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Thankful Thursday 17: New Beginnings

Welcome to the seventeenth instalment of my Thankful Thursday series, New Beginnings!

Here we are again, finally on a Thursday! I’m really proud of myself for getting this post up today, because it’s been a crazy week. Yesterday totally felt like Friday. Anyone feel me?! Three big things have gotten going for me this week: Work, which for me is teaching high school French full-time; Grad school, which is my Masters in Education at UBC; and the youth club rugby season, for which I am a coach. Phew!

This week, probably unsurprisingly, I’m focusing on gratitude for new beginnings.

Here’s my Thankful Thursday for the week of August 31 – September 6, 2018!

Things I am thankful for over the past week:

Over the weekend I got kind of “nest-y” in the sense that I cleaned a lot. It was kind of born from a want to start both of my school years off on the right foot. But I also fear that I will be too busy to clean very much for the next 3.5 months, so I decided I better get started with a very clean slate before things go down the tubes. I am thankful that I had the motivation and energy to do this over the weekend.

Part of my nesting process was continuing to work on my new shelf unit and finally framing the artwork I had done of my dog, Jazzy.

Another part of my nesting was reorganizing my bookshelves in the bedroom so that I can fit more books on them. The whole of the top is only Harry Potter!

I need another grateful word for PSLs. I’ve had so many already. I often say that coffee is my comfort drink. Pumpkin spice lattes are my greatest comfort of the comfort. They are just the greatest and make everything brighter. Half sweet, though, of course.
On Sunday, we finally had a really good air quality day, and I was able to go for a run. I intended to do about 7k, but felt fantastic and kicked it up to 10. It’s the longest run since I completed my second half-marathon of the year in June, and I was so excited. I also especially love my longer runs because I get to this part of the seawall:

The view of the Lions Gate from the seawall is one of my favourites. This part of the seawall is also always much quieter than everywhere else!

The inukshuk guy was also out on the seawall when I was running and it was fascinating to watch him.

Yesterday night, Andrew and I went to the new ice cream place on Thurlow called Perverted. I got the lemon, which is cream soft serve with lemon drizzle, graham cracker, and toasted marshmallow. So good!

And finally, the theme for this week, New Beginnings!

This week I’m feeling really grateful for the new beginnings I’ve experienced this week.

First, work started back up, and I’m really thankful to have a job that is always new and exciting. Now, I’m the first person to say that I don’t much like change. However, I think that if my job were the same every day year in and year out, I would go insane (not that I’m not already, haha). I love that teaching changes every year. But I’m also thankful for little things that don’t change – this is the first time I’m getting to teach students I taught last year. Walking into that classroom on Tuesday morning to a group of familiar faces was so wonderful. New, but still the same! Magic.

I also started my Masters on Tuesday. This semester I’m taking two classes. It’s going to be a lot because they’re both on campus at UBC, which is a trek from West Van where I work. Also, working full-time and doing school at the same time is a lot in general. I did it two years ago to get my pre-requisite diploma, so I know. It’s certainly going to be a challenge for my mental health.

Thankfully, with these changes and beginnings, I’ve still been really focusing on my physical health through my workout program, and my nutrition. One of my biggest priorities is to make sure I don’t let that slide.

The last thing to start this week was rugby. Unfortunately I won’t be able to make practices this term because of school, but I am going to be at all the games and I’m really looking forward to it!

There you have it!

So, that’s my Thankful Thursday list for this week. I hope it inspires you to make your own, and get on that gratitude train!

Peace and love,

Bee

Thankful Thursday 16: Breakthrough

Welcome to the sixteenth instalment of my Thankful Thursday series, Breakthrough!

I’m coming back at you on a Friday again. I’m getting into the swing of things slowly but surely before work starts up again and grad school starts up for the first time, both on Tuesday!

This week I’m focusing on gratitude for a breakthrough I had mid-week.

Here’s my Thankful Thursday for the week of August 24 – August 30, 2018!

Things I am thankful for over the past week:

I lost my glasses on our trip to NB, and on Friday my new ones arrived and I love them:

Funko HQ!!

This place deserves its own subtitle. On Saturday, I drove to Everett, Washington. I went there because it’s the home of Funko HQ, and a friend that I met on Bookstagram and I decided to meet up there! She lives in Seattle, so it was a place in between Seattle and Vancouver for us to get together. It was AMAZING.

The day we were there, you could build your own monster or Freddy funko.

Posing with a life-size Hagrid funko! (And two of the five funko I purchased.)

My friend and I also hit up this beautiful coffee shop called Narrative, both before and after our Funko HQ adventure.

