THRIVE - November

I'm trying to stay accountable to myself for the things I have set out to do. THRIVE is a big word. This is what thriving looked like in November...

1. Read A Book:  In November I finished Rising Strong by Brene Brown.  It was a good read but not (IMHO) as strong as her other books.  I'd highly recommend The Gifts of Imperfection if you haven't read Brene Brown yet but are thinking about it! 

2.  Try A New Recipe:   In November I tried a recipe for crock pot Sesame Chicken.  It was a complete and utter failure, well unless you really love the taste of soy sauce, which I don't.  I still need to find some good crock pot recipes that aren't roast or stew.

3.  Declutter:  If the van load of STUFF I took to Care & Share yesterday is any indication, November was a banner month for decluttering. Two entire Rubbermaid totes of former "guest" bedding plus a lot of miscellaneous Twin XL college bedding, a chunk of my winter wardrobe, a bunch of Jay's old computer textbooks... so glad to have that stuff out of the house!

4.  Complete An Unfinished Project:  My UFO was the long-procrastinated clean out of our basement storage room which was the source of a lot of the items being decluttered in November..

5. Improve Flexibility - um, yeah, about that....  

6. Scrapbooking - My Favorite Five - I signed up for LOAD216, so I know I'll be scrapbooking in January and February.  Not even going to try to do anything beyond my December Reflections to finish out 2015.

7.  Photography - November was a lot better. Photos of the changing leaves and fall decor actually happened, as well as Jay's annual birthday photo!

8.  Art Journaling - um, not so much.

9.  On the Wellness front - I completed physical therapy and graduated myself right  after Thanksgiving.  I'm still hanging in with the Intro to Fitness class, trying my best to keep up with the sadist instructor.   I'll be starting with a personal trainer that I like and trust in late January.  So I'm still trying.  Two steps forward, one step (or two or three) back. That's the way it goes.  

My November gratitude page.

THRIVE - September/October

I'm trying to stay accountable to myself for the things I have set out to do. THRIVE is a big word. This is what thriving looked like in September and October...

1. Read A Book:  In September I read The Infinite Sea, the second in the 5th Wave series by Rick Yancey.  I'm really looking forward to the third book!  I started Rising Strong by Brene Brown in October, but haven't yet finished it.

2.  Try A New Recipe:   In September I tried Chicken Marsala, and in October I did  Cinnamon Apple Porkchops.  Both very tasty!

3.  Declutter:  I've continued working on decluttering my digital scrapbooking supplies  At the end of August, I had 105 GB, 63,966 files in 3367 folders in that section of my external hard drive.  As of today,  I am at 98.3 GB, 59,364 files in 2919 folders.  I'm not done yet, but I consider this substantial progress! Another 3700 files gone even while I'm purchasing and downloading new stuff!

I also finally mailed a couple of packages to friends of things I had been meaning to mail out for months.

4.  Complete An Unfinished Project:  In September we finally opened our shop at Black Rose - that was a huge accomplishment.  No big UFO for October.

5. Improve Flexibility - I haven't even had the heart to do measurements in the past two months. I'll start working on this again soon.  

6. Scrapbooking - My Favorite Five - hasn't happened.

7.  Photography - other than a handful of photos taken on various trips, not much progress in September and October. BUT I'm trying to change that in November, so maybe I'll have better news to report by year end!

8.  Art Journaling - hasn't happened.

9.  On the Wellness front - Along with the diagnosis of cervical spondylosis (osteoarthritis - degenerative changes in the cervical spine) came physical therapy.  I'm working on improving the range of motion in my neck and loosening up the ridiculously tight musculature.  The good news is that the radiating symptoms down my left arm have virtually disappeared after causing me trouble for four solid months.  Four hours driving my offspring to college call still trigger it, but otherwise it seems to be okay.

I started back with an Intro to Fitness class.  The instructor is a complete sadist and the class is being taught well above my current fitness level.  I'm going to keep going (and modifying everything) until I've used up my pre-paid card class and then I'll be looking for something more in line with my current capabilities.  In the meantime, at least I'm moving!

I'm also thrilled that Cathy Zielski plans to teach another year long version of Move More Eat Well for 2016.  I need the accountability!

