1) I’ve been in a very low place this week. I woke up on Monday morning and just felt exhausted about the thought of going through my day. I was both sad and irritable. Sometimes, life just feels very hard, you know? There is so much we have to do on a daily basis: work out, go for our mental health walks, put in an eight-hour workday, make food for ourselves, maintain our relationships with texts and calls and Instagram messages and in-person meetups, keep our homes clean, take care of our pets. And if you have kids? Add in school drop-offs and pick-ups, extracurriculars, managing the emotions of small humans, and a whole lot of other things I’m missing. Usually, all of the stuff that comes with living doesn’t bother me much. But every now and then, it makes me want to crawl under the covers and hibernate for at least a week. Things started feeling easier as the week has gone on, and I have a therapy appointment this afternoon which will help me sort out all these feelings, but it wasn’t a fun way to start the week.
2) I received such great advice about what to do about my feeding situation with the cats. Thank you! It was really helpful to read through your own routines and figure out what might work with my girls. What I’ve decided to do is train them to eat on a schedule. I was nervous to do that because the whole point is to get Eloise to eat more and if she doesn’t have free access to food 24/7, doesn’t that defeat the purpose? But maybe it will actually have the opposite effect: She’ll eat more since she needs the structure! We’ll see. The plan is to give them a can of wet food in the morning and take it away after an hour, and then give them 1/2 cup (portioned into two bowls) of dry food in the evening.
Someone pointed out that I may be overfeeding them, but I checked with the calorie counts and it’s right in line of what they should be eating (1/2 can of wet food is 90 calories, 1/4 cup of dry food is 107 calories). They also get treats throughout the day, which I need to be better about limiting. They’re just so cute with their big green eyes and sweet meows! They probably have about 30 calories per day of treats (15% of their diet) and I want to get that down to 15-20.
So that’s the news on the cats! For now.
3) How is this for exciting news? I scheduled my LASIK surgery! I will be getting my eyeballs lasered on Friday, October 6th and I couldn’t be more thrilled about it! I will have to finance the majority of the surgery, so I opened up a Care Credit account for it. It was really scary to do that and know that I am taking on additional debt to afford this procedure, but I also plan on paying it off in full in 18 months (or less) and won’t incur any interest during that time. It makes sense to me to get it done now rather than waiting, as I’m already in my mid-thirties and want to be able to enjoy many years of glasses-free living! I will for sure tell you all about the details of the procedure and my recovery.
4) I am still struggling with my nighttime routine and getting to bed at a reasonable time. I was talking about this with Kim, and she brought up the concept of “revenge bedtime procrastination,” which I had heard about before but the more I looked into it, the more I realized this was exactly what I’ve been doing. (And, of course, the Instagram algorithm served up this Reel about the phenomenon.) I don’t really have time throughout the day to enjoy my leisure pursuits because work takes priority, and then when I’m done for the day, I need to be away from any laptops/computers, so I scroll through my phone or watch TV while eating dinner. And then, suddenly, around 8pm, I get the urge to sit down at my laptop, read blogs, respond to emails, write blog posts, etc. And 8pm is when I should be starting my nighttime routine. Argh! I think the solution is to put myself on a strict schedule and try to build in some break times throughout the day when I can get away from my desk and do something fun like read/comment on blogs for 30 minutes.
5) I’m saving the best tidbit for last: Today is my brother’s birthday! He turns 37. My brother and I have always been very close, but that closeness came with a lot of fighting when we were kids. We still tend to get into one nasty fight every few years (our last one was two years ago and we didn’t talk to each other for weeks!), but we always make up. Family can be really complicated for so many people, and it’s complicated for me at times, but one thing I know for sure is that my brother has my back and I can count on him for anything.
Today would also have been my grandparents’ 64th wedding anniversary, which I trust they are celebrating together in heaven. (And yes, my mom gave her parents a really nice anniversary present in 1986! Hard for any of her brothers to live up to that one.)
Aw, happy birthday to your brother!!!
I’m VERY excited about your LASIK surgery. I want to hear all about it, because I want to get it done too. my issue is, I wear contacts, but the older I get the less comfortable they are, and I don’t like glasses. Maybe you’ll inspire me to finally do it (I’ve been thinking about it for years.)
So, I think I know that feeling you had on Monday. Sometimes it feels overwhelming- “I have to do this all AGAIN?” When I get like that, I just try not to let myself think too much, which maybe isn’t the best solution. Then once the day gets underway I’m too busy to think much anyway. A therapy appointment sounds like a good thing! I hope it helps.
I see ATGIB in your header photo!
