Chit Chat: Time to Relax

YAY! Tomorrow is my last day of work until after the new year! I have been so busy lately with teaching, taking college classes, teaching after school tutoring, and all of the Christmas related tasks that I have needed to complete. It has started taking its toll on me. Last week on Thursday I was so sick that I almost left work early, but I toughed it out and then only missed Friday. This week has been way busy too. I had meetings all day Tuesday, then another meeting after school on Wednesday, and then I also have after school tutoring today. Tomorrow is the last day for the year!

I have so many plans for break. Plans that include a lot of relaxing, watching old Christmas movies, baking up a storm of sweet treats in the kitchen, and visiting with friends and family. I have a little work that I want to do for school and a few things that I still need to finish before Christmas. Are you finished with all of your Christmas shopping and ready to give out gifts? I just have a few small things to get for stockings and I need to get my cat's presents. Mr. Cat has a stocking and he expects lots of toy mice to beat up and cat treats to munch on when he has defeated the mice invasion.

I'm excited for break. It fills like I have been a busy busy bee lately trying to meet all my deadlines for assignments and to do everything school administrators expect of me. I am ready to sleep in and to take my time to enjoy Christmas. Earlier this week I shared with you 10 Ways Beat Holiday Stress and I plan to do all of these things over break! What are your plans for Christmas? How are you going to enjoy the holiday season?



via: 1

Comfy Pajama Sets

White Pajamas chic - Star Print Pajamas - Striped Pajamas - Silk Pajamas - Butterfly Pajamas beautiful print - Gold Speckled Pajamas - Black and White Pajamas love the stripes - Happy Hour Pajamas -

I absolutely love pajamas. Around the house, when I am not expecting any visitors, I wear pajamas most of the time. They are just so cozy and comfortable. After a stressful day of hard work it is a relief to come home and pull on a pair of pajamas. All of the above sets are beautiful. I have a wide variety of pajamas. Some are solid and neutral and some are very colorful. I have one set of pajamas with very colorful stripes that Tracy likes to make fun of and call my clown pajamas. I know some people do not like pajamas, what are your thoughts?

Happy Weekend!

After having several really busy weekends in a row, I am looking forward to a free weekend. Most of the weekend is clear for me. Last week I broke my phone, so I do have to go get that fixed. After that I plan to spend the weekend catching up on some things at home. I also plan to take some time to relax and do some things that I enjoy. The last few weekends have been a lot of fun with friends and family, but I have gotten behind in a few things. This weekend, I hope to fix that, as the next few weekends look very busy as well. I already feel like I am going to be so busy until Christmas. I have to finish Christmas shopping, make treats for people, get ready for the holidays, and I have two trips. Next weekend I am off to Tennessee and then the week of Thanksgiving I will be gone to NYC. What about you?


via: 1

Chit Chat

Sometimes it is very hard to find time to relax and just unwind at home. The work week is just full of extra things that have to get finished when the working hours are over with. I have meetings after school, tutoring to help some of my high school students plus I have been tutoring a couple of college students in their college algebra courses, grading papers, planning lessons, and gathering materials take a lot of my after school time during the week.
Lately, I have had plenty of time to relax at home because of all of the snow days that we have had from school. If the weatherman is correct in his predictions it's not looking like I will be at work very much this week either. Since I have had all of this free time I thought now would be a good time to talk about what I need to relax. Lately, I have had a lot of time to relax at home, mainly because I have been stuck at home. For me comfy pajamas are a must. I need to be comfortable to relax and everyone around here is stuck at home so I am not going to be surprised by visitors. Mr. Cat is also a must. He is just so adorable and constantly by my side when I am at home. The sound of him purring is very soothing. Lately the necessities for relaxing have included a cozy blanket, great snacks, and my subscription for Netflix so that I can relax by watching all of my favorite episodes of Supernatural or White Collar (or one of my other favorite shows). A great book is also a necessity and we all know about that stack of to read books in the corner of my bedroom. What do you want when you are ready to spend a day relaxing at home?

via: 1

Chit Chat

I tend to stress about EVERYTHING. Work, upcoming projects, the job market, student loan debt, my family, my health, the future, needing more time, the cat I always see running around the grocery store parking lot, what is the right steps for me, not accomplishing enough, being a disappointment. I could fill volumes listing all of the things I worry about. During the last few years the stress has often been overwhelming and has lead to many hours spent crying and more than a few anxiety attacks.

To help unwind lately I have been unplugging more often. The need to always be pinning, tweeting, instagramming, and commenting, attempting to multitask, and spending all evening after getting home from the office and most of the weekend online can be very stressful. Especially when combined with all of the work there is to do, my never ending list of errands, and my huge desires to always be productive, to grow this little blog, and to connect with all of the amazing bloggers and readers. There is always so much to do that it wears me down and leaves me exhausted. At first I felt guilty shutting down after coming home from work but just taking a couple evenings a week to have a little me time and get in bed early has an amazing affect on my stress and energy levels. It isn't that I do anything significant during this time. In fact I usually spend it reading, catching up on a favorite television show, or enjoying a nice dinner but this time allows me to not feel as rushed, as nervous, or as frenzied.

