Joys In My Life

BTW, if yesterday's post seemed very frivolous considering COVID-19, that's OK.  I've really needed some escapism from the endless bad news and things not getting better.  That said, my family, is not going out of the house to do our part to help our country and our world recover from this pandemic.  I pray daily for my family, friends and all others that are required to work daily as they are considered essential ... health care workers, grocery store employees and truckers that are making it possible for the rest of us to remain home and only go out for emergency supplies. I'm glad I had yesterday's escapism, as today was probably the hardest day since this started.  Our 5th grade boys are doing more school work today than they've done since they've been home.  The past two weeks was practice exercises to keep them from losing knowledge.  Starting today, they are learning new work and trying to stay on track with the lessons that were originally plan...

Staying home during this Coronavirus, I've had a lot of time to think and watch stuff on Netflix, Amazon Prime Video and research on the Internet.  I turned 49 this year.  Being in my thirties or forties never bothered me.  But I'm looking at 50 a year from now and I want to work even more to set myself up for a long, enjoyable life. I know genetically, I won the lottery on looking younger than I am, but I want to know what I can do to maximize those lottery earnings. I watched the Goop Lab episode on Netflix yesterday about aging and it was really interesting and provoked a lot of thoughts.  Some of these episodes are not my cup of tea - magic mushrooms and cold-therapy, not really my thing.  I'm petrified of drugs and I hate to be cold more than anything!  This episode on aging was right up my alley.... In the beginning of the episode, they asked the three ladies (Gwyneth was one of them) what scared them about aging.  I thought about that for ...

I can't believe it's been almost a year since I've last posted.  There is so much to say, but up until now, I've had very little time!  With COVID-19 having me working from home, slowing down my husband's looking for a new job, Phoebe home from college, and the boys home from school, all we have is time! We are looking to make the best of our time here at home, as we are lucky to have what we need to stay at home (food, water, wi-fi, movies) and all of our family is healthy.  This week, the boys were working off a checklist of things to do for schoolwork, they had a piano lesson using FaceTime, and I started exercising on our elliptical most mornings and getting dressed for my day.  I'm trying really hard not to lounge around in leggings and work out clothes!  I even put on a little makeup every day, at least to not scare myself in the mirror or look totally awful on Zoom calls with work. We're definitely making good food in this house.  With Tom bein...

The more I work on my personal development, the more I realize I need to stop listening to and changing the negative things I tell myself in my head.  I'm also noticing the older I get the more the negative things I hold as beliefs about myself are not true.  This reinforces that I should second guess the other negative beliefs I hold inside ... maybe those are not true either.  Here are a few things I've realized are not true: I need help to put air in my car tires - This was one of the first things I learned as my husband had to move to Colorado for work. I did this at the Wawa up the street where the machine will stop and beep when your tires are at the right pressure.  I also learned and committed to memory that the pressure you want your tires at is inside your gas cap, something I have to open at least once a week.  This was something that was super easy to learn to do and had me zipping along the roads in a few minutes without the anxiety...

I finished watching the first season of Tidying Up with Marie Kondo and I loved it!  I think I was finally able to understand the concepts in her book, by seeing it all in a video format.  I started re-listening to the audio book over the weekend while I was doing the weekly cleaning and it really started to speak to me and things I needed to hear.  Here are the top things I've learned about the process I need to go through: I do not want my daughter's cast offs.  Those are items that are not going to spark joy for me!  I am the mom that when my daughter purges stuff from her room, that I go through her bags and look for things I want.  I have sweaters from my daughter in with my clothes that I thought I would wear, but never do.  I still like her old sweatpants.  She got rid of them as they were too small in the leg, but my legs are shorter than hers. I do not want to sell anything that I am purging.  That is poor thinking. I can take my...

Boys after piano recital yesterday morning. They are getting so big!!! Phoebe and I had a great time yesterday cleaning out the boys toy room.  We involved the boys in the parts that we thought were important for them, like cleaning through stuffed animals.  However, their toys in bins needed to be sorted through as some was junk (old McDonalds toys) and others just needed to put together - Playmobile castles vs. Legos.  They did help make some major decisions of toys they've outgrown - a Cars car track for preschool age children.  We did come out with about 6 bags of trash.  Thank goodness the trash went to the curb last night, as the bin was overflowing.  I think the only thing we didn't do very well was thanking some of the items that were put in the trash for the service they did to us.  I'm sure they did entertain the boys a bit before they were put to the side and piled up. I am taking the things I was going to donate to Goodwill to the basem...

Phoebe and I started watching Tidying Up with Marie Kondo last night.  I think this is finally a reality TV show I can love!  What I believe it's inspiring me is how she's getting the whole family involved. I see now that is something I need to work on more with the kids - teaching them tidying up, so it's not something just Mommy does. I have the perfect projects for us to start with - the boys' closets, drawers and playroom.  The playroom is also the guest room and right now, no guests can stay in there.  There is a bed in there that is covered in toys.  There is also a desk that matches their bedroom furniture in the other room that is in the same state (covered with toys).  I'd like to clean out their toys with them involved in every step  and decide what ones they will not play with anymore that can be given away or sold.  I'd like to repaint the room, get some guest room furniture (bed to put the mattress on, bedside table and one dres...

