Monday's Moment of Wisdom - Pearl Number 38

Our minds are amazing aren't they? The biology of the brain fascinates me, at college I studied Human Physiology for a bit, I was so intreaged by this organ, how it works and how it dictates EVERYTHING in our daily lives, how and when we move, what we physically feel and are capable of but also how it controls our hormones and emotions, it's so very powerful, but I know I don't need to tell you any of this!

The well being of our brain, of our mind is so important and powerful that on days where there is an imbalance it can send our whole worlds crashing down, for me personally this can be so debilitating. But what if we could re-frame our minds and thoughts to react differently? What if we could take a moment to step back and look at a situation from a different point of view or what if we taught ourselves to manage our thoughts and emotions differently? Could we then find some strength to over come our adversities, quieten those darker thoughts and allow space for fresh, courageous ones to come through? 

Feel Good Friday - something for the weekend

This week has been busy, I'm actually leaving the house next week and going away to do work stuff, this is exciting for a work at home mum! So I have been tied up sorting out everything that I and my family will need, have, have, want, eat, and go while I'm away, not much time for blogging then!

Well last week I blogged about some feel good things I was going to do for myself that was an investment in me, allowing myself time for these things kept me going through the week and few other things kept me feeling inspired too, so  passing them on in hope that they will keep you smiling and feeling great this weekend...

Fashion Inspiration...

This week one of my favourite fashion bloggers got me in the mood for holiday wardrobe planning for me and my little miss with posts full of stylish yet affordable clothes, I'm definitely feeling inspired about what wear now, go check out her fabulous website Coco Mama Style, a must for all mamas and their little ones! 

The tune in my head is...

Feist's amazing song 1234 has been keeping LC and I uplifted all week, she is obsessed with this song at the moment, she demands it on every car journey and we have to watch the video about a trillion times a day on YouTube. It all stems from her love of Sesame Street, check out that version if you haven't seen it already.

Get me organised...

I decided the only way this was going to happen was if I bought a diary, I got lovely vibrant purple to keep me all cheery, plus it was so inexpensive now that we are almost halfway through the year! I am going to put EVERYTHING in it include shopping lists, ideas, birthdays and to do lists so let's hope it actually works, I'll let you know...

Feel Good Film...

OH and I decided to ditch the cinema the other week on our date night and come home and watch a movie instead, I was coming down with a horrible virus so it was the right thing to do. So we snuggled up and watched The Five Year Engagement instead, if you haven't seen it yet I highly recommend it, it's funny, classy and most entertaining - let me know what you think!

I hope your feeling inspired now to put some feel good into your weekend, I'd love to know what you have planned!

Feel Good Friday - something for the weekend

Just a quick one today! This week I've had the oddest feeling, just can't shake it, I have felt quite unsettled, on edge and just utterly exhausted. I'm wondering if its the after effects of the horrible virus I had last weekend or a bit of mid month blues, either way I know I need to be kind to myself this weekend so this is what I'm indulging in.....

Reading this...

I'm doing a bit of self help love, I'm a big fan of these kind of books, I know others can be cynical about this type of reading but I find them useful and something that will often inspire me to get out of any black hole I'm falling in to. I've felt a bit of self doubt creeping in this week so I need to nourish my self belief a bit, eating well and taking care of my body helps to give me a boost and understanding more about the crazy world of parenting will help me stay more relaxed (we are currently going through terrible twos!).

Bedtime reading

Having 15 or so minutes to actually read a real book is such a treat for me so I will be making time to do this over the weekend!

Pampering...

LC's little piggies with my fav nail polish!

When I have moments of feeling frazzled, physically and emotionally I always feel better when I can escape from the world, relax and invest in me. This means bubble bath, actually blow drying my hair and a DIY pedicure. Sometimes just a little bit of pampering with your favourite products helps you feel more like you again, add candles, some of your best tunes and even a glass of wine and you have got the perfect hour or two of simple, relaxing "me" time, ahhhh! 

 Wearing this...

EBay bargain

My new favorite bag, it's not a designer and it didn't cost me a month wages, in fact I won it on EBay for a fiver, but it does give me a warm glow inside! It's just my style and wearing it makes me feel like me, I find having a few items in my wardrobe that I love and that make me feel great when I wear them always helps when I'm at a low, putting on something I love just gives me an instant boost! 

Well now you know what I'm doing this weekend to feel good, what's your secret weapon to get back to being you again? What will you be up to this weekend to feel good about you?

I hope your feeling inspired too!

Friday's Feel Good, Live Better - Back to Nature

One thing I have learned about feeling low is that getting outside and moving about is one of the best things you can do for yourself to get a boost and a natural high!

