Building Healthy Habits

I am a dreamer.  Filled with ideas constantly flowing through my mind. Also, I spend a good deal of time reflecting on ways to improve.  Sometimes, I have such lofty goals and ideas that I tend to overwhelm myself. I am also a classic over thinker.  I can think myself out of anything making it seem so much bigger than it really is.

I have found that incorporating healthy routines into my daily life have been not only less daunting but inspires me to keep on going.

Instead of making a big deal out of everything.  I think about my goals as daily tasks or routines.  Not only does that bring less anxiety for me it brings more peace. I have also found so much more freedom.  I have time to do more because my healthy goals are now simply habits that I practice daily.  My mind isn't occupied thinking about how to get x, y, & z done.

I have built my daily routines around things that are important to me and my overall health and wellbeing.  I spend time doing the things that are meaningful.  They may be simple and don't take a lot of time but I know they make a big impact on my day and health.

Spend some time thinking about things that you want to start adding into your day.  Start doing it a little bit each day.  Push through the resistance that will come to fall back in old habits.  Then one day you won't even think about them any more they will simply be part of your day.

Thinking about goals as habits are a game changer.

Add something new to your routine and see how it changes your mindset and well being.

Summer Goals Check In

Location: Outer Banks, North Carolina

One week from now I head back to work to start setting up my office as well as prepping for the school year to begin. This summer has been absolutely wonderful for me.  I wrote a post before summer began about all the things that I wanted to do this season.  A bucket list of sorts; you can read it all here.

Every once and a while I make a list of goals that I want to accomplish.  Typically around new years when everyone reflects on what the year brought and the changes they can make for a better year ahead.  I suppose this summer was my new year.  Now that it is coming to an end I have looked back at my list, while I am pleased at all that I have done I had an aha moment.

While I was looking at all that I wanted to see and experience this summer I realized some things I wanted to do at the beginning of summer were simply forgotten about. I also realized that life happens.  Sometimes we make the best plans, set goals, and then they don't happen.  Instead of focusing on what hasn't happened life is about practicing gratitude for what actually happens.

So instead of looking back at my list, going through it and checking off what I did and didn't do.  My check in with myself is answering one simple question.  Am I relaxed and rejuvenated in spending my summer full of fun events and taking care of myself? My answer is most definitely; yes.

This last week will be spent loving life and summertime for a little while longer.

How has your summer been?  What do your goals teach you about gratitude? 

Making the Most of Summertime

Outfit: Romper | Shoes [Similar]

I have to admit, typically I am a fall obsessed girl. Not this year, though.  I have probably been craving summer since probably February.  Now, that I can see my school year start date on the calendar so soon I don't want it to end!

This summer has been so necessary for me personally, it has also been a lot of fun.  There has been a lot of transition for me with moving to a new apartment, and learning a lot of little life lessons that Jesus and I have been working on. This summer I have also decided to set the to do list aside for what is really important.  I want my actions to reflect my words.  If I am going to be true to that it means calling my loved ones, setting up friend dates, exploring my new neighborhood, being outside in the sunshine, and truly celebrating this life.

Summer has been my opportunity to reflect on what is important and incorporate that in my life.  With a few more weeks of summer I am determined to make the most of it.  I also want to bring a little bit of my summertime self with me to my school year.  The to - do list will always be there but the experiences, the daylight late at night, the outdoor yoga, the flowers, those things end up fading with winter.  Not this year.

Summer you are slowly becoming my new favorite because of all the life changing lessons you have taught me. You have brought me closer to friends.  You have given me sun kissed skin and lighter hair.  You have given me lots of much needed rest.  You have warmed my heart and soul.  You have taught me to explore, to cherish life, and to slow down.

Cheers to celebrating summer and making the most of it.

How are you celebrating summertime? 

P.S.  If you love my romper as much as I do; check out Ivy & Leo.  You can use the code AMANDA10 for 10% off your purchases, they are also having a crazy summer sale right now - 30% off all summer items to make room for their fall line!

Home Decor + Patience & Self Control

Anyone else ever look on Pinterest or browse through home decor and organization ideas then just magically your house looks like that overnight? Yeah, me neither.  Wouldn't that be wonderful - if you pin something it just appears without you actually having to pay for it haha. This one click wonder of a world full of instant gratification at your fingertips makes it feel like that could be your reality.  We can like a picture on instagram and get all the shopping details for it sent to an app that you can shop directly from.  So useful and dangerous all at the same time, because we actually have to make a purchase.

Our brains are tricked into thinking that I want it and want it now is the only way to go. Credit cards hold no consequences in the moment it seems.  If our wants, which feel like needs, are not fufilled in a single moment then it eats at us and messes with our self worth.

