So, About That

Aaaand it's been almost a month since I last posted.
I am just all over the place lately!

I'm thinking I need to sit down and reorganize my life; it seems ever since starting my real job it's been more difficult for me to follow a set schedule. Well, I need to fix that!

So, I've decided: Starting on Sunday, I am going to create a new schedule for myself!
I'm a type of person who likes to have a bit of disarray in my life, but for the most part I need structure. Basically just a basic plan of when I'm going to do the few things I consider important: walking my dog, working on projects, blogging, etc.

So, here we go.
I'm going to use this blog to hold me accountable and maybe that will be the kick in the rear that I need to get back in the swing of things!!

Bonus:

Here's a picture of my adorable puppy, Rory, in his new reindeer antlers! SO CUTE!

Working Woman

Okay, so I know what you all probably think of when you hear that, but I'm not that kind of Working Woman.

I'm just a woman.
Who works.
A lot!

Now that I'm working my real job and my host job at Mellow Mushroom, I'm working 60 hours a week! Woah!
I actually love it, though. For multiple reasons.

A) I'm making BANK. It's pretty fabulous. I still have to budget, but not nearly as much as I did before. Puppy? HERE I COME.

B) I'm back on a schedule. Before, I had pretty regular hours at Mellow, but I only worked 25 hours a week. That left me with entirely too much time; I was going insane.

But now, I'm working a lot. And I'm doing things that I actually LIKE!
It's so weird getting paid to do things that you enjoy; I'm not used to it!

And now, I'm able to buy the things I want, too!
Guys, it has been SO long since I've been able to do that!

I just got an adorable Kate Spade wallet and, as I've mentioned plenty in this and recent posts, I CAN GET A PUPPY! Not quite yet. But before the end of the year, you can bet that I will be getting all of the puppy snuggles. (And not just from Snickers!)

I also just completely rearranged my room, so I'm looking into getting some new furniture!! I'm preparing myself for the IKEA trip of a lifetime!
(You can also bet that there will be a post on this ASAP!)

All of these wonderful changes are happening for me right now and I just cannot contain my excitement!!
Does anyone else have any exciting news they'd like to share?? I'd love to hear about it, people!

Healthy Eating

Is it as hard for you as it is for me?

Because I slowly came to the realization this holiday weekend that I basically just a whole lot of junk. Fried, salty, unhealthy junk.

Fourth of July? Barbecue.
Mom's birthday? Cookout.
Sunday? Pizza.

The only remotely healthy meal I had was Monday, when my dad made teriyaki chicken with rice and I made edamame. Even that is truly healthy but hey, it's better than pizza, right?

I visited my parents from Friday until Tuesday, partly for the Fourth, partly for my mom's birthday, and partly for a dentist appointment. I need to find a new dentist!!

When I got home, I really started thinking about how unhealthy I've been. And then I thought about all of the food that I'm going to eat on my cruise (filet mignon, warm chocolate melting cake, and the bread. Oh god the bread.) So, I made the decision: for the next week, until I get on my cruise, I will be eating healthier. I went to the grocery store and picked up fruit, vegetables, eggs, chicken, and green tea.

Yesterday was the first day of my new healthy eating plan, but I did very well! Hopefully I can keep it up until my cruise and even get back on track afterwards. There is no way I will be able to eat healthy on my cruise. That warm chocolate melting cake is just entirely too delicious.

Free Time Freak Out

Have you ever been so bored that you just don't know what to do with yourself?

That has been me basically this whole, entire summer. 

I'm ashamed to admit that yesterday I honestly just laid in bed for 3 hours playing with my phone.

Three. Hours.

That's when I realized that this has gone absolutely too far. But I don't really know how to remedy!

I wake up, go through my routine, do all of my cleaning, write a little, read a little, manage my email, and THEN...!

And then it's only like 1 in the afternoon and I have absolutely to do. All of my friends are working until later and I'm not one who can just sit down and watch hours upon hours of television. (Unless I'm like sick and dying, like that time I had the flu and watched 2 seasons of Game of Thrones in one day.)

So, what do I do?

I nap.

I never used to nap. But ever since actually developing a sense of time management and getting my stuff done efficiently, I've had entirely too much time on my hands. I want to shop, but I don't really have the means to do that right now.

So, I've decided: anytime I feel the need to nap, I'm going to do something productive instead. 

Nap time? Nope. Time to work out.

Nap time? Nope. Time to organize the bedroom.

Nap time? Nope. Time to do absolutely anything BUT nap.

I start working at Mellow Mushroom today, so hopefully that will help get rid of some of my free time. But, if it doesn't, I have this plan in place. Now it's just time to see if I have the willpower to actually go through with it.

Be a "Well Woman"

In case you haven't heard, this week is the National Women's Health Week!

It's almost over, but it's never too late to make a pledge to yourself to become healthier!

I myself have pledged 2 things:

1. Pay attention to my mental health
2. Get active

I hope to pay more attention to my mental health by getting more sleep and by trying to better manage my stress. 

