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Posts Tagged ‘organization’

The Agenda

01 Dec

Boyfriend and I are taking a tip from The War of Art and he is helping me have a weekly agenda meeting with myself in conjunction with this routine and list. You can read a little about this idea here. It is helping me remember little things I need to follow up on.

The agenda looks something like this:

Agenda – Week of 11/21 – 11/27

Use materials for devotions I’ve been stockpiling. Read my Bible more.

Read Juice Plus conference material first. Listen to cd/dvd’s of Juice plus and read materials I’ve been given. Once I have listened/watch them all, I will start over and do it again. After I do this, start using the websites and studying their info. (happening sporadically. It is taking me longer to exercise than planned. I am leaving it on the list though)

Talk to one new person about Juice Plus this week. (Yes, it happened)

Monday: Look up cost of Juice Plus for someone and mail info . Work on Raggedy Ann’s any time I can this week. Watch 2 Broke Girls and Mike & Molly, whether Grandbaby lets me or not. :) (I did not get to watch Mike & Molly, Grandbaby needed some Nanny time)

Tuesday: begin turkey thaw for Sunday, write Thursday and Friday Blog posts Watch NCIS. (no written blog posts, ran out of time)

Wednesday: Quidam performance that evening. (which was Fabulous! I did put a short blog post together for Thursday too.)

Thursday: Start Raggedy Ann’s, pay bills, after I work on dolls work on blog. (Yep, this happened)

Friday: All alterations, sew apron, maybe cut out 2nd one from Ikea fabric. Check if there is a Juice Plus meeting 11/29 (Did some of this.)

Saturday: Work on any leftover from yesterday, work on dolls. (Yeah, that didn’t happen)

Sunday: Sabbath rest. Take measurements, celebrate Thanksgiving (Only took waist measurement, but I’m down 1 inch! Yay me!)

I liked having the agenda to remind me of things, I almost forgot to put the HUGE turkey we bought for our Thanksgiving in the fridge Tuesday even though it was on the list. I worked 9-5 on Wednesday so I didn’t have any extra morning time to do things. Mostly though I will be working 11-7 so my plans should work hopefully.

I’ve learned not to be so hard on myself when everything doesn’t work out as planned. I have 2 grandkids in the house with me, and sometimes they need Nanny time. Other things happen to deter me too, but I keep coming back to the plan. It’s my plan. I want to accomplish the things I am sharing about. This plan is helping me do things on my life plan too. So far it’s all working together.

What do you think of these last 3 posts? Do my plans and routine seem too easy or intimidating to you? I would love to have some of you give me your opinion of this, and any ideas you think might be helpful. :) Thanks! Angela

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Posted in lists, My Plan

 

Back To Business Continued…

30 Nov

Yesterday I gave you the breakdown of my plan and what I wanted to accomplish with my routine. Here’s how things have been going for me.

I wanted to be able to do more sewing stuff in the mornings, but after trying the routine last week I had to take that out of my first routine. I didn’t stick to the routine on two of my days either, and I was grumpy and stressed to the point of tears. I did have 3 successful days of using it, and can tell it’s something I need to stick to every day. The 3 days I did it, I felt better and my devotional time really encouraged me. I will say that going through menopause has made me feel like I am riding an emotional roller coaster like I did when I was a teenager. I think that was part of my grumpy tears too. I really wish I could work that sewing time into the morning too. Oh well, maybe later.

With the exercises I am doing, it is suggested to do them for 30 days straight with only a one day a week break to develop the discipline. I have really been having some back trouble lately too. Every single day I exercised, I didn’t have that much back trouble, but as soon as I took that break (because my hours were 9-5 Wednesday and I also took off Thanksgiving) my back started hurting again. I will not take too many days off after this. I like NOT being in pain. I’m also very encouraged to know that the exercises are helping me already. By the way, the name of them is Callenetics. If you are interested and use the link provided to purchase it from Amazon, you will be helping to support this blog. Thanks!

Now, you may be saying there is no way you could do all the things I am trying to do, or you may feel like I’m not getting enough done in the timeline yesterday. That’s the beauty of these types of list, we tailor them to fit ourselves, not try to just copy someone else. If you are a list user like me, try coming up with your own framework. You will be amazed at how fast it helps you. If you don’t like being framed, ;) , but do feel a leading to get more out of your day, figure out how you enjoy structure and use that information to form a different kind of framework for yourself. I can only speak from what works for me. I would love to know any ideas you guys have that are different. It can only help us develop ourselves if we share.

