Stephany Writes

All the Jobs I’ve Had

A few weeks ago, Kate wrote this super interesting blog post detailing some of the jobs she’s had in her life. I loved it so much that I decided to steal her idea. This blog post is long, but hopefully it’s an interesting look at all of the different jobs I’ve had over the course of my life. Enjoy!

Baby-Sitter

The summer after fifth grade, my grandma decided to hire me as a baby-sitter for my twin cousins who were four and her next door neighbor’s granddaughter, who was a few years younger than me. It wasn’t baby-sitting in the real sense of the word because my grandma was always there, but she just wanted me to hang out with them and keep them out of trouble and she’d pay me. Fine by me!

Unfortunately, this arrangement didn’t last very long because, well, I kinda just wanted to be alone. I didn’t want to hang out with three kids with tons of energy every day during the summer. I wanted to read! And write silly stories! So I just stopped hanging out with them and thus, the baby-sitting money dried up.

Daycare Cleaner

When I was twelve, my brother and I helped out at the daycare where my mom worked, cleaning toys and chairs. I suspect it was my mom’s way of keeping us from spending the entire summer inside, but we got paid and it was a fun little gig! I can’t remember how long we did it, but it definitely wasn’t very long. We started washing all of the toys in the center and then moved on to washing all of the chairs with bleach. An odd little job, for sure, but I remember having the time of my life working side-by-side with my brother.

Associate at Panera Bread

I was in 10th grade when I applied for a job at Panera Bread, and I was thrilled to be hired! My brother had started working at 15 and I was feeling a little self-conscious about not having a high school job. I attended a training in Tampa and I came home bursting with all sorts of facts about Panera that I’m sure my mom was oh-so-interested to hear.

And then I started working. And it did not live up to my expectations. For one thing, I was only scheduled to work on Saturday and Sunday evenings for a couple of hours. For another, I was basically a glorified dishwasher. I simply spent my time at work cleaning off tables, washing the dishes, and making sure the coffee was always fresh. I also had to sweep and mop the entire dining room on those nights, which was not an enjoyable job in the least. Every now and then, they’d schedule me to work at the register, but I was really not good at it because I couldn’t understand their menu system. This all sounds very whiny, I know, but I was sixteen and it was essentially my first job. I am allowed to be a little whiny, ya know?

Anyway, this job didn’t last very long. Maybe only a few months, until they told me that they no longer needed me anymore. I can’t say I was upset. Nope – I was super relieved and walked out of there with a spring in my step.

Associate at Aeropostale

I worked at this short-lived job the summer after 10th grade. How short lived? One freaking day. This was such a weird situation because the store went through all this trouble to hire and train summer workers (there were around five of us in the training), but then decided they didn’t need any of us. I felt completely out of place at this job, though, so I wasn’t too mad about it.

Concessions Associate at a Movie Theater

I worked at my local movie theater the summer before I went off to college, and I loved it. I worked with a great group of young people (high schoolers and college kids) and we always had a blast, especially on Friday and Saturday nights when the movie theater was packed.

For the majority of my time at the movie theater, I worked in the concessions, which involved a lot of scooping popcorn, pouring drinks, and dealing with customers who were trying their best to earn that free movie ticket if I didn’t ask them if they wanted to try a combo. (True story.) Every now and then, I’d get to work in the box office, which was honestly my favorite because if I worked there on a slow weekday afternoon, it meant I could kick back and read a book – and get paid for it. Sounds like the perfect deal to me!

I stopped working at this job right before I left home to attend college. I thought about transferring to the movie theater near my college, but since I didn’t have a car, transportation would have been tricky. Oh, well. It was fun while it lasted!

Book Hustler at the Campus Bookstore

During my freshman year of college, I spent a few months working in the campus bookstore, in the textbooks. This was a time in my life where I was depressed and I needed something to do that wasn’t going to class or being alone in my dorm room, so I got a job working at the bookstore during their busy season (the end of fall semester/the beginning of spring semester). My first job was working in the buyback program, scanning the textbooks that students brought in and telling them how little they were going to get back. (Not the most fun job, that’s for sure.) Then, during the beginning of the spring semester, I helped students find the books they needed for their classes when they came into the bookstore, as well as packaged up books for students who placed online orders.

I really, really enjoyed this job and had a blast during the few weeks I got to work here. It got me out of my dorm room, too, which is exactly what I needed at this time. I wish it could have lasted longer, though. (I was really hoping I would be hired to work in the actual bookstore, but it wasn’t to be.)

Infant Teacher at a Daycare

The summer after my freshman year of college, I strolled into a daycare center, intent on applying to become an aftercare teacher for elementary-aged kids. At this point in my life, I was studying to become an elementary school teacher and a lot of my peers in my classes worked in these types of aftercare programs. Unfortunately, this daycare center did not have such a program, but they did have an opening for an infant teacher. I decided to apply because hey, I needed a job. I was hired.

I spent this summer working full-time with infants and it was the best birth control I could have possibly asked for. Ha. But I loved those babies so much, and still remember each of their birthdays. As an infant teacher, my days involved changing diapers, feeding them, playing with them, taking them in short strolls around the yard, and rocking them to sleep. It wasn’t a bad job, but it was also pretty boring, and I didn’t always love the teachers they placed in my room.

Once the summer was up, I needed more flexibility with my school schedule, especially once I started interning at elementary schools for my teaching degree. My boss tried to work with me, but it just became too difficult to accommodate my crazy schedule, so I had to let the job go.

Office Assistant at a Printing Company

My mom was friends with the wife of the owner of this printing company, so she got me the job as glorified office assistant for the summer after my sophomore year of college. My main job was to answer the phones, sign for packages, and do the invoices, all of which took approximately 5% of my workday. Every now and then, they would let me run a printing job, which was always fun. I wish I got to do more of that!

The printing company was tiny, as the only employees were the two owners, an older gentleman who ran the printing presses, and me. For the majority of the time, I was alone in the office. There was a TV right next to my desk, and I was told I could watch whatever I wanted, so I just tuned it so I could watch The Price is Right and sitcoms like Reba and George Lopez. They also didn’t care if I fooled around online, so honestly, I got paid to watch TV and fill out surveys on Xanga. Tough life.

“Floating” Teacher at a Daycare

Another daycare! What am I even thinking? Well, I’m thinking that I have experience in a daycare setting and I like that working in a daycare keeps my weekends free. I started this job at the beginning of 2009, which would technically be my junior year of college, but since I changed degrees, I wouldn’t end up graduating college until 2011. But anyway, I started this job and I was basically deemed a “floater,” which meant I would be placed in whatever room needed a teacher.

