Five Minutes Make ALL The Difference

Last weekend Jake and I had no choice but to dedicate our Saturday to cleaning, organizing, and otherwise getting on top of all household needs.

Both of our schedules had been go, go, go, so we had at least five loads of laundry to wash, fold, and put away, two sinks full of dishes to clean (with a possibly broken dishwasher to inspect), shelves to dust, and an entire apartment to tidy and vacuum. And while we were in the mode, we wanted to organize dresser drawers and get rid of...anything and everything. I've been in a total stuff detoxing mode and am more freely letting go of so many things that I simply don't need. (Or don't want to need.) Yes, this girl is down to half of a small closet....like 2 1/2 feet of hangers. Jake actually has equal space! Three years ago I alone filled two walk-in closets.

So we stayed focused most of the day and were able to make our apartment presentable and, in all actuality, livable.

I did not want to let that amazing-clean-apartment-environment slip away.

So every night, we decided to simply tidy our apartment for five minutes before we'd go to bed. That five minutes allowed for cleaning any dishes, putting away clothes, wiping down bathroom sinks, folding blankets, or even emptying the trash.

My goodness, our simply technique worked amazingly.

Enter Thursday night.

Thursdays are my long days of teaching. And my last day of teaching for the week. So I'm usually exhausted by the otherwise early 7 pm I get home. If I sit down...I don't get back up. Jake works until 9:30 pm and had also taken two tests that day and then had to stay out later working on a paper. Needless to say, neither of us managed to dedicate five minutes before we crashed for the evening. (I may have fallen asleep by 8 pm on the couch.) This also led to us missing the five minutes Friday night. And here it is Saturday. A Saturday that Jake entirely spent in an 8-5 class and then 5:30-2am work shift, and I spent 8-6 doing an instructor training and then grocery shopping and errands.

And I wish hadn't missed those 15 minutes. It's crazy the difference it makes. Luckily, we have tomorrow schedule free and another opportunity to start our five minute technique once again.

On Paper vs Reality

The other day, Jake and I headed to the bank together. Since getting married we have been working on getting our finances streamlined in the best banking options for us. I personally had three savings accounts, three checking accounts, plus additional business accounts. Then Jake had his old accounts, we had opened a joint account, AND later decided to move to an institution that would be easier and more beneficial for us long term. Let's just say it's been a bit of a mess.

So we headed to the bank to close accounts, move things around, and withdraw anything left over.

We waited for a few minutes before a banker came to greet us. He was of some Latin ethnicity with a Spanish last name. After shaking our hands and getting an idea of what we needed, we headed to his office where he asked for a name on the accounts.

"Karianne Ortiz," I say.

He looks up. And glances from me to Jake and back again.

"Ortiz?" He addresses Jake. "So your last name is Ortiz? Is that..." He trailed off.

I pipe in. "Oh yes, he's half Puerto Rican. And he's the only one in his family who doesn't look it."

"Do you speak Spanish?," he asks Jake.

"Nope."

The banker laughs and then goes on to tell us how one of his children is dark and one is light.

Then, while working on our accounts, he notices the nickname on a couple accounts.

Zumba Checking
Zumba Saving

"Oh, do you teach Zumba? Like salsa, merengue, cha cha?"

"Yep."

"Wow, you guys really have the Latin thing going for you."

Jake replies. "Oh yes. On paper we totally do. Until you meet us in person."

On Paper

Last name: Ortiz
Ancestry: 1/2 Puerto Rican
Profession: Zumba Instructor

Reality

White. White. White.

Life As Of Late

I have chuckled to myself on multiple occasions when I think of my last post about Jake and his military service. Why? Because the day after sharing that, I had a future-military-wife breakdown of sorts. I even tried to fool Jake into believing that I took that post down. Jokingly, of course.

Jake was offered a different position within the Air Force—a position that seems, to me, a lot more dangerous with potential more deployments. Initially we were offered four hours to decide. FOUR HOURS.

I don't make decisions well under pressure. I get stressed. I get frustrated. I just want to get out of the situation and not decide. I'm the kind of person that takes months to decide certain things. I make charts. I make lists. I think about every potential outcome. Four hours does not accommodate that process.

While we were able to extend our deadline over the weekend, that initial pressure resulted in a version of Karianne that was not exactly supportive about the military career decision.

Using that extra time, I found my own personal calm, and we made the decision. I know this field is something Jake is passionate about, and I too am excited about the various opportunities we'll experience as a couple and family.