So here are the beginnings of my business goals.

101 Business Goals –

  1. Share Juice Plus with at least 1 person a week.                              Ongoing
  2. Continue to network for insurance.                                                  Ongoing
  3. Network for sewing and Juice Plus as well.                                     Ongoing
  4. Take my measurements as I continue with exercise                      Weekly
  5. Complete alterations for current customer                                      November 2011
  6. Sew Raggedy Ann’s – 3 for granddaughters, 3 to sell                    December 2011
  7. Sew apron for daughter, and 1 to sell                                            December 2011
  8. Sew skirt, make sure pattern works, then create tutorial                December 2011
  9. Make skirt to sell as well                                                                  December 2011
  10. List something on Etsy                                                                     December 2011
  11. Talk to Stephanie at Pixel & Paper Designs about website for sewing.    January 2012
  12. Develop Facebook page for Juice Plus                                                 January 2012
  13. Sew baby quilts for 2 friends and make at least 1 to sell.                     January 2012
  14. Make the purse from my Scandinavian book                                         January 2011

 

This list will grow and change as things develop, and as I continue to look through my sewing projects. I am also taking an idea from the book I reviewed a few posts ago, The War of Art. I created an agenda, and will be using it weekly to help me keep up with some things. I will share some on it tomorrow. I would love to hear any ideas or suggestions you have for me too! Thanks! Angela

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Posted in lists, menopause, My Plan, overcoming

 

Time To Get Back To Business

29 Nov

Some of you have shared that posts like these encourage you, help you set your own goals, and give you ideas. For me, sharing these things helps me be more accountable to what I hope to accomplish. According to multiple sources I have been led to over the last few weeks (books, magazines and even movies and teachings), I need to be more disciplined in my life to be successful. At anything. Period. The book The War of Art called it turning pro, versus being an amateur. Nothing mystical to it, it is just a decision I need to make, a decision of my will to do something, and then just do it. Do it for keeps instead of just playing around. Reading some of my Juice Plus materials, it was basically the same trait I was seeing in those who have been successful there as well. I was really inspired by the ‘can do’ attitude. I have been told for a few years that ‘you can’t.’ I didn’t realize until the last few weeks how much hearing that over and over had poisoned my mind, my attitude and because of that has weakened my abilities.

So, time for this buttercup to toughen up and get her head back on straight.

Having the life plan (the 101 goals for my life I have been building) is helping me realize that lists are very powerful for me personally. I am making a separate 101 goals for my 3 businesses: Sewing, Juice Plus and still as an insurance agent. Le sigh. I still wish I was a really cool James Bond agent. Nonetheless, I am going to write all this out and use this post and others to try to hold me accountable to what I want to do.
My biggest desire in this process is not to way overshoot my abilities and over schedule myself to the point of disaster. I have done that in the past more than once. Overbook myself to the point of failure. Things do take longer than I want them to or think they will. Things don’t always go according to plan. Hence this too will be a living document, subject to change.

So Lord, I am right now praying for wisdom to do this well, to give myself incentive and not discouragement to attain the goals I hope for myself.

The following is a daily list I plan on following strictly for 30 days. I usually do well with a stricter policy the first 30 days to establish the new routine in my life. This works for days I work 11-7 as well as days off. Days I work 9-5 I will adjust.

1. Get up at a regular time every day. 7-7:15AM (up by 7:15 most mornings, I am so not a morning person)
2. Eat breakfast, coffee, vitamins – this takes me about 10 minutes. 7:15-7:30AM (worked into devotions)
3. Read my devotions. 30 minutes 7:30-8:00 (started devotions at 7:30, finished at 8:20)
4. Exercise. I am currently using Callenetics. 1 hour 8-9AM (actually 8:20-9:30)
5. Got ready for work, til about 9:50AM
6. Read Juice Plus material, need to educate myself about it (‘til about 10:15AM)
7. Get ready for work. Leave at 10:30AM
8. Work 11AM-7PM I will be working insurance 4 days a week. (The days I’m not working insurance, I need to work on sewing projects and on ways to share Juice Plus with others.)
9. At 7PM go home. Have supper, do evening chores: pay bills, wash laundry, prepare more sewing projects, write blog posts, etc. Allow myself to watch 1 hour of shows that I like that only come on 3 nights a week, or maybe have an evening out.
10. Regularly read for at least 30 minutes in evening as well. Work with Heartmath, read my business books, sewing information, Juice Plus magazine, etc.
11. For me to be successful, I need at least 8 hours of sleep. So that means go to bed before 11PM. Some people don’t need that much, but I have learned that I do. So I probably better shoot for 10:30 bedtime, then I should make it by 11.
12. I also believe in a Sabbath rest day, for some this is Sunday, for others it is Saturday. My weekly routine will include one of these as well.

