We start the year thinking and planning goals we want to accomplish, but as the year goes on sometimes our motivation and inspiration fades. It can be so hard to keep working on our goals. Today’s journal prompt is all about writing out affirmations that can help keep our inspiration going! Affirmations are helpful because the more we repeat them to ourselves, the more our brain begins to process it as being true. What we think impacts what we say and what we do. So if we are continually saying or writing out positive affirmations about our goals it will become much easier to start doing things that support our goal.
Journal Prompt
Write out a goal you are working towards. Make sure to add detail as far as when you want to accomplish it and what specifically you are working towards.
Write out three positive affirmations for each prompt below:
Write an affirmation that describes yourself as having already completed the goal. For example “I am healthy and take care of my body and mind.”
Write an affirmation that describes steps you take to make your goal happen. For example “I feed my body foods that are healthy and nourishing.”
Write an affirmation that addresses your ability to accomplish your goal. For example “I am able to create space in my life for my health to thrive.”
Have you ever gone through seasons where you felt uninspired and unmotivated to create? I’ve been going through that lately! It’s been driving me crazy!! I love to create and craft! I truly believe getting creative is so important for our self-care! But sometimes finding the energy to do it can be difficult. Yet there are so many benefits to creating. Being creative can be so empowering! It is also a great source of hope, joy, and relaxation!
Where do you start when you are wanting to get back to being creative or to begin a creative chapter in your life?
Just start! Start where you are and work with what you have! Sometimes when we are wanting to start a new habit or new goal we set these crazy high expectations for ourselves. If it’s your goal to be more creative maybe start with having one creative activity a week or a couple of evenings a week to work on creative projects. It can look however best fits your life in this season. My goal is just to be creative no matter what that looks like!Whether it’s a completed project or a part of a project just get creative!
What will you create today or this week? Post pictures in the comments! My hope for myself is to start being more creative more often and to simply start something positive and refreshing in my life! What is your creative goal in this season?
I’ve written about three projects in this post that I’ve done this week! I hope they will get your creative ideas flowing!
Wallpaper Adventures
Today I was walking around my craft room wanting to start a creative project. I recently purchased this wood circle from Hobby Lobby. I didn’t have any particular plans when I bought it, but today when I was looking at it decided I wanted to decorate it with embossed wallpaper. I love working with embossed wallpaper! It is so pretty and fun to paint! This may be a strange decision, but the wood sign has a frame on the front so I decided I would decorate the back so that it is one even piece. I traced the wood circle on the wallpaper and cut it out.
I used hot glue to attach the wallpaper to the back of this wood frame. Hot glue can sometimes dry kind of fast so I did it one section at a time.
I wanted to do this layered paint look on the wallpaper with the brown gel stain and green paint. I did a dry brushing technique for the green and watered down gel stain.
I just painted as I wanted. I started with the gel stain and then the green. I just went back and forth with the brush. I did wipe it with the cloth a couple of times to give it a weathered look. This is how it turned out!
What is your creative style?
Dollar Tree Plant Sign
I’ve been thinking about several different craft ideas today, but landed on decoupaging this plant sign from the dollar tree. I love decoupaging with different materials and in various surfaces. It’s so easy to do and so relaxing! I used a bright green and brown paper for this project. I traced the sign on the paper and cut it out.
Then I brushed mod podge on the metal sign and laid the paper on top. You can then seal it by brushing mod podge on top of the paper. It’s such an adorable little hanger!
I love this sign because it’s such a good reminder to keep growing!
Felt Lavender
I’ve been thinking about making more felt lavender for a while and today was finally the day. I’ve already done some of the steps to make the felt Lavender previously so it will be a quick craft to make. Felt lavender is very simple to make. I have photos of the stages below.
First, you have a strip of purple felt whatever size you would like then fold it and glue it in half.
Then cut small slits into the side that’s not glued.
Then use hot glue to wrap it around a floral stem.
Once the stem is all wrapped with your felt you have a lavender stem! Super easy! So I already had a few made and then I made enough to fill this Jean pocket. You could put these in a vase or any kind of container!
This Lavender craft I already had parts of the felt prepared from months ago so it only took me 15 minutes to get the whole thing created. Is there a project you’ve gotten all the supplies for and it is all prepared but haven’t had the time to complete it? Maybe today is the day!!
It can be uplifting and a source of hope to have a dream vacation in mind. Whether is dreaming of the beach, the mountains, new places, or new experiences keeping these things in mind can add excitement to our lives. Todays prompt is all about reflecting on what a dream vacation looks like for you!
Journal Prompt
What is your dream vacation? What is it about this type of vacation that you enjoy?
Do you plan to go on this vacation? How can you work towards it?
If you went on this dream vacation what activities would you look forward to most?
Aging is a topic that I am very familiar with because most of my social work career has been spent working with seniors. Because of that this article caught my attention and am excited to share with you what I learned from it.
The article is named ‘New study finds 6 ways to slow memory decline and lower dementia risk’ and was written by Annabelle Timsit, in the Washington Post. You can read the full article at the link below!
There was a recent study in China that took place over a ten year period. The goal of the study was to see if lifestyle and healthy behaviors decreased cognitive decline. There were 29,000 seniors that participated in this 10 year study, which is amazing!! I find it incredible for any study to gather so much data from so many people in such a long period of time!
There were six factors that they looked at to see if they impacted memory decline:
Physical Exercise: Doing at least 150 minutes of moderate exercise weekly
Eating a Balanced Diet: at least 7 of these 12 food items fruits, vegetables, fish, meat, dairy products, salt, oil, eggs, cereals, legumes, nuts and tea.
Alcohol Intake: Not at all or occasionally
Smoking: never have smoked or a former smoker
Cognitive Exercise: at least twice a week
Social Contact: engaging with others twice a week
The study grouped people by how many of these factors they engaged in. The first group engaged in four of the six factors, the second group engaged in two to three factors, and the last group engaged in zero to one of the factors.
The study found that the group that engaged in four to six factors experienced less cognitive decline then those in the other two groups. Annabelle Timsit wrote:
“The results show that “more is better of these behaviors,” says Hogervorst — in other words, the more healthy lifestyle factors you can combine, the better your chances of preserving your memory and staving off dementia.”
Annabelle Timsit, 2023
The study even found that people who had genetic predisposition towards memory loss and Alzheimer’s were seeing less cognitive decline when increasing these healthy behaviors!! I love this because it gives hope that we can make choices that help use to age well and keep our brain thriving!
Are there any of these six behaviors that you plan to increase or focus on in your life?
This is my favorite type of journal prompt! It is simply a check in to see how life is going, what we are learning, what’s happening, and how we are feeling.
This prompt is a series of questions and statements to get you thinking about your life in this current season.
Journal Prompt
Take a minute to write down anything that comes to mind about what has been going on in your life lately. This could be experiences you’ve had at work, home, the gym, church or anywhere else that comes to mind.
What has been on your mind lately? What have you been trying to figure out or thinking through? What emotions have you been trying to work through?
What have you been learning? What is something about yourself that you have discovered recently?
What are some things you are grateful for in this season?
To wrap up this journal prompt write one word that sums up your life lately!
I love journaling! One of the great things about it is that you can write about anything and make it personal to your experience! This is a list of ideas to get you thinking of what to journal today!
Write your favorite quotes.
Write the lyrics of a song you have been enjoying.
Write out your life story.
Write three things you are grateful for today.
Write out a goal you are working on right now and why it’s important to you.
Write out your favorite childhood memory.
Write a letter to someone you miss.
Write three affirmations.
Write out what you are planning to do this week.
Write about something you are looking forward to.
Write about your favorite movie or tv show.
Rewrite the ending of a story you enjoy.
Write a prayer.
Write a letter to someone you admire.
Write about your favorite season in life.
Write about three things you have accomplished this month.
I have seen several crafters make moons out of wire wreaths and I was so excited to give it a try! I put a little bit of a different look to it by adding colorful beads and lace!
Supplies Needed
2 Wire Wreaths
White Chalk Paint
Paint Brush
Beads of your Choice
Lace
Wire Cutters
Hot Glue Gun & Glue Sticks
Instructions
This is a very simple but fun craft! The first step is to cut a section of each wreath out with your wire cutters. This does take some strength! I had to give it a few tries. Below is a picture of how I cut mine. You will want to be sure that more ends are free from the vertical bar.
Once you have cut the sections out. You can paint the wreaths white. I used chalk paint, but it would be easier to use spray paint. 
Once the wreaths are dry then you can add your beads to the middle of the moon. The wreaths have a natural curvature in them. The goal is to clasp the beads between the curves of both wreaths. So the typical “backs” of the wreaths will be facing each other.
I then cut a piece of lace and wrapped it around the sections holding the beads to secure them.
Then I cut two more strips of lace and folded them in half and wrapped those around the ends to hold the loose ends together. You will want to wrap them ends pretty tight to give it a crescent moon shape. I used hot glue to hold the lace in place.
Then you have your own moon decoration! You can use this as wall decor or as a shelf sitter! I hope you give this a try!
I recently read this inspirational story, “She found late father’s bucket list, then spent 6 years completing it” by Sydney Page, in the Washington Post. This post is a review of the article and a free downloadable to make your bucket list! Below is a link to the article if you want to see the full story and pictures! Definitely worth checking out!
This is a really neat story. Laura Carney’s father passed away unexpectedly after being hit by a car. Laura’s father wrote a bucket list that was found by her brother in 2016, 13 years after his passing. Laura’s father wrote this bucket list of 60 items in 1978 and had completed 6 tasks. Laura committed to completing her father’s bucket list. It took her 5 years and 11 months to complete the list!! What a commitment and such a neat way to honor her father. Laura told author Page that the process of completing the list was also apart of her healing and grieving journey.
Laura completed some pretty incredible tasks including going to the super bowl, driving a corvette, running a marathon, meeting President Carter, and a trip to Europe. Laura shared with author Page that she felt her dad with her and it was a way of keeping his spirit alive. Laura encouraged others to write a bucket list and she worded it in such a beautiful way:
“I really encourage everybody to write down what they want to do,” she said. “It helps you start living more intentionally, and when you’re living intentionally, you feel more of a sense of purpose in your life.”
Laura Carney, written by Sydney Page
What Is On Your Bucket List?
What would be on your bucket list? Below is a downloadable file to get started writing down your lifetime dreams!
I use essential oils regularly as apart of my wellness and self-care routines. I wanted to share with you my must have list of essential oils. This post does contain referral links.
1. Lavender Essential 0il
Lavender is my number one go to oil, as it is for a lot of people. I am anxiety prone and lavender as such a soothing and comforting scent. I always include Lavender in my melt and pour soaps, face toner, and it also makes a really great room spray!