As Jake's graduation date creeps closer, we are getting more and more information about his career, training, and where we'll be for all of that. I didn't expect to find out ANY timeline details until early 2015, but, while things can DEFINITELY change in the coming months, right now we are looking to head to Pensacola, Florida in the early summer of 2015.

Yes, that move makes me nervous. Even though I never planned to stay around Provo—or even Utah for that matter—I've been living here about ten years on my own, and I'm comfortable. I know the area. I know all the good restaurants. I have my connections. I've built up my careers in this area (communications, Annesali, Zumba/UJam)...and I know our imminent move means I start back at square one (at least in some regard).

That said, I'm excited. I know Jake is excited. I need these type of changes to push me out of my comfort zone and offer opportunities to grow and experience different things in life. So here's to 2015...and exciting changes!

My Military Man

This morning Jake woke up around 7 a.m. and proceeded to get ready for the day. Before I was able to crawl out of bed and put my contacts in, Jake was almost completely ready and wearing his Air Force service dress. Jake gave me a hug and left for his busy day.

His ROTC program at BYU has spent the past several weeks organizing events commemorating Sept. 11 on campus, and Jake is involved in several aspects including all public affairs. Let's just say this has been a busy week.

Today is a notable one for all of us. How have 13 years already passed since that unforgettable day in 2001? Like most people, I remember where I was, what happened in my life at school and home, and many of my feelings and worries.

I've read so many wonderful and touching posts of remembrance today, and I'm thankful for the opportunity to express gratitude for my life, blessings, and freedoms. And of course, I've thought more and more about Jake and the sacrifices he signed up for not only this week, but for the next several years of his Air Force career.

I never imagined a military life for myself. Finishing high school in the Washington, D.C. area, my social circles included several kids from military families. We'd occasionally head to the nearest military base, with 1 to 1 military to civilian IDs, to watch movies at the on-base theater or the such. But living a military life was never something I connected with or thought I'd experience.

Those men, women, and families make incredible sacrifices to serve their country and stand for principles they value and hold dear. Jake has offered me the opportunity to stand by his side as he follows his desire to serve and be a part of something bigger than himself. I am only beginning to have a glimpse of understanding of what that means and am trying to best prepare myself to better embrace everything it entails.

Jake has on several occasions shared his experience of turning to the Air Force. He served an LDS church mission in Nevada where he followed a disciplined schedule and dedicated himself to something he was passionate about. When he returned home and began working and attending school, he missed that sense of service, of importance, of greater meaning. After some deliberation, Jake found those things in the Air Force.

Military life isn't one I chose, but it is one that Jake chose. And today as I remember Sept. 11, I think more specifically about the service men and women past and present and all that they do. Of all that they have sacrificed and all that they work for. I thank Jake for his example and the opportunity to view my blessings and freedoms just a little differently.

Remember Sept. 11

Hey all Provo locals! I just wanted to give a quick heads up about some events commemorating Sept. 11 tomorrow (Thursday) on BYU campus. If you and your kids are looking for a way to remember/honor the tragedy, consider attending one of these events.

All events are open to the public. Well, except the football game stuff. Ya'll need to have tickets for that.

Events
7 am: 24-hour vigil begins at the Abraham O. Smoot Administration building
8:45 am: Rose-laying Ceremony at the Abraham O. Smoot Administration building
9 am: Three-volley salute at the Abraham O. Smoot Administration building
12 pm: Thad Forester presentation in the Varsity Theater of the Wilkinson Student Center
7 pm: Presentation at the Lavell Edwards Stadium prior to the Houston vs. BYU football game (ticket required)

The vigil will be going on until 7 am Friday (Sept. 12), so you can literally stop by at any point that day. After the rose ceremony, you can also bring a rose to contribute. 

How to Create Large Wall Decor On a Budget

Please allow me to introduce you to one of my favorite recent projects...this lovely frame!

I wanted one large piece of art to place above our couch in the living room. To me, small pieces made the wall feel empty, while multiple pieces made it feel cluttered. (I'm sure the full-to-the-brim bookcases on either side of the couch don't help with the cluttered feeling either.) However, we all know large decor tends to cost quite a bit—more than I'm personally willing to spend on a piece for a home I will live maybe a year in. Ikea, for example, has several large options with a $49.99 price tag; that's something I'd pay, but the options were either unappealing to me or overdone.

Let me share how I got this piece to come together. If you follow me on Instagram, you've likely seen the updates on each step.

