Gratitude Catch UP 1/17 and 1/24 Post 3

Things were pretty busy around here over the past couple of weeks.  I was soaking up some sun in Florida last Friday so I'm playing catch up today.

Leads me to my first list of things to be grateful during the week of 1/13.

1.  I got to fly to Florida in the middle of a cold winter week in Chicago and attend our annual sales meeting.  A few of us ladies who work together decided to stay the weekend.
2. By staying the weekend I avoided a huge flight delay and cancellation of flights due to a heavy snow storm moving through the Chicago area.
3. I got a sunburn during the winter!

This week has been a quiet week.  Nothing as exciting as last week but quiet can be good too!

1. My mother's birthday was this week.  She has been gone almost 16 years.  She would have been 78 years old this week.  I don't know what she would have been like at 78.  She was a tiny little thing but smoked which is probably what kept her so thin and yet what took her life.  She was a nervous person with a high level of anxiety. Would she have been afraid to be old? Would she have suffered in another way with arthritis or cancer?  We'll never know and in some way I'm grateful that she was relieved of any of that suffering.  Having COPD, not being able to breath and dying at 62 was probably enough suffering for anyone.  Maybe that was easier than what she may have had to deal with later.  We'll never know but I'm grateful that she lived long enough to enjoy my two children when they were young.  I'm grateful for the time we were given and that my two children got to have good memories of their grandmother.

2. Two years ago this week my brother passed away suddenly.  It's hard to find something to be grateful for but I am grateful for having him as a brother.  I'm grateful that he made me laugh so hard I cried sometimes.  I'm thankful for being able to talk in depth about some of the hard times growing up.  I hope wherever he is he knows that we all love him and miss him very much.  There's a big hole in our family that he filled and it will never close.  We'll always be a puzzle with a missing piece but we continue to try to fill the piece with our fond memories. 

3. A lighter note, I kept hearing a banging sound in my car during the week.  It sounded like something was loose and only happened now and then.  When I slowed down or sped up as if something metal shifted.  I got home the other night and found a silver platter I had left in the car from a party.  That was the metal sound I was hearing!  I'm thankful that there was nothing wrong with the car.

This weekend we're going snow tubing with the whole family.  I'm looking forward to a great time.  Creating laughter and memories and fingers crossed no broken bones or stitches!

Until next week!

Debbie
xoxo

Gratitude Friday Post 2

A bit late but not forgotten so far.  I tend to fall off the wagon very quickly on blog posts!

This was a quiet week which wasn't so bad. 

#1 - Thankful for an uneventful week all the way into the weekend.   My MIL took a little fall this past week but she was completely fine.  Other than that blip there was nothing out of the ordinary.  The hubs was on a hunting trip and was out of town all week so each night I was able to come home and do my own thing, watch what I wanted on TV.  I'm addicted to the Netflix series Schitt's Creek and have been binge watching for the last two weeks.  In summary I am thankful for the quiet week and weekend! 

#2 - I got my holiday storage room cleaned up!  I spent most of last weekend putting away Christmas stuff and had to completely re-do my storage room. I have everything neatly put way in it's place. It's a small room and I can actually walk in and move things around now.  In summary I'm thankful for the organization.

#3 - We were supposed to get a huge storm over the weekend but we didn't get much of anything.  While I love the way the snow looks on the trees, a lovely winter scene, I don't like to drive in it.  I suppose I'd be better off in a warmer climate!  In summary I'm thankful for the small snow storm that passed through and not the snowmaggedan they predicted!

Gratitude Friday Post 1

As part of my winning 2020 focus I'm going to chose three things each day for which I am grateful.  On Fridays I'll post my three most favorites.  This is recap of Jan 1 through today Jan 3. 

I'm grateful for:

#1 A healthy New Year.  My two 20 somethings went out for New Years Eve with a big group of friends. They all started the party at our house and then moved on to a local bar.  I'm thankful that they were able to walk there and back and not be on the roads.  I'm grateful that we were all together on New Years day, safe and sound.

#2 I'm grateful for the 3 day work week I had this week and that it is already Friday!

#3 I am grateful for the easy commute.   I have an hour long drive each morning and night.  It was a shorter commute and was much less congested.  No snow and now ice to contend with either.  A plus for the Northern Illinois roads in winter.

So that's my Three for Friday.  It wasn't too hard this week since it was only the first three days of the new year. 

2020 Word of the Year and steps to stay on track.

My word for 2020 is Winning. 

I chose this word not because I'm competing with anyone but instead I want to focus on a winning attitude.  Winning at life, victorious and successful. Winning the competition against myself.  I set the rules, I am my own judge! 

I start a lot of projects, I have great intentions and then I let other things get in the way.   Maybe it's a competition against procrastination? I tend to be very good at procrastinating.  2020 is not going to be a good year for procrastination. 

Each successful endeavor will be considered a win. 

Example: when I complete a project on my list.  It's a WIN! 
Did I drink 8 cups of water today?  WIN!

My plan for a winning attitude:

Focus on the positive with gratitude. 

• I'm going to list three things each day I'm grateful for and list my top 3 each Friday. 
• Adopting a No Complaining rule. 
• Praise more 
• Judge less

Focus on Health

• Eating better - not a diet - just better choices
• More exercise
• More sleep - I'm a night owl but have to get up early for work. This will be a challenge. 

Focus on financials. 

• Save more - spend less 
• Stay home more than going out

Focus on my home.  

