4 Budget-Friendly Finds That Help Tame Stress

Posted on by stilllearning2b

I’m anxiously watching the weather, hoping my county will call off school for Wednesday. Not because I really care about a day off (especially because we just switch to an online platform for classes), but because we had almost the exact same not-too-threatening forecast two years ago. When I ended up being one of the lucky ones who made it home after “only” a three hour drive capped off with a three mile walk when the roads came to an icy standstill.

Luckily, I’ve stumbled across a few things that have helped me cope with stress this school year. They’re all accessible to small budgets, small spaces and small nibbles of time.

Aromatherapy – Smell Good, Feel Good

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A middle school classroom can develop a certain eau de funk, especially when the kids have PE before my class. And after 14 years of living with it, I decided buy this essential oil diffuser for only $25.99. I did quite a bit of research on the oils. I knew that I wanted lots of variety, which took the more exclusive oils out of my price range. I settled on this set, which has a mix of blends and pure oils.

And I couldn’t be happier with the purchase. In fact, I bought a second diffuser for our bedroom just a couple weeks after the original buy.  I also added a purchase of a Breathe blend from the same company when I felt the first sniffles of the new school year start to move in.

And, I know correlation does not indicate causation, but I have only been sick once this year (and that illness happened when I was out of town and away from the essential oils). I usually play host to at least 3 colds/sinus infections by this point. And even if that’s a happy coincidence, the oils really do help lower my stress (and I even see a difference in my students!).

Coloring Books – Color Me Calm

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Yes, this is a trend. But it’s a trend for a reason. I’ve always used coloring in my classroom to soothe the students when they’re especially stressed (like after a day of standardized testing or when a tragedy strikes close to home). And it works for adults too. When you color, there are no rights or wrongs. Nothing is critical. No decision merits too much thought. It takes you out of your thinky space and into a place of intuition and impulse.

You can find the books almost everywhere now – craft stores, book stores and online. They come in all kinds of designs and most come in at around $10. And trust me, with those intricate designs, that $10 will go a long way!

Do Yoga With Me – Tame the Tension

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I used to subscribe to YogaGlo, which provided amazing quality searchable yoga classes for $18 a month. And then my card expired and with it, my subscription. Instead of updating my card information, I decided to search other options.

And I’m glad I did. DoYogaWithMe is a similar interface as YogaGlo for the low, low price of free! It doesn’t have quite the quality or selection as the other, but it also feels fairly new and seems to be growing. You can choose a class based on style, difficulty and duration. And if you don’t like a class, you don’t have to stick it out or embarrass yourself by walking out early:)  I’d call that low-stress!

Houseplants – Outdoors In

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Kind of like the aromatherapy, I have no idea what took me so long to do this. I had to give up on indoor plants when I got my cat, almost 20 years ago. She’s been gone 10 months now, and I just realized that I could bring back the houseplants.

Finding pots that work for the indoors and are also budget-friendly (cheap) and time-friendly (easy to find) is no easy task. I settled on this line of self-watering (and no leaking!) pots from Fiskars. I found mine at Lowe’s and Home Depot for a lower price than Amazon.

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I’ve kept some this cool blue color and I’ve spray painted others white to serve as herb planters on this plant shelf Brock built for me out of a piece of exterior trim board. It’s too cold to buy the herbs right now, so I’m filling the shelf with blooms from our Camellia bush (yes, in stemless plastic wine glasses because I’m just suave like that!).

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In addition to the plants for the shelf, I scattered them around the house. No pictures yet, because I bought the silliest, smallest plants knowing that they will soon grow into their pots. I love coming in to a home filled with green and growth and life.

So what things do you love that help you relax? Please share!

Back to the Past

Posted on by stilllearning2b

I recently stumbled across this spreadsheet mixed in with a bunch of math files on an old USB drive.

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It’s eye-opening to revisit.

I remember writing this one day, sitting at my desk after work. I had just made the decision to remain in Atlanta for the following school year and give my nascent relationship with Brock a chance.

I was preparing to move out of my friend’s home that had been my sanctuary for a year and into my own place.

My budget was small.

My needs were not.

As you can tell from the spreadsheet (yes, I am a math geek), I had nothing. Not even a towel.

Tier 1 were small and could be purchased early. I bought them about two weeks before moving and stashed them in Brock’s garage. I think he was a little nervous that I was moving in and staking my territory. I wasn’t – it was way too soon for that. I was just being efficient.

Tier 2 was the doozy – items that were still critical (more on the rug later), but also big-ticket. Brock gave me his extra mattress, giving me some breathing room (along with some of the tier 1 items that came as gifts from a housewarming- lifewarming?-party a friend had for me). My debit card was turned down at IKEA because the purchase amount was over my daily limit (what the what is that about???). My credit union was closed on Sunday, so we had to do an elaborate dance of the funds where my dad paid via credit card on the phone and I sent him a check the next day.