FRAME

I started by searching for large frames anywhere and everywhere. Garage sales, thrift stores, clearance aisles. Most things simply weren't large enough. Plus, most larger (ish) frames were still selling for $20 bucks at my local Deseret Industries. $20 bucks for an ugly frame with an ugly picture and oftentimes not even real glass. I said no to that.

In one of my many searches, I found a few options. These are the pictures and messages I sent to my husband.

A. Gold frame, would still paint. Thicker plastic although it could be glass. Matted too. Smallest option. $20

B. Yellow metal frame. Would spray paint maybe silver. Plastic cover $10

C. LARGE FRAME. See other sizes in picture. No back, no glass. Slight imperfection on one side. $5. Could paint and blow up a pic. 

Option C would require the most work. Not to mention, I didn't know if I could get a picture that big...or if I could fit the frame into my car. 

Jake's response, "I like the big one. The $5 one" quickly reaffirmed my worries and I went ahead with the $5 frame. 

Before I did anything else, I wanted to make sure it was possible to piece together the backing and image to go in the frame. Otherwise, I'd probably use this for a headboard type of project.

BACKING

I headed to Hobby Lobby's framing section to see what kind of foam boards they had available. Nothing big enough was available on the floor, but we waited for an associate who said they could definitely cut something to the exact dimensions I needed. The cost for the largest board was about $10 but then I used their 40% off coupon to get it for $6. 

PICTURE

This frame was way to big to even think about featuring a picture of Jake and me. Can you imagine that? Right above our couch? Haha. 

I did look at some scenery type of pictures with us, but nothing really worked. In fact, I found that I wasn't even liking photograph options for that size. I used my stock image resources at both sxc.hu (free site) or depositphotos.com (I got a great discount price for something like 100 downloads for $99 and use this site for lots of my client project needs).

In the end,  I was drawn to digital artwork by the user karakotsay. I liked the abstract perspective and considered options like this, or this, or this, or this.  

Jake and I both decided on this option:

PRINTING

From the start I knew I'd be printing this in black and white. Why? While I love the color, you can print in b/w a LOT cheaper than printing anything that large in color. Most office stores will allow you to print engineers prints for super cheap. These are low quality but for $6-8, it's a great option and can be switched up whenever you want. Also, I planned to paint the frame a color to help brighten up our living room and the black/white would help balance that color AND tie in the black from our furniture.

Fedex was the ONLY place I found that could print the size I wanted.  The employee there was amazing. It took maybe 6 or 7 tries to get it to print right, but in the end everything worked out great.

PAINTING

Head to Home Depot or Lowe's to purchase paint for small projects. You can get any color mixed in a sample bottle for about $3. I've done this a handful of times and the paint lasts forever!!  I got this lovely teal blue and got that thing painted. 

FINISHING UP

The final step was just putting everything together. I used a spray adhesive from a previous project to apply to picture to the foam board. Jake helped me, and we probably did six inches all the way across the board at a time. 

We'd spray, lay the picture, smooth it out, spray, lay, smooth, spray, lay, smooth. Fun process. After that, I turned the board over to and folded the excess paper onto the back side. Then we stuck the board in, got that set in...and we were good to go. 

Total cost: $22

Motivation Monday: Passion is Energy

Today's Motivation Monday comes to you from the one, the only, Oprah Winfrey.

P.S. The background is supposed to be white.
Download Passion is Energy jpg here. 

"Passion is energy. Feel the power that comes from focusing on what excites you."

I've been feeling the urge to reignite my passion, which is probably why I went searching for some great passion quotes. I have to thank Dave Kerpen, CEO of Likeable Media, for leading me to this Oprah quote via his article "15 Inspiring Quotes on Passion (Get Back to What You Love)" on Inc.com.

Even as I sit and just start write this post, I already feel the power and excitement Oprah speaks of. It's been a while since I've shared a formal post and, man, I have missed it. When I quit my full time job over a year ago, I started blogging more regularly again as a way to stay motivated, focused, and productive.

The past year has been a crazy one. I quit working full time, started teaching more and more Zumba/UJam classes, started pursuing more clients, moved several times, and met, dated, and married my husband Jake.

That whole getting married thing definitely required that I put some things on the back burner. I had to settle into my routine and focus on all the tasks I currently had. Eventually various tasks dropped off my permanent to-do list, but I've had a hard time reigniting the passion to continue doing more and aspiring for dreams bigger and better than I currently have.

I guess, in short, I've become stagnant. That is no good. I need to continue pushing myself. Doing so is actually pretty easy once I get going. For now, however, I need to go out of my way to surround myself by the ideas, environment, and motivation that gets my juices flowing. I need to focus on the things I love and the things that inspire me. I need to let go of the habits and circumstances that deflate that passion.

