Things I've Realized + Link Love

- Proof that readers love honest bloggers who don't bullshit about their fake perfect lives.  >>

 

- I love retail but I'm quitting my job.  Cleaning up a battlefield until 3:30a.m. is so not the biz.  #icant

- Lately I've been dictating my posts to myself as I type them.  Is it just me or is that a normal "blogger" thing?  Because I never used to do that before and it's kinda freaking me out.

 

- This woman makes me so jealous of her awesome makeup/beauty looks and makes me hate Sephora for not shipping to Guam.  >>

- Fitness has not been one of my priorities these past few weeks.  I think work + stress = no motivation for me.  And it's starting to show.  Thankfully this biatch is motivating me with her hilarious post!  >>

- When I'm stopped up, the only thing that makes me go is coffee.  If you didn't know, I'm talking bowel movements.  Yup, I went there.

- This post made me realize how much I take being "in a relationship" during the holidays for granted.  >> (Complete with Ryan Gosling pictures!)

- One of my favorite bloggers (and this month's sponsor) has hit 100 followers on Bloglovin'!!  Let's help her get another 100!  >>

- I know I've said I'm going to redesign this blog but frankly, I don't know where to start.  This is going to take a while...

Oh, and don't forget to enter this AMAZING giveaway from ILWF!!  It's pretty frikken epic!

It May Feel Like Christmas In Blog World...

But not in my real life.

We're a week into December and though I've been posting gift guides and talking about Christmas and holidays here on the blog, my real life is a little less "Merry".  We have yet to get a tree and I haven't even gotten my whole Christmas shopping list together.  I ordered a few items, but still have a lonnnnnggggg way to go.

All the other houses on our street are decorated with lights, inflatables, and all the other kinds of Christmas decor.  And our house has...not a damn thing.  No wreath, no lights, nada.

Don't get me wrong, I love Christmas.  Our whole family does.  But this year, we're all just a little sluggish.  Even the kids aren't as overly excited as they should be.  I don't know why that is, but this weekend I'm gonna try to pull the Christmas spirit out of the blog world and into my real world.

Here's a little Christmas link love to set the mood:

10 DIY Christmas Ornaments to try... >>

Bacon Beer Cheese Soup with Chicken... >>

A Giveaway Every Day for 12 Days... >>

Recipe for Hot Chocolate Chai...  >>

3D Paper Snowflakes... >>

Oh, and I'm trying this DIY Body Wrap thing right now (as in, I'm wearing it as I type), so if it goes well, maybe I'll do a post on it?  Yay or nay?

"FML" is now banned from this blog.

I'm guilty of saying this all the time throughout my day.  In fact, it's become a habit that's been really hard to break.  I'm pretty sure I'm not alone in this.

It's so much easier to say "f*ck my life" or "just shoot me already" when something goes wrong than to suck it up and deal with the problem.  We're already stressed out with the hustle and bustle of our daily lives that when something doesn't go our way we get overwhelmed and suddenly it feels like the end of the world.  But guess what?  It's not.

I know that I personally have been on my last nerve the past couple of weeks due to an extremely chaotic (and extremely hot & humid) summer.  The hubby's been home a lot while getting his business set up, the girls have been getting ready to go back to school, we've been renovating the house little by little, and the temperatures have been making Trace's nose bleed constantly.  All of these things have been stressing me out so much that I've been freaking out over the little things.  Crying over spilled milk?  More like screaming "F*CK MY LIFE!!" and having a meltdown over it.

But I'm putting all that behind me now.  I don't want to be the crazy frantic mother who freaks out over every little thing.  That's my mother...sometimes.  My sister and I jokingly call her "Manic Mary" or "Panicky  Patty" sometimes when she's in her freak-out mood.

My friend Mae wrote a post the other day that inspired me.  Her last lines were "Life is amazing. Just open your eyes a little. And if it’s not… change it."

Instead of sitting on my ass and complaining about everything that sucks, I'm going to get up and do something to change it and make it amazing.  This is part of the reason why I've been M.I.A. lately in my real life - I've been focusing on cleaning, rearranging, and redecorating the house because since this is where I spend most of my time, I want it to be a place that I love to be rather than just a place I have to be.

I've also mentioned in one of my previous posts that I've also started doing a little yoga at home and I really do want to take a real class one day soon.  This has helped me to relax a little more and has also showed me how valuable a little "me" time can be.  I just need to remind myself not to freak out when something goes wrong.

So from now on, "FML" will be a thing of the past.  I am going to to turn "f*ck my life" into "I f*cking love my life".  I hope this post inspires you to do the same.  Stay positive.

Sweet.

I really wasn't planning on posting today.  As I mentioned in Wednesday's post, I've been feeling a little uninspired lately and haven't had a real "aha" moment for my blog.  I think it's mostly due to the fact that March is normally a very stressful month for me.  Chloe's birthday AND Joey's birthday on top of other family and friends' birthdays (my Grandma, our neighbors' daughters, etc.) are in March and I'm usually stressed out about gifts, cooking, and other party woes.

This week has been especially stressful because I had been worrying about Chloe's bake sale, her party bags coming in on time, paying the bills, Joey's doctor's appointment, and the upcoming birthdays we were invited to (3 in one day) this weekend.

Thankfully, Chloe's bake sale went swimmingly.  We ended up making Cranberry-Orange Scones thanks to the recipe and help from my Auntie Lucy.  She's my mom's sister and a second mother to me.  My kids absolutely adore her and they always get so excited when we visit her.

My mom bought the party bags for Chloe's classmates and it finally came in yesterday.  I was stressing out about it because I wanted to get the invitations out to the kids by today so that the parents would know that we'll be providing lunch and snacks for their kids on Tuesday so they don't have to plan lunch for them on that day.  We were able to pick up the box yesterday afternoon and Chloe took her invitations with her to school today to pass out.  This is her first year in school so she's super excited to celebrate with her class.

Joey had his appointment yesterday and he is finally cast-less!  He's not 100% yet and has to go to rehab (..but I said no, no no!...) for another three weeks but at least he's not hopping around with that dirty thing on his leg anymore!  And I'll be able to take a much needed break from doing EVERYTHING for him soon. (Love you, honey!)

And the icing on the cake was this little package that I got from Rachael!  It put a smile on my face and really lifted my spirits!  She's such a sweet person and I highly recommend that you go visit (& follow) her blog!  Plus she's got a pretty sweet giveaway going on right now that you should definitely enter!!!

Cheers to the freakin' weekend!

♥ Duckie.