Who would you like to talk to soon?
My BFF. “Hey Girl”! My bestie moved away, She hasn’t visited lately. We share long conversation and have joined a walking group as accountability partners. Although i still experience joy and love from others, it certainly doesn’t replace her.
How do you balance work and home life?
I first thought, there has to be a book on balancing. It took years to wrap my head around the concept of balance. I thought, “That’s impossible.” I was under the impression that I could do everything myself, but in the end I was burning myself out. I find flexibility is the most important way to manage a work/life balance. But that doesn’t mean I have to sacrifice my personal time. Some days I finish earlier on a different day so I can garden. Or sometimes I start a little later on another day so I can take the dog for a grandma and me walk🐕🦺
Now I delegate more household chores although I’m known to spoil my family as if I appointed myself as their personal maid. I just didn’t know they were supposed to do anything around the home but wait for breakfast and supper time to come. That’s what it looked like through my eyes as a young adult.
It puts me at ease knowing that I don’t have to carry the load alone. I feel more confident now that I know how to balance. Anything I can do to give myself more breathing time each week is a good thing. In turn doing so frees up a lot of my time. At the end of each day everyone has his tasks covered while working as a unit. It’s harmonious.
Don’t be a stranger!
What’s one small improvement you can make in your life?
There is never ever never enough time in the day to do everything that I am scheduled to do. However, there is small improvements that I can make to manage my time better so that I am not so wiped out by the end of my night.
I am unable to stop for a short nap, but I can make adjustments to allow mental rest. After researching this topic, I’ve decided to take short breaks during the day. I set a timer to remind myself to step away for deep breathing exercise. This helps to center myself mentally. I also feel that journaling at bedtime creates space in the brain allowing for a restful night. Most importantly giving myself extra time to disconnect is essential.
Don’t be a stranger…
Describe a positive thing a family member has done for you.
My relative was generous enough to offer temporary housing to me and my immediate family. I was so grateful. An unforeseen situation arose in my life and my relative sacrificed her schedule and home so that my family would have a place to stay until our home was restored.
What was the last live performance you saw?
The Capital Jazz Fest – The jazz festival with soul.
The Capital Jazz Fest is an annual music festival in Maryland. One of the premier black music events in the country, featuring a full weekend of live acts. The Pavilion Stage features live contemporary jazz, while the Symphony Woods Stage features live R&B/soul music from the old-school & the new!
There’s so much to see and do. There are craft and commercial exhibits as well as food concessions. The festival is not about concerts alone but it is an event that brings together jazz and soul lovers who reach the place from all over US. They come to enjoy quality music, good food and drinks, parties and festive atmosphere. Capital Jazz Fest is musical culture and art fiesta!🎷
When do you feel most productive?
Productivity is best for me during the wee hours of the night. Why some may ask?
Because, because, because, because, beca- – -u-se🎶 . Because of the wonderful things he does.😂 (just kidding! That’s a lyric from the Wizard of Oz). Why the earliest hours of the morning you may ask? It’s at this time that everyone else is asleep in my home . The house is reset and peaceful. It’s my preferred way to work and get things accomplished.
How do you use social media?
I utilize social media to discover new ideas and trends. For new audiences social media is great. Building and enhancing your brand brings traffic to your site. Social media is a key part of communication. It can be a bit overwhelming, but it’s the easiest method of reaching out to the masses.
What are 5 everyday things that bring you happiness?
*I am happy when my 12th grader steps in the door from school. He’s pretty much a homebody but an awesome young man. On the weekend the whole gang (all my kids) are here with their +ones, spouses, my grand kids, and even my fur-baby grands occasionally. Boy is it a full house! I love love love when my bunch come together. No matter how far, how old or if they prefer a steak bone 🍖 instead of Apple Pie they will always be welcome with an oversized helping of joy & LOVE 💗
*Being able to comfortably leave my door open to allow the beautiful sunshine in until dusk no matter what the weather. The sunshine brings me the most happiness.
*Watching classic sitcoms ie. Laverne & Shirley, Sanford & Son etc makes my day.
*There’s a bunny hole in my front lawn and I have the best time watching the bunnies at play.
*Fulfilling, my purpose, for the day is the ultimate.
How do you unwind after a demanding day?
After a demanding day of mom, wife, lunch lady and g-mom to my 1yr old granddaughter I unwind in what I call my studio. It’s the third bedroom of my home that I designed especially for me and my crafting and decor pieces. There is a bluetooth speaker loaded with my instrumental, R&B and jazz tunes. The embers of citrus 🍊 fruity candles tantalizes your sense of smell once you’ve entered the comfortably decorated room. I have a round table that I use for my workspace and a matching enclosed book case that houses bins, baskets, sewing notions, card stock, and books. To keep things off the floor, I mounted metal wall racks for textiles, ribbon spools, and magazines. It’s the next best thing to my bedroom. The best thing is that I can close up the bookcase and Hocus-pocus all the mess disappears. It’s so relaxing. I get lost in there for hours.
I am watching the movie “Respect”starring Jennifer Hudson. I did not know that Aretha Franklin once fell offstage because she was drunk. That was her wake up call.
mymentalhealthshelf 