Recurring Series – Page 119

Five For Friday

1. It’s that time of the year! Time to plan my 2013 cruise. I was thinking about forgoing a cruise next year (based on some comments I received after my second cruise) but when I sat down and thought about it, I realized this was my life and my vacation! If I love to cruise, I should go on cruises! I’m only 24, I have plenty of time to travel the world and see different sights. I have an intense love for cruising and nothing gets me more excited than planning for and anticipating boarding another ship. I feel at home on ships. It is where I feel the most alive. So I spent this week researching May 2013 cruises and deciding, along with my mom, exactly what tropical destinations we want to visit. We settled on a few (our favorites being Puerto Rico, the Dominican Republic, and Aruba) and it’s just been so exhilarating to begin the planning process and imagine what our fourth cruise will look like. Time to start saving!

2. Dutch did better with his separation anxiety this week. We bought him a toy, but he’s not very interested in it. (Possibly because we filled it with kibble and not a treat?) He was quiet on Wednesday and Thursday when we came home so I’m not sure what helped! He’s getting more exercise, but hopefully, he’s just getting used to the new place. I also spoke to my downstairs neighbor on Saturday about it and she’s not upset, just concerned for Dutch. So that’s good! We’re trying not to announce when we leave and try not to make a huge deal when we come home and find him crying. So we’ll see how he does next week. Stay tuned!

3. I’m starting Gone Girl this weekend, for our October #twookclub chat. Our numbers at the chats have been low lately, so I’m hoping to see a bunch of faces at October’s chat! Gone Girl is a super popular book right now so I’m hoping that will help and I think it’ll make for a GREAT discussion. Also, voting for our November book closes on Sunday so get your vote in if you haven’t yet.

4. Thank you ALL for your advice on my last post. It was one of those posts that was so cathartic for me to write and I appreciate all the advice given, as I’m going into this new journey with blinders on. I have no idea what to expect and I’m a bit terrified of talking to someone I don’t know and laying out my problems. I don’t do that. But in order to grow and figure out how to stop the cyclical behavior, I have to start speaking up and being open. Here’s to a new journey!

5. Friday couldn’t get here soon enough! I have a fun weekend ahead of me: a 3K Pet Walk with Dutch in downtown St. Pete (still trying to decide if I want to dress him up. And no, he will not be a hot dog. Or a taco.), doing some shopping (yay for bonuses!), and carving a pumpkin. It may not feel like fall at all outside (oh, 80-degree temps, how I am starting to loathe you!) but I’m doing all I can to embrace this season. Happy weekend!

Categories: Recurring Series

Five For Friday

1. Proactiv and me are not working out. I started using the products a few weeks ago twice a day and it severely dried out my face. So I switched down to once a day and then down to once every other day when my face was still feeling itchy and super dry. Then I started waking up to red splotches on my neck, puffy eyes, and redness around my eyes, and realized I probably had some sort of allergy to the products. I waited until my face was cleared up from the reactions to try again (once every other day) but I still woke up with splotches on my neck and puffy eyes so I guess it is time to call it quits. I’m sad because it was starting to work but I need to find something gentler on my face and more all-natural. (Any suggestions?)

2. I had my review last Friday! And it went amazing! I try to keep work chatter to a minimum on this blog so I won’t delve into the details but suffice it to say, I emerged from my boss’s office with a smile and my insecurities surrounding my work performance vanished. Yay!

3. My cousin had her baby on Tuesday! Her name is Mia Jayne and she was 8 lbs, 6 oz, and is a little chunkster already. My mom and I went to the hospital Tuesday night to see her and she is just absolute perfection. My cousin was completely worn out but an absolute trooper with all the guests (in the 30 minutes we were there, eleven people came to visit her!). Little Mia, though, is beautiful and I’m so in love with her already. She is now the lock screen on my phone (which makes me happy whenever I look at it) and I hope I get a chance to visit her this weekend. These arms are sorely lacking in baby snuggles lately.

4. We are having a huge issue with Dutch crying when we’re gone. I’m not sure if he does it all day, but I can hear him crying when we get home. I really hope he’s not doing it all day. I think it’s the new place and not really having any windows to people watch, but we’ve had one complaint and I really do not want to get another! We’ve tried leaving the TV or radio on and sometimes that works but lately it hasn’t been. I found some tips online that I’m going to try out (like exercising him more, buying a Kong, and not making a huge deal out of leaving) so I hope to God these work. Because, honestly, it tears at my heart to walk up to my apartment and hear him crying. I feel like the worst dog mom ever! Not to mention, I know it’s annoying for our neighbors and I never want to be the neighbor with the annoying dog! Anyone have any other tips to try? (I may even buy a Thundershirt, if it comes to that!)

