Goals

Giving myself a break bisquits

~ Sarah ~ Leave a comment

baking photography mixing bowl baking photography baking biscuits strawberry biscuits - sidestrawberry biscuits

This weekend I was determined to rest.

Like all good intentions, this idea started out so well, with a slow morning spent sleeping in then getting creative in the kitchen…but after celebrating two friends’ engagement, making a couple drives across the Dallas metroplex and one unhappy head/stomach later, it was clear that I had not exactly been the image of peace and stillness I’d envisioned all week leading up to that point.

Since I was not one of those lucky enough to have this President’s Day off and wishing it was still the weekend isn’t making my weekend any magically longer, I’ve been thinking of little ways I can treat myself to some relaxation throughout the week rather than just keep putting all my hopes into the weekend to recharge.

This week I plan to…

Wake up earlier. I know what you’re thinking…didn’t she just say she was needing more time relax not less? The thing is, I’ve found that even though I absolutely love my hibernation, er…sleep, I love my peace of mind more. Waking up with enough time to journal, do some yoga or run, shower and get myself looking how I’d actually prefer people to see me goes so much farther in getting me ready to tackle each day. The holidays completely threw off all the progress I’d been making, but I suppose with the passing of Valentine’s Day I can’t exactly pretend that now still counts as ‘the holidays’ anymore, can I?

Cook real food. Confession. My laziness knows no bounds…I’ve been eating out a LOT this past week or so. Even when I had the good sense to actually be in a grocery store I ended up getting frozen Asian food (never a good idea) and blue box mac and cheese (always a good idea, except when you end up making and eating two boxes in one sitting. But hey, it was Valentine’s Day…). How can I expect my body to feel good (and look good) if I don’t put good things in it? I really enjoyed taking the time to make myself something fun and good this weekend. I think adding time for that into my week is just what I need to force myself to slow down, make the most of my time with food I truly enjoy/can be proud of and oh yeah, take care of myself.

Light candles. This one’s just plain fun. They look pretty, smell pretty and make me feel like life is just a tad more on the luxurious side. Plus I have quite a few that even though I love everything about them, I’ve never actually ever lit. And if there’s one thing Finding Tiffany’s is all about it’s that life is not for hoarding and hoping, it’s for actually experiencing and enjoying. Now this goal, I can accomplish.

Update – Last week’s goals to read more and be nicer to myself have been going so well, I’ve decided to continue them…I will finish that book…one day…

{Vanilla Biscuit Recipe: Gluten-free Bisquick, Vanilla, a tiny bit of sugar, milk, eggs and butter. Plus fresh fruit and whip cream. I wish I could tell you measurements, but I had way less than the recipe called for so I had to eyeball it. Basically my rule of thumb for pretty much everything is to start with the recipe on the back of the box, then add way more vanilla than it calls for. Voila.}

New York City Where All the Girls are Pretty

~ Lydia ~ Leave a comment

It seems Sarah and I have switched motivation levels. Mine is quite low this week. I couldn’t even get enthused over a solid Co. Design email newsletter. Furthermore it’s raining today, and with every drop that falls, my energy falls with it. But we can’t be super energetic and productive all the time can we? I don’t know if I can afford that much coffee..The only concern I have about this is that I have no idea what I’m going to do for my “1 Second Everyday” videos this week..there are sure to be a lot of boring (to everyone but me) reading shots. Anyhoo, instead I’d like to give you a nice pretty tune that I have on repeat today. Is it helping me get motivated? Not in the least. Is it beautiful and do I love singing it loud in my car? Absolutely. Enjoy.

Finding…Motivation.

~ Sarah ~ 3 Comments

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Is there anything quite as cozy as clutching a hot cup of coffee to warm up on a cold day?

I realized it’s been an awfully long time since my last “goal” related post. Perhaps not so coincidentally I’ve also been feeling uncharacteristically unmotivated lately. Quite frankly, I’ve also been scared to tell you all that I’m going to do something because, well….then I’d actually have to do it! This reality hit me hard this weekend when I woke up Saturday morning with precious hours to use however my heart desired…and all I could do was lay around in my bed thinking about how bored I was but how I was feeling too lazy to actually do anything to change how bored I was.

Snap out of it, self! It’s time for some tough love, so I’m waking up my brain to make some goals for this week and most importantly, share them with you.