With the holidays during this time, I will take those days and celebrate with my family. :) These days will hopefully also be reward days I can give myself for staying on task up to that point.

I will share some of my progress tomorrow along with the beginning of my 101 Business Goals. Thanks, see you then, Angela

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Posted in lists, My Plan, overcoming

 

I Can Be Whatever I Want To Be….

13 Oct

“I’m a young Norwegian princess or a milkmaid
I’m the greatest prima donna in Milan
I’m an heiress who has always had her silk made
By her own flock of silkworms in Japan..”

Continuing with yesterdays adventures of reorganizing my sewing corner, here’s where we are now: trying to make everything I own sewing wise fit onto the new shelves we put in my bedroom last time. Let’s start by giving me some working space. The shelves came with an additional desk we added. :)

Next, we added a few doors and drawers as well. These shelves are from IKEA’s Expedit series, and have all sorts of handy pieces you can add to them to make them multifunctional.

It was really starting to come together, I still had several holes to fill…

I needed to finish cleaning off the desk too….

Finally I had everything from the old shelves now dispersed through the new shelves, AND I had plenty of room left over to put several of my sewing books on one of the corner shelves. There was room left over, so I used it to add even more of my stuff. Also joining me in my corner are Mad Hatter and Capn Jack Sparrow, a couple more of my favorite things. It is so nice to have room for all of it, and I still have 2 empty drawers. Nice!

We also were able to hang my ‘Hippie Lights’ (as my granddaughters call them) above the desk area and that helped add supplemental light I needed for my projects. Not only that, I really love those lights, so having them in my corner is very special. It really is my own little corner.

Thank you for joining my on my adventure. Who knows where we will head next?
“…Just as long as I stay in my own little corner
All alone in my own little chair.
I can be whatever I want to be.
I’m a slave from Calcutta I’m a queen in Peru.
I’m a mermaid dancing upon the sea
I’m a huntress on an African safari.. it’s a dangerous type of sport and yet it’s fun
In the night I sally forth to seek my quarry
And I find I forgot to bring my gun.
I am lost in the jungle all alone and unarmed when I meet a lioness in her lair
Then I’m glad to be back in my own little corner,
All alone in my own little chair.”

Lyrics from Rodgers & Hammerstein’s Cinderella (1965)  :) Angela

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Posted in Adventures, organization

 

In My Own Little Corner In My Own Little Chair….

12 Oct

…..I can be whatever I want to be.
On the wings of my fancy I can fly anywhere
and the world will open its arms to me…..

I have a fondness for corners. When I was younger I would watch Rodgers & Hammerstein’s Cinderella in reruns and sing and dance along to the whole movie, especially the little song I have shared above. As it turns out, my sewing space is currently in a corner in my bedroom. I am blessed to have a nice big room. Back in July I got industrious and decided it was time to clean up my sewing area and put my new shelves from IKEA together and start using them. After all, we (Boyfriend and I) had bought them in May. So yeah. It was time. And yes, this is October and I am just getting around to sharing my adventure. I will procrastinate no further. First, we had to move a little furniture around and put the new shelves and desk together. That went something like this:

Nobody Puts Baby in the Corner - Step 1

 The instructions that came with the shelves from IKEA were easy to follow, and very simply written. Boyfriend discovered that they use pictures instead of words for all the instructions. We both got a real kick out of them! They also supply all your little odd tools like awls and the screws, nuts, bolts, pegs, etc.

Next Few Steps....

How many pieces came with this thing? Oh my goodness….

Almost there……

A Couple of Hours Later ~ Finished!

Now, how were we going to get these 250 pound shelves into my room? :) Boyfriend and I could not even get them off the floor, but just in the nick of time Son-In-Law came home. He and Boyfriend got the shelves up off the floor and slid them right in to the corner that was going to be their new home in my bedroom. Yay!

They made it!

