Bringing Myself Out of the Winter Slump

I’ve been in a slump, a funk. Not a sad slump, just a blah slump. Some of this, I think, is because I haven’t really seen my friends since New Year’s! Last year I made several plans with lots of friends and I honestly think that was such a mood booster!! Plus, here comes the broken record that is myself again, but flu season has been worse this year than last, and that’s something that obviously contributes to my daily stress and anxiety.

I don’t know, I just haven’t had any creative juices flowing lately. Can you relate? Too much on my plate everyday, but also not willing to shift things around to help clear ‘said plate’; because I don’t have anything meaty to talk about anyways? Make sense?

Even though I’m in a creative funk, and not as present on social media and this blog right now, I can assure you that I have been busy & giving 100% to therapy and other forms of mindfulness for overcoming my OCD. I have learned so many tools to use in everyday life and feel like occasionally, I should share the love with you all!

So, in the spirit of slumps, I wanted to share 4 tips for pushing forward EVEN THOUGH we may not feel as awesome as we would like or know that we can be.

1. See your friends. I have plans tomorrow night with one of my girlfriends I have known since 4th grade. It’s gonna be good for the soul. Text 5 friends today. See what they are doing. Do a little ‘friend fishing’, if you will. See if you can get something on the calendar!

2. Spend a little time working on artificially creating your own ‘sunshine’. Look up….and smile. Seriously. While you are looking up and smiling, (smiling like your life depended on it, ok…like you have a hanger in your mouth type of smile) I want you to think of a place or memory that makes you really happy, or one that always makes you feel relaxed. Spend about 15 minutes doing this. Then, write down the things that made you happy or feel relaxed and hang them on a mirror, in your office or on your fridge.

3. Try to move. Do you have kids; and do they enjoy dancing like no one is watching? Well, if you do….put those little performers and yourself to work showcasing some epic dance moves. Solo? Try to get OUTSIDE for a walk if the weather cooperates. Even just a few blocks. While walking, take several deep belly breaths, exhaling very slowly.

4. If you are strictly a spring and summer person like me, get a head start on it NOW! I’ve told my friends and family for the past two weekends I’m ‘willing spring into existance’. What I mean by this is that I’m trying to do things now that I would normally do in early spring. This helps me enjoy more outdoor time when the weather gets nicer. For example, this past weekend I cleaned my front porch off, washed down our front door, raked leaves and old moldy mulch out of our flower beds and deep cleaned my car. It felt so great to get these things done, and even greater knowing that when the weather breaks, we only have to add new mulch and add any additional decor we would like to our porch. 😍

I hope you enjoyed these suggestions and can weave them into your own schedules. This time of year is harder for me with gray skies, rain and snow. I’ve learned I kind of have to create my own kind of happy, so to speak. Oh and speaking of happy and all things sunshine, remember to take plenty of vitamin D3. 😉

Have a wonderful week and productive weekend ahead!!

Xoxo

Mary

Friday Five

I thought it would be fun to add in a fun Friday post, that just quickly lists 5 things I’m loving, excited about or looking forward to.  This could be anything really, so I hope you like it!

Without further ado….my first “Friday Five” post!

What I’m:

Loving, eating, drinking, needing, wanting, doing, singing, purchasing and using!

1.  This Uncommon James Atocha necklace!  I wear it almost everyday.  I love Kristin’s jewelry because it’s just dainty enough to look elegant, but still has the slightest bit of edge to it.

2.  This palm print halter bikini from Amazon.  Can I tell you how scared I was to buy   a swimsuit on Amazon, a week before we left on vacation?  Well, let me tell you, Amazon came through, per usual, with flying colors.  I am in love with this suit!  It has perfect coverage and fit perfectly (I ordered a medium).  The top is lined and the bottoms are super flattering, especially on my short legs! 🙂 Oh and the best part?  It’s 23.99 and right now has a 2.00 coupon attached to it as well.

3.  I am loving this Marrakesh hair styling elixir oil so much!  My stylist swears by it and I decided to give it a try.  Let’s see, it makes my hair feel incredible, it smells amazing and it’s repairing some of the breakage I had.  I had never used a hair oil before (late to the party as usual), but I don’t think I’ll ever be without this again.  I even use it on my dry hair to tame frizz.  It-can-do-all-the-things.  Get it!

 

4.  Tarte eye shadow is my favorite.  Less chemicals, more pigment. I wanted a palette with some shimmery brown shades in it and came across this adorable Tarteist Pro to Go palette and it’s basically my best friend.  We go everywhere together.  Peas and carrots, seriously!

5.  Jessica Simpson’s Frankie Flap Wallet in Ashra Floral.  Caught my eye.  Had to have it.  On sale at Nordstrom Rack.  You know how it goes.  It’s currently out of stock at Nordstrom Rack, but you can find it on Amazon!  It can double as a wristlet for a night out, or a wallet with enough room for your lipgloss!

 

Alright all!  That’s all for this week!  Drop me a message and let me know if you like the concept!  Generally when I write, I tell a 5 page story, but short pieces like this always catch my eye when I’m browsing other websites!  Have a great weekend!!

xoxoxox

Mary

Currently….

Currently–Springtastic, but almost Summer version

+Listening to: The Furious 7 soundtrack. I seriously can’t stop. Also on the playlist…some old school Fugees and SWV and the new Britney Spears/Iggy summer smash “Pretty Girls”. Yes, that’s me with my windows down (AC on to give me the wind blown hair vibe as well), aviators on, and hair down singing at the top of my lungs. Not. Even. Sorry. I’m still mad my new car doesn’t have a sunroof—I feel like I’m missing a key element of my car concert without it.

