13 things a "young mama" learned in 2013

As the year comes to a close, I usually like to reflect upon the years experiences, lessons and losses that I have gone through so that I can use them to better equip myself for the new approaching year. 2013 has been such a world-wind experience, with a lot of good (starting this blog, creating my Purple Heart business, getting married in Jamaica) but also a lot of not so good aka Life Lessons.

I was so intrigued by Tyler Perry's "44 things I learned at age 44" that he posted on his Facebook account (you can find that post here) for his birthday, that I decided I wanted to incorporate the same sort of thing into my new years post.

Below you will find the 13 life lessons I have learned this year and hopefully some of you will find similarity within my experiences and have a giggle or shout too after reading.

Make sure to leave me your comments below of your similar lessons or experiences because as always, I'd love to hear them!

Enjoy!

1. Having too many ideas/plans at one time can really distract you from that one idea or plan thats worth your time and effort! Focus on one thing and put your ALL into it.
2. There is no such thing as having to many pacifiers around the house - I can have 5 but by the end of the day, can only find ONE.
3. It is DEFINITELY possible to plan a destination wedding in 9 months. Did that. check mark. DONE.
4. Going to Wal-mart with a cart even though you came only for one thing is NEVER a good idea, hence why you can never find any hand baskets but thousands of carts... don't get tricked!
5. Tasting one or two spoonful's of your baby's dinner can sometimes lead to you wanting to finish it (or actually finishing it for them)... what can I say, I make my son's meal tastier than mine! (don't act like you haven't done this before mommies!)
6. Getting ready before feeding mello is definitely a foolish idea. ALWAYS feed child first then get ready if you want to look decent before leaving the house.
7. Painting my nails before putting mello to bed is just plain STUPID.
8. If there is ever a way to get tickets to a Beyonce concert... TAKE THEM. Amazing performer!
9.  God NEVER makes mistakes. No matter how hard it is to understand why it happened.. it was needed to make you who your are or will be.
10. Friendships are beautiful when they last but don't be distraught when they come to an end. Sometimes you have to let go of good to make room for great. And remember, Friends come and go, but family is forever.
11. Do not over-think things. Usually your first thought is great and can be doable if you try. Don't confuse yourself with "perfecting" things. Trust your creativity and just do it!
12. Marriage is WORK. There are days that you will feel like the luckiest woman in the world and other days you will think you were cursed. To succeed at it, you both must put in effort and be patient within the hard times. Good will always come again.
13. Wish it. Dream it. Do it. <--- my year's quote

Happy New Years to all of you and may you all have new perspectives, dreams and goals for the new year! All the best my loves!

Welcome to Happier

Few days ago, while at home, I came across an amazing app. This is not just a simple game app or a photo-editing app that people usually download. No... this app to me, is a life-changer and something I really want to share with you all.

Its called Happier. Basically, all you do is create a profile, then upload pictures or a phrase or thought or thing that made you happy that day. As simple as it sounds, it has a great idea and movement behind it.

As we go on living life, we sometimes take for granted the same things or events in our day that made us smile. This app is to here to help us get back to the simpler side of happy. You can add any photo or wording that you found that made you feel good in your day and share it with others. The best part of this app is that you can discover a new "happier" community of friends to like, comment and cheer them on for their happy findings as well.

Here are a few of the pictures I recently posted that made me Happier, just to show you an example of what you can share.



My new Kate Spade Planner

Home made lunch at home

 

Drinks and dinner with Hubby

 

Decadent Lindt Chocolate

 

Hubby & our son playing a Game Together

An encouragement card from our dentist

 

 

As you can see, these may seem small and simple to some, but to me, each one brought a smile to my face or a feeling of simple joy to my heart at that appointed time. That is one of the many reasons I love this app. It helps let busy people, especially us Moms, to slow down and really enjoy the simple things we often over look. And as the Holiday season approaches us, what better time to slow down and cherish our happiness and share with others! This app also allows you to connect all your posts to facebook to share with family and friends as well. LOVE IT!

You can find this app in the Apple store or online!


Welcome to Happier!

The "Hard" Days we all go through... How do you cope?

Image not mine. Found through Google Search.

You know those days when nothing is going well for you, or at least that's what you're telling yourself. The days where you can't seem to find time to do anything that you should or want to be doing like posting new content to your blog, crafting items for your Etsy page, checking your Twitter feed, Pinterest boards, Instagram replies or basically just being able to read at least one of those 5 books you bought at Indigo-chapters several weeks ago?

How do you convince your self that life isn't that bad... and that you actually made sooooome progress towards your goals today?

 

For me, today is definitely one of those days...

However, I REFUSE to let it get the best of me.

So instead of being a "Downer-Debbie", I decided to come up with a few easy ways to burst those big, ugly bubbles of self-doubt, disappointment and the serious case of  "I AM SO LAME" self-pity surrounding you (I came to the conclusion that by doing this small activity, it might actually help not only myself get out of this funk, but also someone else who badly needed it today. And just that thought alone made me feel a tad bit better).

Here's what I came up with:

- Talk about it. - Ladies, we all know that from time-to-time, we like to keep things bottled up within ourselves, pretending that we are OK, yet having a "FIT-BALL" with our poor spouse in private. We need to open up, maybe call up a close friend or just simply sit your boo down and really expression yourself (In a healthy, non-violent way of course). That is one of the best remedies I have found that helps me instantly feel better, even if the situation is not 100% resolved or "better" yet.

 

- Watch you favourite sitcom...with a glass of wine or some type of "happy beverage" you like. - Clearly this point is self-explanatory. You laugh, you zone out of your own life and into the characters on T.V, well for at least 30 minutes and you also can sip a calming drink in which you very much enjoy (I occasionally don't have wine but most of the time I wish I had.)

 

- Write in a private journal or if open enough, blog about it. - I find that when I actually write something down that is bothering me, either in my journal or on my blog, I always feel inspired afterwards, as if I somehow helped myself to never have to deal with it in my head again because now it's on paper to re-read if I need to. I instantly clear it from my head (it might still be somewhere in the back of my head but at least its not in every thought I have unlike before) and feel a sign of relief that usually lasts a while. I try to write out as much of the issue or feelings I am experiencing and then write on how it is affecting me, as though I'm talking to the actual person or thing that caused it. That to me is very therapeutic and calming. It also helps me to gain a lot of clarity on the issue if I re-read and think about it for a few minuets after writing.

 

- Log on to Pinterest and browse through the "quotes" category. - Some of you might be saying to yourself, really Rochelle? Seriously though, this helps me so much. I L-O-V-E motivational quotes. I am the type of person to sporadically post them on my instagram, to help brighten my followers day. That's just me.(Corny to you? Ah well.. Its my vice, what's yours.) I think that when you are browsing through, and you find really good ones that speak to you, you should then keep them on your phone, desk-top background or re-pin them just to have them in places you see often to continue to inspire you. Hey, it works for me... mine as well give it a try!

 

 

Writing this has already been helpful for me and in reading this, I hope it has been for some of you also. I would love to hear other tips and methods others use to cope on those Hard days we all have.

 

Leave me a comment!