2. Lemon Essential Oil
Lemon is definitely a staple oil for me as well! I often add lemon into my diffuser blends. I also add Lemon essential oil into my washer with my laundry tablet when I wash my clothes.
3. Orange Essential Oil
Orange essential oil is great for many things! I also will add this into my laundry sometimes with lemon. I also include orange essential oil in my roller bottle recipes for energy. Orange is very uplifting and energizing oil.
4. Grapefruit Essential Oil
Grapefruit essential oil is great! I am using it now as an alternative to orange essential oil in my laundry. I also always include it in my citrus blends. This is a very refreshing scent.
5. Marjoram Essential Oil
This was one of the first essential oils that I started using regularly in my wellness routines. Marjoram essential oil has properties in it that help me with pain. I make a spray with marjoram oil and fractionated coconut oil and spray it directly on areas that I’m having a lot of pain. I typically will do this before bed and it helps me a lot.
6. Bergamot Essential Oil
Bergamot is another great essential oil for stress and anxiety. I love to add this oil to my felt ball diffusers in my car when I’m driving and to my roller bottle recipes for anxiety.
7. Frankincense Essential Oil
Frankincense is a great oil with many medicinal properties. I have added it to many different recipes, but I like it most in roller bottle recipes. If I am going through a season with a lot of neurological issues from my chronic illness I will make a daily roller bottle with frankincense to help bring some relief.
I recently read this great article “What causes your brain to procrastinate and how to face it” by Richard Sima, in the Washington Post. This post is a review of the article and some thoughts about how to face tasks we often procrastinate doing. Below is the direct link to the article being reviewed.
I am all to familiar with the concept of procrastination. There are times even now that I procrastinate in doing things that are simply not fun. This article was very interesting because it reviewed a study which examined what contributed towards people procrastinating.
In a study done, by Dr. Raphaël Le Bouc, with 43 adults they found several contributing factors that led to people procrastinating. The study found that people were more likely to procrastinate if their brain was convinced that doing the task in the future would be easier. They even concluded through MRI imaging that the part of the brain that makes this decision is the dorsal medial prefrontal cortex.
It was also concluded in the study that participants tended to procrastinate when the task was more difficult and not enjoyable. I can totally relate to this! For some reason when things are harder to accomplish it always feels like there will be a right time to do it in the future or to avoid doing to the point where I simply forget about it. This actually happened to me at work a couple of months ago where I was trying to figure out how to make a transition and was way overthinking and procrastinated. But in reality when I finally took care of it, it took 15 minutes to do. It was my perception of how hard the task was going to be that made it more difficult then it actually was.
Another finding that was concluded in this study is that people are more likely to do tasks for smaller rewards that come sooner then larger rewards that you have to wait for. This is I’m sure no surprise to any of us because we live in a world with instant gratification. The idea of doing more work with less immediate reward takes a lot more patience, discipline, and strategy. When I’m working towards goals that have bigger rewards but are far out in the future I often have to give myself a lot of pep talks to stay motivated and stay the course. It’s hard!!
How We Can Face Our Tasks
The study concluded that to decrease procrastination there are two main strategies to use. The first is to consistently remind yourself of the task. The second is to confront the idea that it will be easier in the future with the truth that it will be the same effort as completing the task today.
I actually started a to-do list journal for work last year and it has helped me a lot with procrastinating. I have a to do list for each month and one for each week. This allows me to stay on track and make the most of my time.
Comment below with your thoughts about the article and what helps you not procrastinate!
Balance is one of the nebulous concepts that we all yearn for, but aren’t really sure what it looks like. I think that’s because it’s different for all of us. What balance looks like for me, won’t be what it looks like for you and vice versa. This is because our lives, roles, responsibilities, callings, passions, and journeys are different.
A myth about balance is that to experience balance all things need equal amounts of time. This is an impossible goal. I have found it easier to think of balance as proper distribution of time and energy to various activities in life. For example I know for me balance means I have to use a lot of time on resting. The amount of rest I require would throw someone else way off balance but for me it’s what my body needs. Just something to consider it when thinking through this prompt.
Today’s prompt is all about reflecting on what kind of balance you are yearning for in this season of your life and what action steps you can take to achieve it.
Journal Prompt
What does balance mean to you?
List out the areas, roles, responsibilities, and relationships that you are giving your time and energy to during this season.
What areas of your life do you feel are balanced already and which do you feel are not balanced?
When thinking about your ideal week in this season of life…what areas would it feel more balanced to spend the majority of time on and what areas need less of your time?
What 3 steps can you take this week to increase your time on the areas that you noted need more of you to feel balanced?
What 3 steps can you take to withdraw your time and energy from things that are causing you to feel imbalanced?
I hope you enjoyed this prompt! Comment with thoughts and reflections below!
I am a life-long journal-writer and it has been essential during many seasons of my life. There are so many great mental and emotional benefits to journaling. It is not only a great way to process your thoughts, it’s also great for writing out plans and progress towards your goals!
Below is a brief video I made about the benefits of journaling. You can find more videos like this on my YouTube Channel.
I love having a craft room! Having a set space to create and generate ideas is one of my favorite things. But sometimes it can become chaotic. Often one idea leads to another and then another which then leaves a trail of supplies and project remnants.
There are a few things I’ve put in place in my craft room that makes life a little easier!
Hanging Tools
One thing that was constantly driving me crazy was never knowing where my tools were. I knew I needed a more permanent place to store my tools. I had looked into buying or making a peg board, but challenged myself to use materials I had already. I’ve been trying to make that a consistent habit to always shop in the craft room first before heading out to the store.
I had made this chicken wire frame for a display at a craft show and it was just sitting in my closet. So I decided to make this into a place to store my tools. So I gathered bookrings, clips, binder clips, and more from my various craft stashes and complied this space to hang up all my tools. I love it and it is so helpful!!
Making this chicken wire frame was so simple! It’s actually a large canvas that I repurposed! I simple took off the canvas, stained the wood, and the attached chicken wire with a staple gun. Very simple, but makes a very function frame!
Craft Dresser
If you are like me and work on a variety of different types of crafts this is a must!! I love having my fabric dresser in my craft room closet! I store and keep organized so many different little supplies in my dresser and it is easy to access and see what I have in stock.
Hanging Pin Cushion and Thread Storage
I do a variety of hand sewing and having a set place to keep my needles and thread is a must! The thread storage hanger I actually bought at Joann’s. They sell them in several different sizes and it has saved me so much time! Before I had them in a small container and the thread would get knotted and mixed up. Now it all in place and organized.
I actually made these embroidery hoop pin cushions for a craft show. But I’m so glad that I am also using it for my own storage. It is a cute and simple way to store all of your different needles. I also love that it can be hung to save room on my craft desk!
Practicing gratitude can have a positive impact on our wellbeing and relationships! Below is a video I made about the benefits and ideas of how to practice gratitude today!
We all know sleep is essential and vital for our health! When we don’t get good sleep it impacts our mental, emotional, and physical functioning.
According to the American Sleep Apnea Foundation these are some current stats about sleep health in America:
50-70 million Americans suffer from sleep related problems
Excessive daytime sleepiness is an increasing cause of on-the-job accidents and car accidents
There are over 80 different sleep disorders. Some of which are sleep apnea, restless leg syndrome, nightmare disorder, and insomnia.
There are ways we can improve our sleep by working to have healthy sleep hygiene, limiting caffeine, and seeking treatment for underlying problems. One thing that helps we relax and sleep better is using grounding techniques.
Grounding Exercise for Sleep
This video I created had a simple grounding exercise to help your body and mind relax to get better sleep.
As we go throughout our lives there are seasons when we feel connected to many people and seasons that we feel alone or connected with few people. I know for me there are times when there are people all around me but I still feel alone. Today’s prompt is all about reflecting on what having a tribe of support means to you, who your tribe is, and what keeps us from feeling connected.
Journal Prompt:
Below are some questions to reflect and consider about yourself tribe and your feelings of connection!
What does having a tribe to support you mean to you?
Who are the people you go to when you want to share about your life? Who do you share with when you are struggling?
Have you been feeling connected lately with the people who are most important to you? If not what keeps you from feeling connected?
What types of relationships are you longing to find in this season? How will you seek to start new relationships that are meaningful to you?
How are you showing up in the relationships you currently have? How are you showing up for yourself when feeling lonely or disconnected?
I hope this reflection has been helpful! Comment below with your thoughts!
It’s been on my mind lately to create a different kind of journal for myself that has lots of different kind of papers in it and is unique! So I created this easy small junk journal!! There are so many ways you can customize this and make it your own!
You can use this type of journal in so many ways!! You can add pictures, quotes, notes, memories, and of course writing your own journal entries! I enjoy writing on blank pages so I don’t mind that the paper I used for this is one sided designs. If you need more lined paper in your journaling you may consider adding more traditional paper to your journal as well!
You can use this as a regular journal or focus it on a specific topic, goal, or dream.
First I took out all my small scrapbook paper and decided which pages I wanted on my journal! i narrowed it down and arranged my pages how I wanted them. I also wanted to add small pieces of paper throughout my journal so I also picked out which of those I wanted to add in.
Then I hole punched the pages in small sections. I just used one book ring so I made a hole at the top left hand corner of all the pages.
I love the variety of pages and that you can take out and add pages as you would like.
I used two pieces of brown Kraft tex paper for the cover. I trimmed the covers to fit the journal and then added them to the book ring.
Add the back cover first on the book ring, then your pages, then the front cover.
I love how this turned out!! I made mine pretty thick, but you can make it any size you want! I’m so excited to journal in my new junk journal!
Here are just some views of how the different pages look together!
Hope you give this a try!! Comment below with your favorite kind of DIY journals!
Bergamot is a sweet and spicy citrus essential oil! It comes from the fruit of the bergamot orange tree (Whelan, 2018). Bergamot is used for food and can be distilled to be used for essential oils. Bergamot trees were originally grown in Southeast Asia, but are now also known for being grown in Italy (Whelan, 2018).
Benefits of Using Bergamot
Bergamot is known for having some medicinal uses and has anti-bacterial and anti-inflammatory properties (Whelan, 2018). These properties contribute to bergamot being used to help with acne and irritated scalp (Whelan, 2018). Bergamot is also known for helping relieve feelings of anxiety and sadness (Tagger, 2023). I also use Bergamot in DIY body care recipes for increasing my energy. It has a very uplifting and soothing scent. Bergamot is a citrus oil and can cause photosensitivity. Be careful to not put bergamot directly on your skin without being diluted. Can cause skin to be sensitive in the sun.