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Stop thinking about how tired / sick / unattractive I feel. This week I’m having a plan of attack for those self-conscious thoughts that make me feel unmotivated and self-conscious. Whenever these thoughts come up I will replace them with something good like, “I’m tired” becomes “I am so grateful for friends who want to see me, the financial ability to do fun things and a job that leaves me feeling fulfilled at the end of the day.” As for the appearance thing, reminding myself that no one notices (or cares) about minor details or off-days like I do will help, along with countering those thoughts with something I do well that is far more important than looks like being nice, smiling, helping someone, etc. This pity party is over.

the tipping point book by malcolm gladwell

FINALLY finish this book. I can’t even tell you how happy it makes me every time I open up The Tipping Point and start reading. I just love Malcolm Gladwell’s analytic yet engaging writing style. The problem is, every time I do get motivated enough to open the book (it’s quite daunting when I think about all that’s left to read) it’s usually on the later side and I end up falling asleep within a couple pages. As a result, it has taken me forever to get about 1/5 of the way in. This week I commit to start reading every day with the goal of reading 10 pages. Just 10, then I can decide to stop, keep reading, whatever I want. Take that, self-discipline.

I think that’s a pretty good start for now. I would also love to hear how you keep yourself motivated, re-motivate yourself, etc. Anyone else feel like they needed to recharge this Monday?

All work and no play, but there are monkey valentines so who cares.

~ Lydia ~ Leave a comment

ParisTraveler_Drinks_pinupPicture 11 666c7b94ee5c9f8c475df3dddcdd0108Welp. It’s going to be another busy week! Luckily, this time I woke up right on time at 5 AM to get it started right – phew.

Work in and of itself is going to be pretty stressful this week, but in a particularly good way. I am a freak who actually enjoys having to go to work early to get a head start on the day when there’s a lot to do. Especially when I am having the opportunity to work on projects I’m really interested and invested in.

There’s also a kitchen to be cleaned, laundry to be folded and a car’s interior that is desperate for some TLC. But those will just have to wait. My real goal this week is to catch up on the newsletters that have filled my inbox over the last two weeks. There literally is not enough time in the day to do all the reading I would like to.

Plus, I purchased the most adorable Valentine’s Day Cards at World Market [featured above.] I mean come on. Pop up monkeys? It could only get better if they were sloths. Ever since I moved into a new apartment, I have been single handedly keeping the USPS in business with congratulations cards, Christmas cards, change of address cards, just saying hello cards, and more cards cards cards. I would love to get these suckers written, licked and stamped this week to get it off my plate. The longer I keep them, the more attached I become. And although a single girl sending herself flowers is perfectly acceptable, I have a slight feeling sending myself a popup monkey might keep me singing “All the Single Ladies” a bit longer.

I am also finalizing Euro Trip 2013 this week! My plane ticket is purchased, passport application submitted, but the flights and trains between countries are TBD. I can’t wait for this adventure! It’s costing me an arm and leg, but I think it is upholding my New Year’s Resolution to spend less on things and more on experiences quite nicely. 🙂

Have a great week! If you’re having anything like the weather we’re having in Dallas, it’ll be hard not to.

 

On the path

~ Lydia ~ Leave a comment

My roommate and I, over homemade cappuccinos and freshly baked muffins on Saturday morning, had a brief discussion on our conflicted feelings about our career paths. Depending on our mood, time of the month and amount of caffeine we’ve had, our perspective about our place on our career path changes. There are two basic attitudes we have. The first is the good days. When we are like, I love being young! Being in your early 20’s is aw-some because we can really direct our career path wherever we choose and finding this path is exhilarating and exactly what we daydreamed about in our boring university courses. We are putting one foot in front of another, excited to see where we land.

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The other is when we aren’t eating desserts to shed some pounds, had an exhausting day and the dog is acting up. It’s when we feel so stressed and tired just thinking about the next years in our career. We have a desire to move around and work hard, yet we are still working to prove to everyone that we are capable. We get frustrated and ask, “Why am I not there yet?” Keep in mind we are both 23, a fresh 2 years out of college and both realized our career passions later in our college life. Our mentors, parents and bosses all say that we will have an enticing path ahead of us, but on these particular days we don’t buy it. We get frustrated not knowing exactly what it is we want to do. We’ve narrowed it down to an industry, shouldn’t that be enough? What if we take a wrong job, in the wrong city for the wrong company and completely ruin our chance to be something great and realize our full potential. What if…we fail.

uncertainty

On this particular, caffeinated morning at Ascension Coffee I am feeling the first. Despite my dog being mauled by a pit bull on an early run, the depressing look at my bank account after purchasing my ticket to Europe (can I even really complain about that?) and the grotesque burn on my chin from my curling iron, I am feeling optimistic. Tomorrow might be another story (it will be a Monday after all), so I thought I should take note of this optimism and positive energy so that maybe when I’m feeling a little down I can look back. And hopefully think to myself, “I was so right yesterday.” I can choose to revel in the uncertainty of my future, take a nice long sip of my coffee and continue to daydream, work hard and set goals.

