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Archive for March, 2018

Today marks the end of the first quarter of 2018. I have decided to review this year in quarters to evaluate my progress with my 18 for 2018 Happiness Project. RE-ENERGIZE is my theme for this year, and I am off to a terrific start. I am gearing up for a lifestyle change (health, fitness, overall well-being). I am blogging more. The school year is nearly over bringing about more change. Events have been scheduled with family and friends. All in an effort to add more joy and happiness to my life which in turn will re-energize me.

Of my 18 items on my 18 for 2018 list, I have completed five of them:

  • #2 Figure out Instagram.
  • #7 Interact with a sloth.
  • #8 Buy Andrew a reasonably priced and reliable used car.
  • #14 Watch Stranger Things.
  • #17 Keep track of my time.

Of my 18 items on my 18 for 2018 list, I am currently working on two of them that will be completed by the end of December:

  • #4 Lose 18 pounds.
  • #5 Blog at least once per month.

Counting today’s post, I have blogged 12 times already this year. I published five posts in January, four posts in February, and three posts in March. Impressive! As for losing 18 pounds, my progress is much slower. However, I know I will get there.

In Other News:

Andrew-airportYesterday morning, my hubby and I brought Andrew to the airport, so he could embark on his journey to Ireland, Wales, and London. I will not see my baby again until April 7th. It will be an unusual week being home alone with just my fur babies. I guess it will give me a taste of what it will be like when Andrew goes off to college.

On Monday, I will start Jackie Warner’s 2-Week Jump Start. I have created a form that I will be using as my food journal for those two weeks. It will be easier for me to record the foods that I will be adding to my existing diet. After the two weeks are completed, I will no longer need to add them to my diet because they will be incorporated as part of my meal choices. If anyone is interested in this form, please email me, and I’ll be happy to send you a copy.

Today is a gorgeous day! Thankfully, I will be spending it outside with my parents, my hubby, and my mother-in-law. My hubby is boiling crawfish. YUM! And, as an extra happiness boost, my momma is spending the weekend with me. I hope you have joyful plans for the Easter weekend, dear reader. Happiness!

“Every time you tear a leaf off a calendar, you present a new place for new ideas and progress.” ~ Charles Kettering 

 

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BottlebrushI realize that I am probably one of the last humans on the planet that waited so long to watch Stranger Things. In my defense, I do not have much time to watch television, and there are few shows that I watch alone in real time or with Andrew. He is just as busy during the school year as I am, so coordinating our schedules to watch a couple of hours of television together can be difficult. However, we manage to squeeze in some time here and there for our favorite shows. Andrew and I had finished watching Parks and Recreation during Mardi Gras break, so we decided to start watching Stranger Things. Many of my friends, family, acquaintances, and even some of my students encouraged me to watch it since they thought it would be a show that I would really enjoy. Boy, were they right. Stranger Things is SUPER awesome! I’m obsessed with it. I absolutely LOVE that it takes place in the 1980s. The show is basically about a group of geeky kids who meet an unusual girl with special abilities around the same time that one of their friends vanishes into a mysterious place that is home to a disturbing creature. It is like the X-Files meets the Goonies. The seasons are not very long, so we blew through both of them within a couple of weeks. Unfortunately, the next season does not come out until 2019. Alas, Andrew and I will just have to watch Beyond Stranger Things which delves into the secrets of the Stranger Things universe, specifically Season 2 and re-watch the two seasons prior to Season 3 premiering next year.

In other news…spring has sprung! I have been enjoying the extended daylight in the evenings. Unfortunately,  I only walked on Monday during the first week. I did much better this past week by walking on Monday, Tuesday, and Thursday, and I will walk this afternoon. I’m walking between 30-35 minutes while listening to a podcast.

I started reading Part 2: “This Is How You Eat to Get Hot and Healthy” in Jackie Warner’s book. I read the chapter “Add to Lose” which basically explains the fat-burning foods that need to be added to your existing diet without changing it, supplementing your diet to maximize results, and subtracting foods that cause sensitivities. This chapter is a 2-Week Jump Start to Warner’s program. Therefore, it looks like I will be jump starting on the Monday after Easter along with starting my food journal.

On 19 March (Monday), I started Oprah and Deepak’s Shedding the Weight Meditation. It has been a wonderful way to end my day. It definitely relaxes me.

Only four days, dear reader, until I start Easter break and drop Andrew off at the airport for his adventure to Ireland, Wales, and London. How I wish I could fit in his suitcase! While he is away, I plan to spend time with family and friends, read, meditate, exercise, and organize my scrapbooking materials for my annual girls’ scrapbooking weekend at the end of May. Have a peaceful week while striving to make some area of your life better. Happiness!

“Making each moment count positively is all that life demands from you.”               ~ Edmond Mbiaka

 

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Daylight Saving Time is FINALLY here!MC900432635[1] Three weeks ago I assigned myself some action steps for improving my health that I wanted to complete by today. Unfortunately, I did not complete them all. I have been working quite a bit at school and helping Andrew get ready for his upcoming trip to Ireland. Instead of admonishing myself, I am praising myself for the steps that I did accomplish (week 1). After all, I do have until the end of the year to complete this goal.

I reread Part 1: “This is Why You’re Fat” in Jackie Warner’s This is Why You’re Fat (And How to Get Thin Forever). This section of the book basically explains the three hormones that make you thin, the four hormones that make you fat, balancing your hormones naturally, outsmarting your cravings, sugar overload and weight gain, sugar addiction, hidden sugars, detoxifying your liver, thyroid and metabolism, and avoiding adrenal burnout. Sadly, I am a sugar addict, and I am abusing my body with eating unhealthily and not exercising regularly.

I increased my water intake. In three weeks, I drank a lemonade (Taco Bell) and two mocha lattes (PJ’s/BAM). Otherwise, I drank only water or hot green tea with pomegranate.  I do limit my tea consumption to two cups per day (12 ounce cups) mixed with a little honey.

I weighed myself this afternoon instead of this morning because I forgot that today was the day. I weighed in at 157 pounds which is a three pound increase from my last weigh-in on 12 February 2018. I refuse to fret. This means I need to weigh at least 139 pounds by the end of 2018. Of course, more is BETTER in this situation.

Realistically, I know that I will not start my food journal until the Monday after Easter. I am off of work, so this week will be a perfect week to begin the journal. However, I do need to read Part 2 and Part 3 of Jackie Warner’s book in order to buy the healthy foods I will be implementing in my diet and to create an exercise schedule. Tomorrow, I start walking in the evenings after dinner and will begin keeping an exercise log, as well.

On 19 March 2018, I will again participate in Oprah and Deepak’s Shedding the Weight Meditation. It is a free 21-Day Meditation. I thoroughly enjoy their meditation series. I am thrilled that the Chopra Center is repeating this one. What perfect timing since I am focusing on my health and wanting to shed some weight!

Dear reader, I am getting excited about this leg of the 2018 journey. There is so much to gain from eating clean, exercising regularly, getting enough sleep, and incorporating meditation in your life. If you want to join the free meditation series, click on the link above to register. Enjoy your upcoming week and be proactive with your own goals for this year. Happiness!

“Life is a great asset we must all endeavor to acquire, keep and daily maintain it well with all due diligence, for without life, all other assets have no real meaning to our lives.” ~ Ernest Agyemang Yeboah

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