 September's One Little Word assignment was to write a letter to ourselves about our interaction with our word.  I made a pocket to slip mine into!

 Visit with Sarah to the Maryland Renaissance Faire

 My September Gratitude page

 October - LOTS of travel!  And something very daring - I took myself out to see the musical Wicked while I was in Kansas City.  All by myself! I had never seen it and I truly loved it.

My October Gratitude page.  We skipped out on Halloween this year and went to dinner and a movie just to avoid having to pass out candy. I'm such a scrooge! But honestly it was wonderful and there were a lot of other older couples doing the same thing - the theater was packed!

THRIVE - the Summer Review

WARNING - this a LONG post and very photo heavy at the end!

I'm trying to stay accountable to myself for the things I have set out to do. THRIVE is a big word. This is what thriving looked like in June, July, and August...

1. Read A Book:  Thanks to beach reading, I've totally knocked this one out of the park!  In June I finished THRIVE by Arianna Huffington, and two novels Heaven is for Real and Silver Siren.  In July I read Mad Dash by Patricia Gaffney and, on the recommendation of a website for Outlander fans, The Winter Sea by Susanna Kearsley.  Both were worthy novels. I have a couple more Kearsley novels on my "want to read" list.  I miss Outlander...  In August I finished off Better Than Before by Gretchen Rubin (Karen's recommendation and I totally agree that I learned a bit about myself in the reading.  I'm clearly an Obliger and need someone outside myself to hold me accountable for my goals. The downside of being a people pleaser.) and four trashy summer romance novels.  I think it's a record for me!

2.  Try A New Recipe: In June I tried a crock pot pulled pork recipe.  In July, I contented myself with trying new things at restaurants. I can't remember a specific new recipe to have tried. In August, it was OMG Chicken.  Basically bake chicken with sour cream and parmesan cheese on top.  I didn't think it was all that OMG - more like meh. :)

3.  Declutter:  Can you say OVERACHIEVER?  This is the one area where I made huge progress. But if you look around my house, you can't see a single thing that looks less cluttered or more organized. How's that?  I spent the Summer working on decluttering my digital life. What did I actually accomplish?

• Cleared out work email - from 581 MB down to 556 MB (nearly 500 MB of that is information on a legal matter that I am required to retain).
• Cleared out home email - from 164 MB down to 118 MB (may not sound like much, but that is a LOT of deleted emails!)
• Went through my yahoo email account.  It had gotten so unwieldy with junk mail that I hadn't touched it since March. I deleted over 1700 emails and unsubscribed from 46 different companies that were all sending me ads to buy more stuff... I don't need that temptation!
• My downloads folder (temporary storage for all the digital supplies I buy). I hadn't unzipped and filed these purchases in nearly a year! I started with 41 gb of information represented by 25,613 files in 1,652 folders. I filed or deleted until this folder was down to ZERO!
• My digiscrap supplies folder started at 135 GB represented by 73,545 files in 4,653 folders.  Then I ADDED most of the stuff from my downloads folder above.   I forgot to record the total at that point. Then I started going through and deleting supplies I would never use and consolidating folders.  I am currently at 105 GB represented by 63,966 files in 3,367 folders.  Given the 25,000 files I added at the outset, this means I've deleted nearly 35,000 files!  I'm not through the entire external drive yet, so this number should continue to trend downward. This has been a real lesson in how much INVISIBLE STUFF I own that hasn't been used yet.  It has really made me think hard about buying any more digital products!

4.  Complete An Unfinished Project:  See Decluttering Above. As much of a project as I can take on right now!

5. Improve Flexibility - I'm holding steady at 5" from the touching my toes.  (I was briefly at 4" but lost that advantage once my therapeutic massage stopped.)  I'm going to have to work a LOT harder to make any progress on this one.  

6. Scrapbooking - My Favorite Five - I'm tossing in the towel on this one.  I haven't done this since March.   

7.  Photography - I've been participating in Rinda's Summer Scavenger Hunt.  And I took tons of sunrise photos while on vacation. Otherwise, I haven't been doing much in the way of improving my photography skills.  Kim Klassen's class is still simmering on the back burner. 

8.  Art Journaling - The closest I've come to art of any kind in the last three months is making the Altered Art Bottles during the Summer of Color challenge.

