Set The Tone

I had a terrific laugh this morning coming into work.

While driving on 280 S, I watched a silver car cut off a dark gray car, missing the front bumper by mere millimeters. The driver of the gray car promptly flipped the other driver off, then proceeded to chase the offender through traffic.

All the while, the driver of the gray car left his/her hand sticking out of the window with the finger prominently displayed.

And all the while I wondered how many other drivers thought they were getting the finger!

And I also wondered how that incident left the offended driver feeling. It was obvious they were irate–can’t really blame them–but was it really necessary to chase the offender with your middle finger on display for all of 280 to see?

Hmm… Probably not.

And as I drove over the connecting ramp from 280 S to 92 E, I hoped the offended driver had a better day ahead of them.

What sets the tone for your day? When one little thing upsets it (getting cut off in traffic, waking up late, no money for the toll, forgot your lunch, etc.) how do you let it affect your day?

Bad things happen, sure. But a bad day is avoidable, in my opinion, if one learns to change their perspective and see things from the other end of the telescope.

Yes, you got cut off in traffic…but you made it to your destination safe and sound.
Yes, you woke up late…but you woke up.
Yes, you forgot money for the toll…but you were able to pay for your gas, your car, your phone, etc.
Yes, you forgot your lunch…but at least you have food to bring for lunch.

Too much negativity is bad for you. It poisons your heart and your soul. It causes you to complain about every little thing. It births displeasure in you for everything around you. It robs you of the ability to enjoy, truly enjoy, the little things.

And you miss out by choosing to dwell on the negative, on that one bad thing.

A great day is always waiting to happen every time you rise to greet a new day. Don’t let that great day go to waste. Don’t let one bad thing ruin it for you.

Let your perspective set the tone.

Write, Right?

It’s been several months since I last wrote something worth writing.

Over the course of my six-week maternity leave, I sat back and read what I’d already written. My earlier works were horrible. (Carrie will probably disagree, lol.) My more current works definitely show improvement.

The birth of K2 brought a flood of story lines, plots, scenarios, antagonists, and protagonists to mind. Worlds began to form in my mind. Conversations between characters went from whispers to screams.

But everything’s jumbled.

So I’ve decided to type out the bits and pieces of what’s going on my head so I know where to go later.

And for now, I’m fine-tuning a paranormal and looking for a publishing house for a contemporary.

I must say, I’m excited about where writing takes me, and I’m even more excited about the people I meet through my writing. (Carrie, we’re still on for that trip in a few years, right?) And I hope that what I write does my characters justice.

Because, seriously, who wants to read a story that’s only minimally engaging?

No thanks.

Rise & Stretch

In an effort to get back into shape and to get healthier, I’ve started doing yoga.

Years ago, I took yoga at a community college. Bikram yoga This type of yoga is usually done in a room heated to just over 100 degrees, but the teacher I had took pity on us and set the thermostat between 90 and 95. Since it was wintertime, he said he didn’t want us getting sick going in and out of the cold.

During that class, I learned how intense yoga can be. I thought it’d be super easy–go in, do some stretches, relax, go home.

Wrong!

Yoga was more than stretches. It was about focus, about posture, about muscles, about breathing. It helps relax you, helps strengthen your core muscles, and helps loosen stiff joints.

While some may scoff at the idea of doing yoga as a way to get back in shape, I don’t. See, it’s been years since I’ve done more than moderate exercise (i.e. walking) I figured yoga would be a good place for me start.

And it is.

My long term goal is to make yoga a daily routine for me, and to go from walking to running again. I want to be able to play with my kids, to run around with them at parks, to show them how to make good choices for their health. I want to be able to have many years with my husband, years hopefully free of long term illnesses and disease. I want to prolong, maybe even avoid, the diseases that seem to follow people in my family–diabetes, hypertension, high blood pressure, etc.

I want life, love, happiness, and good health.

And by adding exercising to what I already have (life, love, and happiness) I know I’ll be in good health in no time.

Missed Already

I have separation anxiety.

Funny thing, I didn’t have this with K1 as my maternity leave came to an end.

But as time ticks away and as my first day back at works nears, I realize how much I miss K2 already.

Is this normal? To feel it for one and not the other? What’s the difference? What makes the situations different? Does it get easier?

I was famous, still am in a way, for saying I couldn’t be a stay at home mom. With K1, that statement was incredibly true. I couldn’t wait to go back to work. Perhaps it was because I was a new (in every sense of the word) mom. Or perhaps it’s because I was younger and didn’t have the patience I have now.

*shrugs* I have no idea what the difference is, why I feel this way now, but it’s hard.

I’m not one to cry (much) over things I can’t change. Life is what it is. And because this is what it is, I’ll say I’m happy and grateful for the time I had with K2. And maybe, just maybe, things will change where I can be home more for both my girls.

Then & Now

Kid 1 was born in 2007. And I was ill-prepared for motherhood and what it all entailed.

No one told me it’d be sleepless nights, constant diaper changing, and difficulty with nursing said kid. No one mentioned the spit ups, the crying, or the frustration that came with not knowing what the kid was crying for.

Fast forward to 2013, when Kid 2 entered this world.

I was better prepared this time, more ready to care for this baby. Nothing that surprised me before surprises me now.

Except that I’m not so easily frustrated this time around.

Kid 2 cries. A lot. And over almost everything. Wet diaper, dirty diaper, hungry, tired, cold, blah, blah, blah. I tell B she’s a temperamental little thing. And very much a girl, lol.

Kid 1 was a complacent baby. She hardly cried or fussed over anything. She was happy to just be, and maybe raise a ruckus every now and then over something. Kid 2… Completely different story.

Makes me wonder how Kid 2 will be when she grows up? Kid 1 has a strong personality. It poked its little head out when she was about eighteen months and has developed oh-so-nicely over the past few years. What if Kid 2 turns out like Kid 1? Heaven help us all if that happens, lol! Hmm… Maybe I should start planning a trip to the nearest psych ward, huh? Or maybe a month long vacation somewhere remote?

The differences between then (2007) and now (2013) isn’t just time or experience. It’s age. Perhaps it’s a good thing we waited so long to have another child. I wonder if I would be this patient with the whole crying thing if we’d had another a year or two after having Kid 1?

Yeah…

Probably not.