A Habit to Break
I have a clogged sink to thank for inspiring this change- my bathroom sink was getting backed up recently, and I realized when my kids and I were brushing our teeth just how much water I was wasting by leaving the water running when I saw how much water was accumulating in the sink from just a few seconds! After that, I started noticing how often I leave water running unnecessarily, whether it's when I'm washing dishes and reaching for another pot on the stove or throwing away some food on a dirty plate, or when we're all brushing teeth and one person isn't ready to rinse yet.
I've been much more conscious of turning off the water when I'm not using it now, and I'm kicking myself realizing how easy and fast it is to turn the faucet on and off!
A Habit to Make
I come from a long line of women who carry tension in our neck and shoulders, so I've dealt with neck/ shoulder/ back pain for years. My sister is a physical therapist, so I've gotten several good tips from her that have helped. The latest is a stretch that I want to start doing every morning and night in my bed:
It seems so simple but I really notice a difference when I do it! Obviously with any kind of stretching or exercise, be careful about doing anything without consulting your doctor (especially if you have any kind of injury), but I highly recommend this for anyone who has perpetual shoulder tension!
Join the Challenge!
I'd love for you to join me in making small, positive changes in your own life. And I'm giving you a little extra motivation to do so: leave a comment sharing a habit you want to make and/or break, and I'll send one person a little care package to hopefully keep you motivated and help you de-stress during this busy time of year. Make sure to enter your email address in the giveaway below after you comment so I can notify you and get your home address if you win! If you aren't already, you'll also be added to the mailing list for my newsletter so you can stay up-to-date on timely content each month!
The care package includes a copy of my goal planning worksheets, a laminated copy of one of the meal planners from my home planner, some adorable list pads and stickers to help you stay organized, and some Throat Coat tea.
I'm thrilled to have a couple of my favorite music teacher authors joining us for this as well: Jennifer from The Yellow Brick Road and Michelle from Music With Miss W care deeply about self-care and they're sharing habits they want to make and break. I encourage you to read their posts for more ideas and motivation, and enter their giveaways while you're there. Here are their posts:
I can't wait to hear about the positive changes you are making in your life! This time of year can be pretty stressful, and we're heading into the holiday season and winter blues season, so this is a great time to take small, positive, action to de-stress!
I can't wait to hear about the positive changes you are making in your life! This time of year can be pretty stressful, and we're heading into the holiday season and winter blues season, so this is a great time to take small, positive, action to de-stress!
One habit I want to break is sitting down when I teach! I want to be more energetic!
ReplyDeleteGreat one! I realized I was sitting down more than I wanted last year so I had to get rid of the stool that I had at the front of the room. Otherwise I would just unconsciously go sit or lean on it all the time!
DeleteA habit I wish to break is stopping at McDonalds in the morning for a Sausage McMuffin on my way to school. (Gaining unnecessary weight)
ReplyDeleteA habit I wish to make is a daily yoga routine. I used to do yoga every day and I felt great but the summer ruined my streak and I haven't been able to get back at it...until now!
Ugh, McDonalds breakfast is hard to resist! I love the bagel sandwiches....
DeleteThe stretch I shared above is quite honestly my attempt at working towards a yoga habit. I kept saying to myself that I was going to start doing some kind of simple yoga routine each day and it's just not happening. I'm hoping this one stretch will lead to more eventually!
This is very timely for me, as I, along with many other teachers I’m sure, consider this my “happy new year”. This spring and summer, I’ve had some very big challenges with the deaths of a sister and someone who lived with us for 18 years, as well as double knee scopes 3 weeks ago. Because of the surgery, I have been recovering at home, and will be for another three weeks. So my “happy new year” consisted of 3 days of school before I was off for surgery. Now I’m in a strange place where I have lots of time on my hands at a time of year that is typically filled with back to school busyness, and canning and freezing, as I am an avid gardener. Time and space to think has been healing in many ways for me, and challenging in others.
ReplyDeleteSo, my habit to make is to find time every day to journal for those things for which I am grateful. More gratitude! That is a key for me always to staying positive throughout the year. This year, I’ve had to work harder at that.
A habit to break is the flip side of this: negative self talk comes easily to me, and it’s natural for me to do that, particularly in my teaching. I am trying to nip that in the bud every time it happens, and not give into the self pity! I am not the world’s best teacher, but I am one of the better ones I think. I’m going to work at this!
I'm so sorry to hear about your surgeries- I knew about the other tragedies you were dealing with but didn't know you had that on top of everything. It sounds like you are really working hard to make the best out of the situation, and I hope you find this reflection time helpful and that it continues to be healing! Thank you so much for sharing.
DeleteI want to make a habit of sitting with better posture. Thanks for sharing that exercise, can't wait to try it!
ReplyDeleteMy posture has never been great, as I am reminded every time I visit my aforementioned physical therapist (and former ballerina) sister..... That's a great goal!
DeleteI want to make a habit to become more active, a little bit more each day. Whether it is a walk, exercise, or a more structured fitness routine, I want to start forming those good habits.
ReplyDeleteThis is a great time of year to work on that too! Have fun! I hope you're in a place where you can get outside to do it! :)
DeleteI want to break the habit of snacking all day long. I want to make a habit of reading in bed each night!
ReplyDeleteLove these ideas! I am a snacker too, and I love the idea of reading to wind down each night :)
DeleteMy habit to make is making time for myself - I am about to have my first baby and I'm sure that it will be a huge adjustment!
ReplyDeleteMy habit to break is using my phone right before bed and first thing when I wake up. I would love to start and end my day with more positive/restful things than what I see on social media or the news.
Congratulations on your new baby! So exciting :) Smartphones are definitely a blessing and a curse. I'd love to hear about any strategies you come up with to help you cut down on phone usage at the beginning and end of the day!
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ReplyDeleteI want to break the habit of watching more than 1-2 TV episodes in a day. A habit I would like to make is spending at least 30 minutes of my day excercing and stretching. I'm ready to lose some weight and hopefully get rid of my plantar fasciitis!
ReplyDeletePS- For some reason, it's not letting me comment through my Facebook account. My name is Ginnie Marion.
Sorry you had trouble commenting initially- glad you got it worked out so you could join in! :) I don't even have a TV but I've gotten into a little bit of a pattern of watching YouTube before bed sometimes that I need to back off from! And we can both work on stretching goals together! :)
DeleteI'd like to start taking more time for meaningful reflection. I'm a first year teacher and definitely feel like I need to make reflection time more than just saying, "well that didn't work," in my head.
ReplyDeleteOh this is such a great goal! I'd love to hear your specific plan for how to hold yourself accountable to this!
DeleteI need to get off Facebook! But then again, I'll miss the opportunities for Giveaways! LOL
ReplyDeleteI need to break the coffee habit...and start working out more!
-Becca F
Ha! Ah, the beauty and danger of social media... ;) I'd love to hear what you plan to do to decrease coffee and increase exercise- those are some lofty goals!
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