9.  On the Wellness front - I started this year with such high hopes. This was going to be the year I would finally lose weight and kick my sugar addiction.  Instead I've struggled with a sudden and unexplained weight GAIN of twelve pounds over three months earlier in the year, constant hunger, erratic periods (which frankly I am too old to be dealing with!), and a lot of illness this year.  I joined a fitness class in June. In August, before my vacation, the teacher retired.  I'm still waiting for them to start a new class at a time I can actually attend.  My chiropractor just advised me that my insurance will no longer pay for my visits since I am on "maintenance."  Not sure how that works since my plan is supposed to have unlimited visits.   To say I am discouraged with my progress on the Wellness front would be an understatement.  But I'm not giving up. 

June documentation.

The OLW assignment was to write out answers to a progress questionnaire. I did it, scanned it, and added little photos of it in my planner.

July's OLW assignment was to add cards about songs that are speaking to us right now. I placed this in the June section because I had the space and they fit better than than in the July pockets.

June Gratitude Page

July documentation

Totally forgot I had completely cleaned up my craft space in July! :)

Shots from my trip to the shore with Deanna.

July Gratitude page.

August documentation.   What a month!!! That little bit of turquoise leather is from a new purse.

I had a banner week for steps while at the shore!

The OLW assignment for August was to document things we are grateful for.  Couldn't have picked a better month for this one!  Since I don't have a fancy cutting machine, I printed the Thankful title on regular printer paper and did some old fashioned fussy cutting.

August gratitude page.  And oh yeah - I cleaned out the freezer after the girls went back to school! Lots of really OLD stuff went in the trash.  Another project where the decluttering is pretty much hidden.

And there is my summer in a nutshell! I can't believe we are already halfway through September and it is already starting to feel like Autumn around here. I'm so not ready.   Are you???

THRIVE - May Review

I'm trying to stay accountable to myself for the things I have set out to do. THRIVE is a big word. This is what thriving looked like in May...

1. Read A Book:  I read "The Silent Passage" by Gail Sheehy. It's an old book, probably somewhat out of date from a medical standpoint, but still an interesting read. And timely for me.  And just for fun, (thanks to a birthday gift from my sister Deanna) I snuck in "Looking For Alaska"  by John Green (author of The Fault in Our Stars).  It was odd reading a book written from the point of view of a teenage boy, and I can't help but wonder if the author could have made the same point without the gratuitous teenage smoking and drinking to excess, but in the realm of Young Adult novels, this was  a decent read.

2.  Try A New Recipe: Well, let's say I created a new recipe - I really enjoy Panera Bread's Napa Almond Chicken Salad.  It's a basic chicken salad plus sliced almonds and halved red grapes.  So I consulted Google, read a dozen or so different recipes, and then made my own! Becca thought it was bland. I thought next time I'll skip the tarragon, which just wasn't the right flavor. But my family will eat chicken salad, so this is one I'll be tinkering with!

3.  Declutter:  There was no big easily defined project in May, but I did cull my Spring wardrobe down to about 1/2 of what I had owned and found it necessary to buy some new clothes. And I'm still working on the rest of the house. Bit by bit. Baby steps.

4.  Complete An Unfinished Project:  I'm counting finishing off three of the re-upholstered chair projects that had been started earlier in the year. I haven't made anymore progress on the School of Life albums because I haven't gotten back to digi scrapping yet.... maybe this month???

5. Improve Flexibility - No loss, no gain in May.  Just holding steady at 6" from the touching my toes.  I've lost the advantage I had gained from the therapeutic massage which my chiropractor is no longer willing to bill to my insurance.  Just means I'll have to try harder on my own!  

6. Scrapbooking - My Favorite Five - So what I indentified as a Favorite Five in this post back in March remain unscrapped at this point. Hey, I was busy painting and recovering chairs, remember? So they will remain on my list for June. 

7.  Photography - I'm slowly catching up with Kim Klassen's "Be Still" class.  The class is on Week 21. I'm on Week 19. I haven't done all the assignments, but I have read the information and watched the videos. And I've learned that in the future I need to avoid year-long classes with weekly assignments. I can manage monthly, but not weekly. So I'm learning. Classes with a shorter time commitment really work better for me. 