First and second image  both found on Pinterest.

Appointments, Dylan, Knots and Cooking.

~ Lydia ~ Leave a comment

bob+dylan+1966 dramatic-bun-2-e1335805983574 Making-Appointments-4573_l_d24eda515d5866ebChicken Strawberry Spinach Salad_1

This is a week of appointments. Well, of two. Westley and I both have check ups with the vet/doctor.. Finally. They are both long over due but are such a pain to schedule. Why are these offices even open during the day? A vet and doctors office open from 4-10 PM would suit me just fine.

I started reading Bob Dylan by Bob Dylan about a century and a half ago. I think it’s actually been about two months, but the holidays and work put me to sleep before my head even hit the pillow to start reading. Consequently, I’m only about a fourth of the way through. I never understand what it is I do after yoga or running during the week. Where do those 5 hours go before bed? Well, this week they are going to you, Bob.

Master the top knot bun. That’s right. That is on my goal list this week. I’m not even embarrassed by how shallow that might be because I want to figure out how to do one that bad. It just looks so simple.. and yet so complicated. Wish me luck.

I happen to hate cooking. I also happen to be making a larger effort to eat better, as seen in my New Years Resolution. I am quickly learning that these two sentiments don’t go hand in hand. To eat well, you need to actually cook something. For dinner, I will often just have a bowl of cereal if I do a late yoga class or a bowl of pasta after I run. Nothing that takes over 10 minutes. For this week I have spinach and grilled chicken coming my way. I am allowing myself to have pasta with the chicken, but am generally trying to cut down this week. Baby steps, babes, baby steps.

Looking Ahead

~ Sarah ~ 2 Comments

New Year Quote

happy-new-year-cupcake

 

I’ve never been one for New Year’s resolutions, but clearly we’re goal driven people around Finding Tiffany’s. I do believe in striving to my best self every day, and I’m excited to continue learning and growing in the year ahead. The new year holds exciting opportunities at work, plenty of occasions in the works to play hostess for people I care about and travel sights set on D.C. and Chicago.

2012 was the year of…

Career. I launched my first blog and received two job offers to start my first “real” job.

Travel. New York City, Austin (twice), Atlanta, Fayetteville, Boston, Norman (three times) and New Mexico.

Community. A best friend moved back, I met two roommates, bonded with coworkers, joined a bible study with 20 amazing women and reconnected with some old friends in the area.

Independence. My own apartment, a new car and bills…all paid by yours truly.

2013 will focus on…

Health. Commit to yoga, run, eat (way) less sugar and finally follow through on some long-postponed healthcare appointments.

Relationships. Practice intentionality by actually responding to Facebook messages and in a timely manner, remembering birthdays and embracing snail mail for cards and notes.

Creativity. Learn photography with my new DSLR, dedicate more time to watching documentaries and independent film again and continue writing and blogging.

 

What do you think about resolutions? Have you set any goals or themes for the new year?

 

3, 2, 1….

~ Lydia ~ 2 Comments

newyear1 newyear2 newyear3

2012 was an amazing year. I re-started my career from scratch, spent time in NYC, landed a great job in advertising, and now live in my own (and my roommate’s) apartment, with my own dog, and my own car. As a result of all this happiness, I have an irrational fear I will ruin it with a terrible new years.

I find New Years to be incredibly stressful. There is so much pressure to have a fabulous time with fabulous people wearing a fabulous dress. And although I do hope to one day be wearing a shimmering dress, with a pair of  Christian Louboutins gracing my feet with their presence, while my beau simultaneously pours champagne into my crystal flute and ever so classily kisses me while confetti pours down when the ball reaches the bottom, but that just won’t be happening this year.

The last two New Years have been victims of too much hype. The first of the two, I was oblivious to the countdown happening because our party bus was running behind and we stopped at a random too-chill-for-new-years pub. I, unaware of the time, was was walking out of the restroom after some primping and rang in the New Year alone in a hallway before meeting up with all of my friends. Last year, I was all set with my tutu and glitter for Lights All Night in Dallas (a three night dance festival affair featuring the best of dubstep). On the day of I fell ill with a 102 fever but still went to the concert. Once you make a tutu, there’s really no going back. Needless to say I was essentially miserably smiling through a painful fog the whole night and left soon after the countdown.

So this year I am not risking anything. I will not risk blowing $100 on a ticket to a New Years “Party Bash” and end up hating the crowd or the location. Nor will there be that feeling of being in a large room of people as we all shout “3, 2, 1..” to watch the adorable and blisfully happy couples kiss into the new year (fellow single ladies, preach it, am I right?) All that to say, I loved my New Years. Prosecco, s’mores, the first fire in our fireplace, good movies, fashion magazines and fun friends all came together for a perfect night. The only splurge I had to make made were the orange and white roses I bought myself at Trader Joe’s. But I mean..they were on sale. Really I saved money.

