Tag Archives: grateful

goals and meal plan for the week of 1/20

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What an unbelievable week! I had an absolutely fantastic time soaking up the sunshine, creative energy and literary brillance at the Key West Literary Seminar, and even got to meet my icon Judy Blume!! She could not have been more kind, warm or generous. What an amazing writer AND person! Here’s a picture of my writing workshop with her {you can see me peeking out from the second row; Judy is front and center}:

key west workshop w:judy

Here’s how I did on my goals for the past week:

  • finish the new one-act play I’ve been working on
  • write 10 pages of my YA novel
  • blog about Week 2 Act of Kindness Challenge & complete it myself this week
  • read Best American Short Stories 2012 that Mike got me for Christmas {got about halfway through!}
  • grade first assignment for both classes {Professional Email assignment}
  • knit 25 rows of the scarf I’m working on
  • go through stack of old magazines and purge!

And here’s my goals for this upcoming week:

  • write 10 more pages of my YA novel
  • blog about Week 3 Act of Kindness Challenge & complete it myself this week
  • finish reading Best American Short Stories 2012
  • finish grading first assignment for both classes {Professional Email assignment}
  • knit 25 rows of the scarf I’m working on
  • go through stack of old magazines and purge!
  • send thank-you notes to the lovely people I met at the Key West Literary Seminar

Julie at PB Fingers is hosting a blogger crock-pot challenge and I am planning to try out a new crock-pot recipe, as well as some of the following recipes:

– chicken tetrazzini
– slow-cooker honey-sesame chicken
– my california white chicken chili
– apple cinnamon steel-cut oatmeal

What are your plans for this week? I’d love to hear your menu plans & goals!

saturday upsides, christmas chili & les mis

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Happy weekend, everyone! We made it back to southern California safe & sound tonight after visiting my extended family up north. It was a quick but jam-packed visit, filled with fun family time, delicious home-cooked food, and lots of laughter. Here is a pic of my brother and me with our Grandma & Grandpap {on our mom’s side}:

with gparents

One recipe I forgot to share with you earlier this week is my Christmas chili! It’s the same as my California chicken chili recipe, only I added red and white kidney beans, regular chili powder instead of the “white chicken” kind, AND festive red and green bell pepper. {Which is why I call it my “Christmas chili”!} The reason I used the regular chili powder is that I couldn’t find the white chicken chili kind out here in California … but it turned out to be one of those serendipitous things, because I think this is my best chili yet!

christmas chili

I don’t know about you, but around this time of year I nearly always battle the post-holiday blues. It’s true: I love Christmas! I love the joy and excitement of the season of giving. I love being home with my family. I love not having to worry about the normal day-to-day stresses of school and work. I love baking cookies and special holiday treats. I love watching Christmas movies with my Gramps. I love small things, like the special flavors of Hershey’s kisses and chai lattes at Starbucks. {Greg snapped a picture of me on his smartphone at Starbucks, enjoying a gingerbread chai … mmmmm.}

gingerbread chai

I always get a little sad when the holidays are over. Does anyone else feel the same?

Then I went to see “Les Miserables” with my mom, aunts and cousin Arianna yesterday afternoon. I had never seen the musical before and did not know the story at all. It was beautiful. I loved the music and thought the film was very well-done. {Best supporting actress: Anne Hathaway gets my vote!}

And my goodness, what an emotional story that really makes you feel grateful for what you have. I am SO lucky to have a roof over my head, enough food to eat, a warm bed, a loving and healthy family. Those are my Saturday Upsides every week!

saturdayupsidesbutton

And another upside? Having people to miss is a blessing because it means you have people to love!

