6 Six Month Goals

I'm not going to lie, life is about to get crazy. I am moving to a whole new world where I don't know that many people and I am going to be a professor (crazy). So I thought that I would give you an insight into some of my general six month goals.

1- Plan ahead
This is going to be a crazy semester and I know that, but that doesn't mean that no one else will have an event in those months. I am trying to write a list at the beginning of the month of the  upcoming birthday's, events, or just random things so that I can send cards or gifts to arrive before the date comes.

2- Pay off the debt
This move is going to be very expensive, which is ok I am going to live my dream. But I would like to pay this off and be all good by the end of the year. I also would like to have started getting things together to start a Roth IRA in January.

3- Make the phone calls and let the rest go
I go through phases where I don't really know how to keep in touch with people, so I am going to try and call my friends (and keep calling when I can't get a hold of them). I want to be a good friend but at the same time I am also going to allow myself to not feel guilty about a lack of contact when they never call back. This includes making my friends Skype or FaceTime, sometimes you just need to see her face.

4- Find time for myself
Many of the blogs and articles about how to be really good at your job or how to feel fulfilled in your life mention taking time for yourself in whatever manner that is. I would like to make it a priority to see as many of the Texas A&m football games this fall, I love this and find it refreshing. I also want to make a point to allow myself to just do the one thing, just watch the game not watch the game, plan a lesson, cook for the week, and who knows what else.

5- Be active in the Jacksonville Junior League
Spending time not on myself is important and helps me gain perspective.

6- Don't be afraid to say No
I am terrible at saying no to anything, it is pretty terrible. I am going to work on saying no and meaning it and not feeling as if I need to explain my reasons. In order to be successful in the next few months I am going to work at protecting the time I need to do my job well. It is hard to be new at anything and I want to be able to give it my best.

What are your goals, do you have anything big coming up? I look forward to sharing with you how this went in a few months.

Hello Florida!

This has been a long week, but we are here in our new apartment. Lily and I are so glad to be here, we are trying to get used to the humidity. I had much more to say but my phone ate the first version of this post... So here are a few pics. I hope to write more soon, hopefully Internet tomorrow. 

It was moving day and she was so scared. 

First night in the bed. 

George W. Bush Presidential Library: Checking it off the Texas Bucket List

One of the last items on my Texas Bucket List was the George W Bush Presidential Library. A few days ago one of my college friends and I decided to sneak away from work and check it out. The library is on the SMU campus and getting there reminded me of Texas A&M. Bush Sr's library is at A&M and I know that I went several different times with different people and every time it was a great story. So I was excited to check out Ws library.

We started with the special exhibit, Presidents and Baseball. I was pretty underwhelmed by this, however I do not love baseball. I would go as far as to say that it is one of my least favorite sports. But it was well put together and worth the visit if you happen to go in Dallas before the exhibit closes in October (I think).

From there we headed into the main portion, it starts with the declaration of running for president and then the whole hanging chad debacle (oh 2000, you were so long ago it seems). I found this part very interesting and it was interesting to read about his plans for his presidency and how his family shaped his life. There is a ton of influence by Laura Bush, I think she is amazing.

Eventually, we get to September 11, 2001. Even now days later I don't know what I can write about this part, it was breathtaking and a perspective that I was not prepared for. This is not for the faint of heart but I could have spent the whole time in this portion. For this alone you should hit up the library.

After this portion, there isn't much left or what was left was slightly underwhelming. I did take a chance to sit in the Oval Office, this could be the future? I like it, it looks good on me.

Future President? I hope so

I will say that regardless of your opinion of W as a president you should check this out, it reminds you that the office of president is not always for everyone. It is also a reminder that sometimes the best laid plans fall apart for reasons out of your control, no president plans for a terrorist attack. I loved the reminder that his main plan before that was education (my personal favorite cause) and he was able to lead us through a very dark time.

I am so glad that I took the time to check this out before I move out of the area. I am pretty sure that hitting up presidential libraries is now part of my travel bucket list, they may not all be this cool but so far I am enjoying them. I hope you get a chance to check this out, it is one of my Dallas must sees!

June Recap and July goals

June was so fast, I cannot believe that it is already over. I also can't believe that I move next week. 

June Recap
1- Manuscripts: 
Meh, this was Ok. It got rejected twice in June (I think), but it is back out. 


2- Hire movers and truck:
Done!
3-Fitness: 
hahaha, this was a struggle to find the time. 
4- Schedule: 
I didn't travel at all but I have made a point to see people here.
5-Lily: 
We did get lots of long walks in, but not as much dog park time as I wanted.
6- Packing: 
this went well, I got lots of things in boxes. (Shout out to my friend E who makes me put things in boxes)
7- Say no to things that I don't want to attend. 
I did pretty well with this. 
8- Read the textbook: 
I read a few chapters, only 3, but it is a good start.