So, one week I might be in the infant class, the next week the two-year-old class, and the following week working with the pre-k kids. Daycare centers have a pretty crazy turnover rate with teachers (it’s a tough job!) and each class always has to maintain the proper ratio of children to teachers, so I basically just jumped into a room whenever they needed an extra pair of hands to maintain that ratio. I’d also help out with making breakfast and lunch and distributing it around to the different classrooms, and giving bathroom breaks to the teachers. (Man, once I started a “normal” job and realized I could go the bathroom whenever I wanted… my life changed.)

I worked this job all the way until I graduated college, and near the end of my schooling, I had to drop down to just working a few hours in the morning and I am so grateful that my boss was able to accommodate my schedule.

Marketing Assistant

My first post-grad job was working as a marketing assistant for a direct marketing company, a job I worked at for two years from 2011 to 2013. I was so excited to get hired so quickly out of college that I didn’t even balk at the starting salary (brace yourselves… $25,000 before taxes).

My boss managed the intense marketing campaigns for the different promotions we ran throughout the year, and she was so overwhelmed with work that she needed an assistant to help with the more mundane administrative tasks. So my job involved stuff like filing, creating promo codes for the different ads we ran, and editing ads. Gradually, I was given more and more responsibility as I grew in my position, and truly became more of a marketing data analyst than a marketing assistant. A good chunk of my workload involved data analysis.

I started looking for a new job just a year after being with this company because I wasn’t happy. One of the biggest reasons for my unhappiness was that I never really had enough work to keep me busy, so I was bored a lot. Other reasons for my unhappiness was the fact that my salary wasn’t proportional to the tasks I was doing, and I knew I’d never get the raise I deserved. But I think the biggest reason I started looking for a new job so soon after starting this one was the fact that I didn’t want to do data analysis as a full-time job. It wasn’t a passion of mine.

SEO Content Writer

And now we’ve come to the end (nearly 2,000 words later, eeks!). I started working as an SEO content writer for an Internet marketing agency in 2013 and I have loved it since day one. I spend my days writing, editing, and doing online marketing strategy. It’s everything I could want in a job, honestly. I get a few work-from-home days during the month and my weekends start at 11:30 a.m. on Fridays. I get paid a decent wage and I feel acknowledged and accepted at this company.

When I started working here, my job was simple: write SEO content. But over the past four years, the job has changed dramatically that I can barely remember a time when all I did was write all day. It’s changed because my company has developed different growth opportunities for writers and also because SEO is an ever-evolving field and we’ve had to change our practices to grow with this industry. I honestly feel that no day is ever the same, and even if the writing can sometimes be mundane, there’s something comforting about that. I welcome those mundane days because they balance out the crazy ones.

Whew! So there you have it! All of the jobs I’ve had in my life. It’s crazy to see this evolution and was really fun to put this blog post together.

Tell me some of the interesting jobs you’ve had!

What I’m Reading (4.16.18)

Hi, friends! Happy Monday. I’m less than two weeks away from my next cruise, so it’s honestly all I can think about. Is it too early to start packing? 😉

I had a good reading week, finishing two books and starting a few others over the weekend. As you’ll see in my “What I’m Reading This Week” section, I am not the type of reader who can read one book at a time and I’m especially not doing that this week as I’m listening to an audiobook, reading two nonfiction books, and reading a romance. Whew! This week and weekend will be a busy one for me, so we’ll see how much I can accomplish.

For now, let’s dive in to my reviews of what I finished last week and what I’m reading this week.

Books Finished

Title: Everybody’s Son
Author: Thrity Umrigar
Format: Paperback
Published: 2017
Rating: ★★★☆☆

I read this for my local book club, and I was really excited to read it since it came highly recommended. It started off strong, as we learn about our two main characters – Anton, a young black boy growing up in poverty, and David Coleman, a white man who has had all of the privileges in life (both in being a white man and being rich). David and his wife Delores become Anton’s foster parents while his mother is in prison, and then eventually adopt him using their privilege and power to do so. The rest of the story explores this intersection of race and privilege, as Anton grows up and becomes powerful in his own right. The premise sounds great, which is why I couldn’t wait to read it, but I just found that the writing took itself a little too seriously. It was more about exploring these big issues and less about creating a story with compelling characters. I thought the beginning was fantastic and I was convinced it was going to be an easy 5-star read, but then the plot unraveled in the middle and it never could seem to get itself together. I just didn’t see these characters as real people, and Anton in his later years especially seemed to be one-dimensional. I hate to say it like this, but it’s one of those books that I think might have been better written by somebody else. (Add to Goodreads.)

Title: The Way Home
Author: Cindy Gerard
Format: Library e-book
Published: 2013
Rating: ★★★★★

Cindy Gerard truly never lets me down when it comes to romantic suspense, but I was a little wary of this because it was a little different than her typical novels and I knew it was going to involve tough subject matter, re: the PTSD effects of a soldier being tortured for 3+ years. The heroine of this novel is Jess whose husband J.R. was killed-in-action four years ago. She’s been trying to move on with her life, and that includes falling in love with a guy named Ty. They are planning their wedding when Jess finds out that her husband is not dead, he is very much alive. And what kind of woman would she be if she abandoned her husband when he needed her the most? Ugh, talk about tugging at my heartstrings! Obviously, this is a romance novel, so I knew what was going to happen. I knew, against all odds, Jess and Ty would end up together and that even J.R. would find his own happy ending, but the process to getting there was fraught and I appreciated the push/pull dynamic that Gerard so deftly wrote. It’s a book that maybe wrapped up a little too neatly, but that’s how I like my romances, so it was A-OK to me. (Add to Goodreads.)

What I’m Reading This Week

  • Astrophysics for People in a Hurry by Neil DeGrasse Tyson – I’m reading one chapter a day in this slim volume because I think that’s all my brain can handle. But Tyson does his best to make a subject like astrophysics as accessible as he can, so I’m hanging in there so far.
  • Dreamland Burning by Jennifer Latham – This is my audiobook fiction pick for the month of April. I started it on Sunday and the audio is fantastic. It feels very movie-like in the production and it moves seamlessly through the two narrators and story lines. Excited to spend my week with this book!
  • Men We Reaped by Jesmyn Ward – I started this book over the weekend and I can already see why Jesmyn Ward is such a celebrated author. She writes so well and so vividly that I can feel her pain and heartbreak radiating through the pages. This book is going to be a tough one, but such an important one as well.
  • Make Me Want by Katee Robert – This is my romance pick for the week from one of my new favorite contemporary romance authors. This is the first book in her brand-new series and I can’t wait to dive in.

What are you reading this week?

