End of Year Survey

STOP WHAT YOU ARE DOING? Could you please take 30 seconds of your day and answer these 6 questions for me? I want to refocus in 2015 on my blog/instagram and it would REALLY help me out if you gave me your thoughts/critiques. I know I haven't posted much lately but I will be around in 2015. Watch me. It's going to be a BIG year!

https://www.surveymonkey.com/s/NG9FNGK


Also, I'm tweeting again:

@isaidgoodluck

Our Austin mini-vacation

It's been very busy here in our part of the world. I should already be in bed. I've been getting up to go to the gym at 5 in the morning & this past week has been hell. We had some new neighbors move in this month and so much drama has happened at 2 in the morning that has kept me awake. Yesterday, a friend of theirs went completely psycho outside my bedroom window screaming and punching trees. Anyway, his antics kept me and my upstairs neighbor awake (I heard her walk back and forth to the window) for a good part of the morning. Two nights prior, one of their windows got busted somehow and it was hard to sleep after that. This would probably be my first night of really good sleep but I'd rather stay up writing to you guys.

I am now 29 years old. My birthday was a few days ago. I can't believe I'll be 30 next year. For my birthday we took a last minute trip to Austin. My boys are my favorite travelers. They are always up for a road trip. I happened to bring my good camera with me to take videos but I honestly got lost in our vacation that I barely got any footage. However, I did piece together what I did get below. It might as well be about my son's trip to Austin :) Next time though, the camera will be out all of the time & I'll figure out how to focus better. 

We went to the state capitol, Mount Bonnell & did some camping at Windy Point Park, which is on Lake Travis. Despite the cloudy skies and constant drizzle, we had a really good time. 

There are a few more pictures on my Instagram if you want to take a look there. 

Also, the Texas Style Council Camp is ON for this year. Completely different format than years prior. If you're a blogger or small business, check it out. Registration opens Nov 1. Adult camp for blogging chicks y'all. I mean, does it really get any better than that? Honestly? This might be your only opportunity to do this as a grown up. Founder, Indiana Adams, wrote up a quick post about it if you're interested in learning more. Feel free to like their Facebook page <--- No they are not paying me to say this. I'm just really excited about going again and giving it another go :)

Half Marathoner in Training - 13.1 Baby

Hellooo Summer!!!! I hope all of your summer has been great so far! IG has taken over as my blog of sorts so there is much to catch up on blog wise.

• Our recent vacation to Washington State to visit family
• Little guy playing soccer & loving it!
• The little guy graduated Kindergarten & is currently spending his summer in Hawaii
• In order to keep myself busy, I've dedicated my summer to training for a half marathon
• Trips to Dinosaur Valley State Park and the Creationism Museum
• Going to Dallas Comic Con

and I think that's it.

Let's talk about the half marathon in this post shall we? I made a public declaration to run these 13.1 miles and I can't take it back. And what was I thinking training in the summer...in Texas? That means it's best to train in the early morning or the evening and evening starts at 8:30. I'm pretty positive about this though. I expect lots of pain, torture & annoyance through the process so bare with me. I had my doctor check my heart too which means things are getting serious around these parts when it comes to running. He even gave me a double high five for taking on this task. Whooo!

So which half marathon did I choose to give all this training to? I originally wanted to do the Michelob Ultra 13.1 here in Dallas but the date didn't sit too well with me. I wanted to get most of my training out of the way before the little guy came home & I wanted to keep it semi-local. So low and behold, the Plano Balloon Festival Half Marathon is getting my money. I also found out that a few other local bloggers are doing the same run, including Skinny Meg, so that's pretty encouraging.

Plus, I get a super cool medal for my efforts even if I crawl across the finish line. I've also signed up for a 5k this coming weekend as a plan to get a few races in so I don't get first time jitters at the half. I'm sure I will though. I'm nervous just thinking about running so far. I keep hearing that little voice in the back of my head telling myself that I can't do it but I KNOW I can. It's a mental struggle. Plus, I've been watching Diana from Livylove power through her runs. She's been such an honest inspiration from day one. I love being inspired. By people, by books...it's all incredible. If you have someone inspirational you follow & wouldn't mind sharing, let me know below.

