Tag: prayer

Categories
Fabulous living

Things That Make Me Feel Like Me

Hi everyone! A VERY happy March to you! The countdown to spring is on, as we are only weeks away from the start of the new season, even if it doesnā€™t quite feel like it quite yet. We had a stretch of temperatures in the 40’s which was an instant mood booster, but then snow returned. There is hope and promise in the air. Is it bad that Iā€™m eager for the rain that Spring brings just because that means a break in snow? I hope not!Ā I have been soaking up time with friends over the past few weeks which has been so fun and much needed for the soul too.

Pastries and coffee with friends is always a good mood booster in the middle of the week.

The new season means a fresh start and todayā€™s post goes nicely with that as Iā€™m sharing the things I do every day that make me feel like me.Ā I am currently on the road for a work trip and even though it is exciting to be traveling, it can also come with stress. Whenever, I am gone, whether it’s for work or pleasure, there’s a few things I try to incorporate every day in my life that makes me feel like me.

If I go without one of these for a day, will the world keep turning? Absolutely! But these are little rituals I like to incorporate every day to make me feel like the best version of myself.

  • Quiet Time– I like to begin every day with some quiet time and that includes journaling, prayer time, working on a word search to keep my brain sharp, reading a few pages of a book, and Wordle to keep my streak alive. I like to take my time and ease into my day with this quiet time, sometimes, I take ten minutes for my quiet time, other days, I take forty-five minutes. It all depends on how much time I have. I love starting my day with some me-time.
No matter where I am, I always try to get my quiet time in
  • Movement- Whether itā€™s a lift at the gym, some yoga after work, a good run, or even just a walk. Getting some sort of movement is critical for me. Bonus points if I can get outdoors for one of these activities. I love being able to move my body and I donā€™t take it for granted. I feel energized after I get some sort of activity whether it be easy or hard. Itā€™s a mood booster and stress reliever for me. 
Fresh air and some sort of movement brings me so much JOY!
  • Balanced Diet and Lots of Water– If I could only drink water for the rest of my life, I would be okay with that. I go through lots of tumblers every day with water. I drink it at the gym, I drink it hot with lemon in the morning and at night and all through the day at work. I love how refreshed and full water makes me feel. I also try really hard to eat a balanced diet with fruits, vegetables and proteins, plus something sweet too. Iā€™ve never been much of a breakfast person, so lunch and dinner are my meals of the day. I love to see a colorful plate filled with fruits and veggies. I feel better physically and mentally after eating a filling meal, but donā€™t get me wrong, I do love to enjoy my sweet snacks throughout the day. 
We love a colorful plate!
  • Deep Breathing and Meditation– Life can get hectic which is why taking a few moments for mediation at the start and end of my day helps me stay focused and balanced. I have been using the app Insight Timer at the end of the day to help me unwind which has been a huge help too!
Insight Timer keeps me focused to mediate every day
  • Socializing– Iā€™m your typical Introverted/Extrovert. As much as I love my quiet time in the morning and at night. I also love to spend time with my people. I call and text with my boyfriend every day and get to see my family every day, which is such a blessing. I love gathering around the table at the end of the day to talk about our days. Family is so important to me and I cherish my time with them. Plus, I would be remiss if I didnā€™t mention my incredible friends. Although I may not see or talk to them every day, catching up with friends nourishes my soul. I have recently been reconnecting with old friends and itā€™s so nice to catch up on what everyone is up to in life. 
Happiest with my people!

These five things make me feel like me in the best possible way. I can obviously go without these for a day or two, but I feel like the best version of myself if I incorporate these into my daily life.

Ā As we look towards a new season, what are some non-negotiables for you? I would love to hear from you. Although, I’m on the road, I will be back for another Friday Favorites in just two days! See you then!

Thanks as always for stopping by and Happy March!

Categories
Fabulous living

Ways to De-Stress

Hello all!

Happy May! I hope you are having a great kickoff to your month. May is one of my favorite months of the year! Not only is it my birthday month, but I love the transition of spring to summer. I love the fresh flowers, the warm summer-like days and the summer foods and drinks and treats. May can also be a busy time of year as the school season is wrapping up and it can be stressful for many parents and children. In those stressful moments, I think it’s important to take time for yourself during those busy times. 

Today’s post is all about ways to decompress and de-stress during the hectic moments of life. I’ve compiled some practical ways that work for me to unwind and de-stress, maybe you will find some work for you or your have your own ways to cope with the busy parts of life.

Whenever I get overwhelmed with work or personal stress, I remind myself to breathe. Taking a few minutes to catch my center myself always puts things in perspective for me. After a few moments of deep breathing, I try to pinpoint my stress and go about finding a solution, that often comes in the form of writing a brain dump of things that have to get done, things that’s stressing me out or worries that I have. When I put everything down on paper, it doesn’t seem as daunting.Ā 

After a few moments of deep breathing, putting things in perspective and writing down a to-do list, I find my stress levels decreasing almost immediately. It shows that a few minutes can make all the difference.Ā 

A brain dump always soothes my mind and puts my stress in perspective

The second part of this post is all about ways to unwind and de-stress. These are different practices that have worked for me and done wonders to lower my stress levels. You may have other ways to destress, but whatever way you unwind, make sure you take the time to put yourself first when life can get to be too much to handle.Ā 

Here’s some ways that I like to relax that work for me and you might find these practices work well for you.