What I Spent in Q1 of 2018

On Wednesday, I wrote a brutally honest post about my financial situation as it stands today and I’ve been thrilled by the response! It is so gratifying to know that we’re all in the same boat – just trying to implement good financial habits into our lives, no matter where we stand with our salaries.

Today, I want to get into the nitty-gritty of my discretionary spending. This year, I’m trying to do a better job of tracking my expenses in all the different categories I use. I’ll be honest and say there have been weeks when I don’t look at my bank account once and when I do finally log on, it’s with a hand over my eyes. That’s not a good feeling, not one bit, and I want to stop that. I’m committed to checking in on a daily basis so I can make sure I know exactly where I stand with my money.

So, let’s dive into how I spend my money after my bills have been paid. I’m thankful to have enough discretionary spending to meet my needs, so I don’t feel as if I’m living paycheck-to-paycheck. I’ve separated these categories into where I spent the most money in Q1 to where I spent the least. But this is a pretty accurate depiction of how I spend my money:

Travel

I like to take two trips a year – one big trip with my mom (usually a cruise) and one smaller trip with my girlfriends. This year, I’m trying to tack on a third trip, so fingers crossed I can make it work!

In Q1, I spent $1,210 on travel, which is a staggeringly large number, but it includes my cruise deposit ($1,010) and the two shore excursions we booked ($200). I really prioritize this yearly cruise with my mom and it’s something I look forward to all year. I’m happy to spend the money on it because I know we’re going to have an awesome time and fully enjoy ourselves. And that’s what I want most from my life, both personally and financially.

Eating Out

Oh, this has always been my kryptonite when it comes to budgeting. I love eating out. If I could eat out every night, I probably would. I just do not care for cooking and I’ve stopped feeling bad about that. I’ve also stopped feeling bad about my love for eating out. I want to keep it in check, of course, but I’ve also realized that it’s something I truly enjoy and I should embrace it. So I have!

I have had to rein in some of my eating out behavior, mostly due to the fact that I’m trying to lose weight and most foods at restaurants are not very waistline-friendly. Of course, one can always find healthy options, but they are never as much fun as the unhealthy options and if I’m going to treat myself to a meal out, I don’t want to stick with chicken and steamed veggies. No thanks!

In Q1, I spent $585 on eating out. This includes social dinners, lunches out, pizza delivery, and all those trips to Publix for a sub (which happens at least a few times a week). This amounts to about $50 a week and yes, it’s definitely something I need to get a better handle on, I can admit. In Q2, I want to break down my eating out budget into different categories: eating alone, eating with Mom, and eating with friends. I’d like to see what the difference is there!

Beauty

This category includes hair appointments, pedicures, massages, and eyebrow waxes. I get my hair colored every other month and cut every four months. I like to get a pedicure monthly, if I can, just because it makes my feet feel so good and the place I go isn’t very expensive ($25). I get my eyebrows waxed every other month, and I try to do one massage every quarter.

Generally, this is an area of my life where I spend a lot of money, more than most people. It’s a version of self-care for me, but I also have to be careful about my spending, which is why I didn’t do my usual pedicure in March and I skipped a massage this quarter.

In Q1, I spent $343 and the majority of that came from a really pricey hair appointment. Actually, $270 of it came from this one hair appointment and I’m still sick to my stomach about it. Apparently, balayage is really frickin expensive! I mean, the color does last much longer, but I didn’t love my color enough for the price, ha. Lesson learned! I also got two pedicures and an eyebrow wax to round out my beauty spending. All in all, a very pricey quarter one for beauty. Yikes.

Toiletries

Twice a month, I take a trip to Target to stock up on personal care items, makeup, and household items. In quarter one, I spent $230 on toiletries, so about $77 a month or $38 every visit. This is something I don’t really put in my budget – it’s part of my discretionary spending, but I also want to separate out the different types of toiletry items I have. For example, I don’t think I should include my makeup purchases in the same category as my household cleaners, you know?

In Q2, I’m going to itemize my purchases for this category so that I can get a better handle on how much money I’m spending and where I’m spending it. (For example, how much money do I spend on makeup in a given month?) I’d also like to get to a point where I’m only shopping for toiletries once a month, rather than twice a month. I think that might also cut down on how much I spend here, too!

Amazon

Oh, dearest Amazon. I have a Prime membership and I’ve been contemplating canceling it for awhile now. I’m just really not using Prime to its fullest abilities. I spent $85 in Q1 on Amazon purchases, and only placed 8 orders over the entire quarter. It just seems silly to spend $14 a month on Prime when I’m barely using it.

Books

Ooh, my newest kryptonite! I never used to spend money on books, but now I can’t stop, won’t stop. Okay, I’m not doing terrible here. I spent $125 in Q1, and this includes my $15 a month Book of the Month subscription. It’s something I try to keep in check, by only buying books through BOTM or using Thriftbooks.com, where I can get a beautiful paperback for less than $5. Oh! And I’m also susceptible to $2 ebook deals from BookBub, but I only purchase the ebook if it’s something on my Goodreads TBR, and I only allow myself two ebooks a week. Standards, I have them?

Savings

I know, I know. “Pay yourself first.” But I haven’t gotten there yet. Instead, I’m using this handy-dandy worksheet to save $1,000 this year, which will serve as my emergency fund. (Currently, my credit card is my “emergency” fund, oops.) I have $173 in my savings and I’m slowly building it up. Slow and steady.

Birthdays

My nephew turned three, I celebrated the birthday of a friend, and I put together a care package for another friend, so I spent $60 on gifts in Q1. I’m happy with this one and that I was able to put a smile on the faces of my loved ones.

So there you have it – how I’m spending my money these days! There are definitely areas of improvement, especially when it comes to eating out and beauty. But there are also a ton of categories that I’m not spending money in – like clothing, entertainment, happy hours, and stuff like that. It’s always a give and take. Do I wish I could throw more money at my savings and debts? Of course. But not at the cost of losing out on living a life that feels enjoyable to me.

What My Budget Looks Like Today

Okay, friends, settle in. I am about to get brutally honest about what my money situation looks like today. I’m talking REAL numbers about how much money I make and what my bills look like.

Why am I doing this? Because I think we need to be more honest about money and not feel ashamed to talk about our salaries and budgets. Sure, my salary may not be all that impressive to other people, but it’s fine for my needs and it allows me to support myself easily.

I was inspired to write this post after listening to an old episode of the Girl Next Door podcast (I’m slowly making my way through their back catalog of episodes) where they got real honest about their money situations, including what they make and what debt they have.

So, let’s do this!