These claims have not been evaluated by the FDA.
Three Ways to Use Bergamot
The number of drops used in these ideas are based on a health adult. If you are sensitive or unsure about how your body responds to essential oils use a much smaller amount to begin with or talk with your doctor first. Look up more specific recommendations for children, seniors, and pregnant women.
Combine Bergamot essential oil with a carrier oil in a roller bottle. I normally add 10 drops.
Add Bergamot essential oil to an aromatic diffuser with water. I usually add 2-3 drops.
Add Bergamot essential oil to melt and pour soaps. For 1 pound of soap I normally add 50 drops of essential oils. Bergamot would also go great in combination with Lavender essential oil.
Purpose can seem so illusive and difficult to grasp. Yet having a sense of purpose allows us to live life more fully and increases our quality of life. When we feel we have purpose we can be more intentional to live out our purpose with our thoughts, words, and actions. Today’s journal prompt is all about reflecting on what purpose means to you!
Journal Prompt
To reflect on our purpose we will first answer questions about what is important to us and then reflect on what these answers mean for our purpose.
Reflections on our passions:
What do you enjoy doing most throughout the week?
What skills or talents do you use in your work or hobbies?
What do you do that contributes towards your community?
What are you passionate about?
What is something that people often come to you and ask you for help with?
Is there a pattern or theme in the answers you wrote about your passions?How do these patterns relate to your purpose?
Now take a moment to write about what purpose means to you.
Based on all that you have written and reflected on so far write out what you believe your purpose to be. How is this purpose reflected in you passions?
I hope you enjoyed this time or reflection! I hope this year is filled with passion and purpose for us!
This is a really simple hanging basket and makes a beautiful piece of wall decor! I have a lot of floral stems that I have collected over the past year and was so excited to use them! The shallow basket is one that I got from the dollar Target section. It was originally $5 and was 50% off with the Christmas items.
Supplies Needed:
Shallow Basket
Artificial Flowers of your choosing
Hot Glue Gun & Glue Sticks
Wire Cutters
Instructions:
There are many ways that you could create a floral basket. I chose to keep it simple and just use hot glue.
To attach the flowers I cut the stems off as close to the flower as I could. Then I put hot glue on the basket and attached the flowers. I first did a layer of larger flowers to cover the basket.
Once the first layer of flowers were glued down I started to add another layer of flowers. I added smaller sunflowers, a little bit of greenery, and dandelion flowers. I love the look of the different layers of flowers. I would have liked to add more sunflowers but I wanted to use what I had on hand.
Once I was finished with the basket I hung it on the wall. I just used a nail and rested the basket grooves on the nail.
I love how this turned out! I think this would also be beautiful with just greenery! Hope you give this a try!
Welcome to my podcast! This brief episode is all about reflection on the new year and the quote of the day by Anthony Robbins. You can check it out below!
The beginning of a new year is a great time to reflect! It’s an opportunity to reflect on the year that has past and to make plans for the new year to come. During this journal prompt we will do both of these things! This is going to be a great year!!
Journal Prompt
First we will reflect on our experiences in 2022. Reflection is a time to remember, ponder, and evaluate our experiences. Not all the things that we experienced over the last year were easy or enjoyable. There may have been more lessons or hard times over the last year then moments of laughter and joy. The purpose of this prompt isn’t to judge your experiences, but to simply reflect on how these experiences can help us create the best year in 2023. Consider these questions to help reflect on 2022:
What brought you the most joy in 2022?
What are three lessons from 2022 that you want to bring into the new year?
What goals did you work on during 2022?
Think back to how 2022 started for you and where you were in life…where are you in life now in comparison?
Now that we have reflected on 2022, let’s look ahead to our plans, goals, and hopes for 2023.
What are your top 3 goals that you want to work on in 2023?
What habits are you hoping to break or begin in 2023?
What 2 things are you looking forward to most this year?
Where do you want to be in life a year from now? What action steps can you take this year to accomplish this?
I hope you enjoyed this time of reflection! This is going to be a great year! We got this!
I love garlands!! They are so fun to decorate with throughout the year! I found this winter garland at Hobby Lobby and wanted to remake it smaller to fit in my kitchen! I bought the garland when it was 70% off so it was a pretty good deal! I love the mixture of the silver snowflakes and the rusty bells.
I decided I wanted to add felt balls to this garland. I used white and grey balls. the amount you will need will depend on how long your garland is and your pattern.
To get started in making the new garland I measured out the twine I needed. Then I made a loop knot on one end.
I used a yarn needle to thread the items on the twine.
You can put the garland together in whatever pattern you wish. Below is a picture of the pattern I did.
I took the bows off of the old garland and used hot glue to attach them to the silver snowflakes. Then when you are done with your garland you add another loop to the end of the garland.
I really enjoyed remaking this garland and loved adding my own spin to it! Would love to see pictures of your favorite garlands!
I decorated two different snowman ornaments. One is a snowman head and the other is a full snowman body. I got both from Michael’s.
Painted Snowman Face Ornament Supplies:
Paint Brushes
Orange, Black, and White Paint
Mod Podge
White Glitter
Decoupaged Snowman Supplies:
Scissors
Pencil
Scrapbook Paper, I used two different kinds of embossed paper
Mod Podge
Black Paint
Paint Brushes
Cloth or Parchment Paper
Iron
Black Buttons
White Craft Wax
Hot Glue Gun & Glue Sticks
Painted Snowman Instructions:
There are so many ways that you could decorate these ornaments, which is part of what makes it so fun! You can make it your own!
First, I painted the snowman face ornament. I love the texture look of the wood and didn’t feel like I needed to add a lot of embellishments. I first painted the black hat and orange nose.
Then I painted the face with white paint.
Once the paint was dried, I brushed over the white paint with mod podge. Then I sprinkled glitter over the mod podge. Once the area you want is covered with glitter you can shake off the excess glitter from the face.
Some of the glitter did stick to the hat of the ornament. But I love how it turned out.
Decoupaged Snowman Instructions:
First I traced the outline of the snowman and hat on the paper I picked for this project. Then I cut it out.
I painted the hat black before decoupaging it. Then I brushed mod podge on the wooden ornament and placed the snowman cut outs on top.
Instead of brushing mod podge on top of the paper as well I used the ironing technique. All I did was put a piece of cloth over the ornament after I put the paper on top of the mod podge. Then I ironed the ornament until the paper was secured to the ornament. I went over the ornament several times with the iron and then checked it to make sure the paper was secure.
I wanted to add this white wax to the body of the ornament. I had never used this before but thought it would add to the look. I just used my finger to rub the wax on.
Then I used my awl to make a hole in the hat where the twine hang originally was and added the twine hanger. Then I used hot glue to add the black buttons!
Hope these makeovers gave you some additional ideas for your ornament makeovers!!
I enjoyed this project so much!!! I love how both trees turned out! One tree I made with art board and the other with a wooden triangle tree. I was originally inspired to do this project when watching another crafter, the owner of Hammons Nest, used embossed paintable wallpaper to decorate faux winter skates. I knew I wanted to try making a tree with these materials!! Check out the tutorial below!! This post contains my Amazon referral link.
Supplies Needed:
Wooden Tree, I got mine from Hobby Lobby
Art Board, I got mine from Hobby Lobby
Embossed Paintable Wallpaper
Mod Podge
Antique Green Chalk Paint
Paint Brushes
Cloth to Wipe Excess Paint
3 ivory or Brown Cloth Strips
Brown Paint
Scissors
Hot Glue Gun & Glue Sticks
Instructions:
To start this project I first worked on the tree made from art board. I drew a Christmas tree in pencil on the board. It doesn’t have to be perfect and it can be any size you want! You can see by all my eraser marks that it took me several tries until I liked how it looked.
I used regular scissors to cut out the tree. It was a little bit difficult to cut it out because the board was so thick, but it worked pretty well!
Then I traced the cut art board tree and the wooden tree on the wall paper and cut them out.
Then I brushed mod podge on the board and wooden tree and put the cut out wallpaper on top. I did press down on both projects for a little bit to ensure the wallpaper was secure.
Then I used this antique green chalk paint to paint both projects. To do this I brushed the painted over the wallpaper until it was completely covered. Then before it could dry fully I wiped the excess paint off with a scrap piece of cloth. I love how this technique brought out the details of the wall paper!!
I did not paint the stand of the wooden tree, but I did add a trunk to the art board tree. I braided three strips of plain ivory fabric and used hot glue to attach it to the trunk. Then I painted it with brown paint.
I love how these turned out!! Comment below if you give this craft a try!
I got crafty and wanted to share these 3 Christmas crafts with you!! Below is the list of crafts for you to check out:
Grapevine Tree
Snow-globe Ornament
Metal Christmas Tree Makeover
1. Grapevine Tree
This is a really simple craft, but I love the way it turns out!! All you need is the grapevine tree form, greenery, and wire cutters. This post contains my Amazon referral links.
This greenery was a great size for this project, but you can use any greenery you would like. I first trimmed the ends of the greenery. As you go up the tree you will find that you will trim the greenery at different lengths.
To put in the greenery all you do is secure it in the vines of the tree. I didn’t use any hot glue in this grapevine tree form.
As you continue to fill the tree you can adjust the greenery to make whatever shape you wish. The more you fill the tree form the more secure the greenery will be.
This is what mine looked like when it was all finished. I made it into a traditional tree shape. And added a small topper. I love how it turned out!!
This makes great walk decor or could be a shelf sitter. I love the dimension the greenery adds.
2. Snow-Globe Ornament
I’ve seen other crafters make these ornaments and wanted to give it a try! You can use any image in the ornament, which makes it so unique and special!
Supplies Needed:
Wood Ornament Frame, I got mine from Michael’s
Plastic Ornament that unclasps into two halves
Scissors
Image for inside Wood Frame, I used a snowman from my Winter Printables
Black paint
Mod Podge
E6000 Glue
Craft Snow
Paint brushes
First, I wanted to decoupage the snowman I picked to go inside the snow-globe. I took out the back of the wood frame and traced it over the image I chose and cut it out.
Then you can decoupage the image onto the wood. To decoupage you brush mod podge onto the wood, place the image on the wood, and brush mod podge on top of the image to seal it.
While that was drying I painted the frame black on the front and back. You can paint the frame any color you would like.
Once that was dried I wanted to glue my plastic ornament to the frame. I used E6000 glue because it will stick really well, but it does take time to dry. I put the glue along the edges of the plastic ornament and then positioned it how I wanted on the frame.
Once you are sure the plastic ornament is secure you can turn it upside down and add your snow!