Question: What tips do you have for cultivating passion?

Side note: After watching this past season of "Last Comic Standing," I can't think of Oprah without thinking of this comedy bit. 

Camping is for...Ortiz's!

Hahaha. Ha ha ha. Yea, that title is not funny. But for some reason it totally made me laugh. Again and again.

Well, guess what. Jake and I finally broke out our camping gear and headed up the nearby Hobble Creek Canyon past Springville, Utah for a short overnight stay. We have been trying to go for a couple weeks, but the rainy weather has scared us off for a little while.

Jake is definitely a camping person. I caught on pretty quickly that he is ALL ABOUT an authentic camping experience. I mention roasting sticks; he prefers whittling a stick. I mention a sleeping pad; he insists camping is about sleeping on the ground. What should we eat? Tin foil dinners of course! We had a blast and it was really cute to see Jake get so dang happy about camping, and playing with fire, and looking for kindling.

We went with my friend Kailee and her new fiancee Dan. (Not that she had an old fiancee. They are just recently engaged - Oct. 10, 2014!) We couldn't leave at the same time and didn't know exactly where we'd end up...which proved to be slightly problematic when we realized we had NO phone reception. So after we found our spot, I left Jake to set up and I drove the 20 minutes back down the canyon to deliver the message to Kailee where we were.

The night before we left, Jake set up the tent in our living room to make sure he had all the pieces. I wasn't around at the time, and even though he sent me a picture, I didn't realize how small the tent is. It's a two-man tent, which is perfect for us...I just was caught off guard haha. But it was cute and warm and comfy snuggly next to that hot hubby of mine.

We are already planning our next camping adventure! Suggestions? Send them my way.

Jake REALLY likes his Capri Sun. Don't you LOVE his hat? :D

My Name is Everywhere

It's official; I've changed my name. Introducing Mrs. Karianne Ortiz.

Social Security? Check. Driver's license? Check? W-2s, bank accounts, and social media accounts. Check, check, and check.

I never thought much about what is now my new last name. I didn't even make the Latin connection until people repeatedly ask me where the name came from. I guess I didn't even think about it...ever. (For the record, Jake is 1/2 Puerto Rican. While he doesn't look it, most of his siblings do.)

Since I've known Jake, I've slowly started to see more and more "Ortiz" around me. Baseball players. T.v. characters. Names on the news. Mutual friends.

Ortiz is everywhere! And I never even knew it.

My former name is rather unique. It's long and not common. So when I head to Google and type it in, most everything in the first 3-4 pages is about me.

Not the case with Karianne Ortiz. Ortiz is common enough, but we'll have to work on the presence of it combined with Karianne. I'd rather see stuff about me than random Facebook accounts with Photoshopped pictures of girls with huge butts.

This One Time...10-Year-Old Boys Hit On Me At the Pool

Today Jake and I headed to the pool on this sunny Saturday afternoon. As we are enjoying the water, I look up and see this kid standing by the side of the pool watching us. I don't think anything of it until I catch him looking again...once...twice...three times.

"I think that kid is watching me," I tell Jake.

This kid who is yes, probably 10—at most 12.

The next time I see him, he makes eye contact, blows two kissy faces my way, and jumps into the water to join his friends.

The next 15 or 20 minutes then include these three little boys blowing kisses my way and making the Taylor Swift hand heart—with the occasional wink thrown in. Jake and I try to do our own things and not pay attention, but at one point Jake just kisses me—you know, to claim his territory. They got a kick out of that—with some oooOOOOOoooo's and then some encouragement like, "Hey, you're on the Kiss Cam" and "You can do better than that!"

At this point we are in the middle of the 6-foot-deep water, so of course they can't get anywhere really close to us. (Granted, I can't really hang out there by myself either, but I've got a tall husband to hang onto to keep me from A—drowning and B—exhaustion from treading water.) But these boys enjoy hanging out by the side and keep watching us.

So we swim back to the middle of the pool when they are distracted and are there for maybe 5 minutes when they get OUT of the water looking for us and then start getting into our area. Jake dives us underwater where we sneakily head back to the deep waters and then sneak out to sit on our towels.

No more than 5 minutes later, these boys are as close as they dare get making their faces and signals. The initial boy is now WAVING ME OVER. Really, boy...really? I wave him off, shake my head, and put on my "don't bother me look" complete with sunglasses, hat, headphones, and book. Boys, do you realize I could be your mother?

