On the go with the Gaudreaus....

Today's blog post, take two.

Spent an hour on this post the first time, but somehow lost the whole thing. Are you kidding me?? One of these days I will learn to save repeatedly.....

Sitting at lunch yesterday, I decided to share the fact that I have started a Happiness Project. Why do I do this to myself?? As much as I love my co-workers, they just don't get it. That's OK... because after all, this project is for ME, not for them. So let them laugh and poke fun at my project, and I will just let it go, knowing that they really do want me to succeed. They don't realize how seriously I'm taking this project, and they can't comprehend WHY I would want to spend time establishing goals, tracking progress, finding a sense of accomplishment about things as seemingly silly as ironing my pants.... *sigh*. One of my very best friends jokingly told me I need to "get a life." Um, hello.... little did she know, but she's not far off there. I HAVE a life, so technically, no, I don't need to get one. What I do need, though, is to make the most of it! :)

So this week has had its positives and negatives, but I'd rate it as more of the former. The most negative thing is that I haven't yet made it to the gym, but on the other hand, I have used Wii Fit every day, and that's actually not a bad workout. (Plus, mastering the advanced level on the skateboard arena made me feel VERY happy...lol!) I have been eating according to plan, drinking more water, and wearing makeup to school. I even took the extra time to iron my clothes yesterday, because the last thing I need is to feel like I should be featured in "The People of Wal-mart" videos! These little things I've done over the course of the last 3 days have definitely had the cumulative effect of making me a bit happier day to day. I always feel better when I feel in control of my food choices and know that I am doing the things I should be to treat my body with care. Mind and body connection for sure.

Want to share an excerpt from a blog that I came across thanks to my friend and trainer Matt Thorne, who posted a link to this on facebook. How to Waste Your Life

In case you don't feel like reading the whole thing... let me share a couple of thoughts related to New Years' Resolutions. Made me think, to say the least. I hope you find something thought provoking in it, too.

This past New Year, you probably had an opportunity to make a bet with yourself. You may see it as a resolution, but that’s not actually what it is. It is a bet, and if you lose, you will actually be worse off than you were before. The opportunity will be gone, and you will have less hope about being able to change. You will have lost the bet, and you should treat it that way.

Most things are done quietly and without much fanfare, and because media convinces us that important things happen with a lot of excitement, we are missing out on the great victories, or losses, of our own lives.

So this is a wakeup call.

Your decisions are costing you, silently, every day, and you are putting things off because it is in our nature not to fear things which are far in the future.

But viewing it as a bet puts the loss front and center, like it should be.

You are betting your life on the resolutions you made this New Year. You should want to succeed at them very badly, and should work hard to do so– get organized and learn more about it, not just hope (which is what most resolutions really are).

Bets are won by those that are confident and those that have more information.

So win your bets by becoming that kind of person.

People associate themselves very strongly with the decisions they make (even something as simple as enjoying coffee or going to bed late), but they don’t realize that they would be just as happy being the opposite kind of person, and be just a much “themselves.”

But no, there is no risk in changing. The real risk in staying the same.

 

Thanks Monday... I needed that. Not!

Good Lord...  reality hit me upside the head today. Vacation over. Lack of sleep. Maybe staying up until midnight wasn't such a great idea, huh? Especially not when I did it because I was playing in the skateboard arena on Wii fit plus because I just HAD to beat Benjamin's score. Seriously, how pathetic is that??! I am competitive to a fault... always have been. *sigh* One of those things that I try to squash in my boys, but I'm not exactly a good example of "it's more important to have fun than to win" sometimes! :)  Of course, I did have fun though.... especially because I DID beat his score! :)

Happiness Project update

I have been thinking the last couple of days about some other ways I can measure how well I "Treat Myself with Care and Respect." I realized that I left out one of the biggies..... which of course is eating healthy foods. Duh. The more attention I pay to including healthy foods in my diet, the better I feel. Drinking plenty of water goes hand in hand with this, especially during the winter, when the air is drier and we tend to be indoors a lot more often (at least I do... I am SO not a winter person!)

So in addition to my previous list, here are the additions:

• Follow the Zone diet/eating plan at least 80% of the time. (I have followed this diet, at least in part, for a couple of years now... when I follow it strictly, I have great success!)
• Drink at least 64 oz. of water per day.
• Try to "let go" of stuff that I don't need to worry about.... I don't need any more stress than I've got already! (This is my "I can't and don't need to control everything and everyone" attitude).
• Similarly, deal with things as quickly as possible to avoid nagging stresses... whether it's as simple as picking up a sock off of the floor the FIRST time that I notice it rather than walking past it 57 times and having it bother me every time (geez!) or planning out my 3rd grade health units well ahead of time so that I'm not trying to figure out what I'm teaching the day before I have to teach it. (This is what happens when I am making up the curriculum as I go along.... ugh.)

