The Joy in the Random

Oh my goodness, I am so tired!!! I spent all day making applesauce. We have applesauce for dayzzz!Which is funny, because I don’t want to eat applesauce for a long time. Can you say apple overload? I had some awesome big helpers and little helpers. All 37 quarts and 17 pints would not have been possible without them.

I had a totally different post planned for today. I’m not prepared for it. So, I’m going to postpone it until I can do more research and make a better plan. It will be much better.

Today is going to be a mog pog of a few different things. Get excited for the random. 🙂

November Workout Plan

I decided to not make a new workout plan this month or for December. But, I am going to be working on something for January. Woohoo! I still need to have some sort of plan to keep me more accountable. My knees are doing something funky and giving me grief. So I’m going to be doing some low impact activities.

I want to do more cardio and keep up the yoga. If you haven’t done much yoga, do it! Just do it! You will love it. I have been doing either yoga or a good stretching session pretty much every day. It has been amazing.

Here is my plan for November:

• get back into spin classes (I’ve only been once in about a month, I miss it.)
• start walking
• keep doing yoga most days
• low impact leg exercises
• something similar to this arm workout (I may give it a couple times and decide it’s a no go. If that is the case then I’ll go back to my 3 minute workout.)

That’s it, simple. I want to focus on my eating and see if I can get back into eating food portion control containers. And wayyyy less treats and junk. I’m not going to lie, it’s going to be HARD with trick or treating coming up. But I can do hard things. I will be flexible with working this month. In the sense of what I do. I felt I needed a change and to switch my focus.

Applesauce

I really like the benefits of canning. I love that I am able to save money and get the ingredients I want in the food. But as we were standing and cutting I kept thinking, ug! Why did I want to do this? Ha! I usually have that thought when I’m in the middle of canning something.

It is so much work. I love the outcome and the benefit. So I spent most of the day on Friday doing applesauce. I’m so thankful I had my big helpers (my mom and aunt) and my little helpers (Mr. E, Miss L, and Miss S). My big helpers were more then helpers. 🙂 They made it possible to get it done.

We cut apples for hours! I’m not kidding. Cutting and cooking, cooking and cutting. Then came the straining. My floor was a sticky mess. The kitchen was a disaster. I was pooped and still have to make dinner and get the kids to bed. My mom and aunt had to leave to get somewhere at 3:30. I was so grateful I had them for 6 and a half hours.

When Miss N woke up we were just finishing up straining the last of the apples. With the kids help (to play with Miss N) I was able to get the kitchen floor swept and mopped. And get the table put back. Then I just sat with my kids while we watched part of a movie.

We had a great dinner of pizza, left over salad and grapes. Thank you Little Caesers’ drive through and app for making my dinner possible. Haha! I had just enough energy to process the applesauce (all but one jar sealed, yes!!) and get my rascals to bed.

Even though I’m complaining about all the work it took and how tired I was, I am so happy and blessed to have had the time and help to get lots of applesauce for my little family, mom, and aunt.

Why is Any of This Random Stuff Important?

Honestly, it may not be to most everyone. But here’s why it is important to me. Working out is so good for me (and for everyone). It helps me to feel better about myself. I can release frustration, anger, extra energy, pretty much anything that is yucky. It totally is a mood booster! Working out really helps improve my mood. When I get my workout done in the morning, oh man! I feel like it gives me an extra boost.

When I was in high school I started to play volleyball. It was so good for me! Even though I was very busy I was able to continue to get what I needed to get done. For me; the exercise, having less time to procrastinate, and having lots of structure was good for my ADD teenage self. I’m willing to bet high school and college sports does the same for many many people.

I think about the time I have spent canning and making jam. Would it have been easier to just buy it at the store? Yes you bet your bottom it would have been.

But, here’s the thing. I like it. I grew up with homemade jam and applesauce (you could call me a jam and applesauce snob…). It feels great to have food storage and know that in a pinch I have something to feed my family. I also love to save money. Canning sure has saved us money. I’m excited for the day when I can go to my backyard to get most of what I need for my canning and jam making.

And, now that I am done for the season, it feels GREAT! I can go down to my storage room and look at all the bottles of food that I did for my family. It is a great sense of accomplishment. It makes me feel proud. It also is a mood booster.

So, these two random things are mood boosters for me. Maybe not in the moment, and that it okay. At the end I feel good. Later I feel good. That is the point I am trying to make. When you have something that helps boost your mood at any point you are doing it or after you have finished, then it is a good thing to do. You should keep doing it. Why wouldn’t you?

This life is full of things and people trying to pull us down. Sometimes we let them. In those times we need the extra help to get us back on top. In those times you need to keep doing the things that will bring you joy and boost your mood. I challenge you to find a few things that do bring you joy and boost your mood and DO THEM!

That’s it. Find and do the things that bring you joy and boost your mood!! Sometimes it just might be the joy in the random. 🙂 Please share with me what some of those things are. I’d love to know. I hope you truly have a wonderful day my friends!

Xoxo

Steph