8.  Art Journaling - Truthfully, I still can't get anywhere near my craft table. So now, it hasn't happened and isn't likely to happen until we get this whole refinished furniture thing under control.

9.  On the Wellness front - During the month of May, I ate healthier and exercised more. And held steady on all the classic measurements of wellness - no loss, but no gain either.  

And here are the May pages from my One Little Word Planner:

 I thought it was quite appropriate that the pre-printed "don't forget" graphic pointed directly to my birthday!  And I was thrilled to be able to include the card I got from Karen! I was able to cut it down to fit without cutting out anything as all her writing inside was nicely centered!

 A couple of my best photos from May, along with a marvelous postcard from Miriam.

 The May assignment for One Little Word involved creating "I AM" statement cards. I decided to play with digital using the Studio Rosey Posey I AM kit. The timing of this kit coming out was perfect for this assignment and I really enjoyed creating the cards!

On tap for June:

• I'll be participating in Rinda's 2015 Summertime Photography Scavenger Hunt.  Now it is just a matter of remembering to have a camera with me (last time I was out I even forgot my cell phone!)  Are you playing along?

• I'll finish reading Thrive: The Third Metric by Arianna Huffington and participating in the companion online class through Oprah.com.  I joined in on this because it seemed to be perfectly aligned to my word. So far there hasn't been anything really new, just a lot of validation that I'm on the right path and doing the right things to care for myself!

• I've just joined a Beginner Fitness class. My first time inside a "gym" since my Fibromyalgia diagnosis in September of 2011.  I'm in a class with women in their 60's, 70's, even 80's some of whom can run circles around me (okay, but I can hula hoop better than the rest of them!). The first class totally kicked my butt. But I've paid for 24 classes and I'm definitely going back!

• My Tai Chi classes start back up in the second half of June. I'm looking forward to that!

• I'll be participating in The Summer of Color 5 run by Kristin Van Valkenburg  Kristin provides color prompts. You choose your own media and do whatever projects you like using the weekly prompts. This will be my third year participating and I'm so excited to get started!  I haven't chosen my medium yet, but I'm hoping this will be the impetus I need to get started on at least one of a number of mixed media projects floating about in my brain.  

             The class is free. Care to join me???

How To Make a Meal They Will ALL Eat!

1. Start out with a complicated Chicken & Wild Rice Casserole recipe that doesn't quite please your family.

2. On the second try, ditch the Uncle Ben's wild rice with the overwhelming flavor packets and too much salt in favor of plain brown rice. Much better!

3. On the third try, change the milk to heavy cream and the Dry Sherry to Marsala wine. Definitely improved the flavor and made the casserole much more creamy. Also realize that the instructions calling for layering the ingredients in a pan are just stupid and mix it all together in a bowl then dump in the pan. So much easier! Cut about 10 minutes out of the prep time and it cooks better.

4. On the fourth try, add peas. Ask yourself why this recipe didn't have peas in it to begin with? Seriously, what was the author thinking?

5. Remember to take a picture after you have already started serving dinner.

 6. End up with a custom secret family recipe that everyone loves and that you can share with your blog friends! (P.S. This makes awesome leftovers). And in this version I added an extra can of mushrooms. Just cause I was in the mood! 

Chicken & Rice Casserole

Course: Main Course

Cuisine: American

Prep Time: 15 Min
Cook Time: 45 Min
Total Time: 1 Hr

Serves: 8

Ingredients

• 2 cans Campbell's Cream of Chicken & Mushroom soup
• 1/2 cup heavy cream
• 1/2 cup Marsala cooking wine
• 1/2 cup Vegetable or Chicken stock
• 2 cups brown rice
• 1 package Birds Eye peas w/garlic & mushrooms
• 5 pieces Chicken Breast cut into small pieces
• 1 cup shredded parmesan cheese

Directions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

1. Cut chicken breasts into bite size chunks


2. Add all ingredients EXCEPT cheese into a bowl and mix thoroughly


3. Pour into greased 13x9 pan


4. Bake covered at 350 for 30 minutes


5. Remove cover and sprinkle cheese on top


6. Bake for an additional 15-20 minutes or until cheese is melted.

linking up with Cate's Blog Every Day in May
Powered by

THRIVE - April Review

*  Cate's Blog Every Day in May wants a list of ten bloggers we follow regularly. Truth is the only "famous" blogger I follow regularly anymore is Cathy Zielski. Brene Brown and Stacy Julian are still in my reader but they rarely post. Otherwise, the people I follow are bloggers who have become friends. And you all know who you are!  I don't want to single anyone out or make anyone else feel left out if I publish a list. So I'm using today for my THRIVE review.