And that was my day at the pool.

P.S. I am definitely NOT married to a 10-year old. I snapped some stalker model shots of my hot husband when he wasn't looking. Luckily, I don't think he reads my blog. We'll see if I hear anything about this later...

Oo-la-la! 

Getting Back

The hardest part of getting back into something is the very first step.

You take two weeks off from the gym...the first time walking back into a class.
You have a disagreement with a friend...the first time talking to them again.

...picking up a book after you haven't read in months
...choosing carrots and salad over fast food
...spending time being productive rather than watching television.

For me, today, this post is my first step back into blogging.

I haven't even attempted to blog since the middle of March, but I can't tell you how many times I've turned down the urge to post because I've already missed so much, feel like I need an introduction back, or can't decide where to start.

Blogging is one outlet that allows me to express thoughts, share ideas, motivate productivity, and feel accomplished. My background in journalism continually motivates me to take ideas, experiences, and projects and present them to the world. I've been stifling that urge.

So tonight, 11:15 pm on a Thursday evening, I've taking the first step. Tomorrow (or the next day--I'm not making any promises), I'll take the second step, and it will be just a little easier.

Cheers—and here's to loving life.

Wedding Planning - Oh the Joys!

I've wanted to post a little more often about the process of planning our upcoming wedding (mostly for my personal record) and have simply not done that great of job. The countdown app on my phone now reads 58 days. We are almost halfway through March, and I know Jake and I will be on flights out to D.C. before we know it.

Side note: We did briefly discuss getting married on March 16. That would have been this weekend! Yikes! 

I know I would have moved a lot faster if our wedding date were sooner, but my days are still filled with constant wedding-related thoughts. I am VERY lucky at this point to have a pretty flexible schedule and have the time to dedicated to check things off my to-do list. I am also very lucky to have Jake be involved in everything. And that his school load this semester is a little lighter and allows him to be less stressed with that.

At this moment, (well not at THIS moment since I'm taking a break to blog), I'm finalizing the design for our invitations. Yes, I am designing them. And Jake is on his computer next to me finalizing some wedding odds and ends he can take care of online. He is the best!

So far my LEAST favorite wedding task is finding a dress. I'm not a glitzy, showy person, so I feel really uncomfortable in most dresses. Last week I end up ordering four—yes, four—dresses online from Macy's and Nordstroms. The last two—including my favorite one—are supposed to arrive today. We'll see if I have to venture to stores again. I hope hope hope not.

The first thing we did was find the date and then spent a week or two conversing with our families finding the best option for our reception. Everything has been pretty low-key and so far we've been good at checking things off our to-do lists.

Back in January, Jake and I created an overall list of everything we needed to get done. I compared it with our timeline and added all of our tasks on the appropriate dates with most tasks assigned to a week. Those tasks all show up on Sundays so we usually take a few minutes each week to review what we are focusing on that week.

This week our focus was housing! I've had a Google Doc spreadsheet with options I've found throughout the past several weeks. We've contacted a landlord and, while we are pretty sure we'll get the apartment, we are still waiting about reference approvals and being able to pay a deposit.

I feel like this post is a bit random. But just typing has given me some ideas for other post directions. Hopefully you'll be hearing from me soon!

It's Time for the Proposal Story

I had already started writing this post when I realized today is the 19th...which means Jake and I have been engaged for exactly one month. Wow, that has flown by! Only 11 weeks and 3 days left. Or 80 days. Or 1,931 hours. Or 115,860 minutes. But who's counting, right? 

This story begins, for me, back in January, probably around the 5th. At least, that's when I realized a proposal may be coming soon.

Jake and I were together that evening looking at some calendar items. I saw his birthday on my phone and mentioned something about it. He told me not to make plans that evening and that he wanted to plan a night with just us. That's what got my mind rolling about the idea. Looking back, Jake says that he wasn't thinking about proposing that night. I don't know if I believe that. It seemed so obvious to me.

The next couple weeks, I saw clues popping up everywhere. Mentions of a secret I'd find out about soon. Comments in conversations with friends. Little things here and there that under normal circumstances might not stand out. But PROPOSAL was on my mind, and I saw mention of it everywhere. Jake definitely stepped up his romantic side (he's always great at that anyways) and surprised me with notes, little presents, and a ton of cute comments about me and our relationship.

As his birthday inched closer, Jake expanded his request for me to not make plans to the entire weekend. Don't plan anything all weekend.

