Almost There…

My students are facing finals, and I am soooo glad that I’m not in high school anymore.  While I’m working everyday, I’m dreaming of what’s to come!

Things that I am saving for the summer:

• Organize recipes and cookbooks.  Make a binder of all the loose papers I have.
• Try to go pescatarian for an anti-inflammatory diet.  See if back and overall health improve with the changes.  Come up with lots of great new recipes.
• Buy a house.
• Move into said house.
• Study “good works” in the Bible.  Get over my anxiety about studying the Bible.
• Cook at home more.
• Make a website for my business and finalize my new business plan.
• Learn how to stick to a budget.

Things I have been doing that will help my summer be totally rocking if I can keep them up:

• Losing weight.  Legs and arms are already looking quite nice!
• Not crowding every day full with stuff to do.
• Being realistic about what I can accomplish, give, do, etc…
• Staying conscious of where our money goes.
• Praying that God will meet all of our needs even though I won’t be working as much.

What I’d like to do this summer:

• Go on a long vacation to Dawn Ranch in Sonoma and swim in the Russian River all day long while sipping lightly chilled rose as Honey chases birds.
• Not babysit every single day.

What I will actually be doing this summer:

• Celebrating 5 year of marriage!
• Going to the beach with my favorite dog as many times as possible.
• Being outside as much as possible.
• Going to Vermont for a family reunion.

She flies through the air with the greatest of…ease?

I tried something totally new on Wednesday.

Aerial yoga.  No, that’s not a photo of me, but I did that move.  It’s called “Monkey Pose.”  I actually really wish I had photos or videos of me in the class, because it would be really amusing.  Anyway, this type of yoga seemed pretty fun to me, so I decided to give it a shot.

But here’s where the story comes in.  I don’t exercise these days, not in the way most people thing of exercise.  I’m active- walking to the store when I can, daily walks with Honey, moving around all day, but anything else gives me an exercise-induced migraine.  This is how bad it is…  Last fall, I did just three gentle, stress relieving yoga postures on the floor of my living room and ended up with a killer migraine.  I’ve tried many different types of exercising, but nothing’s worked.  Recently, though, my headaches have lessened overall and I have back-up prescription drugs if they start, so I thought I’d give exercise a try again.

Bad idea.  Because I haven’t worked my core muscles much, I keep throwing out my back.  Last month, an easy hike on a familiar trail had me limping around for days.  Today, “monkey pose” and “vampire” have me gingerly moving.  It’s the “Weekend Warrior” problem.  My body just isn’t ready for what I ask it to do, like this:

Shoulder stand

As I’ve written before, I thrive on trying new things.  This is important to me, so instead of doing new activities and then being laid up for days or weeks on end, I’m going to start doing core exercises on a regular basis.  That way, I’ll be able to try whatever I’d like and only get the sore muscles that go allow with that exercise.  One little step at a time, right?

At least I won’t be walking like a monkey- just hanging like one!

Cocoon

Not Sooooo Much!

I made a pledge to myself this weekend:  I am going to take better care of myself.  The last month has been a whirlwind of taking care of everyone but me, and the migraines every day last week were the proof in the pudding.  While I love doing things for others, it shouldn’t come at such a heavy load on me, my mind, and my body.

The apathy that I talked about in my first post (click here to view) has lessened since January in most aspects of my life, but it crept back in my actions toward myself.  I was eating badly (in my terms, not in the terms of the average American), overscheduling, running myself ragged, and wearing myself down.  Boo for me!

The reality of this cycle was that I wasn’t my best for anyone, and I wasn’t even really taking care of people as well as I could.  I wasn’t saying “no” to anything that came my way, and I just wasn’t being realistic at all.  My motto, “Be Your Best; let go of the rest,” was being totally ignored.

In fact, I was taking the rest, gathering it all up in my arms, and trying to cram it into every little nook and cranny of time and mind that I could find.  Exhausting carrying all that extra load.  It had to stop.

Each day, I will do something for myself.  Most days, that will take the shape of a blog post, which I love and helps cut through the crazy.  Some days will include reading the Bible for longer than usual, soaking in a bath, relaxing with a glass of wine, reading a magazine, taking an extra long morning walk, or sitting outside with my feet planted on the ground.  In fact, I’ve already started one thing- a daily change- that I’ll tell you about later this week.

I’m sure that on some days I will fall back into old patterns, but realizing my problem will help me make the changes that are needed.  I know that some of you out there are great at self-care, so give me your tips!  What do you do to take care of yourself?