I'm trying to stay accountable to myself for the things I have set out to do. THRIVE is a big word. This is what thriving looked like in April...

1. Read A Book:  I read "Find Your Happy" by Shannon Kaiser in April.  You can read my scathing review Here.  

2.  Try A New Recipe: I did!  Chicken Scallopini with Capers. I shared the recipe here.

3.  Declutter:  With traveling so much of the month, I didn't actually do a new decluttering project. But I did get all those boxes from March off to the charity shop! And I took some books to the crop to sell at the yard sale table. 

4.  Complete An Unfinished Project:  I made significant progress with Rachel and Becca's Kindergarten through 6th Grade School of Life albums. I think I have about 4 digi pages in each to create to call them done. Here are some examples of the pages I did this month:

 One thing about creating for twins... one design does double duty. I made this page twice, only changing out the focal photo.

 Becca - keeping these pages super simple

 Somehow we only had one copy of this field trip photo. Scanner to the rescue! The scanned version (with a little photoshop help) is actually clearer than the original.

 Two 8.5.x11 digi pages adhered to 12 x12 cardstock with bits of the newspaper clippings and awards program added. The pages are the same except that the ad each child drew is different and clipped directly from the paper.

 Title page for Rachel's album. They change a LOT between Kindergarten and 6th grade. And somehow I had no small copies of the 1st & 2nd grade photos, but had Fall and Spring versions for 5th & 6th grades. 

5. Improve Flexibility - A little backsliding on this one. I'm back to 6" from the touching my toes. Which is why stretching will be a priority again in May - I need to get back into the habit!

6. Scrapbooking - My Favorite Five - Not this month either, not a single one of the photos I identified in this post were scrapped during the months of March or April. I didn't think they would be. But a lot of scrapbooking WAS done and I WILL get to those photos. A few of them are what remains of finally being finished with Rachel and Becca's K-6 albums. So they will remain on my list for May. GOAL.

7.  Photography - I haven't looked at Kim Klassen's classes since I posted my THRIVE review last month. That will change soon. It's on the list of things to do.  I did manage to get outside for a few Spring shots.

8.  Art Journaling - I haven't had any time to do this, but I do have some mixed media/altered art projects in mind for this month that will likely take the place of actual art journaling. Projects I'm excited about. So stay tuned.

9.  On the Wellness front - I literally ate my way through Baltimore, the Poconos, and the Dallas area of Texas during the month of April. I enjoyed a lot of foods that I don't normally have at home (Maryland crab cakes and crab bisque, Thai, blueberry crepes, Texas barbeque...). I don't regret a single bite, but my "numbers" continue to be moving in the wrong direction.  I AM still moving more - had several days during my trips where I hit 10,000+ steps.  And walking around the block (that's about 1/2 mile in quite hilly terrain) is happening regularly at home. During the month of May, I'm committed to reigning my eating back to healthier choices and smaller portions.

And here are the April pages from my One Little Word Planner:

 I had a full calendar in April with lots of travel. The large photo shows sunset from the vantage point of 30,000 feet on the way home from Texas.

1. Numbers;   2. Work conference in Baltimore MD; 3. Crop in the Poconos with friend Krystal
4. Melissa and I at Frisco Mercantile; 5. Texas Bluebonnets in Ennis; 6. Target practice with 9 mm S&W

 April's One Little Word Assignment was to capture how our word is manifesting in our lives via photos.  The stamped copper penny is a charm I bought from an Etsy shop to have a tangible reminder.

My gratitude calendar - noting the best thing that happened that day or the thing for which I am grateful that day.

THRIVE - March Review

I'm trying to stay accountable to myself for the things I have set out to do. THRIVE is a big word. This is what thriving looked like in March...

