It’s spring and it’s time to tidy up and do some cleaning. Isn’t it funny how when spring comes you see the dust and the work that needs to be done, outside as well. One good thing about the warmer burst during the winter is that my hubby and I were able to get outside and tidy up a bit, so there is not so much to do now.
Everyone has been buzzing about Marie Kondo and her, Tidying Up series on Netflix. If you haven’t seen it check out the trailer below.
Marie Kondo published a book titled, The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up: The Japanese Art of Decluttering and Organizing in 2014 and has been an instant best seller with over 14,000 reviews on Amazon.
The Marie Kondo Method is going from room to room, organizing what you do want that makes you happy and what doesn’t make you happy. If a piece of clothing or another item in your house does not make you happy, you need to thank that item for serving you and put it in a separate pile. In the Tidying Up episodes, it works for each family but it is not an instant organization overnight. The cleansing process can take more than a month and she doesn’t force people to throw things away.
I must admit I have been rolling my socks, tights, pajamas for a while now, even before I knew about the Marie Kondo method. The one thing that I didn’t do that I picked up from the series is that after you fold, stand your socks, tights, sweaters, etc. upright so you can see what you have in your chest-of-drawers. And put items in plastic crates so you can see what is in them. What you don’t see you will not go back to. I thought it was interesting that when she would go into a home she would want to greet it first by kneeling on the floor and closing her eyes. She really wants to create a surrounding of peace because organizing a whole house can be quite overwhelming.
Why do I organize?
I organize because I live in a small house, and to be honest with you, too much clutter looks really bad and not good for the mind. An organized house no matter the size creates a peaceful surrounding. And I can design the room spaces of my house better because a lot of stuff is not in the way. I find it overwhelming to do a whole house at one time so I go room by room and that is also what Marie Kondo does in her show.
My mother would always tell me that if I didn’t keep my things in the proper place and organized than I wasn’t thankful for what I have. I have always remembered her saying that and I think that’s my push not to have clutter because it feels like chaos to me.
If you don’t know where to start with organizing a space or your chest-of-drawers I think it would be good for you to watch the Tidying Up series with Marie Kondo on Netflix.
I find that the key with organization is to stick with it. Meaning if your socks get out of place put them back in place and so on. If you do this for at least 15 days the process will start to become a habit.
Please let me know how de-cluttering works for you.
The first day of spring is today and I can already hear the birds chirping in the morning and I see the squirrels running around in the yard.
I have already started seeing advertisements for Easter and bunny decorations in all sizes. While seeing those ad I thought in the back on my mind what does the Resurrection mean to me? I know that Jesus died on the cross for my sins, I know that He did it just for me. But am I really seeking him?
My hubby and I had the opportunity to screen the new movie The Pilgrim’s Progress. We will have a complete review of the movie closer to Easter when the movie opens.
You will have only two opportunities to watch the movie in the theater. THURSDAY, APRIL 18TH 7:00 PM SATURDAY, APRIL 20TH 12:55 PM
GIVEAWAY
In partnership with LEV3L Digital, Bubbling with Elegance and Grace is offering a giveaway to coincide with the upcoming release of the movie. Three awesome people will win a copy of the digital interactive storybook that accompanies the movie (a $20 retail value). To be one of those three people, leave a comment below.
The Interactive Digital Storybook
The movie is based on one of the best-selling books of all time. Written in 1678 by John Bunyan, The Pilgrim’s Progress is a timeless story that can give our children the courage to stay on the straight path in a culture that often stands against them. Watch and share the trailer. Make plans to take your family to see The Pilgrim’s Progress Easter 2019! An epic tale of a pilgrim and his burden. Journey with Christian as he travels from the city of Destruction to the Celestial City.
Find your theater and get tickets HERE!!
The giveaway runs now until Saturday, March 23 at 11:59 PM (CT).
For your chance to win a copy of the companion digital storybook, simply leave a comment below about the movie.
FTC Disclaimer:
For hosting this giveaway with LEV3L Digital, Bubbling With Elegance And Grace will also receive its own copy of the interactive digital storybook. No financial compensation was received and all opinions of the movie are our own.
When it comes to your health and your lifestyle, we can often leave ourselves slow on the priority list. You may have children you dedicate your time, a relationship that needs your attention, a job that requires your dedication, and a home that needs looking after. There is always something that is going to take your attentions away and have you busy, but the truth is, your body, your mind, and your health are extremely important. Without those things, the rest doesn’t exist.