Then put the back of the frame back on! I added some E6000 glue to the edge the wood it’s in to secure it.
I made this simple bow and added it to the top of the snow globe and replaced the twine hanger. Then you are ready to hang it on your tree!!
3. Metal Christmas Tree Makeover
This is a simple, but fun craft!! I love using this embossed paper from Hobby Lobby.
Supplies Needed:
Metal Tree from Dollar Tree
Embossed Paper, I got mine from Hobby Lobby
Antique Green Chalk Paint
Paint Brush
Mod Podge
Hot Glue Gun & Glue Sticks
Greenery & Berries
Christmas Ribbon & Floral Wire
Scissors
First, I traced the tree on the embossed paper and cut it out.
Then I used mod podge to attach the paper to the metal tree. I also used a little bit of hot glue around the edges to secure it.
Then I painted the embossed paper with this beautiful green chalk paint! I did a dry brushing technique so that you could still see some of the white coming through in the embossed paper.
I used this greenery and berries to decorate the bottom of the tree. I used hot glue to place the greenery where I wanted it.
Then I made a little bow to go in the middle of the greenery. To make the bow I made four loops and then bound them together with floral wire. Then I hot glued a small piece of the ribbon in the middle to hide the wire.
This makes such a cute decoration!! Once you add the twine hanger you can hang it on the wall or a door knob!
One of my favorite things that I learned from becoming a Social Resilience Model trainer is the power of attention. This may sound like such a simple concept, but we can build resilience, decrease stress, build new habits, and retrain our brain simply by paying attention. This fills me with so much hope!! We don’t have to be stuck in a habit or way of life. We can retrain our brain!
Attention & The Brain
Our brain builds neuropathways to support the hobbies, habits, and lifestyles we give our attention to. This is why when we first start a new habit or activity it feels hard at first and it requires a lot of thought. But eventually as we keep doing it, it comes more naturally and we don’t have to think about it as much as we first did. This is because our brain has built a neuropathway in order for us to do the activity more efficiently.
Consider a time when you started something new. How did it feel at first? Was it challenging? After a month or two had it become easier? Does it now require as much thought as it did at first?
The Tool of Attention For Resilience
Attention is a key concept in the Social Resilience Model. Using attention to increase our resilience is a great way to increase our overall wellbeing. Here are some ways to use attention to help build resilience:
Attention to Tracking Your Stress. A big part of building resilience is tracking how your body experiences stress and calm. When we pay attention to how stress impacts us, it can become easier to notice and do activities that increases calm within ourselves.
Attention to Grounding. This is putting your attention to a solid surface around you. This is a great way to increase feelings of calmness within ourselves. When we experience calm instead of stress our body functions at it’s best. We think more clearly and thrive when we are not overwhelmed by stress.
Attention to Good Resources. This means putting our attention on the good things in our lives. The things that bring us joy and fills us with peace. This could mean thinking about your favorite pet, hobby, place, season, item, or memory. When we put our attention on these good things we can increase our calm and resilience.
Choose a way this week that you can practice using one of these tools of attention!
The seasons can bring so much inspiration and opportunity to reflect! Today’s journal prompt is all about Winter and reflecting on the lessons this season teaches us.
Journal Prompt
Winter is a season of rest. It is a season where nature has let go and is still before a time of growth and rebirth.
How can you choose to rest and be still during this season?
Nothing in nature blooms all year. How can you use this time to recharge and refocus in preparation for a time of growth?
This is a time to reflect on where you’ve been and we’re you are going. What growth have you experienced lately? How do you intend to keep pressing towards your goals in the next season of your life?
We start the year thinking and planning goals we want to accomplish, but as the year goes on sometimes our motivation and inspiration fades. It can be so hard to keep working on our goals. Today’s journal prompt is all about writing out affirmations that can help keep our inspiration going! Affirmations are helpful because … Continue reading “Journal Prompt: Goal Affirmations”
Starting to Create Again Have you ever gone through seasons where you felt uninspired and unmotivated to create? I’ve been going through that lately! It’s been driving me crazy!! I love to create and craft! I truly believe getting creative is so important for our self-care! But sometimes finding the energy to do it can … Continue reading “Creative Life: Where To Start”
It can be uplifting and a source of hope to have a dream vacation in mind. Whether is dreaming of the beach, the mountains, new places, or new experiences keeping these things in mind can add excitement to our lives. Todays prompt is all about reflecting on what a dream vacation looks like for you! … Continue reading “Journal Prompt: Dream Vacation”
Aging is a topic that I am very familiar with because most of my social work career has been spent working with seniors. Because of that this article caught my attention and am excited to share with you what I learned from it. The article is named ‘New study finds 6 ways to slow memory … Continue reading “Factors that Contribute to Aging Well”
This is my favorite type of journal prompt! It is simply a check in to see how life is going, what we are learning, what’s happening, and how we are feeling. This prompt is a series of questions and statements to get you thinking about your life in this current season. Journal Prompt Take a … Continue reading “Journal Prompt: Life Lately”
I’ve had this metal sign from Dollar Tree for a while now and was excited to finally use it! This family of snowman is a set I got from HomeGoods and it was only a few dollars!! Love how they all have different hats!
First I started by painting the sign white. I used regular white acrylic paint and a foam brush.
I made some winter themed printables and used this winter one for this sign. I used a torn paper edge to give the paper a rough finish. All you do is hold the edge on top of your paper and tear the the paper up against the edge.
Once the paper was the right size I decoupaged the paper to the sign. To decoupage you first brush mod podge on the sign, place the paper on top, and then brush mod podge on top of the paper.
While that was drying I used a drill to make a small hole at the top of the cookie cutters. I made the hole closer to the back of the cookie cutter so that I could use a jump ring to attach it to the sign.
Then make a holes with an awl at the bottom of the sign to attach the cookie cutters.
To open the jump rings us two pliers. One to hold the ring still and the other to turn open the ring. Then slid the ring the the hole in the sign and the hole in the cookie cutter. Then you can use the pliers to close the ring.
Then you have this super cute winter sign! You can add other embellishments too. I kept it simple!
We start the year thinking and planning goals we want to accomplish, but as the year goes on sometimes our motivation and inspiration fades. It can be so hard to keep working on our goals. Today’s journal prompt is all about writing out affirmations that can help keep our inspiration going! Affirmations are helpful because … Continue reading “Journal Prompt: Goal Affirmations”
Starting to Create Again Have you ever gone through seasons where you felt uninspired and unmotivated to create? I’ve been going through that lately! It’s been driving me crazy!! I love to create and craft! I truly believe getting creative is so important for our self-care! But sometimes finding the energy to do it can … Continue reading “Creative Life: Where To Start”
It can be uplifting and a source of hope to have a dream vacation in mind. Whether is dreaming of the beach, the mountains, new places, or new experiences keeping these things in mind can add excitement to our lives. Todays prompt is all about reflecting on what a dream vacation looks like for you! … Continue reading “Journal Prompt: Dream Vacation”
Aging is a topic that I am very familiar with because most of my social work career has been spent working with seniors. Because of that this article caught my attention and am excited to share with you what I learned from it. The article is named ‘New study finds 6 ways to slow memory … Continue reading “Factors that Contribute to Aging Well”
This is my favorite type of journal prompt! It is simply a check in to see how life is going, what we are learning, what’s happening, and how we are feeling. This prompt is a series of questions and statements to get you thinking about your life in this current season. Journal Prompt Take a … Continue reading “Journal Prompt: Life Lately”
The quality and content of our thoughts impacts us on many levels. The way we think has an impact on our mental, emotional, and physical health. It can be easy to develop habits of negative thinking and self-talk. Like any habit we can change how we think and develop new thought patterns. Take a minute to reflect on these questions:
Do your thought patterns tend to be more positive or negative?
When thinking negatively how does it impact your day? How does it impact your actions and reactions?
Think of three things you are grateful for. How does it make you feel to practice gratitude? How does it change your perspective in this moment?
Positive thoughts and thoughts of gratitude can have many benefits to us. According the the Mayo Clinic these are just some of the benefits positive thoughts can have (Mayo Clinic Staff, 2022):
Longer life span
Lower rates of depression
Decreased stress, distress, and pain
Better overall well-being and quality of life
Better coping skills and increased resilience
Paying Attention To Your Thoughts
It takes practice to pay attention to and change our thought patterns. Some of the ways we think are so ingrained in us that they come to mind subconsciously. These are called automatic thoughts and for a lot of us they tend to be negative (Hoshaw, 2020). The first step to changing these thoughts is to notice them. There are a couple of ways to do this including:
Write down all your thoughts in a journal throughout the day.
Simply pause and paying attention to your thoughts throughout the day.
Once you notice your thoughts you can then make efforts to change how you think.
Reframing Thoughts With Gratitude
You can change your thoughts by intentionally correcting negative thought patterns with positive thoughts. One way to do this is to reframe our thoughts with gratitude. Replacing our negative thoughts with grateful thoughts allows us to be present in the good things around us.
In the image below is an example of how you can do this.
This takes practice! You can practice by journaling your negative thought patterns and then writing a replacement thought of gratitude. Even simply confronting negative thoughts in our mind with grateful thoughts can make a huge impact to our thought life.
The more attention we put into having thoughts of gratitude, the easier it becomes to think grateful or positive thoughts naturally. To practice this now you can write out in your journal five negative thoughts you’ve had today and five reframed thoughts of gratitude.
Making melt and pour soups is so simple!! They are so cute and can be used as a special gift or for yourself! You can buy melt and pour soaps at various places. I’ve seen it available at Hobby Lobby, Michael’s, Walmart, and Amazon. I enjoy using the Shea butter soap bases but there are many kinds.
I got these ginger bread man and Christmas tree silicone molds at HomeGoods. They were so cute and I couldn’t pass them up. They also had this silicone snowflake. cookie stamp. I’ve never used a stamp on soaps before but thought I would give it a try.
I used a large glass measuring cup to melt my soap. I first cut up the soap into smaller pieces so that it would melt easier. I guessed the amount of soap I would need based on the size of the molds I’m using. Most full size silicone molds will use 1 pound of soap. You can then melt the soap in about 30 second intervals. Stir the soap in between intervals.
Once the soap is melted you can add your essential oils. I used Lavender and added 50 drops and then stirred the soap again.
Then you can pour the soap into the molds.
Like I’ve said I had not stamped soaps before so this was a little bit of an experiment.
I waited until the soap was somewhat hardened but was soft enough to be molded by the stamp. To get the stamp to imprint you have to apply a good amount of pressure and I even tilted the stamp into the soap all the way around to give it a raised effect.
