Day 2: My Middle Name Is....

Hello! Today is an exciting day because I get to talk about my beautiful middle name. So my friends, drum roll please!!!

My middle name is...

I talked to my mom cause I wanted to know more about why she chose Arabella as my middle name. I love it no matter what, I just wanted to know the back story behind her decision. My mom said that she chose Arabella because it means answered prayer plus she also liked the name. Mom and Dad also like the combination of it with Sophia. They tossed around combinations between Sophia, Astrid, Zoe, and Arabella and came to a decision on which they liked the most. Plus, when I have grandkids, I can tell them the reasons why I was named Sophia Arabella.

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10 Things I Am Going To Change This Autumnal Season

So lately, I have noticed a lack in attention to certain things I do. So here is the list of things I need to work on.

1. Bring more fun to work.
I need to make after school care more fun for the kids. Yes, I need to have structure, but that structure can be fun! I need to bring story time to snack time or camp songs to get wiggles out. I also need to start going over expectations more each day with the group I work with.

2. Be more proactive on walks with MudLynn.
I've noticed that I have been significantly lazy when it comes to walking Mud. I used to walk her on a good 15 minute walk and now I have turned to letting her run around at Laurel Park. Epitome of laziness.

3. Decorate more.
I need to take advantage of coupons and decorate my house more. I need more leaf decor and fall decor in my apartment and in my bedroom. I need to live as if it is fall all the time in all honesty.

4. Cook and bake more.
I used to bake so much last year and I have lost my game. I need to make pumpkin bread and coffee cake since it is fall. I should write down the things I want to bake and do that this coming weekend.

5. Socialize more.
I need to spend more time with friends. I know I love being alone a lot of the time, but I need to not seem like a loner all the tome.

6. Create more.
I need to get crafting again. Knit, bead, cross stitch, or something. I just need to do something with my hands again.

7. Start some new hobby.
I need to find a new hobby. Maybe painting?

8.  Take better care of my car.
Bam Bam needs two things: a good vacuum and a good wash.

9. Eat breakfast again/have a hot drink every morning.
Whether I eat something for breakfast or have a cup of hot cocoa, I need to have something in the mornings again.

10. Take more pictures.
I think I am going to start carrying my camera everywhere with me now. I just need to take advantage of a good quality camera to take photos of things I usually wished I could take pictures of.

Day 1: The First 10 Songs

So I shuffled one of my Spotify playlists and these were the ten songs that played.

Look What You Made Me Do by Taylor Swift

I know Taylor Swift has gotten a lot of criticism about this song that she just released a few weeks ago, but honestly it's kind of an empowering song for me. Since I'm still figuring out how to be single again, this song speaks to me as a way of showing that even in heartbreak, nothing stops me from achieving my goals. Yes, the song may sound like it's saying "Hey, look what you made me do after you dumped me" in a revenge-like way, but for me it's "Hey, you might have broken my heart, but that's not stopping me from doing what I want to do."

Mad Hatter by Melanie Martinez

Again, this song makes me feel the same about Look What You Made Me Do. But this makes me agree that the best people are crazy. Doing crazy things makes you more of a risk taker. Like riding horses to some people is crazy (aka IHSA is crazy cause we ride a strange horse).

Strip That Down by Liam Payne

I really don't know how I feel about this song. I like it cause it is an energizing song. I love dancing to it when it comes on at The Royal when I go out with my roommate and our friends.

Church Bells by Carrie Underwood

I honestly love this song. I love the beat it has. I sing this so loud in the car when I am driving to work. It's another good energizing song. I personally just love every song that Carrie Underwood releases.

Gangsta by Kehlani

This song makes me feel so powerful inside. I guess it makes me feel that whoever I end up with will give me that emotional high that I get when in a relationship, but that the new high will be even better even though right now, I don't really think so.

New Rules by Dua Lipa

This is my current every day jam because it literally speaks me. I've made new rules for myself since my ex and I broke up. But then again, there are feelings that I will always feel for him, but I can't let it show anymore right now. I do what the lyrics say "rehearse and repeat."

