Seeking happiness throughout the week...

1. My new hair! I'm like an addict with changing my hair up. But I went to this salon specifically for curly hair and got a sick ombre type thing to help me grow my roots out and I love it! I haven't washed my hair since Wednesday 'cuz my curls haven't looked this good, ever!

2. Feeling so appreciated after only taking two days off. Coworkers and gym members really seriously showed me how much they missed me!

3. Committing to a work out plan. Homegirl has fallen off the workout wagon the past two weeks. Sunday night I'm gonna sit down and plan out a week of attack.

4. No more dance rehearsals! The past few weekends I've been going up to RI for dance rehearsals for my show which was last weekend. No more! Weekends are for relaxing, working out, and being with my friends and my boo thang.

5. Reading "You Are a Badass: How to Stop Doubting Yourself and Live an Awesome Life." So motivational.

6. Random bouts of sunshine in between all these rainy days.

7. Discovering new music.

8. Finally editing music for one of my dance classes.

9. Having a random snow day on Monday! Holla at one extra day of vacation since my dance classes were cancelled.

10. Three day work weeks. *Mic drop* no explanation necessary.

I hope you found something, no matter how small, to find happiness in this week. What's one thing that brought you joy and one thing you're excited about for this weekend?

It's already Thursday?!?

Man oh man, the beauty of a three day week.

Here's a rambly little post about things going on during this short week. The most important thing to point out is that my coworkers got a huge box of donuts delivered by a gym member yesterday and

DIDN'T SAVE ME A SINGLE DONUT. 

Good for my tummy, bad for my happiness. Cuz we all know donuts = joy to life.

Yesterday I got my hurr done in New Haven by Lucas's twin sistah. I didn't realize this but the salon is specialized in curly hair! Holla atcha girl! If you live in CT and have unruly locks like this girl over here, head on over to Joe Bruno's Salon in New Haven and get your curls treated right.

Like they flipped my hair upside down after washing it and blotted it with a freakin' microfiber cloth. Ain't no one ever done that for me before.

I've also been thinking pretty hard about the direction I want to take this blog in. I'd like to think that I'm a bright, fun, interesting person that people like being around... real life friends, vouch for me here... * awkward silence *

Anyways, I don't think this blog reflects that. I used to be super creative! I want this blog to be creative, casual, fun, and somewhere you wanna check out on a rainy day for a little dose of sunshine, positivity, a list or a tidbit or two, and some heavily saturated, not-too-professional images of tulips and work out clothes and my dog. Who I haven't even mentioned once! WTF. See, there's something seriously wrong here. 

There's one day left in this week and I have to teach Spin class tonight which I totally haven't prepped for yet, so I'm gonna leave you with this mediocre image of the food Lucas and I ate last night since we're little piggies who take any excuse to go out to eat. Note: The sandwich to the right was sent back because Lucas likes his meat barely just killed dripping in blood and they cooked it too much. Yuck. 

I also am dying to mention that our service here was TERRIBLE in my opinion and like, I never complain. I hate complaining about food service. It gives me the creeps. 

But this guy didn't get us extra water, tried to coerce me to get nachos and made me super uncomfortable about it, made excuses about why Lucas's sandwich was cooked wrong, didn't tell us it was happy hour and then tried telling us it was only at the bar!!! and was literally running around like a chicken with his head cut off, all while serving ONLY FOUR TABLES. Maybe I have high expectations but man, he was sucking hard core. 

And Lucas made me tip him over 20%. I was pissed.

Adios amigos, happy Thursday! 

Are vacations the best, or actually the worst?!

The jury is out on whether going on vacation is the best thing ever, or actually, the WORST. 

I have a huge personal problem with readjusting my routine. I get very comfortable with doing things a certain way, no matter what the circumstances are, and disrupting that order seriously disrupts my life sometimes! For example, once I get into the routine of waking up for work at 4am every day, that's that. That's what I'm used to and that is the baseline upon which I am functioning. In contrast, when I go on vacation, that's all thrown out of whack. I can adjust quickly to an easier routine (sleeping in til 9am, not going to the gym, and going out for breakfast everyday? EASY.)

