Recurring Series

Currently… in October

Feeling… so happy that we’re in the fall season. The weather has been gorgeous lately (highs in the low 80s! Lows in the upper 60s!), and I love all the holiday decor. Just walking through the Christmas aisle makes me happy! (Nope. I am not mad that Christmas decor is out in mid-October!)

Reading… Freakonomics by Steven D. Levitt and Stephen J. Dubner. I’ve been listening to the Freakonomics podcast for over six months now, and I really enjoy it because of the off-the-wall topics they talk about. So I finally borrowed this book from my library and I’m making my way through it. It’s a slow read for me, but still pretty interesting! It’s definitely making me think.

Watching… a lot of TV! My DVR is completely out of control, but that’s the way I like it. Some of my new favorite shows are Gotham (so intense and scary!), How to Get Away with Murder (definitely not on par with Scandal, but it has potential), Marry Me (the pilot episode had me laughing the entire 30 minutes), and Gracepoint (gah! So intriguing. I really do not know “whodunit.”).

Anticipating… finding out if I am going to be an aunt to another nephew or a niece! My brother and sister-in-law actually find out today, and I’m going to be on pins and needles all day today. Eek!

Listening to… barely any music nowadays. Whenever I’m in the car or getting ready for work, it’s all podcasts, all day. (So, basically, when someone says, “Oh, my God. I can’t stop listening to Taylor Swift’s new song!” I’m all, “Whaaaa?”)

Planning… my Halloween costume. My work is throwing a party and costume contest on Halloween, so I figure I need to set aside my feelings about Halloween (summed up in one word: meh) and find a clever costume to dress up in. Any ideas? (The best I can think of is Waldo. Clearly, clever Halloween costumes are not my forte.).

Trying… overnight oatmeal. I’ve never been an oatmeal fan, but I thought I would try overnight oatmeal and see how I like it. (Plus, I’ve grown tired of eating breakfast that only fills me up for 1-2 hours.) I found this delicious pumpkin chocolate chip oatmeal recipe over the weekend, so I made it, and verdict? Loved it. It. Was. So. Good. We’ll see how many weeks I can eat oatmeal for breakfast before I get sick of it. But for now, yum, yum, yum.

Realizing… how much better I feel when I stick to an early bedtime. I’ve been trying to shut down my computer and shut off the TV by 8:30/9:00, so I can be in bed at a decent time (9:30 is always the goal!). I sleep better, I wake up more easily, and I feel sooooo good. Why is it that the things that make us feel good are sometimes the hardest things to actually do?

Wanting… to change up my blog layout. It’s been over two years with this current layout, and I’ve grown a little tired of it. I’m just trying to decide if I want to cough up the money for another pricey design or try Etsy for a more cost-effective option. Time will tell.

Loving… work-from-home days, Sundays that include football and brother time, Halloween candy, Two Dots, long walks, afternoon naps, and getting “booed.”

What are you currently reading, planning, and wanting?

Categories: Recurring Series

TGIF (v.6)

This week I had a crazy dream. And I understand dreams are only interesting to the people who dreamed them but bear with me.

In the dream, my mom and I were staying at a house and we had just gotten word that my uncle was out of jail (side note: none of my uncles are currently in jail. Let me be clear about that!), and we both got scared he was going to try to find us. We began packing up our stuff and dressing in clothes that would hide us well (?!) and trying to scurry out of the house as soon as possible.

Well, we made it out of the house and everything seemed to be fine. Then, in a new scene (but same dream), my mom and I were at Publix, perhaps getting supplies for our furtive journey. (Who knows?!) And this time, I’m running away from a coworker and I’m terrified of her finding me. But she does and she grabs me, and I yell in her face, “YOU DO NOT HAVE THE POWER TO HURT ME.”

End dream.

And, honestly, it’s not hard to see what this dream was really about. My dad, who is currently in jail. Maybe I’m worried that, when he’s released, he’ll try to find me. Maybe I’m worried about him because he is my dad and even though he has caused so much hurt and pain in my life, I still love him fiercely and him hurting is me hurting. Maybe this dream was my subconscious telling me to release this worry and anxiety and fear and heartache. He no longer has the power to hurt me. The sooner I relinquish this control I have over worrying about his situation, the sooner the power it’s holding over my life diminishes.

But relinquishing that power? Trying to let what happens just happen? Removing myself from the situation? That’s not an easy task at all.

The high of my week was… having a lady date with my good friend, Bri. We had dinner at the food court at Westshore Mall and then went to see Gone Girl! YOU GUYS! The movie was incredible! The acting was fantastic, the drama was outstanding, and I loved how true the movie stayed to the book. One of the best book-to-film adaptations I’ve seen in a long, long time. Whether you’ve read the book or not, I highly recommend this movie!

The low of my week was… having a little too much jibber jabber from my inner critic. Sometimes, it’s hard to stop the downward cycle of negative thoughts and feelings. I think it may be time to revisit the Fierce Love course from Stratejoy!

