Reflection of the Year

Tomorrow is New Year's Eve.  This is always a good time for me to step back and reflect on my past year.

As far as my own journey goes, I didn't have any big "AHA!" moments for the year.  No big personal discoveries or lessons learned.  It's been a slow year for that.

Something big DID happen, though!  Fiancé asked me to marry him in the sweetest way possible.  I am the luckiest person in the world to have the sweetest, most caring, most thoughtful man to want to be mine forever.  It's crazy to me to think about that!  What's even better is that we started the process of wedding planning and found our venue.  I also found my dress, which I know will be a special moment for me and my mom.

As far as things that I did...  The biggest thing that sticks out to me is the group vacation I went on with Fiancé and his friends.  We traveled to Cape Cod for a weekend and spent part of one of the days revisiting Martha's Vineyard.  It was a great time connecting with Fiances friends, and for the first time in 3 years I got into ocean water and actually swam! 

The beginning of 2015 brought snowpocalypse, and who knows if that will happen again.  So much snow, so many Monday classes missed, and lots of muscles trained to walk in snow.  Jurassic World came out and it was the first time I was so excited to see a movie that I went to see it twice.  My birthday theme was also inspired by it and I had a dinosaur birthday.  

I stepped out of my comfort zone and tried my hand at an aerial taster class with one of my besties.  I managed to do some really amazing things, like get decently off the ground by climbing up the highest on the silks.  It was a lot of fun, and after the fact was very humbling, seeing as I was very sore...

I had my third round of jury duty, with my second time being picked.  Not my favorite experience, but it led up to Nicks proposal.

I made some new friends, reconnected with old ones, and lost one or two along the way as well.  I'm becoming more aware of who I want in my life, and when I need to either cut things off or pursue a relationship further. It's nice to feel comfortable as an adult sometimes!  

It was really a good year, but I'm ready for the new one.  There are so many challenges coming my way that I am so excited to be a part of!  From wedding planning, to new competitions for dance, to traveling, to getting things in order for my life with Fiancé, it's going to be a lot to handle.  However, I am up for the challenges!  Maybe tomorrow I will discuss more of what I am aiming my goals for 2016 to be!  

Life Lists

We all see them.

"25 things you NEED to do in your 20's."

"10 things you shouldn't have in your closet."

"30 things you should have by your 30s."

I hate these headlines.  Some of them can be pretty useful.  Yes you should be considering saving for your retirement, and yes you should travel by yourself at some point, and NO you should NOT be wearing that too tight bodycon dress with cutouts in the sides and the skirt so short you can see parts no one should see at the age of 30.  But many of THOSE are common sense.  What I don't like are those lists that persecute personal likes and dislikes.  

This thought process was brought about by an article I saw online today about 10 things that "need to stop" on Instagram.  For about half of them, I was totally guilty of doing.  Obligatory latte pic?  If it's pretty looking, you bet I'm going to post it!  It's like displaying a piece of coffee art.  Someone made it, and I bet they like their work being displayed.  It's appreciation, and recognition in the beauty of something simple.  It may not be the most creative, but it's my Instagram account.

Why do people feel so entitled to judge others online?  This drives me crazy.  I can't say that I am 100% innocent of this- I am in fact human and have my faults- but what I can't wrap my head around is the idea of people feeling like they can be a critic of others' personal choices because they spend too much time on social media and think that because of this it makes them an expert. If they stepped out of social media world for just a minute, they might actually realize that judging these other people doesn't make them better or more important.  It just kind of makes them jerks.  I realize the irony here is that I'm judging them, but it's to make a point.

I don't justify my life anymore by the choices that other people make.  I'm not in a race with anyone else to win at life, and I certainly do not have the average lifestyle of someone who has the thought process to make up a list of things you should/shouldn't do/have by age x.  I'm 31, and I like my life.  I like who I am and what I do.  There is always room for improvement, and there are always lessons to be learned, but I am not going to live my life by someone else's list.  Every person is on their own journey, and experiences things at different points.  Every experience is unique to the individual.  

So here is MY list for every day when I can-

1.  Be you.

2. Be confident in being you.

3.  Enjoy it.

4. Practice kindness.

5. Be mindful.

6. Allow yourself to feel your emotions.  

7. Be silly.

8. Laugh.

9. Love with all your soul.

10.  Follow your happiness.  

I think that about sums it up.  And if you don't like that list, make your own!  

The Day After Christmas

It's funny what Christmas becomes as we get older...

I'm sitting here on the day after Christmas rifling through different emotions.  As I look back on yesterday, I am so happy.  Everyone loved their presents that I gave them.  I did not win the Christmas pickle tradition, but am happy that Chantal was victorious.  Christmas Eve Eve brought many friends to us that made me smile.  The food was delicious, and the happiness that my family got from the beautiful meal my mom put together was overwhelming.  I am, as always, blown away by the amazing gifts my friends and family thought of to give me.  And nothing beats those moments when Fiancé would look at me and pull me in for a hug or a kiss, and all I could feel in those were love and joy.  

But now it's the day after Christmas.  The lights lose a bit of their sparkle.  The apartment looks like a tornado ran through it between the craziness leading up to Christmas, and the returning back home with almost as much stuff as we left with.  There is a ton of delicious food in the house- most of which I will feel guilty for eating in the next few days.  I miss having 2 fluffy puppies always getting in my face for rubs or playtime.  There's just a general feeling that this season went by too fast, and that somehow I didn't enjoy it enough in the moment.  

The good thing is that I still have a week of vacation.  Today is jam packed with friends and stuff to do.  Tomorrow we will see Nicks family again.  There is wedding planning to do, a day of reading on the couch, and figuring out New Years Eve.  Now I'm sitting here wondering if I will get time to relax...  

The moments that made me happiest were the simple ones.  Seeing my mom's face as we sat down for dinner and how good the meal was.  My sister fist-bumping me for "winning at Christmas".  My dads smile and laugh when he opened up the game I got for him and my mother.  Nick pulling me in for a hug. Texts from my friend Jess about her narwhal slippers, and texts from my friend Billy about his Christmas.  It wasn't the big crazy moments.  It was the small simple ones.  It was the feelings of contentment, and being with the people who matter.  

So overall, I guess after writing it out,  I'm feeling extremely happy about Christmas.  There is a small lingering sadness that it's over, but otherwise I am excited to get my vacation going!  

What was your favorite part of Christmas?   

The lights and the buzz...

Last night was a great night.  

Fiancé had a work dinner/Yankee swap that I was invited to go to.  It was near his work, which also happens to be some place he and I never go through.  He had been telling me about all the Christmas lights that he sees on his way home, and he had been saying he wanted to take me through his drive home so I could see them.  Well, last night was the perfect night for it.

