Good-Bye 2014

As the New Year approaches, I think it’s only natural to reflect back on our individual lives and begin thinking about what we want in the coming year. So often resolutions have a negative connotation to them. They are never achieved, we never stick to them, and they are too hard. While I have never been big on making definite New Year’s resolutions, I do find it is nice to stop during my busy schedule and think about what Paul and I have accomplished and what we still want from our lives. 

A cozy night at home

It’s a little surreal looking back onto this time last year and where we were. My graduate thesis was being drawn out longer than I had wanted and I still wasn’t anywhere I wanted to be with my career. There were a lot of tears and frustration. Honestly, I was having a really hard time staying positive. 2013 was a very difficult year for us. It was like we almost needed to have a blank slate and fresh start at the end of the year to get out of the mind-set we were in and change our outlook on life.  It was empowering and refreshing to look towards a new beginning as midnight chimed. Despite some of the sadness I loved how those positive thoughts made us both feel. I believe that how we view things is what 

One of my goals this past year was to create and read more

I love that resolutions give you a goal and something to work towards, I find that they are often so specific that they can be unattainable. In the last year or so I’ve come across many people who choose a word or phrase instead of a list of resolutions to help focus on throughout the year. If you’re anything like me, you have a list a mile long of resolutions or things that you want to accomplish. I find picking a word that encompasses everything I want from the year. What works best for you? Are you able to accomplish all your resolutions or do they fizzle out after 2 weeks into the New Year?

Stop taking pictures and play with me mom.

There are several goals and changes I want to accomplish this year and I look forward to sharing them throughout the coming months. I can’t wait to share some big changes there are to come! One thing I hope to continue is simplifying our lives which I’ve already wrote about here and here. I look forward to continuing the process. I also am working on getting back into shape. I am not so much interested in losing weight as much as I want to be healthier. Along with that I want to change the way my family and I eat. I look forward to posting more about that too. Along with a lot of projects and reading I have planned, I mostly want to change my overall lifestyle. I want to focus more on my family and how I spend my time. I’m looking for more quality and happiness in my life. So after a lot of thought, my word this year is family.

What is on your minds for this coming year? Any similar resolutions? I wish you all a very happy and safe New Year. May it bring a lot of joy, peace, and new adventures!

Out for a walk with the family.

Life Simplified: Update

I hope everyone had a wonderful Christmas with family and friends! I've been off the internet lately with all our travels and family get-togethers. It has been amazing seeing everyone and spending quality time with everyone. Santa was in a giving mood this year and I received a wonderful camera. As you will see from some of my photos below, I am definitely enjoying using it for literally everything. I feel like a little kid again. I look forward to sharing my journey in learning to use it more over the coming months.

With the new year fast approaching and since I've had some time off, Paul and I are really jumping into our mission to simplify our lifestyle. Later this week we are officially getting rid of cable!! It will definitely be an adjustment, but I think it will not only be good for our bank account, but also our way of life. Besides getting rid of cable we also have been cleaning out the house of excess... well junk. We both went through our closets and got rid of clothes we never wear. It can be hard to let some things go, but I'm trying to get into a practical frame of mind. If I haven't worn it in the last year, I dumped it. Not sure what Paul's method was, but I'm sure it was similar. Eli just loves to help.

I still have a few more clothes I want to go through, along with our outerwear (gloves, hats, etc.). I also want to go through the stuff we've accumulated through our marriage and stuff we've brought from our lives before marriage. When deciding what to get rid of and what to keep, I'm really trying to think practically about what we need and will need in the future. At the same time though, we really do need to get rid of the ridiculous amount of stuff we have. While I still have a lot left to get rid of, we already have quite a pile and this isn't even all of it.

We are planning on donating everything we don't need. If you are also planning on doing the same and it is a large amount, make sure to get a receipt for a tax deduction. I can't wait to see all the free space we'll have and get organized. Just need to make sure we don't fill it up with stuff again. I'm pretty excited at what we've accomplished so far. Next up on my list is changing what and how we eat. I can't wait to break out my other new Christmas present, a vacuum food sealer!!! I'll make sure to keep you all updated. I will however sign-off with this adorable photo of Eli. He is quite the ham and has enjoyed being a model whenever I break out the camera.

Christmas Prep

Hello Everyone!

I hope your holiday season is going well. Mine has been Busy with a capital B. Work has been nuts. Lots of great changes happening at school for many of our students, but it has taken a lot of work on the part of teachers and staff to help these changes go smoothly. I also am welcoming several new students and prepping for the dreaded IEP season. Along with all this, I have also been getting ready for Christmas. Cooking, cleaning, shopping, wrapping, and planning. I am a little overwhelmed to say the least. I often have to make a mental effort to stop, breathe, and just enjoy this time of year. Honestly, things have been pretty great. Just really looking forward to some time off to clear my head and work on some things I've been wanting to do.

I love creating things. I thought it was pretty smart on my part to make most of my gifts this year since I love sewing, painting, and making things. Save some money, make some meaningful gifts. You may remember from my previous post here, that Paul and I have been trying to move towards a simplified life. I find making my gifts helps me to really focus on the people in my life and what they would really like to receive. Yeah, it was a good idea, until I started running out of time. I'm being a little dramatic, but I definitely thought I would get more done than I have. Thankfully I don't have too much extra work on my plate right now, so I've been lucky enough to come home and just work on my projects. I don't want to share too many of the things I am making right now since I don't want to friends and family to get a pre-Christmas peek. I am really looking forward to sharing my different creations in the coming months.

I have, however, been making my rice packs for my little business. I never realized how much people are interested in my rice packs, but orders are going great. I'm just working on balancing them with everything else I'm making. I figured I'd share a little peek into what goes into creating a rice pack.

Example of one of my recent orders. I have finally perfected my measurements.

I love making rice packs. They are fairly easy to make (you didn't hear that here) and I use them all the time. I don't just use them for aches and pains, which they are great for, I also use them for those cold winter mornings when the car is freezing. Throw it in the microwave for a minute and you're hands are nice and toasty!

The hardest part for me when I'm making my rice packs (and any sewing projects really) is measuring and cutting. I am a HUGE perfectionist. It's really sad. This year I also am working on drying my own lavender to add to the packs. They smell so good!

All measured up and set to sew

I always have my sewing buddy during any of my sewing projects. I swear anytime my sewing machine and cutting mat come out Eli is right in my lap. I appreciate the love, but it's so hard to get anything done. I have a very technical, precise tool to get my rice in the bag. Anyway, I love making them and most importantly I love how happy they make other people. I probably have 3 different ones floating around our house. 

Enjoy your holiday season and remember your time is the best gift you can give anyone!

December Thoughts

The holiday season always brings a lot of thoughts for me. I find the more I'm stuck inside, the more I begin to reflect on my life, especially my home life. I can't help but look back on the past year and begin thinking about what is to come. Honestly the last year or two have been about healing and building for myself and my family. I have lost both my grandparents within the last two years, which I am really feeling during this holiday season. Paul and I have been through a lot with a variety of things in the last few years as well. Honestly, we both definitely have struggled with keeping a positive view on things. I have to admit though, that I am so blessed to have my best friend to support each other through "for better or for worse." I remember December of last year so vividly, trying desperately to stay hopeful. It's incredible to see where we are now.

So as this huge year closes and a new year begins, I am getting so excited for what is to come and the plans I hope to accomplish. (I know, I know. That saying that we make plans and God laughs.) Well, my plans are more goals that I am setting. They don't have to be done right away or even this year, but there are quite a few changes I would like to make with my life. The most importantly is moving towards living in a simpler way.

I'm not a huge fan of Black Friday. I think I may have participated twice in my entire life. Honestly, I HATE it. I went this past Friday with my family after lunch time. Yes, we got some incredible deals on some clothes we needed, but everyone just seemed so miserable. My family and I actually made a game of it all and had a great time just enjoying each others company. I think we were probably the only people in the store lines smiling. Well, now I'm just ranting, but the point of all this is how I hate how our culture has become so obsessed with STUFF. I know I'm not the first person to write about this complaint, but I am planning on actually doing something about it. I can't change our culture, but I can change how I live.

This year I plan out simplifying everything about my life in many capacities. I've read the blogs of many people who have attempted this journey, and a journey it will be. I definitely don't think I'll be accomplishing it all overnight. I plan to post as I complete this plan throughout this year, but I'll begin with just a general overview of what I am hoping to accomplish. 

Obviously, the first thing will be just getting rid of the stuff. I'm sure there are great strategies to deciding what things to keep and what to lose, so if anyone has any advice let me know. This includes clothes, knick-knacks, household supplies, whatever. In turn I plan to reduce our spending. No reason to fill that new found space with more junk. I also want to change the way that we eat. I want to move to a healthier and more local diet. Most importantly, I want to change to way I live my life. I want to cut down on wasted time and spend more time with my family, friends, and getting little projects done. Most importantly I want to be present. Enjoying just being aware of my environment and appreciating it. 

Most people wait until the new year to set goals and resolutions, but I am ready to start now. I can't wait to see and share with you where my adventure takes me.

