let's have a little happier family now, okay?

motivational phrase of the month (on a sticky note, of course):

"journeyings without murmurings"

this fabulous little phrase is found in 1 nephi chapter 2 of the book of mormon, and it's my favorite right now!  see, every time i travel, i have a tendency to get a little cranky.  in the car, i just want my space.  in the hotel/tent/cabin/trailer/etc. i just want a tiny bit of privacy.  in the morning, i wish i had more time for exercise.  but.  remember that we're positive-thinking right now!  things have to change.

see, my family is taking a vacation, leaving this monday.  we'll be staying a cabin about two hours from our house for a week, and i am determined to make this a happier vacation than average.  i don't need more space because we're taking the trip to get closer together.  i'll be just dandy without extended privacy because i've already had my share for the summer while i was living alone!  and just to ensure that i'll be perky, i'm going to wake up early to exercise because that usually sets off a not-very-easily annoyed mood.  this time our journeyings will be void of my murmurings completely!  

p.s.  tomorrow's friday.  hasn't the week absolutely flown by?

a down day

so it's kind of one of those days.

one of those days where i don't have enough minutes to count all the blessings to counteract everything that's worrying me right now.
one of those days where choosing to happy is an added choice every ten minutes.
one of those days that i haven't taken a shower yet - and it's 4:24 pm.
one of those days.

i've been working with all my might on my positive thinking project, and i can already tell you that it helps!  the positive affirmations work wonders on my stress level (keeping it lower no matter the circumstance), and while replacing every negative thought that enters my cranium with a positive one of the same topic is mentally strenuous some days, it keeps me from worrying myself crazy.  one of the most influential aspects of this positive thinking project is my running goal.  i feel the very best when i'm running - especially early in the morning in the beautiful red canyon two minutes from my house.  it's easy to love when i'm running - to love everything.  i'm happier with my decisions, my body and my situation in life when i'm running.  after my runs, i have more energy, it's easier to just decide that happiness is victorious over anything that happens during the day.  it wakes me up, helps me realize the beauty all around me, starts my day with gratitude.

that said, i missed running this morning.  my goal is to run 25 out of the 31 days in july (which is 6 days every week with one miss day).  last night, i had a throbbing headache.  it put me to bed early, so i thought i would be able to wake up at my usual time to run.  i thought wrong.  apparently, my body is a little more sleep deprived than i realized.  i slept until 9:00, laid in bed for close to a half hour, then started work at 10:00.  no worries, i'm going to run tonight (once it cools off below triple digit temperatures).  but i noticed what a difference it makes to start my day with this routine, not just fit it in anywhere.

so today's been a struggle.  worries i've had almost completely under control for almost a week have had me growling all day.  it's also a little harder to make yourself repeat positive affirmations when you're upset, so there hasn't been much of a defender against the worrying.

i'm turning it around.  i'm still deciding to be happy.  i just have to decide every five minutes today instead of every thirty.

right now, i'm going to take a shower (one of my favorite things in the entire world).  after that, i'm going to eat roasted beets and carrots picked right from the garden (another two favorite things: beets and gardens).  once i'm 80% full, i'm going to a lecture by an extremely knowledgeable naturalistic doctor on happiness (which is fitting for today, no?).  and once i get home from the lecture, i'm going to tie my shoes, capture one of my older sisters and run until i don't have enough energy left to be upset or worriful (new word, i like it), but before i'm dead.  it sounds like a good mind-set-curbing plan to me!

what are some of your strategies to change your mindset when you're feeling down?

reunions!

wow! it's been a while since i've made a moment to post, but the exciting news is that i have so many new stories!  it's been a weekend (and a full week, if i'm really talking updating here) full of fun, filled with old friends and adventures.  i can't wait to post about all my fun little moments over the last week (all picture documented!!).  but i think instead of attempting to catch all the way up starting at the beginning, i'll start with today...

holiday! which (lucky me) meant a half day of work.  i finished up at noon, and was quickly tied to the couch to watch some great comedy routines by brian regan with my sister, natalie.  afterward, i had a wonderful little reunion.  my fabulous friend carlie was in town today!  carlie and i have known each other since middle school geometry (mrs. black's class, front row, where we created our first news letters {per se} called the codfish confidential).  we were silly girls.  we still are silly girls, talking about how growing up is so strange sometimes.  carlie and i are kindred spirits, as anne of green gables would put it.  we only live about an hour away from each other, but we only see each other every few months now.

graduation - right before we moved away from each other

cupcake adventures - they happen all the time

summer days swimming at the lake... this time a little too early. it was freezing!

bubbles!! in the glen by carlie's first dorm, at sunset the bubbles are incredible!

lucy and ethel - taken by sabrina perkins

today, we planned some adventures.  we've always wanted to live together, or at least travel together somewhere exciting.  the consensus today was a trip to washington d.c. possibly sometime this fall, a yoga retreat (next summer?), and the possibility of rooming together while she finishes school and i snatch an internship.  also.  if i graduate on schedule, there's always the dream of visiting her in the summer while she studies abroad in italy.  wouldn't that be a dream come true?

big plans.  we like to dream big, carlie and i.  but mostly, it was just great to see each other - and eat banana soft serve with raspberries and chocolate sauce.