I love driving around to see the Christmas lights.  Fiancé and I had never done a real drive like the one last night.  We'd been to a house in Danvers before that goes crazy with their lights and decorations, and we had noticed houses on our way to and from things, but never a proper drive.  It was totally worth it.

There was one area that Fiancé likes to refer to as "the McMansions."  Basically, they are these big beautiful houses that pretty much all look alike because some developer bought a section of land and built 12 of the same home...  If you disregard the fact that they all look the same, they were quite beautiful.  Most of them were adorned with simple white lights.  One house has a beautiful window right in the middle in the front of the house that displayed a beautiful Christmas tree.  Sometimes, the simplest decorations can be the prettiest.

I love Christmas lights and decorations.  Yes, I do love the sparkly and the pretty and the glittery and the shiny...  The thing I love the most, though, are the quick glimpses you get into people's lives.

During this time of year, people tend to leave more lights on.  Whether they have candles in the windows, lights up on the house, or they are simply leaving on lights in their homes to give the outside a better view of the tree, there is more illumination.  If you look closely at certain hours of the evening, you can catch moments of a person's life.   Last night on the way to the party, I saw a woman around my own age petting her cat in the window.  She had a simple smile on her face and she looked very content.  

You get these moments that almost seem like a scene in a movie.  Families are gathered around a tree.  Friends are having parties.  Older couples are coming home with gifts to wrap for the grandkids.  These moments seem fleeting as you drive by, and they have no idea that you have caught that little moment.  To them it's their life- to you, it's a few seconds.  Yet for me, it brings an immense amount of warmth and comfort.  I enjoy seeing people happy (at least I like to imagine that all the people I see are happy), and I love the Christmasy scenes that happen this time of year.  

Last night truly put me in the Christmas spirit, and I hope that everyone finds their thing that puts them in the cheeriest of moods!!  

Books

So I know it's Friday, and that means I'm supposed to be talking about food...  But I decided I wanted to talk about something different.

To begin with, I am a bookworm.  As a kid, I would sit for hours at home getting lost in my Nancy Drew or Babysitter's Club books.  At night, I would take my book lights and when my parents thought I was sleeping, I would be reading on to "just get to the next chapter."  Inevitably that meant I would get to the next chapter and keep reading.  When I would fly through schoolwork and finish before many of my peers, I would take out books and read them.  

In my adult life, I read as much as I can.  I don't read fast by any means.  I read between 10 and 15 books a year, but if I get going, I can fly through some.  Christmas of 2013, one of my best friends got me the Harry Potter series and even in one of my busiest dance seasons, I got through the series in a few months.  

I just finished a book yesterday, and was trying to figure out which book I would read next.  I have quite a few books on my Kindle that I have yet to read, and in my bookcase, so it's not for a lack of books that is slowing my next story adventure.  I just couldn't decide which one.

So I decided to do a quick experiment.  I posted on Facebook "So...what is your favorite book of all time?"  I sat back and have been getting some great answers.

It's really interesting to see what some people are saying.  Many of my friends I can look at their answers and think "yep, that totally makes sense."  Others have surprised me.  Some, I've never even read the books, and that has been awesome, because I can add it to my winter break list.  

I have a lot of books that I've loved.  Recently, The Goldfinch by Donna Tartt has been one of my favorites that has stayed with me. I read a book a few years back called Rule of the Bone that I adored at the time.  It was by Russell Banks and was a more modern day version of Catcher in the Rye.  I want to go back and read that at some point.  Certain books mean different things when we read them at different points in our lives.  I was in the throes of the "dark years" as I like to call them, when I read it.  

The one book that I have always loved for some reason is a book that my mom found one day at the book store.  I was in high school and she just came home with it for me randomly.  The book is called Looking for Alibrandi.  I read it more than once in high school, and I read it a couple times in my adult life.  I'll probably read it again soon since its been a few years and the details have faded.  I used a passage from it for a recitation project once, and it was one of the few books to make me cry (the first was Night by Eli Weisel, another one of my top favorites).  

I appreciated how many people responded.  It's nice to know that I still have many friends who love to read, and who are willing to share their love for books. There are so many books out there, and I have so little time, that I really love being able to get suggestions.  It's nice to get a glimpse into my friends' worlds as well.  There is so much you can learn from reading a person's favorite book.  

I am very much so looking forward to be able to dive into some of my friends' favorite selections soon and figure out if I like them or not.  I plan on more than one day on my break spent wrapped in blankets, a pot of coffee at the ready, getting lost in the books and going on written adventures with my friends. 

So...what's your all time favorite book? 

Mirror Monday!

Another Mirror Monday!!  Woo hoo!

Oh man, what do I see in the mirror today?

First of all, I see excitement.  Today begins the last week of classes for 2015 at the dance studio.  What a season so far!  I love my classes, and I am really looking forward to having some fun time with my recreational kids this week.  I'm also looking forward to the less strict classes and parties with my competition kids!

I am also excited that I get a whole day off to myself tomorrow. Fiancé will be gone for work, which means Christmas lights go on all day, Christmas movies play on loop, and I get to accomplish some gift wrapping!  That is, if I don't finish my Christmas cards today...

Second, I see a need for a detox.  I have not been eating well.  It's the time of year for super delicious food, and lots of fun beverage choices.  And I clearly don't know the meaning of portion control, though I need to learn.  I haven't been running either because there's always some chance of rain, and I HATE running in the rain!!!  I just wish it would either snow or stop raining.  I can't stand this in between stuff...

Third, I see a mess... Well, I see it not in the mirror but in my apartment.  Yesterday was a fun-filled and packed day of Christmas shopping.  Per usual, my apartment also got destroyed from the mere act of it being the weekend.  So I need to get on some cleaning!

Overall, I'm going into this week with a positive attitude.  Knowing that I have tomorrow off, and then I go on a 2 week winter break on Saturday definitely helps!

What do you see in your mirror today?  

Sunday Funday- Caterer Tasting!

It's Sunday Funday!  I've had a bit of a boring week when it comes to doing "fun" things.  I did have one event that I went to that Nick and I enjoyed.

We went to a catering tasting for our wedding!  Well, technically it wasn't for our wedding specifically, but rather a group of other couples.

It was held at Misselwood, which is where Fiancé and I are getting married.  Instead of doing it in the tent, though, we had it in the actual mansion.  And it was BEAUTIFUL!  It was decorated for Christmas with a tree in the front hallway, and the lighting was just perfect.  

I was a little nervous heading in because I had woken up that morning with half my face completely clogged up from a cold or virus or infection or SOMETHING. Either way, by 6pm, I still couldn't smell anything, and I was beyond tired.  I was nervous that I perhaps might not get the full flavor of the food since I wouldn't be able to smell it, but fortunately, it didn't matter.  As we started to be served food, all the flavors came through perfectly.  