So for the next 12 weeks, starting tomorrow, I'm going to try to be in the zone. The last few weeks I've just focused on being healthy and happy. These next few weeks I'm going to focus on eating nutrient dense meals, working on my core (it's important to have a strong core as a runner) & giving my all to my training. It's been almost a year (come July 8) since I started this journey to a better me. My mental state has absolutely turned around for the better & I am incredibly grateful for that.

Wish me luck!

I miss the internet.

I miss turning off all of the heavy sounds in the house (dishwasher, dryer, etc) & turning on some classical music so that I could concentrate on reading blogs. I use to read an array of blogs. I still do from time to time but nothing like I use to. My use to set time aside to reading blogs in the morning. At least an hour a day was set for "blog time". It was usually in the mornings because it was so peaceful. I miss being excited to re-design my blog. 

At some point, I did a 180 with blogs. I actually kind of blame bloggers for this. Their quest to rise to blogger fame consumed my blog feed. It all started to become junk. I wasn't eager to open my blog reader. I slowly started to delete everyone. The insane amounts of reviews, the multi-blogger giveaways, the wordless Wednesdays, the link-ups :/ I usually don't mind these & I never really minded the posts about bloggers sponsors. I understood the point of sponsorship so I semi-appreciated it for what it was & I appreciated bloggers who set aside certain days of the week to promote them. Then I would know which post not to read. 

I think everyone else started to notice this trend to & became just as exhausted as myself. My original blogger friends don't seem to blog anymore. Originality in the blogging world is dying. Hell, I know people have written similar posts pertaining to this same topic. They even use it to "revive" themselves for a few months until they fall back into the cycle. 

Not to fully put the blame on bloggers for my lack of blog interest lately, I'll take a bit of the blame as well. I've always had a problem with being so public, we all know that. Now I seem as busy ever. I've shifted a lot of my free time into fitness. To be a better me. I even started another blog, which doesn't have one post on it, to document my fitness journey. There are a LOT of fitness & healthy living blogs out there but this is my personal journey. Feel free to add it & get some updates if I ever post ---> Power Up Jenn

I also quit posting because I didn't feel my life was important to post about. I'm just a regular mom and I'm not fully skilled in one area. I'm not a prodigy or extremely smart. I go to work and come home just like the rest of the other working moms out there. But hey, whatever. There are a ton of moms like me. I actually don't know how to end this post at all. I have no words of wisdom to share. No finished thoughts. I'm just done with thinking about this. And to be honest, I can't stand being on the computer for more than 5 minutes anymore.

So I'll just randomly end it right here.

New Job | New Changes

So it's been a little over two months since I've started my new job. With the new job came some new adjustments; ones that I don't like and ones that I do. I wanted to take some time out of my busy day to review them for you. We will start with the cons first.

CONS: 