At this moment in time, I’m 30 and I work a full-time job as a SEO content writer. I’m in my fourth year in this current position, although the position itself has grown and changed drastically over time, and each year, I’ve gotten a great raise that has put me in a fairly comfortable financial position. I also dabble in freelance writing, but I’m only working with one client who needs content every couple months or so. It actually works out really well for me because I quickly realized the freelancing side hustle was not for me. This way, I get consistent work without having to spend hours and hours hustling after it. And the money feels like a bonus. It’s never accounted for in my budget, and I usually funnel it to my debts.

So, what does my salary look like? My gross salary is around $47,000, but once I account for taxes, health insurance, and my flexible spending account that I use for healthcare costs, I’m earning around $37,000 a year. And I usually make around $3,000 a year from freelancing, although that doesn’t account for taxes, so when all is said and done, I’m earning a little under $40,000 a year.

Now let’s talk about my expenses. I’m going to break this up into a few categories: housing, debts, auto, and other. These are my fixed expenses that I have to account for with every budget I put together. (Friday, I’ll talk about discretionary spending and where my money goes after the bills are paid.)

Housing

Like most people, this is my biggest expense. One of the reasons is that I have chosen to live alone. Obviously, I could save more money and pay down my debts faster if I had a roommate, but it wasn’t worth it for me. I really, really wanted the experience of living alone, and after 18 months of it, I can say with certainty that it was the right decision. It just means that all of the housing and utilities fall on my shoulders, but it’s totally worth it for me.

Currently, I spend $825 a month to rent a one-bedroom apartment in a great location. And I’m getting a steal because most one-bedroom apartments around here are around $1,000 a month. There are certain sacrifices I’m making: my apartment is tiny (under 600 square feet with no dining area to speak of), the appliances aren’t updated, the countertops and cabinets are a gross beige color, etc. But I honestly didn’t want to pay much more than $800 and I’m really happy with the apartment and location, so I’m hoping to stay here for at least a few more years.

My other bills related to housing include utilities (water and electric), which usually run around $100 a month, sometimes a little more. I also pay $75 a month for high-speed Internet, which feels really pricey, but I literally never have issues with my Internet and it’s lightning fast, so I can’t complain too much. I don’t have cable, but pay $12 a month for Netflix.

Debts

After housing, my next biggest expense is paying off my debts. I carry three specific debts: a school loan, a car loan, and credit card debt.

My school loans total $13,409 currently and I can’t see myself paying those off for… well, a long time. I try not to think about it too much, haha. I pay the minimum balance on two of the loans and I have a third loan that’s under $500 that I’ve been very focused on paying off. In total, I pay $200 a month for my school loans. I don’t regret my student loans because they were the only way I was able to pay for college, so I try not to think of them as a burden. They just… are. I had to have them and they will be paid off one day. I refuse to feel bad about my school loans or the fact that I may be in my forties and still paying them off.

(You may be wondering why I haven’t consolidated my student loans and the truth is, I just haven’t done the research to figure out how to do this. It’s pure laziness on my part.)

My car loan is almost paid off – I have less than $900 to go. Woop! Once the car is paid off, my plan is to take the money I was spending on my car payments every month ($228) and put it into a savings account for a car down payment. I don’t want to buy another car anytime soon, but I want to have a hefty down payment saved up for when the time comes for a new car. Once I’ve saved $3,000 for my down payment, I want to start throwing that monthly payment toward my school loans. (Honestly, I’m not sure if this is the best decision because all the debt blogs say to pay off debt before saving, but I also know I’d feel more secure knowing I have a down payment saved up, should my car give out on me in a year.)

Lastly, my credit card has a $600 balance. But considering that balance was over $2,000 just a few months ago, I’m feeling rull good about this balance. So sue me.

Auto

I really, really wish I lived in a more walkable city with a dependable public transportation system, but I don’t. I have to drive everywhere. My car is old (2005) and is nearing 110,000 miles, but it’s in great shape and I’m hoping it’ll last me another few years.

My auto expenses include:

  • Car payment – $228
  • Gas – I fill up once a week for about $20
  • Auto insurance – My six-month premium is just under $900, which feels insanely expensive, but every time I quote out another auto insurance company with the same type of coverage I have, the price is about the same. (Am I over-covered? I dunno! Tips welcome.)
  • Oil changes – Around $30 every three months
  • Car registration – $30 once a year

I’ve been lucky in that my car hasn’t need too many pricey repairs. I replaced all four tires a few years ago and recently had to get my brakes replaced, but that’s it. But now that my car is getting up there in mileage and years, I know I’m going to need more frequent repairs and replacements. But so far, she’s held up well and drives just fine! (*knock on wood*)

Other

Some of my different miscellaneous bills that don’t fit into any of my bigger categories include my cell phone bill, gym membership, and Spotify Premium. My cell phone bill is around $100, but this includes my leasing agreement for my iPhone and unlimited data. I pay $35 a month for the gym and $10 for Spotify Premium, which is worth every single penny (and I’m not even much of a music person!)

I’m also part of two monthly subscription services – Book of the Month, which is $15 a month, and Sephora PLAY!, which is $10 a month.

But that’s what my expenses look like today! On Friday, I’m going to talk more about my discretionary spending and specifically where my money went (after bills) during the first quarter of the year.

Truthfully, it’s going to be damn hard to push publish on this post because it feels so incredibly vulnerable to be this honest about my financial situation today. But I’m also tired of reading personal finance posts where it feels like people have all their shit together and can put away thousands of dollars into their savings or toward their debt. That’s not my situation because I’m a single person supporting myself on my own and I don’t want to live so frugally that I miss out on the things that make me happy. And honestly, I don’t have my shit together (something you’ll definitely notice on Friday’s blog post) and that’s okay. As long as I’m willing to admit my mistakes and learn from them and try to be better, that’s all that really matters.

And, honestly, I’m proud of where I am today because life was goddamn hard when I was growing up. Financial literacy is not a thing for those of us who grow up poor and functioned in survival mode for most of their growing up years. I’ve had to learn financial literacy the hard way, which included getting into credit card debt before I even graduated from college. But I’ve taken the time to learn and grow, and I’m in a pretty damn good place today. Maybe not by a financial planner’s standards, but by my standards. And shouldn’t that be the standard that guides my life? I think so.

What I’m Reading (4.9.18)

Happy Monday, friends! Near the start of the weekend, I was worried that I might not have any books to talk about this week – at least books I’ve finished. It was a really busy week and weekend and I only grabbed reading time in snippets, like right before bed or on my lunch hour at work. But I did end up finishing two books this week even in the midst of my crazy schedule. One was a romance (and I was more apt to pick it up this week because my anxiety was all over the place and I just needed something light-hearted) and the other was an audiobook that I listened to on my commute.