I will share all of the nitty-gritty details of my procedure and recovery, for sure! I am so sick of wearing glasses all the time. And contacts don’t work for me because I have such a strong astigmatism. So I am ready to enter the world of glasses- and contacts-free living!
Yay for booking your LASIK procedure. That is soooo exciting. I think you’ll love it. You know my experience with PRK has been hit-or-miss, but I still LOVE not wearing glasses and LASIK is a completely different form of surgery. Everyone I know (including 3 family members) that have had LASIK consider it life-changing.
I’ve been in a funk this week, too. Yesterday I gave in and let myself have 3 hours of dozing in bed in the morning after the kids went to school. I ignored my work inbox and just focused on resting. I really needed a “mental health” day and I feel so much better today. Hope the therapy session goes well and you’re feeling energetic and happy for the weekend <3
I love that you gave yourself a mental health morning on a day you were in a funk! I basically did something similar – I had a meeting at 3 and once it was over, I made sure there was nothing pressing in my inbox and then took the rest of the day off. I just really need to get better about throwing in the towel and letting myself have a mental health day when I’m feeling crummy like that.
Sometimes those moods hit us. I’m glad you’re feeling better, and I hope the therapy session helps as well.
LASIK! Yay! I have considered it, but at my age, it would mean that I wouldn’t be able to read tiny things close up anymore. And when I was your age it meant that I would have had to wear reading glasses to see my computer. I thought, ‘why would I want to have surgery and then need to wear glasses anyway?’ No thanks. Of course now that I’m older, I have to wear reading glasses to see my computer, so I got there anyway.
I’m sure I will need reading glasses at some point, but only having to wear them during certain activities and not 24/7 is so worth it to me!
Yay Lasik! I had it done a really long time ago, my husband got it this spring, and we’re both very happy campers. I agree 100% on getting it now rather than waiting.
Revenge bedtime procrastination!!! This is the first time I’ve ever heard that and YES YES YES – no I’m not saying that anyone should do it but YESSSSSSSSSS. It’s the ultimate ME time!
I am so excited to finally get this procedure done. I just keep thinking about all the ways my life is going to improve, like actually being able to SEE MY FACE when I’m putting on makeup! (Which I rarely do these days, ha, but still!)
I am so good at that revenge bedtime procrastination game! Too good?!
I’ve not heard of “revenge bedtime procrastination” but I instantly understand it. I remember a neighbor who was an RN saying that it’s not the amount of sleep you get it’s the joy you get from not working that rejuvenates you. Somehow this concept reminds me of her advice. You gotta take care of yourself, somehow.
Yay about the Lasik. I hear great things about it.
Yes, there’s just something about the joy of not working and having free time that I get to use whatever way I please! I guess this is why parents institute bedtimes for their children; I just need to do the same for myself!
That is so exciting about LASIK!! I am so happy for you! It will be worth the expense to not have to buy glasses, do vision exams and all that goes along with being vision impaired!
I totally know what you mean about being overwhelmed by all there is to keep a house running and to be an adult. I felt like that a lot when I lived alone. I still get overwhelmed at times but more so about balancing work and kids and fitness and social time, etc. It’s tough!!
It is going to be so nice to not have to worry about new glasses/sunglasses every other year or so. And all of the other benefits of being able to see without corrective frames! I can’t wait for that experience for me!
I hope your therapy helped! I have totally had days like that where I wake up just so over all the things I “have” to do. It’s so rare we get a day off (vacation, maybe, if we aren’t in charge of planning!).
I am glad you have a plan with the cats! And have your LASIK scheduled! YAY!
I feel like #4 is so directly related to #1! Did you bring up revenge bedtime procrastination to your therapist too?
I didn’t. We actually had a lot of other things to discuss and didn’t even get into this feeling of overwhelm/bedtime routines. Thankfully, we’re meeting again in 2 weeks so if I’m still feeling so burned out/overwhelmed, I can bring it up to her then. I probably should have just taken a mental health day on Monday but just tried to push through. I need to remember to stop doing that!
One day I will get there, I have a weird fear of people doing things to my eye balls… Unfounded or maybe too many horror movies lol
Feeling low.. Can absolutely relate to that, gad it as better as the week progressed. I used to hate my first district and I would get major Sunday blues. Turns out, I was in a wrong school, at the wrong district. Now I actually look forward to Mondays 🙂
I have a friend who hates having things done to her eyeballs. She feels like her vision appointments are worse than a dentist appointment! (I cannot relate, lol. I’ve always loved my vision appointments!) Another friend who got LASIK done told the office that she doesn’t want any details on HOW the procedure is done, just the price. HA.