You can’t talk New Years without talking resolutions. Resolutions are a habit of mine. I enjoy making them often and breaking them even more. But not this year. I have made my resolution so vague that it simply cannot be broken. In 2013, I have vowed to be healthier in both mind and body. What does this mean you ask? Well I am not quite sure. So far, this has meant commiting a significant hunk of change to yoga each month and being more conscious of what I am putting in my body. If I don’t understand the ingredients, should I really be eating it? (This might mean I have to cook more, warn your local fire department) And do I really need that chocolate chip cookie when I already know what it tastes like? It has also meant being cleaner. This might sound like a weird one. But for example, getting rid of those old bras and replacing them with gorgeous lacy ones. Thoroughly cleaning my car and keeping it clean. Not leaving the house with my hair all amuck, etc etc.

Did you make any New Years resolutions or have any fun New Year plans?

Photo credit (1, 2, 3)

Early Mornings

~ Sarah ~ 3 Comments

At first I thought I was crazy to commit to waking up earlier during late fall/winter when mornings are supposed to turn dark and cold. Luckily, I forgot I live in Texas, which means mornings have been much more manageable than expected with just a cup of hot coffee or tea and the occasional sweatshirt.

Dallas Mornings

Waking up an hour early (which for me means 6 a.m.) might not sound like much to some of you, but it took – and takes – a lot out of me. In college, I came way too close to not graduating on time despite a quite good GPA and full credits simply because I literally could not wake up in time for an early morning class. It was one of those last semester blow off pass/fail classes and ALL you had to do was show up twice a week at 8 a.m. for about 15 minutes.

I think I’ve made my point.

But for someone who also suffers from both chronic forgetfulness and lateness, waking up with enough time to think about life and get ready for my day is kinda a necessity. This post is also a lovely reminder to myself, as the past few…well, okay…weeks…have not been as successful as November.

Dallas Sunrise

Here’s some things I’ve learned about waking up:

Don’t

  • Say “Just a few minutes.” Don’t even pause to think about how cold it is, how tired you are, how comfortable your favorite and aptly named comforter is…get out of bed right away.
  • Get back in your bed for any reason.

Do

  • Change your alarm title to something that motivates you. For me it’s reminding myself the why behind my waking up.
  • Get a wake-up accountability partner. Someone to affectionately bug you, text you in the morning and wait for your lucid response.

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A Match Made in Mentor Heaven

~ Lydia ~ Leave a comment

A big part of ‘Finding Tiffanys’ for me is my career. As I have stated before, it took me a little longer than most to figure out what I wanted to do. If it wasn’t for a certain fantastic professor and a pushy, encouraging peer, I would probably still feel a little lost. But ever since I have discovered my passion for advertising, branding, design and technology, I have never felt more myself or excited to learn in my entire life. Although I don’t expect I will be applying for any graphic design positions any time soon, design specifically is something that is currently my call to the wild. I want to do branding, and to me design is a huge part of that strategic communication. So, inspired by starting this blog, I decided I should get my head out of design books and newsletters and do something about it.

I am proud to say that I am putting myself out there in the design world. This started with joining the DSVC and attending their networking and speaker events. The first one I went to featured Connie Birdsall of Lippincott.  An agency responsible for Sprite, Ebay’s redesign and transforming Starbucks into more than coffee (I want to be Connie Birdsall, in short). One of Birdsall’s points really stuck with me –

“My strategist have to think like designers and my designers have to think like strategist.”

YES! This pretty much summed up where I see my career going and solidified that I was doing something right by being at that meeting.

This week I attended a Mentor Matchmaking event with AIGA [ a professional association for design ]. Two of the mentors I spoke with totally “got” where I was coming from and encouraged me to explore this passion more. They didn’t make me feel silly for trying design or attending designer events before I even really learned Photoshop [ which was absolutely needed. It took me a glass of wine to get myself there, and even then I was tremendously nervous being among real designers. Furthermore, there is nothing worse than someone making your dreams feel silly ].  One mentor told me that the former president of AIGA DFW didn’t get into design until he was 25, and now he owns his own branding shop. BOOM.

Another certain mentor instructed me to fully immerse myself in design. Read about it, try it out and continue to attend these networking events. So, that is what I intend to do. I have all the programs, YouTube has the free education, and so now all I need to do is, in the words of Nike, Just Do It.

 I can’t wait.

Photo credit (1)