On the Wednesday before that weekend, Jake and I were together at his house both on computers doing homework (him) and working on client projects (me) when he asked something along these lines: "If I planned a big date, would you want to know details or would you want to be surprised?"

"Hmm. I'd be ok being surprised."

That satisfied him for a few minutes, but he couldn't hold in the news when he excitedly asked "Want to go to Vegas this weekend?"

Jake served his mission in Vegas, and we had talked about going to visit before. So the idea wasn't completely random. Again, not necessarily suspicious in other circumstances. Jake thought I'd like a little notice to pack and such, rather than surprising me with that. He told me to pack for an evening out, church, and hiking.

We set out on our drive around 6 am Saturday morning. We both really enjoy road trips and had a splendid time talking, listening to music (yes, I made him listen to multiple Taylor Swift albums), joking and having fun. We arrived at the home of a family from his mission where we brought in our bags, chatted, and prepared to head to the strip for the evening. We walked around for just a little bit, watched the Bellagio fountain show, and headed to see the Blue Man Group.

I could tell Jake was waiting for the right moment. And that he had considered popping the question at the fountains, but in the end, he didn't feel that the atmosphere was right for our relationship. I was simply enjoying spending time with my favorite person and trying not to make him any more nervous. As we headed back for the evening, I knew he was a little disappointed and a little stressed about finding the right moment. He was so darn cute. I was trying not to focus on anything and to simply let things happen—or not happen—as they may.

Sunday morning we got dressed up in our church clothes and headed to Calico Basin. Because of schedule conflicts, we opted to enjoy the outdoors with a casual boardwalk stroll instead of a formal hike. The boardwalk makes a big loop around the area. We took things slow, stopping often, chatting, holding hands, kissing...being a really annoying cheesy couple. In the center of the boardwalk, there's a big deck type of area. We made our way there, enjoying the scenery, the weather, and the company.

This was the moment. I knew it.

Jake knew it too. He stops me and looks me in the eye. I will forever remember the intensity on his face. Leading up to this moment, he shared a poem in pieces every few steps. I'll spare you the details, but it was full cheese, expressing love and happiness and the such. Yes, I loved it. As he looks at me, he asks what I want out of life. After my response, he says how much he loves me. He smoothly pulls the ring out of his pocket, gets down on one knee, and asks me to marry him.

I immediately pull him up, kiss him, and say yes. He has to stop me to say, "You've got to put on the ring!" Oh yea. The ring is on. We are engaged.

We continue our little stroll holding hands, being really happy, with me more than occasionally staring at the ring on my finger. We continued the day by attending a ward Jake served in and visiting another family from his mission—their home is where Jake first introduced me as his fiance.

The family whose home we stayed out provided a fantastic meal for dinner and for Jake's birthday. After dinner, we headed back on the road where we made our phone calls to family and began discussing all the splendid planning details that follow an engagement.

If you haven't heard, we are getting married in the Washington, D.C. LDS temple on May 10. Thank you for all your support and excitement!

Motivation Monday: Track Your Progress

First off, for those of you who do not know me in person or stay up-to-date on social media, I have an announcement.

I'm engaged!

Yes, that tidbit of information deserves a post of its own, and in all honesty I haven't posted about anything else because I felt as though a future marriage announcement deserved a presence on my blog first. I've been meaning to write a post on the subject, but time keeps flying by, and—hey—I've been busy. But don't worry; if you want all the details, I'll share those here soon.

Now on to Motivation Monday.

In January I implemented "simplicity" as the theme for the month. I can't believe January is over, but I've been thinking A LOT about what I want to focus on for February. I kinda categorize January as "Before He Proposed" and "After He Proposed," and I feel that the short phrase I've selected will help me tackle all of my goals/focus from both before and after.

"The most important key in finding success is tracking your progress."

I've kept it simple (inspired by January's theme) to allow it to apply to a variety of topics. I've found that I feel more on top of things anytime I'm really good at tracking things. Throughout February I'm going to focus on tracking the following:

• Calories Burned 
• I want to make use of my Polar FT4 heart rate monitor and keep track of the calories I burn in all of my classes as well as my additional exercise endeavors.
• Calories Eaten
• After I have the calories burned accounted for, I want to make sure my body gets back the calories it needs. I rarely eat enough on a day to day basis, so I want to focus on feeding my body properly to give it the nutrients and energy needed to operate in the best way possible every day.
• Fruits and Veggies 
• Also connected to the various two points, I want to increase the presence of fruits and veggies in my diet. Yes, I eat these pretty regularly, but I was inspired to track it via the Gym Pact app I've mentioned before. The company added a new pact for eating a certain number of fruits and veggies each week. I'm trying it this week...I set my pact for 7 this week since I wasn't sure how it worked. I got credit for 5 today (which I learned is the max). I think next week I'll do 25 or 30.  (Side note: The company also added a pact to track your calories eaten through MyFitnessPal. I've done that before and may do it too since I'm trying to get enough calories anyways. We'll see.
• Following Budgets
• I've been focusing on organizing my finances for a while, so I want to focus on incorporating and following the budgets I've set. I want to challenge myself to only spend a certain amount of money each month on food, entertainment, etc. I'll be doing the same thing as my fiance and I plan our wedding. I want to operate having a clear outlook and what I have available and making the most of what's available.
• Scripture/Gospel Study
• How about I put together a little schedule that actually gives me some direction in my study? Yea, that's a good idea.
• Cleaning Schedule
• Yea, because otherwise I put off EVERYTHING.
• Wedding Planning Calendar
• My fiance and I are both very organized about this and currently have several shared Google Docs and Calendars outline what needs to be done and when and by whom. We are definitely going to have to be moving forward on lots of things this month. Tracking is key.

Those are just a few aspects of my life that are on my mind that will help me feel oh so much better about my outlook on everything on my plate. 

If you want to track your progress on something/anything, let me know so we can support each other!

Motivation Monday: Rejoice in the Way Things Are. The World Belongs To You.

Be content with what you have. Rejoice in the way things are. When you realize there is nothing lacking, the whole world belongs to you. —Lao Tzu

Hello folks! This Motivation Monday ties in with a lot of things on my mind lately, so I go into a lot of that here. I'm loving my focus on simplicity this month. While I have a loooong ways to go in regards to implementing the principle in my life, the constant reminder (I have the phrase printed on the white board above my kitchen sink) is helping me approach my daily tasks in a more straightforward manner that results in more productivity and a less occupied mind. 

A less occupied mind. 

Granted, that phrasing is not the most eloquent description. I guess the concept is allowing yourself to focus solely on the present moment without being distracted by dozens of other concerns. In short, striving for simplicity in thoughts.

Instead of creating clutter via your thoughts, take care of things when they pop up. Instead of thinking day after day that I need to clear off the papers on my fridge, I can take 30 seconds to clear it off right now. By doing so, I've eliminated both physical and mental clutter and am able to focus on the present matter.

In Relief Society (an organization in the LDS church specifically for women) a couple weeks ago, one of the girls mentioned a study focused on mental wellbeing. The article "Living the moment really does make people happier" outlines the study and provides some links to further information if you want to check it out. 

The study found that people spend 46.7 percent of their time thinking about something OTHER than what they are currently doing. That's almost HALF of their time. Isn't that kinda crazy? 

What are you doing right now? Are you thinking about anything else? Are you focused on something else? 

Here's a excerpt from the article:

"The team concluded that reminiscing, thinking ahead or daydreaming tends to make people more miserable, even when they are thinking about something pleasant." (emphasis added).

When I first heard about the study, I instantly though back to one particular day during my study abroad experience in London. This random day stands out to me as perhaps the most enjoyable of all the days in my several months there. And I think the reason is directly related to the focus on what was at hand. I headed out for a day by myself in the city. I wasn't thinking about communicating with my classmates or worried about a particular deadline. I was simply able to be. And enjoy. I came home that day happy, energized, and content with everything I experienced. Here's a portion of the journal entry I wrote:

"While I have always loved big cities and the busy rush that accompanies them, my first couple of weeks in London had led me to question my fix with city life. I was enjoying my experience but starting to wonder what the big deal was, why so much fuss and excitement about such cities existed. I suppose these feelings were likely motivated by the sudden changes in my life. One day I was in Provo, Utah, spending time with family and friends, and one relatively short plane ride later, I was sharing a flat in a foreign country with 50 other people I barely knew. I usually adapt to changes pretty easily, but this time I had a bit of a challenge leaving behind pretty much everything I was used to. 

Today allowed me to refocus and to appreciate everything I was experiencing. I finally took the opportunity to do something I've been meaning to do for several days now—I ventured into the city by myself. The experience surpassed almost everything that I've done so far, even though my adventure around London was actually pretty typical of a day out here."

To tie everything together, my intent is to continue focusing on simplicity. To simply embrace the current moment and acknowledge it for all the great things it holds. To truly live in the moment and focus on the happiness life offers.  

