Have you all seen the pin going around that looks like the one above? You know how they say (whoever they are) that it takes 21 days to make a habit? Well now there's a simple way to count it down and see progress. You take Post It notes and number them 1-21 and then stick them to a door post. Every day when you have completed your task you get to rip one off!

I started one for working out and for the first 6 I got up at 6am and walked around my park. Yesterday, day 7, I woke up with a horrible headache, but I wanted to be able to pull off that Post It so I did sit ups and planks and marched in place while watching "Mad Men". Today however, I was back at it, walking around the park! So far the system is working!

If you want to use the Post-It system I have a couple of tips:
-This is a good time to go back and look at your goals for the year and find one you've been slacking on (or haven't even started), and use this as your motivation to get going.
- If you're anything like me, about 3 days in you'll start thinking of other habits you want to make and how you should use the Post-Its for them as well. I would advise you to wait before trying to squeeze another habit in. From everything I've researched about forming habits it is extremely difficult to build more than one at a time. You can end up feeling overwhelmed and end up accomplishing nothing. Instead, write down the next habit you want to make and schedule it for the next 21 days. Just remember, there's always another 21 days!

Dear Lord,

Thank you for the common mercies:

Colorful pens, notebooks, paper,

iPhones, iPads, iPods.

Thank you for blenders to make my smoothies,

For flats that are comfortable and heels to make me taller and look thinner!

Thank you for showers and bathtubs-not only to keep me clean, but for somewhere to relax.

Thank you for iced coffee, diet Coke, and fancy hot chocolate.

Thank you for fluffy pillows and duvet covers to snuggle under.

Thank you for big sweatshirts and soft socks.

For candles, paper clips, pools, big glasses to fill with ice, Ice!

For makeup and the creativity it brings

For crayons, colored pencils, and paint

For watches

Books, books, books,

For Post-It notes.

Let me be continually aware of Your common mercies. Thank you for these things.

ANYWAYS, at Eveleigh brunch they not only have all your eggs and bacon and waffle type items, but also smoothies and fresh pressed juices. I got an amazing smoothie. It cost $8. Yeah, $8 for a smoothie. Luckily it was for my birthday so I wasn’t paying! But like I said, the thing was delicious. It kind of tasted orange-y yet  very mild. Sort of orange julius-ish (remember? the mall food court favorite?) I have no idea what it was called because the current online menu is no longer carrying it, but I memorized the ingredients: Almond milk, lemongrass, persimmon, banana, sunflower seeds.

So now I make my own at home, but instead of lemon grass I use a hefty squeeze of lemon juice! I also add a scoop of the protein powder I’m supposed to have everyday.

Eveleigh Smoothie

1 cup Almond milk (unsweetened vanilla)

1-1.5 Tbs. raw sunflower seeds

1 scoop protein powder

1 frozen persimmon*

1/2 a frozen banana

Put all ingredients in a blender and blend until smooth. Enjoy!

*You can currently find frozen persimmons at Trader Joe’s wedged in between the frozen fruits and the desserts. I run mine under water for a few seconds to thaw a little and cut out the pit.

I haven’t come up with the real plan yet, but I thought it good to talk about my wandering in case you need a new plan too. Do you? March (even the end of it) is always a good time to look at your goals again and adjust, delete, or add to them. So, anything you need to evaluate?

Vanilla Almond Body Scrub

As I mentioned the other day, I created a body scrub! I love my new scrub-it smells delicious and it does a really good job exfoliating! Plus, it was a great way to get rid of all the extra sugar in my house that I’m no longer supposed to bake with!

Here’s my recipe:

2 Cups white granulated sugar

1/2 Cup sugar in the raw

1 Tbs honey

1/2 Cup Grapeseed Oil

1 Tbs. Vanilla extract

1/2 Tbs. Almond Extract

Directions:

Mix the sugars and the honey together. It will be thick and chunky.

Next, add the oil and the extracts and mix thoroughly. WARNING: This will smell delicious and you will want to eat it!

Package in cute little mason jars or even tupperware if you are just using it for yourself and not giving it as a gift. (It’s about 1/2 cup to fit in the little mason jars.)

And be ready to stir together again, because as it sits the oil will sink to the bottom.

Some notes on the ingredients: You can play with whichever sugars you want and the combo, but I tested a few different types and ratios of sugars and this was the best combo to me of being aggressive enough to really slough the skin, but not so tough that it hurts! Also, you could use olive oil instead of grapeseed, but I find the texture of grapeseed oil to be really clean, it leaves a nice sheen, and it has no smell. Plus, you can get a huge bottle at the grocery store for $6! Grapeseed oil is really good on its own to moisturize skin when you get out of the shower. Lastly, you can switch out for other essential oils. Next time I might do lavender oil with the vanilla and see if I can mimic the Bath and Body Works Lavender Vanilla scent that I love so much!

Enjoy!