I love how these soaps came out! They smell great and would make really cute Christmas gifts!
We start the year thinking and planning goals we want to accomplish, but as the year goes on sometimes our motivation and inspiration fades. It can be so hard to keep working on our goals. Today’s journal prompt is all about writing out affirmations that can help keep our inspiration going! Affirmations are helpful because … Continue reading “Journal Prompt: Goal Affirmations”
Starting to Create Again Have you ever gone through seasons where you felt uninspired and unmotivated to create? I’ve been going through that lately! It’s been driving me crazy!! I love to create and craft! I truly believe getting creative is so important for our self-care! But sometimes finding the energy to do it can … Continue reading “Creative Life: Where To Start”
It can be uplifting and a source of hope to have a dream vacation in mind. Whether is dreaming of the beach, the mountains, new places, or new experiences keeping these things in mind can add excitement to our lives. Todays prompt is all about reflecting on what a dream vacation looks like for you! … Continue reading “Journal Prompt: Dream Vacation”
Aging is a topic that I am very familiar with because most of my social work career has been spent working with seniors. Because of that this article caught my attention and am excited to share with you what I learned from it. The article is named ‘New study finds 6 ways to slow memory … Continue reading “Factors that Contribute to Aging Well”
This is my favorite type of journal prompt! It is simply a check in to see how life is going, what we are learning, what’s happening, and how we are feeling. This prompt is a series of questions and statements to get you thinking about your life in this current season. Journal Prompt Take a … Continue reading “Journal Prompt: Life Lately”
I saw this metal snowman at Dollar Tree recently and was so excited to do a makeover with it!! You can check out how I did it below!
Supplies Needed:
Metal Snowman, from Dollar Tree
White Paint
Foam Brush
Wood Buttons
Fabric for Scarf, I used Christmas fabric from Walmart
Hot Glue Gun & Hot Glue
Brown and Orange Paint for Face
Instructions:
My favorite thing about this type of craft is that you can personalize it to your own personal taste. You can use whatever embellishments and decorations that you would like!
First I painted the snowman white. I just used regular acrylic paint. I didn’t brush it on, instead I used the brush to dab the paint on.
Once the snowman is covered with the paint and dried you can then add your scarf! I used a piece of Christmas fabric that I got from Walmart and folded it. I used hot glue to attach the fabric and fold it around the neck to look like a scarf.
Then I add a large wooden button to embellish the scarf. You can use three small buttons to decorate the bottom of the snowman.
Then I used acrylic paint to make the nose and eyes. To make the eyes I just used the flat end of a paint brush. This is great for making circles! Then I used a small brush to make the nose. Once your snowman is done you can add the twine hanger!
I love this size decoration for hanging on door knobs or wall decor!!
We start the year thinking and planning goals we want to accomplish, but as the year goes on sometimes our motivation and inspiration fades. It can be so hard to keep working on our goals. Today’s journal prompt is all about writing out affirmations that can help keep our inspiration going! Affirmations are helpful because … Continue reading “Journal Prompt: Goal Affirmations”
Starting to Create Again Have you ever gone through seasons where you felt uninspired and unmotivated to create? I’ve been going through that lately! It’s been driving me crazy!! I love to create and craft! I truly believe getting creative is so important for our self-care! But sometimes finding the energy to do it can … Continue reading “Creative Life: Where To Start”
It can be uplifting and a source of hope to have a dream vacation in mind. Whether is dreaming of the beach, the mountains, new places, or new experiences keeping these things in mind can add excitement to our lives. Todays prompt is all about reflecting on what a dream vacation looks like for you! … Continue reading “Journal Prompt: Dream Vacation”
Aging is a topic that I am very familiar with because most of my social work career has been spent working with seniors. Because of that this article caught my attention and am excited to share with you what I learned from it. The article is named ‘New study finds 6 ways to slow memory … Continue reading “Factors that Contribute to Aging Well”
This is my favorite type of journal prompt! It is simply a check in to see how life is going, what we are learning, what’s happening, and how we are feeling. This prompt is a series of questions and statements to get you thinking about your life in this current season. Journal Prompt Take a … Continue reading “Journal Prompt: Life Lately”
Thanksgiving Scrapbook Paper, I got mine from Hobby Lobby
Burlap Placemat, I got mine from burlap that had the word “thankful” on it
Scissors
Hot Glue Gun & Sticks
Fall Artificial Flowers
Pencil
Plastic Wrap
Paint Brush
Instructions:
I love this Thanksgiving paper!! It is so beautiful!! I have never tried this type of decoupaging before and love how it turned out!
The first thing I did was use a pencil to trace the embroidery hoop circle on the paper. Trace it around the outer embroidery hoop.
Then you can put the fabric in the embroidery hoop.
Then I used a brush to spread mod podge on the embroidery hoop and fabric. Then you can place the circle you cut out on the the fabric and embroidery hoop.
I also brushed mod podge on top of the sign. I used mod podge to smooth down the edges on the sides of the embroidery hoop.
I used a plastic bag to smooth out the paper before the mod podge dried. It worked great! But it would work better with plastic wrap.
I used hot glue to glue the excess fabric down to the inside of the embroidery hoop.
I wanted to add this burlap placemat word to the sign. I cut out the word to fit the sign and rounded the edges. I then used hot glue to attach the word to the paper.
I wanted to add Fall flowers underneath the burlap fabric. I used hot glue to secure them under the burlap!
I hope you give this a try!! It was so much fun to make!
We start the year thinking and planning goals we want to accomplish, but as the year goes on sometimes our motivation and inspiration fades. It can be so hard to keep working on our goals. Today’s journal prompt is all about writing out affirmations that can help keep our inspiration going! Affirmations are helpful because … Continue reading “Journal Prompt: Goal Affirmations”
Starting to Create Again Have you ever gone through seasons where you felt uninspired and unmotivated to create? I’ve been going through that lately! It’s been driving me crazy!! I love to create and craft! I truly believe getting creative is so important for our self-care! But sometimes finding the energy to do it can … Continue reading “Creative Life: Where To Start”
It can be uplifting and a source of hope to have a dream vacation in mind. Whether is dreaming of the beach, the mountains, new places, or new experiences keeping these things in mind can add excitement to our lives. Todays prompt is all about reflecting on what a dream vacation looks like for you! … Continue reading “Journal Prompt: Dream Vacation”
Aging is a topic that I am very familiar with because most of my social work career has been spent working with seniors. Because of that this article caught my attention and am excited to share with you what I learned from it. The article is named ‘New study finds 6 ways to slow memory … Continue reading “Factors that Contribute to Aging Well”
This is my favorite type of journal prompt! It is simply a check in to see how life is going, what we are learning, what’s happening, and how we are feeling. This prompt is a series of questions and statements to get you thinking about your life in this current season. Journal Prompt Take a … Continue reading “Journal Prompt: Life Lately”
There are many ways to integrate essential oils into your wellness routines! One of the most common ways is through using aromatic diffusers. There are two types of aromatic diffusers:
Active diffusers are either electric or battery operated appliances that uses water to carry the essential oils into the air.
Passive diffusers are solitary materials that carry essential oils. Common passive diffusers are lava beads and felt. I often use felt balls for passive diffusers.
Benefits of Using Diffusers
Essential oils are strong and come from plants with medicinal and therapeutic properties. Using an aromatic diffuser can be helpful in many ways! Here are several ways diffusers can be beneficial:
Fills the air with essential oils quickly.
Allows you to inhale the essential oils and potentially experience the benefits of the essential oils being diffused. Be careful to only diffuse essential oils that are safe for all in your household.
Can help relieve stress and promote relaxation (Cronkleton, 2019).
Can help increases clarity, focus, and attention (Homesick, 2020).
Can cleanse the air with the some of the essential oils antibacterial and antifungal properties (Lane, 2022)
References
Cronkleton, E. (2019) “How to Use Essential Oilshttps://www.healthline.com/health/how-to-use-essential-oils
Gratitude is so powerful!! When we practice gratitude regularly it can be beneficial for our mental health, can help us achieve our goals, and allows us to see the good in our lives!! There are so many ways that we can integrate gratitude in our daily lives!
Origins of the Word Gratitude
The word gratitude comes from the Latin word “gratus”, which means pleasing or thankful. It is also related to the Latin word “gratia”, which means grace, graciousness, or honoring the kindness you’ve received (Harvard Health Publishing, 2021).
Knowing the origins of this word allows us to have a greater understanding of gratitude. I love the concept of it being a way of honoring the kindness we have received. Appreciating kindness or grace we receive can allow us to develop deeper awareness of the good things around us and the positive aspects of our lives.
Practicing Gratitude
One way of practicing gratitude is by utilizing it in your journaling. Whether you journal every day, several times a week, or a couple times a month, gratitude can be a great addition to your journaling routine. Here is a technique to consider using!
In this journal prompt you will write four things you are grateful for, but all four are related to a different area of your life!
This sign is really easy to make!! You can make this with any paper placemat. I love these “thankful” placemats from Hobby Lobby!
The first step I took was to paint the edges of the wood sign white. Once the paint is dried you can sand it to distress it.
Then trim the paper placemat to fit your sign. I just used a regular paper cutter. Once the paper placemat is the right size you can use hot glue to attach the paper to the sign. I found this to be the fastest and easiest way to secure the placemat to the sign.
I bought this macramé yarn at Michael’s when it was only $5. You can use any color that matches your sign. I used hot glue to line the yarn around the edges of the sign.
Then you have a cute and fun sign!! It can be so simple to make unique and fun items for your home!
I was so excited to make a Fall room spray!! It smells so warm and inviting. The recipe is very simple and easy!
Supplies Needed:
2 ounce Spray Bottle
1 Tbsp Rubbing Alcohol or Witch Hazel
7 drops Clove Essential Oil
7 drops Sweet Orange Essential Oil
3 drops Cinnamon Essential Oil
Small Funnel
Instructions
This recipe is very simple. First use a small funnel to put 1 tablespoon of rubbing alcohol into the spray bottle. Then add the essential oils to the bottle. Then you can put water into the spray bottle. Put the lid on and shake before each use.
I hope you give this recipe a try! It will add great fragrance to your Fall season.
Embellishments, I used Fall floral that I previously got from Michael’s
Scissors
Instructions:
I love making pumpkins and this one was so much fun!
First I cut out a circle from the burlap. The circle doesn’t have to be perfect. I used twine to sew the burlap. A yarn needle is good to use when sewing with twine.
I did a basic stitch around the whole border of the circle. Make sure to leave a tail at the beginning of the stitch and at the end.
To close the pumpkin gently pull on the twine tails. When the hole is still opened some add stuffing to the pumpkin. You can make it as plump as you would like.
