Feel Good Friday 36

Hello and happy Friday! With Chris having been back to work since May, I am once again team weekend!  I look forward to Friday afternoons SO much.  As I mentioned before, I am not totally taking the month of July off from the blog, but I am taking time off from making myself do projects or decor posts, and just doing things that fuel my soul, and maybe sharing those with you.  From Wednesday’s post, you know I have been reading a lot. I love getting lost in fiction, or learning and growing from non-fiction. This week has been relatively uneventful, yet filled with things that have fed my body and soul and today I get to share those with you.

Healthy Vegetarian Summer Meal

I am always on the lookout for healthy vegetarian meals that I think Chris might enjoy as well.  We’re both fans of Mediterranean cuisine, so when I came across this quinoa salad, I had to give it a whirl. It was a nice light refreshing dinner, filled with veggies, protein, and flavor. We did boil some shrimp as well to toss on top, because Chris prefers some kind of meat/seafood.  I’ve been enjoying leftovers all week as it was a plentiful recipe.

Affirmations

I took a screen shot of an instagram post I did sharing affirmations and how they help me.  I used to do them more often and over the last couple of years have gotten away from the habit.  I have been working with Chandra at Moonshine Communications who does clarity coaching to help me figure my life out a bit and she reminded me of the power of affirmations.  Now, I write them down each morning.  I often take 5 minutes in between running and then walking my dogs to sit on my porch and meditate and repeat within my head.  And, as you can see from that post, I use them when I am working on accomplishing something hard, like a run in this heat!  I remind myself that I am capable and strong. We become what our brains tell us we are, so talk to yourself nicely. That list above is the list I use daily, elaborating a bit, and I have also added, “I am open to receiving what the universe wishes me to have.” Who knows what will come of it, but what I do know is that it helps my mindset.

Inspiring Podcast Episode

You guys know that I have been a fan of Tim Ferriss for quite some time, but his podcast episodes tend to run rather long, around 2 hours.  It was great when I was training for a half marathon, but now I can’t make it through an entire episode at once. Well, when we were headed to the beach, our five hour drive allowed me the time, so I played a recent show featuring Hugh Jackmann. You guys, this man was dropping knowledge bombs!  I absolutely loved listening to his story, and hearing about his relationship with his father, his wife, and the universe.  I already thought he was a pretty cool guy before, but now… easily a favorite man in this world. Oh and it was also really fun to hear what a super fan of the podcast Hugh is! Here’s a quote from the episode: “Dreams can be crazy. It can be wild. And then at the end of the day, I score it out of 10. I keep myself accountable to what I was trying to manifest or make happen. And one thing I… a consistent theme in that is that I listen to the messages, that they come in crazy ways. They come in strange but clear, concise ways.”

Reading Outside

I tend to get cold really easily, so although the summer temperatures are known to rise high here in North Carolina, there’s nothing I love more than grabbing a book or my kindle and reading outside.  I sit in one fo our Adirondack chairs out front, listen to the birds chirp, and read while Wilder naps, or sometimes in the morning while he plays outside nearby. This photo was actually taken on the porch of my in-laws’ beach house where I was last weekend.

Hamilton!

I know we are late to the party but the truth is, I never had the extra funds to go see Hamilton, so when it came to Disney+ we were stoked!  Chris and I watched it Monday night (our older kids started but lost interest), and we both loved it!  The music is absolutely incredible, the cast insanely talented, and the messages and humor are on point. If you have Disney+ and you haven’t yet seen it, take full advantage!  I’ve been playing the soundtrack all week, so now even Wilder sings along to “My Shot” and it’s the best thing ever.

Little things that made me smile…

Finally, I just wanted to share a couple of more personal things that just made me smile.

Wilder is a total beach bum, and lived for playing in the sand and water.

Emmy has been working on her artistic skills and drew Mickey and Pluto for Wilder.  She also has been adding large Sesame Street characters to all of our bedroom doors.  It’s fun to watch her create, but I especially love that she does it for him as much as for her.

Well, friend, that is all I have for you today.  I hope you have a beautiful weekend, and find some time to do the things that make you happy.  And remember to practice those affirmations.  You are smart, capable, brave, strong, worthy, and enough just as you are.