9- Look into finding a new planner for the school year.
I found it... I can't wait to share it with you.

June went slightly better than I originally thought it might have, but it still feels like there should be a few days left in the month...

July Goals

1- Move to Florida: 

2- Be ready for work on day one: I want to have the car done, anything set up like cable and all of that. I want to be able to get to work and go on the first day. 

3- Run more. I don't know how much more but I would love to get 10-12 runs in this month

4- The Review.... I still have to finish writing my part... oops

5- Order the planner (it comes out in July, yes I am buying a fancy one)

6- Enjoy the two weeks in Florida with no work, I am afraid that I will feel bad about not doing anything. I scheduled this in this way so that I would be able to really rest before school starts. I want to read and bake and just spend time with Lily. 

This seems like an easy month but moving over 1000 miles away is going to take it out of me. I am so excited to be in Florida. I cannot wait to be Professor Malcolm... crazy!

I would totally have written more but I am tired from the packing and shark week and work and everything. Hopefully long posts are returning soon!

The most amazing lipstick

So I a few weeks ago I saw this blog post and realized that I needed this LipStick. I went to Target a few days later and snagged it up, it was about $5. In the last few months I realized that I love make up, I remember playing with it when I was younger and not really knowing what to do but now I know what looks good and what looks bad. I am also experimenting with things that are on-trend and fuchsia lip color is so on-trend.

Revlon's Super Lustrous Fuchsia Fusion 

I have been wearing this everyday and this lip stays on all day. For instance, today I put it on before I left for work and it was there and looked fab all day long and it was even there after I went for a run. It does loose some of its vibrance by the end of the day but it still looks good.

I am calling this the princess chemist look, I am learning that I love fashion and science and that while those two things don't always go together they don't have to be two different parts of my life. I am a chemist and I love to look nice and wear makeup. I am finding that this lipstick reminds me of that when I see it in the mirror.

Smart and pretty

I cannot wait to start my new job wearing this, it might be a little different but you know what this is me! Hello fancy!

Kaboom Town: Checking it off the Texas Bucket List

I will admit that I don't really love July 4th, it wasn't a huge deal growing up and when I was small the loud noises scared me. So I haven't really done anything for July 4th in years (probably many many, but seriously who is counting). This weekend was dedicated to packing and trying to make sure that I am able to get things done at the house and the like. So I wasn't super sad when nothing was planned but when a chance to watch one of the top 10 firework shows nationwide arose, I took it. My friend Elysa and I packed all day and then headed over to her house to hang out and watch the show.

Kaboom Town, is in Addison Texas, and I hear that parking is a nightmare. So I haven't really been interested in waiting to park and then sweating to death to see a few fireworks. However, after seeing these from her house a few miles away I should have made that a priority. 

It was amazing. I was so impressed, I tried to take a few photos but really who needs to see blurry photos that are lame. I mostly just sat there and enjoyed the show. It is about 30 minutes long, put to some pretty good music. I can't usually focus that long on things I'm not obsessed with, that wasn't happening. If you get a chance to check this out, you totally should. I hear that you should get there early so that you can get a spot and see everything. 

Did you have a wonderful 4th? I spend the actually day doing more packing before I watch the 3rd place world cup match. It was a great way to spend the day with the pup and being productive. I did take Sunday off, a trip to the dog park and then an afternoon with my brother and sis-in-law was just the thing I needed.

Happy Birthday America, you don't look a day over 225!!!

Being at rest

As the move is even closer, I find that I am not doing a good job of taking time out to relax. Even when I sit down to watch my favorite shows I have a book out, my laptop, my dog, probably food. There are so many things all over me that I can't actually get anything done ever! I also feel guilty about not doing any of those things or not being able to finish any of them or do them well. So I am trying to start a new habit of being still during the things I enjoy: watch the tv show without having to do something else or maybe go to dinner and leave the phone in the car.

So I thought I would give you a list of 5 ways that I am going to work on enjoying the moment. 

1- Stop trying to do everything at the same time. Do one thing at a time and do each thing well before moving on to the next task. 

2- Take time for me. Spend time on a craft project, reading a book, blogging, the dog park with Lily, or whatever makes me happy. 

3- Let the pressure go. I know it sounds way to much like Elsa, but everything will get into a box at the end of the day so I don't need to make anyone else happy with my packing arrangement. 

4- Stick to my priorities. I am not doing a great job of turning down events that I don't want to attend and I am struggling to make time for the events that I want to attend because I feel bad about everything else. 

5- Get enough sleep. I've started staying up late and trying to get up early. In most of those cases I was watching junk TV?!? So I would like to shoot for 7 full hours in the bed without the lights or phone on. I gotta be specific. 

How do you take time for yourself? Is it by being away or being with people?