Sorry Not Sorry by Demi Lovato

This is again me right now. I'm trying to live my life to the fullest and I am honestly sorry but not sorry about how it makes my ex feel. Is that bad to feel and act that way? I don't know, but I'm sure my girlfriends would tell me no that it's not bad to be like that right now. I love this song. It is one of my pre-downtown jams on Friday nights or Saturday nights.

Wolves by Kanye West

To me, this song is very calming for my mind because of how relaxing the beat is. I don't really know how the song makes me feel other than calm though.

Mrs. Potato Head by Melanie Martinez

This song makes me feel perfect because it speaks about how changing our appearance through surgery and diet pills, it still doesn't make us perfect. By being perfect is being loved by our friends, family and significant others for who we truly are; without all the make-up, shoes and nice clothes, we are perfect in our sweat pants and messy buns.

Too Much To Ask by Niall Horan

Niall really knows how to speak my feelins with this song. This song is one of my favorites right now, but it does pull me deep in the deep hole I'm digging myself out. I lay at night asking myself questions like the one's he asks in his song. "My shadow is dancing without his shadow for the first time" is the one lyric that sticks with me.

The Week Ahead

Outside my window... It's raining!!!!

I am thinking... That school is literally 9 days away... AH!

I am thankful for... Everything and everyone around me.

From the kitchen... I had some water and now I am drinking some hot chocolate, but I'm going to try and eat some toast before I go to St. Paul's.

I am hearing... My computer keys clicking as I type and Netflix playing.

I am watching... The Nightmare Before Christmas, perfect movie for fall.

Always one of my favorite things... To spend time with friends.

I am reading... Harry Potter and The Prisoner of Azkaban.

I am making... Nothing.

I am writing... This blog post.

All the plans I have for this week... I will be working every day at the YMCA until Western starts. I will be working at St. Paul's doing lunch duty every day this week. I'm going to go hang out with Savanna tonight, and hopefully see Michelle this week since she is back from her Boise trip.

MudLynn Update... MudLynn is doing wonderful! She is on Dasaquin and Proin and now on some Omega chews every day to help her stay fit and healthy.

College Update... I'm going to focus on graduating this fall, working at the YMCA and at St. Paul's. Then I will work on finding a job in the Bellingham School District or at the YMCA. I just need to get my classes approved for graduation by my advisor so that degree evaluation can approve me for graduation.

Riding Update...  I haven't ridden for a while, been too busy with work and MudLynn.

New 30 Day Challenge

Hey guys, I've decided to start a new 30 day challenge that has daily challenges already made for me.

I found this one on Pinterest and decided to give it a try and if I succeed, I will buy myself a Patagonia fleece.

So let's give this bad boy a go!

The Week Ahead

Outside my window... It's sunny and not too hot.

I am thinking... That school is literally 17 days away.

I am thankful for... Everything and everyone around me.

From the kitchen... I had some water, but I'm going to eat some fruit before I go to St. Paul's.

I am hearing... My computer keys clicking as I type and The Pretty Reckless play on my phone..

I am watching... Nothing..

Always one of my favorite things... To spend time with friends.

I am reading... Harry Potter and The Prisoner of Azkaban.

I am making... Nothing.

I am writing... This blog post.

All the plans I have for this week... I will be working every day at the YMCA until Western starts. I will be working at St. Paul's doing lunch duty every day this week. I have two nights this week where I am working the PTAs. Gotta work more hours and save again big time.

MudLynn Update... MudLynn is doing wonderful! Her eye is all clear and she is still running strong for being 13.

College Update... I'm going to focus on graduating this fall, working at the YMCA and at St. Paul's. Then I will work on finding a job in the Bellingham School District or at the YMCA. I just picked up a new class that will qualify for graduation credits and is an education related course.

Riding Update...  I haven't ridden for a while, been too busy with work and MudLynn.

Good News!!

