splendor & folly

Did you make resolutions this year? Did they include losing weight, eating healthier or sticking to a budget? Here is the secret to sticking to your goals:

Awareness.

By simply being more aware of our choices and the outcomes they will create, we eliminate the need for fancy diets and complicated budgets; all you have to do is just pay attention!

Here are some personal examples of when I know I am completely un-aware:

FOOD

1. Sitting down to watch TV with a box of Cheez-Its. How many servings did I just eat? Was I even hungry? Is this nourishment for my body?

2. Eating goodies someone left in the office kitchen just because they are there.

3. Finishing my entire gigantic-size portion at the restaurant, just because it is there.

MONEY

1. Buying something I don’t need just to cheer myself up.

2. Not having money for important things (healthcare) because I spent it on trivial items (makeup).

3. Wasting money by paying late fees, overdrafts fees etc.

And now some examples of what it looks like to be aware:

FOOD

1. Evaluating your level of hunger before and after eating. Stopping when you feel satisfied, not when you are about to burst.

2. Reading the labels on food and making smart choices about what you want to put into your body.

3. Not letting circumstances (parties, buffets, and eating out) extremely affect the way you eat.

MONEY

1. Taking a good look at the money that comes in and keeping track of all the money that goes out.

2. Realizing that advertising can be very convincing and talking to yourself about why you are purchasing a certain item.

3. Putting aside money each month before you pay any other expenses for an emergency fund.

If you take the time to analyze and evaluate each decision before you make it (sometimes this process only needs to take seconds), there is ultimately no need for self-judgment and guilt afterward.

If there is a pie sitting in the kitchen and you are craving a piece, but you know you will end up in a sugar-coma, feeling guilty and back at square one with your goals, use these outcomes as a motivation to skip it.

But if you think it over and you decide you truly want it and you are at peace with that decision, eat the pie, banish your guilty thoughts and love every minute of it!!

Hello? Anyone still there??

I guess I took a little blogging break, time seems to slip by so fast and before you know it, 3 weeks go by! I will blame it on the amazing weather and always wanting to be outside, being busy with a project at work and going on interviews for a new job (which I didn’t get).

So here I am back to my normal daily routine, which will once again include blogging because it gives me something to do that I actually enjoy!! I’m planning on continuing my focus on fashion and beauty but also trying to include healthy living, working out, and recipes as well. I’ve been slipping a little bit as far as healthy eating goes and feel like I need to get back on track. I am never ‘on a diet’ I just have days where I feel good about what I eat and days when I feel super guilty about eating too much and eating foods that are terrible for me. So I just want to have more ‘feel good’ days! My goals are:

1. Eat healthier foods

2. Eat less

3. Work out everyday

“Working out” can include just getting outside and getting moving, or going for a long walk with Raleigh. I just want to try to be more active instead of sitting around watching TV (which I know I do way too much of ). I also think exercise improves mood and energy levels as well as gets me in shape for SUMMER!

So there you have it! I promise to be posting waaay more often, so come back and check on me! I’ll have updates on my goals, healthy recipes, fashion posts, inspirational posts and of course pictures of cute animals!! :)

Have a great week everyone!!

Hi There! I hope everyone had a wonderful Christmas! Now it’s on to the new year. And with it comes a new leaf, a blank slate, a chance to become the person you’ve always wanted to be! It’s really strange how the new year does put a different perspective on things. It almost seems like the possibilites are endless, but in reality many of us fall short of the things we would like to accomplish.

I thought of a little plan that might be fun to try for next year. Each month focus on one goal or one aspect of your life that you think could use improvement. By focusing only on one thing, you will improve your chances of success. Here is an example of how you could break down the months:

• January: Eat a healthy breakfast everyday
• February: Cardio workouts 3x per week
• March: Organize clothing and prepare outfits the night before
• April: Minimize or eliminate unhealthy snacks/candy
• May: Strength training workouts 2x per week
• June: Organize junk drawers, linen closets etc
• July: Stick to a budget
• August: Incorporate more fruits and veggies into diet
• September: Update address book and improve correspondence
• October: Try new healthy dinner recipes
• November: Complete Christmas shopping

• December: Take time to mediate and minimize TV

Of course you can tailor it to fit your personal goals. I think I might actually try this! I’ll let you know if I tweak the months, and how I do. Let me know if you have any goals for 2010 :)

Instead of having one New Year’s resolution for 2009, I jotted down goals as I thought of them throughout the year. Here they are, listed by date I wrote them down

1.5.09:

• Stop waiting (for happiness)
• Stop participating in negativity
• Don’t assume (based off a lesson in this book)
• Be present in the moment

These were not so much accomplishable (is that a word?) goals as daily reminders.

1.06.09:

• Create a blog – I did it, it might have taken me the whole year, but I did it!

1.12.09:

• Pay off all remaining balance on my CC’s and stop using them! – I did this once, racked up a balance and recently paid them off again!

3.27.09:

• Wake up at 6:00am to have time to prepare a lunch for work - I’ve been pretty good about bringing my lunch, but I made this goal before we got Raleigh and now wake up early to walk him anyway!

4.8.09:

• Make X amount of $/per year by 4.8.12 - working on it!

 6.8.09:

• Travel for one year sometime during my life

10.12.09:

• Complete 3 5ks or other races within the next year

10.21.09:

• Paredown everything I own to only what I truly use and love - working on it, I feel like I am constantly giving things to goodwill, but still have too much (maybe because I keep buying things too? duh…)

• Organize sock and underwear drawer – check! Sometimes you just need a super attainable goal, haha

And in regards to goals, I really hate this quote: 

Because I’m pretty sure stars are waaaay further away than the moon, so you would probably just land back in earth’s atmosphere.

So, in order not to be a total downer, here is a better one:

(via quoteablecards.com)