Highlights of August: attending my first Miami Dolphins football game, supporting my friend as she taught her first-ever spin class (which reminded me how much I dearly love spin), celebrating my one-year “workaversary,” and going on a ghost tour with a bunch of girlfriends. August was good to me. It was fast and busy, but also slow and relaxing. I need a good mixture of busy and relaxing to feel satisfied, and that’s exactly what this month was.

I didn’t make my goal of working out 31 times in August. At the end of the month, I logged 25 workouts. And honestly? I don’t feel bad about that because that’s still very, very good! But I’ve decided not to try to log 30 workouts in September. As much as I loved taking on this challenge for the past two months, I’ve been noticing that my workouts don’t have intention behind them. I’m not working toward any specific goal, simply working out to cross off another day on my list. I want my workouts to be less about logging in the most workouts I can, and more about quality workouts that help me meet specific fitness goals. I’m not sure I’m explaining myself well, but basically, I’ve found myself going for a quick 20-minute walk or doing a simple 15-minute strength workout and calling it good. And while, yes, that is exercise and it does count… I need more intention and more focus with my workouts, and I think the only way to do that is to focus less on quantity and more on quality.

Work-wise, August has been delightfully insane. My workload increased dramatically, I was given two new clients (with more to come!), I celebrated my one-year anniversary and had my review (which went wonderfully!), I got a raise, and I’m now eligible to participate in my company’s work-from-home program. Currently, we’re only allowed to work from home two days a month, but I’m hoping more writers will try this out and it will expand! All in all, it’s been a full year of writing professionally and I’m still so darn happy. I’m very, very grateful.

Ready for some exciting news? I’m going to be an aunt again! My sister-in-law is pregnant and due in March with Baby #2. I honestly didn’t think she would have another baby because she seemed so satisfied as a mom of one, so this was such a pleasant surprise! I’m so excited to have another squishy newborn to hold and spoil and love.

I rejoined OK Cupid this month. I’m trying to be excited about the prospect of dating again – and in most respects, I am – but I’m still dealing with some residual feelings from my crush and I’m trying to psyche myself up for the world of OKC again. I’ve not yet gone on a date (I was chatting with a few guys, but nothing ever evolved), and I had a good friend look over my dating profile, and she, very nicely, told me that my profile gave off feelings of insecurity and being unimpressed with the whole process. (Accurate? Maybe.) I really need to shift my focus. I need to be excited about dating and the adventures that can ensue. More importantly, though, I need to have hope that love is possible for me.

There is this small part of me that has begun to regret waiting until the fall of 2015 to move into my own apartment. I’m getting the itch to be on my own and be fully independent. I mean, I’m turning 27 in a few months. I think it’s time, ya know?! But my mom and I will sign our lease this month and we’ll remain in this apartment for another year. When I do move out, I want to feel completely prepared and that mostly comes down to finances. My bank account will take a major hit from move-in costs alone, not to mention that I need to buy furniture, kitchenware, and other random necessities. I’ve already begun apartment hunting, just to see what’s out there and to get a feel for how much move-in costs will be ($1,500 for the community I looked at this past weekend. Whimper.), so I can start preparing and be ready for this big change come next fall.

September is the month of birthdays: my brother, my nephew, and my future stepdad all celebrate their birthdays this month! It’s also the kickoff to NFL football, which, of course, includes fantasy football and participation in a few “pick ’em” leagues. And it’s the month I’m going to finally meet one of my most beloved blogging friends, Nora. (SO darn excited about that!) My biggest priority for September is going to be getting on track with healthy eating. I’ve not gone off the rails, but I need to tighten things up and get back to drinking lots of water and eating less sugar.

What was the highlight of your month?

If July had a theme, I think it would have been simplicity. July was a simple, enjoyable month. I worried less about things that are out of my control and for the things I can control, everything felt a little less chaotic, a little less overwhelming. I’m not where I wish I was, but I am where I’m supposed to be. There are many things I want from my life, many things I want to chase after, but it’s okay if it takes me a while to feel ready to take the leap.

The Fourth of July was a fun, fun day. I haven’t done much for the holiday in years past, but my uncle opened up his home for a day of barbecuing, family catch-ups, and relaxing out on his dock. It was wonderful, most especially because my brother, his wife, and my adorable nephew came. And my favorite family from Georgia came down for the holiday week, which was so great. They are the best and our time with them was way too short. We ended the night with drinks on the dock and watching the fireworks, which took place just a few feet from where we sat. It was so amazing!

My mom’s birthday is in July, so we celebrated that, of course. I took her to see the movie Tammy, which was funny and we had a great time. Then, I was able to have her all to myself on her birthday because my brother couldn’t make it to her birthday dinner. (We had a second birthday dinner the following weekend, which coincided perfectly with her fiance’s arrival home after four months on the road!) Anyway, I enjoy celebrating her birthday and I think it was a good one for her!

As mentioned above, my mom’s fiance is back home. I used to get annoyed when he was in town (he stays with us now because there’s no sense in him keeping an apartment when he’s only home 10-14 days every 3-4 months), but I’ve gotten used to him. We have a much better rapport and we’ve even had times when it’s just me & him in the apartment, and it doesn’t feel awkward at all. I’m so happy about that! And Dutch is just thrilled when he’s home and has a buddy to hang out with all day. Things are so good on this front, though. Phew!

For the better part of a year, I’ve been slowly developing feelings for someone. He makes me laugh, makes me think, and makes me feel very good. And it’s lovely, but it’s just a crush and I’ve never had a crush evolve into something more. Who’s to say this one will? Then, this week, I received an email that said this: “Believe you’re worth going after what you want. Maybe you’re gonna get hurt. Maybe you’re gonna get bruised. Maybe you’re gonna stay waiting at the window for a long, long while. Maybe, just maybe, it’s worth doing it anyway.” I’ve known for a while that it’s time to take that next step, but it’s terrifying for me. Rejection is something I’m way too familiar with and it’s easier to stay in this comfortable space where “maybe he does, maybe he doesn’t.” Laying my heart on the line, being that vulnerable and honest, it makes me want to throw up. But getting bruised is all part of the journey, isn’t it? We only regret the chances we didn’t take, after all.

This month, I’ve been thinking a lot less about the goals I want to accomplish and a lot more about how I want to feel. Don’t get me wrong – I still love goals and I will continue to set them, but I also want to tune more into myself and discover what emotions make me come alive. It’s a lot more difficult than setting goals because, with goal-setting, it’s more about extrinsic rewards. And those are easy to set. But what about intrinsic rewards? What about the emotions we want to embody in our lives? That takes a lot more soul-searching.

I’m looking forward to August, even if it won’t be a terribly exciting month. I’m planning on purging my closet and creating a capsule wardrobe, knocking off a few adventures on my Tampa Bay Project list, and maybe taking tiny, itty bitty steps toward opening my heart up to possibilities of more.

How was your July?