My focus this week I’ve decided is going to be on clearing clutter.

Cleaning is actually the focus for the third week in my self-care journal.

Want a funny story about that? I share lots of photos of our cute little gray cat. Chelsey is a tiny little Russian blue cat with a big bossy attitude.

 

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She’s also a puking kind of cat. I’m sure you cat people know what I mean. She usually does better in the winter but sometimes she’ll get those hairballs or get into the wrong thing outside and then, blech. Puking cat.

Guess I should probably add being thankful for hardwood floors to my current thankful Thursday list. However, they didn’t save me yesterday.

I keep my self-care journal on the table by the couch. And since cats aren’t always particular about where they puke, she chose right on top of my brand-new self-care journal. SIGH. Glad it’s a hardbound book. Cleaned it up, wiped it off with a Clorox wipe.

And then, opened it up to see what the focus for this week was going to be about. 

What are the odds?

My plans for clearing clutter this week:

1. Clear off my nightstand (easy since it’s one of the flylady missions anyway)
2. Sort through and declutter the holiday tubs as I switch them out (had some Christmas to officially put away still. Got out some Valentine’s Day stuff)
3. Make a casual plan for clearing the rest of the clutter especially in the basement

So far this week, I’ve already managed to clear off the kitchen table (it was bad) and clean out our make-shift mailboxes in the kitchen as well. I was also happy to finally get the Christmas books sorted and put away (it’s a weird deal but they’re stored in J’s closet and he’s been home sick so…). Now, I have 2 empty boxes to fill with donation things since I’d boxed the books up and put them in our bedroom until I could put them away.

Sometimes it really is the little things. Do you find clearing clutter helps clear your mind?

So I pick heal for my word of 2022 and we all start the year with COVID. Wonderful. Last week I shared a bit about the self-care journal I found at Target.  Right now for this week I’m simply focused on being kind to myself and going slow.

Those sound like such simple things. However, I’m struggling with them a bit.

Why is it so hard to be kind to ourselves? Or is it just me? I can easily encourage a kid, a friend, a family member. However, it takes so much work for me to be kind to myself and give myself the same level of grace. A lot of times it just comes down to the information found in this article I stumbled across. Not knowing what I need. And sometimes it’s knowing exactly what I need but not wanting to disrupt the peace to get it. That really needs to change.

However, for this week here are some ways I plan on being kind to myself:

1. Spend sometime outside going for a walk alone (We went for a drive yesterday to get my husband out of the house but it gave me worse cabin fever not being able to get out and just be in nature)
2. Ask (nicely) for what I need. Sick or not, I need my family to show a little (not a lot) appreciation. Thank you goes a long way with me.
3. Stand up to that mean inner voice that tries to tell me (and sadly, sometimes succeeds) that I’m not good enough.
4. Drink my water! And forgive myself if I fall a bit short on my goal of a tall glass of water with every meal.

Didn’t I also say something about going slow?

I don’t know if going slow is really what I mean here. It’s more a case of taking the time to allow myself to feel my feelings. Not getting bogged down with them but not simply pushing them away (a bad habit of mine) either. When you don’t take the time to feel your feelings, they tend to come back in a rush and stronger over minor things. At least, that happens to me. Does that ever happen to you?

A minor spat over J’s breakfast this morning brought back so many feelings of inadequacy from this time last year when his struggles with anxiety started. The voice in my head started in telling me that this taking care of a sick family thing wasn’t that hard and I wasn’t doing nearly enough or anything right. That I was a “crap” parent. My plan this year is to take a minute and fully feel things, including sadness and frustration. Hopefully, doing that allows me to heal a bit from some past hurts I’ve simply ignored.

Note, I don’t plan to dredge up the past but simply acknowledge the hurts and not rush away the feelings. Hoping this approach helps to lighten the mental load a bit in the coming year.

Of course, I also plan to take some time and experience the feelings of joy. That’s the focus of my Thankful Thursday posts, new one coming tomorrow.

Thought I’d share a bit more on my word of the year, heal. Here’s my loose plan to heal in 2022.

Breaking down the idea of healing into 3 categories: Mind, Body, and Spirit.

Interestingly enough, as I was in Target one day last week, I found this 52 week journal of self-care.

My favorite kind of book/journal: hardbound and with beautiful photographs throughout.

Each week starts with a bible verse, then has space to write positive thoughts and ways to improve in each area.

This week, the focus is on the body. I’ll put myself out there a bit and share my 3 areas for my plan to heal in this area.

My Plan to Heal the Body

1. Eat less sugar/more healthy foods
2. Drink more water
3. Exercise (yoga or walking)
4. Spend more time outside

Results I Hope to Achieve with Body Healing

1. Not to start with the obvious but of course, to lose some weight
2. Hopefully, the weight loss will help with these dry scaly patches on my legs (pretty sure it’s psoriasis)
3. More energy to get things done
4. A healed body that naturally defaults to a happier mind and lighter spirit

None of my plan is really complex or new I suppose. The difference is that this year I’m going to take the time to actually take care of myself. Thinking of those tired oxygen mask/empty cup analogies but they are true.

Next week, if I’m not working, I’ll talk a bit about my plans for healing my mind or spirit and what happened this week in regards to healing my body. Pretty sure the chocolate chip cookie for breakfast wasn’t part of the plan but hey, the Christmas season doesn’t end around here until January 6. And I did drink my glass of water after breakfast and another one with lunch.

I really wanted a safe choice for my word of the year in 2022. Almost opted out of picking a word at all. However, starting in early December this word kept working its way into my thoughts. In a way, I guess it’s a safe choice. However, I also find it a scary choice.

As I sit working on this post in 2021 with 2 weeks to go until Christmas (wanting to get these thoughts down before I forget them), the logical side of my brain is telling me that no, this isn’t a great choice. Healing is hard and will take work. Next fall (let’s jump way in the future, of course!) J starts his senior year and I should be enjoying all that, not working away at healing.

My Word of the Year: Heal

And full disclosure, perhaps a little superstition went into choosing my word of the year as well. I mean, after all I choose “home” as my word in 2020 (*shudder*) and reflecting back on last year, “less” really didn’t fill me up with joy. It started off well enough but the end of the year with less just felt a little empty.  So maybe by choosing “heal” it will reflect around enough that 2022 will be a better year than the past 2 for all of us. Maybe not. I’m not so silly as to really think I’m the one directing the ways of the world. Still, can’t hurt to pick a hopeful and helpful word, right?

The funny thing about this word is I’m not exactly sick. Heal is a word that makes me think of someone who is sick.  Gratefully, I have no serious illness, take no prescription medications. So why chose this word? Not sure but I just keep coming back to the thought it’s time to heal some of the hurts of the past and move forward to more happiness (I mean it’s not as if I am unhappy all the time. That’s not it at all. It just seems I could feel better. So much better). I have some ideas about how to focus on healing but I’ll save those for another post.

Did you pick a word for 2022?