What are your upsides this weekend?

thanksgiving gratitude list

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Happy Thanksgiving, everyone! I am spending the long weekend with Mike’s family up in Chicago and they have welcomed me into their household with open arms and absolutely delicious food. Especially during the holiday season, it is very hard to be so far away from my parents and Greg! Luckily I’ll get to go home for winter break and spend Christmas in Ventura with them. 🙂

Something I like to do often, but especially on Thanksgiving, is to make a “gratitude list” of all the blessings I have in my life and all the reasons I have to be thankful and happy. Often I make a mental list {it is a great way to fall asleep … counting your blessings!} but today on Thanksgiving I want to write a list down. So here it is:

my {ever-expanding!} gratitude list

  • my amazing, supportive, one-in-a-million parents and brother, and all of my terrific extended family, too!
  • my fun and thoughtful and lovely friends, near and far
  • my health {something that I didn’t used to appreciate nearly enough, but feel more and more grateful for the older I get}
  • that I always have not only enough food to eat, but also enough grocery money to buy organic fruits & veggies & dairy even though they are more expensive
  • my safe, warm, cozy apartment that is feeling more and more like home
  • my parents’ home in Ventura that will *always* feel like home and welcome me back with open arms
  • the opportunity to pursue my passions for writing and teaching as a career
  • the incredibly supportive teachers and mentors I’ve had throughout my life — from my first-grade teacher who gave my shy self confidence by casting me as the lead in our school play, to my middle school and high school teachers who encouraged my love of writing, to my teachers at USC and now at Purdue who have helped me develop my own writing voice and  nurture my own creative identity
  • my goofy dog Murray, who never fails to make me laugh with his antics and happy doggy smile
  • long walks through an autumn park or on the boardwalk by the Ventura pier
  • rain falling softly outside on a lazy Sunday
  • snuggling up on the couch with my sweetie
  • all the books I’ve devoured and all those I have stacked on my nightstand, waiting for their turn
  • old movies, especially It’s a Wonderful Life, Some Like it Hot, and It Happened One Night
  • watching Bing Crosby Christmas movies every year with my Gramps
  • warm chocolate chip cookies and a big glass of milk
  • shopping dates with my mom
  • lunch dates with my dad
  • my brunch date tradition with my brother
  • 3-hour Simone’s coffee dates with my friend Erica whenever I go home to visit
  • a hot cup of tea, an empty hour or two, and a journal or good book
  • browsing Target with my friend Holly and stocking up on Taylor Swift cards
  • sending and receiving handwritten cards from those I love
  • sunsets {and the occasional sunrises, when I’m up early enough to see them!}
  • Christmas lights twinkling cheerfully against a night sky or the snow
  • hugs and kisses and even tears saying goodbye because it’s a blessing to have so many people to love
  • being part of such a wonderful community of bloggers, and that you would spend a few minutes of your day visiting my little corner of the internet here!

Happy happy happy Thanksgiving! I hope you have a blessed day with those you love!

❤ Dallas

marvelous monday: little oases of rest in a hectic, busy season

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Happy Monday, everyone! It’s that time of year … the holidays are upon us. All weekend I’ve been seeing not just Thanksgiving decorations in stores, but Christmas decorations, too! Some houses in my neighborhood have even put up lights and lawn ornaments. {Which I’m admittedly not used to, coming from California, but it does make sense here in Indiana where you want to get the lights up before the first snow hits!} It seems like Christmas season sets upon us earlier and earlier every year … which isn’t necessarily a bad thing for me, a girl who starts playing Pandora Holiday stations in October. I love the warmth and comfort of the holiday season!

Still, the holidays bring with them a lot of busyness — gifts to buy, special meals to cook, cards to send, relatives in town, parties to attend, and just a general hectic pace of life that can be overwhelming. Coupled with the approaching end-of-semester obligations and deadlines: final papers and projects to grade, class presentations, meetings — and for me this year, a completed rough draft of my thesis to turn in — and life can quickly feel out-of-control crazy-busy!