• Losing the belly fat that I had spent so much time losing months before has become harder. Because I spend most of my day sedentary, my body has formed a new shape. Not only have I continued to work on my glutes, which I just discovered grew an inch and a half since the last time I measured, my waist has expanded as well. Which seems weird to me. And even though I work out, I am seeing the slowest results ever. During my time at the desk as I research this topic, I came along this Lifehacker article (this is one out of hundreds I found) that talked about the dangers of sitting all day. I saw results so quickly when I worked in retail that I didn't realize how much standing up and walking around attributed to my quick results. Now I do & I've been trying to find other ways to incorporate fitness into my job. I thought about buying a balance ball to sit on but I didn't find too many positive articles about that so I've moved on to the mini stair stepper under the desk. Somehow I'm also going to have to move around at work more often, even though I'm just the receptionist. Since I get an hour lunch break, I sometimes walk to the grocery store to get out into the fresh air. And because I don't want fitness to devour my life and free time, I'm thinking about taking 5 am seriously and working out then. I've been avoiding that idea but it's kind of necessary at this point. 
• We miss Mike. We don't have any days off together. He hadn't taken vacation in over two years so he's been requesting off here and there to use it up but what happens when it runs out? Apparently he can't switch with someone on Sundays, which would be great for us. Saturdays are a no for his job. Luckily we are all home when he gets home but by then it's bed time pretty much. Sat night to Sunday brunch time is our only real time together as a family. I hope he gets a new, better job in the future or at least eventually get Sundays off. 
• Because I make a few dollars more than my old job, we no longer get help through the government for anything. I have no problem coming out in saying that. We struggled at times at our old place, with my old job, that we had to turn for help sometimes with food. We no longer get that help and will now live paycheck to paycheck again. This is a pro and a con in a way. All I've ever really known was to be "poor". I've lived a pretty good life in this state so I don't necessarily think money really has anything to do with happiness but at times, it has a lot to do with stress relief. We live a simplistic life, probably  most in part because of our finances, and I am grateful for that. Now that we don't get any help, we will now have to pay with our own money for groceries. Still broke, still making it. Our diet has slowly changed from a lot of processed food to better foods and I am crossing my fingers that we can still make it work on $50/$60 a week (new challenge). 

PROS:

• I get to do things on the weekend if I want. Like how I just ran the Blacklight Run with friends last weekend, as shown above. You can see more at my Instagram if you're on there but I'm sure you didn't miss it. It was a B L A S T. It made me so happy to be there and I look forward to future fun runs. 
• I have my son back. When I worked in retail, my baby would have to leave every weekend to stay with family so I could make my measly, shitty paycheck. Sometimes he would have to stay at my family's house during the week as well because I would have to work late & so would Mike. It was just terrible. I would cry a lot because I barely got to see him as much as I'd like to. Especially when he started school. Just thinking about it makes my eyes teary. Fortunately, that doesn't happen anymore. 2 years of that bullshit is done. My son is with me every weekend (unless it's a rare time where he decides to stay with family) and every single night I pick him up after work. It's my favorite thing about changing jobs. 
• My priorities in life have shifted dramatically. All my internet reading is done during the day so that when I get off, my brain is shut down from work and technology. I barely open my computer when I get home. We stop by the grocery store, I do the laundry, tidy up, help X with his homework and hope everything is done within the two hours that Mike is suppose to be home so that we can all spend time together. And if it's not done, I don't fret about it. Life is too short to stress about things not being perfect and I know that for sure now. I can feel it in my bones. My family is my focus. While their focus might not be me, I hope they know how much I put into things just so I can be "mentally and physically" with them, even if they are playing video games or watching a movie. 
• My health. I've spent a good part of these two months shifting my health. And I really hope to goodness that I'm able to stay as great as I feel now even paycheck to paycheck. Speaking of health, I now have health insurance. But because I'm still broke as a joke, I qualified for insurance through the government. To get similar insurance through my job, I would have had to pay $55 a WEEK instead of less than 30 a MONTH. I am so grateful for that. It felt so nice to see a doctor recently. I regret not choosing the PPO plan instead of the HMO but I'll do that next year. And as we incorporate Paleo into our life, my health has been gradually getting better. My family is full of ups and downs, regarding health which is why we've chosen to eat as primal as possible. We're not hardcore but it has helped us SO MUCH to step away from processed foods. I can tell a difference in myself (since I take it the most seriously) and I'm starting to see a slow change in everyone else. 
• Oh and I secretly have time to catch up on my shows either during lunch or when the little guy goes to bed. I'm addicted to Archer. 