Admittedly, yesterday was not a super day in the self care and respect department.... only 5 hours of sleep last night, and the diet wasn't as good as it could have been, but I did get some nagging tasks done (like folding and putting away laundry, which I despise....). Today has been a great day overall, despite the fact that I had to go back to work AND I am still suffering the effects of the lack of sleep. My students were quite cooperative, and I came home this afternoon and took care of some planning for health classes.

Onward to tomorrow... looking for the positives every day!

 

 

 

One day down... am I happier yet?

Just kidding, of course! This definitely will not be an overnight success, but I feel like I took some positive steps yesterday in working toward my goal for the month. :)

I haven't made up a resolutions chart yet, and I want to keep track of my successes, so for today I'll do it here. Exercise was great yesterday... went to the gym and had my ass kicked in spin class by Robyn. Wow. I can't sign up for spin classes since I work at the gym, so unless there are left-over bikes, I'm out of luck. During the winter, needless to say, the classes fill up pretty quickly (especially during the resolution months lol), but I figured that I might have a pretty good chance at getting a bike on New Year's Day. When I called the gym at 8:45, the list was only 1/4 full, so off I went. It was a struggle, but I managed to get through the hour long class without collapsing, so I'll take that as a positive! :) That wasn't the end of my exercise for the day either. Later in the day, Noah and I did a 5 mile walk to fulfill his second class scout requirement. It was such a gorgeous day (low 50's) that I figured we had better take advantage of it and get out there while we could. It was definitely a challenge for him, but he did it, and hopefully he was proud of himself (I know I was!). This is my non-athletic boy.... and his conditioning could definitely use some work. Finally, I played Wii fit for about 20 minutes last night too.... and that was the end of my exercise for the day.

Sleep was great too... I knew that I had to get up early, so I went to bed at 9:15. Got my 7 hours in! It was nice to be able to get right up with the alarm and not feel like I wanted to stay in bed.

Wanted to share a great thought that I came across in my "Women Who Do Too Much" online calendar... seems very fitting for me:

We have so many memories we can touch.

The happy ones can be gently stroked.

The painful ones have taken on the patina of life and, hopefully, we have developed new strengths and skills to deal with them.

Have a great day!

The Happiness Project begins.....

Happy New Year!

Last night around 11, I suddenly had the idea that I really wanted to wake up to a clean kitchen for the New Year.... everyone else was sound asleep, and I had some movitivation, so I started working. I was hoping to finish within the hour, but I didn't quite get there. As the new year began, I was in the midst of scrubbing the inside of the fridge... woohoo, right? :) It was great though, honestly.... I accomplished a lot and knew that I would be very happy waking up this morning to a clean kitchen. What a great way to start off the new year... being happy. That's what this year is going to be about for me, as I've mentioned before. I want to see if I can make myself happier and appreciate my life more, so I'm starting my own Happiness Project today. I was inspired by Gretchen Rubin and her book of the same name, and even though I haven't completely worked out all the details, I do have a starting point. For each month, I'll be focusing on some different aspect of my life that I want to improve in. Honestly, it's a bit overwhelming, because I can think of so many different things that I could do better at.... between self, family, work, relationships..... there's a lot of stuff there! I don't want to try to do it all at once, of course, but it will be a building process, similar to what Gretchen did when she started her Happiness Project. Focus on one thing per month, and add another each month while maintaining the other stuff too. Admittedly, it's going to be a challenge not to let my perfectionism get in the way of this, but hopefully I'm up for the task. I have this overwhelming sense of optimism and excitement as I'm sitting here... I just know that I'm going to learn a lot and really strive to make myself a better wife, mother and friend to others (and myself!). I'm anxious to get started.

Something fun that Gretchen recently posted on her blog is about the "six word secret to happiness." It's based on the Six Word Memoir by Smith Magazine. I am thinking that I will come up with a six word phrase for each month of my Happiness Project, and that will help me to remember what I am focusing on. This month, I'm going with.... drum roll, please....

Treat myself with care and respect.  

In thinking about the year and all that I want to change, I know that none of it will happen unless I first take care of myself. When I am feeling positive about myself, I can't help but be more upbeat, and that transfers to the way that I treat others as well.

So what will this look like? Here are some thoughts about the things I need to do to treat myself with care and respect:

• Exercise regularly. (at least 5 days per week)
• Get more sleep. (aim for at least 7 hours most nights)
• Pay attention to personal care. (eyebrows, makeup, etc.)
• Don't go out in public looking like a slug. (lol)
• Keep looking forward, and leave the past where it belongs.

I will no doubt add ideas along the way, but this is my starting point. Wish me luck!