Books Finished

Title: Take the Lead
Author: Alexis Daria
Format: e-book
Published: 2017
Rating: ★★★★☆

I’ve been hearing a ton of buzz in romancelandia about this novel, and since I’m trying to read more diverse and queer romance this year, I decided to pick it up as my diverse romance for April. I was nervous because I have really high standards when it comes to romances and a lot of the books that are frequently recommended in this genre just don’t do it for me. Thankfully, Take the Lead totally delivered. The novel is basically inspired by Dancing with the Stars and involves the love story of trained dancer Gina, who has just been told that she has to make it to the finals in The Dance Off or else she’s out of a job, and Stone, a reality TV star. His family has been part of the popular wilderness show Living Wild for a number of years, so he’s a macho outdoorsman who lives off-the-grid in Alaska and doesn’t know much about LA or dancing or any of that. And, of course, these two opposites attract as Gina helps Stone open up, both with his feelings and with his dancing. I was thoroughly impressed with this debut and wanted to spend all my time in their little world. (Add to Goodreads.)

Title: Born a Crime: Stories From a South African Childhood
Author: Trevor Noah
Format: Audiobook
Published: 2016
Rating: ★★★★★

If you’ve never listened to an audiobook before and don’t understand the appeal, do yourself a favor and download Trevor Noah’s memoir. I promise you: it will be completely worth the listen! The audiobook isn’t too long (just under 9 hours) and he is a fantastic narrator. He uses voices perfectly and for me, he totally captured the spirit and heart of South Africa. I didn’t know much about Trevor Noah or his life before listening. All I really know about him is that I love him on the Daily Show and his recent comedy special was amazing. And I was blown away by this memoir. It only covered his life in South Africa (I was dying to know how he ended up in America and becoming the new host of the Daily Show, but alas, that wasn’t the reason for this book), but it was everything I expected: funny and sad and heartfelt and silly and maddening. All of the emotions! Trevor Noah truly endured a lot throughout his childhood and early adulthood, and it was astounding and heartbreaking. I highly, highly, highly recommend this book and I think it’s such an important read. (Add to Goodreads.)

What I’m Reading This Week

  • Everybody’s Son by Thrity Umrigar – I didn’t really have much time for reading this week due to my busy schedule and when I did have some free time, I just wanted to read my light-hearted romance novel. Still, I managed to read 150 pages of this novel and I’m sure I’ll finish it early this week, since I don’t have much going on. It’s interesting, for sure, but also making me angry, which is why I’m less and less inclined to pick it up. (Angry in a good way…? Like, it’s bringing up emotions in me that I know the author wanted.)
  • The Way Home by Cindy Gerard – My romance pick for this week! Cindy Gerard is my absolutely favorite when it comes to romantic suspense and I’m excited to dive in this week.
  • Astrophysics for People in a Hurry by Neil Degrasse Tyson – This is my nonfiction pick off my “immediate TBR” and I’m apprehensive about it. I’m just not sure it’s going to be accessible enough for me! My plan is to go slowwwww with it, maybe just a few pages a day, and really try to understand what he’s saying. That said, I’m also not adverse to abandoning it if it’s not serving me. We’ll see!

What are you reading this week?

Yearly Goals: Quarter 1 Update

Happy Friday, friends! It’s been a doozy of a week for me… the kind of week where I realize how much I cannot hang with a busy life. I like my weeknights free and my weekends fairly plan-less, but that’s not the case for me this week. I’m just thankful that this is not the norm for me – doing it every now and then is okay, but I am not cut out for doing it long-term. Kudos to everyone who enjoys a busy life – it’s not for me.

Since we just entered the second quarter of the year on Sunday, I figured it was time to write an update on how I’m progressing with my yearly goals. I’m actually pretty happy with my progress and I think it’s due to the fact that I consistently make smaller goals to attack these larger ones I’ve set.

Let’s take a look:

  •  Lose 30 lbs

In progress. I’ve lost 8 lbs so far this year and I’m really happy with that progress, especially since I only started getting serious about eating better and exercising more near the end of February. I’m feeling good about this goal and that I’ll finally end the year weighing less than when I started it.

  • Complete the Whole30

No progress made. I’m kinda wondering if I even want to do this goal anymore, but I also think it would be a good experiment to figure out what my food sensitivities are. I’m thinking of doing this in August or September, though.

  • Cut out soda completely

In progress. I haven’t cut it out completely, but I have seriously cut down on how much soda I drink. When I made this goal, I was having at least one can of Dr. Pepper a day, but a few days a week, I was having more than that. Now I’m only drinking it 2-3 times a week and when I do drink it, it gives me an upset stomach. Hopefully with my next update, I’ll be able to say I’ve cut it out completely.

  • Buy a new couch

No progress made. I’m hoping to do this sometime in May or June. I need to sell my sectional (I love it, but it’s just way too big for my small apartment) and then I’m going to use the money made from that sale to put toward a new couch. I went to a furniture store earlier in the year to get a feel for what I could expect to pay for a new couch, and I’m just so excited to make this happen and open up my living room more.

  • Complete a yearly shopping ban where I don’t buy any new clothes

Well, I can say that I won’t be able to mark this complete, as I bought a pair of black skinny jeans to wear to work since my current ones were getting too tight. But that’s actually the only piece of clothing I’ve bought so far this year, and I’ve also donated three other pieces of clothing. So, I may not be perfect with this one, but I’m still going to do my best to not buy too many new clothes (I think it might be better for me to adopt the “one in and one out” rule rather than a complete ban).

  • Stop using plastic bags at the grocery store, Target, etc.

In progress. I’m not doing great with this goal, although I’m trying. I could do better and I really want to track how many times I use reusable bags vs plastic bags when shopping this next quarter to get an idea of how many plastic bags I use.

  • Read 100 books, including four classics

In progress. Ah, the easiest goal I ever set for myself. I’m already at 39 books (remember, I read a lot of romance. This is not 39 dense, heavy reads). I also read my first classic for the year (A Tree Grows in Brooklyn by Betty Smith) and in quarter two, I think I’m going to tackle 1984 by George Orwell.

  • Give up all dating apps and websites for the entire year

In progress. Yep! I’ve successfully spent the first quarter of 2018 without succumbing to the desire to re-download Tinder to my phone. After Dutch died, I was super lonely and suddenly had more free time than I knew what to do with, so I contemplated adding dating apps back to my phone but I knew I wasn’t in the right state of mind. And I’m still not. There are definitely some mental roadblocks that I need to work out in therapy because I feel like I’m not really in a healthy place for dating.

  • Try something new once a month (i.e., kayaking, stand-up paddleboarding, yoga, etc.)

No progress made. I forgot about this goal, but I’m recommitting myself to it in the second quarter of the year.

