Organization
I absolutely HATE paperwork. Even with requesting electronic bills and statements for the majority of our accounts, I still feel like I am always drowning in paperwork. I used to be really bad about it - there would be piles of miscellaneous mail, documents, and forms laying around everywhere (the table, the desk, our bedroom dresser). Rather than address the piles, I would just try to keep them looking neat and tidy. In recent months, I've gotten a little better about eliminating the piles. I went out and bought pretty, cardboard filing boxes and labeled them. Now everything (mostly) gets stashed into one of the following: My Box, Paul's Box, Keepsakes & Cards, or To Be Filed. I also have envelopes or folders for daycare info, receipts, coupons, and income tax stuff.
Sounds like progress, right? Don't get me wrong, it's better than how it used to be. But now, my To Be Filed box has become my new "pile" that is even easier to ignore because everything is nicely contained and hidden from view on a shelf inside our entertainment center. When I first started using the boxes, I designated Mondays as my day to clean out the To Be Filed box; everything got sorted and either tossed for good or filed in the appropriate hanging file for records in our office. That was fine when I was only working 4 days a week and had Mondays off, but since coming back from maternity leave, I'm back to 5 days a week (2 of which I work from home). I could probably still do my filing on Mondays, since that is one of the days I work from home. However, I just haven't made it a priority and it's time to change that. Starting now, Mondays will once again be my clean-out-the-To-Be-Filed-box day. I have to remind myself that if I do it weekly, it won't be such a huge job and I could probably realistically have it done in 20 minutes! What I don't want is for it look like this every time:
This is our bed... covered in papers that had been shoved into the To Be Filed box for up to 4 months (yikes!). What you cannot see is that the headboard, dresser, AND chest of drawers were likewise also covered in papers. Completely unacceptable.
Fitness/Healthy Eating
After years of refusing to be one of those people who count their calories on a daily basis, I've given in and decided to do it for the short term. I don't think my issue is knowing what is healthy food vs. junk food (that's fairly obvious and I don't, in fact, eat a ton of junk food). I think my issue has more to do with recognizing portion size (paying attention to how much I'm eating), as well as my tendency to not acknowledge the sneaky calories that add up throughout the day (a latte here, a handful of M&M's there). Even healthy foods have calories, and it's probably time I start paying attention. I want to lose weight, I need to lose weight, and to do that, I need to focus more on intake (food) vs. output (exercise). I've downloaded the My Fitness Pal app and I'm going to commit to using it for at least 30 days. I might do it for longer, although I don't really see myself doing this in the long-term. But for now I think it's a good idea. In fact, I've already had a couple of wake-up calls in regards to my food choices (560 calorie breakfast? 400 calorie snack??).
Ultimately, I'm trying to make a lifestyle change. I haven't shared my long-term goals yet (mainly because some of them are still taking shape). But I do know that fitness and healthy eating are not things I'm going to just give up once I achieve my desired weight. And right now I'm super motivated. The straw that (finally) broke the camel's back and convinced me to do something more drastic than just "eat better"? Yesterday, I ran into a former co-worker who still works on campus (just in a different department). I was wearing a sort of loose-fitting top, and she pointed at my stomach, smiled, and exclaimed "Oh! How wonderful!" Yes, that really DID happen. No, it was NOT an appropriate thing for her to do. And no, I don't really look pregnant (or so my other co-workers and husband have assured me). But that doesn't change how I felt in the moment: embarrassed and horrified, but more importantly, motivated.
Education
I don't have lots to report with this yet, but I did email the program coordinator and request a list of current faculty from whom to choose a new adviser for my capstone project! Hopefully I will have more to share soon...
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