Without getting into the food, though it was AMAZING and I think we've decided on a caterer, the experience itself was unique.  The owner of the company was there, explaining the food and giving tips on how to plan a wedding.  I was particularly impressed that the chef came out to say hello.  I was even more impressed when we were told that he was a certified butcher and all the cuts of meat were cut specifically by him.  As a foodie, and someone who has worked in restaurants and a country club that catered events, I was impressed.

The couples we sat with were all very nice.  Come to find out we are all getting married in August!  One couple was even getting married the Friday before us!  One couple had brought their parents, and the parents happened to live in the same city as us.  All I had to do was mention the well-known coffee shop by our apartment, and they started gushing about it!  As terrible as I was feeling, it was nice that the mother of the future bride carries the conversation a bit.  I was also very grateful to have Fiancé by my side.  He's going to be awesome at helping me with wedding stuff (don't tell him I said that though!). It's nice to have him want to be involved and want to make the decisions with me.  

The evening ended with us tasting cakes, and then we headed out to go home.  The owner sent us off with cookies (which were DELISH!) and Fiancé and I walked away feeling super full, and super happy!  

I hope everyone had a bit of fun in their week as well!  

Just What I've Always Wanted

Song lyric Saturday!  I'm pretty sure this is only the second one I've ever managed to remember...  I'm very impressed with myself since I have a very long day ahead!  

Today's lyrics are from a winter classic- Jack Frost.  It's one of those Bass and Rankin claymation movies.  It just happens to be on while I'm typing this...  Hehe

So to set up the scene, and to explain the reasoning behind me choosing this song in particular- Jack Frost wants to be human, so Father Winter has granted him a time period to collect some human essentials.  If he does not complete his list by the end of winter, he is to remain Jack Frost forever.  This scene in particular is with the family that has taken him in.  It's Christmas, and the family, as well as the entire village, is poor, so they give each other "dream presents."  An empty box is placed on the table.  Each person gives it to another.  They open the box and imagine it as being something they've always wanted.  They take it out and play with it or try it on.  

I think this is something wonderful to think about and consider this time of year.  There are many out there who don't have the money to give each other gifts, or are able to provide what we consider a normal Christmas for their family.  Even though it is just a movie, I think it's really beautiful that these people got together and had some fun pretending so that they still had an enjoyable Christmas.  Sometimes in terrible situations, we have to remember that it's not about what we have, or even what we can physically give.  It's about being together, and enjoying experiences with those you love. 

While the song itself I guess is pretty superficial, the sentiment behind it is what I'm going for today.

Just What I've Always Wanted

Jack: You shouldn't have, you didn't

Oh my, oh my

I really don't deserve it
I think I'll cry
It's just what I always wanted
It's perfectly right
It's just what I always wanted
A Christmas delight

Everyone: It's just what he always wanted
It's perfectly right
It's just what he always wanted
A Christmas delight

Elisa: I hoped you wouldn't bother
Oh my, oh my
I'll use it every morning
I think I'll cry
It's just what I always wanted
It's perfectly right
It's just what I always wanted
A Christmas delight

Everyone: It's just what she always wanted
It's perfectly right
It's just what she always wanted
A Christmas delight

Mama: It's absolutely charming
Oh my, oh my
The coloring just suits me
I think I'll cry
It's just what I always wanted
It's perfectly right
It's just what I always wanted
A Christmas delight

Everyone: It's just what she always wanted
It's perfectly right
It's just what she always wanted
A Christmas delight

Papa: It's simply too expensive
Oh my, oh my
I'll treasure it forever
I think I'll cry
It's just what I always wanted
It's perfectly right
It's just what I always wanted
A Christmas delight

Everyone: It's just what he always wanted
It's perfectly right
It's just what he always wanted
A Christmas delight

Are there any Christmas songs from movies that particularly put you in the spirit of the holidays?  

The Gingerbread Volcanoes

It's Foodie Friday!  Huzzah!

This week's topic is moreso a bit of a story, rather than a recipe...

Let's start off by clarifying that yesterday was not my day.  Nothing monumentally disastrous happened, but a series of annoying events led to me feeling like I just didn't want continue with the day and rather fast forward to the next.  

So towards the beginning of the day, after a few annoyances happened (one incident being stabbing a hole in my kitchen faucet by accident), I decided that I would resort to something that made me feel like there was order in my world, and would take my mind off things.  I decided to make gingerbread.  I've done this annually for a few years around Christmas.  I found this great cake-y recipe that is just simply delicious.  The recipe is certainly not complicated either.  So I set out to start the baking.  All goes well, and I even decide that I'm going to make individual serving sizes instead of one big pan.  I figured I could work it with the mindset of cake vs. cupcake and deal with baking times and filling up the baking dishes in that manner.

I put all the little mini gingerbreads in the oven set on a baking pan, and I set the timer.  My mom calls in the meantime and we start having a conversation about all the annoyances of my day.  Mid-conversation, the timer goes off.  This was just meant to be a check in time anyway.  Still on the phone, I throw on an oven mit and open the oven...

Thank goodness I put a baking pan under those bad boys, because gingerbread was pouring over the sides of the dishes like hot lava down the side of a volcano.  

If you look carefully, you can see the explosion.  

All I did was stare at it for about 30 seconds, closed the oven door, and walked away.  In all my years of making the gingerbread, it had never risen to such heights, and had never cascaded over.  I told my mom what had happened and basically she giggled at it.  

Fortunately, when the gingerbread was done, I tried it, and it actually came out very well.  It's just going to be a nightmare when I eventually have to clean those dishes.  Hardened molasses-based gingerbread will be a scary ordeal to clean off...  

All in all, I can't wait to sit down with the gingerbread to have as my dessert.  I'm just really happy that I only have to scrape off the crusts from a pan, and not from the bottom of my oven!

Have you ever had a silly baking disaster?  

Oh Christmas Tree...

Ok I'm BACK!  I kind of let this go the wayside from Thanksgiving onward.  It's a busy time of year for the dance studio as we approach our "winter break."  Basically that means we are scrambling to finish dances, clean the ones we've already choreographed, take time to try on costumes that have come in, keep the rec kids interested and involved, and try to remain calm as the Christmas crazies kick in.  There are extra rehearsals, more time spent listening to music for recitals, and making sure everything is set and we're all in good places before we have 2 weeks off.  Add in my personal life of Christmasy events, Christmas shopping, Christmas cards, a minor cold, trying to keep the apartment from looking like a tornado has ripped through it, and keeping Nick and I fed with healthier options than take out, my life has been a little busy!  

I am back now, though, and I'm hoping to keep up better with this, particularly since I figured out how to write an entry from my phone!  Yay technology!  

So, it's Throwback Thursday!  Yay!  What keeps popping up on my Facebook is Christmas trees, and in my "On This Day" section, various Christmas trees of yore keep popping up as well.  So I'm going to share one of my FAVORITE tree pictures.  