Other things I’ve been thankful for this week

It’s been a pretty quiet week in terms of doing things or going places. And it’s been nice sometimes, but also pretty dreadful others. Sometimes I get so anxious that I fall into a depression, and that happened to me this week. One thing that helped to start bringing me out of it was following the suggestion of a mental health advocate on Instagram and posting a selfie of myself in the sun.
I did it, and the supportive response was really amazing.
A lot of my quiet time this week involved coffee and reading in the sun, which is pretty much my favourite thing ever.
I also took some time to make my cozy space a little neater and more spacious, and I feel like it’s so much better now! I find that living in a small space I have to be really conscious of the things I keep and how I organize and I’m constantly moving things around to make it work better. This also goes along with the tendency my anxiety has to go up incrementally in tandem with the cleanliness/organization level of my space.
Finally, pumpkin spice is BACK! And as much as I’m sad to see summer go, autumn is my second-favourite season, and PSLs are my all-time favourite hot drink (but half-sweet, because holy is that syrup ever brain-tinglingly sweet). I’ve had three already. I know, I have a problem. TAKE MY MONEY, STARBUCKS!!!

And finally, the theme for this week, Breakthrough!

This week I have some major gratitude for a breakthrough I’ve made. Since getting back from our trip to NB, I’ve spent a lot of time feeling depressed. Like I said above, when my anxiety gets really bad, it transforms itself into this full-blown depression monster who also has anxiety, and it’s the worst thing ever. I have already started brainstorming a post to tell you all about it. For now, just know that most days in the past couple weeks I’ve been pretty comatose.

On Monday or Tuesday, however, I had a major AHA! moment, and since then I’ve been slowly climbing my way out of that dark hole. My motivation, happiness, purpose, inspiration… everything – I guess you’d call it mojo – is starting to come back. I’m going to write a whole post on this soon. I wanted to share about it now though because it was so meaningful for me this week. I’m really thankful for all the things I was doing in my life even though I felt like shit that helped the breakthrough to happen.

There you have it!

So, that’s my Thankful Thursday list for this week. I hope it inspires you to make your own, and get on that gratitude train!

Peace and love,

Bee

Thankful Thursday 15: Movement

Welcome to the fifteenth instalment of my Thankful Thursday series, Movement!

It’s been about a month! For my husband and I, it’s been a month FULL of travel, so I took almost all that time off from blogging. We hit up Seattle for four Blue Jays games, and went to our hometown in New Brunswick to visit friends and family.

Now that I’m back, this week I’m focusing on gratitude for movement.

Here’s my Thankful Thursday for the week of August 17 – August 23, 2018!

Things I am thankful for over the past week:

On Friday, our last full day in NB, Andrew and I hosted a BBQ at his parents’ house with a ton of our friends and their kids. Great food, company, and baby cuddles, what more could a girl want?!
Our trip back to Vancouver on Saturday went off pretty much without a hitch. Even though it was smoky when we got home, it wasn’t too hot in the apartment, and we slept well and adjusted to the four-hour time change quickly,
We grabbed brunch at our favourite weekend haunt Sunday morning – I’m sure that helped us adapt, too!
On Monday, I did a whole bunch of major adulting things make me anxious – getting things sorted for the upcoming start of my M.Ed. program, and making phone calls for things like car maintenance, car insurance renewal, and getting my new glasses.
I spent a lot of time reading and relaxing.
I took the time to enjoy the chalk art that has taken over my home corner of Robson Street recently.
And although I really hate the smoke because it’s keeping me cooped up inside, it does make for some eerily cool photos.
On the way to Starbucks, very close to my home. It felt like walking around in a dystopia that day!

The view from my counsellor’s office. Normally you can see a huge stretch of North Shore mountains. Not so on this day!

Out our apartment window, that crazy, yellow, hazy post-apocalyptic light.

And the theme for this week, Movement!

This week I’ve felt gratitude for the exercise routine I’ve gotten myself into over the last month. I believe I mentioned in my last Thankful Thursday post that I started a new workout program. I’m doing Kayla Itsines’ BBG program using the Sweat app. And it’s doing me a world of good. I knew I wanted to do a body weight exercise-based program to go along with a reduced running schedule as cross-training during the half-marathon off-season (which for me is July through December). I’d seen a few others trying and loving this program, and it was easily accessible for me and reasonably priced ($20 a month, and I can do it at home!).

It has been really smoky here in BC since we got back from vacation. I am so thankful that I’m in the rhythm of doing these workouts, because I’m still getting my body moving even though I can’t run outside now. I’ve always needed to exercise regularly for my mental health. Even though I’ve done the BBG workouts, I’m still feeling antsy because I haven’t been able to go for a run. But I am thankful for the movement I have been able to do! And to get some cardio in this morning I pulled the stationary bike out of the closet to do a little HIIT.

