Feeling… a little anxious about running. It hasn’t been the best running week for me, which makes me feel really nervous about my race at the end of March. I know, I know. I have plenty of time, but I’m really not in 5k shape just yet. And I just want every week to be a roses & butterflies running week! Why can’t it be that way? Meh.

Reading… Yes Please by Amy Poehler. I’m only about 25% in, but I love it so far. I have such a crazy girl crush on Amy, and I think it will only expand the more I read her book.

Writing… for a really fun freelance project. I can’t say much about it, but it’s been a really interesting process so far and a good way to stretch my writing muscles in a totally different way.

Listening to… Taylor Swift’s 1989 and nope, I am not sorry about it. I even bought the album on iTunes, something I have never done, because she took all her music off Spotify, so I had to. Well played, Swifty.

Watching… Parenthood, currently. Last night was the series finale, but I’m still about four episodes behind. I’m not ready for this TV show to end! Why does it have to end? It makes no sense. I’m super bummed. What other show is going to make me sob hard with each episode?

Excited about… taking my seventh cruise in May! Yep – that’s right. My mom and I have booked another cruise. After our first cruise in May of 2011, we promised one another we would try our hardest to take one cruise a year and we have done that! This will mark five years in a row of us taking a cruise in May. This year, we’re taking a 7-day cruise out of Miami. It travels to Half Moon Cay (Carnival’s private island in the Bahamas), St. Thomas, Puerto Rico, and Grand Turk. For the past two years, we’ve taken short 5-day cruises, so I am stoked for a longer cruise. Only 106 days and counting!

Playing… Trivia Crack. It’s an obsession. And I’m not especially good at it. So it makes me feel like a moron sometimes. But it’s fun! And educational! And I’m learning so much useless trivia!

Buying… new pants because nothing is fitting me anymore! In the best way – I’ve lost 10 lbs since December and it must all be in my waist and hips because my pants are not fitting me right anymore. I splurged on a pair of exercise capris (I tend to budget shop for those, but slapped down $50 on a pair of Nike running capris), as well as a pair of Old Navy skinny jeans. (I was able to go two sizes down in those! Wahoo!)

Thinking about… bangs. I have a hair appointment coming up in the next few weeks and I was scrolling through Pinterest last night and found this cut. I want it and I know I shouldn’t get it because BANGS AND ME ARE NOT A GOOD FIT. But it’s cute! And fun! And someone talk me out of this!

Loving… the #brosbeingbasic Instagram account, researching excursions for my upcoming cruise, when Dutch snuggles against me so perfectly while I’m writing, dark chocolate covered pomegranates, and girl talk.

What are you currently reading, excited about, and loving?

Feeling… insanely happy. There’s no other word to describe it. I am in this state of blissfulness and excitement about my life and the things that are unfolding. And it’s Christmastime. There’s no better time of year, in my opinion!

Reading… The Time Traveler’s Wife. Can you believe I’ve never read this book before? It’s slow going for me, just because I haven’t been making time for reading like I normally do (weird, right?), but I’m really enjoying it when I do carve out some time to sit and read. It’s so well-written!

Watching… not a ton of stuff, lately. (Are you sensing a theme here?) I do have dozens of Christmas movies taped that are taking up space on my DVR. I need to watch them! The only Christmas movie I’ve watched so far is A Boyfriend for Christmas (one of my favorite Christmas movies!) Also, I realized this the other day: I have never seen Home Alone. I laid this bombshell on someone and I swear he almost passed out from the shock. Why have I never seen Home Alone??? I must remedy that this Christmas season!

Anticipating… Christmas morning! Is there anything like Christmas morning? No, there is not. It’s my favorite day of the year!

Listening to… Christmas music! I may not be doing great with watching Christmas movies, but I am doing a great job at listening to Christmas music! I’m actually super behind on my podcast listening because all I want to do is listen to Christmas music. And I think Pentatonix’s version of “Mary, Did You Know?” is outstanding and a much listen/watch. Ugh, they are so good!

Planning… to finish up my Christmas shopping on Friday. I’m mostly finished, but not quite. I think I can knock it out completely on Friday afternoon, which will feel wonderful!

Losing… weight without really trying too hard. Ha! I haven’t had much of an appetite lately, so food has become very uninteresting to me. I’m basically just eating to eat, which is an entirely new phenomenon for me. I’m not too worried about not having an appetite, but I dearly hope it comes back soon. But hey! Yay for pants fitting better and not feeling like a slave to my appetite anymore. (I lost four and a half pounds last week WITHOUT TRYING. Go me?)

Falling behind… on Holiday Council work. I still haven’t even done the first worksheet! I’m thinking I might carve out some time on Thursday evening to make some peppermint hot cocoa and snuggle into bed with my worksheets, listen to the calls, and get back on track.

Realizing… that I am most certainly the opposite of a movie buff. Do you know how many movies I haven’t seen that just about everyone has? A list, of sorts: Jaws, Home Alone (as mentioned above!), The Goonies, Top Gun, Braveheart, The Patriot, and many, many others. I’m just not a movie person, I guess!

Loving… scented candles, my coworkers and the fun we have throughout the day, Christmas lights, productive work days, chilly mornings, tinted lip balm, and SeaWorld adventures.