Another thing that only takes a few minutes but has done wonders at eliminating daily stress is meditating. I had tried meditating several times in the past and was always unsuccessful. I was never able to shut off the rush of thoughts in my mind, the constructing of to do list, or the reviewing my day and what else I needed to get done. Then I downloaded this app. A guided 5 to 10 minute meditation really helps me focus and relax. Often I get most stressed at the end of my work day. I have about an 80 minute drive from my office to my home. During this time I often work myself up by thinking about everything that went wrong that day, my frustrations, the things I should have done better or should have gotten done but didn't, and all of the things I am unhappy or unsatisfied with. After pulling into my parking spot, turning this app on, and meditating for 5 minutes I feel much more calm before even walking through my front door.

How do you unwind?

via: 1

Chit Chat

Last week was my first week back to work after a long summer vacation and I am already feeling stressed. It just feels like there is so much to do and accomplish. Time seems to just be disappearing faster than it should. So on Friday, I decided that I need to calm down and relax. I have my plans made, everything scheduled, and there is no need worrying about things before they happen. Right?
Friday after work I set out to have some fun and to de-stress. I had a great time on Friday evening going shopping with some of my siblings. I only shopped for things on my must have list, but I had fun. Saturday I slept in. Hopefully after this week I will be use to my normal work schedule and the early mornings. Then I went out to the movies with one of my best friends. We watched 2 Guns. I thought it was an alright movie. It had a good deal of humorous parts and kept me laughing, just what I needed. I also had a great time hanging out with my friend. She has been super busy at work recently and hasn't had a lot of free time. So she probably need to de-stress too. Then I spent an hour on the phone talking to one of my best friends that lives in another city. We had been playing phone tag all week. It was good to talk to her and hear that she has good news her job was turned into a full time position, so she doesn't have to look for something else! On Sunday I spent some time watching reruns of Smallville, playing with the cats, and painting my nails.
I am also already planning some things for the future that will let me take a break from work and stress. If I buy tickets for things and go ahead and make plans now while I have the time- it just makes everything easier. Also, I then I have things to looks forward too. What do you do to de-stress? What are some of the things that you do when you need a break from work?

via: 1

Surviving the Holidays

Source: thenateshow.com via Tracy and on Pinterest

Source: google.com via Tracy and on Pinterest

Source: Uploaded by user via Tracy and on Pinterest

Source: thefluffingtonpost.com via Tracy and on Pinterest

Another Christmas has come and gone. I love Christmas time with getting to spend lots of time with family, family dinners, the lights and glitter, and the pretty wrapped presents. Everything just seems more perfect under the glow of Christmas lights. Getting ready for Christmas can be a lot of work though with baking, cooking, cleaning, wrapping, and finding the perfect gifts. Now I am looking forward to relaxing and enjoying the last of my break before work begins again. I have several days still before work and I plan to make the most of them. I plan to sleep in, read books, watch movies, and spend lazy evenings petting my cat Mr. Heffalump.
Don't get me wrong it won't be all play. I still have a few things left to get ready for work beginning again and some things to do at home, but I am definitely going to have time and relax. What do you do to relax?

Soothing Effects

After a hectic week at work or just a particularly stressful day we all need to unwind and relax. All of us deserve to pamper ourselves sometimes without feeling guilty. We don't always have a lot of time for ourselves or a lot of money to spend on ourselves.
Sometimes a nice, soothing bubble bath is just what you need to relax all of those tired muscles. The only thing that could make it any better is to maybe light some scented candles and read a good magazine.
If you have time to get away from home going for a massage is a great way to pamper yourself. A massage is a great way to get all the stress worked out of your body.
Going for a manicure is a great way to treat yourself and to help you feel girly and pretty. It is so much better than doing your own nails.
And what's my favorite way to have some time to myself? Finding a cozy place to curl up with a good book. Reading is a way to escape your life and enter a fascinating fictional world.
What's your favorite way to relax or pamper yourself?

Star

Via: WeHeartIt

Surfs Up

I don't get a vacation this year but that hasn't stopped me from daydreaming daily about fantastic getaways. I would love to be soaking up the sun and splashing in the water on a beautiful beach. And wouldn't watching the sunset over the ocean be wonderful? I would definitely stay in a lovely beach house right on the beach so I could walk down my steps and be in the sand. Countless hours would be spent on the boardwalk where I could play games, enjoy the lights, and people watch. Nothing would be better at night than gathering a group around a bonfire. Hanging out, toasting marshmellows and listening to music. I would make sure to eat my share of boardwalk food. Tons of ice cream, boardwalk fries. And especially funnel cake. Yummy! I hope I could work up the courage to take a surfing lesson. I've always thought it looks like so much fun but it still intimidates me. I would take some time to build amazing sandcastles. The way this one is lit up is extremely impressive. But most of all I would make sure I had plenty of time to just relax and enjoy being stress free.

♥ Sunny

via: We Heart It

Wonderful Weekends

This week has been very stressful for me. I have had to stay late at work and stay up late to get some assignments finished. When Friday rolled around I was so happy. When the work day ended I stayed 45 minutes late and finished everything. I was ecstatic to have no work to do over the weekend. On my way home I cranked the radio up and sang along to the music. I had this wonderful weekend to rest, relax, and just do anything that I want to do. No work whatsoever. That makes weekends one of the things that make me happy. So sit back and enjoy your weekend!!Keep Dreaming,
Star

via: A Day in the Life