I had to take a day for regrouping. I was hit with a very rude stomach flu. It only lasted the day, but it really interrupted my day. Thursday was my day to look into what I am doing spiritually for me. I was asked by a dear friend if I was only going to be invest one hour to my spirituality every week. The answer was no. My hour of power is set aside to focus what I need to be working on for the week. On Monday I look and the money that I am spending for the week and find new ways to cut back all week. On Thursday I look at the ways that I can center myself in my spirituality, the little things that I can do to spend my time with God, praying, looking for guidance. One of the things that I came up with was my shower meditation. I really don't have a lot of time that someone isn't demanding something of me. Children, husband, work, basketball team, and now Little League. Now mind you I signed on for 99% of this so I take responsibility by trying not to complain too much. But I don't have to deal with all of that stuff for the 15 to 20 minutes that I am showering. I take that time to let the water wash away all of my stress and toxins from the day before. Thinking only positive thoughts. I am focusing on really letting some of the negativity go down the drain, and not revisiting it later in the day. Whats done is done.
The second thing that I am working on is my language. I would like to think that if I were standing before God I would not drop the F-bomb. (But if someone is going to do it... yep probably me.) So I have resolved to remind myself that profanity is a sign of lower intelligence, and try not to say those little sentence enhancers. - More later.
Sunday, January 10, 2010
Wednesday, January 6, 2010
The weigh I am....
Anyone who knows me, knows that this time last year I was battling a weird infliction. I spontaneously threw up most of what I ate. It was thoroughly unintentional and stopped after much medical testing and shortly after our household was suddenly one Ziegler female fewer. The doctors and I chalked it up to stress. I lost around 50 pounds... But I a really bad looser, so I won back 35 pounds. I don't necessarily struggle with my weight, though, now that I am 39 I do find that most of my free style of eating has caught up with me in the (rear) end.
So, today I am taking a closer look at what I eat and when I am going to start to list everything I eat. It will also say when and how often I eat. When I get this information for about a week, I will decide what needs to be changed. I know for a fact that I do tend to favor sweet and easy over hard to make and time consuming. If I make changes to my diet they also affect my children and husband's eating habits, so this will benefit more than just me.
I am not quite ready to put my foot down on the exercise mat, that will come in time. I am doing a lot of walking in class. It just happens that the two students that have questions are always sitting across the room from each other. I think they do it on purpose. I also have started wearing 3 inch heals, this is a great leg work out, every step counts.
Another reason that my diet is off right now is that Mason just started basketball, and I am still running Alex to driver's training. My urge is to get everyone where they need to be and then "stop and pick something up". For anyone who doesn't know "something" is usually unhealthy crap, wrapped in empty calories, fried in oil and served with a side of ranch and a non dairy milk shake.
My other goal is to utilize the Chicago Bears water bottle Mark gave me for Christmas- 3 times a day. And yes utilize means drink water out of it.
That is all for now... Tomorrow.
So, today I am taking a closer look at what I eat and when I am going to start to list everything I eat. It will also say when and how often I eat. When I get this information for about a week, I will decide what needs to be changed. I know for a fact that I do tend to favor sweet and easy over hard to make and time consuming. If I make changes to my diet they also affect my children and husband's eating habits, so this will benefit more than just me.
I am not quite ready to put my foot down on the exercise mat, that will come in time. I am doing a lot of walking in class. It just happens that the two students that have questions are always sitting across the room from each other. I think they do it on purpose. I also have started wearing 3 inch heals, this is a great leg work out, every step counts.
Another reason that my diet is off right now is that Mason just started basketball, and I am still running Alex to driver's training. My urge is to get everyone where they need to be and then "stop and pick something up". For anyone who doesn't know "something" is usually unhealthy crap, wrapped in empty calories, fried in oil and served with a side of ranch and a non dairy milk shake.
My other goal is to utilize the Chicago Bears water bottle Mark gave me for Christmas- 3 times a day. And yes utilize means drink water out of it.
That is all for now... Tomorrow.
Tuesday, January 5, 2010
I get so Emotional Baby...
