Summer Time Transition

Well, it's finally June, the month I look forward to all year long.  But the transition from frenzied May with graduation, field trips, longer days, the relishing of spring, etc. to a slower, calmer month, is HARD.  It takes a good 2 weeks to really get in the groove of summer around here. 

So far, we have completed many tasks.  I planted two vegetable gardens, one at my folks, and one here at our new place.  This has been great, although it has rained so much in the past few weeks, we will see if all of our plants don't just drown. 

We have also begun landscaping in front of our house to try and neaten this area up.  This summer is much more calm than last summer, when we were building a house, but for some reason, it's hard to get into the slowed down mode, where walking around barefoot in the yard aimlessly seems natural. 

So, my goal is to slow down this week.  Relax.  All of the tasks will be there when I am good and ready. 

Summer Time and The Livin' Is Easy

Finally!  Summer is here!  After a very difficult year of teaching I am feeling especially grateful for a break.  I need to rejuvenate myself this summer so that I can be productive in the fall again.  I want to reconnect with myself by doing fun things.

First, I want to READ more books.  My daughters and nieces and nephews are going to start making a list of the books we finish, and then we are going to visit Barnes and Noble at the end of the summer for a treat!  On my list right now is A Lesson Before Dying, by Ernest Gaines.  It is set in the south and is about a man awaiting execution.  So far, so good. Next up:  The Grapes of Wrath?!

Next, I want to pay attention to my HEALTH.  I am visiting my naturopath tomorrow and have a physical next week.  I have been walking and gardening.  I will add yoga and running soon.

Finally, I want to hang out with my FAMILY and FRIENDS!  I have two new nephews coming this summer and I can't wait!  We are trying to start a weekly picnic and play at Kalevala park movement and are going to try and hit the river for some swimming and water time too.  (We got there today and it was very relaxing...) Amanda and her girls and I and my girls are doing a beach day Friday.

So, even though Al's in school, we are selling our house, might start building a house, and need to install a septic system this summer, I am going to remain calm and relax.  Savor the season.

Still Not Slowing Down

So, I made my Facebook exit.  Check.  I have put in my volleyball resignation.  Check.  (I have to wait to see if they will accept it yet.)  I have been meal planning.  Check.

But.  I still feel weighed down.  I think now it's about hunkering down.  Not flitting about to every event and gathering.  AND.  Exercising.  Today is Saturday, and I have no commitments to be anywhere, so I am going to walk.  Then clean.  Then maybe ski or snowshoe?   I need to remember to nurture my body, soul, and mind.

My mantra has always been balance, but it's been escaping me lately.  I need to get back in the balanced groove.  Yoga was helping, but I haven't been for a few weeks now.  Walking was helping, but it's been cold again.  And so it goes.  I need a balanced life, but I keep giving in to the drama and yuckiness all around.  I need to clean up my act and stand my ground.

If I am going to sit and watch Downton Abbey, or let's be real here, American Idol, for an hour or two a night, my body better have earned it.  If I have raced around all day, I need to remember to slow down and read, write, relax.  To be the best me I can be.

Objective today:  Exercise and get some fresh air:)  Next up:  Get back in that sauna to detox.

Facebook Freedom!

So, I officially have stuck to my first resolution for 2015!  I deleted my Facebook account and am not looking back.  It feels great; Audrey was right.

I feel less consumed by my phone and checking people's statuses, as well as thinking about the events in my life as "status-worthy".  It's been great.

Otherwise, my simplifying has been going okay.  I need to remember to take it easy on myself when I am implementing new ideas.

My next item up is:  make a volleyball decision:  to coach or not to coach, that is the question...  I am going to set February 1st as the date that I want to have that decision finalized by.

A Simpler 2015

So, it's early December and I am already thinking about my resolutions for next year.  I am a sucker for self-improvement.

My theme is one that I have used before in my life, but I am having a hard time sticking to it.  My theme this year is once again to simplify my life.  With two lovely little girls and a dear husband, my goal is to spend as much quality time with them as possible (and also with my extended family, which really just feels more like my immediate family.)

I also am exploring food and health again.  I find this is my most passionate topic as of late.  I want to grow, buy, and cook good food.

So, here's my list of ideas for my resolutions in 2015 with the overarching goal being simplicity.

1.  Delete my Facebook account- I will talk to Audrey about this more.

2.  Resign from coaching Varsity volleyball.  It takes too much time away from my family and teaching.

3.  Spend more time planning and preserving my garden this year- I need to CAN my fruits and veggies- I will talk to Joann and the Barbs in my life about this.

4.  Possibly downgrade my smartphone to a "dumbphone."  Save money and time.

5.  Increase my monthly payment on my last undergraduate student loan.  Perhaps pay off this year?

6.  Read more books from the library to myself and my girls.

7.  Cook more meals at home.  Meal planning system- Jill gave a good idea for this.

8.  Regular saunas.  I feel my SISU return in the sauna.


I need to choose all of these things, but will decide on which ones to focus before January 1st.  I think some of the big time suckers could really help me in the other areas.  It's all about the time.  My most precious commodity.

I might do some 30 day challenges with my resolutions to see if I can get many of them to stick?

Practicing Mindfulness: My Resolution

It's a frigid New Year's day, and I am home sitting in my fluffy blue bathrobe drinking strong coffee.  I just read part of my book, after savoring my yummy rice pudding for breakfast.  My family is sleeping in the bedroom, and my dog is sleeping below my chair.  This feels good.

My New Year's resolution for this year reflects my current mindset of simplification.  I have always been a proponent of simplifying in life, but sometimes I lose sight of this.  Like Emerson and Thoreau, I would like my commitments to be limited to a few, and ones that I've chosen, not ones that have been chosen for me.  Our lives are truly frittered away by detail. 

So this year, I have one resolution:  to be more mindful.  I want to consistently be aware of myself and make smart decisions about my time and actions.  If I sit back to think and feel more deeply, I inevitably come to the same ideas about what I want and need to do for my happiness. 

So I want to be mindful.  Pay attention to myself.  Be gentle with myself.  Be happy. 

Happy New Year! 

Life Without Wheat: So Far...

So, I have eliminated wheat from my diet over the last few weeks.  I normally struggle with an upset stomach, and think that wheat may be partially to blame.  Also, when I consume wheat products, I feel very much out of control in my eating, and like I can't stop. 

I have been eating no bread and rice-based pastas and cereals.  What I've noticed is that I feel much better.  I no longer have bloating or an upset stomach feeling.  I made some gluten-free, rice-flour chocolate chip cookies tonight though, and you know what?  I still wanted to eat more than one. 

My conclusion is that I still need to limit the amount of carbs I am consuming.  I feel like the wheat is a great start, because it is everywhere in food.  It also explains why I am in love with licorice.  Wheat is very addictive, and when I start eating licorice, I can't stop.  (I wonder if there's a wheat-free licorice?) 

I will continue to not eat wheat, and will also think about eating much fewer carbs all together.  Biggest Loser weight loss to date:  3.5 pounds!  I think the elimination of wheat has helped this, too.