Monthly Reviews & Blog Updates

2021 Turned Out Better Than Anticipated + Goals For My Best Year Yet! πŸ₯³

Ho-Ho-Ho Sexy wordpressers! How are you this mornin’? πŸ™‚

Right now I’m finishing my morning cuppa & I feel like sharing – I am already drafting my goals for 2022. I don’t know, the spirit’s in the air and all that jazz. You too? Tell me about it in the comments section!

Anyways, it is that time of the year (I usually do a huge purge of un-necessary physical stuff too but aside from that …) when goal-setting is appropriate.

But first, and since I went AWOL for so long, I would like to share the highlights of my 2021 especially since, I wasn’t expecting anything to come out of 2021 to begin with.

No. 1. I went plant based.

And I think I know enough to distinguish between the terms now, I could say I’m vegan but vegans do it for the environment. I’m doing it for my health primarily because … let’s just say there’s so much that’s considered “normal” out there for women in their mid-40’s (even much earlier!), that’s just not. That wonderfully disappear when you eat plants.

I even did an experiment on my 14 year old who, earlier this year, complained of irregular periods. They came back, in beautiful succession. And her face cleared up and she stopped experiencing stomach pains & her bowel movements became glorious.

But eventually I got tired of nagging. And the indomitable duo of Pizza Hut’s super mega cheesy soupy thingy with globs of pasta & meat (a.k.a. lasagne) & twice-stuffed-crust pizza ultimately won. And I had to return to wielding my power silently in the kitchen.

But I lost 16 pounds. Uh-huh! No, not from the nagging, silly! From eating plants only! So yes, jingle those bells! πŸ˜†πŸ₯³ πŸ₯³ 

What else? Ah!

No. 2. Yoga.

Yoga never appealed to me before. It looked boring. Too uneventful. Passing gas inadvertently. Awkward! πŸ™„

But the toddler and I were at each other’s throats. I needed an excuse to get out of the house and into the presence of other adults. I could only do it once a week on Saturdays, and there’s Covid so no group classes … Ahh well, one-on-one yoga classes then. I was desperate!

And now I’m hooked 😌 I don’t want to do any other type of exercise. What for? Yoga has everything I need and want – flexibility, mobility, balance, power, challenge. Ok maybe I’ll do a 30 minute Leslie Sansone here and there, but I now consider myself a yogi and look forward to prancing about in colorful & sexy yoga gear. (As opposed to, you know, those ratty tshirts & leggings because “this is just to get me out of the house anyways”).

Also, and I don’t know if this is a win but I think it’s worth mentioning ~

I stopped crocheting/knitting. I just burned out like that! I wish it happened before I invested in a closet-full of yarn because now I just don’t know what to do with it. I invested much more in yarn & knitting/crocheting paraphernalia in the past 2 years than in everything else combined, including clothes. And maybe that’s because of Covid too but, all that buying was becoming an addiction & it was getting out of hand. I think it’s also because I went on IG. A show-and-tell platform always makes life “more interesting” and the buying somehow felt justified. Does that even make sense?