This is a picture of just part of the stuff I needed to go on the shelves….yikes! I didn’t take a picture of the shelves when I first started unpacking them, they were packed to the gills, not a bit of room anywhere. I was looking forward to organizing all this stuff out in the open on the new shelves so I could see what I had and use it more. Tomorrow I will share the photos of completing the process. Talk to you then! Angela

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Posted in Adventures, organization

 

Plans. I. Have. A. Plan

20 Jul

I wanted to explain a little more about what brought me to the point that I felt using a life/career coach would be beneficial for me. I work with the public daily, and what I see are a lot of confused people. Their lives have not turned out the way they were told they would. “If you get an education, you will have a good paying job. If you are great at what you do and hardworking, you will succeed and get ahead in life.” These things aren’t always true anymore. We can often become disillusioned and lose our focus and drive in life. It’s easy to become frustrated and lose hope. I had.

I went to Alan Melton for help. I needed to be able to sift through my information and the information around me to figure out what I wanted to do with my life and with my career. Through that 4 page questionnaire, Alan was able to help me do just that. The questionnaire helped me with the things I mentioned in the last post, and also helped me identify stressors and energy drainers that were causing me to lose focus and motivation. I also learned one very encouraging fact: if nothing improves for me in my current situation, I will still reach my goals in 10 years. Wow. I have been headed down the right path, but because of my confusion I couldn’t see it. Clarity is a wonderful thing. :)

Personally I’ve seen a strong improvement in my day to day routine. Before working with Alan I was struggling just to put my day together, whether it was a day at work or a day at home. Now I’ve become much more productive and I am able to organize myself much more efficiently. I use to have really strong abilities in personal organization, but problems in my work environment (mostly the fact that we can’t control what situation walks in or calls in being in the insurance industry) caused me to struggle putting my day together. This meant that many times my days were happening to me instead of me being the leader of my time. Now I’ve become much more productive, I’m able to organize and work through my day, having a strong emphasis on my goals.

I have a plan. I am working the plan. The day and its problems are not working me. My frustrations have been replaced with clear goals. I am already seeing results. If you would be interested in completing Alan’s questionnaire to help yourself, you can contact him at: amelton (at) smallbusinesscoach (dot) org. I highly recommend it to help get you back on course. Alan is a hired coach, so there is a fee for his help, however I will not receive any compensation for this recommendation, I am simply offering it to help you.

Now, below are the things the questionnaire helped me see to be my values and vision. I will share them today along with my basic goals. I shared the 101 goals in the last post.

Vision – In 2016 I will be helping others build a better life for themselves. No matter what my chosen profession, I will make a positive impact on those I encounter.  I like helping others improve their life and learn better ways to do things. I like to help build people up emotionally, to improve their financial picture and/or improve their relationships. I will help people improve their lives. I love the old adage “Give a man a fish and you feed him for a day. Teach a man to fish and you feed him for a lifetime.” I want to help others learn to sustain their lives as well as live it.

I will start a ministry that helps people in the US pay off their homes and manage their budget so that they may keep their homes. I will help with Samaritans Purse and other ministries that help the poor, especially children. I will be known as a loving person that helps others enjoy being a part of my life as well. I want to be known as someone who is fun to be with.

Values

I treat people honestly, educate customers, and do my best to solve problems for them and friends. I am supportive to friends when they are going through problems. Sometimes it is just standing back and encouraging them to keep going; not doing anything physically. I give others the benefit of the doubt in a problem situation and work through things instead of just jumping to conclusions and mandating solutions.

I like being a Christian and I have a good relationship with God, Jesus and the Holy Spirit. I don’t look at Him/Them as a religion, They are my friends. I like serving/helping others in a variety of ways: physically, emotionally and to try to help others learn responsibility for their actions. I get the principal of sowing and reaping. I know that it is a physical principal that works, whether I am a gardener in dirt or a gardener in soul, whether I am faithful with stuff or a slacker with stuff. It all produces seeds that reproduce, good and bad.

Goal: Develop $75,000 in annual income. This will allow me to be debt free and own my home in two years and to accumulate $500,000 in net worth by 2021.

Plan A: Out of debt by 2013 and $500,000 net worth by 2021

Plan B: Out of debt by 2021 and $130,000 net worth by 2021 (this is the one where if nothing changes I will still be debt free in 10 years)

Action

These action are to help me develop additional streams of income to help me reach my goals.

