A lazy Sunday,

It's a crispy, cold Sunday morning but the sun is shining and deceivingly inviting. It's a lazy Sunday for us, but that's OK. 
I came down with another bad cold a couple of days ago so I am happy to take the time to recuperate. We're getting to the tail end of the term so holidays are just around the corner. Together with today's sunshine it's made me feel OK that I'm not doing a lot. I'm hoping that in a day or two I will be back to running around and getting more done. 

One of the highlights of the last week was making some invitations for a small party we're having next month. Of course, I didn't need to do them. A text would suffice but it was an opportunity to get creative, and so I did. In line with the vibe of the party, the design and materials were kept simple. I really want the focus to be about friends coming together. 
I found making the invitations quite relaxing. I think this was because, I had come up with a design that was so simple and the element of repetition meant I didn't have to overthink it. 
It also helped that all of the materials could be contained to one shoe box. I was able to work on the project over three nights without having to make a big mess and stress about cleaning it up each time.
The only downside was that I had wanted to keep costs down and I probably ended up paying a little more than necessary. When I got to the big supplies store there was very little choice available in the sort of paper that I wanted. In fact, had I done a trial run earlier I would probably have been able to adapt the design to materials I already had.
The photos I have do not show the final product. I ran out of the right-sized doilies but the idea is to wrap the invitation in a doiley and tie it with ribbon.

Again, I found that taking time to create was rewarding. I'm glad I listened to my gut feeling. Normally, parties and the like make me nervous. I really want to keep perspective on this event, keep it simple and ensure the occasion is warm and welcoming. I'm not a fancy cook but I am hoping to make it a lovely evening by focussing on what I can do rather than what I can't.
So back to my lazy Sunday. I'll put some washing on, check my weekly planner and tidy up a little. I've got  schoolwork to do and I'd like to declutter another spot in the front room-soon-to-be-office. 
I hope the sun shines your way today.

Shift the focus

There's a lot I haven't done this week. I would love to wax lyrical about it all but, tempting as it is, I have decided to focus on what I did do this week.

I know that as someone with social anxiety I seem to have a natural bias towards the negative side of life experiences. My tendency is to worry, worry, worry and worry some more.
      "How was your party?"
      "It was good...the cake didn't turn out...I didn't get time to make the fabulous meat pie ....         I wanted to decorate the room a little but I was too busy...."
This would be my typical response to something which might actually have been enjoyed by all without any criticism. 

So here we go with a rundown of what I've done this week.  

I managed to have breakfast every morning before I left for work.
I managed to get to bed early one night.
I got the dishes done last night. I was about to walk away from the last few but, after thinking about it, determined it would pay to get them finished there and then.
I finished my reports.
I relished getting out in the garden last weekend, so much so that I'm going to try and include gardening time in this weekend.
I visited my mum.
I did yoga and it felt great. 
I  consulted my weekly planner several times and today I set up my work notebook so I get my to do list up and running again.
I bought myself new jeans and wore them this week.  
I started reading books again. Not electronic ones. Real paper ones. It was a totally delightful experience, and one I plan to continue.
I remembered to wear my glasses when watching TV. Much more enjoyable that way.

Sits above the sink while I do the dishes.

I found a beautiful use for something I was going to throw out...and what a superb-never to be beaten- incentive for getting those dished done!

It's too easy for me to slip into negative mode when life gets busy and stressful. It's important that I keep practising those habits that keep my SA in check. Just taking a few minutes to list "good things for this week" is enough to help me shift gear from negative to positive. Just a few minutes is enough to shift my focus. I feel better for it and the realisation makes me want to keep moving in the positive direction.  

Negativity is offputting to others and a drain on my own energy. Thinking about what works, what helps, what is good, is more lifegiving.  I just need to remember to stop and reflect from time to time so that I can keep track of how I'm going and to know when it's time to shift the focus and change gears again!

June Goal Shooting

It's report time here so not as much time for blogging. Mr S is away at the moment visiting family. His father is 85 years old so it's important that he makes some time for him.

I haven't managed to get out in the garden for a long time but I got a lovely surprise last week when I collected the mail and found some very sweet flowers ready to bloom. It's cold and grey and miserable here as winter sets in, so the surprise was most welcome.

I noticed recently that I'm making progress with some goals and farther away than ever from other goals. It puzzled me until I realised that making a change to routine has taken much more time than getting out in the garden and doing some work. Getting up early requires me to make a mammoth effort every morning. Working in the garden can be a one-off session. It doesn't matter if I don't do it every day and I walk away from it feeling I've achieved something.

The early morning wake-up has also taught me that I can be overly ambitious at times. Taking one small, doable step at a time is a surer way to make progress.

Last week I posted my weekend goals here and it helped a lot to refine what I could do and what I needed to do. So I'm going to try the same thing with my June goals.

June....

• walk and run twice a week (change schedule because the current one is not working, except for the yoga class I've started)
• call my brother and ask him to hang up  the hooks, the shelves and the two pictures that are ready to go (he said yes)
• wake early, eat breakfast and  take a step towards getting lunch ready (prepare breakfast the night before,  go to sleep earlier)
• declutter and organise front "study" so that it is cosy and inviting with room to work and rest
• organise time to spend time with friends just for the fun of it 
• reduce screen time/use screen time effectively (yesterday I challenged myself to "do things" for an hour and then turn the TV on, which worked nicely)
• get back to gardening - half an hour over the weekend (pot the lemongrass and quickly plant the tulips)
• make sure I check my planner each night, focus, know what I am doing, get back to my "to do" list for work (I've started and it's already helping)
• buy hall runner (two years now it's been on the list and this is the month when it will happen)
• keep my goal list short (?), keep in mind my bigger list of goals for 2015 so that when possible I don't lose sight of them, review as well
• and what about some craft?

Reports are due this coming week. Mr S will be back soon. Life is good. My kiddliwinks at school are delightful. And we've got  a long weekend!!!
Have a good weekend everyone!