5. Tonight, I am chatting with Ashley (as part of her 100 Free Coaching Calls birthday celebration. You can still snag a spot!) and, although I’m super nervous, I’m also excited to see what clarity she can bring to certain things weighing me down lately. I also plan on going on my first run since I broke my ankle (!) on Saturday morning. Sunday, my brother is coming over to watch football. (His Niners are 4-1 when he comes over to watch when they are on TV. Apparently, I am a good luck charm.) It should be a pretty low-key and calm weekend so I’m excited to get lots crossed off my to-do list this weekend!

Happy Friday, friends! Any fun weekend plans? Any tips on gentler face washes and/or tips on ease my dog’s separation anxiety?

Categories: Recurring Series

Five For Friday

1. My orthopedic appointment didn’t go as planned. Apparently, my broken ankle is a “good break” which means a walking boot or cast wouldn’t help me much. The orthopedic gave me one exercise to do and told me he wanted me to start walking normally on my foot. So. Really helpful appointment. I know it’s better to be on the safe side and I’m also grateful I don’t have to wear a cast… but I’m still frustrated that I spent $60 for basically a consultation. It feels like such a non-answer. He wants me to come back in 3 weeks for another x-ray but I can tell it’s healing and getting easier to walk on so I’m thinking of canceling that appointment. Another $60 to hear, “Healing great!”? Nope. Not gonna do it.

2. Fingers crossed, I’m getting my one-year review today. I’m at the point where I just want it over with so I can move on. When I said I was nervous about it on Twitter, people asked me why which I found to be an odd question, honestly. I know constructive criticism is good and necessary, but I can’t say I enjoy hearing all the ways I need to be better. And I was once blindsided in a review (internship) so I have legit fears. Hopefully, it goes better than I expect!

3. Our cable and Internet were supposed to continue until Sunday at our old place and then be hooked up on Sunday afternoon at the new place. Weeeell, we found out as we turned on the TV to watch the Big Brother finale that Brighthouse decided to turn off our cable/Internet Wednesday night. Nice of them, eh? We could have had a technician come out that night but by then Big Brother would have been mostly over and there really wasn’t a point since we would be at the new place anyway. So I’m writing this post on my iPhone. Fun times, my friends, fun times indeed. (I did follow what happened through Twitter and I am ECSTATIC that Ian won. He deserved it over Dirty Dan. When Dan orchestrated Britney’s leaving, he became Public Enemy No. 1 for me.)

4. Our first night in our new place was last night! Sadly, for me, it was not on my brand-new IKEA bed I bought since I forgot to also buy the mid beam, it’s not very safe to even sit on. I’m going back tonight to buy that (thankfully, it’s only $10) so hopefully, I can have my first sleep on my new bed tonight. I’m dealing with some new-place anxiety and trying to stem any panic attacks that seem to be rising in my belly but I think once we are more settled in and things calm down, I’ll be okay. Big changes – like a move – are hard on my emotions and I’m also dealing with other unpleasant life things so it just adds to the stress.

5. I’m starting to get more and more serious about grad school. After I graduated with my Bachelor’s, I was SO burned out from school and I needed a long break from homework & classes & tests. I haven’t missed it at all until recently when I started getting nostalgic for college campuses & projects & thinking outside the box. I love everything about the academic world and I miss using my brain in that way. I’ve been perusing grad school sites and exploring my options and it’s something that I know I’ll pursue in the next year or two. It’s exciting to think about diving into classes again but I’m also quite okay with waiting a while longer.

Do you get nervous about reviews at work? Would you ever tackle graduate school? If you’ve already done it (kudos!), what was your degree in?

Categories: Recurring Series

A Weekend in Pictures

This weekend was all about packing, moving, nephew time, and dealing with the news that my ankle is not sprained… it is broken. In two places. As in, I walked down a mountain on a broken ankle, walked all through Six Flags on a broken ankle, and have been walking around for over two weeks on a broken ankle. Yikes! Today, I am getting fitted with an air cast and I have no idea how long I will need it. I’m very bummed because I’m pretty sure this means exercise is completely off the table for weeks. My appointment will shed a lot of light on the break and my recovery and honestly, I am glad to have an answer and reason for why my ankle still looks like there’s a ping-pong ball attached to it.