I’ve started doing a brief stretch and deep-breathing routine each morning to get my day off on the right foot, which I’ll share with you later this week. But something else that has helped me keep my sanity and approach the holiday season with a grateful heart {as it is meant to be celebrated, after all!} is to take little breaks throughout the day to slow down, take a breath, and reward myself for the work I have gotten done. Even just ten or fifteen minutes away from my computer or pile of dirty dishes can be enough to clear my head and make me feel worlds happier and more refreshed. Here are some of my “oases”:

  • making a phone call to my friends or family
  • reading a chapter of a good book or a story from a magazine
  • taking a power nap
  • going for a brisk walk around the neighborhood
  • daydreaming with a cup of tea

How do you keep your sanity and stay energized during the crazy-busy holiday season? What are your little daily oases?

saturday upsides: a cozy rainy day

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Happy weekend, everyone! I hope all of you, especially those affected by Hurricane Sandy, are safe and sound. You are in my thoughts and prayers!

After a week of such devastation, I wanted to make sure to post a “Saturday Upside” today {inspired by my blogging friend Bonnie at Recipes Happen} because I think it is these times more than ever that remind us what really matters and to be grateful for all of our blessings. Amongst a million small daily gratitudes, today I want to take a moment to be grateful for the big things: all my wonderful friends and family, my health, my warm safe home, enough food to eat, the opportunity to pursue my dreams. Love and laughter and hope and more love.

Today is cold and rainy here today in West Lafayette. Ordinarily, I might look out the window and yearn for sun, feeling nostalgic for summer or my hometown in California, where my parents report it is indeed warm and sunny today. But there are upsides to cold rainy days. The 38-degree weather outside makes cuddling up at home feel luxurious. It makes a small apartment like mine feel warm and cozy. {Bonus upside to a small apartment: it doesn’t take much time or energy to heat up the whole place!} The rain pattering outside is such a comforting sound. I’ve got a blanket on my lap, a good book and warm cup of tea on the table beside me. What could be better?

Don’t we always want what we don’t have? In summer’s humid heat we yearn for air conditioning and cold weather; now, in the cold weather, we yearn for warmth and sun. I’m going to make an effort to be happy where I am, wherever it may be, and whatever the weather is like outside my window. My Saturday Upside is to relax and enjoy this cold, rainy, cozy and marvelous day in November!

Hope your weekend is wonderful,
-Dallas

marvelous monday: back to school

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Hi everyone! Today is my first day of school for the new semester. I always get a little nervous on my first day meeting a new group of students. My dad always says that’s good because it means I care — and boy, do I care! I SO want my students to have a positive and productive semester and come away from my class feeling like they learned something {hopefully many things} that will help them now and in the future!

This semester, I am excited to be teaching two classes: a freshman composition course and a business writing course that is geared for upperclassmen. While I’ve taught freshman composition the past four semesters, this year is slightly different because I am teaching a themed “Learning Community” course; the students in my course are also taking an Introduction to Entrepreneurship course together this semester, and I am working with the professor of that course to coordinate our assignments. I’m really excited about it! In addition to writing I have a background in entrepreneurship, and some of my favorite courses in my undergrad days were in the entrepreneurship department. {I was lucky to have really amazing professors who continue to be my mentors and cheerleaders today!} I want my students to have the same positive, inspiring, energizing experience that I did. We’re going to be doing projects like marketing proposals, interviewing experts in their dream field, and elevator pitches — I can’t wait! It is my first semester ever teaching business writing, and I am planning to have an entrepreneurial bent to that course as well.

I can feel an electricity in the air on the first day of school. It’s like the entire campus is abuzz! Too soon, the energy fades as we all get swamped with due dates and schoolwork and grading and mile-long to-do lists. But this year, I am going to try to keep that electric enthusiasm going all semester long. I remember missing school dearly in my “gap year” after I graduated college and before I began my Master’s program. The next time I feel bogged down or overwhelmed with a huge stack of papers to grade, I promise to remind myself of how grateful I am to be here, teaching and learning and doing what I love.

You don’t need to be going back to school to bask in that back-to-school energy! Fall is in the air. It’s the season of getting organized, getting a jump on that project you’ve been putting off, and getting into your groove. There are so many resources and opportunites all around us, so many connections to be made and ideas to be shared. How will you make these last four months of 2012 a masterpiece?

Have a marvelous week!
-Dallas