New Immediate Goals! #healthyequalshappy

Hi There!

Just the other day, I wrote this blog post to myself, and subsequently forgot to actually post it:

Hubs and I have plans for a trip to California, to visit family and friends at the end of July into early August.

As summer came along, my productivity on Little Raindrop has dwindled. Mainly because I've been bogged down by the messy house, the messy studio, and my messy health.

So my immediate goal, starting right now, is to get back into some healthy habits. Healthy body, healthy home, and healthy studio because I WANT TO PAINT!

But it was the truth, and describes exactly what I've been up to these past few weeks, so I've been a little sidetracked from my usual routine. I've put aside some of my regular work to get a bit of a rest from the anxiety I get when I become super focused on a project. When I'm really focused, I use every inch of my spare time, put aside the cleaning and reorganizing and even the healthy habits.

Which, of course, isn't healthy. So, Change I Must!

My new positive thinking began, firstly, with focusing on my health. And when I started to lose a bit of weight and gain a bit more energy, I felt like cleaning and organizing! Which made me feel better about myself and our home, and I got the urge to paint and do some fun creative stuff, too. Funnily enough, as I was coming to this realization, a friend of mine posted this article called "The Busy Trap" on Facebook, and it gave me the conviction I needed to say, truly, "It's okay to have some Me time!" Although I'm dying to just play with my paints, I haven't quite gotten there yet. I need to finish making my studio more Artist Friendly, so I can work in it instead of using it like a giant closet. (I promise this is no excuse, I can't really find anything I need for a project, nor is there surface area to do it on!) In fact, I want to have a much better routine, much like artist Chris Raschka created for himself.

I tend to forget that though I am working on a paying project for/with another person, it's still okay to step back and be Me, too. So I'm starting to get really excited about working on a new side project that I want to do, just for me. Just because!

This is cool because it also gives me something to look forward to... almost like a reward, for reorganizing my life better. And I even have a deadline- I want to be ready to get straight to work and play when we get back from California. I am losing weight and cleaning and organizing beforehand, and while on vacation I'll be reading and unwinding. This body, this house, this studio, and just as important, this mind will be ready to go after we return from the West Coast.

It feels really good to get my life back to where I'm feeling good again!

It also feels really good that I have someone to talk to honestly about this! (I mean YOU, Silly!) I've realized I shouldn't feel guilty for not posting or missing a day or being late. It's not Failure, as Sara Zarr says, "but a part of the journey." I'm busy living a real life, and improving my life, and my work is going to show for it. In fact, I haven't had anything truly good to post for ages! And what good are boring blog posts without any art? (Besides this post, I mean.)

Anyways, thanks for listening! Now go outside and get some fresh air and sunshine! It's a mood changer, for sure! :D