An article I loved was… 17 Things to Expect When You Date a Girl Who’s Used to Being On Her Own by Thought Catalog. Oh, goodness, this article really hit the nail on the head for me. I’ve been having a hard time with the dating thing because a) my standards are high and it’s hard to find someone who meets them and b) it’s really difficult dating when you’ve spent more than 26 years single. I understand being single and alone so, so, so much more than I understand being in a relationship. It’s hard for me. It’s hard to let people in, to rearrange my life, to open myself up to something different.

“6. She needs to be left alone often especially when you first start seeing each other and it should feel like she’s head over heels. Believe that she has more butterflies in her stomach than she knows what to do with, which is why she’ll need to compose herself.“

A podcast episode I loved was… Gone Girls from Stuff Mom Never Told You. This was all about sociopaths, their traits, and the pop culture phenomenon of how intrigued we are by them. My favorite part of the podcast was when one of the hosts talked about an easy quiz to give yourself to figure out if you are a sociopath. “Have you ever felt awkward anytime in your life? Congratulations! You are probably not a sociopath.” HA! Yep. Not a sociopath! (Whew!)

The best money I spent was… $11 on lunch yesterday. There was a food truck at a nearby office that was running this really cool program where you bought a meal for yourself and then a meal would be given to a child in need. It was sponsored by Metropolitan Ministries and Feeding America Tampa Bay (one of my favorite charities!), so it was fun to get out of the office with a bunch of coworkers (nearly half the office showed up!) and have lunch. And it was my first food truck experience! What what!

My plans this weekend include walking a 5K, going for a pedicure with my mom, and hopefully crossing off another adventure on my Tampa Bay Project list.

What was the highlight of your week? Any fun weekend plans?

Categories: Recurring Series

Looking Forward… the Fall Edition

I think it’s time to do another “Looking Forward” post because we’re in the last quarter of the year (my FAVORITE time of year!), and I have a lot of fun things coming up. Let’s discuss!

This week, I am looking forward to… seeing Gone Girl.

I’ve made plans with a good friend to see the movie, so we’re doing a little dinner-and-movie date on Thursday night. She hasn’t read the book yet, so I’m pretty excited to see how she’ll react to all the crazy plot twists. I’ve heard nothing but rave reviews for the movie and I honestly haven’t been so excited to see a movie in a long, long time!

This weekend, I am looking forward to… walking in a 5K breast cancer walk on Saturday morning.

My mom’s work has a team together for the American Cancer Society’s Making Strides Against Breast Cancer 5K walk, and she invited me to join. I can’t wait! I’ve never participated in a breast cancer walk, but I imagine the environment is going to be so empowering and invigorating. I’ve also pledged to raise $100 for the walk, so this is just my teeny tiny plea to visit my page and, if you feel inclined, give a donation. Even $5 gets me closer to my goal!

This month, I am looking forward to… going to a pumpkin carving party!

I’ve never gone to a pumpkin carving party! I’m really looking forward to it, even though I’m sure my pumpkin will look pretty wretched. It should be a really fun night, though!

This year, I am looking forward to… taking a road trip to Savannah!

YES! I booked the hotel on Sunday, and the day after Thanksgiving (also, my birthday!), my mom and I will be hitting the road to Savannah. It’s about a six-hour drive, which won’t be fun (we both hate driving), but we’re looking forward to the adventures that await us. I’ve been trying to make a list of things to do, which definitely includes a trolley tour, a ghost tour, and lots of strolling around this adorable city and taking in the sights. (Any Savannah tips? What things should we put on our itinerary? And, most importantly, where should we eat?!)

What are you looking forward to lately?

Categories: Recurring Series

TGIF (v.5)

On Saturday, Dutch had his comprehensive exam. He had blood work, an EKG, and some other evaluations done. And everything came back fine! I was so, so relieved because I had been working myself into a real tizzy about the exam. Taking Dutch to the vet always makes me nervous because even though Dutch seems healthy, you just never know if something could be wrong. And anxiety is fairly irrational and makes me think of all the worst-case scenarios because if I’m not worrying about worst-case scenarios, then I just start worrying about why I’m not worried and it’s a never-ending cycle and just. not. fun. WOO! But he is healthy and normal and the vet is very pleased with him. 🙂

The only issue they brought up is his eyesight. He has a condition called nuclear sclerosis, which isn’t something to be concerned with. All it means is that his eyes have a cloudy, bluish-gray tint to them (my nephew says he has “bad guy eyes!”) and that he has minor vision impairment. He also has cataracts, but they’re small and nothing to worry about just yet.

All in all, a great exam and my boy is healthy! He’s such a little trooper. Love him.