Oh my goodness did I even mention that we moved into a new place? Where is my head right now. I guess I talk so much on IG that this blog always gets the back end of the stick. Plus, I never know who even reads this anymore. I really just blog because I like to do it, even if no one is reading :)

Dallas Sci-Fi Expo 2014

So we don't always stay home. Our irregular schedules never let us have a full day together but we try to get out when we can. Mike put in for vacation time recently and we chose to use that time to attend the Dallas Sci-Fi Expo. I am not a hardcore nerd. I do enjoy nerdy things (Big Bang Theory, Doctor Who, Sherlock, Adventure Time) but that's as far as it's gone so far. My boys, on the other hand, are gamers. The love Minecraft, Guild Wars, Garry's Mod, World of Warcraft etc. Mutually we share a love for Marvel movies, as well as Doctor Who & Star Wars. Because we made the last minute decision to attend, we didn't have enough time to prep as a family. The only person dressing up would be Xavier and he ended up going as Boba Fett.

This was the last DCC event at the Irving Convention center and with good reason. Dallas Comic Con has exploded! The Irving Convention Center just could not hold this many people. The lines were incredibly disorganized. We waited outside for awhile. We had pre-purchased our tickets (thank goodness) but had to get back in line once we picked them up. I would have hated to have gone with my original decision to get tickets once we got there. 

There were lines for the escalator and the space to get off on each floor was so small! I didn't feel like I could genuinely look around. The main reason we went there was to get an autograph by Karen Gillan, our favorite Doctor Who companion. There were many spectacular guests but Karen was our goal. Boy, did I not plan well for that. Her line was out the wazoo & pretty much for VIP only. So ex nay on that. The little guy DID get to see her from afar and he blushed so hard and wanted to get out of there. So we went back downstairs where everyone went goo-goo for the little Boba Fett in attendance.

We left about an hour after we got there. Mike was upset about that. There was just no room to move around or do anything at all. I didn't pay to people watch. I'm pretty thrilled that Dallas Comic Con is moving to the Dallas Convention Center. That space is incredibly large compared to this and maybe we can make it for some Q&A's! Plus, I promise my boys that this time we will stay much longer than an hour. DCC actually has three events each year: Sci-Fi Expo in Feb, Dallas Comic Con in May and Fan Days in October. May is the huge one and one we are most excited about. DCC somehow ends up getting great guests for the show and I can't wait to give them another chance. It took me three times to find something at a Thai restaurant I liked all for the sake of my man (it's his favorite and my least) so I'm PRETTY sure this next event will go off well for all of us.

 I got a new camera (Nikon D7100) and I'm excited about taking it out that day to snap photos and make some videos for everyone to see. If you live in the Dallas area (or Texas really) go like the Dallas Comic Con Facebook page to keep up to date with their events. Also, check out the smaller (if that's more your style) Dallas Comic and Pop Expo which has been created recently as well! I was suppose to volunteer for them but the little guy got sick so I had to cancel. I only snapped three pictures from the Sci-Fi Expo and all with my phone. So this is all I have! 

Hello March

I'm alert. I'm alive. I'm still here. 

What a month. We moved into our new apartment on Valentines Day. Mike had to work all weekend and I was pretty much in charge of everything. Thankfully, my family helped me out both Saturday and Sunday & we ended up throwing half of my house away. Okay, not really throwing them away but I gave them to my Aunt to sell in her garage sales. Any extra money would be great for me. 

I'm currently sitting in the dark, in our living room, on our make shift pallet couch. Who knew we had so many blankets? Our little guy has had the stomach bug all night & he finally decided to catch up on his sleep. My heart pours out to him & I slept on this hard wood floor with him just to help him when he woke up to get sick. You know how kids can get confused, waking up in the dark. The moment I heard his body shift & start making suckle sounds, I woke up & got ready to pounce. Every time he opened his eyes and started to cough, his mama was there to lift him up and pull the trash can near. Poor guy. We finally got to sleep around 430 but woke up at 7 when Mike woke up. 

