Moments D648: Press Pause. Stop and smell the flowers.

My BFF gave me some good advice today.  It's her warm words that not only brought a sigh of relief, but a genuine smile.

And I'm going to heed her words.  Tonight I'm going to press pause, slow down, stop and smell the flowers and enjoy some quiet time with my man.

No worries of work.
No stress of my homework to get to.
No anxiousness of getting stuff done around the apartment.

Nope.  Tonight is a pause, reflect and enjoy my love kinda night.

Thank you BFF for the reminder.

Moments riled up with a million and one things to do.

Moments when you realize what things are most important on your list.

Moments D646: Post Quiz Revelations

Today was not an easy day.  I haven't been feeling well.   I have also been trying to get back into the swing of school and failing miserably at finding my groove.  My mind has been filled with work "to dos" and my body and mind have been too tired to really dig into extra work or school readings.  Not a good combination given that I had my first quiz this evening in class.

Fortunately, I was spaced out enough that I didn't really stress too much about my first quiz.  It was only worth 10% of my final mark.  No problem.  I can swallow that and make up for it if I need to.  (right?) It was okay that I hadn't read all my chapters.  I had my class notes and had walked through the problems assigned to me.  I should be able to survive the quiz and that would be good enough. (right?)

Good enough.  What?  A year ago I would have been really stressed over the missed readings and extra time devoted to thoroughly understanding the material before this quiz.  Not tonight.  No, not tonight.  Who the heck am I?

It's one thing to logically talk yourself into "this is okay" and another thing entirely to believe it once you walk away from that conversation.  (In my case, a conversation with myself!)  And I wasn't entirely convinced that I was believing that it was okay until  today's moment happened.

Today's moment happened just after meeting up with EQ, Comic Guy and Archie for a late dinner and drink.  I really was okay with the fact that I likely didn't do well on this quiz.  I believed it.  It wasn't just lip service.  It was that moment when I admitted to Archie that I was okay even though I'm certain that my quiz did not go well.  That moment that was the tiniest of blips in my day, but it was a significant one looking back on it.

Instead we sat and had big meaningful life changing conversations.  It was incredible and empowering.

That said, you know it means that I'm not going to fight like hell to do much, much better on the rest of my tests in this class, but for this moment, I was okay with "good enough".

Moments recognizing self-growth.

Moments knowing (and believing) that the golf balls in your life really are more important.

Moments D645: Checkerboards

Sometimes all you need is a crazy cupboard setup to make you smile.  Today, when I went to grab something from the pantry, this is what I found:

Yes.  That's right.  I have black toilet paper.  EQ took the time to set it up in a checkerboard in the pantry.

How awesome is that?

What a great little smile to come home to.

Moments of surprise.

Moments that make you smile for no real reason!

Moments D644: "I love you like.....

.....Captain Crunch cereal loves milk."

Enough said.

Moments that bring a smile enjoying a silly moment with your love.

Moments knowing just how deeply you are loved.

Moments D643: Napping

Today, after a day like yesterday, was supposed to be a big reading day for my winter semester class.

But, it wasn't long before I realized that I wasn't going to be able to properly focus and absorb information with the aching brain I had.  

Instead of homework, EQ and I headed out for a little pampering.  My typical nail salon is closed for renovations, so we ventured a little deeper into the Beach and found Fresh Nails.  

What a gem!  We may even have a new location now for our manicures and pedicures!  Danny was a hoot!

I would have thought, after getting out for a manicure and a pedicure that I would have been found some energy to dive into my school readings.    No, not so.  

Shortly after arriving home, I sat on the couch with EQ to chat about the rest of the evening's plans.  Within moments I had fallen asleep.  Apparently my old bones needed the break (no pun intended!) because an hour later I found myself being guided to bed to continue my nap more comfortably. 

I slept for three hours in total.  That's a pretty long nap in my books!

What a nap it was!  Apparently I needed it.  My head was no longer pounding and I felt more alive again.

And that was my smile for the day.  Coming out of a three hour "nap", I was feeling better.  It wasn't productive, but it was exactly what I needed.

Moments giving in to what your body is calling for.

Moment realizing that your health and well-being are the most important thing, everything else stems from that solid base.

Moments D642: Christmas in January

There are days when it is not easy to get out of bed.  

Today was one of those days.  

There are days when the weight of the world around you feels to be too much to bear.

Today was one of those days.  

There are days when your mind is simply unable to deal with one more choice.

Today was one of those days.  

There are days when your body says "Take a break girl."

Today was one of those days.  

Today was a slow starting day and though I wasn't feeling the best, I was very much looking forward to seeing BFF for the first time in 7.5 weeks.  Not only was I in great need for a big hug, I knew she had been cooking up a storm.  There was no way I was missing tonight's dinner.

Tonight was our Christmas dinner.  BFF promised me before I left that she would keep all of her Christmas decorations up until we had a chance to do our Christmas together.  It was an incredibly sweet gesture.  Tonight, being with my "chosen family", celebrating the meaning of the holidays was exactly what the doctor ordered.  Love, laughter and good food.  That soothes a soul.

Our Christmas dinner was incredible. Not only were the decorations up, but BFF cooked us a full turkey dinner.  But honestly, it wasn't so much the amazing food (which was indeed amazing!  The pictures below will prove it!), it was the love and support I found myself surrounded in.  That's what it is all about.

Moments feeling like you'd rather stay in bed with the covers over your head all day.

Moments realizing that sharing those feelings with loved ones help ease the pain.

An amazing Christmas dinner with two amazing souls:

Moments D641: Push Pins

Yes, really! Today's moment is about push pins.  What can I say, they caught me off guard after an insanely busy day in the office.

So busy, that not only didn't I leave my office all day, I barely left my desk.  So busy and focused on getting through things that I didn't even notice that I hadn't eaten my lunch (brought from home) until nearly 4 pm.  At that point, I ate my apple and kept ploughing through, right until the lights were turned out on me.  (Yes, we are "kicked out" at 6 pm now that we're part of the retail store, no late nights in the office allowed!)  

Suffice it to say, it wasn't an easy day.  

But, if ever a day to avoid going outside, it was today.  It was a silly cold day, with biting winter winds.  I knew this.  I had heard the complains all afternoon.  On my way to the car, I decided that instead of walking around to the parking lot outside, my typcial route, I would take the warmer shortcut through the condo building.  I rarely ever walk to my car this way, but today's weather begged of it.

And there they were, on the condo clear-of-news news board.    White push pins arranged in a hand-sized heart with a single red push pin dead centre.  Even my amped-up-post-work-anxious self, in that moment, making my mad dash past the news board, couldn't help but smile.

It was a perfect way to shed some of the energy from the day and re-focus on the coming weekend.

Moments noticing that someone took the time to send a smile.

Moments pausing to enjoy that simple smile.