But onward to my weekend!

Our empty living room. So much possibility! Please notice the gorgeous TV on the wall (came complimentary!) and the fireplace (also complimentary). Living in Florida, fireplaces aren’t actually necessary and I doubt we’ll use it much but I love the way it adds to the room.

This is our screened-in porch. I mean. THIS VIEW. It’s just incredible and I fully plan on investing in a chaise lounge and some porch furniture and taking advantage of this view.

A necessary strawberry-mango margarita on Friday night. Oh, my heavens. This was delish. Friday was a pretty stressful day on so many levels and this hit the spot!

Our sectional was delivered on Saturday afternoon! She’s a beauty and so comfortable. I have been coveting a sectional for the longest time and this one is perfect for what we need.

Well, this is what it’s come to. My face is a mess of breakouts, redness, and oily, oily skin. My skin has never been one of my finer features and I just want to get it under control. I’m hoping Proactiv is the answer and I got ALL of that for just $30, which is normally $100. (Of course, if this kit works well for me, continuing the process won’t be cheap but it will be SO worth it. I just hope it works!)

This boy. He is my favorite. And he looks SO big in this photo. He came over on Saturday night while my brother and his wife had a date night for my brother’s birthday and slept for about an hour and a half before waking up in a super silly mood. He’ll be 4 next week and I absolutely love the age he’s at now. I mean, when he’s not being a grump.

My mom ran a 10K yesterday and I went to support her. She did amazing for a crazy hilly course and her first words when she saw me were, “Where’s the beer?”

How was your weekend? Have you ever broken a bone?

Categories: Recurring Series

Fill-In-The-Blank-Friday (4)

I haven’t done one of these since March! I was planning on writing a nice post for my brother, since his birthday is tomorrow, but my mom and I got our keys to our new apartment yesterday and spent a few hours last night moving things so there wasn’t time. (And oh my goodness, our new apartment is amazing! We have insane views, a spacious kitchen, and it already feels like home. I can’t wait to show it all to you guys!) For today, I’m fillin’ in the blanks!

1. Right now, the weather where I live is gorgeous in the morning but hot as hell once it hits 10:00. The nice morning weather (70’s with a hint of a breeze) has been great so I’m not complaining. I’m getting more and more excited for cooler weather to be on its way but let’s face it: I live in Florida. That probably won’t happen until late November.

2. The best piece of advice I’ve been given is “You are not perfect at everything, but you are brilliant at being you.” This quote was from one of my Fierce Love videos by Molly Maher of Stratejoy and it was one of those lines that made me stop the video, write it down, and mull over it. I watched that video about a month ago and that phrase still rolls over in my brain, during this journey of self-discovery and self-acceptance. I think it’s so easy for us to get down on ourselves when we start comparing the way we do things and the struggles we have with the way others are doing/triumphing/struggling. I am not going to be perfect at everything I do and I’m going to struggle a lot on things others can do easily… but the fact of the matter remains: I am brilliant at being me. I don’t need to change who I am to fit this mold I think I ought to be. I just need to be more accepting of my faults and more passionate about my strengths.

3. My most favorite person in all the world is my mom. DUH. I’m so blessed to have her not only as an amazing mother but also as my best friend.

4. If I were to have a “mission statement” for my life, it would be “Stop questioning myself. Live life on my own terms. Be more badass.” After a situation with a boy ended badly, I came up with this new plan for my life. He said a lot of hurtful things that made me question who I was and what I was doing and I let him run right over me. Those three sentences? They are just the beginning of my personal manifesto.

5. My most favorite item in my closet is my pair of zip-up boots. I can only wear them two months out of the year but they make me feel so confident and sexy. Also, an adorable little flirty skirt my mom bought from Target that I stole from her one day wearing it.

6. The best cure for a bad day is a bubble bath and time spent curled up on the couch with a smutty book. That always helps me take my mind off the bad day and onto something totally different. And talking it out with my mom helps if I feel like talking, which sometimes I don’t.

7. Today is a busy day! I have an x-ray appointment at 8:20, then have to rush to work where my to-do list is out of control, and then I’ll spend the night packing and going over to the new apartment and unpacking and getting more settled in!

Happy weekend, friends! What would your “mission statement” be for your life?