The sleep one is probably going to be especially difficult for me, since I've got moderate insomnia and usually only get about 4.5 hours a night. Sleeping more is going to really throw off my schedule. But that should, in the end, help with the managing stress thing!

I'm also going to be constantly reminding myself that I cannot possible do everything and that is okay. I'm going to make a manageable to do list and if, somehow it does not get done, I will remind myself that it is not the end of the world!

As for the get active part, that's going to be quite a struggle. I'm not going to lie to you: I'm pretty lazy. I used to do at least 10 minutes of blogilates every morning, but it's been a while. And I tried to running thing, but I'm not really a fan.

But I'm going to try it again (okay, maybe I'm going to try walking first.)

I've downloaded the Couch-to-5k app from RunDouble, I have my alarm set for my usual 5am, and I am more motivated than ever! 

I want to look good in my bikini for my cruise in July (Eeek, so excited!) and so I'd like to lose at least 5 pounds. I have 2 months and some determination, so I know that I can DO THIS! 

And the two pledges/goals will apparently help each other out, too!

I've been told that getting regular exercise actual reduces stress levels AND can help you sleep better, so I'm excited! And sleeping obviously helps build energy for exercise, so there's that.

Let's just say that I am super excited about these pledges I've made and the changes I am making in my life! I can't wait to see what I can do and the person I can become. 

Has anyone else made a pledge for Women's Health Week? Or just a general goal you've set for yourself? I'd love to hear about it, and it would be absolutely fabulous to get some inspiration!!

May the Fourth be With You!

Happy Star Wars Day everybody!

This should honestly be a national holiday (even though today is a Sunday, so it wouldn't matter...)

I'm stuck inside right now, trying to clean up my apartment. With all of my finals (my final finals!) I have let my apartment become a complete mess. Which, if you've read basically any other post here, you'd know that I am most certainly not okay with it.

I hate messes. But I also hate cleaning. Which is why usually I just tidy up as I go along. But I haven't had enough time! Stupid finals!!

So today, instead of wandering around my apartment complex, enjoying the lovely weather and beautiful flowers in bloom, I'm stuck inside cleaning my apartment and watching QVC.

Which is also bad. Because now I really want this laptop...despite having just bought a new one last July!! 

So this is basically a struggle in every single way. 

I mean, look at how beautiful it is outside!!

I need some motivation, I just haven't found any of it yet!!

Does anyone have any suggestions for motivating myself? Or some quick cleaning tips? 

I would really appreciate it!!!

Life is Good

I posted at the beginning of this week about how hard life is.
And yesterday I posted about making your own happiness.

So today I'm going to kind of mix the two!

Yeah, life is hard. But it's also good.

Today I had an interview. A real-life, big-girl job interview.
And I left that interview feeling the best I've felt in a while. I felt happy; I felt confident; I felt good. So good.

I can't remember the last time I left an interview feeling that good. You see, typically when I have to endure stressful situations like that, no matter how well I think they went, I leave feeling jittery, nervous, and unsure.

But today, I only felt good. I knew I did well in that interview. And knowing that I have my second interview on Monday just makes me feel even better.

This is such an exciting opportunity for and I cannot tell you how excited I am!!

Has anyone else had something else in their life recently that just made them feel so fabulous??

The Sun'll Come Out

In my Look Back post about 2 weeks ago, I mentioned our national consultant that visited and directed you to her page (Lauren at The Sunny Girl, if you missed it).

Well, this week has been such a struggle and I've been having a hard time focusing on anything but the negative, which reminded me of something she told us.

We make our own happiness.

It seems so obvious, right? If we make a conscious decision to be happy, we're probably going to be, you guessed it, HAPPY. We all need to stop focusing on the negative aspects of our lives and try to focus on the good. It's hard, especially with disorders like depression and anxiety, but it's possible.

Stop worrying about that exam that you just failed and instead think of the opportunity you now have to improve yourself; instead of moping around and complaining about all of the work you have to do, get it done so you will actually have time to do something you enjoy; instead of constantly telling yourself that you can't, just once tell yourself that you can.

It's not all in the way we look at things, but about 95% of it is.

If you tell yourself that you're going to be happy and put forth the effort to be happy, then I am certain that you will be happy! And if by some unfortunate series of events you aren't happy, you can only go up from there!

Lauren also introduced us to something she calls, "The Sunny Set."

This is basically a bucket list, but instead of focusing on things you want to do before you die, you focus on all of the things you want to do while you live.
Sure, it's basically the same thing, but which one sounds a little bit more optimistic? I'm a big fan of living, you know.

Here are the top items of my Sunny Set:

• work for Kate Spade
• sing on Broadway
• meet (or, y'know, marry) Darren Criss
• meet Idina Menzel
• Move to New York

Sure, some of them don't seem that likely, but if I don't dream it, can it ever really happen?

Honestly, I think everyone should make a Sunny Set. Even if it's only a list of your short-term goals, I think it will help you feel much more accomplished and, in turn, a lot happier in your life. 

Here are a few words from Audrey Hepburn that I think everyone should consider.

And these wise words from my favorite President: