90-Day Life Challenge: Daily Planning [Creating My Life Binder]

Ah, I am nearly done with my Daily Planner, and now the last step is the finding my perfect daily planning form. I think I did, and it's also by Eliza Ellis Beautiful Organizers (linked HERE). If you are interested in seeing my choices for the Monthly and Weekly planning pages, you can view these posts HERE (Monthly) and HERE (Weekly).

Materials I Am Using For My Daily Planner

From her exquisite set of FREE printables, I have selected the "Oh Happy Day" planner in the color "Happy" (light, sunny yellow). This day planner is a two-page planner that I have printed back-to-back. The two pages have 4 columns of organization:

• Column 1 - Appointments to be scheduled during a 16-hour day
• Column 2 - Gives you space for your 3 most important tasks of the day, plus additional space for notes
• Column 3 - A "To Do" list for whatever I hope to accomplish in a day
• Column 4 - Is entirely about personal care, with spaces for meal-tracking, water intact, workout, daily habits, and groceries to purchase

Basically, it's a little bit of everything, so I always feel like I have a way to organize my thoughts and random items that suddenly appear on my "To Do" list as the day progresses.

Putting The Daily Planner Together

Alright, that pretty much covers the planning components of my Daily Planner, but there are just a few small details to attend to: First, I need binder covers and a spine cover for the planner. And second, I need a few accessories handy so I can stay organized.

The cover was easy. All I did was grab some taupe-y cardstock that I had lying around and go into Microsoft Word to create my cover. I wanted simple, non-specific in terms of date--I am far too lazy to keep remaking a cover annually--, and also something briefly descriptive of the contents. Obviously, I did not go creatively overboard, but I am pleased with the finished product.

The only change that I would make to my Daily Planner is to purchase some cute washi tape in 3 different styles for daily, weekly, and monthly pages. I can line the outside of the page to easily access the section I am looking for.

Hope this inspires somebody to plan their day!

Happy reading,

Your Devoted Friend

Intermittent Fasting: Two Weeks Later

Visual Evidence

These photos were taken a little less than 2 weeks apart [July 20th to July 29th], but all future updates will take place at firm 2-week intervals. As you can see, the "pouch" on the front of my stomach is minutely firmer, and my belly button looks wider because of the tautness of the skin. This does not come as a surprise because one of Intermittent Fasting's claims to fame is that the regulation of blood sugar encourages loss of belly fat.

What Worked And What Didn't?

There were a few consistent dietary guidelines I followed:

1. I typically ate from 10:30am or 11am until 6:30pm regardless, but often, I shortened my eating interval to 6-7 hours naturally.
2. No matter what was going on, I drank nearly 1 gallon of water daily.
3. My body seemed to feel better when I consumed one large meal for lunch [sandwich with hummus and veggies], then a small snack [salsa with a few triscuits], and small dinner [cucumber, tomato, and mozzarella salad].

I really was rather surprised at how quickly my body adjusted to not constantly eating. I finally felt like I understood the thirst signals my body was sending, and not mistaking them for hunger.

What's In Store For The Next 2 Weeks?

Yoga, yoga, and more yoga. Of course, the body needs more than just a good stretch, but to be completely honest, the Opdivo is started to mimic Rheumatoid Arthritis as a side effect. I've been given a short course of Prednisone and Tramadol for sleep, but I'd rather treat this with exercise if I can. Running and aerobic activity that puts tremendous strain on my joints is impossible; therefore, yoga is a terrific place to start.

Those of you who have been following my 90-Day Life Challenge will recall that I've posted about yoga once before (linked HERE), specifically about all of the fantastic FREE yoga videos on YouTube. In my post about my Daily Dozen: Personal Routine (linked HERE), I set the goal of doing at least 15 minutes of yoga daily, but I'm setting the bar higher.

*Action: I am going to continue with a daily yoga practice for a minimum of 30 minutes.

Happy reading,

Your Devoted Friend

90-Day Life Challenge: Create A Cleaning Routine

I am seriously loving my 90-Day Life Challenge, so much is being accomplished--and I feel relaxed about it. Since we will be moving in a little over 2 weeks, I think now is a great time to start developing a household cleaning routine. We can start fresh in our new apartment.

Let me begin by saying that I am--by no means--the first person to blog about this, let alone provide materials. However, I have always been a little wary of trying to use a routine created for someone else's house. It's not made for my house, so could it possibly cover everything I need? And while I appreciate every tip and trick I have read over the years, I always wished that a website would teach me how to create my own. If this is you, look no further.

Steps to Creating Your Own Cleaning Routine

Step 1: Brainstorming - This step will take a little time. Personally, I sat down for a quiet hour or so in the morning to work on this assignment. Below, I have posted a pdf link to the form I am currently using for my own brainstorming session. The tables are divided into indoor, outdoor, and miscellaneous chores sections. Fill in as much of the form as you can, thinking about what you want to be completely daily, weekly, monthly, etc..., and when you have finished, proceed to the next step. 

Brainstorm Household Chores Form

Step 2: A Closer Look - Now that you have jotted down your thoughts, take a walk from room-to-room in your house, pausing to revisit the list of chores you just finished. Did you include everything? Is there something you have left out? Remember, this is not a perfect system. You can always add, subtract, or change. Repeat this process for each section on the form.

Step 3: Review - Did you make unreasonable demands for yourself? Look at what you have listed for your daily, weekly, monthly, seasonal, and annual chores. Double check that you haven't over-committed, or been unrealistic in what should be completed in the allotted time frame. For example, you will rarely need to launder your curtains on a weekly basis, but on the other hand, you may want to mop your floors more than once a year. Just double-check yourself. 

Step 4: Get Feedback - If you choose, now is a good time to have your partner, roommate, whoever, look at your chart and see if you have left something out. 

Step 5: Creating the Daily Routine - Now, you are finally ready to create your routine. Your day-to-day routine naturally divides itself into segments, and I recommend you do the same. On a separate sheet of paper, make 4 columns with the headings: Morning, Afternoon, Dinner, and Bedtime. Now, looking at your "Brainstorm Household Chores Form," take each chore you have listed in the "Daily" column and place it into the Morning, Afternoon, Dinner, or Bedtime categories. Once you have finished, create an ordered list for each time of day, and voila, you have your Daily Routine.

Step 6: Creating the Weekly, Monthly, Seasonal, and Annual Routines - Following the same process, you are going to create your other routines. The columns headings are as follows:

Weekly Routine - Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, and Saturday (leave at least one day off, and I recommend leaving )

Monthly Routine - 1st Friday (e.g.) of the month, 2nd Friday, 3rd Friday, and 4th Friday

Seasonal Routine - Spring, Summer, Fall, and Winter

Annual Routine - January, February, March, April, May, June, July, August, September, October, November, and December

Step 7: Make it Beautiful - Now here is the fun part. Take each list you have just made and type it up in a format you would be proud to display on your refrigerator. Some people may prefer to display the list in multiple formats in a binder, single-sheet display, and a pocket version for your planner. It is completely your call. Use colorful paper if you would find that more visually pleasing. 

If I have missed anything or there is another printable you would find helpful, please, let me know. I welcome every comment, criticism, or suggestion I am given.

Happy Reading,

Your Devoted Friend

90-Day Life Challenge: The Daily Dozen [Personal Edition]

Hello all! As promised, I'm back today with a second installment of the Daily Dozen series, and this one's personal. It's all about the basic habits that each person should devote a few minutes to each day. 

As stated in the previous Daily Dozen entry, the whole purpose of a daily checklist rather than a morning/afternoon/evening routine is that--for the novice routine-haver--you will have the flexibility to allow the routines to develop on their own. For the record, I'm terrible at this. I run around like a chicken with my head cut off most days, but I do nothing to improve my own feelings of self-worth and perception of beauty.

The Daily Dozen List

1. Daily facial massage. A little drop of oil or serum to work into the skin, 2 minutes worth of self-love and your face will glow with good health.
2. Brush your teeth. Seems like a given, but...moms forget.
3. Shower. Same logic as above. I don't know what possesses me to keep delaying my shower in favor of wiping down my son's toys--or some other cleaning chore--but it has to stop.
4. 15+ minutes of yoga practice. If you are interested in reading my post about free yoga programs on YouTube, click HERE.
5. Take out my contacts at night. This is a major habit that I need to start, for two main reasons. First, it's just a good basic health practice so your eyes get plenty of rest and oxygen. Second, it forces me to shut off at a certain time every night since I can't see without them.
6. Apply basic makeup. My version is mascara, powder foundation, and lip gloss.
7. Read for 20 minutes. Nothing helps you take a break like a chapter of a good book.
8. Meditate 5 minutes. I'm God-awful at this, but meditation is a terrific practice for lowering stress, blood pressure, stress-eating, and the constant chatter in your head.
9. Drink 1 gallon of water daily. Hydration is great for skin, your brain, metabolism, and so much more.
10. Go to bed by 10 pm. Should be a no-brainer, but a 10 pm bedtime will allow you to get a solid 7-8 hours of sleep and still wake up early enough to accomplish my Most Important Tasks [MITs] before Wee-One pops awake at 7 am.
11. Drink no more than 1 cup of coffee. I don't wan't to be artificially energetic, so I cutting down on caffeine to better hear my bodies signals.
12. Limit alcoholic beverages to 1 glass of wine or 1 mixed drink max. Same logic as cutting back on caffeine.

The Importance of Taking Care of Yourself

At first glance, so many of the items on my Daily Dozen list are self-explanatory and rather obvious ways to take care of yourself, but some of us just don't. It's not sad, and no one is looking for pity, but when you decide--as a mom, wife, or partner--to devote your life to other people, you forget to take care of yourself. That's why I am applying the same rule to my personal care as I do to my personal finances: Pay Yourself First. 

This does not mean that you have to "selfishly" ignore the important people in your life in favor of spending time on yourself. Instead, consider researching ways to improve your sleep so you can comfortably wake up 15 minutes early and add a nice facial massage to your morning routine.