So right now there’s this whole space that used to be occupied by crochet/knitting that’s just waiting for something new to come in (oooh, that’s such a nice way of saying it πŸ˜„).

~~~ oOo ~~~

And next year?

Well, next year has more yoga, more WFPB (whole foods, plant-based) eating, I am finally (finally!) going to learn how to use make-up, I will find a way to grow luscious hair, I will initiate parties, blog again, seek out online communities & go out more.

These things might seem mundane, minute even, to most of you but these are things I’ve just never been interested in or never had the chance to explore because of being an expat SAHM. Or just plain laziness and/or cockiness πŸ˜€

And you know what, I’m not even going to wait till next year! See you in my next post, yes? Love you too! 😊

Staying Sane

What Could You Buy That Could Help You Make the Most of Where You Live?

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Author Melody Warnick asks a very smart question that immediately resonated with me:

~ What could you buy (or borrow or rent) that would help you make the most of where you live? ~

For me the answer is the 2 outdoor chairs that you see in the above photo 😊

I make no secret about the fact that I LOOOOVE to spend time under the wide open sky in the evenings. I used to just stand or walk in circles looking up at the wide, astoundingly beautiful night sky, say my prayers and feel grateful & content. Evenings are usually cool and breezy making the personal time even more pleasant.

A few weeks ago I had the brilliant idea to buy those chairs and, now my evening musings are even that much more delicious πŸ’– At times my husband joins me, at times my eldest, but mostly I’m alone.Β  And sometimes, in the late afternoons, I also do my crochet outside thanks to these inexpensive chairs.

How about you? What’s your answer to the question? πŸ™‚

 

Fitness & Vanities

It’s Never Too Early πŸŒž

790d6893d4c2da333e28ba913c65e0a3.jpgHello all! Happy Monday! 🌞🌞

What one good thing will you do/start today?

For me the answer is: delving into a topic of interest!

One of the perks of being a SAHM is the wonderful opportunity to indulge in the pursuit of knowledge πŸ’– And if you have internet connection, you have absolutely NO excuse to remain intellectually stagnant! πŸ™ƒ

One of my areas of interest is ageing well and, although I’m still a long way off from being physically old, I believe it’s never too early to start establishing some solid habits that will help one age sexily πŸ˜‰

So the other week I received information about a free online course on Strategies For Successful Ageing.Β  It is a 5-week course given by the Trinity College Dublin and is but one of the many free online courses facilitated by Futurelearn.

Here’s an overview of the 5-week course:

  • Week 1: Being Older In this first week, we look at how perceptions of ageing can influence ageing, and explore our own understanding of what β€˜old’ is.
  • Week 2: Being Well In the second week, we investigate strategies for improving mental health, including depression, anxiety and brain ageing. We also discuss what β€˜quality of life’ means, and delve into other key areas for successful ageing including intimacy, how to talk to your doctor, and family solidarity.
  • Week 3: Being Healthy In the third week of our course, we will give strategies for better nutrition, increasing physical fitness through exercise, and improving your brain health.
  • Week 4: Being Engaged The fourth week of the course looks at another important area for successful ageing: social engagement and participation. You will have a chance to perform a life audit and learn strategies for how to plan for the future.
  • Week 5: Being Creative In the final week of the course, we will explore creative ageing, what this means, and why it is important. We will showcase individual creativity and provide you with tips to explore your own creativity.

Fascinating isn’t it? πŸ˜€ And you can be sure I immediately signed up!

I just finished week one (which is mostly introductory) and am excited to move into week 2. The course is self-paced so you can breeze through it as fast as you want or take all the time you need, the 5 week time frame is just a recommendation.

Aside from expanding my horizons, I’m definitely looking forward to learning a few practical tips on ageing well after taking this course.

I’ll keep you posted and, you keep me accountable, ok? πŸ˜‰

Fitness & Vanities

Lessons From A Breather

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Howdy y’all! πŸ˜‰

I’m fresh back from a well-appreciated, 1 1/2 week holiday – which effectively gave me a break from everything πŸ˜€ I love it when this happens because I always come back with a handful of mini resolutions or mini challenges for better living πŸ‘πŸ» Like …

… increasing fiber intake:

Most often while on a holiday I allow myself to completely slack off on any fitness & nutrition guidelines I have set for myself. I’m not active & I eat everything I want.

I then get bloated and constipated and then become hyper-critical about my “self-consciously gigantic” midsection each time I catch a glimpse of it on any type of reflective surface. 😢 😢 (Come now, don’t tell me you haven’t done this yourself! 😊 😊)

Instead of countering this with mad eye-make up skills to bring everyone’s (imagined) focus up instead of on my midsection, of course all that’s really required (once I stop the exaggerated reaction) is to be mindful of my fiber and water intake.

Challenge #1: add more fiber to my life (interpret in more ways than one πŸ˜‰)

~

As usual, I buy a couple of books from an airport bookstore because, although I have a Kindle, nothing beats the high of burying my nose amongst the pages of an actual, physical book. (Yes, I don’t read it I just smell it!πŸ˜†Β πŸ˜†). One of these books had this reminder/challenge #2 for me:

Increase movement throughout the day.

Also to be read as: beware sitting on your bum for long, uninterrupted stretches of time. (Calling out all fellow yarnies! πŸ˜†)

Because apparently, doing so significantly decreases our lifetime. In fact, uninterrupted bum time is more lethal than an addiction to smoking. Think about that! o_O

~

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Coconut Oil-Will-Save-the-World

My mom is 69 years old. The last time I saw her was during the Christmas holidays, on this visit however, I was amazed. Her face was brighter, even toned with a hint of pinkish glow, and somehow less wrinkly (if that is at all possible) πŸ’

She truthfully looked younger than last I saw her, we all noticed! When I complimented her on it, she said she started using extra virgin coconut oil (EVCO) on her face upon advise from her sister.

I also had coffee with a good friend who, as it happens, carries a vial of EVCO in her bag wherever she goes. She poured a tablespoon of the liquid into her coffee without batting an eyelash and, at my surprise, rattled off the billion and one uses for EVCO, and credits it for her beautiful & abundant mane and flawless complexion.

Conclusion: the coconut universe is conspiring for me! πŸ˜„ πŸ˜„ I’m reading up on the billion and one usages for EVCO right now and …

Challenge #3: … will use it to replace my 4-step nightly face cleansing ritual.

I want to see if it will work for me too πŸ˜€ I’ll let you know how it goes after a month or so.

~

And that is all for now. (Yay!)

How about you, any healthy resolutions you’ve taken up recently? Let me know! πŸ˜€ πŸ˜€

Fitness & Vanities

Flat Belly Made Easier πŸ˜‰

Happy Monday beautiful people! ☺️

Sometimes (because most times I use musicπŸ’ƒπŸ’ƒπŸ’ƒ), when I need to get myself motivated to exercise, I scour the net for nutrition or fitness infographics. A few days ago I found this and thought you’d find it interesting too – might not be new information but a little reminder can’t hurt, right? ❀️ πŸ˜€

Oh and, I’m all for the dark chocolate advice. You too?! XD XD

Have a strong start to your week, peeps!

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