Paul and I sledding last Christmas

My Life Lately

It's been quite awhile since I have posted on my blog, but things have been quite crazy lately. I don't know what it is about this time of the year, but I always feel so overwhelmed by all the things I need to do. It's so frustrating, because with the holidays approaching all I want to do is slow down and enjoy the small moments shared with family and friends. I don't know about you all, but I find myself getting so discouraged. It's like an evil catch-22. I get behind on the things I want to accomplish, then I get so depressed that I am not living up to my expectations and that causes me to get even further behind. It makes me feel so alone. I start to put what I need to get done ahead of spending quality time with Paul, family, and friends when that is what I should really be focusing on. It's taken a lot of mental effort to do things that make me happy. I am really struggling finding that balance between getting done the things I need to and making sure I am still having a happy and meaningful life. My "to-do" lists have become both my lifesaver and bane of my existence. I am a major control freak so I have had to really rely on those in my life to help me out with the things I can't get to. I am truly blessed with some amazing people in my life. 

Below is one of the photos I took this past summer at my parents house. I miss having lots of land to just go and escape to. Whenever I felt overwhelmed or upset I would go up to this clearing and the whole world would just melt away. I am still searching for a similar place here in my new home.

Oil Cleansing: Yay? or No Way!

To start with, this post was a little difficult for me to do. My face and skin has always been something I am super self-conscious about. Thanks to the blessings of my parents' genes, I unfortunately had a lot of ups and downs in my youth dealing with acne. I think mine started like most teenagers, around middle school. It got worse as I got older and ultimately went to the dermatologist. I don't know if any of you have gone to the doctor, but it is unbelievably embarrassing having someone stand over you with a bright light and list off all the things wrong with your acne. Ultimately I ended up going on birth control pills and had a regular routine of neutrogena wash and a moisturizer. By the time I left high school things were actually looking pretty good. Then for whatever reason (stress, change in water, etc), my skin went crazy again in college. It has been almost 10 years since then and I still have no gotten my acne under control like I did in high school.

I've done a lot of research on the topic and what I found out was as you get older, your skin's needs change too. I don't understand why I hadn't thought of that before. It makes perfect sense. Anyway skin care has definitely been on my mind and what are my best options. As I've gotten older I have really been trying to move towards more natural ingredients and techniques as well. (Along those lines I also have to remember that down the road if and when I become pregnant, I can't use the same cleansers I used to use with harsh chemicals.)

I am getting off topic here. So this is where I came to oil cleansing. I did a lot of research, because honestly, I couldn't get my mind around putting more oil on your face when oil is the evil culprit that causes acne to begin with! Lets start with what causes that evil acne first: 1.) No body actually knows what causes acne. Yeah, there are a lot of theories out there, but no definitive answer. This is probably why there are no perfect acne treatments out there. 2.) Over production of oil. Most people who have acne typically have an overproduction of oil, but that in itself is not the only cause of acne. This excess oil, skin cells, and bacteria get stuck in your pores and cause pimples.

Most doctors recommend fighting acne, by having you wash with cleansers that strip your skin of oil and then add more harsh spot treatments. The problem with this is that your skin overcompensates by producing even more oil. Ugh! It's a vicious cycle. 

Anyway, that has been my experience. The above routine was great when I was younger, but now my skin is so much more sensitive and dry. The basic idea behind oil cleansing is that you add healthier oils to your skin so that your skin is more balanced. I have to be honest, I am not a doctor and cannot verify a lot of the claims oil cleansing makes. You can read more about it here and here. I recommend thoroughly researching before you attempt to try this. Many sites recommend certain oils to use, but some people say those same oils will clog your pores more. Again I say, I am NOT a doctor. I can only tell you what my results are.

As I mentioned I did a lot of research and I decided to start very basic. Since my skin tends to be so dry I decided to stick with almost 100% Extra Virgin Olive Oil for my use.

To create my cleanser I used the following:
                        - Extra Virgin Olive Oil
                        - Castor Oil
                        - 100% Tea Tree Oil
                        - Clean Squeeze Bottle

A lot of the articles I read mentioned that castor oil is the key ingredient in pulling out the bacteria and dead skin cells. Since most of the blogs recommended use a sparse amount of the castor oil I only added about a teaspoon of castor oil with half a bottle of olive oil.

Many sites also recommend using an essential oil. The essential oil is a good idea for many reasons. First, the oil mixture smells horrible. Adding some essential oils helps with the smell. Essential oils like tea tree oil have great properties. I chose tea tree oil because it has been used for a long time to fight acne. It also has antibacterial properties that help with skin healing. Tea tree oil is very potent so I only added 2 or 3 drops!!!

Here it is, ready to go. I recommend getting a pack of washcloths so you can use a clean one each time you cleanse. You should only use the oil cleanse once a day. 

I plan on tracking how things go, so I am including a before picture of my skin. Honestly my skin has been doing very well lately. I have only had a few breakouts in the last week. Most of the issues are old scars that stand out on my fair skin. I recommend taking vitamin E every day. I have noticed a big difference since I started taking the vitamin daily. Oh and drink LOTS of water! I've only used the cleanser once, but I have to say, prior to my shower my nose was covered in blackheads, but following the cleanse almost all of them were gone! We shall see! Anyone else tried this method and have thoughts about it?