What are you currently reading and anticipating?

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?

Feeling… a bit out of sorts lately. I’m not sure what’s going on, but I’ve felt a bit crabby lately. I have a short fuse, and I get annoyed by the slightest things. I haven’t been sleeping well lately, so maybe that’s why? I hope so, at least, and I hope I can snap out of this funk soon!

Writing… very little. I really want to make fiction writing a normal part of my routine, but it’s been really hard trying to fit it in. My weekends are filled with writing posts for this blog, being social, and having downtime so I haven’t figured out a way to also work on my novel. Luckily, I have my writing partner and we meet a couple of times a month (less now since she teaches college courses on top of a full-time work schedule so her time is very limited!), but I want to get into the habit of writing for at least 2-3 hours every weekend. Something’s gotta give!

Reading… The UltraMind Solution by Mark Hyman. I first heard about this book from Nicole, and the premise sounded very intriguing. I’m only reading a few chapters a week so I can digest and process the information slowly. I’m not sure if I’m 100% on board with his ideas, but I’m willing to read through his research and make up my own mind about it.

Listening… to fantasy football podcasts whenever I can. I’m a little obsessed. Add to the fact that the two podcasts I listen to update five times a week (usually an hour per episode!) and I’m inundated. But I can’t stop! They’re so interesting to listen to. At least to me.

Planning… a birthday getaway. I’m not sure yet what I want to do. I’m wavering between a long weekend in Orlando or driving up to St. Augustine for a few days. I’ve never been to St. Augustine, but I’ve wanted to visit for a long time. Have you been to St. Augustine? Is it worth it?

Happy… because I won my work’s football pool! I only won once last season (and I tied with another coworker so only got, like, $30!), so I’m pretty proud of myself for kicking ass. Now, if I can win once more then I can win back all the money I’ll put into the pool over the course of the season.

Anticipating… seeing Nora next week! I’m so excited we could work it out to spend some time together while she’s in Florida for the week. The weather looks dreadful (80% chance of rain all week!), but we’ll make it work. I’m just excited to see her and give her all of the hugs I’ve been wanting to give her over the course of this year.

Enjoying… apartment hunting. It’s fun! Right now, I’m doing it solely for research purposes. There are so many apartments to choose from. I have to decide where I want to live – St. Pete? Clearwater? Largo? Tampa? – and what kind of apartment I want and how much I’m willing to pay for it. And I wanted to get an idea of how much I’ll need to pay for move-in costs. I really loved the apartment I looked at last weekend and the rent comes under budget for me – even better!

Loving… Big Brother, that football is back, playing the Wii with my nephew, the Lumosity app, cookie dough, podcasts, Dutch snuggles, Dove chocolates, and long emails with faraway friends.

What are you currently reading, anticipating, and planning?

feeling very content, relaxed, and at peace about life right now

anticipating tackling an adventure or two off my Tampa list this weekend, a girl’s trip in October, and the upcoming NFL season

reading Fly Away Home by Jennifer Weiner

thinking about how to maximize my time on the weekend. (I never seem to have enough hours in the day to accomplish everything I want to get done!)

pricing out prescription sunglasses. I want to start wearing glasses more regularly, but I need to have prescription sunglasses if so. (My eyes are very sensitive to sunlight.) Right now, Zenni Optical or GlassesUSA look to be the most decently priced. Anyone have experience using them?

happy with my purchase of new running shoes. They are cute, feel good and supportive, and were under $100. Woo!

obsessed with the film scores Pandora station. It makes writing about windows and patio products a lot more dramatic!

resisting writing the next scene in my novel. It’s an action scene and I’m not feeling very confident about writing it, so I keep finding other things to do, rather than writing the scene. Blast it!

planning to do a big closet purge next month and create a list of closet staples. I am so tired of my wardrobe, of not wearing clothes that make me feel good. I need a revamp of my closet and style.

wanting to open my heart up to something new, but scared of taking the leap. How do you take the leap when failing could mean embarrassing yourself beyond belief? Sigh.

using MyFitnessPal regularly now. I set my calorie goal at 1,600 and I’m trying to use it more as a diary than a “well, I used up all my calories so I’ll have soup for dinner.” I think calorie counting can breed very unhealthy behaviors and I don’t want to do that. I just want to see how I’m eating and adjust as needed. So far, so good!

hoping to take a solo vacation next year. Solo travel terrifies me, but I want to break out of my comfort zone and try it. I have my eye on Asheville or Savannah!

watching Big Brother because duh, it’s the summer! Big Brother is easily my favorite show to watch because I get so wrapped up in the game play and drama. I love it!

inspired by a friend who is moving to Spain for the next two years to teach. I wish I had that adventuresome spirit!

preparing to hand sew my first pillow. I’m frightened (I’m not great at that kinda stuff), but going to at least give it a try.

wondering if I should try a subscription reading service  (like Oyster or Amazon Unlimited). I like the idea behind it (unlimited books at one set price!), but it all depends on the selection. If I still have to supplement with the library, it’s not worth it for me. But both options give a one-month trial, so it can’t hurt to try them out and see how I like them!

What are you currently reading, obsessed with, and anticipating?