This is from when I lived with my darling  Cj.  That is my lovely little tree.  Hanging from the star is Jack Skellington (which was Cj's idea, and I now try to do every year). Behind the tree is David Tenant.  No, not the real one, though, that would be amazing. It's a cardboard cut out of him as the tenth doctor in Doctor Who.  Wrapped around him is a sparkly sash that Cj had procured on a trip to Vega.  One of us put the Santa hat on him.  Whether it was me, Cj or Fiancé, I cannot recall.  That was probably one of my favorite years decorating the tree.  I know I had come home from work and began pulling out the decorations.  I believe eggnog was involved, Christmas music, and lots of laughter.  I also have a strong memory of being on the floor by the tree as Cj read through a book I got my sister that was all about different ailments and what deadly disease it could be (it'd be funnier and less horrifying if you knew my sister the hypochondriac).  I don't remember specifically if this memory was on the same day as the decorating, but it might have been.  

The thing of it is, this is one of my favorite trees because of the love and laughter that went with it.  Not to say that I don't have that now, but there was something about that time period in that apartment. It was really special and something that I will always treasure. 

So...I'm hoping to stay on top of all this in a better fashion, and the blog will begin to breathe life again.  Hopefully someone will eventually read this!  

What was your favorite Christmas tree memory? 

Mirror Monday

It's Mirror Monday!  Sorry I went off grid a bit last week.  My first priority has been training for a Thanksgiving day run with my sister.  I also came down with a random bug part way through the week, and my body was rebelling a little bit.  I was fine for the weekend, though, and I am happy to be back at everything.

So what do I see in the mirror today?  Oh do I see a lot...

1.  Excitement.  I am so excited for this week.  Today is my last day of work for a week.  I get 2 whole days to prepare for Thanksgiving, and I don't think I've ever had that much time.  It will have me going into Thanksgiving stress free.  Thanksgiving itself has me excited because it's my second favorite holiday.  I get to see my family and be with them, and nothing beats Thanksgiving morning smells and the Macy's Thanksgiving Day parade.  And of course, there are the few days I have off after Thanksgiving, where I kick off Christmas...  But I won't get into that now because I'm trying really hard to stick to Thanksgiving and not get into Christmas until it's time.

2.  I see the start of my healthy lifestyle.  This past weekend rocked my efforts a bit, and this week will certainly continue to do so, but I have to remember that everything is okay in moderation, as long as at least 2 meals a day are decent!  Running and strength training has helped with that as well.

3.  THANKFULNESS.  I have not felt this thankful in a while.  Not for a lack of things to be thankful for, but because I'm usually pretty stressed this time of year.  I have the most amazing fiancé in the world by my side on a day by day basis.  I work in the most incredible field with students and fellow teachers alike that inspire me every day.  I have a roof over my head, food on the table, and clothes on my back.  I have great friends who love me, and most of all, my family who always has my back with their undying support.  I could not be a luckier girl with a greater life.  We all have our daily gripes, but if you really sit down and look at the big picture- it's a beautiful life we live.  I'm hoping to keep this feeling, and continue to pull it up as the holiday season progresses!  

What are you most thankful for?

Prayer for Paris

I am writing today from a heavy place.  

Last night, I turned on the tv and watched the faces of Parisians as they dealt with a truly vicious tragedy.  Paris was the target of a horrendous terrorist attack.  Even now as I type this, tears are welling up in my eyes.

I will refrain from talking about the details, partly because that is not what I want this blog to be about, and partly because I do not think I can handle it.  Just know that the details are something we would all rather not think about.

I am shocked.  To me, it is reminiscent of 9/11 on our home turf.  All I could think of was that this is what the rest of the world must have felt like on September 11, 2001 for the US.  It is painful, whether you are from France, USA, or any other country in the world.

Obama said it best in his statement when he called it an attack on all of humanity.  Killing innocent people just to instill fear and panic, and to push a personal agenda is one of the worst things you can do.  These terrorists are literally stripping themselves of their humanity and thoughtlessly ending lives.  It takes a true psychopath to be able to do that.  

My biggest concern is that in light of this disaster, there have been people immediately using this attack to back their own agendas.  Whether it is to wage a World War on ISIS, or to say things like "I told you so" when it comes to Syria.  WHY?!?!?!  Over 100 people just died.  Thousands are not safe, and who knows how many supporters of the terrorist group are still in France?  The lack of humanity in the world is astounding.  Have some heart.  Think of the victims.  Just because you are not there does not mean that this will not affect you.  We very well could be next.  I have the news on now, and ISIS is claiming responsibility, and there's rumor of them saying it is just the beginning.  Open your hearts.

As this unfolded last night, I cried.  My heart just broke.  But how LUCKY I am.  As I cried my Fiancé wrapped his arms around me and held me tight.  One of my best friends was texting with me about the details.  I have a roof over my head, food on my table, and a loving family.  Perhaps I cannot understand these attacks because of the fact that I am so blessed.  I cannot understand that kind of hatred.  I cannot understand that kind of violence.

The thing that we need to remember now is to LOVE.  We have been in France's position, and we know what it feels like. Our hearts need to open to the universe and we need to practice kindness.  When something like this happens, ripples go out in the universe.  Cracks begin to form in the bubble that we think we have.  This could all be gone in a second, so why waste life trying to point blame or feel hate?  

Do not fear these attackers.  That is what they want.  Feel bad for them.  Pity them.  They do not feel love, and that is such a sad thing.  They cannot comprehend what we know as a normal life.  It is pitiful and pathetic that they decide to use their own hate and sadness to fuel such a terrible cause.  

I also hope that everyone knows about Beirut where there were 2 suicide bombings just a day before Paris.  Our world needs a band aide right now.  And that bandaide is love.  

The Red Cup Debate

So maybe I'm a little late to the game here when it comes to the topic, but seriously with the Starbucks red cups?

Apparently there's all this hoopla over the new red cups that Starbucks put out for the holidays.  I haven't read a great deal on it, mostly because it annoys the heck out of me.  I have a read a few headlines, though.  Here's my opinion on it.

First of all, yes it's a little early for them to be coming out with the red cups, but it's no different than the mall putting up their giant Christmas tree for all to see this week, or the Christmas decorations that were put out before Halloween was even celebrated.

Second, what is with everyone getting SO SENSITIVE this year?  Yes, there are things that tick people off, and yes some of it is valid, and yes there is totally a right to free speech.  HOWEVER, I feel like in the past couple of years, a few people get overly sensitive about a topic, and suddenly the media is sensationalizing it all.  In this case- THEY ARE CUPS PEOPLE.

