time to incorporate my hobbies in my daily life. 

All through our lives, we spend a lot of time taking care of others, whether itā€™s feeding or taking care of our families, checking in on our dear friends, or putting in long hours at work, we do a lot for others, which is why we need to make time for ourselves. 

Self care on a day off looks like long walks.

Whether itā€™s waking up early before the day gets started to spend some quiet time with God, or making time for ourselves in the afternoon or taking a bath before bed. Giving ourselves some time will make us be better people to care for others.

When I realized I wanted to start building my hobbies in my daily routine, I first made a to do list of hobbies I wanted to do every day and was happy if I just got them done through the course of the day, no matter if it was in the morning or afternoon.

However, I quickly found that the day would get busy and get away from me and as a result, I wouldnā€™t have time to take care of myself or enjoy my hobbies. I wanted to make time but I couldnā€™t find the timeā€¦until I realized I needed to schedule time for my “me time” or hobbies in my day. After I did that, I found myself enjoying my hobbies and still getting everything accomplished in the day.

I always start my day with a 5 minute meditation.

Hereā€™s how I did it:

My daily ā€œme timeā€/hobbies include: going to the gym, journaling and prayer time, meditation, reading my favorite blogs/checking my own blog, reading a bit and a word search.

Reading a book allows me to relax before I start a busy day.

I first just wanted to get them all done in a day, but then I realized if I did my “me time” in the morning then I would start my day on the right foot and I would be less stressed as the day went on.

My morning now looks like me waking up and journaling, praying/meditation, reading my blogs, getting ready for the day and then reading a few pages/chapter (depending on the time) of whatever book Iā€™m reading and then do a word search for a few minutes. I started doing them a few months back and I have been on a streak about doing a little bit of a word search every day. It relaxes me and keeps my mind sharp.

I word search I just finished.

I get all my me time done in the morning so then when I get home from work, I can get things done, enjoy family time and unwind and I know I got all my “me time” done in the morning. The time it takes me to do everything varies based on what I have to get done for the day. But it typically ranges from the momentI wake up until the moment Iā€™m out the door about an hour (itā€™s longer if I have a longer workout. But one hour to an hour and a half makes a huge difference in my day.

Thatā€™s my way that I practice self care. No matter what your self care or hobbies look like to do, itā€™s so crucial you get some time in your day.

How do you practice self-care and incorporate it in your life?

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Fabulous living

Mindfulness

Hello all! 

Happy Wednesday! Itā€™s still warm, the sun is shining and technically summer, but itā€™s September, which means fall is coming. Labor Day is over which means we are making our way into autumn. Iā€™m excited for the new season, but Iā€™m still not ready to say goodbye to summer quite yet.

I mentioned a few weeks ago, that Iā€™ve started to incorporate mindfulness in my daily routine. According to Merriam Webster, mindfulness is ā€œthe practice of maintaining a nonjudgmental state of the heightened or complete awareness of oneā€™s thoughts emotions, or experiences on a moment to  moment basis.ā€ I first heard about mindfulness in college and then learned more about it through work and stories Iā€™ve done. I always found it interesting and these past few weeks I wanted to give it a try myself. 

If you have been following me for a while, you know I love my Fit Bit! One of the features the app has is to track your mindfulness. Thereā€™s a number of guided breathing exercises to calm your heart rate and soften your breathing. It took a while to get into a routine of doing it and just about finding time that works in my schedule to do it. What I like about the Fit Bit app is that there are a number of different guided breathing practices, they range from two minutes to 30 minutes. YouTube also has a number of guided practices too. Most of the time, I do my breathing exercises after I journal in the morning or when I am driving to work. I really like to take the time before the day gets underway to just reset and calm the mind before the day gets busy.

On the app, you can monitor your monthly mindfulness and your daily mindfulness

At this point I do my breathing exercises 7 days a week. It only takes a few minutes, and it gets my mind and heart in a good spot before the day gets busy.

Here’s some of the different exercises.

I am a routine person through and through. When I can start my day with journaling, breathing and a workout and reading, I know my day is off to a great start. 

Being more mindful and taking time to reset before the day gets started has been a huge help to lower my stress level especially on busy work days.

What ways do you unwind and relax before or at the end of your day?

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Fabulous living

Managing Stress

Hello everyone! I hope your week is off to a great start as your summers get underway. Although the summer months are filled with fun, adventures, and lots of time outside but it also means a change of routine which can cause lots of stress. Whether you have a high stress job or pockets of stress in your life, thereā€™s always things to do to manage or lower your stress. 

Here are some of my top tips for managing stress. 

  • When life gets to be a lot, write it down.

I always feel better when I write my to do list or whatā€™s on my mind down, I always feel a lot better, plus when I see it all written down, it makes everything a lot more manageable. I also journal every day and that helps me reflect on the good every day and puts things in perspective too. I always start my day off with journaling and my daily prayers. When I start my day off with my routine

  • Get outside

Whenever a situation gets overwhelming or stressful, I find it helpful to take a walk or get outside and just get some fresh air. Even if itā€™s just for 10 minutes, it makes a big difference. The sunshine makes it even better to get outside and just process things.

Going on walks is a favorite of mine
  • Talk it Out

I always feel better after I talk about my stressors or pain points with someone, whether itā€™s my mom or best friend. It always makes me feel better just to talk out whatā€™s going on instead of bottling it up inside. 

  • Create a relaxing atmosphere 

Especially at the end of a stressful day, I like to create a soothing and relaxing atmosphere. Whether itā€™s burning some candles or using some essential oils, I like to cultivate a space that I can truly unwind and relax.

I saw this on Instagram and I couldn’t agree more. We all need time to just rest.
  • Breathing exercises 

I started to use the Mindfulness feature on my fitbit, it allows me to practice deep breathing whenever I need time to just pause and reset.

My mindfulness app

These are a few tricks that have worked for me. What things do you do to relax or manage your stress?