Oh! Weird story. After the exam, I took Dutch around PetSmart to find him a new harness (pictured above! And yes, I mainly bought it because it has a bow tie. I die.) and ran across a couple who used to have dachshunds. They were shocked to find out that Dutch is 12 years old, and kept telling me, “None of our dachshunds ever made it past twelve. Their backs always went out.” UM THANK YOU! THANK YOU VERY MUCH! Gah, why do people have to say the dumbest things?

The high of my week was Dutch’s clean bill of health! It was the best news and I’ve been waking up every morning feeling so grateful.

A blog post I loved was Kerrie’s post on why she continues to blog. How I blog is something I continuously think about and restructure. My blogging style has changed a lot since I started this blog back in 2009. I love reading what other people think about blogging and how they’ve adapted to it changing over the years.

“I’ve decided to be so incredibly thankful that I was able to be a part of that golden age of blogging when it was all so pure and simple and basically like reading each other’s journals. No photos, no social media, no DIY, no ad revenue. Although each of those things are now a piece of my internet presence these days, I definitely do feel grateful that I started out without the pressure and perfection of the current blogging landscape.”

A podcast episode I loved was I Hate Being Highly Sensitive. I found this awesome podcast a few months ago and I really, really love it. Kelly has such a soothing voice and I love the wide range of topics she discusses. It’s helped me learn so much about being a highly sensitive person. This episode is one of her best, talking about all the annoying things about being an HSP.

The best money I spent was $36.59 on a new pair of jeans and two t-shirts at Old Navy. I’ve been wearing a pair of jeans for a while that just don’t fit me right and every time I wear them, they make me feel like crap. So I just bit the bullet, went to Old Navy, and bought a pair of better-fitting skinny jeans. They feel amazing on me! (Whyyy do I continue to wear things that don’t make me feel good?!) And, because Old Navy was having an awesome sale (40% off everything!), I added two shirts to the mix.

My plans this weekend include a nap this afternoon (!), lunch with girlfriends, a two-year-old’s birthday party, and a long walk with my favorite pooch.

What was the high of your week? Any fun plans for you this weekend?

Categories: Recurring Series

A Weekend in Pictures

Happy Monday! Oh, man, do I love weekends and this one was a fun one. It was partly busy and partly lazy, which is my kinda weekend. It’s still stupid hot in Florida (it was 105 degrees on Sunday!), but that’s par for the course. We were having some nice weather last week (low 70s and breezy in the mornings!), so I’ll cross my fingers the weather will start cooling down soon.

Anyway! Let’s dive into some pictures from my weekend, okay?

I kicked off my weekend with a much-needed hair appointment. I decided to go a bit darker brown this time around – less red, more brown. I was a little nervous because it’s much darker than I normally go, but hey! It’s hair! It doesn’t hurt to try something new. I’m really happy with the color, though. It’s fun!

Friday night was book club! We began our night at Sweet Tomatoes. I had a super yummy salad, a million pieces of cheesy bread, and a brownie for dessert.

After dinner, a bunch of us headed over to Xtreme Fun Center to play laser tag! The idea to play laser tag was suggested as a joke, but a bunch of us were so down because it just sounded super fun. Unfortunately, I, um, really, really suck at laser tag. Like, really, really. Came-in-last-place-every-time bad. I mean, at least this means I’m not good at killing? Right? Uh.

Anyway, in between laser tag games, we played in the arcade and won enough tickets to buy friendship bracelets for everyone! We’re cute, I know.

And a group selfie to end the night. I love these girls so much. It’s so crazy to me that I found such a perfect book club. They are so my people.

My Saturday started off in a delicious way – homemade banana bread! I had mentioned to a friend how much I love banana bread, and, sweet soul that she is, she baked me a loaf. Seriously. She just baked one for me. Can I marry her?! The banana bread was DELISH and I’m so excited to snack on it throughout the week.

Saturday itself was a pretty lazy day, which I was grateful for. I slept in, did a little cleaning and laundry, sent some emails, and caught up on some recorded shows on my DVR (I give two thumbs up to Gotham and Scorpion and a ‘meh’ to Madam Secretary and black-ish). I planned to go to Target to get some things (and my nephew’s birthday present!), but it started storming terribly around 5:30 and Dutch was pretty anxious about it. He wouldn’t leave my side for a minute, so we had many snuggles and kisses!

Sunday afternoon was my nephew’s birthday party! It took place at a pool, though I didn’t bring a swimsuit because I am a dummy. (It was SO hot! I desperately wanted to cool off!) My grandparents came, and it was so nice to see them. (Side note: does my grandma not look amazing?! You’d never know she’s been through cancer three times in the past seven years! She’s doing well, and I’m praying the cancer stays away for good this time.)

Anyway, the party was a blast and a bunch of my nephew’s little buddies came, so it was fun to see him interact with them and be his usual goofball self.

And the rest of my Sunday? Was mostly spent like this. Writing blog posts, reading blog posts, responding to emails, and tracking my fantasy football team. Happy weekend indeed!

How was your weekend? When was the last time you played laser tag?