Be content with what you have. Rejoice in the way things are. When you realize there is nothing lacking, the whole world belongs to you. —Lao Tzu

An Informal Indesign Training

Tuesday a friend and I had a little informal opportunity to teach some basics of the program Indesign. I've taught similar things before and hope to teach many more, both in informal and formal settings.

To give you a quick overview of what we covered, check out the slideshare presentation.

After sharing some basics about what Indesign is and what it does, we talked about some basic design principles and compared the program to features of Photoshop and Illustrator.

I then walked them through some basics of the program while recreating a project I had previously created. At the end of my little tutorial, I showed them my final projects and reviewed further aspects of the program. Some of the things we covered included the following.

1. How to create a text box
2. How to edit text
3. What tracking and leading are
4. How to place an image
5. How to wrap text around an image
6. How to connect text boxes
7. How to incorporate color
8. An overview of RGB, CMYK, and Pantone colors
9. How to fit or fill frames with images
10. How to create, edit, and use master pages
11. How to use paragraph styles
12. Working with both Photoshop and Illustrator elements in Indesign

I'd love to do more basic tutorials and continue outlining a course description. Any Indesign users out there? Let me know your suggestions or what you'd like to learn.

Here are a few examples of some of my own projects completed in Indesign: Ads & Publication Design, Flyers & Marketing, Invitations & Postcards.

Frozen: You're Not Awkward, I'm Awkward. You're Gorgeous. Wait, what?

Last night Jake (my bf) and I headed to the movie theater for a late showing of Frozen. Given that this movie has been out for a little while AND the fact that the movie's typical audience had probably been asleep for a few hours, we had the theater to ourselves.

OK, fine. I'll admit having the whole theater to ourselves only lasted a few minutes as the late stragglers arrived.

I had been hearing good things about the movie but all I knew was that 1) it was a musical and 2) it was about two sisters.

We both really enjoyed the movie. I did like that there were lots of songs, but I think I'd have to watch the movie a few more times (i.e. get to know the songs) to really enjoy and appreciate them.

P.S. I do admit that after seeing "Saving Mr. Banks" a few weeks ago, I kept thinking about the development team behind the movie and wondering how everything came together.

The dialogue was also fun and witty. Here are some of my favorite parts.

This isn't quite confirmed, but I *thiink* my favorite song was "Fixer Upper"


I'm awkward. You're gorgeous.

All men do it:

Winter's a good time to cuddle...put me in summer and I'll be a...happy snowman.

I'm gonna tell him. Don't you dare.

You hesitated. 

Motivation Monday: Simplicity

Saturday I spent most of my day packing up Christmas decor, which then led to some deep cleaning and organizing. I've been doing this a lot lately, and I decided an appropriate theme for me this January is "simplicity."

Why do I like this theme? 

I think I'm in constant pursuit to improve my life and become a better person. When I think about simplicity, I think about a life that is free from distractions, a life in which I can focus on what matters to me, where I'm only surrounded by things (physical, mentally, emotionally) that contribute to me being the best me, where I feel on top of my responsibilities, where I just DO things rather than dwelling on any possible hurdle.

That, to me, is simplicity. Let's keep things simple. 

Here are some of the things I've done so far:

* Majorly cleaned out my clothing closet

* Sold/given away things I've had sitting around waiting to be sold

* Organized my storage closet

* Organized and consolidated my kitchen

* Started organizing my finances and bank accounts so they aren't so darn complicated 

* Went down to only teaching 9 classes a week (compared to 13+)

Here are some things I want to do:

* Establish a simple financial plan with money automatically going where it needs to go, so I can simply follow the plan and not have to move money manually so often.

* Implement a consistent billing process for my clients

* Simply put things back where they belong when I am done using/wearing them

* Strive to keep surfaces clear in my home

* Dedicate specific time each week to gradually learn choreography (rather than stressing and adding new stuff all at once)

* Continue ridding my life of junk (includes next going through my bookshelves, bathroom cabinets, and various other storage)

* Focus on doing rather than planning or perfection. I tend to focus on the later and then may not do anything at all. (e.g. reading a column of scripture rather than fretting about a long study, clearing off one section of a cabinet rather than trying to find time for a big cleaning extravaganza, texting someone a quick hello rather than trying to schedule a lunch date, etc. etc.)

And so much more. 

So there you have it. My motivational focus for this lovely January of what I believe is going to be an excellent year. Here's to 2014. (P.S. I have an odd prejudice against odd numbers...I love even numbers. 4 is my favorite. 14 is my second favorite. I'm excited about 2014.)