  • Explore the following career options: Writer, life coach, ministry                 Dec 2011
  • making things with my hands i.e. sewing, Juice Plus consultant, Etsy          Sept 2011
  • Owning an insurance office          Plan A  (I am able to get my income up to $75,000)           Feb 2015
    Plan B   (nothing changes from my current situation)            Feb 2019
  • sales ( this is more my personality than a job, but I use this skill in my current job as well as in the new careers I am developing)

 

So, look like I’m gonna be a busy girl for the next few years. :) I can continue with my current financial situation and still reach my goal in 10 years, or I can figure out new streams of income to supplement my current income and get out of debt earlier. I have a plan and I will work my plan.  Hope this finds you doing well in your plans as well. Angela

 

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Posted in My Plan

 

Plans. I. Have. Plans

19 Jul

As I mentioned in one of my grateful posts, I have sought out the services of a business/life coach, Alan Melton. I spent several weeks working on a questionnaire that helped me pinpoint several things I knew I could do as a career. It also helped me identify several things I now know for sure that I don’t want to do with my life/career.  It also helped me formulate a vision as well as write out my values more succinctly. I am going to be working on a mission statement for my life and my career as well, but I have not started that one yet.

Another thing listed in the questionnaire was for me to make a list of 101 goals for my life. I am up to 70 or so and have 1 accomplished so far. I also have these things listed with an approximate date of completion. The great thing is that this is a living plan. The ideas are concrete, but my dates can be flexible. If I am not able to accomplish my goals by the time I have estimated, I don’t have to bypass them, I will just have to move my dates forward.

The only real problem I am having so far is that I am suppose to have 5 accountability partners. The 4 I have approached so far have said yes, but only 1 has been able to find time to meet with me. So, I have decided to use my blog as a sort of accountability too. I wanted to share this with you as a post anyway, and now I would also like for any of you interested in helping me stay focused to volunteer as a partner. If you are interested in this, just let me know in the comments. Maybe you have something you are working on that you would like some encouragement and accountability with. Let me know.

This is the beginning of my 101 goals thanks to the questionnaire that the coach had me use. I will share my values and vision along with my basic goals in a separate post.

1.      Review my plan with accountability partners quarterly                                 Quarterly

2.      Read and share my values and vision with someone weekly or more          Ongoing

3.      Visit Hatcher Garden for stress reduction                                                      Ongoing

4.      Eat my veggies (5 alive- 5 servings of raw fruits and/or veggies a day)      Ongoing

5.      Keep meeting new people through Chamber, PNC, etc                     Monthly/ongoing

6.      Reduce “white death”- white sugar, white flour, bleached foods

7.      Join a church for support group                                                                 Ongoing

8.      Keep meeting new people                                                                               Ongoing

9.      Read Philippians 4:8 frequently: “…whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things.”

10.  Try recipes I have been collecting in a notebook                                            Monthly

11.  Get passport together                                                                                    December 2011

12.  Get Callenetics recorded to DVD                                                                  July 2011

13.  Begin regular self development for career and income.
Audio, books, seminars                                                                                               ongoing

14.  Transfer my “vacation mentality” into weekly/daily breaks             ongoing

15.  Find ways to be a servant leader                                                                    ongoing

16.  Clean and straighten all my bookshelves                                                       December 2011

17.  Read lots of positive thinking books and listen to tapes                                ongoing

18.  Consider using positive affirmations                                                                    July 2011

19.  Redesign my sewing area   :) (Yay! My first list accomplishment)             July 2011

20.  Take regular vacations to the beach                                                                    May 2012

21.  Begin exercise program- walking in morning (while praying)?                      Nov 2011

22.  Develop daily/regular blog posts                                                                     Oct 2011

23.  Clean/reorganize dresser area                                                                          Dec 2011

24.  Develop Juice Plus business: set income goal for business                            Nov 2011

25.  Develop a business plan for Juice Plus                                                           Jan 2011

26.  Share my plan with five other people: Boyfriend, 4 others                          Sept 2011

27.  Learn how to tweet                                                                                         Nov 2011

28.  Sell my stuff on Etsy                                                                                      Dec 2011

29.  Make curtains and tablecloth for Boyfriend                                                      Feb 2012

30.  Recover chairs for Boyfriend                                                                                Feb 2012