On my editorial calendar for this month I wanted to show you all decor ideas and updates for this apartment.  That's definitely not the case friends and you know what; it's totally okay.  I am so happy with this apartment.  Yes, we still have a long way to go.  Organization puzzles to solve, some big purchases to make, and a couch would be nice so I am not hanging out in my living room on a beach chair anymore.

This apartment, for me, is different than all of my other moves I have made in the past.  With those places I wanted it to be perfectly decorated within a week of move in.  I used a lot of decor items that I have collected throughout the years.  In this place though looking at them all together it just feels so college and not cohesive at all.

So making this apartment a true home is teaching me about faith.  Specifically the fruits of the spirit: Patience and Self Control. But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law. - Galatians 5:22-23 

Truly good things don't happen over night.  I may have to sit on a beach chair for now.  Some items might not have perfectly organized homes yet.  My walls may be a little bit bare.  My feet might be cold on the bare floor in the bathroom.  But when I practice patience and a little bit of self control with my spending - I will be able to save up for the things that I dream will be in this space.  

Just like with our faith.  We might not get answers from prayers right away.  When we practice patience and self control - we trust that following Jesus is going to be so so worth it in the end.  

So little by little, I will continue to do the work in my apartment and in my life to stay true to this path that is laid before me.  

How is your every day life teaching you faith lessons today?

 

School's Out for Summer!

It is finally summertime for me, well aside from workdays and lots of random training days through the summer.  School will officially not have students in the building until August.  I have been trying to reflect and process on the end of the school year for this post, yet, I can't seem to find the words.

This school year has been a year of many firsts for me.  This school year was my first full year as a school counselor [I was hired mid year last year and was doing my internship for grad school simultaneously] I had so many trials and learning experiences throughout the year.

This job is rewarding and exhausting all at the same time.  When I was a teacher I was just plain tired.  I could talk all day about my opinions on teaching, how it's the hardest job and teachers don't get what they deserve in so many aspects but that could be a whole series of other blog posts.  Being a counselor means you have to be even more adaptable and emotionally available to whatever might come your way.  A lot of people still have no idea what my job entails.  A few pet peeves of mine: calling me a guidance counselor and questioning why elementary age kids might even need mental health support.  Oh if you only knew...

I can honestly say that I am right where I am supposed to be. I have so many goals and ideas swimming in my head of how to improve upon the school counseling program for next year.  As I sit back and reflect on this past year I have learned a few things.

1.  Self care NEEDS to be a priority.
2.  Kids matter.
3.  Being fully present and listening to someone can be life changing.
4.  The kids who need love the most show it in the most inappropriate ways.  
5.  Building relationships takes time but keep trying and reaching out. Relationship is the foundation for success and change. 
6.  School culture is unlike anything else.  
7.  Be an advocate for doing what is right for kids. 
8.  No two days look the same - even if your calendar might plan for it to seem that way. 
9.  Kiddos can't help where they come from, it's not their fault, and it's not our responsibility to blame.  We need to teach it all - social skills, behavior, manners, AND math, reading, science, etc. with patience and love. 
10.  Being kind will take you more places than you know. 

To all you teachers and school employees out there; I hope you have a happy and healthy summer! What have you learned this school year? 

It's Been Two Years

I love reflecting on life.  My favorite past time is taking pictures so I can look back through them and cherish the memories of those moments captured in time.  I have tons of scrapbooks taking up space in my hall closet full of smiles, adventures, and bad hair days haha.

We don't really take photos and craft a cute scrapbook about the tough stuff in life.  Those are the days where the camera is collecting dust on the shelf.  Tears are typically shed.  Prayers are uttered in quiet rooms for some relief.

It's been two years exactly [as of yesterday] that I had a pretty scary situation.  I haven't really shared my story or my thoughts on it besides conversations with close friends, but I felt like it was time to reflect on how that moment changed the course of my life.

On April fools day, two years ago, I woke up with the most intense pain ever.  I ran through all sorts of scary thoughts in my head wondering what the heck was wrong with me.  I called my mom in tears on the bathroom floor hoping for the pain to pass and it never did.  Then I started texting and calling all of my grad school friends - I needed a ride to the ER. asap. Something just wasn't right in my body. After a day in the ER, feeling terrified undergoing tests and ultrasounds but no one really saying anything to me.  I could just read on the doctors and technicians faces that whatever was going on was unusual.  I was so scared because I truly had no idea and neither did they.  I ended up getting discharged with an appointment to see an ob/ gyn the next day.

My doctor was very kind and walked me through everything.  She said I had a dermoid cyst on my uterus that was very large and she wanted to operate as soon as possible.  We scheduled the surgery - me wide eyed - wondering how something so big could just be hanging out inside me with out me knowing.  My parents made arrangements to come stay with me the next week and we got a friend to take care of my dog while I was recovering and then I just waited for the big day.