But readjusting to a more difficult routine? I haven't been in such great denial since my university forced me to graduate college.

I used to get so worked up about the imminent despair of returning to work after going on vacation that, at times, I couldn't even enjoy simply being on vacation! This is definitely something to meditate on, and the first bullet point I'll reflect on in how to survive returning to work/real life from vacation.

1. Be present while you're away. Nothing is going to ruin your peace and bliss and happy time like even giving a second thought to everything waiting at home for you. That doesn't exist in your current world. Stay safe in your vacation cocoon-bubble. It'll pop sooner or later. But not now. Sip your fruity drink, umbrella included, by the pool/ocean/mountain-side/in your kitchen. Clear your mind now because it's the only way to feel refreshed when you return to real life.

2. Readjust slowly, if possible. I am a huge fan of giving myself ONE very important buffer day in between vacation and real life. I'm back into reality, but just dipping my little toe in. I don't have work, but I do try to wake up a little bit earlier, schedule a doctor's appointment, and run some errands. Like I said, we aren't diving headfirst into work and responsibilities. But we are wading into the shallow end of shit we have to get done.

3. Resist denial and prepare yourself. I mentioned above my extreme denial of being forced to graduate college. I'll tell you what that denial caused me to do. Go out drinking at least three times a week, every week second semester and proceed to be hungover ALL THE TIME. Not apply for anything but the bare minimum of what I needed for internships. Not prepare a resume. Not apply to any jobs I was qualified for. Move back home with my parents, and proceed to work a bunch of shitty jobs that I hated. That is a huge scale example of what happens when you're in denial. Early in the day on your buffer day, do everything imaginable to make you first day back in real life as smooth as possible. Do all your laundry, fold it, and lay out your clothes for the next day. Pack your lunch and utensils. Shower and do your hair. Plan everything meticulously so that nothing can go wrong and you are smooth sailin'.

4. Approach your first day back feeling refreshed, recharged, and appreciated.  Let's break this one into those three main words.

• Refreshed - If you usually see the same people every day at your job like I do, you feel excited and energized to see them again and catch up with their lives. You're engaged in your work again. Sometimes a couple of mental health days are all you need to fix that burnt out feeling that a lot of people get at work.
• Recharged - Hopefully you were able to catch up on some quality sleep during your time off. Your eyes are clearer and brighter, and you have more energy because you've been able to fully charge up your battery to 100%. Adios red and yellow battery bars. 
• Appreciated - If people in your real life/work environment value you as a person and employee, you should feel showered with appreciation when you return. Sometimes people need absence to understand how much they need and love someone. I hope you get this feeling when you return to real life! It's a good one! 

My vacation was only four days, but in all honestly, it felt like almost a week! I'm really trying to implement all of my own advice to make my transition back into real life and work more bearable today. But oooooh my goodness, how I miss sleepin' in in my cozy bed. Sorry but it's the truth! 

Does anyone out there have any neat advice for transitioning back to real life after a vacation away from it all? Lemme know in a comment below! 

RI Vacation & Snow in April

Hello, hi, and happy Monday!
And boy oh boy, what a happy Monday it is, since this little chickadee has the day off!

I had a dance performance at my alma mater this weekend in Rhode Island, so Lucas and I decided o make this into a little weekend getaway. Unfortunately, the weather didn't decide to cooperate in terms of us doing the Newport cliff walk or going to Colt State Park, but we enjoyed our getaway anyways. Take that Mother Nature!

FRIDAY
Friday night I spent in, while Lucas went out with his friends. I did do some reading of my first ever self-help book, "You Are A Badass - How to Stop Doubting Your Greatness and Start Living an Awesome Life". That's one hell of a title, huh? I like it so far, but as the same time feel kind of guilty reading about to attain all my dreams when like, kids in Africa have to walk five miles there and back to get clean water and all that, ya know?

