Fantastic Friday

This is the first Friday that I am going to be holding myself accountable for sticking to my goals.

I'm pleased to say that this week we did rather well. I made an effort to stay home as much as possible, because gas prices are really scary right now and gas was seriously cutting into our budget. We watched what we spent and the result was we had some money left over to put into the debt snowball fund.

I'm also starting to get back on track towards my efforts to get to a healthy weight. I joined a weight loss club for motivation and have started excercising again. This week I killed two birds with one stone: I saved on gas money and got some excercise by walking 2 miles to the local park and library instead of driving. I pulled the girls behind me in their wagon. The first day I thought I was going to die, it is mostly uphill, but it got easy pretty quickly, and I'm finding that I am enjoying the walks. I am really bummed that it rained the past three days; I miss walking already. The result? I lost 3lbs.

The Knight and I sat down recently and had a brainstorming session on ideas of how we can reach our goals quickly. It was more productive and motivating than I thought it was going to be. I finally feel that we are completely back on track, and focused once again on how we want our lives to be.

Looking forward to updating again next week!

Fantastic Friday

Feeling Better..

Yesterday the weather was absolutely beautiful, so after the girls and I picked the Knight up from his work, we drove to a nearby trail and went for a family walk. The Guppy was on my back in the Mai Tei, and the Mermaid did pretty well walking on her own for that long.

I think the walk was just what I needed. It was a great time for the Knight and I to reconnect, and for us to talk about my being overwhelmed together. The Knight feels I should cut back on some things, and we talked a lot about how hard it is for me to say No and to prioritize my time. Most of all, it was just nice to walk in the sun, holding his hand and having a conversation with him.

After we got home we played a little more outside with the girls. Then the Knight made dinner and then ordered me to bed. I put up a little fight, because I "had sooo much to do, my Arbonne hours, my CBE assignment, etc" but he wouldn't take no for an answer. He was right, I was exhausted and not focusing well. So, I went to bed at 7pm. When I woke up this morning, I felt soooo much better and I saw that he had not only gotten the girls to bed but he had cleaned the entire house as well and balanced the checkbook. I love this man.

So today? Today I am so incredibly, amazingly excited because today is the first day in two weeks that I have absolutely nothing planned for the day. Isn't is sad that I am so excited to be staying home all day? That I am actually looking forward to catching up with the laundry? That I am so happy that I don't have to rush to get the girls ready so that we could leave on time to go somewhere? That I can take some time to take pictures of my girls as we play?

The Knight is right, of course. I do need to find somewhere to cut back. Or at least prioritize my time more and not be in such a rush to get through everything so quickly...

Feeling Better..

How Do I Say No?

I am finally going to admit it: I think I have taken on more than I can chew.

These past couple of weeks I have been completely overwhelmed. Completely. Besides homeschooling and my Arbonne business, I've also:
~ been working to get WomenAid up and running with the other ladies of the board.
~ signed up for a CBE certification course and have started my reading and assignments
~ have started the application process to be accredited for another position that I am not supposed to announce until I am actually accredited.
~ have been really busy with my doula business

Not that I am complaining about any of these things. I love homeschooling and being a mom to my girls, I love being a part of WomenAid, love my Arbonne and Doula business, etc. But I think it is too much at once, I am stretching myself too thin.

I am not a good person when I am overhwhelmed. I snap at people, yell at people, and generally turn into a bad person.

Besides that, I haven't been able to set aside time to nurture myself lately and it's showing. I haven't knitted, or even just sat down with a nice cup or tea and a good book right before bed like I used to. I miss that.

However I find it so hard to prioritize and decide which activity needs to take a back seat. I'm thinking that if I come up with a schedule that divides my time between acitivities that would help. But I need to realize that it might take me a little longer to reach my goals, and that's okay. I'm not superwoman, I'm just the best woman I can be.

This is what I am thinking:

1. Homeschooling and my girls always take first priority, that one is a no brainer.

2. I will contine to work my Arbonne business, but only in the hours that I had set aside to work it (roughly two hours a day). One of the problems I have is that I will jump online to "just check my work email real quick" and lose myself for two hours without realizing it.

3. I will set aside two hours a week to work on WomenAid, and that does not count the group's weekly conference calls.

3. I will set aside three hours a week for my doula business, in which I will work on updating my website, creating a brochure, networking, etc. I will limit myself to one birth client and one postpartum client a month.

4. I will set aside one hour a day to work on my CBE certification course, or my other accredidation course, but not both on the same day.

5. I will keep my house clean.

This is just a rough draft, and I still feel overwhelmed just looking at it. But it is a nice first step, don't you think?

