Happy April!

And just like that....it's April! I feel like I was just bundled up in my house as snowed literally poured down on the DC area. Now the sun is shining, everything is in bloom (my allergies can attest to this!), including the beautiful cherry blossom trees, and we've smacked into Springtime with full force.

So how was my month? Here were my March intentions:

1. Complete the 21 Day Vegan Kickstart Success! And it was great.

2. Try out at least 5 new recipes Yes! I made spicy tomato chickpea soup, sweet chili-lime tofu and crispy sesame kale from Vegan Yum Yum, banana chocolate chip muffins from The Joy of Vegan Baking, cran-apple muffins from 1,000 Vegan Recipes and last night I made the Happy Herbivore's chickpea tacos! I've also made about 10 different variations of a green smoothie over the course of the past month.

3. Get back into a gym/yoga routine This was going pretty well for the brief period there before I fell at Whole Foods and messed up my knee/hip/back. Just the thought of twisting into a yoga pose or making it through a spin class these past few weeks has been painful! I'm getting back on track this week (more to come on this in a later post).

4. Write in my paper journal on a regular basis Giant fail. I say I want to do this nearly every month and it's the first thing to go out the window when I run out of time. Any thoughts for making this more of an automatic habit?

5. Get a head start on my big research paper that is due May 3rd Hmm, on the one hand, I did write a three page paper proposal that helped me to consolidate my ideas. I also gathered a bunch of research. However, that research is sitting in a giant pile in my bedroom and I only have an introduction written, so that's not much of a head start. My goal is to read and get through writing 10 pages this coming weekend and then 10 more the following weekend. Then I will just need to add a few more pages, edit it and voila! My last grad school paper ever will be complete!

My April goals:

1. Finish my last class and paper for graduate school (preferably without going insane).

2. Get back into journaling!

3. Eat well/work out lots/lose some weight. I don't want to put strict parameters on this one but I do intend to get back on a healthy track. More on this in a later post!

4. Let go. There are a lot of things in my life that have the potential to change in the next two months or so. My type-A personality has me making list after list, over planning and trying to guess and/or control the outcome of all of those things. None of that is good for one's stress levels! Right now I feel on the verge of potentially an entire new life. It's scary and refreshing at the same time.

I wish you all a wonderful April full of flowers, time spent basking in the sun and fantastic new beginnings!



{Photo credit: *yasuhiro}

Attitude of Gratitude.

Things making me smile right now:

-This article on Ginnifer Goodwin's Aha! Moment regarding veganism. I love the Albus Dumbledore quote at the end: "It is our choices, Harry, that show us who we are far more than our abilities."

-The Republic of Tea's Red Tea African Rooibos Good Hope Vanilla

-Jesse is visiting this weekend!!!

-Going to Baltimore to see "In The Heights" on Saturday!

-The beautiful red and pink canvas of a lotus flower that my sister sent me for my birthday

-Tonight I am giving my VERY LAST PRESENTATION of grad school! Only 7 session of my one class and a final paper until freedom!

{Photo credit: ZEDZAP-Nick}

Happy November!

I can't believe it is already November!  October seemed to have flown by.  This month is incredibly busy for me.  It will include:  Writing four papers, putting together and giving a presentation, a Spanish language proficiency exam for my master's degree, my yearly performance evaluation at work, attending a few events and spending Thanksgiving in Maine with Jesse and his family.

My goals for this month include:

-Find time for me.  I want to get back to a regular yoga and gym routine, read at least a few things for fun, continue journaling and get enough sleep.

-Finish as much of the list above as possible before I leave for Maine.  I want to spend my time with Jesse and his family in as stress-free a manner as possible.

-Get as much accomplished at work as possible.

-Begin thinking about how I want to spend my winter break (no work or school from December 11 through January 4th!).

{Photo credit: lordog}

Weekly intention: Focus

My intention for this week is to commit to keeping my focus.

At any given moment, there are multiple things vying for my time and attention.  There are my responsibilities at work, my commitments for school, my friends and family, assorted errands, etc.  I occasionally let it get to the point where I feel like I am drowning.

I find that while I know I can accomplish more by focusing on one thing at a time, I tend to try to either do more than one thing at once or I do one thing while worrying/thinking about/contemplating at least five others.  Not very productive.

Since there are so many things I need to do this week, I am making a commitment to focus on one at a time until I work my way through them all.  Every time I feel overwhelmed, I will consciously come back to this commitment and remind myself that focusing is the only way to wade through it.

What is your intention for this week and how can you work to make it come alive?

{Photo credit: ihtatho}

Happy September!

September is here! Finally!

My favorite month has arrived and these past two days in Washington, DC have actually felt like autumn. I can't wait for the leaves of the few trees we have here to change colors. I want to paint pumpkins and drink apple cider. One day I will live somewhere that has a more pronounced fall than the one we have here and I will love every second of it!

My graduate school classes start back up again tonight. They are a reminder of the structure that I crave in my life and that naturally starts to set in with the new school year. That said, here are my humble goals for this month:

-Stay on top of my reading for class. Program "study time" into my Planner Pad.
-Work out or do yoga at least 5 days a week.
-Eat healthy and hopefully lose between 5 and 10 lbs
-After a procedure I am having done on my legs on September 18th where I can't work out for a week, still get on the treadmill and do some doctor-approved walking.
-Do a lot of journaling, especially as it gets closer to Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur, particularly around the topics of renewal and forgiveness.
-Study up on advanced Spanish grammar so I can pass my oral exit exam for school.

{Photo credit: algo}