Helpful or Hurtful?

Helpful or hurtful?

Sometimes when we are faced with a decision, and are unsure of what to do next asking ourselves a simple question may be helpful. 

“Will this help get me closer to my goal or will it take me away from it?”

One of my goals for the new year is to lose the few pounds I had gained during the holidays. To be honest I think my holiday may have begun back in September, but who’s counting, right?

One of the ways I stay on track is by attending WW meetings where I weigh in weekly. Now most of the time this is helpful to me because it keeps me on track and accountable. 

This week, though, I knew I wasn’t going to see that loss on the scale, and I found myself discouraged, and losing motivation. I really was not looking forward to weighing in.  

It was then I asked myself whether attending the meeting this week was going to be helpful or hurtful to me? Now I very committed to attending the meetings, and nine times out of ten I’m there. 

However, in choosing not to go I gave myself another week to continue the good habits I put in place after New Year’s. Rather than get discouraged, and give up completely I gave myself a little extra time to allow the pounds to come off. 

Knowing yourself is important, and I know how my “all or nothing” personality can often get in the way of my success. I felt good about my decision, and had a successful day of staying on track. 

I do need the accountability and community that the meetings bring, so I plan to be there next week regardless of the results. 

Tomato Basil Soup

Tomato basil soup. 

I made some of the best soup I’ve ever had this week for dinner. It was tomato basil with fresh roasted Roma tomatoes. 

You roast nine Roma tomatoes first with olive oil and salt and pepper for about 30 minutes at 400 degrees. Make sure to slice them the long way and put them on foil on your baking sheet. 

While they are roasting dice a yellow onion, and sauté it in 2 tablespoons of butter until tender, and then add about 4 cloves of minced garlic. 

Add 4 cups of vegetable broth, 1 large can of whole tomatoes with juice, about a cup of basil, and the roasted tomatoes.

Let this come to a boil, and then lower the heat and simmer for about 30 minutes. Season with salt and pepper. 

Then using an immersion blender blend until smooth. Top with shredded Parmesan cheese when serving. 

The roasted tomatoes in this soup elevate to a level all its own. I can’t tell you how much Chuck and I enjoyed this soup. Serve with the sandwich of your choice. 

Self-Knowledge

Self-knowledge. 

I’ve started my Happiness Project Experience course, and the month of January is primarily about self-knowledge. 

One aspect of self-knowledge according to Gretchen Rubin is the understanding that, “We can choose what we do, but we can’t choose what we like to do.”

Have you ever chosen to do something that you knew you really didn't like? Yes, there you were standing at that football game cheering on the team, but secretly praying the game would not go into overtime. All the while wondering how the person next to you with the painted face seemed to be having the time of his life?

The first time I came across this idea it helped me to better understand why I wasn't always enjoying some of the activities that I was involved in. Although, I had chosen to participate in them my reasons for doing so wasn't always based on my true nature. 

Sometimes I did things because they were popular at the time, but more times than not I wished I was hanging out at the library looking for a good book. Although, it didn't sound too exciting to many it fit me to a tee. 

Since then I don't spend my Sunday afternoons watching football, or my spring and summer gardening. I've learned that as much as I wish I enjoyed these experiences I really don't. 

Being self-aware of what YOU actually like to do can definitely contribute to your overall happiness. Shakespeare says it quite clearly, "To thine own self be true."

Artist Date

Artist date. 

Author and artist Julia Cameron promotes in her classic book, The Artist's Way something called the artist date. She describes this as, "An artist date is a block of time, perhaps two hours weekly, especially set aside and committed to nurturing your creative consciousness, your inner artist."

This is an opportunity for you to carve out time each week to spend on a creativity excursion. In the pursuit of creativity it is critical that you are open to observing your surroundings. I have found that ideas seem to flow when I expose myself to good books, movies, podcasts, and discovery. Just being out and about can spark an idea that can be expressed in some creative way. 

My artist date this week was a soap quest. Recently, we started using some fancy, and handmade soaps that I had received as gifts. The difference between regular grocery store soap, and these higher quality soaps was very apparent, and Chuck and I decided to spend a little more on soap each month. 

I began my quest at a local craft mall, and spent some time checking out their selection. Along the way I came across some vintage style gift tags that had been made by an artist out of Weatherford. I was instantly enchanted, because they were perfect for my art journal. I had been missing this creative outlet, and these simple tags really inspired me to get started again. 

To be honest I did not find any soap that I was too crazy about, so I continued down the road to Whole Foods. I knew that they sold hand-crafted soaps, and wanted to check them out. Unfortunately, their cost per pound didn't quite fit into my budget, so I left without purchasing any. 

I traveled to Home Goods next, because I had purchased soaps there before as gifts for friends, and knew that they had good prices. I picked up two bars, and gave some thought to possibly making my own soap in the future. I had already pinned several examples on Pinterest, but had been hesitant becomes some soap requires lye. I think I’ll check into it some more.