When I first met my husband (it still feels weird to say that lol!) I was the least active person you could imagine but his good influence in being active has rubbed off on me. Over the last 5 years I have started to ride a bike again (although it is in retirement at the moment), exercised on and off doing yoga and aerobics - even went to the gym before LC came along, I walk places more, if I can (we live in the country so it's hard) and I've put on a swimming costume and braved the water again! All these things have encouraged me to take care of my body more but also my mind, exercise of any form really is the best medicine when it comes to depression.

So with this in mind and a sun holiday finally being booked for July I have decided to really up the amount of active time Im having, I had put on some weight from being pregnant at the beginning of the year and so with that going up and my mood going down since having the miscarriage I need to do something, plus for our whole family it's so important to teach LC the benefit of being fit and healthy, I want her to feel passionate about being active (at the moment her thing is dance!).

Now that the weather is finally getting better we have been getting outside and this is what we have been up to....

Growing our Garden
This year we are keeping it simple, we have always grown veggies in planter boxes but we are only doing Strawberries this summer, we have loads going on the next couple of months and don't have the time to give our garden much attention. we have a grass lawn at the back (that my OH is obsessed with mowing) and a concrete and gravel patio so we fill that lots of pot and planters full of flowers and put some at the back too, we are waiting to get a few more strawberry plants from our friends but LC and I have been busy planting seeds to grow a beautiful array of blooms!

Planting our seeds..

Pots are done!

Fun with Family
Getting outside and moving about can be daunting for some, I know I haven't always had the confidence to do it on my own, I've always wished I could be one of those people who slings on a pair of trainers and goes for a run! So why not rope in some family or friends for a fun, active day out! Last week we met up with Family and had the most loveliest day messing about on the river! We were on a canal boat so we were jumping on and off, pushing open bridges, winding locks, chasing after dogs and LC and walking, well to the pub for beer and wine but hey it's still walking right? It really was lots of fun, we worked together to sail the boat down the river, although my main job was to watch the little people and the dogs (which I failed at when one of them jumped in to the canal, dog that is, not child!) but I did have a go at steering the boat! Anyway the sun shone, we fed ducks, waved at cows and it felt good to be outside!

Coffee Break!

River ride with her pal

A walk in the park..
This weekend we did a bit of exploring and decided to get out enjoy the sun at one of our local nature reserves. They have a great park - with a sandpit, a big lake and beautiful nature trails and walks, we took LC's bike and football and she had the most fun running around, we saw more cows, rabbits, squirrels and more ducks, even 4 baby ducklings who were very cute and fluffy! OH and I power walked up and down the hills and took turns pushing Madame on her bike. We felt energised just by getting out and about for an hour plus it was more precious time having fun as a family!

A walk in the woods

What have you been doing lately to get out and about? What outdoor activities make you feel lifted? I'd love to hear any tips on being active! 

Friday's Feel Good Live Better - what being a mum has made me!

I spend a lot of time talking and listening to parents, it's part of my job and the one thing that is always talked about is how much life has changed for us personally now we have a small person in our life, we tend to focus on the negative impact on ourselves like less sleep, feelings of guilt, how much our bodies have changed and lack of social life and of knowledge of what the latest trend is. I'm guilty of this, I think lots about how life has changed and talk to others about stretch marks, interrupted sleep, no time to do my hair or limits a toddler can put on life when when it comes to being impulsive or spontaneous, but the other day I started to ponder the things about motherhood that had actually changed me for the better, not just seeing your baby smile for the first time but actually made a difference to my character, things that I like about me now more now that I am a mum...

I've got organised
I realised being a parent has made me more of a morning person, I get up early and get things done and I absolutely love this new side of life, which leads me to now finding a way, that works for me, to being more organised, although I still have a fair way to go on this but I like what I'm seeing so far!

I've got less hung up on me
All I really had to think about was what I needed or wanted but becoming a mum has also made me a bit more selfless and much more patient which I am very grateful for, I truly underestimated parenting being such a learning journey about who I can be inside and what my values looked like.

I've got creative
I love that I'm finding a more crafty side to me now through encouraging my daughter to be too, I always felt that it was there but never fully embraced it, since she was born I have learnt massage, how to sew a dress, bake a rainbow birthday cake, craft an Easter Tree, how Zumba (my latest passion) and really started to throw myself in to writing more, although I still don't do as much as I'd like.

I'm seeing new positive sides to me all the time and although parenting can be hard going, it has given me a chance to evolve not just so I can care for my daughter but to also be a better version of me and I like this!