Once your pumpkin is stuffed you can tie the pumpkin closed. Make sure to tie it pretty tight.
Then you can add a stem and embellishments to your pumpkin! I cut some twigs from a grapevine wreath to make my stem. I wrapped wire around the bottom of the sticks to hold them together. Then I added leaves and Fall flowers to the pumpkin.
I hope you give this a try! Comment below with your favorite pumpkin crafts!
This felt car essential Oil diffuser works great!! It was so simple to put together! I tested it out and the aroma is so refreshing in the car! This is what they call a passive diffuser. Felt holds the scent of essential oil really well and can be smelled when you get into and while in the car.
To make the diffuser I used waxed thread and three felt balls. I folded the thread in half and made a knot to make a loop to go over the rear view mirror. Then I used a needle to thread the felt balls and made a knot to secure them.
I love how it turned out! To use it I just put 2-3 drops of the essential oil on one of the felt balls. Whenever the scent fades just add a couple more drops. I used Bergamot essential oil on my diffuser because of its calming and soothing scent.
I hope you give this a try! Comment below with your favorite diffusers!
There are many fun ways to makeover composition notebooks! This makeover is using mod podge and scrapbook paper! You can use any scrapbook paper you would like!
I first trimmed the paper down. I wanted to fold the paper over the edge of the notebook so I made sure to leave enough length on the paper to do so.
I decoupaged the scrapbook paper to the front and then the back cover. To decoupage the cover brush mod podge on the cover, then place the paper down, and then brush mod podge on top of the paper. You can then fold the paper over the edges and decoupage the edges inside.
To dry the journal I stood it up and made sure the pages did not touch the mod podge while it was wet.
Once the front and back were dry, I added embellishments. I only added embellishments to the front cover. The supplies I used were all from Walmart and I used hot glue to attach them.
I hope you give this a try! So fun to make your journal unique and special!
This is a really easy and fun craft! First I lightly brushed the canvas with purple and black paint. You can use a dry brushing technique. To do this you use a mostly dry brush with a little bit of paint to cover the canvas.
Once the canvas is covered, you can prepare your cookie cutter. I used scissors to cut a gap in the middle of the top of the cookie cutter to pull the tulle through. Then you can put hot glue around the edges of the cookie cutter to attach it to the canvas. I put it toward the bottom of the canvas.
I had this black tulle left over from another project and used one piece folded in half.
I first pulled the tulle through the hole I made at the top of the cookie cutter. I bunched up the tulle to fit it into the cauldron and used hot glue to keep the tulle secure. Then I fanned out the tulle over the other half of the canvas and used small drops of hot glue to secure it.
Then I brushed the purple glitter on the black tulle to give it some sparkle.
I love how this turned out!! Comment below if you give this try or your favorite Halloween craft!
Often as we are living our day to day life we don’t realize how much we are growing and blossoming. Today is all about paying attention and reflecting on how we are growing!
Journal Prompt
What areas of life are you growing?
How are you striving to bloom and grow?
Describe a time lately when you have noticed how much you have grown.
I saw these cupcake wrappers, at Dollar Tree, and thought they would make a great sign! I bought these small round signs from Hobby Lobby. I decoupaged the wrapper to the center of the sign. To decoupage you brush mod podge on the wood, place the wrapper on top, and brush mod podge on top of the wrapper.
After it dried, I hot glued pinecones around the edge of the wrapper. When gluing the pinecones make sure to hold it in place for about 10 seconds while the hot glue dries.
After all the pinecones were glued, I used a brush and painted gold textured paint around the rest of the circle. I love the look of textured paint!!
After the paint was dried, I used hot glue to attach a twine hanger on the back!
Love how this sign turned out!! Comment below if you give this a try!
We are constantly being told by society how we should look, what we should weigh, and how to have the “ideal” body. Today we will discuss making physical health goals…but not goals that someone else has for you. Today we will reflect on your goals and what’s important to you!
Defining Physical Health
When thinking about self-care for your physical health, this can include anything regarding taking care of your body and it’s biological system. All of us have a unique system and our goals can be unique to what our body needs. Here are some questions to consider when thinking about making goals:
What areas of my health am I wanting to change to take care of my body?
What does my body need to function at it’s best?
For me personally when making physical health goals, I often get overly focused on my weight or my appearance. But I’ve been learning to instead focus on my internal health. Asking myself questions like what would help me manage my multiple sclerosis better? What will help me have more energy? What is a good way to take care of my body’s internal functioning? What makes my body feel good and healthy?
What about your internal health is a priority for you in this season of life?
What are your physical health goals?
Setting Goals
When setting goals it’s important to be specific and have a plan to put your goal into action. Here are some questions to consider:
What actions will I need to take to accomplish my goal?
How will I know if I’m making progress?
What routines can I put in place to support my goals?
Any form of change takes time! Be patient with yourself and remember taking care of our physical health is a life long journey.
Resilience is something that we can practice daily. There are many tools to build resilience. I wanted to share a time recently when I used grounding.
Practicing Grounding
I was starting to feel overwhelmed and my thoughts were spiraling. I could feel the stress increasing in my body. For me this feels like a pit in my stomach and my body tightening. Before I learned about resilience I would feel this way and let myself continue to spiral. This time I knew I needed to decrease my stress. I stepped away and went outside. I sat on a bench and closed my eyes and grounded myself. Here are some of the ways I did this:
I put my attention on the support of the bench beneath me and against my back.
Then I put my attention on the feeling of the breeze against my skin.
After that I allowed myself to put my attention to the sound of the birds around me.
Grounding is all about allowing your attention to totally shift from your stress to one of your five senses. Taking this moment to take care of myself was huge! I felt so much better and my stress decreased. I could now think clearly and wasn’t spiraling anymore. Sometimes stepping away is essential!
How could you use grounding when you get stressed?
The more you practice grounding, the easier it will be to use it to decrease stress.
Comment below with your favorite way of grounding!
Boundaries can be difficult to implement. Especially in relationships or situations we have been in for a long time. It can feel overwhelming, vulnerable, and scary to start using boundaries. But it is totally possible and often is absolutely necessary! Today we will discuss some tips for how to put our boundaries in action!
1. Use Assertive Communication
Assertive communication is key to setting boundaries. This form of communication allows us to clearly state what we feel, think, and need. Being assertive means taking ownership of your feelings and using statements that clearly say what you need. A simple way to do this is by using “I” statements. This is a statement that starts with “I” and then is followed by how you feel and what you need. Here is an example:
“I feel like I’m not being heard when you talk over me. I need you to listen to me.”
This is a simple example, but these statements can be used in a variety of ways and situations. This type of communication is effective, but if you are talking with a person who is toxic they may not be able to respect your boundaries or hear your needs. Stay safe and consider if making boundaries or simply separating from that person is necessary.
2. Be Specific About Your Boundaries
Make sure to be specific when setting boundaries. Sometimes when we are not clear about what we need, the boundary can be misunderstood. Take time to think about what boundaries you need ahead of time so you can communicate them specifically. There will not always be an opportunity to plan ahead. Sometimes we don’t know we need a boundary until someone has violated our trust, space, or expectations. Whenever you do know your boundaries feel free to advocate for yourself and your specific needs.
3. Stay Firm In Your Boundaries
There will be people who push back when you set a boundary. This may look like a guilt trip or someone criticizing your boundaries. Stay firm! It doesn’t matter what they think about your boundaries. You are important. Access to you is a privilege not a right! If you feel you need to set a boundary to feel safe, take care of your health, or simply for your quality of life then do that! No apologies needed! I am writing this to myself as well because I am always apologizing, but it’s not necessary.
Something to consider is that we all have responsibilities to tend to throughout our lives. There are some seasons when boundaries will look different because of where we are in life; such as when parenting, being a caregiver, or in the midst of any significant life experience. Because of these changing circumstances the boundaries we have and the way we implement them might change. This is totally normal!
4. Acceptance As A Tool
I personally struggled with this for a long time. It can be very hard to accept the boundaries we need, especially in relationships. There have been relationships that I have had to set firm boundaries in that really turned my world upside down. But they were situations that weren’t healthy and needed to be cut off or changed. Accepting that relationships you have or had were not good for you or needed to change can be hard. Here are some statements of acceptance to practice when struggling with this:
I accept the relationships I’ve had and have. I accept not all relationships are meant to be long-term and there are times when boundaries have to be set for my well-being and self-care.
I accept how I’ve gotten to this moment. I accept my past, present, and future. I accept in this moment I need boundaries to live well in my present and prepare for my future.
I accept boundaries are a tool to use in my self-care. I accept that I am worthy of having boundaries. My needs are worthy of being met.
I have seen this idea on Facebook and several other websites! All you do is use six words to tell a story. An example might be “Rabbit quickly hopped, pellets went flying.” It’s all about telling a story or a scene with a few words.
Journal Prompt
Tell a six word story about your current season of life, a feeling you experienced recently, or a fun experience you had recently.
I was excited to incorporate this Dollar Tree towel into a fall wreath! First I used a pen to trace where I wanted to cut the towel. I made sure to leave room for the towel to be wrapped around the inner ring.
Then I cut the towel out. I turned the towel and wreath form over so I could glue the towel to the wreath form. I put hot glue on the edge of the towel and wrapped it around the inner ring of the wreath.
Once all edges of the towel were glued to the inner ring, I started cutting strips of burlap to wrap around the other rings. I used a piece of burlap that was starting to unravel a bit and wanted it to have a more rustic look. I wrapped the strips around the rest of rings on the wreath. I used hot glue to secure the burlap at the beginning and the end of the wrapping.
I wanted to make a fabric bow to put on the wreath. I already had some fabric strips cut so I gathered those so that there were loops on both ends of the bow. Once I had all that I wanted I used a small piece of brown wire to secure the bow in the middle. and fluffed the bow to get how I wanted it to look. I added a small pinecone in the middle of the bow.
Then I used hot glue to attach the bow to the wreath.
This is a super simple wreath and you could customize it with your favorite towel, burlap, and fabric!! Comment below if you give this a try!
Here are other blog posts to check out with wreath tutorials!
Working towards long-term goals is essential to getting to where we want to be. Todays journal prompt is reflecting on the daily activities we are doing now to work toward our long term goals.
Journal Prompt
What is your long term goal?
Why is this goal important to you?
What daily activities can you do to support your long-term goals?
Journaling letters can be a great way to reflect on positive relationships or to find closure. Todays letter is to a mentor in your life.
Journal Prompt
This prompt is all about reflecting on a mentor in your life. Here is a list of possible things to mention in your letter. The purpose of this letter isn’t necessarily to send to the person, but simply a tool of reflection in your journal.