What I enjoyed most, though, about my artist date was that although I didn't come away with homemade soap, I did come away with a new idea for my art 
journal. At first I was a little disappointed about the soap, but then I realized 
that being open to possibilities was the true aim of the artist date, and not just checking something off my to do list. 

Instant Pot Musings

Instant Pot musings. 

Well I’ve owned my Instant Pot for little over a week so I thought I’d share with you some of my observations. 

I’ve noticed from what I’ve read that some people are hesitant to use an Instant Pot. Now on the one hand this does make perfectly good sense as it actually is still a pressure cooker. I think the main thing to remember is just to use good common sense when you are cooking with it. 

This means making sure to allow the pressure to release naturally if possible, and going ahead and covering your Instant Pot with a towel when quick releasing with the vent. I even wear my oven mitts just to make sure I don’t get burned by escaping steam. If you follow these steps all should be good. 

I’ve also found that watching several You Tube videos on how to cook in the Instant Pot will make you much more confident the first time you use it. Referring back to the videos along the way can also help if a question arises. 

Be aware that the time written in the recipe is the actually cooking time in the pot. It doesn’t allow for the initial pressurizing time (So far for me about 5-10 minutes.), and the gradual release time at the end. I’ve been giving it about 10 minutes before releasing the valve manually. 

Also I have found that cooking dried beans for 40 minutes rather than 30 gives them the consistency I like best. So far I’ve cooked both pinto beans, and black eyed peas. My first batch of pinto beans did not cook long enough. Remember, this is using dried beans that do not need to be soaked over night. Woo hoo!

In addition, the second time I used the Instant Pot my silicone seal was not properly seated, and it would not even pressurize. Luckily, we were able to easily push it back to its correct position, and ended up with perfectly cooked black eyed peas. 

Because the black eyed peas ran a little late in fixing I was unable to cook my hard boiled eggs. That is the next thing on my list, and I’ll be curious to see how they actually taste. Chuck has gotten spoiled to the eggs being cooked in the oven, and prefers their taste to eggs that have been boiled. 

Either way, I’m excited to continue down this new culinary journey with my Instant Pot in hand!

When Approval Becomes Air

When approval becomes air.

When something is such a part of your life, and has been for as long as you can remember you often times don't realize that it is even there. 

That's kind of how approval is to me. I learned at a young age that not getting in trouble made life so much easier. In learning this I became highly skilled at doing the right thing, and gaining the approval of both my parents and teachers. Add to this the expectations of my childhood religion, and you had a perfect storm for approval. 

As I entered my adolescence, and young adult years the approval of my peers, and the opposite sex seemed to be all consuming. In the process I found myself doing what many INFJ's do, and shape shifting my personality to those whose company I happened to be keeping at the time. 

This need for approval, or should I say this desire to never face disapproval has set a course over the years for me. Even this blog has found me hesitant to push publish for fear of disapproval. With this mindset it seems its only value was based on the number of readers that day. 

As I've become more aware of this trait, and its consequences, I am finding myself stepping a toe into the water of disapproval. Although, on one level it produces some discomfort, it also feels a little freeing. 

It will be interesting to see where this discovery leads. 

Happiness Project

Happiness Project.

Today is the first day of 2019, and although I find it hard to believe that another year has passed by so quickly, I am excited to embrace this new year, and all the possibilities that it will bring. 

I just finished my 2018 End of the Year Review, and although not perfect it proved to be a successful year. What I like best about this review is that it gives you an opportunity to look over the past year in the categories of Faith, Family, Fitness, Finance and Fun. From there it allows you to set new goals for the coming year. 

What I want to do next is write these goals out separately, and keep them where they can be viewed daily. As much as I thought I was an Upholder when it came to Gretchen Rubin's Four Tendencies, I've come to the conclusion that I'm really more an Obliger with Upholder tendencies. Basically, what this means is I need outward accountability to keep me on track. This is why WW has been the only way that I have been able to lose, and maintain my weight. Left to my own devices I'm not very successful. 

One new goal for 2019 is that I'm going to be participating in Gretchen Rubin's Happiness Project Experience course. This is not to say that I am an unhappy person by any means, but she has designed the course to keep you on track monthly especially when all those New Year Resolutions begin to fade. I'm excited to get started this week. 

My plan is to post M-W-F on my blog, and to begin a new writing project. I am very much a beginner when it comes to this, but I am ready to learn, and embrace the challenge. I'll keep you posted as to how the Happiness Project Experience is coming along, and look forward to seeing Gretchen Rubin again when she visits the North Richland Hills Library this April to discuss her new book, Outer Order, Inner Calm. 

I'm including the link to her Happiness Project Experience course if you are interested. 

Happy New Year, and looking forward to a wonderful 2019!

https://courses.gretchenrubin.com/happiness/

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