Taking time today to sit down and really give some thought to my emotional self. Being that 39 years ago today, I came into this world crying, it leaves little to the imagination as to why I am so easily moved to tears. I laugh until I cry. I am sad- I cry. I get mad, waterworks. I drop a hat... well you get the picture. This blog time is dedicated to emotions. My main question was what makes me happy. My sister did a thing last year where she listed 100 things that make her happy. Well I only have an hour so I am only going to list 25: (in no particular order)
1) My children, their smiles and their laughter. 2) My husband, (today anyway). 3) My Mom, she is always there to tell me to take a nice warm bath, and light a few candles. I think that that is her recipe for just about anything that ailes you. 4) My sister. She is always there to vent to and I really love getting together just to laugh at the silly little things. She always lets me sing back up. 5) My brother- I know that even when I am 69 and he is 73 I will be his little sis. We may not alway see eye to eye, but he is the first person I think of when I want to tell something fun to. 6) Jennifer my best friend and sounding board, when items 1 though 6 are malfunctioning or not available. 7) My Aunt Karen, (Happy Birthday 2U2) She constantly reminds me how hard I work and how proud she is. 8) Uncle Larry... Red hair and smiling eyes... need I say more. 9) Chocolate. 10) Pizza 11) Teaching. 12) Hearing a song on the radio, and knowing all of the words- singing. 13) Really good books, 14) A really good cup of coffee, and conversation to go with it. 16) warm slippers, my Brian Urlacher Jersey and a pair of sweats. 18) football- GO BEARS!
19) surprises. 20) Finding money in last years coat. 21) Refridgerator pictures. 22)Rain 23) jokes 24) hearing little kids say thank you, with out being prompted. 25) my heating pad and my bears' blanket.
It only took about 10 minutes to come up with this list. And I am a bit more light hearted just doing this... very theraputic. I think taking some time to delve a bit deeper in what makes me happy is a good idea. Focusing on those things and not on the negative (like turning 39) will improve my mood around the house. I may even get to the other 75 some day.
1) My children, their smiles and their laughter. 2) My husband, (today anyway). 3) My Mom, she is always there to tell me to take a nice warm bath, and light a few candles. I think that that is her recipe for just about anything that ailes you. 4) My sister. She is always there to vent to and I really love getting together just to laugh at the silly little things. She always lets me sing back up. 5) My brother- I know that even when I am 69 and he is 73 I will be his little sis. We may not alway see eye to eye, but he is the first person I think of when I want to tell something fun to. 6) Jennifer my best friend and sounding board, when items 1 though 6 are malfunctioning or not available. 7) My Aunt Karen, (Happy Birthday 2U2) She constantly reminds me how hard I work and how proud she is. 8) Uncle Larry... Red hair and smiling eyes... need I say more. 9) Chocolate. 10) Pizza 11) Teaching. 12) Hearing a song on the radio, and knowing all of the words- singing. 13) Really good books, 14) A really good cup of coffee, and conversation to go with it. 16) warm slippers, my Brian Urlacher Jersey and a pair of sweats. 18) football- GO BEARS!
19) surprises. 20) Finding money in last years coat. 21) Refridgerator pictures. 22)Rain 23) jokes 24) hearing little kids say thank you, with out being prompted. 25) my heating pad and my bears' blanket.
It only took about 10 minutes to come up with this list. And I am a bit more light hearted just doing this... very theraputic. I think taking some time to delve a bit deeper in what makes me happy is a good idea. Focusing on those things and not on the negative (like turning 39) will improve my mood around the house. I may even get to the other 75 some day.
Monday, January 4, 2010
Finance 1 OH 1
Every body's finances are different. But for the most part, it comes down to one simple equation- What you make minus (-) what you spend equals (=) what you have to save for the things you want later on. Things like vacations, children's college funds, retirement... food. I have to say that I really am set on being debt free by the end of the year. Looking back over the past year, we made enough money that we should have been able to pay off a bunch of things that are still sitting in the "to be paid" file. Last years idea didn't work... throw the bills up in the air and pay the ones that didn't hit the floor. Not my best plan. This year my ideas are pretty basic.
1) stop spending money I don't have.