How Do I Say No?

Where in the World Have I Been?

Well, it has been a while! This month has been crazy!

The day after I wrote my last post my client went into labor. It was a long labor that resulted in an absolutely beautiful 9lb 15oz baby boy! They are such a wonderful family and I felt so honored to be present at the birth.

I have one client who is due next week but I have a feeling she will be "early" (third baby, both prior babies were born "early").

I've done another belly cast and I am looking into doing henna body art and Mother Blessing ceremonies.

My SIL's wedding is coming up in three weeks (gulp) and I've been running around to prepare. I got my shoes ordered last night but I still have to get my dress hemmed and set up appointments for my hair, etc.

The girls have been sick a little this month as well, which keep me busy all in itself. Plus I've been running around with the other board members of Blackstone Valley WomenAid, trying to get the proper paperwork filed and community verifiers lined up. Add on to all of this the fact that my Arbonne business has been doing really well and keeping me busy, and with all this I am trying to make sure I find time to sleep, and so my poor blog has been neglected.

I find that the busier I get, the more organized I must become or else I get all stressed. So, I'm going to start doing FlyLady again, because when I actually follow her program my life is so.much. easier. I'm also going to set aside time in my calendar at least every other day to post on this blog, because really I love posting here and I could never stop.

What else? Oh, yeah, we got the girls guinea pigs. It was not my idea and I wanted nothing to do with it, but now that we have them, I'm glad we did. We got them for free from wonderful woman that the Knight works with and both girls adore them. The Mermaid has impressed me with her willingness to take responsibility for them, such as helping to feed them and clean their cages and make sure they "come out to play" every day.

Oh, yeah, and I'm also going to the MA/RI/VT LLL area conference at the end of the month (unless my client goes into labor then) and I am so excited! I'm taking the Guppy with me because she still nurses at night. I'll be sharing a room with a dear friend and doula client, so it should be fun!

Remember how I told you that the Knight had broken my camera on Thanksgiving? Well my SIL was kind enough to lend us her camera so I am able to take pictures again (Thank Heavens! Withdrawal is not fun!). Prepared to be shocked at how big they have gotten....

Where in the World Have I Been?

Prenatal Workshop

My favorite part of being a Doula? Having the ability to reach out the community.

Remember how I mentioned that a dear friend of mine and I were planning a prenatal workshop? Well, it's all set up. Now we just have to get women to sign up. So, feel free to spread the word ;o)

Presenting the Buddhaful Movements for Pregnancy and Birth Workshop Join us for a day of relaxation and movement!

· Explore techniques for deep breathing and relaxation tailored towards pregnancy.

· Experience yoga techniques proven to help you relax and relieve muscle soreness and common discomforts during your pregnancy.

· Learn positions and movements to help make your labor a shorter and smoother process.

No matter what type of birth you are planning, these techniques will help keep you relaxed, flexible, and toned throughout your pregnancy and focused during your labor. The cost for this workshop is $35.00. Light refreshments will be served.

Childbirth experts and recent research agree that positioning and movement can result in a more comfortable pregnancy. Research also agrees that positioning and movement can result in a smoother and more comfortable labor, and can even help to shorten the labor process.

For more information, feel free to email me or contact me through my website.

Prenatal Workshop

Soundbites From Our Life

My goal was to start posting to this blog more often, at least once a day. Unfortunately the Guppy has been teething like mad and a teething baby = a very clingy and cranky baby! I am still going to strive for posting once a day. I love this blog, getting all my thoughts and opinions written out in such a way is very therapeutic to me.

So, quickly before the Guppy wakes up, some little soundbites from our life:

~ I'm on week two of my diet. I'm doing a combo of Arbonne Figure 8 products and Weight Watchers. Last week I lost 3 lbs, my official weigh in is on Mondays. Woot woot!

~ My dear and lovely Sister-in-law is getting married this spring. I am a bridesmaid and the Mermaid is going to be the flower girl! We're going to get her dress today and while I know she is going to be an adorable flower girl, all I can picture in my head and her screeching and running down the aisle throwing her petals everywhere!

~ The Knight and his family run a Fantasy Football every year. The members take it all very seriously and put a lot of time and effort into it. This year the Knight did not win the Super Bowl, and so he is upset that the lovely trophy will not be gracing our living room this year (me, I'm more relieved than anything. I personally can't stand the damn thing).

~ In the past two weeks I have taken big steps to get my Doula business and my Direct Marketing business going strong. I am planning a prenatal yoga/positioning for labor workshop with a dear friend of mine who teaches yoga. I'm very excited and will keep you updated.