A little more about BBG

I love everything about this program except its name. BBG stands for Bikini Body Guide. Ugh, even typing it out makes me cringe. All bodies are bikini bodies, not just bodies that are as RIDICULOUSLY sculpted as the trainers in the program videos. I have to admit, it would be nice to see someone a bit more average-sized demonstrating the exercises in the app occasionally. I’m not trying to be down on myself, but with the lifestyle that I want I am realistically never going to look like Kayla, and sometimes it makes me feel bad. I’m human.

Anyway, the program is composed of three resistance sessions a week that take 35-40 minutes each. Then, you can do whatever kind of cardio movement you want three times a week. For me, this is running, obviously (or stationary biking this week, due to the smoke). It can be hiking, swimming, walking, biking, whatever. The last part is recovery. One day a week is completely off, and one day you incorporate a stretch and foam roller session. I think this is a really great balance that helps me keep my running legs. And I also get to build muscle and strength to help me do even better next half-marathon season. Plus, it’s structure that works really well for my mental health. It’s gotten me into a really great routine, so it’s easy to motivate myself to do it. And it’s almost daily, so my anxiety levels are partly managed by all that movement.

There you have it!

So, that’s my Thankful Thursday list for this week. I hope it inspires you to make your own, and get on that gratitude train!

Peace and love,

Bee

Thankful Thursday 14: Home(body)

Welcome to the fourteenth instalment of my Thankful Thursday series, Home(body)!

This week I’m focusing on gratitude for home and everything it entails: my home city, being home from my vacation, my home (apartment), and as I refer to in my title, my act of being a homebody.

Here’s my Thankful Thursday for the weeks of July 20 – July 26, 2018!

Things I am thankful for over the past week:

I had a busy first day back, and it really helped me get over the fatigue of the long drive from Calgary and get back into the swing of things.
This past weekend, I participated in the 24in48 Readathon, which I really enjoyed. I ended up reading for 17.5 hours in 48 hours between Friday and Sunday. You can read about my experience on my book blog.
Starting off the readathon in style on Saturday morning. And I’m still obsessed with my sloth mug.
The weekend was also filled with rugby! Friday to Sunday was the Rugby World Cup 7s, so that was on pretty much all day each day.
My life looked like this for most of the weekend.
Andrew and I played golf again at the Stanley Park Pitch & Putt!

It was a beautiful morning!
I had a couple of appointments this week and those often cause me a lot of anxiety but they went well. And now I can breathe a sigh of relief that they’re over!
On Monday, I biked the seawall to one of the quieter beaches to sunbathe and read.

My best friend and I went to high tea at Honey & Salt (one of the restaurants at the new Parq casino in Yaletown) and it was delicious. We also walked home and I finally got to see the beautiful umbrella installation near Yaletown-Roundhouse station.
Not pictured: The two crêpes that were also included.
On Wednesday morning, I went for a run and got treated to a beautifully calm sunrise.
Wednesday was also my husband and I’s third wedding anniversary, which is always a really happy day.
Image by Sean McGrath.
Andrew is an excellent gift giver, and he usually tries to go super literal with the traditional anniversary gift each year. This year, he told me it was difficult to find “tanned leather hides” (you can Google it), so he went whole hog with a bunch of leather items, themed around our upcoming travel and of course, colour coordinated to our wedding. New, much-needed purse, purple leather manicure kit, portable jewelry case (with a hidden compartment for necklaces), leather pencil-case, teal leather clutch (also much-needed), luggage tags, and bracelets for future Canada days together.

Finally, today I started doing a new workout program as part of my half-marathon off-season cross training. It was hard, but I know it was a great workout, so I’m going to keep at it!

And the theme for this week, Home(body)!

This week I’ve felt a really big sense of gratitude for everything that is home to me.

Home

First, I pretty much invariably feel thankful for Vancouver any time I go away. I love to travel, but dang I love my city. Every time I get home to this place, even when I’m sitting in the same place in traffic for twenty minutes because of a road closure (what happened this time), I fall in love all over again.

Home is also a person for me, my husband. Even just being away for a week reminds me of all the reasons why I love him so much. As they say, absence makes the heart grow stronger.

Returning home after being away also makes me remember how much gratitude I have for our little apartment. It’s not new, or modern, and it’s definitely not spacious, but it’s ours. Our personalities are everywhere in this little space, and I’ve spent 8 years curating it into a place that makes me so happy. My book nook. The couch by our window with the view I love so much. My desk. The library. My plant babies. There is so much for me to love about this place, and I need to remind myself of this the next time I scream about needing a dishwasher or not wanting to go down to the basement with the laundry.

Homebody

Finally, I’m really thankful to be able to be a homebody at this point in my life. I’ve spent most of this week in my apartment. Yes, I’ve exercised outside. I’ve gone to the beach. Hung out with a friend (twice). Had four appointments. Gone out for food with my husband (also twice). I’ve visited friends and their adorable kids. I’ve played golf. But really, I’ve spent at least 90% of my time at my desk, cleaning my apartment, in my bed, on my chair in my reading nook, or on the couch. I’m really trying to take the time to journal, write, read, and think. To spend time just being with myself, and learning and growing. I’m getting cozy. I’m relaxing. It’s definitely been much-needed. And I’m thankful for it.