Reading-This is one of my favorite ways to decompress. I love to start or end my day by reading. You can truly escape the world and your stressors for a few minutes with a good book. Reading is one of my favorite hobbies and it brings me joy every day. I like to start my day with some me-time, before the day gets underway and reading is one of the ways I set some time aside for myself.Ā Whether it’s reading several chapters or a few pages, I incorporate it every day.

A great way to unwind or escape.

Prayer-This is always an easy way to calm and center myself, whether it’s a big or little issue that’s bothering me, talking to God always helps puts my fears at ease. I typically pray at the beginning and end of every day, but have found myself talking to God more in the car or when I am alone and experiencing downtime. I try to place all my stressors and burdens in his hands, while also remembering to thank him for all his blessings.

Journaling- This is another common practice that I have been doing daily since I went to college. Journaling helps me focus on the positive and finding the good in every day. It also helps me put things in perspective, the little stressors don’t seem as big in the grand scheme of things when you put things down on paper. I also always try to include what I’m grateful for every day. The good always tends to outweigh the bad.

Journaling is my favorite morning and evening activity

Going for a Walk- Whenever I am stressed, sometimes taking a walk right away immediately helps me clear my mind. Fresh air and getting in some steps in relieves my stress. Even if it’s just for five minutes, some fresh air can do wonders, especially if you are inside all day. After a long day in the office, there is truly nothing better than taking my dogs out for a walk. Whether it’s chilly or hot, you switch up your layers to enjoy your walk. I love to go on walks with friends or family, but going on a walk by myself is just as therapeutic too. I even love to take a walk and make phone calls to family and friends to catch up and relax.

A walk does wonders for the soul

Coloring- This was a hobby I loved as a child and picked it up as an adult to de-stress. Coloring soothes and relaxes me especially after a busy day. I enjoy coloring when I’m watching tv or relaxing with family. This practice is mindless and soothing and it’s a great way to focus on a task and get creative too. 

Coloring is a great way to unwind

Turn on a comfort show– If you are looking for something mindless to do to truly unwind, turning on a comfort show or something mindless always helps push my worries away. As I’m typing this post, I have Grey’s Anatomy on in the background. I love the relaxation it provides and how you can chose any episode and pick up right where you left off.

Those are some practices that have helped me unwind and decompress after a long or stressful day. Life can get busy, stressful or overwhelming, and it’s important that in busyness, we take time for ourselves. As the old saying goes, you can’t pour from an empty well.

I hope this encourages you to take time for yourself and put things in perspective in the busy and slow seasons of life.

What are your favorite ways to decompress and take time for yourself? Let me know in the comments below!

Happy Wednesday!

Categories
Fabulous living

New Year’s Resolutions Check-In


Happy Wednesday!

Can you believe we are half way through a June and half way through 2022? This year is flying by. The winter months being cooped up inside certainly dragged, but once spring and summer came around and Iā€™ve been able to get outside more, the days are flying by. Iā€™m doing everything I can to make the most of my days off and time after work by being outdoors.Ā 

A walk on a day off is the best way to enjoy summer.

With the second half of the year ahead of us, I wanted to look back on my New Yearā€™s resolutions to see how Iā€™ve done so far and what areas I can improve in.

You can see my New Years resolutions here.Ā 

I broke up my resolutions into the categories of physical, spiritual, professional and lifestyle.

For my physical goals, I wanted to focus on eating more veggies and Iā€™m so proud to say that Iā€™ve been eating vegetables every day with multiple meals. Iā€™ve done my best to use a vegetable as a replacement for a chip or carb with meals. Hello celery sticks instead of potato chips.

I ultimately feel better when I eat more vegetables compared to more carbs, which I know sounds like a no brainer, but to feel the effects is rewarding. Iā€™m going to continue to add more fruits and vegetables to my plate for all meals and snacks for the next six months of the year.

For spiritual goals, I wanted to spend more time with Jesus besides just going to Church once a week. Although, Iā€™ve been happy with being more consistent with my prayer life this year, I know thereā€™s still so much I can do. I want to continue to live out my faith with my actions and get more involved with my church and community (one of my goals for 24, if you recall). I always start my days with journaling and praying but want to do more for a more fulfilling faith life. After all, the ultimate goal in life is to be with God.Ā 

The Laudate app makes it easier to get Jesus time in during the morning.

For professional goals, I wanted to focus on being more creative in my storytelling. Iā€™ve done a pretty good job of this so far, but I know thereā€™s more ways to improve. I try to be creative when I have them time at work, but sometimes Iā€™m in a real time crunch and I donā€™t always have the extra time to be creative. I want to think out of the box when telling stories and putting in the time to learn new things. I still want to boost my creativity in the second half of the year.

For lifestyle, one of my goals is to use more sustainable products and Iā€™ve really done a good job with this. I almost always use plastic containers instead of baggies when packing my lunch. Thanks to more stores doing away with plastic bags, Iā€™ve been using recycled and reusable bags. I know itā€™s not much but I feel good that Iā€™m doing part.

Thatā€™s a look at my resolutions so far, I’ve certainly made progress in many areas, but I know I have lots of ways to improve. I like to use these check-ins to hold myself accountable and hopefully help you hold yourself accountable to when it comes to our resolutions. It’s great to set goals at the beginning of the year, but it’s even more important to stick to them. How has your resolutions been going so far?Ā Sticking to them or have a few gone to the wayside?

Let me know in the comments below!

Categories
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?