Thirdly, there's this crusade about the aspect of Starbucks being against Christmas, because they took off everything that would be Christmasy.  I have conflicting views a bit on this.  I think it was initially a smart business decision- everyone is getting so upitty over EVERYTHING these days, particularly the fight of "include all holidays" vs. "christmas".  A simple red cup gives a nod to Christmas, but doesn't hit anyone over the head with the proverbial Christmas frying pan.  Then again, as far as I know, the majority of the US is Christian, or at least celebrates Christmas in a seasonal giving sense.  So why not just stick with Christmas?  I love Christmas.  I don't get offended when someone wishes me Merry Christmas.  I also wouldn't be offended if someone wished me a Happy Hanukkah, Kwanza, Festivus, or Solstice.  They are wishing me something HAPPY.  It would cost Starbucks a fortune to try to make everyone happy.  It doesn't make sense to make cups for everyone's holidays, and it doesn't make sense to have to ask each individual who comes into a Starbucks which cup they would like for their holiday.  As someone who has worked in the service industry, that would set things back a significant amount when it comes to long lines.  So Starbucks went with the majority.  I would love the people who are on this crusade to try and run Starbucks for a day.  I would LOVE to see how quickly they run it into the ground.

At the end of the day, it's a matter of perspective.  Is a red seasonal cup going to make or break the entire projectory of your life at the end of the day?  No?  Then let's find something that's a little more worthwhile to talk about.  Find a better cause to get behind.

Are you upset about the red cups?

Tip Tuesday!

Today's Tip Tuesday- feet!

My biggest thing when I'm looking at dancer's (besides posture/alignment) is feet.  I love beautiful feet.  Pointed toes are a thing of beauty.  A dancer must have strength and flexibility in their feet in order to be able to use them correctly.

In order to achieve gorgeous lines in your feet, my first and biggest suggestion is take ballet.  It's where you will learn how to use your feet.  There is so much in ballet that requires you to use every part of the foot- from the ankle to the tips of your toes- that it will be hard to forget about them.

Exercises with therabands also help a great deal in the strengthening of the ankle.  There are some great ones on YouTube, and on many dance sites.

Do you take ballet?  Have your feet gotten stronger?

Balanced Inspiration

Hello friends!  It's Mirror Monday again!

Today when I look in the mirror, I see a little spark.  I don't want to say it's motivation, because I'm not determined to do amazing things this week. There's a part of me that is accepting that I can't do it all this week.  I have to remember that I don't necessarily need to do every single thing on my to do list.  If I don't get it done, life will go on.  But there is some inspiration.

There's also a part of me, though, that really wants to be accomplished this week, even if it is at my own pace. Parent Watch Week is next week, which means that this week is all about making sure my kids are ready for it.  I need to stay focused on my goals in my comp classes, too.   I just returned from a 2 mile run (inspired by my sister to do a Thanksgiving Day run in the morning since she couldn't find any races), and I have so much healthy food in my fridge that it's crazy.  

Part of this inspiration is coming from the fact that I've felt lazy lately.  My laziness is prompting bad habits, and I don't want to feel bad anymore.  It's amazing how when I eat better and exercise, I look better and I feel better.  When I'm lazy, I feel like I just look terrible.  I look tired, I feel tired, and there's no motivation to do anything.  If I keep myself on a good track for at least a week, I can get into better habits.  This blog is very much so like that.  The more of a habit I make writing in here, the more likely I am to keep up with it.  I almost even made it a full week of writing last week- I just missed yesterday.  I'm blaming Fiance for that one- I told him to remind me, and he never did...  

I'm kidding.  It's 100% my fault for not remembering.

On that note, I have much more to get done, and I think it's about time I started to get my next goal of the day done!  

How have you been feeling lately?  Lazy?  Motivated?  Comment below!

Song Lyric Saturday!

This is the first time I've managed to remember to do a song lyric Saturday!

The song I'm doing today is very upbeat and fun.  I love this song because it describes my life- I feel better when I'm dancing!  The song is "Better When I'm Dancing" by Meghan Trainor.  It's on the soundtrack for the new Peanuts movie!


"Better When I'm Dancing"

Don't think about it
Just move your body
Listen to the music
Sing, oh, ey, oh
Just move those left feet
Go ahead, get crazy
Anyone can do it
Sing, oh, ey, oh

Show the world you've got that fire
Feel the rhythm getting louder
Show the room what you can do
Prove to them you got the moves
I don't know about you,

I feel better when I'm dancing, yeah, yeah
Better when I'm dancing, yeah, yeah
And we can do this together
I bet you feel better when you're dancing, yeah, yeah

When you finally let go
And you slay that solo
Cause you listen to the music
Sing, oh, ey, oh
'Cause you're confident, babe
And you make your hips sway
We knew that you could do it
Sing, oh, ey, oh

Show the world you've got that fire
Feel the rhythm getting louder
Show the room what you can do
Prove to them you got the moves
I don't know about you,

But I feel better when I'm dancing, yeah, yeah
Better when I'm dancing, yeah, yeah
And we can do this together
I bet you feel better when you're dancing, yeah, yeah

I feel better when I'm dancing
I'm better when I'm dancing, aye, oh ey oh

Feel better when I'm dancing, yeah yeah
Better when I'm dancing, yeah yeah,
Don't you know
We can do this together
Bet you feel better when you're dancing, yeah, yeah

(you got the moves, babe)

I feel better when I'm dancing
I'm better when I'm dancing
Feel better when I'm, yeah, yeah

Stuffed Acorn Squash

It's another Foodie Friday!

Well, only the 2nd that I've written, but hey, the second starts the ball rolling!

It's been another week of unexciting food adventures.  I cooked some homemade mac and cheese and chicken on Sunday, and I made so much that Fiance and I were eating the leftovers until Wednesday evening.  Last night we went out to one of our comfort spots for dinner.  So I think I might talk about something I made towards the beginning of last week.

My stuffed acorn squash!

Originally, it started out as a completely different dinner.  I was feeling lazy in the midst of having a busy schedule, so one night I just decided to cut up some chicken breasts, throw them in a crockpot with some apple cider, a dash of apple cider vinegar (it brings out the sweetness in the apple cider), and some spices, and just let it cook.  Let me tell you- it came out so delicious.  We ate it with kale and rice, I think?

But then I had been looking at recipes that included acorn squash.  Most of them involved stuffing them with sausage, but I thought- "hey, I have all this chicken.  Why not stuff the squash with that instead?"  So I cut up some celery, red onion, apple, and chopped some pecans.  I added some sweetened dried cranberries, and sauteed them up with the chicken.  I had already preheated my oven, cut my squash in half and scooped out the seeds.  The squash was in the oven baking.

After 20 mins, I removed the squash, and with some brown rice that I had made earlier, and the chicken mix, I stuffed the squash.  I drizzled with a little olive oil (though I bet butter would've been tastier.  Making that note for next time), and let it bake in the oven for 15 mins.

