Do you ever feel like you need to reboot? The New Year. A new season. A new month. Heck, even Mondays are good times to reboot. I feel like July was a warm-up to a reboot. Everyone has had at least a two-week heads up regarding changes in August. Changes in our budget, changes in our diet and exercise (or lack thereof), changes in our routines. Yep, the time has come.
What has prompted this? Who really knows? I just know that I felt horrible. I felt physically failing, mentally a mess and spiritually sliding.
At the beginning of July I decided to walk, well, actually, hubby suggested that I walk to the mailbox everyday because I asked him what I should do to start feeling human again. And so I did. Everyday in July except for 3 days, I walked to the mailbox, 1.3 miles round trip according to my phone app. I get the daily newspaper (remember those?) so I have a reason to walk up there other than focusing on poor pitiful me. I send hubby a picture of me at the mailbox-there have been pictures of a dead deer in the road (stinky!), and of a truck going down the driveway (I was a bit embarrassed to be taking a selfie at the mailbox at 6:30 in the morning. Odd, right?). He has been extremely encouraging and it is becoming part of my morning routine.
Ah, yes, the morning routine. This brings me to another small change I am working on. The FLY lady system of cleaning. (FLY=finally loving yourself as my mother figured out for me.) This system, if you haven't heard or done it, involves making habits and routines that just make life easier. For example, one has a morning routine, an after dinner routine, and a bedtime routine. Then you have weekly things, such as on Monday it is Weekly Home Blessing hour, Tuesday is free day, Wednesday is plan and desk day, Thursday is Errand day and Friday is car and purse day. The final step is the zone cleaning, which is supposedly deep cleaning one of five zones of your house every week. I am not there yet. And that is the great thing about this system. You start where you are, you add one habit at a time if you have to-the shiny sink, making sure your sink is clean, dry and shiny before bed. It is a wonderful thing to wake up to. Then you start creating routines using these habits and these are..."tweakable" to a degree. My morning routine as of right now is: wake up and do my self-care (face, teeth, hair, lotion, dress), swish and swipe (clean the toilet, sink and surfaces), start laundry, empty dishwasher, make bed (hubby sleeps a little longer than I do), drink water, take my walk, daily devotions and bible study. Then I consider the rest of my day to begin, starting with the animals and garden and other home chores. For the past couple of weeks, I have LOVED how it is working for me! If you feel overwhelmed with housework, consider looking up the website or ordering the book Sink Reflections. I personally don't have it, but my mother did get it.
The other change I have already begun is my bible study and devotions. I read Our Daily Bread and follow that bible in a year reading schedule. I also love Fundamental Faith's Food and Bible study on YouTube. It kind of focuses on food, but one can glean sooo much from it. I am falling in love with the Living Word (the Bible) again!
I think another thing that I have done for a couple of months is my MemoryKeeping Planner from Happy Planner. It is basically a scrapbook with boxes. But it has made a huge difference in my appreciation of life and family. Throughout the week I try to take snapshots of life and then on Sunday I either print pictures at Wal-mart or on my Canon Ivy printer and put them in my planner. I get to enjoy the moments on film and also will type or write a little blurb of things to remember. It makes me so grateful for everything I have, do and the people in my life.
So I attribute these few things to the new confidence I have in making serious life changes. Changes that will impact my health, heart and mind. Life is short and I plan to relish every remaining moment that God gives me!
I hope you join me in making some positive changes and habits in your life as well.
Have a blessed and productive day!
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