  • Start therapy

No progress made. In January, I sent some emails to potential therapists, but they either didn’t accept insurance or never responded back. And then Dutch died and my world collapsed and I just couldn’t deal with finding a therapist. But I know I need therapy more than ever, so I’m really hoping that I can say I did this the next time I update you guys on my yearly goals.

  • Finish my novel

In progress. I’m behind on this goal (only about 6,000 words into my novel), but I’m working toward it every week and that’s all that matters.

  • Figure out what my Enneagram type is

No progress made. I need to buy a book and get cracking on this one!

  • Travel to one new state

No progress made. This is a goal I’ll most likely complete in quarter three of 2018.

  • Exercise at least three times a week, every week in 2018

In progress. I haven’t exercised three times a week every week, but I have done it most weeks. Progress, not perfection, right?

  • Create a wedding album for my mom and stepdad

No progress made. This really shouldn’t be such a hard goal to complete, but it feels so massive that even crossing off a small step is overwhelming to me. Ahh!

Out of the 15 goals I set, I’m consciously making progress on 9 of them and I’m really happy about that! I never set yearly goals with the intention of crossing each and every one off, but just working toward something is what matters most.

Here’s what I want to focus on in quarter two:

  • Continue eating well and exercising so I can continue losing weight
  • Sell my sectional and buy a new couch
  • Keep track of how many plastic bags I use vs how many times I use reusable bags
  • Try three new things, one a month
  • Find a therapist
  • Consistently work on my novel every week, even if I only write 1,000 words – progress is progress
  • Buy a book on the Enneagram and read it cover to cover
  • Work on my mom and stepdad’s wedding album by sorting through the pictures I have and choosing the website I want to use for the photo book

Whew! That feels like a lot, but it encompasses three months and I’ll be using this as a guide as I plan out my monthly goals. I think it should set me up for a successful Q2.

How are you doing on your yearly goals?

Reading Wrap-Up | March 2018

I thought a lot about how I want to structure my monthly book report on my blog. Obviously, now that I’m writing a weekly What I’m Reading blog post, it’s almost as if I don’t even need this monthly roundup. But alas, here I am, writing a monthly reading roundup. What can I say? I love looking at my reading stats and talking about my favorite books. So here we are! This was actually really fun to pull together and I hope you enjoy.

March Reading List

In March, I read 11 books and abandoned one. Here were my favorites from this month:

  • Overall favorite: Eleanor Oliphant is Completely Fine by Gail Honeyman (review)
  • Favorite romance: Roomies by Christina Lauren (review)
  • Other favorites (all books I gave 4 or 5 stars to):
    • Holiday in the Hamptons by Sarah Morgan
    • Nobody But You by Jill Shalvis (review)
    • A Tree Grows in Brooklyn by Betty Smith (review)
    • Love Hacked by Penny Reid (review)
    • Shrill: Notes from a Loud Woman by Lindy West (review)
    • Not That I Could Tell by Jessica Strawser (review)
    • Irresistibly Yours by Lauren Layne (review)
  • Book I was lukewarm about: I Found You by Lisa Jewell (review)
  • Book I didn’t like: The Wedding Date by Jasmine Guillory (review)
  • Book I abandoned: First Women: The Grace and Power of America’s Modern First Ladies by Kate Andersen Brower

I read Eleanor Oliphant is Completely Fine for my work book club and The Wedding Date for my local book club. A Tree Grows in Brooklyn was the book I read to fulfill my “read four classics” yearly goal. All other books I read because they were on my monstrously long TBR list!

Other Book Stats

  • Number of pages read: 3,750
  • Breakdown of formats: physical copies (5), e-books (5), audiobooks (1)
  • Book that took me the longest time to read: A Tree Grows in Brooklyn (15 days)
  • Book that took me the shortest time to read: Roomies (2 days)
  • Breakdown of genres: romance (6), thrillers (2), fiction (2), and nonfiction (1)
  • Number of diverse reads: 1 (8% <– yikes!)
  • Where I sourced my books: Overdrive/library (6), Book of the Month (2), Target (2), Amazon (1)
  • How much I spent this month: $56.53

Favorite Book Quotes

“‘Because,’ explained Mary Rommely simply, ‘the child must have a valuable thing which is called imagination. The child must have a secret world in which live things that never were. It is necessary that she believe. She must start out by believing in things not of this world. Then when the world becomes too ugly for living in, the child can reach back and live in her imagination.’” – A Tree Grows in Brooklyn

“However, it is easier to mock and deride individual fat people than to fix food deserts, school lunches, corn subsidies, inadequate or nonexistent public transportation, unsafe sidewalks and parks, healthcare, mental healthcare, the minimum wage, and your own insecurities.” – Shrill

“On your wedding day, you’re choosing to love that person forever, but that’s just the beginning. You have to continue to choose them, every day. It’s not like your other options are going away – it’s up to you to turn them away. Marriage isn’t what it once was to a lot of people. And if you really want it to work, you’re not making a one-time vow – you’re committing to a lifetime of remarrying that person every day.” – Not That I Could Tell

What was the best book you read last month?

What I’m Reading (4.2.18)

Happy Monday, friends, and happy April! I am super looking forward to this month because my mom and I leave on a cruise at the end of it. Yayyyyy! We booked this cruise sometime in the fall of 2017, so to say we’ve been looking forward to it for awhile is an understatement. April is also the month I get to see my guys at Pod Save America live, and I couldn’t be more excited about that. I’m also hoping to spend some afternoons at the pool and put some real work into my novel this month.

But before all that, let’s dive into my reading life in the last week of March, shall we? It was another great week of reading for me because I finished three novels (two being romances, which I read super fast).

Books Finished

Title: Roomies
Author: Christina Lauren
Reason for reading: For fun
Published: 2017
Rating: ★★★★★

So, I need to preface this review by saying that I understand why many people are little leery of this novel, especially with the debates about DACA and immigration in the news. In a way, the plot can be seen as insensitive because the hero in this novel is an Irish immigrant whose visa expired more than four years ago. And yet, due to his whiteness, he has certain privileges that other black or brown immigrants don’t have. And, honestly, that privilege is never brought up in the novel and it can be off-putting for some people. I get that totally. But also? I loved this novel, and I just had to realize that this novel can be problematic and I can love it, too. The characters were so well-written and real. The plot moved along at the perfect pace, and the way Calvin and Holland fell in love with each other felt natural and beautiful. But I think what I liked most about this novel was that while the romance was the central figure, it was also about Holland and her process of finding herself. When the novel begins, Holland is a girl with an MFA in creative writing who wants to be a writer, but is uninspired and feels that she’s just letting life happen to her. She works at her uncle’s playhouse, selling merchandise, and she knows she’s destined for way more than that, but doesn’t know how to go out and get it. Her fears and vulnerabilities were so real and I could see a lot of myself in her. She was a really easy heroine to like and root for. And I love how she came full circle in this novel. (Add to Goodreads.)