All I had to do after that was put it on the plate.  I sadly do not have pictures because I was so excited to eat it that the thought didn't cross my mind before I dug in.  Fiance had looked at me digging in and had asked "Do you want to take a picture of mine?"  I promptly told him it was too good and I was too hungry to take the time!  Oops!

This recipe was so easy, and I don't really use measurements anymore when I cook, unless I am following a very complicated and/or specific recipe.  It's become easier for me to do this as I've gotten older.  Years of cooking on my own, and in more recent years- cooking for me and Fiance- have made my general cooking senses become pretty accurate.  Not to mention, I come from a long line of good cooks!

What's been your latest cooking adventure?

Throwback Thursday

It's my first Throwback Thursday!  Finally I have remembered!

So this one is a pretty special picture.

Summer at Dance Olympus.  Crazy Dance Kids!

As you can see, there are a lot of people in this, and we're all young with a lot of make up on...  That's because this was a picture from a dance competition/convention that we all attended.  What's most special about this picture is that it's a combination of levels.  My sister is to my left, and to my right was a fellow dancer who was a year or two older than I am.  There are so many different faces that everyone is having, but the overall feel is happiness, and that's what dance has brought to my life since I started.  

This was also a special year, because I believe this is from the summer that our dance "Manhunt" won top score, my sister and I got top score junior duo, I nailed the audition class and received a scholarship for the next year at the convention, and I made their coveted "VIP", which was the title for the honor of assisting teachers across the country.  I never did go on the VIP tour, but the honor alone was incredible.  I remember for the audition class going into the hotel gym with my teacher and practicing my turns for the combination we had to do.  I also remember the massive bruises I gave myself on my knees for dropping to the floor.  

I attended Dance Olympus for about 4 or 5 summers, and I have some truly amazing memories from it.  It was a time to bond with my dance peers, get some extra dance time in, and often times it was the only vacation we had.  It's also where the joke "THE OTHER SIDE" was started, which will pretty much mean nothing to most people who read this...  But I will always have those memories.  

And I still love every single one of these people in this picture, even if I don't talk to most of them anymore  <3

First Comes Thanksgiving...

It's November!  October/Halloween is over, and that means moving on to the next holiday...

NO!  NO!  I DID NOT MEAN CHRISTMAS!  

This has been bugging me for years now.  It seems as though as soon as the Halloween candy goes on sale, Santa's little elves start decorating the department stores...

I'm not a grinch.  I'm all for Christmas.  Don't get me wrong.  I LOVE Christmas.  I am a self-proclaimed Christmas elf, and anyone who knows me knows that I go all out.  I insist on having a tree every year (even if it's a little Charlie Brown-ish), I decorate the apartment, I dress up, I attend as many holiday events as possible, and if I'm listening to music- it's of the Christmas variety.  However, none of this begins until THE DAY AFTER THANKSGIVING.

Ok, so maybe I listen to Christmas music a little earlier, and maybe I start planning a little earlier as well, but when it comes to the actual celebration, Thanksgiving comes first.

I grew up in a house where Thanksgiving was important.  It came with its own unique set of traditions.  There is nothing- NOTHING- more special than waking up on Thanksgiving morning to the smell of the turkey that my mother has woken up at 5am for just to put in the oven.  My dad is always up by the time I'm up, and he's got the paper out with his morning coffee.  No matter what the temperature, there's always a fire in the fireplace.  The dogs are always running around (if they hadn't been the ones to pounce on me and wake me up).  My sister is usually the last to get up, and by 9am, Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade is on tv. Even in the 4 years I was in marching band, and had to get up extra early to go to the Thanksgiving football games to perform (memories of frozen fingers on the field, and crying from the cold...yeesh!), we always had a recording of the parade so we could watch it.  

Thanksgiving is important to me, and I know it's important to other people.  It reminds us of simplicity and thankfulness.  There were people who came over from England with all the supplies they could, not fully knowing where they were going, not knowing how long it would take to get there, not knowing if they would even survive the trip (many didn't).  Those same people endured so much with NO TECHNOLOGY (as I type on a computer), only being able to rely on each other and their faith in God.  How many people do you know who are that brave?  How many of you can say that you've been through something like that?  

Life was simple.  The pilgrims used what little resources they had to live.  Thanksgiving should not be looked over by a holiday that has turned into a season of glitz and commercialism and gluttony.  Thanksgiving is the balance.  It is there to remind us of what we have, before we start giving for the sake of giving, and receiving.  

So before you start posting on Facebook about how you can't wait for Christmas, remember that there are those of us who want to remember Thanksgiving, and celebrate the humble beginnings of this nation, and what sacrifice people made to give us what we have now.  Enjoy the fall foliage.  Read a little about the history of Thanksgiving.  Do a good deed in the name of Thanksgiving instead of Christmas.  And for goodness sake, be thankful for the present.  

Tip Tuesday

Tip Tuesday!

Today's Dance Tip- Core strength.  Get some.

Everything a dancer does is directly related to their core.  All those muscles in around the center of their body helps to support everything else.  The stronger the core, the more stable and controlled a dancer is.

Planks are the best choice for a strong center.  Not only does it work the abdominals, but it also works the muscles in the back and shoulders.  Pilates and yoga can work as a supplemental outlet to build core strength as well.

I love to give my students difficult core workouts.  If they tell that they're sore the next day, it makes me happy knowing that I made them work!

And that's your tip for the day!

Mirror Monday

Another Mirror Monday!

It seems as though after Tuesday, I forget that this blog exists, or I become too busy.  This weekend may have been a bit of an exception with Halloween being on Saturday, and since that was a big hullabaloo, Fiance and I spent yesterday sitting on the couch catching up on shows and eating bad food.  I lost track of things a bit.

Ok, so here goes..  Mirror Monday.  Today I see fogginess.  I always feel a little lost after a big holiday.  While some don't consider Halloween anything major, I love it, and I live in Salem, MA.  If you don't at least go downtown for a little bit, you're missing out!  This Halloween was no exception.  So after the big holiday, I'm feeling a little lost.  The excitement is over, and now it's back to business.

I have a million things to do.  The apartment is a mess, work is busy, and there's all that wedding planning that I put aside.  I'm thinking ahead to Thanksgiving (that being said, just wait for Wild Card Wednesday!), and it just feels like there's so much going on socially.  I'm motivated to get done everything that I need to, but I feel like there's so much to do that I get distracted by all that needs to be done, rather than making goals and plans.  All of the things that I need to do become this static, this white noise, this FOG that seems to swirl around my head in a haze.  I feel like today I'm trying to push that fog away with my bare hands, instead of taking a nice big gust of wind to it and getting it out of here.  I know I have tomorrow off to get a million things done, and I usually do accomplish a great deal on Tuesdays, but it would be nice to get a jump start on today.