• Finish the unfinished. 
• Don't start a project unless I plan to do it through completion.  Plan the project from start to finish. 

Everyone likes to win at something.  It's fun to win.  I am looking forward to a winning 2020!

Goodbye 2019

I didn’t blog much in 2019 but that doesn’t mean I didn’t have anything going on.  I just didn’t give myself enough time to post.  This post is more of a tool to mark time.  There are no pictures to post.  They’re all on my Instagram feed.  

I’m sad to admit that I’ve become an Instagram junkie and spend far too much time swiping through other people’s pages and pics.  I spend more time looking at posts of other people fixing up their homes and don’t spend enough time doing it myself.  I garner some great ideas but never seem to put them into action. 

I’ve decided to make my last post of 2019 a focus on everything positive.   

What am I thankful for from 2019?

• We’ve had a great time with our friends throughout the year.   We spend almost every Friday with our friends and sometimes it continues on Saturday and Sunday!  If nothing else can be said for 2019 it was most definitely a year filled with laughter.  
• We snowmobiled in the winter, went tubing and spent plenty of time on our boats.  We watched fireworks from the water, we kayaked and fished off of our dock.  It was magical. 
• We still have good health.  As we round our way up the hill into the winter of our 50’s I can be thankful that we have no major health issues.  A kidney stone here, a couple polyps removed but we haven't been slaves to doctor appointments.  Maybe it’s because of all the laughter and good times? 
• Our two children are healthy and employed and have partners who love them.    They have grasped the “adulting” lifestyle.  We have a great relationship, we all hang out together and truly enjoy one another's company. 
• I took an awesome trip to Paris for work but also combined it with a vacation.  I went with my daughter and we had an amazing time.  We fell in love with Paris.   We walked everywhere and ate and drank French wine, had champagne on the grounds of the Eiffel tower, we watched it light up at night and we even attended a cocktail party in the Eiffel tower.   An unexpected vacation for which I will always be thankful. 
• We installed a new pool and pool heater.   My children and their friends spent most of their summer weekends at our house.  We soaked in the pool, told fun stories, sang songs which also brought a lot of laughter and good times!
• Remodeled our little powder room.  Maybe some of the IG time paid off.   Still some finishing touches to be done but I'm loving it and will post some fun pics in 2020.
• I lost 20 lbs.   I will be continuing that trend in 2020 because I have a lot more than 20 lbs I need to lose.
• My word for 2019 was Accomplish.  I would say 2019 was somewhat a success.  I accomplished what I wanted to do.  I had plenty on the list but I’m not considering them a failure if they didn’t get done.  The year passed anyway and even though some things on the list didn’t make it to the finish line time moved on, the laughter still flowed and I’m ready for 2020!

Adieu 2019!

Living Dangerously

The snow has hit us hard the past few months and when it's not snowing it's freezing cold temps.  All I want to do is grab a nice warm blanket, put on some thick socks, put on a fire and curl up on the sofa to binge watch Grace and Frankie! 

So when our friends who like to snow mobile asked us to come along for their annual "couples/family" trip my first inclination was NO.  I'm not an outdoors/fast speed thrill seeker.  My biggest thrills can be found at Home Goods! I'm not usually easily persuaded but this time I caved. 

Instead of hibernating until the temps break I'm going to the Upper Peninsula of Michigan where the temps are just as cold or colder than home and the snow is definitely deeper.  To make it more interesting we'll drive fast through the wind and snow.  I hear the scenery is fantastic but I doubt I'll be able to take pictures since I'll most likely be hanging on for dear life. 

Here is what I can expect.  This is a picture from their website. 

And this is what we are leaving. 

I suppose I'm not changing much of the scenery.  The only difference is this is the view from my back door from a warm house.  The other one will be out in the middle of nowhere in the cold. 

I hope I'll enjoy it and I think it will be a great way to say farewell to winter!

Stay warm my friends. 

Word for 2019 - Accomplish

Inspirational Word for 2019

Accomplish 

VERB - achieve or complete successfully. 

I’m a person who loves to start projects.  I come up with some great ideas and jump on it with the excitement of a child on Christmas morning.  I buy the paint and the paint brushes, the fabric and the patterns.  I envision how great the results will be.  Unfortunately I’m a stress worker.  I lose my motivation until it becomes a crisis.  Things like trying to lose weight a month before I leave for vacation or decorating, painting and minor remodels to my house before a family party.  It can be stressful and in the end it doesn’t make me feel like I’ve “accomplished” anything.  It’s almost as if I realize that I can accomplish it so it’s not worth finishing.  I celebrate the win before winning! 

This year I’ve decided that the word Accomplish will be my motivational word.  It’s going to do two things for me.  First it will make me think through the project from start to finish.  Second it will make me NOT start something I’m not willing to finish.   An example is if I buy that old dresser with the intent to paint it then I must hold myself to finishing the project or not buy the darn dresser.   I use this example because I have an OLD metal dresser from over a year ago waiting to be painted.  It’s getting painted this year.  

Diet and Exercise is a big one!  I started and stopped at least ten times in 2018.  In January of 2018 I planned to lose all of my weight by my next sales meeting which is a week and ½ away.  I even bought a goal dress.  Well that didn’t work.  So now I’ll set some small achievable goals and focus on my word.   

Finally this little blog needs more attention.  I think that before and after pics will help move me towards accomplishing a goal.  The best place to document is here and Instagram. 

Happy New Year!