Title: Not That I Could Tell
Author: Jessica Strawser
Reason for reading: March Book of the Month pick
Published: 2018
Rating: ★★★★☆

I wasn’t expecting to enjoy this thriller as much as I did, maybe because I’d read two lukewarm reviews of the novel that tempered my expectations. (Maybe that was a good thing?) I actually thought it was a truly well-written thriller that wasn’t too over-the-top with crazy twists and turns. And the characters were all super likable; the author didn’t fall into the trap of writing about female relationships in a negative way. Even the contentious relationships had a true-to-life feel to them. As I’ve had time to reflect on this book, I think the core of this book isn’t about the disappearance of a neighbor and her kids. It isn’t about the investigation into her disappearance or her estranged husband’s maybe-guilt. It is about these neighbors, about sisterhood, about vulnerability and opening up. It’s about motherhood and how lonely and isolating it can be. It’s about singlehood and how lonely and isolating that can be. It’s about how we need to watch out for each other and how women can come together and help each other. So, I can really see why this book was compared to Big Little Lies because that was the overarching theme to that novel, and I really think like this was a good read-alike to that book. All in all, I really, really liked this novel and I’m really glad I gave it a chance! (Add to Goodreads.)

Title: Irresistibly Yours
Author: Lauren Layne
Reason for reading: For fun!
Published: 2015
Rating: ★★★★☆

This was such a quick, fun read and one that was hard to put down because I enjoyed the characters so much. This novel is about Cole (a character who was present in some of Layne’s previous novels) who is a notorious womanizer and freelance sports writer. He’s hoping to be hired to a full-time sports writer position at the magazine he often writes for, Oxford, and thinks he’s a shoo-in because he already has a relationship with the editor-in-chief and other staff. Enter Penelope, a woman who lives and breathes sports and wants a chance to prove she has what it takes to make it in the cutthroat sport writing world (a world where there aren’t too many females leading the way). Cole and Penelope meet during a baseball game, where he’s enamored with the way she watches the game with her entire being… until he realizes she’s his competition for the job of his dreams. Guys, I loved Penelope. I loved her so damn much that I wish she was a real person because I’d like to be her best friend. It was obvious from the beginning that she wasn’t Cole’s usual “type” – she was short and skinny with no chest and had no fashion sense – but there was something about the fact that she wasn’t his usual type that drew him to her. Their love story was sweet and hopeful and made me happy sigh when I finished this book. (Add to Goodreads.)

What I’m Reading This Week

  • Everybody’s Son by Thrity Umrigar – I recommended this book to my book club as our April read, and everyone was on board, so I’m diving into it this week! By the synopsis, I know it’s going to be a really heavy read, so I’m bracing myself for it by making sure I have some romances on deck to read when I need a break from the heaviness.
  • Take the Lead by Alexis Daria – I’ve heard amazing things about this book (it’s basically like Dancing With the Stars in romance novel form), so I think I’ll start it sometime this week.
  • The Way Home by Cindy Gerard – I’ll be starting this romance after Take the Lead. Cindy Gerard is my favorite romantic suspense author, so I’m really looking forward to this one.
  • Born a Crime by Trevor Noah – I like to listen to one nonfiction and one fiction audiobook every month, so I started Trevor Noah’s memoir yesterday. I actually won a copy of his book through a Goodreads giveaway, but I wanted to listen to it on audiobook because I hear his narration is fantastic. My library didn’t have this on audiobook, so I used up my one free Audible credit to listen to it. So far, so great.

What are you reading this week?

10 Things I Loved in March

1) Getting cleared for activity by my orthopedic. In early March, I went for my final orthopedic appointment to check the status of my ankle (which I fractured the first weekend in December). I was pretty positive that the x-ray would show that the fracture had healed, but I had twinges of pain every now and then that made me a little wary, but thankfully, everything was good! My ankle was healed and I could resume normal activity (which meant I immediately registered for spin class the next day because damn, I had missed that workout). My ankle still gives me trouble from time to time, and I think it’ll always be a little tender and easy to fracture, but as long as I stay off hiking trails, I should be A-OK.

2) Trying some new breakfast restaurants. And I loved each and every one! For me, trying new restaurants can be anxiety-inducing and I think it’s due to my social anxiety, which is something I might elaborate on in a future post. But I tried some new restaurants this month, two with my mom and one with my girlfriends, and they were all so delicious. First, my mom and I went to The Brunchery in Brandon after she ran a 5k race and we loved it. Not only was the food delicious, but the service was phenomenal as it was a small, local restaurant where the entire staff worked together as one unit. So, one person brought us menus and took our drink order after we were seated. Another took our food order and brought us our food. A different person cleaned our table. Yet another one brought us the check. It was so out of the ordinary, but made for a super smooth and seamless dining experience. I can’t wait to go back!

I also went to 2nd and Second with my girlfriends, a new 24-hour diner that opened in downtown St. Pete. I got the chocolate chip French toast and then proceeded to eat all of my friend’s home fries, oops. The food was great, though, and the atmosphere so much fun.

Lastly, my mom and I tried out this cute diner in Largo called Speggtacular. The name leaves something to be desired, but we were pleasantly surprised by how good our chocolate chip pancakes were! Super light and fluffy with just the right amount of chocolate chips. And they have fun iced coffee flavors to try, so I will definitely be back.

3) Game night with my girls. For book club this month, we decided to get together for game night and it might have been one of my favorite book club meetings to date. We ordered pizza, one friend made her “famous” salad, and three of us brought dessert. So, I did not go home hungry that night, that’s for sure. And just being with all my girls and playing fun games was exactly what my heart needed.

4) Finally making progress on my novel. Over the past two weeks, I’ve written almost 4,000 words in my novel and I’m finally making some forward progress after being totally stalled for most of this year. Obviously, there wasn’t much creative writing happening in February after Dutch died, although I still met up with my friend M. on a weekly basis. I just wasn’t doing much writing. One time, I literally just spent two hours reorganizing my Google Drive. But these last two writing dates have gone so much better and the words have been flying out of my head and onto my WIP. I’m feeling inspired again and that feels awesome.

5) Instagram Story templates. I’m sure you’ve seen these fun templates all over Instagram Stories, and I’m sorry not sorry that they are my new favorite thing. I have probably 30+ saved to my phone and once a day, I just pick a couple and complete them on Instagram Stories. They’re silly, but fun, and we all need a little bit of that in our lives these days, don’t you think?