Here's hoping that maybe with some water and moving around I'll be able to clear some of the fog!

Tip Tuesday!

Okay, Tip Tuesday!

I'm starting this off with dance tips, but I'm considering just opening it up to general life tips, since I'm pretty sure most people who read this will be non-dancers...

First tip ever!

Start with a positive attitude.  If you walk into a class (or a job, or a social interaction, or anything really) with a sour presence, you will receive what you give.  Whether it's a teacher you don't like, a problem with a fellow classmate, or a general dislike for the class- if you go into the classroom thinking it won't be a great day, then it won't be, because you've already made up your mind. Open up that mind of yours and walk in with the attitude that you will make it great.  Facing whatever it is that bothers you about the class is a great accomplishment in itself, and will leave you feeling great.

Find something good about the class and remember that.  Keep it with you.  Did the teacher tell you that you did a nice job on a turn?  Did a classmate you don't usually talk to smile at you?  Did you nail a step that you'd been having trouble with?  Any of these small moments can turn the class around if you just find that one thing that made it great.

A positive attitude is the best thing that you can bring to the classroom.  It will change the way your teacher looks at you, it will change the way your classmates look at you, and it will change the way you look at the classroom.

Have you had a class that you dreaded going to?  Did something change that?  Is this happening to you now?  If you try a positive attitude, let me know if the comments below!

Mirror Monday Motivation

At some point, I will have an entry for every week...  In the meantime, I'm still getting the hang of setting time aside every day to write a little bit, even it is only for a short blurb.

So it's Mirror Monday again!

Today when I look in the mirror, I see motivation.  I think this time of the year is just a big ball of stress for me, regardless of what is going on.  I haven't seen any of my family members in over a month, and friends have been here and there on the weekends when we have time. I allowed myself to sleep in on Sunday and spent most of the day trying to reset.  Wouldn't it be great if there was just a hard reset button and you could wake up feeling ready to begin?

Well, I feel as though my motivation has come from yesterday's reset.  Even after waking up 3 or 4 different times during the night and not being able to fall asleep due to external noises, I feel like I'm ready to get things done.  That is a very good thing, since this is a busy week.  I'm ready for the challenge of stepping up my game teaching in class, and attempting to really push things forward in my own life.  I've laid off the wedding planning a little bit due to general life getting in the way, but I need to get back on that, and finalize a bunch of things before none of the vendors are left.  Food planning for the week is always a source of feeling organized that I love and I need to get on top of that as well for the week.

On that note, I should probably go get some more organizational aspects done.  My kitchen is in major need of cleaning, and I will feel very unhappy if that doesn't get done today!

What do you see in your mirror today?

Foodie Friday

It's my first Foodie Friday!  Wahoo!

I didn't have any super exciting dishes to try this week, so instead I will tell you about how I have fixed my hatred for breakfast.

Let me start by saying that I love planning out meals for the week.  I typically cook up a bunch of chicken one night, and then throughout the week I cook different sides and sauces to go along with it.  For my lunches, I prefer to make a big pot of soup, and it can typically last me for a week.  I don't do that with breakfast (who wants to reheat eggs?).

Breakfast has always been an issue for me.  I don't like eating breakfast, aside from the occasional brunch, or a bagel as a treat on a really long, busy day ahead.  I'm not a morning person, and I'm lazy until coffee has set in.  I could be pretty happy drinking coffee and a glass of hot water with lemon for the rest of my days.  However, I'm very active.  I walk to work 4 days a week, I've been adding at home strength training to my days, and I teach dance all afternoon/evening.  With all that, I SHOULD be having breakfast.

In my browsing through Pinterest, I recently came upon an idea about making smoothies.  I can deal with smoothies, but it's such a pain to make them every day and have to wash out the hulking blender we have. That's why when I saw a pin about freezing a batch of smoothies in ice cube trays, I knew I had to try it.

I've been on this path for about 2 weeks now. Every few days I make a big batch of smoothie and put it in the freezer.  I pop a few out the night before, and let them defrost in my smoothie cup overnight.  In the morning, all I have to do is take the cup out of the fridge and it's ready!

This past week I actually tried using a mix with my typically smoothie.  The brand was Vega.  It actually had a lot of ingredients that I recognized.  The only thing is that it was SO thick!  It made my already decent smoothie pretty gross, and it would stick to the side of the cup, which caused me to have to scoop it off with a spoon.  Not my favorite.  I'll try the other 2 packets I got eventually and try to thin out the mix, but I will see.

The smoothie recipe I just made-

A large handful of baby spinach
3 small-ish apples peeled and cut
a lot of frozen blueberries
milk
vanilla spice tea
3 large spoonfuls of plain greek yogurt
a couple spoonfuls of shredded unsweetened coconut
a few spoonfuls of ground golden flaxseed

All I did was throw it all in the blender and mix it up.  The consistency is definitely thinner this time around, but it shouldn't be too bad. I'm just happy that I am starting my days off better with delicious smoothies that actually are very good for me.  I'm hoping that it's contributing to the fact that I have managed to stay healthy and not get sick.

Will you be trying freezing smoothies?  It's not a bad idea!

#Kindness4Colleen

Normally today would be Throwback Thursday, but I think I need to take a little time to reflect.

2 years ago today something horrible happened.  In my hometown, in my old high school, a teacher was murdered in cold blood by a student.  I remember finding out, calling Nick, and just sobbing into the phone.  I wanted nothing more than to run to the high school just to make sure that everyone I knew was okay.

I have many students who were in the school that day, and are still in that school now.  There are those who have graduated and moved on, and there are those who are friends with students at the school.  This tragedy has changed them.  Perhaps they are a little less naive, perhaps a little more jaded.  Innocence was taken from some of them, and that feeling of safety that Danvers always had was rocked.  In contrast, I am proud of these students.  If only for one day a year, they remember to take something so tragic, and turn it into something good.

For every dark cloud, there is a silver lining.  There is a movement started by Colleen Ritzer's best friend called #Kindness4Colleen.  Basically, people are asked to do random acts of kindness in her honor.  I am incredibly proud of how many students are participating.  It is so tough as a teacher to watch your students go through an event like this- between the emotions, the confusion, the pain.  To watch them rise above that and do good in the world is an amazing thing.

I only hope that these students inspire the adults in their lives to act with kindness as well.  I find myself on certain days getting caught up in unnecessary stress, and then perhaps not acting as kindly as I could.   However, I have preached for a long time to my students about practicing kindness in my classroom, and I hope that resonates with some of them.

Stand up.  Practice Kindness.  Carry love in your heart.  There is so much good in the world if you look for it, and I hope my students are reminded of that every day.

Adventures at the Haunted Farm

I missed Tip Tuesday...

I'm off to a great start, eh?