2) get rid of any bill that has accrued more interest than the original principal.
3) start saving every month.
See, the thing is, Mark and I make enough money that there should be something there at the end of the month. Unfortunately, we usually end up on a Mac and Cheese menu. Then we get so tired of the Mac and Cheese when the money comes in we splurge on something expensive.
This is problem number one.
Problem number two... we have been on different pages when it comes to the important purchases and how we are spending money. I want to see if this year we can pay off all the creepy little bills that we have here and get down to the House, Car, Insurance, and the Utilities... uhhh and my student loans that are in the process of being deferred until I get a full time teaching gig.
I am certain this year we will get this under control. We only owe on 3 lines of credit... less than $10,000. If we do it right we can get out from under this. I am setting up my budget, and sticking to it. Then, whatever money is left over at the end of the month, whether it is $500.00 or $0.05 it will go into savings to pay down the rest of the bills and start an emergency fund.
1) stop spending money I don't have.
2) get rid of any bill that has accrued more interest than the original principal.
3) start saving every month.
See, the thing is, Mark and I make enough money that there should be something there at the end of the month. Unfortunately, we usually end up on a Mac and Cheese menu. Then we get so tired of the Mac and Cheese when the money comes in we splurge on something expensive.
This is problem number one.
Problem number two... we have been on different pages when it comes to the important purchases and how we are spending money. I want to see if this year we can pay off all the creepy little bills that we have here and get down to the House, Car, Insurance, and the Utilities... uhhh and my student loans that are in the process of being deferred until I get a full time teaching gig.
I am certain this year we will get this under control. We only owe on 3 lines of credit... less than $10,000. If we do it right we can get out from under this. I am setting up my budget, and sticking to it. Then, whatever money is left over at the end of the month, whether it is $500.00 or $0.05 it will go into savings to pay down the rest of the bills and start an emergency fund.
Sunday, January 3, 2010
A new year... a new me... blah blah blah
I really don't want this to sound cliche. And I am not sure that this is going to work... It just seems like a great place to start.
This is all in the beginning stages and may change. My goal in one year is to feel more balanced, and be centered in my life. Only by that will I be a better mom, sister, daughter, and friend.
Here is my journey
It all began one day when I was feeling that everything in my life was so out of balance. It was a basic revelation that between my family, work, and my minuscule social life; I have no equilibrium. After some though it came to me that, I over focus on some issues that matter very little, and in return I under focus on the issues that require more thought. And as human as that sounds, I am sure that there is a need for balance.
I thought about the all of the basic points in my life that I focus on more frequently, and then I grouped them into 5 main categories: Finances, Physical, Spiritual, Social, and Emotional. If you take each of these categories (or points) they will create a star. And as I remember from many failed attempts as a child each line has to be even or the star collapses
Each point needs attention, but lately my concentration has been divided between my physical and social arenas. I have found that a majority of the other areas (financial especially) are suffering. Just like anything else that is not attended to it has grown out of control. In the same time, those areas that I focused on too much have become over scrutinized. Little things that don’t matter became focal points that have taken too much energy.
My five points are very generic and can stand for many things. For instance, Physical heading (in my world) stands for physical exercise, physical health, and physical environment. Understand that the general term “physical health” stands for: dental appointments, physician appointments, exercise, and beauty regimens. The break down has to be as individual as each person, and as flexible as possible. This schedule needs to take in account that the occasional emergency comes about. It also allows for the weekends to be an open time- time to catch up on the few things that come about usually family oriented or leisure.
Starting this is a commitment- one that requires focused individual attention. It takes one hour a day. It has to be an hour (I would not go more than an hour and a half) that is uninterrupted by any outside influences. Children, spouses, televisions, and telephones are the biggest culprits. It is best to explain to the human factors (spouses and older children) that you need this time for the betterment of all involved. You- better, means that the impact you have on everyone around you is better. When younger children are involved, it is better to do these power hours when they are asleep or at school, if possible. Your lunch hour is not a great time for this either. The fact is you don’t always have a whole hour, you need to eat, and there are too many distractions at work. Work time is not personal, you should not bring work home, nor would your boss appreciate the personal interference at work.