It's too bad we can hear every single thing in this apartment. It's much smaller than our old one and it seems like the noises are intensified. It's a good thing the little guy sleeps so well or he'd be getting up at 4:30/5 every morning with us. I hate closing his door. I'm paranoid of intruders now that we live on a lower floor. Hell, I seem to be paranoid of everything. 

I'm still trying to balance new budgets, new off days, etc. I have yet to get a crock-pot list together, which I would love to do. I could totally get dinner going in the morning & have it ready by time I get off work. I'm just having trouble finding low sodium, healthy crock-pot dinners. Any suggestions?

I never blog anymore. I really miss the days when I was most passionate about blogging. The connection with readers; the feeling I would get when I found new blogs to read. Blogging doesn't seem like that anymore. A lot of people start blogging now to make money. But blogging to make money is hard work. Keeping readers is what you should be focused on. Combing your craft. Developing content. Interacting with the people who care enough about you to stop by and see what you read. I wish so much for blogging to get back to its core. I'd love to rally the troops but I think I'm too paranoid to do it. I don't have the confidence for it. Hell, my work even knows about  my blog. What's a girl to do after that? Can she even really express herself without expecting consequences? I have shit like that to worry about now. It's only a matter of time before my family finds it. I mean really, if I'm so weary about it, why do I even have a public blog. Maybe this is it. Maybe blogging is what I've been waiting for. I mean, if the whole world sees what you think, you can't turn your back on it. You can't turn your back on yourself to keep the peace. Maybe that's why I blog. I blog to be myself and force myself to be okay with it because I lack the self confidence otherwise. It really is therapeutic, huh?

You want a Bugatti? You better work bitch!

Three weeks ago, my job started firing people. Not just any people but good people. People that did their job and had been there for a long time. All because they wanted to save some money. I knew I wasn't on the list because of my position but I could never look at my job the same way. I opened up my entire schedule to make sure I wouldn't be fired. Ever. Every weekend, I had to live without my son because it was a must that I work on the weekend to earn a living. And when I did have the days off, he was at school. I was miserable there for over two long years. 

When I got news of another firing, I had enough. That night, I submitted my resume to multiple positions. I yearned for a call back this time. Remember last spring/summer when I threw resumes left and right with little to no call backs? Pure mental beating. Imagine my surprise when I received a call the next morning for a phone interview and went in for a work interview in less than 24 hours. I got that job a week later. 

It's crazy how changing jobs has changed my perspective on life. I wouldn't say that I had a shitty perspective a few months ago. Quite honestly, I am puzzled as to how I even stayed so positive when the weight of my job pushed down on my shoulders every single day. Even when I slept. 

Now, I feel like I can breathe. I am still trying to get use to having a set schedule. I don't remember the last time I cooked & the laundry has been piling up but I am happy. I've been trying to wake up every morning at 5. The closest I've come to that is 5:30 & that's pretty good! When we move to the new place, I'm pretty sure I'll be motivated to actually be up at 5 because I'll live on the first floor and not have to worry about neighbors when I exercise. 

You know what else I do? Besides listen to my awesome Spotify playlists all day? They've given me the task to take over their social media. While I am the perfect candidate in that office, I've found taking over social media for someone else's business to be a challenge. Especially a business I really know nothing about. Construction. What do I know about construction? Google has been trying to help me but it turns out, the construction industry has been dragging their feet with social media. I'm not even kidding y'all. It's a toughie. 

I'm still the new kid in the office and it most definitely feels that way. Since I'm in charge of the social media, I spend a lot of time researching on the net as well as doing the receptionist position. I don't want them to think I'm just lolly gagging around online. Even though they honestly told me that I could read when it's slow. Why do I feel guilty then?

The best part is, I can wear whatever I want. Well, to a point. I get an excuse to buy new clothes and actually end up wearing them. Chictopia, Pinterest, and Wendy's Lookbook have been my best buds on this venture. I know I'm a bit too dressy sometimes compared to everyone else but let's take note that people see me all day, every day. There is a HUGE glass wall right in front of my desk. We are the first office by the entrance. I people watch all day long and those people watch me. It's like I'm an animal, in a zoo. 