Of course, it can be hard to make yourself a priority, after all, there are no further hours in the day, but there are changes in habits and things you can do that can make a big difference. So here are some of the ways that you can take better care of yourself. Let’s hope it gives you the boost you need to still be able to do everything else at 100% momentum.
Think about your diet
One of the first things you should make a priority is what you put into your body in terms of the food and the drink your consume. There is no denying that if you nourish your body with good things, such as fruit and vegetables, a balanced diet, with plenty of water, then your body is going to function as it should and feel fantastic. There is a lot of connection to how you feel in terms of energy and mood with the food and drink you consume. So next time you don’t feel right, start with the food you have consumed and you may be able to understand why. It isn’t about staying on a diet, it is more about getting the balance right and grieving your body exactly what it needs to function. You can do this without any mega change to your lifestyle, you just make better choices.
Take more exercise Exercise is over of those things that we all know we should do a little more of, but finding the time top head to the gym and workout can just be too overwhelming. However, you can make a choice to be more active. You could do things such as parking the car a little further away so you increase your steps in the day. Choosing to take the stairs instead of a life. Or maybe getting up a little earlier in the morning and doing a workout at home. These things can really help you when it comes to being more active, and doesn’t mean expensive gym memberships or huge sacrifices of time.
Get those things checked out Sometimes we can fall short when it comes to getting things checked out. We know we should keep up with regularly check ups, but then only tend to do something about it if a problem occurs. Your eyes, for example, can change over time, so while you may be using a prescription now, that might not cover you for two years down the line as your eyes can get better for deteriorate. The same can be said for your hearing, it is always worth getting checked out, but tend to only do something if yearling loss occurs or there is a blockage of wax which then means you need to see an audiologist. Lastly, a big thing as a female is to have regularly gynecology checks. These things can spot the early signs of infection and other worst case scenarios like cancer, and yet so many women don’t keep up with the checks through fear. It is time to stick with the regular appointment schedules, better to be safe than sorry.
It is all in the mind Your mindset can play a big role in how you feel day to day, and so it might be time to try and change up some of the habits you have developed that could be more centered around negativity than anything else. Maybe it is time to be more aware of that internal voice, and start making more of what you can do to make positive changes in your life. It could be focused around positive thoughts, or gratitude for the things you have and what is going well for you. Changes in your habits can really make a big difference to your output in life day to day.
Take time out for self care Finally, make sure you take some time out for some self care, it can make a big difference to how you feel by just having those moments for you. Whether that is a shower or a hot bath, or it might be an early night so you can read your book. It is important to recharge those batteries in any way that you like to help you feel good and rested for everything else you need to do.
Let’s hope that these tips help you to take better care of yourself.
It’s probably fair to say, that most people are a bit wary of getting older. After all, why else would there be such a thriving industry for assorted beauty products that promise to keep us looking as young as possible, for as long as possible? And why would modern popular culture place such an emphasis on youth, whether via film, music, or advertising?
While getting more wrinkly with time may not be to everyone’s tastes, falling victim to age-related cognitive decline is a nightmare scenario that anyone would go to great lengths to avoid.
Unfortunately, it’s not always clear what causes cognitive decline, and there are many different proposed mechanisms and patterns that can increase your risk of suffering from dementia and related conditions as you age. To give a weird example – some research suggests that there may be a certain connection between age-related hearing loss, and age-related dementia.
All the same, there are certain lifestyle practices that are widely agreed to be able to do some good in helping to mitigate your risks of developing cognitive decline as you age.
Here are a few lifestyle tips that may protect you from this unwelcome condition.
Fast occasionally Throughout human history, in all kinds of different places, and at all kinds of different times, people have practiced regular fasting either intentionally or unintentionally.
“Unintentionally,” because food has never been as abundant as it is today, and many people had to contend with extended periods of hunger throughout the ages. “Intentionally,” because a huge number of groups throughout history have seen religious or ritual value in abstaining from food deliberately for a period of time.
Modern research has shown that fasting can actually have some pretty profound health benefits, and may protect cognitive function as well.