After writing out an hourly schedule for each weekday, I determined that I had a block of time between 4:15 and 9:45. I further determined that the best time for me was from 8:15 (after my boys were in bed, story read and faces kissed.) to 9:15 my drop off time. In all fairness anything after 9:15 will not make any sense in the morning.
Each day will have it's focus.
Monday- Finances
Tuesday -Emotion
Wednesday - Physical
Thursday- Spiritual
Friday- Social.
And on Sunday for one hour I will take time to contemplate what each topic will focus on. Saturday will be left alone. This is the best time to plan family events or get the grocery shopping done.
I have also devoted Sunday morning to a big family breakfast. This is a great time to talk about the week ahead. Who has what appointment. who has practice, or plans for a sleep over. With Mark's schedule changing every two weeks, planning ahead for the drive time helps out a lot.
So... I am ready, I think...
By the way, any feedback would be greatly welcomed. And if you have an idea that has helped you in the past. (and if it fits with the five points, let me know)
This is all in the beginning stages and may change. My goal in one year is to feel more balanced, and be centered in my life. Only by that will I be a better mom, sister, daughter, and friend.
Here is my journey
It all began one day when I was feeling that everything in my life was so out of balance. It was a basic revelation that between my family, work, and my minuscule social life; I have no equilibrium. After some though it came to me that, I over focus on some issues that matter very little, and in return I under focus on the issues that require more thought. And as human as that sounds, I am sure that there is a need for balance.
I thought about the all of the basic points in my life that I focus on more frequently, and then I grouped them into 5 main categories: Finances, Physical, Spiritual, Social, and Emotional. If you take each of these categories (or points) they will create a star. And as I remember from many failed attempts as a child each line has to be even or the star collapses
Each point needs attention, but lately my concentration has been divided between my physical and social arenas. I have found that a majority of the other areas (financial especially) are suffering. Just like anything else that is not attended to it has grown out of control. In the same time, those areas that I focused on too much have become over scrutinized. Little things that don’t matter became focal points that have taken too much energy.
My five points are very generic and can stand for many things. For instance, Physical heading (in my world) stands for physical exercise, physical health, and physical environment. Understand that the general term “physical health” stands for: dental appointments, physician appointments, exercise, and beauty regimens. The break down has to be as individual as each person, and as flexible as possible. This schedule needs to take in account that the occasional emergency comes about. It also allows for the weekends to be an open time- time to catch up on the few things that come about usually family oriented or leisure.
Starting this is a commitment- one that requires focused individual attention. It takes one hour a day. It has to be an hour (I would not go more than an hour and a half) that is uninterrupted by any outside influences. Children, spouses, televisions, and telephones are the biggest culprits. It is best to explain to the human factors (spouses and older children) that you need this time for the betterment of all involved. You- better, means that the impact you have on everyone around you is better. When younger children are involved, it is better to do these power hours when they are asleep or at school, if possible. Your lunch hour is not a great time for this either. The fact is you don’t always have a whole hour, you need to eat, and there are too many distractions at work. Work time is not personal, you should not bring work home, nor would your boss appreciate the personal interference at work.
After writing out an hourly schedule for each weekday, I determined that I had a block of time between 4:15 and 9:45. I further determined that the best time for me was from 8:15 (after my boys were in bed, story read and faces kissed.) to 9:15 my drop off time. In all fairness anything after 9:15 will not make any sense in the morning.
Each day will have it's focus.
Monday- Finances
Tuesday -Emotion
Wednesday - Physical
Thursday- Spiritual
Friday- Social.
And on Sunday for one hour I will take time to contemplate what each topic will focus on. Saturday will be left alone. This is the best time to plan family events or get the grocery shopping done.
I have also devoted Sunday morning to a big family breakfast. This is a great time to talk about the week ahead. Who has what appointment. who has practice, or plans for a sleep over. With Mark's schedule changing every two weeks, planning ahead for the drive time helps out a lot.
So... I am ready, I think...
By the way, any feedback would be greatly welcomed. And if you have an idea that has helped you in the past. (and if it fits with the five points, let me know)
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