givencontext

[givencontext]

2022 Year in Review

2022 Year in Review

This might have been my weirdest year yet. My word for 2022 was Clarity, and I set some goals but tried to take it very easy on myself. Check out how I started the year here, and read on to see how the year shook out… CLARITY I wanted this word to impact multiple layers of my life. I was hoping to get clear on work, life, finances, goals… I was hoping to clear clutter and clear outdated…

[givencontext]

100 Things That I Love - in no particular order

100 Things That I Love – in no particular order

My oldest kid My youngest kid My big, crazy family My pets My awesome friends My tattoos James Taylor Heavy Metal music All the weird alternative bands of my youth Autumn Craft Fairs Thanksgiving Eureka Springs Concerts Historic Hotels The 2014 Prius V My iPhone My Dragontree Apothecary Dreambook and Planner The internet Giving Free Mom Hugs Talking to friends I have had for 30+…

[givencontext]

Changing Seasons

I am starting this post on Labor Day, the unofficial end of Summer. The mornings are starting to be a little cooler; the oppressive heat doesn’t last as long. Kids are back in school, and Halloween decorations are making an early appearance. The seasons are changing. This is my favorite shift of the year. My mood usually starts to pick up, and I look forward to milestones in the last months of…

[givencontext]

Adventures with TMS - Part 1

Adventures with TMS – Part 1

The past few years have been a struggle. You can probably relate. My mental health has gone from alright to bad to worse. It feels like my brain has literally abandoned me. I’ve been diagnosed with a slew of things, one of which is “treatment resistant depression,” which simply means that nothing helps. This is where it comes in handy to have a popular therapist who is very busy with lots of…

[givencontext]

2022 First Half Update

2022 First Half Update

We are at the halfway point of the year, and it’s time to check in. Normally, this would be an update on where I am with my goals for the year. This post will encompass some of that, but it will mostly be me talking about where I am now, how I got here, and where I’m trying to go next. This hasn’t been a very productive year, and we all know that our worth is based on our ability to produce,…

[givencontext]

My Favorite Things - Mental Health Edition

My Favorite Things – Mental Health Edition

May is Mental Health Awareness month. My mental health is not good. To even say that is an understatement. I wish I could blog more, but right now one post ever couple of months is the best I can do. If I told you how many times I worked on and edited this post, it would be quite embarrassing. This post is a shameless self-promotion by way of sharing Amazon Affiliate links, but it is also a real…

[givencontext]

Goals Update - End of First Quarter 2022

Goals Update – End of First Quarter 2022

This is only my second blog of 2022. I haven’t written since I set out my goals for the year. I knew this would be a challenging year, but I didn’t know how truly difficult it would prove to be. I’m still in the midst of a mental health crisis, formerly known as a good old nervous breakdown. I am tempted to say this is my second in two years, but honestly, this has been ongoing since August 2019.…

[givencontext]

My 2022 Goals and Focus

My 2022 Goals and Focus

We are a few days into the new year, and I have been working on setting my goals and determining my focus word for 2022. I won’t reiterate how difficult the past few years have been. You can read my 2021 review and find links to all of my previous ones here. This year promises to bring even more challenges for me, but I am determined to continue putting my best SELF forward. Some days my best…

[givencontext]

2021 Year in Review

2021 Year in Review

My blog has been silent for a while due to a mental health crisis, but I feel it is important to take time at the end of the year for reflection and introspection. This has been my space for an annual review for several years, so I am coming out of my shell long enough to write this. I’m starting to write this on the winter solstice, and it may take several days to complete, but during this…

[givencontext]

Does this sound familiar? You thought this person had your back. You thought the two of you were honoring the same rules, sharing the same moral code, and respecting the same beliefs. This was a person you trusted. Then, in one painful instant, you learn that this person, possibly a family member, partner, coworker or friend, pulled the rug out from underneath you. Lies you so easily believed and…

[givencontext]

Everything I Read in August 2021

Everything I Read in August 2021

August was hot. While I felt like I made it through the first days of summer in a better mood this year, it seems my summertime seasonal depression had simply decided to wait a bit to sink in. That’s okay. I am grateful for that respite, and overall August was good. Both my baby squids have August birthdays, so we did some small-scale celebrating. Dance class started again, which is always the…

[givencontext]

Everything I Read in July 2021

Everything I Read in July 2021

July was a good month for reading and will help me achieve my reading goal well before the end of the year. It was miserably hot and humid, so I only went outside to mow the lawn, and listened to audiobooks while mowing. Life kept throwing curve balls during July, but I don’t want to dwell on that, so let’s get right into talking about books. Shall we? The Girl Who Loved Tom Gordon In June I…

[givencontext]

2021 Second Quarter Goals Update

2021 Second Quarter Goals Update

We have reached the midpoint of 2021, and that means it is time to check in our how we are doing with the goals we set for the year. This feels like another tough year, so don’t be hard on yourself if you aren’t where you would like to be. It is never too late for a fresh start. Perhaps you could benefit from some goals around rest and self-care. Read on to see how I incorporate those into my…

[givencontext]

Everything I Read in June 2021

Everything I Read in June 2021

We are halfway through 2021 and I am well ahead of my reading goal. Last month I only finished a couple of books, but I had started several of these. Summertime in NWA is hot and humid, which makes for good stay-in-the-AC-and-read weather. Here are the books I read and my opinion on them. Click the underlined titles or images for Amazon links. The Assassin’s Blade I have been a little heavy on…

[givencontext]

In honor of PRIDE month, I would love it if you would share your favorite or recent books by LGBTQIA+ authors. I liked Cemetery Boys by @aidenschmaiden and thought it would fit with a college lit class I took on Ghosts and Gender. I rec’d it to the professor, and she said she’s adding it to the course this fall. I’m excited for that class to discuss it. I love discussing books! 🥰 #happypridemonth #talkaboutbooks #bookstagram #cemeteryboys #aidenthomas #givencontext #bookblog @trinasum1 https://www.instagram.com/p/CQTPbx0hw45/?utm_medium=tumblr

[givencontext]

Everything I Read in May and Why It's Only Two Books

Everything I Read in May and Why It’s Only Two Books

May was a transition month for me. I only finished two books, but that is not a fair representation of how much reading I did. In the first few days of June, I have finished two more books, but those will go into next month’s book post. Summertime is traditionally the hardest for me, and last year my health completely feel apart during this time, so my #1 focus right now is prioritizing health…

[givencontext]

Everything I Read in April 2021

Everything I Read in April 2021

Sitting with my cup of coffee at 5am on a Saturday morning, I try to think of April and realize, it snowed, didn’t it? I gave myself the month off. In March I finished my PBT Institute coaching certification. I decided to start my coaching classes in May. There was some prep work to do in  April, but I also focused on rest and enjoying springtime between rain storms. I received both my vaccine…