Workout: Tracy Anderson Goop Readers Workout

Tracy Anderson trains Madonna and Gwyneth Paltrow and her classes in L.A. are really expensive even by L.A. standards. BUT for readers of Gwyneth’s blog, GOOP, Tracey created a video of a 15 minute workout. Then some genius pinned it so the rest of us could have it too!

So I did the video and it turns out its not even the full 15 minute workout! She just gives you a few moves and says do these on both sides so many times and it will be 15 min. This was sort of a workout fail. I DID however then go on YouTube and there is an arm workout she has on there that’s 5 minutes long and you’ll go, “Seriously, am I going to feel this?” And the answer is yes. Yes, you will.

Makeup: An Extended Cat Eye

Okay, I couldn’t find a good way to take an up close pic with my iPhone without it looking scary. I do like this makeup. This pic was taken at the end of the day and the blush and eye shadow held up. I have too squinty eyes for you to be able to see the cat eye in this pic. Boo. I’ll try this one again and get someone to take a good close up. You can see the pin I was attempting here.

Hair: Messy beach waves

FYI- My friend and I discovered that Pier One has great lighting!

Click here to see the hair I was trying to emulate. My hair still came out a little bit more neat than this so I’m going to have to work on making it a little messier. Maybe more texturizer? Remember, I had no step-by-step info for this, just a picture.

Nails: A nod to Valentine’s Day

See, I’m a little behind in writing this post. Here is the pin I was inspired by. I own that butter nail polish (As you can see above). I shockingly do not own a rose colored polish-if you saw my collection you’d be suprised too-but I did have a very ballet slipper pink. I like how mine ended up with a little more contrast in color, but still in the same family. Too bad Butter polish chips at the drop of a hat. This started chipping and peeling a day later. Boo.

DIY: Vanilla Oil Body Scrub

So I’m not going to give you the link to what I tried or the recipe, though if you search my board you can find it. I’m not going to give it to you because I adapted it slightly and I LOVE my version and I will post it here tomorrow. But for now you can stare at the picture above to see what is coming!

I finished the wall! Isn’t it cute? I thought it ended up really nice and it’s a good alternative to a headboard. Also, this picture doesn’t do justice to the fact that it takes up a good part of the wall, which I find nice. Plus, I can keep adding to it when I want!

How’s joy in your life right now? Sometimes it takes soooo much focus (or refocusing really) to understand and feel joy. Kay Warren has a great chapter in her book, Choose Joy, on ways to nurture joy in your life.

First, focus on grace. Let’s be honest, sometimes this sounds so rote. It’s almost something we just say to each other and you go, “Uh Huh” and move on. But really focus on God’s love. Kay made 2 great points: 1-I am in Christ, he will never love me more or less than he does now. And 2-He doesn’t tolerate me, He adores me! Most of the time I do tend to think God just tolerates me. I think sometimes we forget what it means to be His and that He created us. So remember the truth that God ADORES you!

Second, she reminds us to trust God for the future. Nothing robs you of joy like worry. Hmmm….okay, kind of one of my biggest problems. I have actually worried about how much I worry. But it is true. Worry basically suffocates joy. There’s no room to focus on God if our eyes are set on our problems.  We need to leave our problems with God and then focus our attention on Him and who He is. And she gave this great  reminder: even if its not okay, I’ll be okay. You can’t fix a situation. Some things really do just suck, but no matter what I’ll be okay because of Jesus.

Third, balance your time. Um, can you guess that I loved this was part of finding joy? Since this is something I talk about a lot I will just leave it with these questions that were asked: At the end of your life, will you be pleased with the decisions you made about time? Will God be pleased?

And last, practice acceptance-acceptance of yourself, others, the world as they are and have hope for the future perfection in heaven. I’m sure this one could be misinterpreted, but acceptance is important. Sometimes (okay a lot of times) we have expectations of ourselves, friends, family, situations, and plans that are perfect in our head and then reality does not match the expectation. We need to accept others for who they are, and accept ourselves too. We are not perfect, mistakes will be made; but God is gracious and forgives, so we should too and accept and move on.

I hope these points help you nurture joy as they have convicted me. (Honestly I could just stay on the fact that God adores me, and that alone would do a lot in my life.) I think I may post these on the wall to remind me of the attitude I need to have and how to get back to it when I stray.

I feel like I did fine in my interviews, which is all I can really ask for. At this point it’s up to God. If I’m not what they want, I’m not what they want. Oh, and I can find out as early as tomorrow or as long as a few months from now. It’s sort of a complicated process for how they come to their decision. And speaking of tomorrow, I have my phone interview with University of Denver so be praying for that one too!

Anyways, just wanted to let you know the time out is over. I’ve spent the last few days resting (seriously, that trip took it out of me for some reason) and catching up on DVR. Today is all about reading. A LOT. And hopefully tomorrow I’ll start getting some more substantial posts up here, but for now I’m just saying hello again!

So pray for the apprentice interviews next Friday and I’ll talk again soon…like in a week.