The holidays are over and the decorations are put away.  Life is back to work and school and this is our first three day weekend after the holidays.  It's a Saturday morning, I'm missing my husband, and I'm ready to tackle our life that is not quite living up to our expectations these days.  I've decided to pull up my big girl panties today and get started on making our life the dream life we've always wanted.  I'm pulling out my bullet journal and using this weekend to take charge of our life.  By the time Tom is home for good I want things to be the way we've always wanted them. What do I need to work on: Our house is not setup the way I'd like it to be.  I can't wait to get hardwood floors and want projects not to be half finished.  You know when you're putting your house on the market and you finish all those projects to make it look good to sell?  I want our house like that now while we have time to enjoy it! Phoebe is leaving for...

Not the proverbial "Man" that wants to keep us down, but my man.  I've been pretty quiet about it on social media, but Tom had to move to Boulder, Colorado for work and I stayed behind with the three kids.  He had to move because his company decided they wanted to move certain central roles in the organization to corporate headquarters there.  He's been super lucky for about 14 years he's been working from home for the same company.  I guess paybacks are a bitch.  We decided not to move the whole family as our daughter is a senior in high school at an amazing school that is giving her two years of college level (AP) Calculus, she's already had AP Chemistry last year and has two AP Physics classes this year. She is applying to schools for engineering and has a bright future ahead of her with law school when she's done with her undergraduate work.  One might ask why not find another job locally... did I mention we have a daughter going off to college an...

It takes regular doses of content to stay motivated.  I don't think I'm the only one, but I can get so bogged down with the mundane:  work, bills, the to do list; I forget how powerful I can be.  Places I go for motivation can be podcasts (I'm an active podcast listener.  Will have a whole post on favorite podcasts soon!), books or websites.  When it comes to books, I've been using Libby by Overdrive and my library card to borrow books for free.  It really feeds my frugal spirit to be able to drop my Kindle Unlimited subscription as the electronic books from the library/Libby make popular available.  I just might need to put a hold on some books I want to read and practice some patience.  Here's a run down of some of my favorite motivation content and why it motivates me: GaryVaynerchuck - Instagram and Podcasts  - I love Gary!  He really knows how to cut through the bull and tell it like it is.  We're going to die and it...

I took this week off from my corporate job and we're kind of laying low and getting caught up on some things.  I'm feeling real progress, but today I'm going to kick it into high gear and make it an Anti-Procrastination Day.  I've been keeping it busy and getting through tasks that need to be done.  Last week I had car maintenance done on one of the cars, balanced the checkbook and we picked up Phoebe from JFK airport as she came back from Amsterdam for a field hockey camp.  She had a great time!!! Monday we went to Wildwood and Cape May for the day with the kids and that was a lot of fun!!!  We enjoyed the water park in Wildwood with the boys, Phoebe and her boyfriend.  She's been friends/seeing the same person for two years now and he's leaving for college the end of the month.  That is a whole post in itself. Tommy enjoyed all the slides at the water park that the big kids like.  He's a confident swimmer and he doesn't get nervous ...

I'm going to have a lot to write about over the upcoming months.  I'm undertaking a massive initiative to get organized.  Over the past 18 years, I've fought infertility and won with three kids, went to graduate school, my husband went to graduate school, we bought a house in a great school district and we've managed our life as a family with two parents working outside the home.  Let's just say we've created a big mess! I am now deciding that in order to take control of our lives, I need to organize everything.  I haven't finished reading the book "The One Thing", but I get the concept and my one thing is getting organized.  Our finances are a mess.  We are carrying a lot of debt and I can't take it anymore. My pantry is a mess. The kids closets are a mess.  My husband's closet and drawers are a mess - mine were cleaned out recently and it's been liberating and saves me so much time! The basement is a mess.  My brain is a very ve...

I've been a little bad on my diet beta test plan over the weekend, eating bread and drinking wine.  I'm ready for a hard do-over and get myself ready to try my first supported fast. Over the weekend while I was doing some much needed weeding, I was listening to podcasts, especially The Chalene Show, and one in particular about working on your habits.  Right now I have two habits to work on - not drinking a glass of wine in the evening after the kids go to bed and exercising daily.  I'm going to use the replace tactic for the wine and swap it for herbal tea or ginger-turmeric latte .  On the exercise, I need to keep to simple workouts like PiYo on Beachbody On Demand and remind myself how good I feel when I workout.  Today my nutrition was as follows: Waking - coffee, black Morning - intermittent fasting, drinking lots of water, until almost 11AM when I had my chocolate vegan Shakeology with unsweetened almond milk and coconut butter Lunch - salad with...

