80 Views or Bust!!

OK yo, if this isn't determination to meet a goal (facing the possibility of complete embarrassment online), then I don't know what is!  :)  All in the name of enjoying life and reaching my goals!  (I'll take either 80 views or a recording contract after this one haha!)  Alright people, we've got a mark to hit, so gi

Remember, positive thinking, people!!  Do like yo mama told you: If you can't say somethin nice don't say nothin' at all!! :) 'preciate it!!

If you want to see if I can reach my goal leave a comment so everyone can see how many people have seen !  #80 gets a sweet sweet prize!! :)

Bawstahn Flava

So I took Emily to swimming yesterday, as usual, and while I was sitting by the pool waiting for her class to finish I witnessed the following conversation between one of the instructors and this darling little girl in the 5-year old swimmers class.  I'll go ahead and say you're welcome ;)

Swim Instructor 1: OK kids, today we're gonna swim FAST!!  Mike's gonna show you how fast he can, or can't, swim, then you guys are gonna work on swimming fast, too!

Swim Instructor 2 (aka Mike): I can swim fast...
Swim Instructor 1: Haha prove it.  Alright kids, here he goes!  3...2...1...go!

**Mike swims down and back, semi-fast**

Swim Instructor 2 (aka Mike):  (breathing heavily) How fast was I, guys?!
Little Girl: Wicked fast!!!


Oh my gosh, I loved it and couldn't stop laughing for like 5 min.  It was wicked cute ;)

Vlog 2!

So slowly but surely I'll make these a greater part of the blog :)  I think they're really fun and to some degree satisfy that longing I had as a little kid to be in front of a camera for millions of people to see haha!  Good thing there aren't millions of people watching these though, or I'm sure I'd feel just a little bit more pressure to perfect them ;)  That being said, enjoy this rough cut, first take of fun on where I want to take a business idea! :)

Finding What Makes Me Happy

I've been a little hung up lately on finding happiness and the most effective ways to do it, 'cause that's how my mind works, I'm a methodical person.  Sometimes to a fault, as it can make me miss the point.  (I've been wondering if that's what I'm doing here, but since it's the way I solve problems, that's the way it's going to get done around here. :) )  

So with method in mind and happiness as my goal, I've decided to do a little list making (yay!!!) about things that make mah happy.  Since I'm a list maker, I've obviously got this list already started, but, sad story, it's in a notebook that's still boxed in KY.  (I really thought I would have reunited with my stuff by now..)  Anyways, so here's my list, restarted and digitized, never to be parted from me again :) (so long as the internet doesn't go away)

Things That Make Mah Happy

-warm weather

-my family

-being in a relationship

-great friends

-baking/cooking

-smiling and laughing 

(you too?! no way!! :) for real though, 

just smiling makes you happier, try it right now)

-reading the scriptures

-exercising

-listening to good music

-bike rides with friends

-looking good

-getting personal notes from people

-hugs

-crafts that don't require much craftiness :)

-accomplishing things I think are too difficult for me to accomplish

-going to the driving range

-singing

-chocolate cake

-picnics in the park

-helping others

-spending time with the people I care about

Making this list, and even going into it, I realized that I need to recognize more things in my life that make me happy and not forget about those things.  In teaching health I always loved to stress the importance of keeping a strong balance between all areas of your life and maintaining your health in each area.  The areas I always focused on were:

physical health

emotional health

mental health

spiritual health

social health

I feel like I fell out of balance over the past few months and am in need of a readjustment on my road to happiness and all-around health, but, thanks to my methodical nature, that is just what I'll be focusing on this summer!  I love setting goals and think it's a great way to start working on this project, and since making your goals public is a great way to hold yourself accountable to reaching them, I'm posting them here for all of you to enjoy!  (And maybe even be inspired by :) )  So without further adieu:

My 2011 Summer Health Goals

physical health: 

get @< 30 min of physical fitness 4x/week

emotional health: 

do things that help me keep a positive mental attitude throughout the day;

discuss things that bother me with the people they concern

volunteer or serve others in a meaningful way @< 2x/month

smile at a stranger every day

mental health: 

write in my journal* 3x/wk;

when I find myself getting stressed, choose a healthy way to deal with the situation

*I accidentally left my journal on the flight home from Denver, cross your fingers they find it and send it back!!

spiritual health:

effectively pray and study the scriptures every day

attend church meetings with the right attitude (a positive, humble, meek one)

social health:

meet one new person/week

get to know @< 1 new person better every month

go on 2 decently significant outings every month (and post about them here! :))

If you think you could benefit from a little more balance in your life, which, honestly who couldn't?, I'd encourage you to do something similar.  Even if goal-setting isn't exactly your thing, even just recognizing the different areas of life and their importance and role in helping to keep you happy is a good start. :)

So on I go in working on these goals, 

here's to making things better!  My entire purpose with having this blog!! 

PS Here are some pics from my recent trip to UT of people that make me happy :)

My sister Veronica's darling girls, Kaylee and Lia

My sister Rachel and I

Veronica's son Bryce and I (he's such a stud!!)

The Fam! :)

I love my sisters sooo much!!

I miss Merit!!  Love yall!!

Headed to Baby McKenzie's blessing!

I love these girls!!

B Sid, the best friend a girl could ask for ;)

Andrew and Toby, such a fun dinner!!

My lil' sis from Merit!

I love you all, thanks for making that one of the best vacations I've ever had!! :)

Knowing Your Strengths: That's Better.

Recognize the good.

I tend to be an active/reactive person when it comes to my emotions, and in trying to raise my everyday baseline level of happiness I've realized that that often acts as an inhibitor to me being happy, especially as of late.  I've thought a lot lately that if I can just get these dang emotions in check then I can be more happy overall because I won't be so capricious and fickle.  So I decided to go back through some of my older posts and see what advice I could offer myself on the matter of being happy and try those methods that have worked for others.

In an article I linked a while back entitled Are Happy People Dumb? it recommends a list with various suggestions to take, one of which being to maximize your strengths.  First, take the VIA Signature Strengths test here and find out what your Signature Strengths are.

So I went there and did that.
Here are my results.


Top Character Strength: Honesty, Authenticity and Genuineness.
You are an honest person, not only by speaking the truth but by living your life in a genuine and authentic way. You are down to earth and without pretense; you are a "real" person.

Second Character Strength: Leadership.  

You excel at the tasks of leadership: encouraging a group to get things done and preserving harmony within the group by making everyone feel included. You do a good job organizing activities and seeing that they happen.

Third Character Strength: Spirituality, Sense of Purpose, Faith.

You have strong and coherent beliefs about the higher purpose and meaning of the universe. You know where you fit in the larger scheme. Your beliefs shape your actions and are a source of comfort to you.

Fourth Character Strength: Caution, Prudence and Discretion.

You are a careful person, and your choices are consistently prudent ones. You do not say or do things that you might later regret.

Fifth Character Strength: Citizenship, Teamwork and Loyalty.

You excel as a member of a group. You are a loyal and dedicated teammate, you always do your share, and you work hard for the success of your group.

Now, I know Achor recommends maximizing these strengths by using them in new ways, and I'll try that next week, starting tomorrow, but for right now it just felt good knowing I have strengths.  It's a mean thing to constantly feel down, and when you are an active/reactive person like me who often notices your emotions colouring your day with gray, even just thinking there's yellow somewhere can make it seem brighter.