Happy birthday to your brother! It’s a special day for me too – it is my youngest son’s birthday and he just turned 18!
I’m so excited for you and your LASIK journey! It is SO worth it!
Sorry you had a low time this week. Sometimes it IS overwhelming, everything that has to be done every single day. You aren’t alone in that for sure!
I always forget that your youngest son and my brother share a birthday! Happy birthday to your son!
I am so excited to get LASIK. I’m counting down the days!
Totally recommend taking breaks during the work day! A while ago I made the effort to stop randomly glancing at email or looking things up online, and instead I take a few minutes to read or work on a creative project. I was just wasting time both ways, not being productive at work or properly taking a break. Unfortunately this doesn’t work when I’m in the office, but if you work at home it’s much more feasible.
I should have been more honest and say that I *do* take breaks during the workday; they just tend to be longer breaks. I’ve also gotten into a bad habit of taking a mid-day siesta, but then that means I have to work late to get everything on my to-do list done! Argh. I’m glad for a flexible work schedule (we don’t have to be logged in 9-5), but I need to be better about HOW I use this time.
Do you like to sleep in sometimes? I’m thinking of many people I know whose cats are fed on a schedule and if they try to sleep in, the cats wake them up. So maybe try giving them their first meal a little later in the morning? Not at 6 or 7, but maybe 9 or 10, when you’ve been up awhile?
I can’t speak to whether your cats are being over fed or not, but with our last two dogs, if I had fed them the amount the bags suggested, they would have been really overweight. Just like people, their metabolisms are different, so you want to see what works for your cats vs. the average.
They usually eat between 7:30-8:30, which is perfect for me! I’ve never fed them breakfast at 6! That’s way too early and I do not want them to think that’s when they get breakfast. No way!
I’m not using the feeding instructions on the cans/food bag. I’m just using the calorie counts and have done outside research to determine the right caloric intake for the cats on a daily basis.
LASIK!! Wow! I’ll be interested in reading all about it.
(Yes to what Jules said about taking the recommendations from pet food companies re: number of calories with a grain of salt. To maintain her weight, Zelda is on about 2/3 of the recommended calories and Hannah is on about half! I think the use the metabolism from the most active of animals and my girls are not that.)
I’m not using the feeding instructions on the cans/bags. I’m using the calorie information. I’ve already determined what their calorie intake should be on a daily basis, and I base how much I feed them on that. And until they both start eating ALL of their breakfast/dinner, I’m not too worried about that right now.
Oh I know revenge bedtime procrastination *very* well….. I’m right there with you on needing to get to bed earlier. It’s one of the things I struggle with too because night time is so quiet and calm and it seems like a good time to catch up on all the things *I* want to do.
There was a good episode of NPR’s Life Kit about revenge bedtime procrastination: (https://www.npr.org/transcripts/1105122521) I liked the suggestion of setting a “go to bed” alarm. I used to do that, and maybe I should start again.
I’m excited to read about your Lasik experience! I have worn glasses since I was nine and I can’t imagine the world not being blurry.
Oh, thank you for that podcast rec! I’m going to listen to that episode because I need some helpful advice for sure!
I’m so excited to be able to see the world CLEARLY from my own eyeballs! I got glasses in 4th grade so I am READY for this experience.
Sorry to hear you were in a low place at the beginning of the week. I know that feeling of life overwhelm. I don’t get it often, but every now and then, I just don’t want to do any of the things that I usually do without thinking about them twice. So weird.
Happy birthday to your brother. I love it so much that you’re so close. And happy wedding anniversary to your grandparents. 🙂
I am excited about your LASIK surgery. I know you’ve been wanting to get that for a while.
Life overwhelm is so real! I’m glad you don’t get it often – it can really make doing everyday routines such a struggle.
THIS –> “Usually, all of the stuff that comes with living doesn’t bother me much. But every now and then, it makes me want to crawl under the covers and hibernate for at least a week.”
Were you in my head again? There are weeks when I think, what do you MEAN I have to vacuum AGAIN? I just did that LAST week! (read that in a whiny voice and you have the gist of what it sounds like in my brain) Wish we lived closer so we could commiserate about our lack of desire to do adult like things all the time. 🙂
LASIK! Since I’m commenting so d*** late, I hope it went well!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Can’t wait to hear about it!
And oh, sibs. I love my brother – always have. We don’t talk as much as we did when we lived at home, obviously, but when we do talk we’re so totally on the same wavelength. There’s nothing like a good sibling relationship.
I would LOVE to have whiny coffee dates with you about not wanting to do all the things required of being an adult. Why is life so exhausting at times?
I’m glad you have a good relationship with your brother! <3