Whipping butts outta first gear...(Days 4 thru 7)

So the last time you heard something from me regarding this challenge was last week.  YIKES!  We whisked away on a four day family vacation with the kids in tow and I neglected to update you on how poorly I kept up with this challenge.  Forgive me!

Let me be the first to show you that I simply do not have it all together.
It's funny though, because I often get comments like, girl, I don't know how you do it all.  Truly, I don't: See?

Our oldest starts middle school next week.

Our middle son will start kindergarten in a few weeks, but before then we have a few hoops of staggered schedules to jump through.

Our bags are not unpacked from our trip.

There's a mound of school supplies in the middle of our home office.

There are several emails and texts that I need to follow-up on.

I have a few bulleted items that I want to touch base with Nat on in Evernote....so

Nope, nothing's together.

One saving grace? 
The boys were able to see their grandparents and we had a great getaway weekend.
We were able to see good friends yet again and catch up if only for a few minutes.
It was great to be free from deadlines and day-to-day "stuff" for a little while.
We came home with a full cooler, filled to the brim with frozen goodies to ease my transition to wonder-mom...wondering how all of this other stuff is gonna get done...thanks to my wonderful Mother-in-Law.

So, that kind of explains why you'll get one post covering 3 days of what I should've done.  Hopefully, you're still on task as you following Crystal's own success....right?

Let's recap what should've happened on Days 4 through 7.

Day 4 - Attitude is Everything
Life can really play a band hand sometimes, but no matter what, a bad attitude is only going to make matters worse.  Choosing a simple thing to lift you spirits in the mornings could be the difference maker. 

A few examples?
Good music
Sharing a smile
Counting your blessings (via a gratitude journal)
Hugging someone
Expressing appreciation for someone in your life
Prayer/ Meditation

Remember, attitude is everything...and investing a little in it could truly be the difference maker between living a mediocre life vs. living one with meaning.

Homework: Decide on something that you can do each day to make the difference in your meaning-filled life and try to start applying it.
Day 5 - Plan
By making small steps that contribute to big picture goals, before you know it, you'll actually cross something off of your bucket list...but the key is setting goals and then breaking them into bite-sized chunks.
Sure, there are lots of things that we could say that we want to do, but by focusing on things that are truly important, we can make our days feel much more productive. Start by trying to figure out where you want to see yourself 1 year from now.

Homework: Make time to pick 1 to 5 goals that you'd like to accomplish within the next year.  Jot them down with the expectation of being able to breakdown into bite-sized pieces to tackle in the coming months.

Day 6 - Creating a Realistic To Do list
It's so easy to get bogged down with a list of all the many items we'd like to get done in life...sure, I'd like to take photography classes, learn more about sewing, not to mention all knock out the laundry, have a spotless home, and beautiful yard, yadda yadda...but sooner or later I'll shutdown from trying to do it all.

The only way to feel a true sense of accomplishment will be to take the best from among the good.  The best way to do so?

1. Prioritize
2. Cross of the Basics
3. Have Bite-Sized (attainable) goals
4. Prioritize Your List
5. Keep the list Short and Simple

Here are several great and FREE printables to help you create realistic to do lists.  For app lovers, our household uses Evernote.

Homework: Make time to pick 1 to 5 goals that you'd like to accomplish within the next year. Jot them down with the expectation of being able to breakdown into bite-sized pieces to tackle in the coming months.




Day 7 - Get Your Heart Pumping This one almost pains me to type...because I have the hardest time sticking to a workout routine.  I swear having 3 boys, a husband and all the other stuff that comes along with it, totally exhausts me before even thinking about working out.  If you're the same as me, here are a few ways to curb the anxiety:

1. Checkout a workout DVD from the library
2. Watch videos on-line
3. Try to experiment with new things
4. Find a workout partner
5. Set small goals
6. Multi-task...and this just may be my ticket...for example while working out, create a to-do list, read a book, memorize a new scripture)
7. Be realistic
8. Track progress - one great app to do so is My Fitness Pal
9. Reward your success - using moderation, of course
10. Remember, something is better than nothing!! 

Homework: Think of some type of physical activity you can spend 5 to 15 minutes doing daily.  After all, something is better than nothing.

How am I doing with this effort? 
So, I've been terrible at the getting to bed on-time...I'd committed to getting to be at 1030 with a 0630 wake-up time.  Most nights, I've still been getting to bed around 1130, so only 7 hours of sleep. Tisk, tisk. Mental note: must do better.

I have been getting up on time, though :) No snoozing for me.

My top 5 items every night have been getting done. Now, if I could only just stick to my bedtime.  Progress!!!

Stay tuned for the Days 4 though 7 homework items.... more to come later today.