April Goal #5: living in the now... at lunch.

Today at work I walked into the lunchroom and spotted my friends sitting at a table in the middle of the room.

Pulling out a chair, I animatedly exclaimed: "I'm SO hungry!"

To that my friend Martha replied, "Well, good, because we're eating lunch."

"We ARE, aren't we?!" I realized.

This was one of my first Ah-Ha moments while trying to "live in the now." I'm hungry, hence I'm eating. I'm right where I need to be: in the present. Lucky me!

April Goal #1: Food Journal

It's hard to keep a food journal! My friend Katie uses an app on her smartphone to just input things into a handy-dandy calorie counter. As I am a proud dumbphone owner, I don't have access to such an app. But I do have the internets and www.myfitnesspal.com. But if only I could remember to consistently input my food intake/exercise! It's been sporadic lately, but I'm keeping with it. So, in the spirit of "food journaling"... 

Thursday, April 19th, 2012

Breakfast:    Two Trader Joe's Whole Wheat Waffles

                    Syrup

                    Coffee (with natural creamer)

Lunch:        Brown Rice

                   Sauteed Veggies (leftovers from dinner at Happy Teriyaki)

                   Mandarin Oranges

Snack:         Fruit Snacks

                   Handful of peanut M&Ms

Dinner:        Fried Egg Sandwich

                    Chocolate Milk

Ok, ok, not a bad day today! ;o) Yay for food journals! 

Floss!

March Goal #4 REVISITED!!

The Wall Street Journal has published an article on flossing 

and thought it was great! 

The best information gleaned from the article: 

What is biggest flossing mistake?

Sawing back and forward is wrong; that can abrade the tooth, create a groove and eventually saw off the crown. (YIKES!)

You should always introduce the floss at the top of the tooth, in the gum line, and bring it down, then remove it and find an unused length for the next tooth.

Good motivation to keep on flossin'! 

Here's a link to: How to Be A Better Flosser Thanks WSJ! 

April Goal #5: Live in the Present.

My dear friend Suzie sent me a link for an article called "15 Things You Should Give Up In Order To Be Happy," and like a good happiness-seeker, I devoured the article. I did know most of the items one should abstain from, but was especially stricken with this one:


13. Give up the past. I know, I know. It’s hard. Especially when the past looks so much better than the present and the future looks so frightening, but you have to take into consideration the fact that the present moment is all you have and all you will ever have. The past you are now longing for – the past that you are now dreaming about – was ignored by you when it was present. Stop deluding yourself. Be present in everything you do and enjoy life. After all life is a journey not a destination. Have a clear vision for the future, prepare yourself, but always be present in the now.


This is especially hard for me. I am going through a transitional phase in my life and sincerely miss my old life. But the past is in the past and the future is going to be just as amazing... I just have to remember to appreciate "the now." 

April Goal #2: Pinterest Craft!

Pinterest Craft: Complete! 

I had two throw pillows with plain cream covers and was so excited to spruce them up a bit. Here is my inspiration (or should I say pinspiration?) in the bottom right-hand corner:

And here is my version:

Yay! Two new pillow covers.

More pinterest crafts to come... 

April Goals

APRIL GOALS:

1) Keep a food journal: Despite the fact that I've been working out very steadily for 6 months, I seem to have plateaued weight wise. Recording what I put in my mouth will certainly help with that! I also hope to record it into a website called My Fitness Pal that tracks calories... which will help keep me on track too, I hope! 

"Nom, nom, nom"

2) Make a craft from Pinterest: I have all these DIY crafts posted on my Pinterest pinboards... bout time to make one or two of them! I'll post pictures of what I come up with... 

"Pinterest: a place where women go to plan imaginary weddings, 

dress children that don't exist 

and decorate homes we can't afford." 

3) Join a new club: When I lived in Vancouver I was in an amazing book club. All friends, we would each bring a dish and meet at someone's house. The food was always as good (if not better) than the discussions! My new book club in Seattle meets at a pub in Belltown. I really enjoy my new book club and want to join another club - maybe board games? Maybe a german club? We'll see! 

"I refuse to join any club that would have me as a member." - Groucho Marx

4) Update my blog: Heehee, this might seem a bit meta, since I'm actually blogging right now... but I did a lame job of it last month and this month I aim to update more often. 

"I used to write...." - Arcade Fire

5) Forget the past, live in the present and look to the future: This is a little vague, but not focusing on the past is something that I really need to work on. Focus on the present: right now is the only moment guaranteed to you. Plus, things will only keep getting better and better.

"The only thing a person can ever really do is keep moving forward... 

forget the past and forge toward the future"

Gretchen's April Goals: Lighten Up – Parenthood:

1. Sing in the Morning

2. Acknowledge the reality of people's feelings

3. Be a treasure house of happy memories

4. Take time for projects