31. Daily blog entries/Facebook/Twitter/Linkedin                                              Dec 2011

32.  Check out TweetDeck to enter a post once to multiple social media             Dec 2011

33.  Set up Linkedin acct for blog                                                                            Dec 2011

34.  Make Raggedy Ann dolls for my grands                                                       Dec 2011

35.  Make decision(s) about career(s)                                                                    Dec 2011

36.  Develop other sources of income: blogging, business ventures above           Dec 2011

37. Create my mission statement                                                                                 Jan  2012

38.  Design a garden for my yard.                                                                                     Jan  2012

39.  Write a blog that makes money.                                                                     Jan 2012

40.  Finish this list.                                                                                                 Feb 2012

41.  Make my own clothes again.                                                                          Feb 2012

42.  Finish organizing my closet – tear it apart and redo it.                                   Mar 2012

43.  See the Statue of Liberty                                                                                May 2012

44.  Get in shape and retain it                                                                                June 2012

45.  Lose 30 pounds                                                                                               June 2012

46.  Develop 30 hour workweek                                                                            July 2012

47.  Fly in a hot air balloon                                                                                    Aug 2012

48.  Skydive                                                                                                           Aug 2012

49.  Refresh French                                                                                                Aug 2012

50.  Go hang gliding                                                                                              Sept 2012

51.  Learn Spanish                                                                                                 Jan 2013

52.  Learn to swing dance                                                                                      Jan 2013

53.  Learn Free motion sewing techniques                                                            Mar 2013

54.  Publish a book                                                                                                 Sept 2013

55.  Visit Alaska                                                                                                    2013

56.  See Northern Lights.                                                                                       2013

57.  Meet the girl and her family I am supporting through Compassion in Guatemala                           2013

58.  Develop $75,000 in total income from businesses and salary                        Dec 2013

59.  Save $100,000                                                                                                            Dec 2013

60.  Pay off my Discover debt.                                                                              Dec 2014

61.  Begin paying extra (Discover payment) on home mortgage       Jan 2015

62.  Buy a Harley Davidson Soft Tail Deuce                                                        Dec 2015

63.  Buy 1 brand new Mustang.                                                                            Dec 2015

64.  Visit the Australian Outback                                                                          2016

65.  Visit Hawaii                                                                                                    2016

66.  To start ministry that helps people own their homes                                      Dec 2016

67.  See the Grand Canyon.                                                                                   May 2017

68.  Travel to outer space, experience weightlessness                                           2019 or as soon as it’s publicly available

69.  Pay off my mortgage                                                                                      Dec 2021

70.  Retire at Folly Beach.                                                                                     Dec 2021

That’s my list of goals to date. As I said, I am still working on it. :) I will update as I create new items too.

The following are a list of the things I have accomplished in my life in the last 5 years. I will be adding to it as things on the goal list are completed.

Accomplishments

Divorce (if you knew my situation you would understand why this is an accomplishment. :) )

Started new career

Bought a house

Grown closer to family

New circle of friends

Many missions trips

Paid off VISA Card  and I no longer use this card

Hired a business coach to develop life plan

Took vacation in 2011

Sewing area organized July 2011 #19

Creating regular blog posts as of Aug 2011 #22

Shared my plan with more than 5 people, and continue to share it Sept 2011 #26

Learned how to Tweet, Nov 2011 #27

Daily entries on Facebook and Twitter, regular blog posts, Nov 2011 #31

Well, that’s the end of what I am sharing today. This is being shared for 2 reasons. First, to help me be accountable to the things I would like to accomplish. Secondly, to hopefully encourage some of you to try this for yourself. It is very similar to what some people call a bucket list. If you start your own, please let me know and I will be glad to share a link of your ideas and plans as well. In the meantime, excuse me please. I’ve got work to do. :) Thanks, Angela

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Posted in lists, My Plan

 

Wonderful Monday….

06 Jun

Well, I may be a little facetious in my title, but this is the day I want to share those things I have been grateful for. It’s been a busy life lately, so I will pick up on my gratitude list where I left off a few weeks ago. Alrighty then, let’s get started!

1. I am grateful for movies. :) I love going to the movies, buying popcorn and a drink and sitting back and enjoying the big show in front of me. I have updated my Movie page so pop over and have a peek at what I’ve found entertaining lately.

2. Greek Festival in Greenville. We went on Saturday May 21 and had a wonderful lambburger, some fantastic lemonade and wonderful fried cheese and calamari. The booths of stuff were fun to check out too. So I’m grateful for fun things to do in the area I live in.

3. Ikea! I am really grateful for a store that I enjoy shopping in. From the size of the haul it looks like we liked it a little too much :) .