I don't know if I posted this previously in a post, but MudLynn went to the vet a week ago and we found out that she had an ulcer in her eye, which was the cause of the excessive tears from one eye. So we got eye drops for that eye and adminstered them for a week. Today, we came in for a check up to see if it was gone or not. So the vet did the eye stain to confirm that it was completely gone and IT WAS!

I can't express how much I love having Banfield as our vet. They are so nice and welcoming whenever we come in for an appointment or to pick up medications. They really care about your dog/pets and establishing a relationship with you as their customer. They really try to bond with your pet when you come in for a check-up. They also have wellness plans to make paying for visits more affordable. So if you don't currently have a vet, check out Banfield.

Sticker Haul from bottledteadesigns

I am in love with my stickers that I ordered from bottledteadesigns. I got them in the mail on Friday so I'm going to spend my Sunday planning next week out! I will post a photo on Monday of my week's layout.

If you are a planner, I would love to see what your layout look like and also what etsy shops you shop with for stickers. 

Weekly Spread of the Week!

If you can't tell already, I'm still working on making my planner look nice each week. I want it to look Pinterest worthy. But this week, I used The Boy Who Lived Weekly Kit by bottledteadesigns. I seriously love her kits, I am excited to get my new stickers that I ordered this past weekend! I'll do a post and show you what the sheets look like! Maybe I should just start up my YouTube channel again.. Hmm, many things to consider right now. But yeah, this is what my week looks like. Crazy right? Working two jobs, have to medicate MudLynn three times a day (the blue dots), Odyssey commitments, YMCA shifts, Patriots' games, water intake, meals, MudLynn's Trifexis, and appoitments. Busy week!

The Week Ahead

Outside my window... It's sunny and kind of hazy outside, I am so ready for rain though.

I am thinking... That school is literally 23 days away.

I am thankful for... Everything and everyone around me.

From the kitchen... I ate Crunchies and some stir fry for lunch and dinner.

I am hearing... My computer keys clicking as I type.

I am watching... Drop Dead Diva earlier, now I'm watching Dear White People with my roommate, Haley.

Always one of my favorite things... To spend time with friends.

I am reading... The Prisoner of Azkaban.

I am making... Nothing.

I am writing... This blog post.

All the plans I have for this week... I will be working every day at the YMCA until Western starts. I will be working at St. Paul's doing lunch duty every day this week. MudLynn is scheduled for a follow-up vet visit on Sunday, but I'm debating on calling the dog ophthalmologist about scheduling an appointment, but I know I should give the eye drops a chance.

MudLynn Update... MudLynn is doing okay. I took her to the vet and found out that she has an ulcer in her eye, so we have eye drops for it for the week and then we'll see what happens on Sunday at our next appointment.

College Update... I'm going to focus on graduating this fall, working at the YMCA and at St. Paul's. Then I will work on finding a job in the Bellingham School District or at the YMCA. I just picked up a new class that will qualify for graduation credits and is an education related course.

Riding Update...  I haven't ridden for a while, been too busy with work and MudLynn.

Cone Life for MudLynn

Poor Mud went back to the vet today. Two weeks ago, MudLynn's eye was siginificantly teary before I left for Virginia and we went a got eye drops thinking she just had a little debris in her eye. After I came home from Virginia, her look a little better but then it got worse. Her eye was really really teary, so I decided to take her to the vet again. Turns out, she has a small ulcer in her eye. So the vet at Banfield gave us some new eye drops to put in her eye three times a day for about a week. I also bought a cone for Mud as well since the vet recommended it to me. So we shall see how this week of eye drops goes.

I Won A Giveaway!

So yesterday I entered a giveaway for a $10 off my total of $11 from Bottle Tea Designs! Bottled Tea Designs is an Etsy shop that sells stickers and washi tape for all kinds of life planners. I ordered stickers today and this morning. This morning I ordered stickers with the Etsy gift card my mom sent me (Thanks mom) and then I ordered three more sheets just now. I can't wait to get my stickers in the mail! I will post pictures of them once they arrive in the mail!