When was this mentor in your life and what stage of life were you in?
Why was this relationship significant?
How did this mentor impact you and what did they teach you?
We all face stressors in various ways throughout our days and lives. Stress can have impact on our physical, emotional, and mental health.
How do you feel the effects on your mind and body when the stress is mounting?
How have you managed stress in the past?
Stress Inventory
When we are wanting to start managing stress it’s important to do a stress inventory. This just means taking a step back and looking at your life to see what areas are causing you increased stress. Here are some questions to reflect on.
What areas of your life are causing the most stress?
What areas of your life are least stressful?
Is there a change that has happened recently that is stressful?
Managing Stress
In the brochure pictured below I wrote about the five categories for managing stress. I wanted to discuss these in this post!
Changing our behavior: this could mean setting boundaries, changing our responsibilities, scheduling breaks, and making time for activities you enjoy.
Engage in Physical Activity: this could be in an active form of doing exercise, going outside, or getting a massage. This could also be done in a passive form of meditation, deep breathing, or stretching.
Tune Into Your Feelings: to do this you could consider journaling, talking with a friend, or listening to music.
Think Positive: practice positive self-talk, gratitude, and positive thinking.
Strength in Faith: activities to do this are different for all of us. Some ideas could be praying, singing, or reading scripture.
This is a simple Halloween sign, but I love the way it turned out!!
Supplies Needed
Black Canvas
Dollar Tree Wood Halloween Cutout
White Spray Paint
Bow Material: I used black burlap, Halloween ribbon, Spanish moss, and brown wire
Hot Glue Gun & Sticks
Instructions:
I bought this black canvas from Michael’s on sale. It was in a 2 pack for only $2.40! I laid the wood cutout down on the canvas and spray painted it white so that the outline of the wood sign would be on the canvas. It turned out great and has a spooky vibe!
Then I made the bow! I used black burlap strips, ribbons loops, and Spanish moss.
I put three strips of black burlap crisscross on the bottom, then added Spanish moss, and then crisscross loops of the Halloween ribbon. You can put as much material in your bow as you want depending on how full you want it.
Then I gathered the material in the middle and tied a brown wire around the middle.
I covered the middle of the bow with a small piece of black burlap.
Then glue your bow to the top of your canvas sign!!
If you give this a try comment below with a picture!
Clove Bud essential oil has a spicy and warm aroma. Cloves comes from the flowering buds of the tropical evergreen tree (Encyclopedia Britannica, 2022). This tree belongs to the myrtaceae family. Clove buds are used as a cooking spice to flavor food. These trees originate from East Asia, and are now grown mostly in Sri Lanka, Madagascar, Indonesia, and Tanzania (Encyclopedia Britannica, 2022).
The buds contain 14 to 20 percent essential oil, the principal component of which is the aromatic oil eugenol. Cloves are strongly pungent owing to eugenol, which is extracted by distillation to yield oil of cloves.”
Encyclopedia Britannica, 2022
Benefits of Clove Bud Essential Oil
These benefits have not been evaluated by the FDA. There are several benefits of using Clove essential oil (Seladi-Schulman, 2019):
Has antimicrobial properties and helps get rid of bacteria
Can be used as a pain reliever for toothache or muscle pain
Helps relieve respiratory issues such as cough and asthma
How to Use
There are many ways to use Clove Bud essential oils. Consider using one of these options (Seladi-Schulman, 2019):
Making a room or body spray
Adding to homemade lotions, scrubs or creams
Use in an aromatic diffuser
Can be used for a tooth ache
Dabbing clove oil onto your sore tooth may help to relieve the pain until you can get to see a dentist. To use clove oil for a toothache, follow these steps:
Dilute a few drops of clove oil in an edible carrier oil, such as olive or coconut oil.
Dab a clean cotton ball into the solution, allowing it to soak in.
Avoiding contact with your gums, apply the cotton ball to the sore tooth. It may take a few minutes of application to feel relief.
I’ve also found myself wondering about how people become and stay wealthy and what we can learn from their financial habits. Many of the articles I read suggested that most wealthy people have multiple streams of income (Taylor, 2022). This is helpful because if one income stream ends you still have income from other sources.
Times are difficult financially! The cost of everything is going up and many of us are looking for additional income! This post is all about various types of income and creating income streams! There are four types of income that we will look at today.
There are four types of income streams (Matthews, 2017):
Earned Income
Passive Income
Residual Income
Investment Income
Earned Income
Earned income is the most common. It is income we get from working at a job. This could be employment for someone else or for yourself. Typically payment is given based on an hourly schedule and yearly salary. If you are looking for additional income through your job or career here are some ideas to consider:
Looking into open positions in the company you are with or other agencies that have higher paying jobs.
Seek promotions in your current work.
Working extra shifts or hours.
The best thing about earned income is that it is fairly predictable and you can count on payments on a regular basis. This may be more uncertain if your pay depends on tips, commission, or sales.
Passive Income
Passive income is typically slow to grow, but for some can become a significant source of income. These days there are many opportunities to make passive income and can allow you to make income with less effort then earned income. The great thing about this type of income is that it can grow without you having to do a ton of work. Here are some ideas of ways to make passive income:
Start and monetize a blog!
Sell digital or printable products
Make an online course (Matthews, 2021)
Start an online shop. You could possibly sell items you have made, bought wholesale, or through drop-shipping.
Affiliate marketing for other businesses
Residual Income
Residual income is the money that continues to flow after an initial investment of time and resources has been completed”
Will Kenton, 2022
This has similar benefits as passive income in that there is initial effort to get the income started and then it generates itself ongoing. Here are some examples of residual income sources (Matthews, 2021):
Rent received from properties
Network Marketing, also known as direct sales or multi-level marketing
Providing a service that clients can subscribe to, for example coaching or subscription boxes
Investment Income
This income comes from money that is invested that in turn makes you a return.
Just like Passive income, your money is working for you. The income from these types of investments include, interest, dividends, and capital gains.”
Erica Matthews, 2021
This list includes sources of investment income (Matthews, 2021):
Grounding is a great way to start your yoga practice. It can increase calming sensations and help us tune into your body. Here is an audio of me explaining how I incorporate grounding in my practice.
Fall is a great time for reflection. There is so much that we learn from nature about change, letting go, and growth. The prompt today is about thinking about how all of these lessons relate to us in our current season of life.
Journal Prompt
Fall can teach us so much about life and the seasons. How do these lessons relate to your life?
Fall teaches us that letting go can be beautiful and essential for new growth. How has letting go been apart of this season in your life?
Fall teaches us that change can be full of beauty. What beauty have you seen from change in your life during this season?
There are many great things about Fall…pumpkin flavored coffee, holidays, and the crisp air! There is also a lot of great vegetables in season during the Fall!! These are veggies you could get from the grocery store potentially at a lower cost or at a farmers market!
Fall Vegetables
Here is a list of the in season Fall vegetables (USDA)! There are so many great recipes and dishes that these vegetables can be used in!
Your story is so important!! It’s one of the many unique things about you that makes you special. But it’s also true that all of our stories have things about it that are difficult and hard to face. I once did this journal prompt for my story and it allowed me to see myself and my story differently.
Journal Prompt
Today’s journal prompt is all about writing your narrative with a spin. Write your story as a narrative of someone else’s story. When I did the prompt I told the story of a girl name Anna and I wrote about her story and adventures, but of course it was my story. Below are some things to consider to help get started.
What part of your story are you wanting to write about?
What is the character’s name in the story?
What type of narrative is this? For example, my story was a story of overcoming an obstacle.
After you write your story reflect on how it made you feel. How did it changed how you see your story?
2 Shadow Boxes, I got mine from Michael’s that were hexagon shaped
White and Black Paint
Scissors
Popsicle Sticks
Hot Glue Gun & Sticks
Brush
Christmas Greenery and flowers of choice
Directions
These hexagon shadow boxes are from Michael’s and we’re only $1 each. I cut the twine hanger off the one the one that will be at the bottom of the snowman. There is also a metal hanger on the back of these frames for wall decor.
I used hot glue to glue the frames together. You could also use wood glue or E6000, but the hot glue worked great for me! After the frames were glued together I painted them white.
I decided to use felt balls for the inside of my snowman, but you can also use stuffing. I squished the felt balls in tightly.
I then put hot glue on each felt ball to secure them.
Once all the white felt balls are secure, I hot glued colored felt balls for the eyes, nose, and buttons.
Then I made the hat with popsicle sticks. I used gardening shears to cut the popsicle sticks but you can also use scissors. I started with the base of the hat and then formed the top of the hat with shorter popsicle sticks. I used hot glue to hold the sticks together.
Then I painted the hat black. I added a few white sticks, greenery, white flowers, and a pinecone to the hat.
I used hot glue to attach the hat to the top of the snowman! There is a hanger on the frames so you could hang it or prop it up on a shelf!
Hope you give this a try! Comment below with your favorite snowman crafts!
Lemon is a common essential oil used in cleaning and body care recipes. Lemon, also known as citrus-limon, is a plant that is apart of the rutaceae family. It was originally grown in Italy.
Benefits of Lemon Essential Oils
There are many benefits from using lemon essential oils. These benefits have not been reviewed by the FDA. Below are some of the benefits (Watson, 2021):
Can help reduce anxiety and depression
Eases nausea
Can help relieve pain
Improves congestion and sore throat
Can help increase uplifting and energizing feelings
Has anti-fungal and anti-bacterial properties
How to use Lemon Essential Oils
Lemon is a strong citrus oil and can cause burns if put directly on the skin without a carrier oil or if it is on your skin and directly exposed to sunlight. I don’t recommend ingesting essential oils due to their strength. When diluted lemon is great for these uses:
Use in diffusers, whether an electric or passive diffuser
Great in room spray recipes
Is a great to add to DIY cleaner recipes
Can be used in body care recipes, such as soaps, lotions, scrubs, or deodorants
Have you ever gotten stuck in thinking about how things “should” be? Or feeling inferior because of all the things you “should” be doing?
Being stuck on all the “shoulds” can fill us with feelings of guilt, disappointment, and self-loathing.
What if we left behind the “shoulds”? What if we just embraced who we are and the life we are living? In reality the only thing “should” ever did was stress us out! It’s like a visitor that over stayed it’s welcome and complained the whole time.
Let’s accept that “should” never cared about all the great things we were already doing. I’m letting “should” go. Instead I’m accepting myself and allowing myself to feel joy in the present. Will you join me?