Mostly the boxes are the shelves Boyfriend and I will have for storage. The backseat is full of organizing stuff for the shelves and a few goodies we found for fun. I do not normally like to shop at all….I know…I’ve said this many times in this blog. :) But I did enjoy Ikea. If you have one in your area you need to just drop in and check it out. The one in Charlotte we go to is ginormous! There is also a lovely dining area on the top floor and the food is reasonable and tastes great! If you like to shop, you may never leave….

An Ikea truckload!

4. I am grateful we got to go on vacation, and I will share a post or two on that soon. We went again to Folly Beach, SC and the Charleston area. Something about being at the ocean helps me feel even more connected to God. I love going, period. I am thankful for the chance to go there.

5. I am grateful for three thing in this example: creativity, recycling and upcycling. We met some very creative people at Artisphere, here is another picture of some of the fun things we saw:

Fobots by Amy Flynn

I love anything to do with recycling or upcycling. Amy Flynn does both with her creations. Visit her website for more information.

6. I am grateful for little 2 year old girls pretending to read to me and putting everyone in the family in her story. Precious to listen to. Just precious. :)

7. I’m grateful for all the new friends I am making through this blog. I love our comments and shared visits. I really look forward to seeing which of you has dropped by each day. And I am loving all the creative things so many of you do and share. I should move this to my Number one spot :) .

8. I am grateful for the many friends I have on Facebook now as well. I haven’t been able to meet many of them in person yet, but some plans have already been made for the next time they or I are in the same area. Fun stuff to look forward to!

9. For good yard sale finds! We were able to replace my small cooler and a roasting pan for $5! Love me some yardsales!

10. Lastly today I am grateful for weekends. I’m usually sorry to see them go, but I will try to remember what Dr. Seuss said: “Don’t be sad it’s over, just be glad it happened!” I’m very glad my weekends happen. :)

Would love to hear what you are grateful for. There is a pretty mixed bag of stuff here, but as I read over it I know something about it now that I didn’t know at the beginning. As I said in my opening you could take my “Wonderful Monday” a little facetiously, but after writing this all out it has become very true. Have a wonderful Monday and a lovely week everyone! Angela

 

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Posted in Adventures, gratitude, organization, Yard Sales

 

Our Lists…..

20 Jul

Today’s challenge for the 31 days to build a better blog is a list post. That got me thinking about lists themselves. What kind of list would I write a post on? A list of movies I have seen, a list of movies I LOVE! Maybe a list of books I have read, or of favorite family memories. I could write a list about funny things my children use to do, or funny things my grand-kids are doing now….dont’ forget my comment from one of my granddaughters recently: Nanny! Potatoes come from french fries! Thanks to her, I have several funnies I could list.

So, back to lists. Yes, I am a list maker. I like to make them so I can check things off, to have that little extra oomph of completion at the end of a day. I have decided to write a list post of lists I use regularly, and some I might like to use sometime.

1. Grocery list – we all gotta eat, right?

2. Chore list – my ugh! list. Can’t forget to scrub the toilet, right honey?

3. To-do list for work, prioritize! Reading that blog on chocolate should probably NOT be on this list

4. Packing list: I have one I keep to jog my memory for trip packing. I am notorious for forgetting things, especially right now. Seems like menopause is kicking my arse quite regularly with that one.

5. Birthday list: again, a memory issue. All 3 of my children will tell you I am bad with dates. I know the month I had them, and usually the year (thank you son for being born in 1980), but can be fuzzy on the exact dates. But really, there is a reason. My first daughter, second child, was born on Memorial Day. That’s in May. I also have a sister born on Memorial Day, again, in May. BUT….It’s NOT THE SAME DATE! Talk about confusing someone…..I guess I can’t blame it all on menopause….oh well….I’ll blame it on my Dad. :) He would actually agree…..Either way, I am bad with dates…..

6. Amazon Wish List: I mean, come on! This is one of the greatest lists ever invented! I get to put all this stuff on a list that other people can see, other people who are going to BUY me things….ooohhhh……aaaahhhh……I rub my averice little hands together, just thinking about all the goodies I could get! I love prezzies…..Really, who doesn’t?

7. Blog idea list. This is the blog. ‘Nough said.

8. Goals list: Last year, Alan Melton challenged my networking group to come up with 101 things we wanted to do in our life. Business, personal, experiential. I think this was one of the things on that list…will have to pull it out later and see. Then I can check it off. Yay! Instant gratification.