Thank you for your attention and readership. I would love to read about some important components of your Daily Dozen, so please share. I'm always looking for new ideas.

Happy reading,

Your Devoted Friend 

90-Day Life Challenge: Yoga

Ahh, yoga...Just the thought of it makes me sigh. Yoga is almost like massage therapy for me. It's something that every body needs, and I am finally going to commit to completing at least 20 minutes of personal massage therapy daily. Like earning money on MTurk, I practice yoga off-and-on maybe once a week. For this 90-Day Life Challenge, that's going to change.

While it would be wonderful to go to a local yoga class, I honestly don't have the $100-300 extra to spend. My solution was to check YouTube for a collection of the best FREE yoga programs. Here is a list of the 6 best channels, and my favorite video from each. We have an Apple TV that we purchased when we decided to cut down to just an internet package, and the YouTube app will play these videos.

*Shouldn't need to be said, but I do want to make it clear that I have no affiliation with these channels, I just genuinely appreciate the artists and their contributions to health and fitness.

PsycheTruth Yoga

This is a very yoga-specific channel, but the parent channel PsycheTruth has long been a favorite of mine for many types of videos: Health/Wellness, Yoga, Massage, ASMR, and smatterings of other categories as well. Much of the channel is devoted to using natural, holistic, and/or alternative therapies to aid the body in natural rejuvenation. PsycheTruth Yoga videos are roughly 20-30 minutes. The videos are accessible to beginners as well as advanced practitioners.

Yoga With Adriene

Yoga with Adriene is another yoga channel with short programs geared towards a specific focus. She currently has an excess of 250 videos available. This video is just over 15 minutes, but many of the videos run longer than 30 minutes. I like the way she tailors each routine to a very specific focus. There are some videos geared toward the beginner and advanced practitioners, but most fall in the intermediate category.

Fightmaster Yoga

This specific video is great for when I am already feeling strong and ready to take on a challenging workout. Much of Fightmaster Yoga's channel evokes that feeling. The videos are so fresh, innovative, and energetic, I'm only sad that I don't have the ability to do them all yet. If you are a skilled practitioner, you have to try this channel. The videos also have a tremendous range of duration from 15 minutes to over an hour in length.

Yoga Vidya

Yoga Vidya does not have as large a number of videos available as the aforementioned channels; however, it does have many videos detailing yogic practices, meditation, chanting, and interviews with yogis about meditation and mythology. She also posts lots of instructional videos for individual poses. There is nothing particularly unique about the videos--beginning/intermediate level, 20-30 minutes each--but her voice is so soothing. I like to exercise to Yoga Vidya when I need yoga that is more quiet and meditative.

Do You Yoga

Do You Yoga's videos are all short (less than 20 minutes). They are so simple, and great for a yoga "quickie" when you know you should exercise and don't feel like you have the time.

Yoga Yak

Yoga Yak is such an oldie but a goody. All of the videos are full length, 45 minutes to 90 minutes at the longest I've found. In addition, there are also a lot of videos offering a peaceful soundtrack to add to your everyday life. Nature sounds, music to use for private yoga practice or transcendental meditation. The practitioners are so genuinely eager to share their practice with you. I always feel like I've just attended a class lead by a beloved mentor.

Hope you are able to use these resources to fold a regular yoga practice into your daily life as well.

Happy reading,

Your Devoted Friend

The Joy of a Shiny Sink

Let me begin by saying that I will not be following her plan point-for-point; however, I am finally going to attempt to "Fly." I am referring, of course, to the brilliant teachings of FlyLady.net.

I am in no way affiliated with FlyLady, but I appreciate the effort that this free resource has made to bolster any busy woman's confidence in gaining control over her home, schedule, health (both mental and physical), and happiness.

Today, I have started with her first "Baby Step," which is: Shine Your Sink.

Here's What I Did

1. I closed the drains in the double-sided sink and poured 1/2 cup bleach into a sink full of hot water, and let it sit for 30 minutes. She recommends an hour, but I have a newborn and couldn't really take the time.
2. After I let the bleach sit, I drained the sinks and sprinkled baking soda on the rim, faucets, and base. Then I scrubbed, scrubbed, scrubbed.
3. Finally, I put a drop of Dawn dish liquid on the end of a cleaning toothbrush and went to town on the base of the faucets, etc, to get the grime out. It worked so well!
4. Lastly, I dried the sink with a towel and polished.

(the result of my hard work)

What's Next?

I will move onto Step #2, and make sure that at the end of every day, the dishes are taken care of and that I go to bed with a gleaming sink.

Why Am I Doing This?

I have a 3-month-old son, who takes up quite a bit of my attention and energy. I also have attempted to breast feed him while working nearly 50 hours/week, which does not leave me much time for regular cleaning. I tend to start in the same place each time and end up with completed laundry, a straightened living room, and not much else. It always feels like running up a hill, and I'm ready to take back control of my house.

Happy reading,

Your Devoted Friend