This is a great tool to build resilience from the Social Resilience Model, which was found by Threshold Global Works. When we are focused on things that overwhelm us and make us feel stressed, it can be difficult to build resilience and be in our resilient zone. This is a tool I use a lot in my self-care because I tend to overthink or ruminate on things so it is helpful to intentionally shift my thoughts.
Shift & Stay
The shift and stay exercise is all about shifting away from what is overwhelming and shifting to something that is calming. Shifting allows us to increase feelings of calmness and not be overcome by stress. What are some things you could shift to instead of stressing? Here are some ideas:
A good thing that happened to you today
An item or place that brings you joy
A person that you have a positive relationship with
Anything positive or calming
Practice!
The more we practice the more our brain will support and adjust to a new habit. Here are some ways to practice the shift & stay:
When you start to feel overwhelmed intentionally think about something else more positive. Once you are feeling more calm you can then address the previous situation.
When feeling overwhelmed by negative thoughts pause and take a moment to journal about a positive memory or event.
When having an overwhelming conversation allow yourself to step away and think about something else to calm.
When we think about being healthy we often have a hyper focus on physical health. Physical health is important but there are so many sides to who we are as people. Today is all about reflecting on what it means to be holistically healthy.
I made this graphic to show all the different sides of health! It is empowering to see all the ways we can be taking care of ourselves!
What do these areas of health mean to you?
Mental Health: focused on the health of our thought process, story, the way we see others and ourselves, and personality traits.
Emotional Health: processing feelings and focused on the emotions we experience. This can also include our ability to emotionally connect with others and to the work we do.
Spiritual Health: our connection to something greater then ourselves. Can be connected to our sense of purpose.
Sexual Health: our expression and fulfillment of our sexual needs.
Physical Health: involves taking care of our physical body. This can involve nutrition, exercise, and sleep.
Social Health: the health of connections we have with other people in our lives. This can also include healthy boundaries.
Intellectual Health: this type of health is how we challenge our mind and memory. It can involve learning new things or practicing mental stimulation games.
Which of these areas of health are most important to you?
Fall is here!! Let’s look at what the top essential oils are to use for Fall body care recipes and essential oil blends! These oils bring the aromas and joys of the Fall season!
Bow Materials: scrap fabric, burlap, and Spanish moss
Hot Glue Gun & Sticks
Instructions:
This craft is so fun because you can customize it to how decorate in your home for Fall. I got this wood sign from Target and this Fall fabric from Walmart.
I cut the fabric into strips to fit the boards of the sign. Then I used mod podge to decoupage the fabric to the sign. First brush on mod podge on the sign and place your fabric on the sign. Then brush mod podge on top of the fabric.
Once all the fabric strips are decoupaged let them dry. Once the sign is dry you can add whatever fall decorations you want too. I added a large sunflower and leaves and a simple rag bow. I added plaid burlap, strips of fabric and Spanish moss into my bow and tied it in the middle. Then glued the decorations on the sign!
Comment below if you give this a try or with your favorite Fall sign creation!
One of the biggest lessons about life with chronic illness I’ve learned is how to budget my energy. For myself and a lot of people living with chronic illness our bodies experiences fatigue and energy differently. I can’t speak for other people but I will share what this has looked like for me.
I’ve learned to think of energy budgeting as a series of deposits and withdrawals. Things that take energy are withdrawals and the things that fill you with energy are deposits. When living with a chronic illness there are types of activities that take a lot of energy for us that the average person does not consider taking any energy. This could be something as simple as a shower, getting ready for the day, driving to work, or cooking a meal. Deposits of energy are things that give us energy this could be taking a nap, taking rest breaks, or pacing ourselves when doing a difficult activity.
For me personally I am evaluating my energy levels throughout the day. There are days where I start the day at a yellow and have to be careful with how much I push myself that day. There have also been days when my day started out and I was completely exhausted and unable to go to work or do my normal life activities. Then there have been days when I start out with a lot of energy on one of the greens. But have had to be careful to not take too much advantage of the unexpected energy and deplete what I have.
The most important part of evaluating your energy is to simply notice. Notice what your body is telling you it needs. If you notice you are very tired is it possible to make a deposit by taking a small break or a nap? It’s even good to journal about patterns you’ve noticed in the week or month about things that have been draining or adding to your energy. Below are some helpful tips of what helps me budget my energy:
Develop routines that support your energy. This could be going to bed and waking up at certain times. Eating foods that give you energy or doing light exercise to stimulate your energy.
Be willing to say ‘no’. There have been times when there were fun activities going on with my family or friends and I’ve had to learn to be able to say ‘no’ when I didn’t have enough energy to go. There are activities that can be more taxing then others and it’s important to know your limits and when to say ‘no’ and when to say ‘yes’.
Letting others help you. This is one of the hardest for me. There are times I don’t have the energy to keep up and need help! It’s okay to ask for and receive help from others. Sometimes it makes a world of difference!
We talk about self-care often and it can sometimes feel like a cliche. Lately, I have been going through a difficult season, as we all do sometimes, and people have been telling me to take care of myself. Internally I question, what does that even mean? Self-care can look different for each of us and can look different across your lifespan. Here are some questions to consider…
What areas in your life are you feeling empty or drained in?
What does thriving in this season of your life look like?
Why is self-care important to you?
How can you intentionally practice self-care in a way that is helpful in your current season?
Self-care is more then bubble baths and ice cream. Self-care is taking care of ourselves in the areas that are most important to you. This can include taking care of ourselves mentally, physically, spiritually, sexually, or emotionally.
I love this idea of considering how building resilience is related to our self-care. Being intentional about building our resilience is a vital part of taking care of ourselves.
Resilient Self-Care
There are two main ways of building resilience and both of them relate to our self-care!
The first way is through sensation-based resilience which is all about increasing sensations of calm and decreasing sensations of stress. This directly relates to our self-care because being overwhelmed by stress can be unhealthy for us emotionally, mentally, and physically. Practicing skills of resilience can help increase calm and holistic wellness.
The second way is thought-based resilience, which is all about managing our thoughts and emotions to increase well-being. Being overwhelmed by our thoughts can increase stress within our body. How we think directly impacts our perceptions, actions, and the words we say. It also impacts how we view ourselves and interpret the world around us. When we use skills to increase resilience through positive and calming thoughts we are practicing mental and emotional self-care.
Tools of Resilience
There are many tools to help build and increase our resilience. Consider choosing one or two of these tools to practice this month!
Sensation-Based Resilience Tools:
Tracking calm and stress sensations within your body
Gratitude is so important for our wellness!! It allows us to focus on positive things and has the power the change our perspective and therefore our actions.
Journal Prompt
Write 5 things you are grateful for today?
What about each of these things is important to you?
How can you express your gratitude to the people around you?
Have you ever felt like sharing your feelings is hard?
Me too!! It can be so hard to express ourselves when we are overwhelmed by our emotions! There are many reasons why this is true. One reason could be that we have not identified our emotions within ourselves. This may sound like a very basic idea, but naming and identifying our emotions helps us to know how to manage them.
Naming our emotions empowers us!! When we name them are are able to understand our needs, process how we are feeling, and identify what led to us having these feelings. This can be huge to knowing ourselves and being able to communicate our needs with others. Below is a list of emotions from Berkeley Wellness Institute:
Which one of these emotions speaks to you most today?
This is a very simple craft, but is also a great addition to your fall home decor! I took the 8 small grapevine wreaths and used wire to gather them together.
I twisted the wire to hold the grapevine wreaths securely in place.
Pumpkin stems are so fun because you can use all kinds of materials to make them. I had these two small wood spools that I glued together to make the stem.
I used hot glue to wrap the twine around the spools. I added a little bit of hot glue at the beginning, middle, and end of the spools to keep the twine in place. I also put hot glue on the top of the spool and circled the twine on top.
Then I put hot glue on the bottom of the stem and placed it securely in the middle of the pumpkin.
I love to add Spanish moss to pumpkins! I put hot glue on the wreaths where I wanted the moss and adjusted it accordingly. Then added some greenery.
I hope you give this a try! Share your favorite pumpkin crafts in the comments!
I generally don’t like cleaning. And I especially dislike cleaning the bathroom. Is anyone with me on that? 🙋🏾♀️
This post contains my Amazon affiliate links.
Whenever I find a cleaning tool or hack that makes life easier I am all about it!! I started getting these Mr. Clean Magic Erasers from Amazon and I absolutely love it!! Also it smells amazing if you enjoy Lavender!
I often have problems with fatigue and limited energy. This is something I think a lot of us face for a variety of reasons. This eraser makes it so easy to clean the shower and sink without it being really difficult.
Then give it a good couple of squeezes too activate the cleaning solution.
Then you are good to go! Just scrub the area with the soap scum. If the eraser gets dry just put it back under water to reactivate. 🧼 Would definitely recommend this product!
Making boundaries is hard! Sometimes it can feel like having boundaries is not loving or kind to the people around us. But in reality it is a great way to love others and ourselves. Often when we are in situations or in relationships with no boundaries it can lead to those things becoming toxic. Take a minute to reflect on these questions:
What does having boundaries mean to me?
How do I implement boundaries in my life?
Where are areas in my life that I know I need more boundaries?
What are boundaries?
I think of boundaries as how much access others have to you. Access to you in whatever way is a privilege not a right. We can set limitations and boundaries on how much access someone has to us emotionally, mentally, spiritually, physically, and sexually. This also applies to access to your time and physical items (Campbell, 2021). These types of boundaries are applicable to all areas of our lives and we get to decide what they look like in various relationships and settings.
This is not easy!! It can be very difficult to set boundaries with people. It’s also hard to accept within ourselves the boundaries we need. Consider taking some time reflecting on these questions:
What area in my life do I feel like I need more boundaries?
What category of boundaries is most difficult for me to implement?
Which of my boundaries is most important to me and why?
Resilience & Boundaries
Boundaries help facilitate safety. This is so important to building resilience! It is very difficult to build resilience while we are in spaces that we feel unsafe. That is because our brain and body are detecting that we are mot safe, whether that be emotionally, mentally, or physically, and will trigger our body to be on alert and possibly release stress hormones. This then triggers us to be in a survival mode and not in our resilient zone. When we have boundaries it allows us to be comfortable with the access people have to us, which helps us to feel safe.
Boundaries help us regulate stress. When we don’t have boundaries we can find ourselves in situations that are stressful and possibly triggering. When we have boundaries we can set ourselves up for success in situations that allows us to not be overwhelmed by stress.
Boundaries allow us to identify and communicate our needs. Having boundaries helps us to communicate our needs to our friends, coworkers, and loved ones. It can be hard to communicate what we need, but having boundaries established a head of time allows us to know what we need and implement that.