9. List of Bills: this should probably be higher in this list, but I just remembered it. Yes, I have each bill wriiten out by due date and amount. It’s called a budget people. And God help me if I don’t stay focused on it, I get into all KINDS of trouble! But sometime those books are calling to me, just calling my name, really, just mine. I have to buy them when they do that. I just have to.

10. List of Books I’ve Read: I don’t do this one, but I should. My daughter does, she will stay up late trying to remember the one she forgot to write down, will keep tracking her memory until she finds it too. As I said, I don’t do this, but should. It would help me stop checking the same books out from the library over and over, usually just because I like the way the cover looks. But not my daughter. She knows, and can tell you. I like that list.

did I say yum?

Johnny Depp, yum!

11. Favorite movies, or movies I’ve recently seen. These were listed in my opening paragraph, but I felt like it was a good idea to include them here as well. I think I will start new pages about books and movies. :) Maybe I will have a whole section just on Johnny Depp. I think he’s dandy!

12. A Johnny Depp list: Yep, this will be a definite one, then I can just write down all the deep Depp stuff I wanna….

13. What do I want to be when I grow up list: You need to read the book, Crush It! Another reason I am writing this blog, and still trying to find out what my passion is. It is very inspiring, and will make you think long and hard on some things too.

14. Bucket List: If you haven’t seen the movie, this is a list of things you want to do before you kick the bucket. Do you want to skydive? Me too! Do you want to trek across the great wall of China? Well, probably not me. But you can, then I will let you write a guest blog or two all about it :) ….

So, why do we write the lists we write? To keep us organized, to help us remember important and mundane things, to keep from overlooking something needful or someone important to us. What are some of the lists you use? I would love to hear about them. I may need to add your lists to my lists, so let my lists get back with your lists, and we’ll see if we can set something up, OK?

Have a great list-making, item-checking-off day!

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Posted in Deep Deppness, humor, lists, organization

 

In Overdrive, Overwhelmed and Frustrated….

15 Jul

So, what to do when I feel overwhelmed with life? Sometimes I feel the need to hire someone to take care of some of my incidentals, but who really has the money for that? I’m still trying to figure out this blog stuff, working on drafts that don’t make it to this page. I am like you and have my regular life pulling on me always, this week my daughter had a serious cut to her hand we had to take care of, and she is a mom so her little ones also had to be taken care in the interim. One is 6, and the other is 1 year old, and of course when Mommy got hurt both babies got upset. It was an interesting evening that is for sure

So, how do you handle the stress of everyday life? Do you take long baths to relax, drink lots of coffee to have energy to deal, or something else? I am realizing I need to get back to some old habits I’ve used in the past. One is making lists for things I want to accomplish. Write it out, make it plain. Then as I finish these written tasks, I can check them off the list and give myself a feeling of accomplishment! Yay! One done, a couple hundred to go….

Another thing I need to start doing is to stop kicking myself around so much when I don’t accomplish the things I mean to. I waste an enormous! amount of time doing that, I bet you do too. We are constantly badgering ourselves for things we don’t get done, things we don’t have time to do, things we drop the ball on. I think a better use of time and energy for all of us would be to simply pick ourselves up and dust ourselves off and spend the energy starting over instead of beating ourselves up. I think I’ll add that to my lists…..

I also took a course earlier this year called HeartMath from Bonnie Tollison with Creative Health. It has been very helpful in helping me learn to control my body’s bad habits like jumping into overdrive every time something happens. I have tools I use on those crazy car rides home not knowing if my daughter’s finger is attached or not so I can keep myself together enough to be a help and not a burden in stressful situations. Check it out. It’s very scientifically documented that we can override the old ruts in our brains with new information, and it can really help our health. If you are in the area and can work with Bonnie, she is one of those rare jewels you only find once in a while in life.

What are some things you do to try to help yourself with the everyday stresses? I’d love to hear your ideas too! Post a comment to share with all of us…

So, I don’t think you need to hire a life coach necessarily to help you, I am going to get a new notebook and start writing things down again, and I can at least give myself a little feeling of accomplishment by checking them off when done…..

On a lighter note, the 6 year old granddaughter shared this with me too: Potatoes come from French Fries! I hope you find that as useful as I do, have a smile on me ok? Hope some of this is helpful to you too! Talk to you soon….

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Posted in Ponderings