1. Read A Book:  I read not one, but THREE books in March!  

• Being Mortal by Atul Gawande - I read this on Karen's recommendation and I have to say this should be required reading for anyone at or nearing retirement age and ALL doctors! It's a sobering read, but well written and engaging. Check it out.
• Breathing Room by Lauren Rosenfeld - Essentially this book is a new way of looking at getting rid of the things that are no longer serving you - not just your "stuff" but also your negative thoughts, toxic relationships and other clutter in your life that is holding you back from being your best self. This book took me several months to read. Good information, but not as engaging as I would have liked.
• The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up by Marie Kondo - another recommendation from Karen. It really goes hand-in-hand with Breathing Room and covers a lot of the same concepts. Kondo's difference is that she recommends you get rid of everything and anything in your home that doesn't "spark joy" - that is her measuring stick. And I know if I got rid of everything that didn't "spark joy" a lot of really useful stuff would be out of the door. Like my treadmill, free weights, and exercise ball. What I really did find useful in Kondo's book was a new way of folding clothes. Things fit much better in my drawers now and I can SEE everything! That alone was worth the price of the book.

2.  Try A New Recipe: I did!   Pork with Squash and Apples. Sorry, no photo. I started with a Betty Crocker Slow Cooker recipe that you can find here. Then I tweaked it. On the second try, I had something quite yummy!  I'll try to share it when I have time. 

3.  Declutter:  While reading the two books mentioned above, I tackled most of my winter clothing. A lot went, even a pair of jeans never worn - impulse purchase, totally not me.  Then I took a shot at the Kitchen Desk.

This is the BEFORE photo. The Kitchen desk tends to be a clutter magnet and I have been one of the worst offenders! So I rethought how it should be used (since no paperwork actually happens here, but it is a convenient repository for receipts until bills get paid.)

And here is AFTER.

Believe it or not, the stapler and tape were on the desk in the before photo!  The one file folder is for receipts which I pull out when I pay bills.  The bin under the phone is for paperwork that needs to be shredded - a job that Jay does.

We have a couple of drawers in the front hallway where we save stuff that is destined for charity.  Between those drawers and what I pulled out of my closet and dresser during March, we now have eight boxes waiting to be taken to Care & Share. 

4.  Complete An Unfinished Project:  I am so proud/happy/relieved to announce that Sarah's Kindergarten through 6th Grade School of Life album is DONE!!!  I actually ending up enrolling in "The Finishing Project" at Simple Scrapper for the extra push and accountability to finish this album. So glad I did!

This puppy is 4" thick and very heavy!

The last page created - the Title page.

One of the internal pages that just needed journaling. Definitely old style - no way would I use that paper today!

5. Improve Flexibility - I'm working on it! As of my April 1 measurements, I am a mere 5" away from being able to touch my toes... I was at 8" on January 1st!  My low back and hamstrings are still pretty tight, but this is truly a baby steps kind of goal.

6. Scrapbooking - My Favorite Five - nope, not a single one of the photos I identified in this post were scrapped during the month of March.  They will remain on my list for April, although with all of the travel I have happening this month, I'm not really sure it'll happen this month either.  And that's okay.

7.  Photography - I've been doing my best to keep up with Kim Klassen's "Be Still" class.  Just today I caught up on reviewing all the weekly material, but I haven't done all the weekly photo shoots. Hoping to do some of them in the next week.

8.  Art Journaling - I hate to admit that the prompts from the Documented Life Project and from Artfully Inspired are just not inspiring me to do any art journaling. Maybe I had an off month. Maybe it is the fact that furniture awaiting refinishing has taken over my creative space making it hard to get to my craft table... in any event... there has been no art journaling lately.  I'm actually considering "letting go" of both of these classes (one is free) and looking for another source of weekly inspiration.

9.  On the Wellness front... my "numbers" have definitely been moving in the wrong direction.  But I AM moving more and making healthier eating choices.  Continuing to experience winter weather in March made it difficult - I tend to really crave comfort food (bread, pasta, potatoes, etc.) when it is cold and snowy. I also experienced a nasty fibro flare in March. Hopefully April will be a bit kinder.  I have been attending Tai Chi - only one class left of this session - but by the time class ends, I should be able to get outside for walks!

And here are the March pages from my One Little Word Planner: