Filling My Wellbeing Space...One Drop at a Time

A Focus on Wellbeing Posts

One of the tabs on my blog is designated for {My Wellbeing Space} which is a renewed area of focus for me post-baby!  My followers will start to see an increase in weekly wellbeing posts in which I share information that I come across in my quest to continually live well...starting now!

In the meantime, here is a message from Lucy DelSarto, Wellness Educator and Coach, TCOY (Take Care of You) Wellness, http://www.tcoywellness.com/

 

WATER is LIFE. It is only second to AIR for our existence. Unfortunately, in life we often fail to appreciate things until we no longer have them. Water is readily available for people living in most of the western world; therefore, it is often overlooked for its value to our health. A person can only go a few days without water.

TCOY (Take Care of You) Wellness Challenge: Random Act of Kindness

Put a few bottles of water and a bag of oranges in your car and hand them out to people in need (homeless people). Like a drop of water in a pond, the rippling effect will impact a lot of people. Be inspired by Plumb’s new song, “One Drop”:

When the well is dry, we learn the worth of water. – Ben Franklin

How to Fill My Space

Emptying My Space to Fill it With the Right Things

Lately I have been reading a book by influential writer Gretchen Rubin called Happier at Home, the follow-up up bestseller to her even more popular book The Happiness Project.  In Happier at Home, Gretchen reminds herself over and over that “the days are long, but the years are short”.  Love it!

She decides that one of the paradoxes of happiness is that sometimes you have to “spend out to become rich”.  This is something I have decided to do ever since my baby arrived.  By “spend out” the author is referring to using up disposable items like razors and toothbrushes, utilizing new purchases such as putting brand new clothing in the rotation, and to generally stop saving things for a special occasion.  

However, while I found the book’s explanation perfectly poignant, the content that grabbed me the most was this paragraph from Rubin’s blog: “And spend out applies to creativity as well as to possessions. I find myself thinking, ‘I should save that story…’ or ‘I don’t want to use all my best examples now…’ But pouring out ideas is better for creativity than doling them out by the teaspoon.”  WOW!!!  That fits me to a T!  That is part of why I have a stockpile of posts for my blog and little on the blog to show for it!  Starting today I aim to spend out more and more every day…to rid my life space and living space of the things I no longer want or need and fill it with only the things I do!     

Yesterday I made lemon-flavored instant pudding for my husband.  He loves lemony desserts and so I thought this would be a special treat for him (which it was)…that and the fact that I actually made him a dessert (which I never do).  The thing is, I bought the pudding mix forever ago [don’t worry, we checked the expiration date] and I was saving it to make at another date TBD.  Ironically, the brand of pudding was called “Always Save.”  

And that’s what I do.  I always save everything.  And I mean everything!  I have a bit of a problem.  Not that I’ll be featured on Hoarders any time soon, because it isn’t that out of control and I plan on nipping it in the bud today and every day.  I have a couple different theories on why I save or savor everything, but I am not focusing as much on the “why” right now.  I’ll tackle that another day.  As for today, I’ll spend out.  Thanks, Gretchen, for this and many other life lessons.

My Heart Space is Filled to the Brim!

WE WELCOMED OUR LITTLE BABY INTO OUR LIFE SPACE!

I'm BAAACCCK!!!  Did you miss me?  :)  Excitedly I share that my big surprise became a beautiful baby boy who was just born in April!!!!!  Now that I have had a chance to settle into life as a mommy, I am ready to resume my blog and share what I have been up to lately. :)  Of course I’ll have lots to share about my happy baby, but in the meantime… 

I experienced my first hot yoga (Vinyasa Flow) class today and—boy—they are not kidding when they say “hot!”  While I found many of the yoga instructor’s motivating phrases to be truly inspiring, a few of them stood out to me in particular.  The first phrase that struck me was an instruction to “create your space.”  Instantly I thought about my “life space” and my blog.  I have been thinking about resuming my blog for months but something [read: myself] was holding me back.  But why had I stopped writing about—frankly, creating—my life space?  I think it boils down to the issue of carving out time and acceptance of anything less than perfection.  Fascinating to find that…

The next was a poignant reminder of the passing of time: “If not now, then when?”  Right then and there I asked myself [despite the fact that I was taking my mind off of my practice], if I don’t resume my blog (and other writing) now, then when will I?  I just had a baby so I can’t expect anything to slow down!  My bundle of joy has filled my heart space and my life space!!  “If not now, then when?”  The answer is simple: “Now.”

Lastly, she closed the practice by encouraging us to be our “perfectly imperfect” selves.  And that is exactly what I aim to do here.  I started this blog with a resolution and now I resolve to not only keep writing and sharing, but to continue to be my perfectly imperfect self.  

Our Baby's Future Life Space

In April 2013, we are excitedly expanding our home by 2 feet!

Lately I have been busy with nursery preparations to ensure a tranquil life space for our future baby. We ordered the convertible crib I picked out, we received the desired nine piece bedding set as a shower gift, we have a changing table, a dresser (which was mine when I was a baby), and we have an organization plan for the closet. We painted the nursery using two different paint techniques (both of which are ombre and will be shown in a later post!), and if all works out, we will order my favorite glider and ottoman as soon as it is available in retail stores. 

I am so very excited to provide details on items selected for the nursery. One of the items I am most excited about [that my husband will pick up for me in LA since it is only sold in stores] is the  IKEA MASKROS Pendant lamp;  the website says that it "projects decorative patterns onto the ceiling and the wall" which is one of my favorite features  about the light fixture. I also like that it might translate as an abstract sea urchin when surrounded with my selected decor, which would support my "under the water" theme.

I do hope you check back for more details and pictures over the coming months as we prepare a space that the baby is sure to love!

“Looking at randomly listed ideas commonly triggers creative new insights”

The technique of brainstorming is a good example of encouraging insight (…one of the Gestalten concepts that was particularly influential in shaping founder of modern social psychology Kurt Lewin’s work) (Morley Segal, Points of Influence, 1997, p. 260).  “Looking at randomly listed ideas commonly triggers creative new insights”, explained author Morley Segal (1997, p. 261).  I find brainstorming to be very effective, often fun, and I like how the discoveries tap into “the unconscious for creative solutions, wisdom, and whimsy” (Segal, 1997, p. 92).  This type of right-brain activity will be something I will use on a routine basis with this blog.

Personally, I find that I am craving more and more right-brain activity in my personal and professional life and I find myself seeking out ways to infuse my day with creative endeavors.  However, the reason became clear to me when I read the following explanation in Points of Influence: A Guide to Using Personality Theory at Work: “Lewin noted that people try to maintain a dynamic state of equilibrium by moving toward the regions of their life space that will enable them to satisfy their needs…for Lewin, the ability to create alternative pathways around barriers in order to reach a goal was the defining characteristic of psychological growth” (Segal, 1997, p. 264).  As a result of reading this, I aim to be more innovative about constructing my new pathways around obstructions in order to reach my goals.

I could brainstorm about brainstorming techniques for my next post--or I could just look at a list of topic ideas! I could post about: 

• Nursery Design
• DIY Projects
• Organization
• Party Planning
• (Learning more about) Digital Photography
• New Products I would recommend [Thank you, Christmas!]
• Books I'm Reading
• (Learning more about) Videography
• Wellbeing Plans for 2013
• Food and Beverages (that I found Pinteresting)

Regardless of the topic, I'm looking forward to it!

Major Life Space Moment: My BIG Surprise!

When I first learned I was pregnant, my husband was not home so I immediately decided to record a video to share the news with him and capture my initial feelings.  In our household, my husband tends to express himself through made up songs [oftentimes rap--what a treat, I tell ya!] and I tend to express myself through made up dances.  Though he didn't initially sing (out of too much shock), I did dance!!!  And it's a good thing I don't mind laughing at myself!!

Who you are is very much a function of what is present in your life space at a given moment.

I am a wife and soon-to-be mother of a little baby boy [Yay!] with a zest for life…and the changes that it brings.  I love to read, write, act, sing, dance, travel, organize, research, plan parties and create (among many other things!).  I am also a certified professional working toward a Master of Science in Organization Development Psychology.  As a graduate student, it is through my study of Kurt Lewin’s point of influence (among other personality theories) that I have arrived at a theme for my very own blog. 

Who is this Kurt Lewin guy I speak of and what is his point of influence?  He is universally recognized as the founder of modern social psychology.  According to Morley Segal in Points of Influence: A Guide to Using Personality Theory at Work, “Lewin’s point of influence is a figurative glass bubble around each individual, group, or organization that includes all that influences that entity’s behavior at a given moment.  Lewin called this life space, and it include[s] factors such as goal regions, paths to goals, barriers, threats, and social relationships (Deutsch, 1968, p. 414) (1997, p. 258).  Inspired by this abstract concept, each of my blog entries will focus on the factors that make up my life space at a particular moment in time.

Segal explains that “[m]oments of insight can profoundly alter our psychological environment, changing the way we look at people, problems, and situations.  In Lewinian terms, insight can restructure our life space” (Hunt, 1993, pp.292-299) (Segal, 1997, p. 261).  My hope (among many other hopes for this blog) is that writing about my moments in time will provide the additional insight necessary for me to continually restructure my life space, for I love self-improvement and have a lifetime commitment to it! 

Further intrigued by Lewin’s model, I read that “[i]ndividual personality is less a stable structure than a sense of continuity (‘genidentity’) imposed on a changing constellation of behaviors, attitudes, and affiliations (Back, 1986).  Who you are is very much a function of what is present in your life space at a given moment” (Segal, 1997, p. 264).  With the latter statement as the central theme for my blog, I want to speak candidly about my moments of falling away from my passions (such as reading, writing, acting, singing, dancing, painting, scrapbooking, photography, videography, etc.), and how I want to reshape who I am by changing what I allow to fill my life space in the present moment.  My targeted audience will likely be people with similar hobbies and interests or even professional goals who want inspiration with a dash of humor as they navigate through their own life space.  

In an effort to return to my passion for writing, it is on this 1^st day of the new year that I resolve to fill my life space with a new moment…the publishing of my first blog post.  I hope you enjoyed spending a few of your moments with me!