April 2019.

This year, as do all prior years, just seems to be passing so quickly. There are so many things to do and get done. Now that winter seems to almost be gone now in North Carolina, it's time to think about planting flowers and hanging string lights on the back porch and enjoying warmer nights outside. I am all for it! But first, I have my big test looming in less than 60 days. So, after this last weekend in March, I'll go back into hibernation for a couple of months to shove my nose in my books, flip through my flash cards and get in as much studying as I can between now and then. The house projects will wait until after it's over - hopefully I can put the study materials away and enjoy the fruits of my labor. We'll see. Besides studying my butt off, here are my plans for the month of April:

1. Attend church at least twice (Easter Sunday counts!)
2. Contact company to move my thermostat
a. Contact painters about repairing and painting my drywall (2 places)
3. As much as I want to SPEND on new spring things...continue to pay down balance for Account #2 (to be paid off by/for my birthday in June)
4. Start doing all the things I need to do to change me and my life instead of just talking about it and planning it...I just need to DO IT! These "things" include:
a. Hit the gym...a lot. M-F before work + Sundays after church. No skipping days no matter how jell-o-y my legs feel.
b. Getting my butt to the gym before work means getting my body in bed by 9:30 pm. This means leaving my phone somewhere else - it is so easy to lay in bed and stay on that thing for an hour. I have 2 other obnoxious alarms so oversleeping isn't really a fear anymore. Plus, I love my sound machine.
c. Establish morning and nightly beauty/self-care routines that go beyond my post-shower use of my Rodan+Fields regimen:
- Brush and floss after every mean (at work, this should help with my chronic all-day snacking!)
- Use ACT after brushing and flossing (per my dentist's instruction, this is more important than brushing?!)
- Use a charcoal or clay mask once a week (this should be easier to do since I'm going into hibernation from things happening at night on the weekends)
- Clean my face. Don't get me wrong, I use make up remover wipes pretty regularly but I'm super bad at washing my face (when I'm not in the shower). I have this wonderful spin brush from Vanity Planet that I love, face cleanser that smells great...it just hasn't been a priority.
- Use Beauty Counter's Resurfacing Peel + Moisturizer a minimum of 3x/week (Slowly, I'm making the switch over to more of their products...and the Peel is awesome. I used it once and the next morning, my forehead already looked less pimply.)
- Dermaflash at least once. It didn't really do for me what it does in the videos, but I also didn't properly prep so I'm wondering if I really follow all the directions, I'll get better results.
- Use my face sucker at least once a week. I just like saying "face sucker." :)
5. 30 DAY CHALLENGE
+ DRINK ONLY: juice, water, Clearly Canadian, daily smoothie (I have to start making my own - this has become an expensive choice at nearly $4 each). I don't know how I feel about alcohol...I generally don't drink that much when I'm home, so I'm not saying I won't have any, but I doubt I'll have the equivalent of a 6-pk by month's end -- plus, I don't drink beer. So it'd be cider or wine. Ooh trouble. LOL
+ EAT: no bread/gluten-containing foods. Stick to what I prepare myself and GF options. For the most part, I am good about this -- except when it comes to sweets. Goodbye M&Ms. :(
+ NO CRAP: I really want to know if removing soda, bread and crap from my diet along with adequate exercise will cure my skin conditions (eczema & allergic reactions)
+ AT HOME CHALLENGE: On top of going to the gym in the mornings, I also want to do an evening challenge of body weight movements...mostly so that when I come home after work, I keep moving and just don't melt into the sofa. I'm thinking either a 3 RFT or an AMRAP...nothing crazy.
- OH PVC Squats
- Lunges
- Glute Bridges
- Fire Hydrants
- Donkey Kicks
- Sit Ups

The "moral of the story" is I'm not getting any younger and if I don't start really taking care of myself now, I don't know what's going to happen. 30 days...I'll give myself 30 days and see if I can change my life for the better.