Monday's Moment of Wisdom - Pearl Number 37

Photo by D. Cannon

I think it can be easy to fall in to the role of being a victim, I know I have done this in the past, many times and in many ways, it's easy to place the blame on to others and hold them responsible for your fears, misgivings or failures. Sometime you can find yourself in this role because someone has taken your confidence or self control away, you may find yourself stripped of a power you once possessed and this is a new place for you to be in. No matter how you find yourself here it can be tricky rut to get out of...

Victims of crime and abuse may find that a spirit they once felt, one that made them present or alive has left, that someone or something has taken this away, they feel helpless and finding that courage to move forward and break out of this patten is hard, some times impossible or just out of their reach. There are some really amazing people, organisation and books out there to help anyone who is this situation to find that courage inside again, reaching out is just the first step back to a life of being in control of you.

I think this is also true of people who are victims of their own doubts and fears that they place on themselves whether that be a phobia or a lack of self confidence, reaching inside and finding that power again can help them move forward, but it's not as easily said than done. So how do we find this courage and bring out the heroine or hero I ourselves?

Education I think holds the key, not necessarily going to school or being super smart, more like being street wise and learning about the world, investing time and energy in yourself, getting to know you, what you like or don't like, what you think is or isn't acceptable, knowing how your mind works and using that to keep going forward. I also find talking to others about your own and their own experiences helps you to learn, I am also a big fan of self help books although I know lots of people can be cynical about them. 

If you found yourself stuck in a place, physically, emotionally, mentally that caused you fear would you know how to escape, to get yourself out of it? Knowing this information and being brave enough to act on it is what turns us in to the true heroines of lives, well that's just my opinion anyway!

I'd love to know more about what encourages you to be brave in your life, are there any particular rituals, books or actions you take when you start to feel scared of what's happening around you? What would you say to someone else to inspire them to no longer be a victim?

Monday's Moment of Wisdom - Pearl Number 36

Over the last week I have been trying to reflect some inner peace, Anger has been welling up in me for a while, it has consumed my thoughts a little and been my primary emotion, I'm very Angry at what life has thrown at me lately and the knock on effects, my weight has been suffering, my skin has also, my health is completely run down, my emotions and hormones are all over the place and all of this has been, well mostly beyond my control, and as it turns out for no good reason at all and I'm struggling to see the point, so I have been feeling very Angry about it all.

I've come to realise that all this Anger is not good for me, emotionally I know I still need some time but physically I need to let some of this tension go or my body will never recover. so I've been try to I still some calm by introducing a few new changes which to my relief are working!

Gentle stretching - Pre - motherhood I used to love doing yoga, it was a bit of space in time for me. Now I find it impossible to fit in, with the demands of parenthood, work strange hours from home (although that's about to change) and living rurally, it's not so easy to pop out to a class. I've decided though that I need to do something and so I have been getting up a little earlier, LC has been sleeping in until 7-ish and I have been doing a few yoga positions that I can still remember. This has just made me feel so much better to start my day and given me a few minutes of inner peace and reflection to think about how my emotions feel and how I want my day to go...

Changing how I eat - I've really struggled with this since my final hospital appointment in February, I had really started to comfort eat and I knew I needed to overhaul my diet, I lost a good amount of weight at the end of last year and not only did I finally fit back in to my size 10 wardrobe but I felt better, more energised and my hair and skin were looking great. Now I'm up two dress sizes and just feel awful and frustrated with it all. In the last couple of weeks I've really worked on my diet, I've stuck to lose Weight Watchers plan and managed to lose 5lbs already and started fit back in to some of my regular clothes. It's been a struggle and I have had to really discipline and reason with myself, it's definitely been mind over matter but now I feel the benefits and I'm motivated to stick at it and just keep going!

Looking after my skin - Having two general anesthetics in the space of 4 weeks really beats the crap out your body, especially your skin and I felt like a spotty teenage again, almost 5 weeks on from the last one my skin is starting to resemble a thirty something's again and I'm feeling like I don't need to hide under layers of make up. To really help this I have been drinking lots of water and managed a cup of green tea most days (I like the ones that are flavoured with lemon or blueberry), a change in diet has really helped, swapping cakes for fruit always works wonder for my skin.

I know if I put more good stuff in to my body and make an effort to look after it I reap the benefits, I look better, feel better and this definitely has a knock on effect with my emotions. I have started to feel a bit more like me this last week or so and the changes have also seen my Anger melt away a bit too, which I'm sure makes me an easier person to be around. I don't want to spend all this time being cross at the world, I want to enjoy my family and my life and by letting myself be surrounded by a red haze, I won't be able to look clearly and positively into the future...