6) House-sitting for a pair of beagles. My mom’s coworker was in a pinch and needed a dog-sitter for his two beagles for one night and I was happy to help out! The dogs were all sorts of lovable and fun and it was a pretty easy “job” for a night. We went on a nice long walk and then they ate dinner and played in the backyard before coming inside to snuggle me. They also slept with me in the guest room and while I didn’t have a ton of room for my legs, ha, it was just fine because one of the beagles spooned me all night long and I didn’t realize how much I needed that. Dogs just know, it seems. I must say, though, walking two beagles is no joke. They were fast and furious with their noses to the ground the entire walk. So much different from walking a geriatric dachshund, ha!

But even as nice as it was to be around dogs, it also made me miss Dutch so, so much. It was all the little things like walking him, having something following me all around the house, all of the adoration and attention, the nighttime snuggling. I miss it so much and I just wish my buddy was here with me. Sigh. Grief is such a winding round, isn’t it?

7) Implementing a new skincare routine. I’m really lazy about washing my face, which isn’t a great thing since I don’t have perfect skin and my face actually needs a lot of help. I scrub my makeup off every day with a wipe, but actually doing the whole skincare regime thing? Nope. Inspired by this post, I decided to start implementing a morning and nighttime skincare regime to hopefully counteract some of the problems I experience (redness, oily face, breakouts, etc.) with my skin. I’m using a cleanser, toner, and moisturizer twice a day, and it feels good to take care of my face for the first time ever. Now, let’s see if I can keep it up! (Also, if you have a skincare product that you feel worked like magic for you, let me know! I’m on the hunt.)

8) Learning how to trim my own bangs. I’ve had bangs for just about three years now and most times, I stop by my salon for a quick bang trim. Usually, they don’t charge me, but I still have to tip the stylist and then there’s the hassle of making an appointment and finding time to go to the salon. I just didn’t want to do it anymore, so I invested in a bang trimming kit (although, really, all I needed was the scissors) and set to work watching all of the YouTube videos I could find to learn the proper way to trim my bangs. It was actually much less scary than I anticipated and I wound up doing an okay job my first time around. My bangs were (mostly) straight and not too short, so I consider it a win and now I’m glad I can just trim my bangs myself whenever they need it (which is often because my hair grows so damn fast!)

9) Getting through Dutch’s birthday without too many tears. Dutch would have turned 16 on March 2nd, and celebrating his birthday without him hit me harder than I expected. I tried to give myself a lot of grace to be as sad as I needed to be and boy, did I live up to that. But I got through it! I survived! And I don’t feel like I’m drowning in my grief like I was just a few weeks ago. Progress!

10) Jim Gaffigan comedy specials. My mom and brother love Jim Gaffigan and quote him all the time, but I’ve actually never seen one of his comedy specials until this month! He has a bunch on Netflix and I watched two of them that made me realize that Jim Gaffigan may be my spirit animal in comedian form. He’s fantastic and so damn funny.

What was a bright moment of March for you?

Monthly Goals | April 2018

I published my February monthly goals just a few days before Dutch passed, so obviously, all of the goals I set fell to the back burner. February (and some of March, if I’m being honest) was about survival for me and just getting through each day. In March, I started feeling as if I could tackle some of the goals I set and I started working toward them, but not pushing myself too hard.

And now it’s April (well, almost!) and I’m feeling good. I still miss Dutch desperately, but the rawness of losing him has dissipated somewhat and I feel ready for what lies ahead of me. So here we go with goal-setting once again, and it feels really good to get back to it.

Let’s start off by recapping how I did with my February/March goals:

Biting Off My Yearly Goals

> Track food on MyFitnessPal. Complete. I’m not using MFP to track my food, but an entirely different system that is working much better for my needs and has led to great results so far. I’m working on a post about it, so stay tuned!

> No soda at work, no soda on Mondays. Complete. Oh, hell yeah. The solution to my soda addiction? LaCroix. It took me awhile to get used to the taste because no, it’s not the same as soda (gotta love that HFCS). But once I got used to the taste, there was no turning back. By adding in sparkling water to my diet, I’m down to just 1-2 sodas a week.

> Buy a book about the Enneagram. Not complete. Oops. Forgot about this one.

> Make a file on my computer compiling all of my mom’s engagement and wedding photos. Not complete. Geez. Why am I so resistant to this goal? I just need to download the damn photos!

> Write 500 words every day. Not complete. Lolololololol. Even committing to writing 500 words daily is just too much for me right now.

Nagging Tasks

> Schedule a carpet cleaning. Not complete. I wish I could schedule this online because damn, I hate calling companies to request quotes. But it really needs to get done because my carpet needs a serious deep clean.

> Frame the painting I bought in Puerto Rico and hang it up. Complete. Fiiiiiiinally! I did it! It’s hanging up in my bedroom and it’s perfect.

> Organize my kitchen. Complete. I did this after Dutch died because I needed to get rid of his treats, food, medication, etc. and it prompted a complete kitchen reorganization. So, I’m glad I did this, but wish it wasn’t for such a heartbreaking reason.

> Find a place to recycle. Complete. My mom’s apartment complex has this nifty little recycling center, so I’m using it as my recycling center. Ha. It’s the perfect setup for me. Now, if only my apartment complex could figure this out but, alas, they don’t even have an online system for rent payments and maintenance requests, so I think I’m expecting too much here.

> Clean my oven. Not complete. Oops. Forgot about this one.

So, I accomplished 5 of the 10 goals I set and honestly, I’m happy with that. These past two months have been a doozy for me to say the least, so even attempting these goals is a step in the right direction. Plus, two of those goals were massive accomplishments (tracking my food and cutting out soda), so gold stars for me.

Here’s what I’d like to accomplish in April:

Biting Off My Yearly Goals

> Go to a movie alone (goal: try something new once a month)

> Make an appointment with a therapist (goal: start therapy)

> Buy a book about the Enneagram (goal: figure out my Enneagram type)

> Make a file on my computer compiling all of my mom’s engagement and wedding photos (goal: make a wedding album for my mom and stepdad)

> Write 3,000 words a week (goal: finish my novel)

Nagging Tasks

> Schedule a carpet cleaning (back on the list and hoping third time’s a charm)

> Figure out my nighttime routine (because going to bed at 11 p.m. is no bueno for this girl)

> Hang up my mirror (I bought a full-size mirror over a month ago and have yet to hang it up… obviously, I need this accountability)

> Mail my donation to Locks of Love (um, oops, I probably should do this, huh?)

> Clean my oven (back on the list… April’s the month of spring cleaning, right?)

What’s something – big or small – that you’d like to accomplish in April?