Britney Spears “Pretty Girls” video

+Eating: More like currently OVER eating. Story of my life. Something I always struggle with. Am I overweight…nope. Average—ugh, yes. If only I could find the discipline to really find the best body I know I have inside me! Being so short doesn’t help matters.  Oh wait, did that just get too real?  Oops.

+Drinking: So, I’m digging Sam Adams Rebel IPA currently. My dad actually was looking for something different and brought some home for my hubs and I to try. Winner! Of course my tried and true Stella is still a fav and diet and Bacardi wins in the mixed drink category.

On a healthy note….I’m drinking Shakeology on most days at lunch time. This helps with 2 things….sugar cravings and I don’t have to spend 9.00 on a salad from Chick Fil A for lunch anymore. I really like it and it does NOT taste like a protein shake. It is really, really good!  I am ready to change up the recipes though, so if you have any awesome ideas for the chocolate, let me know!

Buying: I have a slight obsession with a local boutique called Dottie Couture right now. www.dottiecouture.com. Sandals that are $30, necklaces that are $12, shirts that are $30? The icing on the cake is that they are amazingly cute….all things that are my jam. I’m a big fan of boutiques right now! I also have recently gone into a new boutique called Tiffany’s and picked out more than a few finds I need to go back and get.

Loving: The sunshine! Need I say more? The smell of grass, the fact that our neighborhood pool is open…which reminds me that I need to watch my annual showing of The Sandlot.  (Pool + Summer with friends + Baseball + The Beast + YaYa= The Sandlot)  Are you picking up what I’m throwing down?  Cool.

Looking forward to: A summer spent outside. Well, until the bugs come out in the evening haha; so its a good thing I have THIS awesome recipe for non toxic bug spray for the kids. A trip to Chicago and a trip to the Newport Aquarium are also on the summer agenda.

Proud of: Brayden, for all his accomplishments this year in kindergarten. Do you ever have moments when time finally slows down enough, even for a few minutes, that you just get to admire your kids and how wonderful they are? Brayden makes my heart explode when I think about how wonderful he is. He’s smart, talented, well mannered (most of the time) and genuinely cares about his family and friends. He won an award near the end of the school year recently that he had wanted all year. 8 kids out of the 29 in his class got this award for the entire year. I was so excited for him and he was so excited! After the award ceremony, we had to go shopping of course…..4 toys later we left haha.

What’s goin’ on in your world these days?

Lime Give-a-Way and what it can do for you!

When I think of spring and summer, I immediately think bright colors, fun outdoors, grilling out, sunshine and healthier food choices like fruits and veggies, homemade salsa and summer smoothies.

So, when I put my “oil hat” on, the oils that come to mind as spring and summer must haves are oils like LIME, lemon, tangerine, grapefruit, geranium and orange.

I recently ordered Lime and I love it! You can do so much with this oil, that I thought….why not share it with anyone who orders a Premium Starter Kit?

So, other than smelling great, what does Lime do? Check these suggestions out:

Hanging onto Summer

Ok all of you fall lovers. Yes, I mean YOU–with your Bath and Body Works candles burning and your brain thinking of greens, browns, mustard yellow and gray.

Fall does not officially start until September 23rd, ok. Let’s all try to savor summer just a little bit longer–after all, I didn’t talk to one person last winter who was not complaining about the 3 months of polar vortex we had. And you all realize what season comes after fall?? Just checking.

Every year, during this “limbo” time–after August 1st to September 20th, all I ever hear is “I can’t wait to get my boots out, ohhhh and sweaters, ohhhh and the pumpkin spice latte is coming back early!” Just wait, Starbucks will bring it back earlier every year. And, I’m pretty sure it will be on the menu year round before long and lose the lustre that comes with it. Remember the cinnamon dolce latte? It was only a winter special for a few years before it became a permanent member of the year long menu. Now I don’t want one because I can get one anytime I want. You see? Only in America would someone have that type of thinking.

We all do it though, seriously!

I love fall in Indiana just as much as anyone, but I realize it’s the beginning of the end of the year, when things will soon be cold, dark and dreary. Schools rush summer and start the first week of August now, but even so, I’m hanging on.

Maybe it’s just me, but it seems like summer takes forever to get here, and when it finally does show up, it’s gone again in a month. I feel like I try to pack so much into our summers and we don’t even get to accomplish half of it. For example, I still haven’t been able to take the boys to our neighborhood pool and we didn’t make it to the county fair this year either.

We did get to take an amazing beach vacation though, and had two wonderful birthday parties for our little guys, we started T-ball and now we have started soccer, Brayden rode his first ferris wheel and I had my first “fair style” corn-dog from a festival we were at (and it was heaven – big ups to deep-fried batter). Brock built the beginnings of our deck and I have tried to get to the park to walk or take evening neighborhood strolls (accompanied by Mason of course) as much as I can. I’ve hit up the local farmers market for dinners and also my parents garden as well. I’ve enjoyed my fair share of ice cream this summer and seen several summer movies. I’ve driven with the windows down jamming to Miranda Lambert on countless back roads and enjoyed coffee on my parents deck in the sunshine. Summer is my favorite and I’m not letting it go until that 4th week of September.

Step off fall, it’s not your turn yet!