There you have it!

So, that’s my Thankful Thursday list for this week. I hope it inspires you to make your own, and get on that gratitude train!

Peace and love,

Bee

Thankful Thursday 8: Healing

Welcome to the eighth instalment of my Thankful Thursday, Healing! I’m really late this time, even with the best of intentions. I actually finished the post a while ago and then forgot to actually hit the button. I think I’m going to stop making promises, considering I’m in the thick of the last two weeks of school!

This week I’m focusing on gratitude for healing that has happened this week, both mentally and physically.

Here’s my Thankful Thursday for the Week of June 1 – June 7, 2018!

Things I am thankful for this week:

I got a yummy donut and coffee for Camp Day at Tim’s
We celebrated #nationaldonutday with Lucky’s

It’s been kind of grey but still warm
I’ve been really busy (more on that in a minute) but I haven’t dropped the ball on anything, which feels awesome
I went to this lovely café called the Corner Stone with some friends from work whom I worked with on an innovation grant project this year to wrap up
I also went to an awesome bike-themed café with a friend

And we walked on the seawall after

The Capitals won the Stanley Cup (fight me, Ovechkin deserved to finally win)
Registration for my first year MEd courses went reasonably well (one class didn’t work for some reason, gave me a mild panic attack, and then worked on the second try – as usual)
This crazy large brussels sprout (I bought a whole bag of them, all this big)
My friend Joy got me the most beautiful paint-by-numbers for my birthday
Joy and I went to our favourite Starbucks, the fancy Reserve one on Main Street, for reward Nitro Cold Brew floats and we got the best table in the place!

The title of this post, Healing!

First and foremost, this week I’m really grateful for physical healing: MY HIP AND QUAD ARE FINALLY WELL ENOUGH FOR ME TO RUN! And this is what I got to see on my first trip back to the seawall… baby geese!

So cute. Anyway, at three weeks to race day, I finally felt well enough to give my legs a try. At this point in the program, Tuesdays are 6k fast, Wednesdays are sprints, Thursdays are 8k steady, Saturdays are 6k steady, and Sundays are looooooong distance. The geese photo is from Tuesday evening when I did a slow 3k, which felt stiff but good.

Then on Thursday, I decided to test my distance and was able to do the scheduled 8k (but a lot slower than target pace). I got this great view!

My hip is a ton better, but my quad still has some progress left to go. It’s not getting any worse from the running, which is great. I’m going to be my stubborn self and train and race, and then I’ll make sure it’s fully healed before I do anything else. I’ve done weekly physio and bi-weekly chiro this whole time, so don’t worry about me! 🙂

Second (and last but not least), I’ve really noticed some mental healing this week.

It’s obvious to me that this has been progress that I’ve made over the last almost two years on medication. However, it’s often things like these that we don’t really notice until we get thrown in hot water. Which is where I am now. Well, I wouldn’t say hot water. Just slightly uncomfortably warm water. It’s the last two weeks of scheduled classes at work. I’m coaching a rep rugby team, my report cards are due, and I’m getting things sorted for the MEd I’m starting in September. Oh and all the rehab and training that’s happening for my half that you just read about.

Anyway, the healing that I’m trying to get to is that I’m not panicking. I’m still sleeping eight hours a night. I’m able to get out of bed in the morning. I’m not crying. I don’t have daily headaches. I’m eating properly. It’s amazing. It used to be that when I was working through a really work-heavy, stressful time, I would start to self-combust. Now I’m fully functioning, albeit a bit more tired!

Another thing I’ve noticed is that I’m functioning better socially. This week, I had 4 social events after work. Now, I’m not going to go so far as to say that I was excited for them (I still dreaded them as usual), but I managed them especially well IMO. I’m an introvert, and I usually use most of my extrovert energy at my job as a teacher, so being required to go socialize with coworkers or other volunteers, etc. is often incredibly difficult for me. This week, although I dreaded each event, I quite enjoyed them while I was there. Healing!

There you have it!

So, that’s my Thankful Thursday list for this week. I hope it inspires you to make your own, and get on that gratitude train!

Peace and love,

Bee

And finally, the theme for this week, New Beginnings!

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Funko HQ!!

Other things I’ve been thankful for this week

And finally, the theme for this week, Breakthrough!

There you have it!

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And the theme for this week, Movement!

A little more about BBG

There you have it!

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And the theme for this week, Home(body)!

Home

Homebody

There you have it!

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Here’s my Thankful Thursday for the Week of June 1 – June 7, 2018!

The title of this post, Healing!

Second (and last but not least), I’ve really noticed some mental healing this week.

There you have it!

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