I've spent way too much money since I got this job. That needs to tone down. Mike and I don't have a day off together. It's weird & I wish it could change but I honestly don't see that happening...at all. I guess the roles have switched with my boys. Now I see my son on the weekends but I don't see my man. At least I get to see them both at night & sometimes during lunch. Pallet night has been redirected to Saturday night since Mike doesn't go to work until the afternoon on Sunday. 

A lot of kinks still have to be worked out though. We will eventually get there. This next month is going to be really busy. The Sci-Fi Expo is this weekend, we move next weekend, the weekend after that I have my first 5k & of course, just patiently waiting for my income tax so I can get a new camera & couch! And isn't Mardi Gras the weekend AFTER that? Isn't Valentines day the weekend we move? We don't really do V-Day but I think our gift to each other is a good one.

"Here baby. I love you, have a new house. It has hardwood floors, a brand new gym, new kitchen, a washer/dryer AND it's on the first floor. Exactly what you wanted. Happy Valentines Day."

I miss blogging. My job is very aware that I have personal blog. I'm not sure if it's a good or bad thing. The first thing I want to do when I come home is blog but I am on social media sites all day, when I walk through that door I don't even care. It's hit me once again how much work goes into developing a websites or brand and gee whiz. I don't think I want that for my blog. I'm not even sure if my brain could handle doing it at work & coming home to do it once again. I applaud you full time working ladies who come home & blog. Really. It's exhausting. You ladies deserve a round of applause! I remember when I did my old blog in Alaska and had 500 readers. Engagement alone took up so much time!

I've got to go and do some Zumba before I go to bed. My body is really going to miss walking around all day now that I have a desk job. Hell, it already does. My damn muffin top is back. *__*

Excuse any errors that might be in the paragraphs above. I'm way too lazy to proof-read tonight.

Entering the new year...

I'm so happy that we've survived another year. 2014 seems much more promising than 2013. 2013 included a death in the family, coming to terms with my lack of religious beliefs, weight loss & an increase in fitness/healthy living, our boy started school, improvement on my credit (which might not be a big deal for some but it is for me!), finalizing my divorce, improving my relationship with Michael (3 years this year!), a slow improvement of family relationships, discovered I am a multipotentialite (my madness has a name!), a moving announcement, a new title at work, my first car, a crazy/scary storm, my son flying for the first time, etc...

It's only January in 2014 but so far, it's started off in a new direction. Our lease is set to be renewed for the second time. With that comes a rent increase & the cost has crossed the line. They want us to pay WHAT for this crappy apartment when I can get a nice one for the same price? No way. The day we got the notice, we wrote our 60 day notice, found another (really nice) apartment and signed the lease. In 24 hours y'all. So within the month, we will be getting rid of more than half of our belongings and moving into our new home. The place we will call our home until we move in the summer of 2015. 

Pretty soon I'll have a new schedule at work. One that requires me to be there incredibly early in the morning. With that will come a change of schedule for my little family. I will have to be much more organized than usual in order to get the most out of my free time, with my family. That probably means a lot of crockpot meals are in our future. More meal prepping as well. I really do feel better when I am organized & maximizing my time. I don't know why I don't do it more often. Yes, I do. I'm lazy. Tonight, I was thinking about my schedule & while it will be fine, I'd really like to have something more solid. Dip my foot into the administration field. I'm a hard worker and while I spent quite some time last year searching for a new job & coming up empty handed, I put in a few resumes tonight to try again. It's a new year so new things can happen right? I think so. 

I came here with a lot on my mind but I've been distracted by this Disney Piano playlist that I stumbled on via Spotify. So I'll just leave it at this. It's too late tonight to finish up anyway. Goodnight everyone.