Is the glare coming off that book blinding you, or is it like staring right into the Golden Gates of Self-Help Heaven? I'll let you know when I'm done reading the book.

I also did some heavy bullet journal planning which like, ohhhhh my goodness, I'm so excited to write a blog post about. It's totally perfect for me. 

SATURDAY

I had to be at the school at 2 for my dance performance at 7:30. We rehearsed the piece from 2-4:30, then I checked into the hotel and managed to squeeze in a quick dinner with my old roommate, Katie! It was great to catch up with her on our crazy lives since we only see each other a few times a year. Our dinner was so short and impromptu that I wasn't able to take any pictures! Aw, man. 

My dance show went great. The performance was actually completely packed, it looked like every seat was taken, and I got to see some old friends and dance professors from the school. It warms my heart that so many people came to support the performance! My dance partner, Michael, likened it to a bunch of our friends coming over our house to watch us perform. That's kind of what it felt like, lol.

After the show Lucas and I went OUT. We haven't gone out drinking together in forever. But our hotel was honestly only 500 feet from three bars, so we hit up two of them, Dirty Water Pub and Aidan's. Dirty Water Pub had live music, and we sat on the top balcony and watched! Super fun and relaxing. Then Aidan's was the complete opposite atmosphere and had a dance floor and club music. It was so fun and hilarious to let loose with my honey. 

Lols to shitty quality bar pictures.

SUNDAY
We were going to leave on Sunday morning, but woke up with snow outside our windows (wtf mate) and decided to stay another day. Why not???

We went out to breakfast at a cool diner called Green Eggs and sat at the counter. Lucas got too much food, as per usual, and I got Texas style French Toast with berries and cinnamon sugar. And of course coffee milk, cuz hello! When in RI, do as the Rhode Islanders do. Peep my Insta for the pic of my delicious French Toast breakfast ;)

Then when we realized that our hotel didn't have a microwave to heat up all of our accumulating leftovers, we literally drove a half hour to the nearest Walmart and bought a microwave. I wish I was kidding, Lucas justified it by saying that he needed one anyways...

We relaxed HARD CORE in the hotel for the afternoon while it snowed on and off outside, then went to dinner at one of my favorite Asian restaurants called Jacky's Galaxie which was actually voted one of the best Asian Fusion places in the USA! Here we proceeded to of course, get way too much food, and were treated to amazing service by our awesome little waitress.

It was so fucking delicious.
Yes that is a giant personal Scorpion bowl that just I drank. Also we had special shots called a Peppermint Patty and a Naughty Redhead. Holla!!

MONDAY
Today, on the day we had to check out, we woke up and it was of course BLIZZARDING. But we had to go home anyways, cuz staying in that hotel was really gettin a lil esspenssiveee. Of course we had to stop to take some basic pictures by the water in the snowfall.

Then we stopped at a place in Warren that is this gift shop called Imagine! I can't believe I've never been to it. It's voted one of the best gift shops in America! It has three floors and some really neat stuff. The umbrellas that were hanging from the ceiling looked so pretty and like we were in wonderland.

Overall, it was a really great weekend and ended with some great news... Lucas got a call back from the job that he interviewed for on Friday aaaaaaaaaaand HE GOT THE JOB! So exciting, so happy happy happy for him! It's a job I think he'll really enjoy because it's so hands on and physical. And he's a little puppy dog with ADHD sometimes.

So we're going to the movies (since it's his favorite thing ever) to celebrate tonight! My dance classes have been cancelled from the snow, which is exciting but terrifying since we only have a short number of weeks left before the recital... omg.

#Basic.

Have a wonderfully happy and productive Monday!

April Goals

Andddddddd just like that we are a quarter of the way done with 2016. Is time accelerating or is that just me? That's definitely a theory that's out there right now, right? Geesh.
  
HELLO, APRIL. 