~ The Mermaid has been thriving through homeschooling and each day I am more and more sure that we made the right decision. We are trying hard to keep her on a consistent routine and to give her lots of productive attention. She is becoming much calmer as a result and much more willing to listen when we ask her to do something.

That's all I have for now, as I can hear the Guppy stirring in the other room. Hopefully I will be able to post again tomorrow.

Soundbites From Our Life

Year of Action

The year of 2007 was a great year for our family. The Knight and I call 2007 the "year of enlightenment." It was the year that we realized that life could be different, that we could live however we wanted, and the way that we wanted to live was with as much freedom as possible.

Our first area of learning was in finances. We decided that the only thing between us and financial freedom was debt. After the Mermaid was born, we got into some serious credit card debt, on top of our student loans. We learned that getting out of this debt was the key to being able to set aside money for a savings, and to being able to afford a house on just one income. So, we went on the Dave Ramsey Total Money Makeover Plan. From March to December, we paid off about $12,000.00 worth of debt and saved up for a down payment on a house. Our goal is to be completely free of debt, except for a mortgage, by the end of 2009.

Our second area of learning was in health. We did some research on nutrition and decided to become vegetarians. We are seriously considering going vegan. Being vegetarians is simply healthier: in fact, eating meat is seriously detrimental to your health. Books that we read in our research include The China Study, You Don't Need Meat, and The Mad Cowboy. The science is there, we just accessed it.

Our third area of learning was in lifestyle. First, we made a conscious decision to live a more environmentally friendly lifestyle. While we did take some positive steps in this direction (switched to cloth paper towels/napkins, set up a recycling center, etc), I still think we need to work on this one. Second, we decided that we did not want to live the traditional 9-5 lifestyle. We want to both work from home and be home with our kids. We want to homeschool them, be there for them, and raise them with our values, so that they learn the importance of family. Since right now we are relying on the Knight's income, we decided to take steps to allow me to work from home first. This decision led me to starting two of my own home-based businesses: the first was my Doula business, the second was my Direct Marketing business. I adore doing both businesses, and have a blast with each one. Once we are more out of debt, the Knight wants to open his own business as a financial advisor for the Dave Ramsey plan. Then we will both be home to raise and school our children.

Now that 2007 is over, we know that we have definite goals in all three areas and we also have plans laid out to reach those goals. So, for us, 2008 is going to be the year of action. We are both going to work to develop and build my businesses, to help us get out of debt. We hope to get even more out of debt in the spring, and get a house. We've started homeschooling the girls. And we are gazelle intense on reaching all of our goals, and getting the lifestyle that we want.

Will we succeed? We have to. We have officially removed the option of quitting from the table. It is this or nothing. And we are determined.

As for personal resolutions, I do have a few. My general resolution is to improve as a person. The specific ones I have are:

~ Find value in myself, and know that I am worthy of the all the blessings I receive.
~ Don't let other people's opinions rule how I feel about myself
~ Be more positive/optimistic (including doing some positive affirmations about myself and my life every morning)
~ Move forward in both my businesses
~ Yell less (I hate it when I lose control of my anger and yell at the Mermaid)
~ Lose weight (kind of cliche, I know, but the Knight and I are going to TTC in September/October and I want to be as healthy as possible for the pregnancy.)

So that is our outlook for the year. I would love to hear what your goals for 2008 are!

Year of Action

Update and Now in Business

I know it's been a while since I've last posted but things have been a little hectic around here.

To start with we lost power at our house for a few days so we had to temporarily move in with my In-laws. It's a long story but the good news is we have power again and were able to move back in over the weekend.

Another thing that has been taking up a lot of my time is that I finished my Doula training and I am now officially in business! My Doula training was one of the most wonderful things I got to experience in my life and I'm so glad I made the decision to follow my dream. This week I've been working on officially launching my business by ordering my business cards, setting up my website, etc. I published my website this morning, it's not fully completed yet but all the basics are there. Please check it out and give me feedback, I would love to hear from you all! :o)

Maternal Goddess Doula Services

So between those two things and running my other business, I really have had limited time but hopefully I'll have more time to post in the coming week. Both the girls and the Knight are doing great and we are still house hunting so hopefully we will be in our own house soon!

Update and Now in Business

New Business Blog

A couple of times I have mentioned that I started a second home based business besides my upcoming Doula business. I've gotten a few emails asking what it is so I decided to start a blog about it. You can read about my journey here:

My Business Blog

Feel free to comment!

New Business Blog