When we fast – that is, willingly go without eating – for an extended period of time (in the region of 24 hours, for example) a process known as “autophagy” is triggered throughout the body. Autophagy, simply put, is a process where the body breaks down and “eats” damaged or redundant tissue, which is then replaced by new, healthy tissue after the fast.
Autophagy is thought to be deeply connected to good overall health, and it’s been argued that it can help to reduce the risk of certain cancers (and maybe fight certain cancers as well), improve overall immune function, and more. At least one research paper has noted that fasting induces “profound neuronal autophagy” in the brain – something that researchers are working around the clock to create a drug to accomplish.
So, fasting occasionally – maybe for one or two days a week – might be an effective way of working to protect your cognitive health. Just don’t overdo it; your body does need food, after all.
Get an intense exercise session in once a week A lot of people, when they exercise, will go for the traditional “aerobic” workouts that we tend to think of as “cardio” exercise. In other words, jogging, cycling on a stationary exercise bike, and all that sort of thing.
According to the doctor Doug McGuff, however, in his book “Body by Science,” this type of exercise is deeply inefficient, fails to achieve many of the most important benefits of exercise, and can lead to repetitive strain injury.
According to McGuff, doing an ultra-slow, ultra-intense, short once-per-week weight training routine is the real ticket to fitness and good health. Among other things, this is because training in this manner apparently trains and stimulates all the different elements of the metabolism, which makes the body more efficient, and reduces the risk of a buildup of undesirable byproducts that can harm cognitive health as well as organ health.
If the good doctor is right, doing a once-per-week ultra-intense session, along with his guidelines, may keep your body’s machinery working properly, and help to protect your cognitive health as you age.
Stay mentally engaged, and commit to constantly learning and developing new skills
Norman Doidge, neuroscientist, and author of the book “The Brain that Changes Itself,” argues that the brain essentially responds to demand, and keeps generating new tissue and rejuvenating itself, if you have a mentally active enough lifestyle.
To a large extent, this means continually engaging in learning and developing new skills as you get older, rather than simply sticking with whatever routines or hobbies you might have learned years ago.
A good approach here could be to get involved in new hobbies, stick with each one for a year or two, and then change your main focus to something else. Just stay busy, and stay curious. Your mind may do much better because of it.
You might think that your cat is already pretty intelligent. After all, he or she can navigate the cat flap, look after themselves out of the house at night, and, well, take full advantage of your hospitality. But science is increasingly showing that there are things that owners can do to turn their cats from ho-hum intelligence into veritable feline Einsteins.
So what can you do? Take a look at some of these unique ideas.
For years, scientists puzzled over how to get animals to engage in cognitively-demanding tasks. They soon realized that pretty much the only thing that animals wanted was food and that by making food the prize, they could encourage behavior that they wanted.
You can take advantage of this by using food puzzles that require your cat to use its intelligence to get a tasty treat. What you’ll quickly find is that the cat’s natural instincts will kick in. They’ll suddenly go into hunter mode, thinking intently about how to get the meal that they want.
The good news is that you don’t have to come up with your own food game from scratch. Many pet stores sell games pre-packaged. But if you want to come up with games, you can. Many owners like hiding treats around the house in difficult-to-find places, encouraging cats to use their mental skills to seek them out.
The hunting instinct is fundamental to what it means to be a cat. But cats who are fed out of a tin for years on end can end up losing this vital aspect of their intelligence. The only reason evolution gave cats any intelligence at all is arguably because they had to use it for hunting prey.
If you don’t want an endless string of dead birds brought through your back door, then it’s a good idea to find artificial ways for your cat to indulge their hunting instinct, like this motorized weasel ball. Toys help to elicit the hunting response without necessitating the unfortunate demise and death of any wildlife in your garden. What’s more, most of these toys are relatively cheap and can be used again and again.
Play Hide And Seek Playing hide and seek with your cat might sound like a non-starter. But it is surprisingly simple to achieve, Start by providing spaces for your cat to hide in your home. These spaces could be small cardboard boxes, areas behind the sofa, or out in the garden.
Once you’ve got some cat-friendly hiding spaces available, let your cat go and hide. Then start calling their name, only for a few minutes at first to get them used to the idea. After a while, when you discover them, reward them for hiding away. This will encourage them to find better hiding places in the future.
Do you think your cat is smart? Do you want to make them even smarter? Then try using some of these ideas to keep them mentally active and healthy.
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