April showers bring May flowers unfortunately looks like it's proving to be accurate the next fifteen days, according to my Weather app. Rude.

Yes, that is snow that you see on the forecast. What a sick, twisted joke.

Anywhos, ANOTHER FRESH START TO A NEW MONTH. Who's excited? * Raises hand and jumps up and down * I'm a sucker for a fresh start and a new set of goals, man. Nothing quite tickles my fancy like that 1 on the page when you flip the calendar.

Let's recap my progress on my March goals, shall we?

1. Buy a vehicle. HALLELUJAH. PRAISE. #BLESSED. I accomplished this goal this month, of purchasing my adorable little black 2012 Honda Civic EX. I love her. She has heated seats, a sunroof, a spacious tan interior, and Bluetooth. She is everything I thought that I could never possess in a car because my parents have always bought old, crappy used cars. I'm breaking the cycle. 

2. Eat clean. Lol, so I did already write a post about this. But I broke 11 days in. Not bad, but certainly not good either. Also, no one told me that Easter was in March. For some bizarre reason I thought it was in April??? So this was a super unfair disadvantage, just sayin'.

3. Be active AF. This is where I start being super proud of myself. I was really into my Fitbit this month and had some incredible streaks of active minutes. I was active over 5 days of the week for three weeks in a row. Bam! 

4. Get your read on. I didn't start the body book like I planned on, but I totally finished Big Little Lies and wrote a review for it here. Amazing book! 

5. Be proactive. Meal plan for every day. Totally only did this for three days, lolz.

6. Out with the old. Didn't get around to this in the month of March, but it is the top of my list for this new month. 

7. You are #1. I may not have gotten a massage, but I did shave, moisturize, and paint my nails more often than ever before! I also won a facial treatment in a raffle in a Zumbathon! Which brings me to.....

8. Try something new! Not only did I take my first Zumba class, I participated in a Zumbathon! It was super fun, and just exciting to try something out of my normal routine. 

So overall, I'm actually extremely proud of myself for the month of March. No I didn't accomplish every single thing I set out to do, but I came pretty close! Now, onto the next one...

1. Spring cleaning! This is now at the top of the list. I'm in love with this whole obsession with minimalism that's going on. I will binge watch Youtube videos of capsule wardrobes and people cleaning out their closets. Out with the old, and good riddance!

2. Work on long term goals having to do with grad school and OT. I've already set up some dates to shadow OT's in different settings and my first one is today! I'd also like to start reviewing Anatomy chapters for my class that starts in June. Research grad schools and GRE requirements.

3. Attempt clean eating again. Break my 11 day no dessert record. Remind myself that my body is 80% diet and that I spent months trashing it with Thanksgiving food, birthday food, and Christmas holidays food.

4. Create a financial plan. Super boring I know. But I have to figure out a game plan to pay off my crippling debt and build some savings accounts to make all my dreams come true #GrandCanyonVacation.

5. Read for knowledge. Dive into The Body Book and You Are A Badass. Learn some new stuff!

6. Continue being active af. Try to hit 10,000 step goal every day. Do another Zumba class. Try a BodyPump class. Check out a new gym that has lots of class options and consider signing up. Variety is ze spice of life!

7. You are still #1. Taking care of yourself is muy importante, both to your physical and mental health. So, continue this habit, but include hair mask, flossing, even more shaving, body butter, nails and eyebrows. Oh and I'm getting my nasty grown out highlights fixed on Wednesday, so that's a thing!

Weeeeeeeee! New month, some new goals, and some old. Let's do this.

Also, and in case you didn't notice,
P.S. HAPPY FRIDAY !

I am staring out of this dark tunnel and right into the bright and flowery fields of a four day weekend so excuse me, I have a glass (or 3) of wine waiting at home for me in approximately seven hours, a dance performance tomorrow night, and a day trip in Rhode Island on Sunday.

Too bad it's going to snow.

Oh well, you can't have it all my friends!