I promise there was a good reason, though.  I took the opportunity of having a day off to decompress.  I literally watched 3 Halloween movies in a row, and stayed in my pajamas until 4pm.  Granted, I did get up and organize laundry, cook dinner, make a grocery list, and went food shopping, but the majority of the day was spent in the recognition that I just needed a break.

So today is Wild Card Wednesday!  Today's topic?  Adventure in the Connors Farm Haunted Farm!

Two years ago, I found a Groupon for a haunted corn maze at a farm in the town I grew up in.  I figured, why not?  So fiance and I headed out with his best friend.  And boy did we have a blast!

Last year we missed out on the festivities.  We planned on going, but unfortunately between our schedules and the rain, it didn't work out.  This year we were determined to go again.  This time we fortunately added another girl to the party, so I wasn't the only one screaming.

In getting VIP tickets, we got to surpass the looooooooong line in which people were waiting.  We stepped up to the area where we were to begin the adventure.  Already there was a scary costumed person splattered with "blood" and what seemed to be entrails in his hands.

I will try not to give a lot away in case you readers decide to go.  I will tell you that it started with my least favorite thing- clowns.  Now, when I went 2 years ago, the scariest thing by far was the haunted woods with the clowns.  I remember one particular clown with arm extensions that came galloping towards us that in turn made me collapse into a freaked out fit.  I remember the boys grabbing my arms and gently guiding me forward to get away from that part.

Well, that clown was back, except this time, he started out the whole thing.  We were greeted by that clown.  I'm pretty sure I shouted "Are you kidding?!?!?  This is how it starts?"  That definitely prompted Mr. Clown to come back to us after we completed a certain part of the maze.

The scariest part this year to me was this hulking mass of a dude.  He was extremely tall and intimidating.  He banged on the wall behind him and started screaming and jumping.  As I started to pass him, he got his face right on my shoulder by my ear (without making physical contact of course) and whispered "You smell delicious."  I was done.  I just kept yelling at fiance "I'm not looking back!  I'm not looking back!"

My only complaint was how they spaced out the groups.  There was a larger group in front of us, and an even larger group behind us.  Technically, our foursome took on another couple.  They were cute and nice, and we didn't mind.  It was the large group of teenage boys behind us that I really didn't care for.  They obviously didn't listen to the people who explain things at the beginning.  You're not supposed to run, but a couple of times I heard their screams and their feet pounding.  Fiance and I were in the front of our own group, and when we started to catch up with the group in front of us, we decided to hold back so that we could actually get the scares and give the actors time to reset to be able to give us the scares.  The large group of boys behind us just started yelling at us that we needed to go on through, and made a couple of rude comments.  We debated letting them go ahead of us, but that meant more time spent waiting, and who was to say that the next group wouldn't catch up from that?  So we stuck it out.  The problem with that was that the actors doing the scares assumed we were one large group, and unfortunately throughout the woods, most of the scares went to the boys because they were in the middle of this seemingly massive group.  We spent a bit of time without any scares because the teens were the targets. I wish they had someone out like the first year we went- in the clown woods the first year a woman stopped us at a certain part to more evenly space out the parties.  It would've been beneficial to have that again this year.

I was happy when the maze ended.  My heart was racing, and my throat was raw from screaming.  We got apple cider at the farm, and it definitely helped.  I was ready for bed afterwards, and promptly went home to sleep.

Overall, though, there were plenty of scares and frights!  It took us a decent amount of time to get through the maze, and the make up and acting is always on point.  Most parts of the scenery were amazing as well.  I would say all, but there was one vague scene I remember seeing that was clearly just plastic Halloween dead body decorations thrown in and around a container (a bathtub maybe?  I was not fully paying attention to the scene.  I was terrified of the next scare).  If I thought we had time, I would definitely go again.  I will be back for next year's, though!

Interested in going?  Hysteria! at Connors Farm

Mirror Monday!

So here we go!

This is my first Mirror Monday, where I look in the mirror and tell you what I see.  Then I tell you how I think I can build on that, or turn it around.  

Today I see exhaustion.  I see the remnants of stress and not sleeping.  Last week was a little rough.  I feel as though I let some work stuff get to me more than it should, and I pretty much feel like I didn't stop moving.  Even the weekend was busy with work, friends, and things to do.  

October is always a very busy month for me.  There's always a fun fall activity to do and friends start to realize that they haven't seen me for a while so they start to plan things.  I love being able to see my friends, but this is also the season in teaching when things start to pick up as well in various aspects.  It winds up feeling like I don't stop.  

Normally this would be fine, but for the past 2 Octobers, this also happens to be around the time that I stop sleeping.  I don't know if it's habit from years of working in the restaurant industry where I don't sleep.  I don't know if it's from the weather.  I also don't know if it's from my neighbors being more active at later hours.  Either way, I get less sleep than I would like.  Even if I go to bed at an earlier hour, I wake up at various points throughout the night.

So seeing all this, the best I can do is take care of my body.  My skin is currently riddled with a stress breakout, so I need to drink more water and eat better.  I need to lay off the bad food, and stick to what I know will nourish my body rather than cave in to a craving.  I need to sleep when I can, and spend my time wisely during the day.  Workouts will help with those lovely endorphins, and hopefully I can remain grounded. 

I think the biggest thing I need to remember this week is not to be too hard on myself.  I get frustrated when I get stuck on something with work, and I need to just remember to let things go.  I need to let things roll off my shoulders and breathe.  My brain usually does not like to turn off, so this is the time that I need to find ways to let my brain shut off.   I am lucky to have an amazing fiance whose hugs immediately relieve stress from my shoulders, and his sweet words are almost always a reminder of why I can't wait to call him my husband.  

Grounded.  That is my word for the week.  

A New Approach For Me

So blogging is interesting.  I've tried a few times to do this blogging thing, but each time I try I get too personal, or I lose focus and have a bunch of entries that have nothing to do with anything.  In hopes of finally maybe making this a bit more successful,  I'm setting it up so that each day of the week is a theme. 

Mirror Monday- When I talk about what I see when I look at myself in the mirror, and how I think I could change it or build up from it.

Taco Tuesday-  Just kidding.  It'll be Tip Tuesday, where those interested in my lovely world of dance will get a tip on how to do various different things.

Wild Card Wednesday- This will be anything and everything.  A random post if you will.  

Throwback Thursday- This is very popular across the internet.  I'll [learn how to] post a picture from my past and tell you what exactly is going on in it.

 

Foodie Friday- I'll talk about food in some way or another.

Song Lyrics Saturday-  I'll list the lyrics of a song I'm feelin, or a song that is very special to my life.

Sunday Funday- I'll describe a fun adventure I had during the week. 

Hopefully this will keep me on track!  I'll start tomorrow and I'll even maybe start posting it on Facebook!