  Wow!  I will tell you this is life changing stuff!  I've been wanting to give an update to everyone as I've been having great success experimenting with fixing my metabolism.  Partly why I wanted to try this program, is I already was experimenting with different things like healthy recipes, cutting out dairy and intermittent fasting and was having some results.  What I was really looking for was more guidance on protocols and why one would choose to try different protocols and why.  That is exactly what this program is.  You listen to lots of different audio programs talking about the following ideas: Healing gut health - this is one of the key ideas that we need to do in order to repair our metabolism and ensure we are receiving full nutrition from the healthy foods we eat. Eliminating inflammatory foods - inflammatory foods do not help your metabolism and gut health.  I've been avoiding dairy, gluten, alcohol, peanuts and n...

It's been a long time since I've posted monthly goals/larger to-do items. We have a lot going on this month and I really want to make sure my focus is in the right places.  I'm very excited about some of the changes going on in our life.  Things are definitely much different than where we were several years ago. Personal Finish Chalene’s Diet Beta Test – on Day 3 right now! Run or elliptical 2-3 times a week Yoga from Beachbody on Demand 3 times a week Have my passport renewed Call the doctor about the moles on my face – want them removed! Family Boys’ First Communion on May 6 th ! Phoebe goes to a friend’s Junior Prom on May 19 th , but I think we are fully ready for that already. Work with the boys on their math fact skills Get Tommy new glasses – can we use our regular eye doctor? Schedule boys’ physical and filling out form for Cub Scout camp Schedule physical therapy for Phoebe’s back (pinched nerve/mild scoliosis) Schedule her follow up ...

I'm about to embark on something amazing!  I signed up for Chalene's Diet Beta Test yesterday.  Our prep week is next week and then we officially start our new way of eating on May 1.  I can't wait to learn more about it, as I've been listening to Chalene's latest podcasts about sleep and diet.  They all make a lot of sense to me as I've been experimenting myself with intermittent fasting, what foods I'm eating and better sleep.  Sounds like this is the perfect solution for me to use her and her experts to help increase my knowledge on how to keep time from taking its toll on me. Things were getting really tough since September of last year and right before my birthday in March, I decided things had to change.  I've been doing a lot of soul searching, experimenting with different ideas and trying to keep an open mind.  I'll try to update here more often with information on what things I'm trying, recipes I'm cooking and our menu plans an...

Wow!  Have I ever been busy and there is so much to provide updates on.  But I'll start with what book has been rocking my world and that's the Miracle Morning by Hal Elrod.  I've also been doing a 30 Day Challenge with the support of a private Facebook group of an amazing group of women.  I will continue doing daily Miracle Mornings through the remainder of the year as I've been learning so much about myself. The concept is relatively simple.  In order to be successful, you need to put yourself in the right frame of mind for the day and ensure you are spending time improving yourself daily.  Hal put together for himself and others several practices in a plan of daily Life S.A.V.E.R.S., which stands for Silence (meditation), Affirmations, Visualization, Exercise, Reading (personal development books) and Scribing (journaling).  Don't think that this synopsis will let you not read this book.  I strongly recommend it.  Recommendations o...

I'm still out here.  I'm currently working on getting my morning setup from " The Miracle Morning ".  One of the items is journaling.  I was starting to put it in a notebook, but then realized why should I do that when I have my long neglected blog. Things at my corporate job are going well.  I've put a lot of time and energy into it and people are seeming to be noticing.  Just yesterday, my manager got some great feedback from someone before I even got off the phone with them.  Glad to see my hard work is paying off on that front. I really want to spend more time on my Beachbody business though.  I'm in a Dash to Diamond group and I haven't done much with it the past few days as by the end of the work day I'm exhausted and work seems to consume all my day hours.  I need to work on that balance. I think I'm also tired at the end of the day as I'm trying to get back into working out and being a better runner.  I'm running a 5K in mid-M...

Wow!  The boys are officially done Kindergarten and moving onto 1st grade next year.  I really can't believe it!  With Liam being sick this week, things have been crazy.  Tommy had his Portfolio Breakfast this past Tuesday, but only one of us could go, as one had to stay at home with Liam.  Tommy said I should go when we asked him in the morning, but then when he got home from school, he said his dad should have gone.  LOL - little guy, we wish we were both there!  He has such a different personality from Liam, whereas Liam wanted to hang with us and show us what he had done at school and point out one or two friends, Tommy introduced me to a bunch of his friends. Liam on his day, was interested in all the treats and choosing the sweet ones he wanted. Tommy couldn't be bothered with going to get a snack.  I chose some treats for him while he kept building  things at the tables in the classroom and he snacked while he kept buildi...

Let me just say, if you can't tell from this post title, how much I hate Mercury in retrograde.  According to the Farmer's Almanack, today is the last day. During this retrograde Mercury cycle, we've had:  two separate issues with Tom's car, lots of work frustration, feeling overwhelmed at both work and home, planning going awry, and to top it all off, Liam has missed the last week of school with high fevers and vomiting.  We're currently on the fourth day of fevers that only both Tylenol and ibuprofen can get down.  Both need to be taken an hour apart from each other and every six hours.  Otherwise, complete chaos ensues.  Poor kid.  When his fever is down, he wants to play and is completely bored with me trying to work from home and pushing fluids and bland food on him.  He currently loves goldfish crackers and Honest Kids juice boxes.  Normally when it comes to juice boxes, I have a rule that we need to finish a box of the same flavo...