The day of surgery is a blur.  Anesthesia and pain meds will do that to you.  Apparently, I sent my sister some very flattering snap chat selfies that she took screenshots of.  I guarantee those will make an appearance at a very opportune moment for humiliation purposes.

I do remember my doctor coming in and checking on me. She explained that when they made the cut the doctors realized that I didn't have a dermoid cyst, I had a fibroid tumor that was way larger than originally anticipated.  They had to extend my incision to ensure they could take the whole thing out.  This was only supposed to be an out patient surgery but because of the unexpected fibroid inside of me I had to stay overnight.

The fibroid was benign, praise God, but it still made a huge impact on my life.  I am left with a reminder of the fear, anxiety, and unknown every single day since I have a 5 inch almost c-section like scar on my stomach.  My recovery was hard.  The week before I was in the ER I had just run a race with a bunch of friends.  Now, I was being told not to work out and take it easy.  I could barely walk to classes.  I had to take a month off of work as a server.

Moments like these aren't in the scrapbooks.  They are burned into our brain remembering every feeling, every thought, every moment.  I resolved to always be brave.  To take risks.  To live my life to the fullest. To do things that make my heart happy way more often.  I made a commitment to be even healthier and take care of my body.  The human body is an incredible thing and we only get one of them.  I am proud to say that I was able to recover and run my first half marathon by the end of that summer.  What an incredible emotional experience that was, knowing that months earlier I was in the hospital, but my body was able to run 13.1 miles in the mountains.

Sometimes I am struck by the fear of asking myself - what if it happens again?  Then I remember how blessed I have been in the past 2 years.  All of the things I have accomplished.  The relationships with people I love that have only gotten deeper and stronger as a result.  I am so thankful that God teaches me little lessons every day about how amazing this life truly is.  My tough moment isn't in a scrapbook, it doesn't have to be, I carry the scar with me, but I learn from it every single day.

What has been a pivotal moment in your history? 

27 Laps Around the Sun

 Sunglasses|Necklace|Dress[Similar]|Booties|Bag|Fitbit

Today is my 27th birthday.  I was reflecting this morning in my journal on what I thought 27 would be like.  When we are young 27 seems so old and so wise.  Yet, as I sit here at my kitchen table attempting to get caught up on big girl things like budgeting, cleaning, and organizing I feel like I have no idea what I am doing.

Maybe that's what life is though.  Learning little lessons along the way and just taking it one day at a time, one year at a time.  I know that I am learning so much about myself and who I want to be in this world. Even in one year I have grown so much as a person.  For the little lessons I have learned I am so incredibly grateful.

I can't help but practice gratitude on this sunny morning.  I am so grateful for the opportunity to live this life another year.  I am grateful for friends who have been showering me with birthday wishes already this morning.  I am grateful for a chance to celebrate with the people I love tonight.  I am grateful to be redeemed by my loving and forgiving savior, daily.  I am such a lucky girl.

This year will be a wonderful year.  I can feel it.  Dreams and goals are flowing through my planner.  Passions are igniting my creativity.  Friend dates are being planned.  Yoga classes will be attended.  Even more lessons will be learned.  Journaling and devotionals will change me every day. Healthy me is a priority.  Financial goals are being met.  And most importantly life is being filled with wonder, being brave, and adventure.

Now I'm off to spend a day doing the things I love with the people I love and I wouldn't have it any other way.

Happy Birthday to Me! 

Social Media Free Sabbath

Yesterday I did something that NEVER happens.  I left my phone on my nightstand and didn't look at it all day.  It wasn't really a conscious choice I made at the beginning but then once I realized later on during the day that I hadn't looked at my phone all day I decided to keep it going.

Sometimes our soul needs respite and same with our minds. Social media and I have a love / hate relationship.  I love connecting with friends via this technology and even meeting new people I would never have the chance to meet in real life via instagram or this blog.  Yet, at the same time it feels like such a chore.  Hence the love / hate.

When I put the phone down and told myself I didn't actually have to browse through all my social media channels just to see if I missed something I was more productive, present, and able to actually rest.  We went to church in the morning.  Then over brunch Mike and I had a wonderful conversation about the homily and what we learned.  We really delved deep and shared our hearts.  I realized that when I am constantly checking my phone or thinking about checking my phone I am not fully listening or engaged.  I am there but my mind seems to do thirty things at once and social media influences that.

It was very nice to really spend the rest of my day being productive and reflective of what I learned that morning in church.  I got some good quality time with my bible and journal, thus fueling my heart and promoting a restful sabbath.

I don't know if this is something I will make a habit.  It seemed that when I most needed it this little social media break happened for me.  I am so grateful for the simple moments that I gained by losing / leaving my phone away from me for the day.

What do you accomplish or learn by going social media free?