(Not So) Extreme Makeover: Me Edition -- Week 10

How are you doing this week? I need to get myself a bit more in gear on some of these things... hoping you've been making more forward progress than I have!

1. Find and read a book to better myself. OK, haven't opened the book this week. Really wanted to... will keep working on it! I did, however, make 2 friendship bracelets (you know, the kind you made when you were 12, out of embroidery floss?) for my daughter and her best friend. Can't read and tie knots at the same time. That's my story and I'm stickin' to it!

2. Have pretty nails. I have still not worked my way up to polish. (I suppose I can blame this on the friendship bracelets, too. After all, can't tie knots with wet nails!) Even without polish, I think I'm about ready to move this off the list and find something new for next week. A few have broken but they're still in good shape, so I think it's about time to call this one done.

3. Simplify. Ah... the big, amorphous "simplify." Made a bit of progress in two areas this week. Long story short, I recently applied for (and got - yay!) a new job. It required a drug test, which required a long wait in a lab. I brought my pen and paper and finally started putting some ideas on paper. Oh, how I miss that! Far from finished, but it's starting to take shape. Progress made!! On Saturday, I helped my 5-year-old clean "baby stuff" out of her room, built her a new shelving unit and got rid of a lot of broken, torn and useless "stuff." Her room looks great, I have a good pile for Goodwill and her little sister inherited about 70 books and 30 Barbie dolls. We did not yet tackle the closet but I'm feeling good that at least 1 bedroom has been sorted through and weeded out. Only 3 more bedrooms to go...
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Still going strong with:
Better skin care
Drink more water
Grump less
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What are you working on this week? Whatever it is, YOU CAN DO IT! Leave a comment so we can encourage you as you go!

(Not So) Extreme Makeover: Me Edition -- Week 9 (do over!)

So before I get to this week's regular post, I want to take a minute to thank my friend Julie at The Surrendered Scribe for passing on the Sisterhood Award to this blog. Isn't this just the cutest bloggy award button? This award is for blogs that display an "attitude of gratitude" and I'm honored that Julie included me on her list of blogs who do this. In turn, I would like to pass it on to any of you who are reading these weekly Makeover posts and especially to those who are taking steps to make themselves over. Go ahead, grab the pretty picture below -- this award is for you!

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I now return you to your regularly scheduled blog update....

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Last week, I was on a cruise. It was FAB-U-LOUS! I spent 4 nights and 5 days doing nothing but relaxing (read: eating, drinking, napping, drinking, sunbathing, eating, drinking, parasailing, eating, shopping, drinking, sunbathing) with my little sister, Sarah. I missed my kids but I didn't realize until the 2nd or 3rd day of the cruise just how much I needed a few good days of R&R. I've had a lot going on lately and it was the perfect little break. Mad props (I've always wanted to say that!) to my amazing husband, who booked the entire thing as a surprise for my sister and me!!

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I had grand plans for my vacation but didn't do much... see my definition of "relaxing" in the paragraph above. So, I'm calling this a Week 9 "do over" since I don't think last week really counted!
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1. Find and read a book to better myself. I did take The Shack with me on the cruise and on 2 separate occassions, I did open the book. I think I read a total of 3 pages. Don't get me wrong, it's not that I don't love the book... I just didn't want to work my brain hard enough to actually read the book. This one isn't done yet!

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2. Have pretty nails. I posted a few weeks ago that I was looking for a "nail product" to help strengthen my nails. My sister-in-law, Cathy, sent me a bottle of Nailtiques and it's wonderful! So, I made sure to put on a new coat every day on the cruise and since I've been back. My nails are looking good and feeling stronger, though I'm not crossing this one off until I work myself up to actual nail polish. My husband will be away this weekend so I'm sure the girls and I will give each other mani/pedis while he's gone... so maybe by next week I'll be ready to call this one complete.

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3. Simplify. From the outside it probably looks like I haven't made much (any?) progress in this area, but there are some ideas taking shape in my head that I'm really excited about. From a "simplify stuff" perspective, my older daughter and I will start tackling this one this weekend. She wants to make a "science lab" in her bedroom (not sure what that means to a 5-year-old, I'm a bit afraid!) and has asked me to help her clean out some of her old toys, books and clothes to make room for said science lab. So, this weekend we'll start sorting and purging and packing away things. From a "simplify my life" perspective, I'm still working through some ideas which I hope to have in a "ready for publication" state within the next few weeks. But, just thinking through things in my head has helped me a lot, so I'm feeling pretty good that I'm at least facing the right direction on this one, even if I haven't actually started moving yet.

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Still going strong with:

Better skin care

Drink more water

Grump less

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What are you working on this week? Whatever it is, YOU CAN DO IT! Leave a comment so we can encourage you as you go!

(Not So) Extreme Makeover: Me Edition -- Week 9

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Gotta love the "post ahead" feature on Blogger, eh? So I've written this post in advance since right now, I am sailing around in the Caribbean. Hopefully by now I've been parasailing, enjoyed tons of food, see some great shows, lounged on some beaches and had more than my share of fruity frozen drinks. Hopefully I've found plenty of time to finish reading The Shack and my nails still look nice and I haven't bought an excess of souvenirs that completely set me back on the "simplify" goal.

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So, since I'm not willing to pay for internet access during the cruise (isn't the point of the cruise to not have internet and cell phone access?) you won't know until next week how Week 9 really went for me, but I hope it's going great for you!

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Leave me a comment on what you're working on this week so I can catch up on the "real world" when I get back from the big boat :-)

(Not So) Extreme Makeover: Me Edition -- Week 8

So how's your Week 8 shaping up? Nothing new on my list this week but still feeling pretty good!

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1. Find and read a book to better myself. It's been a busy time at work and we had guests all weekend so I didn't get much more reading done on The Shack, but my sister and I are going on a cruise next week (can we say "CAN'T WAIT!!!" and "SO EXCITED!!!"), so I will surely finish this book while lounging on the sunny beaches of Coco Cay. It's been such a great read so far, I can't wait to see how it ends!
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2. Have pretty nails. As I admitted last week, I pretty much stole this one from Julie. It's been about 3 weeks and they're finally starting to look like fingernails! Hoping to work myself up to some polish this weekend. Fingers (and nails!) crossed that they last at least long enough for formal night on the cruise. (Oh, did I mention "CAN'T WAIT!!!" and "SO EXCITED!!!"?)

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3. Simplify. OK, so it turns out that Luanne is actually not helping on this one, though my girls and I thank her from the bottom of our hearts for the sixteen pound box of Disney treasures she sent to us last week. I'm still not clear on what this goal will mean for me, but I've had a lot going on at work lately that is starting to come to a resolution, so hoping that will get me heading in the right direction soon. THEN I'll start working on simplifying "stuff."
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Still going strong with:
Better skin care
Drink more water
Grump less -- still a daily battle but I think I'm finally winning it!
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What are you working on this week? Whatever it is, you can do it! Leave a comment so we can encourage you as you go