The Beauty of a Woman
I saw a fantastic post on one of the interior designers that I follow on Instagram. She posted tips from Audrey Hepburn about beauty…. had to share them.



Blog posts that inspire
I saw a fantastic post on one of the interior designers that I follow on Instagram. She posted tips from Audrey Hepburn about beauty…. had to share them.
I am still on my quest for “mental chicness”. This past December I wrote this blog post about having a “lovely mind”. I have been watching more of the news, reading more articles, and doing my best to stay abreast of the world around me without going into complete depression.
It is not easy. There is so much going on in the world. Not to mention silly things that go on with social media. I have been so concerned about my Youtube channel and having “trolls”. I have heard some of the other YouTubers talk about how people contact them and make horrible comments. I really don’t understand that. If you don’t like someone’s content just simply “unfollow” them. It’s so easy but then again people are crazy.
I have been continuing to read the Living the Good Long Life by Martha Stewart. It was listed as one of my favorites a month or two ago. I have now entered the section of the book called “Accentuate the Positive”.
I must admit I can be a negative Nancy sometimes so I am trying to work on that bad habit. Changing your thoughts can change your life and so that has turned into a life goal for me. In the book, Martha gives 3 tips from author Rick Hanson (Buddha’s Brain: The Practical Neuroscience of Happiness, Love and Wisdom) on how to accentuate the positive.
The first one is:
Turn positive events into positive experiences. All kinds of good things happen in your daily life that you hardly notice at all. (O.M.G. so true). Someone pays you a compliment- you barely pay attention to it or deflect it. Instead, take time to recognize every positive moment and experience it.
I know for me when someone pays me a compliment, I immediately say, “thank you Lord for those kinds words”. But that is just me…
The second is:
Savor positive experiences. Once you get used to recognizing these types of experiences, take it a step further and relish each good moment: hold on to it for 20 to 30 seconds, and allow yourself to really feel it in your body. The longer you hold these moments in your awareness, the more neurons fire simultaneously so they start wiring together to form a memory.
I like this idea of holding your moments in your thoughts. This is something I need to practice.
photo credit Annie Spratt
And the third is:
Consider how the experience is sinking into you and becoming a part of you. In other words, help weave it into the fabric of your brain and yourself.
Soak in the moments of life. I really want to work on this. With our daughter beginning high school this year soaking in moments has become a huge goal of mine.
Well, I hope that you enjoyed this post and take some of these tips and work on them yourself. I think we all get caught up in the problems and concerns of life and that we do just ignore those lovely comments that we receive.
No more ignoring…. take it in and be grateful.
(tips: Living the Good Long Life, page 169)
I bet this title alone intrigued you. It intrigued me too as it is the chapter that I am now reading in The Civility Solution. I mentioned this book back in December and I am still reading it.
Now that the holidays have passed and work has gone back to normal I can get back on schedule with reading. One of the first sentences in this chapter was, “Rudeness is the ugly face that disagreement shows when it’s mismanaged.”
I read this sentence twice…
Photo by Micheile Henderson on Unsplash
Last month I purchased a Real Simple magazine and enjoyed reading most of the articles in it. In one section of the book, it had a 12-month to-do for 2019. One of those to-do’s was starting a career journal.
I thought, hmmm a career journal? I currently do journal (see my blog post here if you missed it) but to actually have a journal dedicated to work goals? Honestly, I kind of like that idea. The article said this about the career journal…
Use a blank notebook or an app like Day One (free for the basic version; iOS and Android) to track accomplishments, note feedback you received, and list short-term goals. Ideally try to update it every day or once a week. “The more you visually see your goals and areas of improvement, the more likely you are to address them,” says Lauren McGoodwin, founder of Career Contessa, a professional-development site for women. It also serves as a source of proof points when you’re asking for a raise or promotion or looking for a new job.
I love the idea of making goals. I do have a few career goals and I am hoping that one of them will be accomplished this year. I have some extra journals in my nightstand drawer. I may have to turn one into my new career journal.
Now I don’t know if I will update it every week but about once a month sounds good to me. I do loving keeping goals. It helps me keep my vision in front of me. One thing that I am changing this year is being open to things. At first, I had my set goals and NOTHING was going to change my mind. But a recent event last year in 2018 help me to change that and helped me to be more open to different opportunities out there.
So now I don’t have my goals stuck on just one career move. Now I am much more open to exploring new adventures. So we will see what happens in 2019. I hope you all click on the link above and read the article. It is very insightful! Enjoy!!
It has now been 30+ days since the government shutdown and it has not been fun (my office has been affected by this). Sighing….. I really don’t know what to think anymore. It’s been so frustrating to watch and hear the news. I have been trying to take everything in doses. I don’t want to overwhelm myself or become engrossed with what’s going on yet I do want to still be informed.
During this shutdown, I have been trying to keep my life in order and trying to keep the right perspective. It is so easy to get caught in other people’s life frustrations and situations. Sometimes you will find yourself absorbing other people’s emotions and I don’t want to do that. I am crazy on my own thank you very much! So what I have decided to do is remain grateful and enjoy as much beauty as I can.
I am so frustrated with myself. Last summer I made a goal to go on a picnic. I did not reach that goal so I am setting it again for this year. I would like to go on at least one picnic. I think that would be a nice way to spend a quiet Sunday.
One day this past week I was thinking about all of the porch sitting that my husband and I did this past spring and summer and I thought, “we should eat outside more this year”. I don’t know why we don’t. Maybe the humidity but for the most part it gets pretty warm here and stays warm in the evenings.
It’s the beginning of a new year and I don’t make new year resolutions but I do begin to evaluate for the upcoming year. I make mental goals and ask myself questions….
photo credit Ilyas Bolato
1) How is my health? Am I exercising enough? Have I been consistent?
2) How are my eating habits? Am I getting enough sleep? Do I drink enough water?
3) Am I happy with my wardrobe?
4) Where am I with my faith?
Then last week I did a “home purge”. There were a lot of things taking up space in closets, pantries, and cabinets. It was a lot of home decor that I didn’t need. So I bagged all of it up and will donate it this week. I now have a lot more room in my cabinets. I only want the items that I use. I will also begin an “office purge” this week. I need to get rid of the items in my office too.
I have also been thinking about making appointments and seeing specialists this year. I have made an appointment with my doctor to review my cholesterol and other levels. I am also having issues with my legs. I had my daughter take a photo of the back of my leg and I have a few varicose veins. Oh no! So I made an appointment about that. I heard that natural witch hazel could help with those. So I purchased a bottle and I have been seeing results! Fingers crossed!
I have also made this a year to have my first professional facial. I have never had one, shocking I know. So that is on my list too! I look forward to making some changes and to see where some of my new decisions will take me. I hope that this inspires you too!