Archive for October 2016

Last Month's Goals:

Sooooo I could bother to spend time outlining my goals from last month, but in all honesty, I didn't do so well at most of them. The one thing I did succeed at? Start composting! I bought a airtight plastic bin and my roommates and I started filling it up with food scraps. Last week, I took our scraps to the Student Compost Co-op in our town and officially composted for the first time! So that's my victory for the month!

This Month's Goals:

BODY: Transition to a mostly-Paleo diet and document it on the blog. I've been dealing with some sleep/energy issues for the last six months or so and I'm fiddling around with my diet to see if what I eat affects how I feel. I don't think I'll follow a typical Paleo diet to the T but I definitely want to remove dairy from my diet and get rid of most grains/legumes/artificial sugars.

MIND: Turn off my phone for two hours a day. I think this is self-explanatory...

SOUL: Make a list of good-for-me/happy activities + actually do some of those activities when I feel a funk coming on. A lot of times lately, when I feel tired or in a bad mood, I watch some TV or lay around. But in the long run, that only makes me feel worse. I'm trying to break that negative cycle with something that might take a little more effort but makes me feel better!

SOUL: Follow the HelloMornings plan for well-balanced mornings. If you're interested, I highly recommend checking out the website and getting the free ebook about how to put together a morning that works for you. But the gist is, every morning you take time for God, planning, and health (God-Plan-Move). I'm hoping to write a more detailed post about how this works for me!

WORLD: Volunteer at least 10 hours in October. This year, I've started volunteering with a primate sanctuary near me and helping out with a local pit bull rescue. So my goal is just to be a little more intentional about the time I spend volunteering!

What are your goals this month?

I feel like I've been in a bit of a daze the last few weeks. For months, I've been having trouble with my sleep and energy levels. That, combined with my total lack of meditation lately, makes me feel totally spacey. Sometimes I reach the end of the day and I honestly couldn't tell you what I did all day or what thoughts went through my mind. Truly, that kind of mindlessness is bumming me out and I'm trying to approach it from a few angles. But before we get to all the links and stuff of this post, just wanted to pose the question to y'all--do you know the feeling I'm talking about? How do you deal with it?

15 little things to do to feel centered again [Rachel A. Dawson]

Practical ways to unplug [The Free and Wild Blog]

Bible reading for the modern woman [a GREAT read from The Tiny Twig]

How to stop worrying: 4 essential practices [Simply Relished]

This adorably decorated cabin in Helsinki!

How to fall in love with yourself [Daring to Live Fully--I love #2 and #4!]

10 steps towards a tiny wardrobe [Be More With Less]

9 things everyone should do while reading the Bible [Relevant Magazine]

7 ways to stay healthy at work [The Balanced Berry]

The 19th Wife by David Ebershoff (still) - really loving this book, but for some reason I can't handle more than 10-15 pages at a time so it's taking me quite a long while! I'm hoping to finish it in the next week or so.

The Know-It-All by A.J. Jacobs (via audiobook) - This summer in France, I listened to the first eight hours or so of this audiobook over the course of my daily walks to and from my university. I had downloaded it through my library and finally checked it out again so I can finish it!