The rug stands out. It was pricey and not officially needed.

But it was a seed.

And therefore, important.

Many of the tier 3 and 4 items (lower on the priority list) were never purchased. And that’s okay.

This spreadsheet was part plan.

And part dream.

A ladder from where I was.

To where I wanted to be.

And that same IKEA sofa now sits in our living room, now covered in a more Brock and Tiger-friendly grey slipcover instead of the original white.

And underneath that sofa?

That floral jute rug.

In full bloom now.

Say Stress to the Dress

Posted on by stilllearning2b

I am a grown-ass woman. I have degrees. I’ve won awards. I can go on national television. I can do home repair. I’m generally pretty confident in myself and my appearance. So why is it that some 22-year-old working in a formal shop can make me feel about as insecure as a teenager in front of her first crush?

Okay, I’m getting ahead of myself.

The wedding is slated for October. It will be a very simple affair – a private outdoor ceremony in the Smoky Mountains followed by a dinner celebration at our favorite restaurant back in Atlanta. No pomp. No circumstance. No stress.

Well, other than the dress.

I’m not really particular about the “look” of the wedding, but it is important to Brock. Even though I still have several months, I wanted to try to find a dress today. Partly because I had a day off work but mostly to leave myself plenty of time in case it became more difficult than expected. I asked a friend to accompany me and to act as a guard against those scary 22-year-old dress sellers.

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Not the shoes I’m wearing but they’re good for a laugh:)

For my first wedding, I ventured into a Dillard’s alone and found a prom dress for $98. It had a satin bodice with some contoured seams and a long chiffon skirt. It was simple, elegant and cheap. It was perfect.

I wanted something similar again. It’s difficult with second weddings. I chose a ring, a dress and a wedding location the first time around that fit me. I don’t want to repeat that but those same aesthetics still appeal. My idea was to go to the mall and scour the racks of formal (non-wedding) dresses and hope for a similar find.

My friend suggested that a stand alone store that specialized in wedding attire first. She had been in there previously and remembered that they had some budget-friendly items.

I felt like I was walking in to some five-star hotel designed by Disney. There were glitter and rhinestones everywhere. The place was full of employees, dressed head to toe in black, scurrying around to attend to their charges. There were brides everywhere, most accompanied by their moms, choosing dresses and accessories. Everything was over the top and designed to make women feel like princesses. Along with the princess price tag. After talking with the consultant (I’m assuming that’s the proper term), we learned that their dresses started at $2,000.

Started. At. $2,000.

Who buys these things? After saying our “thank you’s,” we promptly left and got into my car (current value – not much more than $2,000).

After touring a few department stores at the mall, we knew we were on the right track. Our last stop? Dillard’s. And they came through again. Even in that more relaxed environment, I was still tense. Sometimes, I don’t understand myself. I’m completely fine trying on bikinis. No sweat. A formal dress? Yeah, that brings out all of the body insecurities. I feel silly in super feminine things with my athletic build and casual nature. It can be frustrating to have arms and shoulders that burst seams and to have trouble fitting my lats into a dress. Would it be out of place to get married in a bathing suit in the mountains in October? Yeah, that’s what I thought.

To complicate matters, I’m weird about spending money. Especially on myself. I feel guilty. Somehow I don’t feel like I’m worthy of spending money on. It’s frugality mixed with a dash of neurosis. I wish I could find a way to keep my thrifty ways but nix the guilt.

I only ended up trying on one dress. It’s formal but not bridal, which apparently is good for a 90% discount, as it was only $200. It’s simple and elegant and relatively cheap. But it’s different than before. It fits my frame, showing off my muscle in a flattering way and the sleeveless style gives my shoulders endless room to move. I can borrow jewelry from my friend and I should be able to find shoes once the weather warms up. Mission accomplished.

So now the dress is hanging in the closet waiting for its fall debut and my blood pressure is slowly returning to normal. I should be okay now as long as those 22-year-old dress consultants stay away:)

On the Menu: Pot of Veggies at the End of the Rainbow

Posted on by stilllearning2b

It’s been quite some time since I’ve done one of these posts. This whole fall has been a whirlwind of activity between The Jeff Probst Show and other spin-offs from the book, activities with friends, and marathon training. This weekend has been a chance to catch my breath before the next round of craziness begins next weekend.

It’s funny – I never used to cook much. But now that I’m used to it, I’ve missed the extended time in the kitchen on Sunday trying out new (or at least not tried and true) recipes. I’ve been cooking my lunches the last several weeks (I have to, or I don’t eat) but I have been relying on quick and simple dishes. Today I passed on my usual yoga class to give myself the gift of time in the kitchen.

My sweet potato, oat, and protein powder concoction that fueled my marathon.

I am still on my sweet potato ban after marathon training. Don’t get me wrong, those little suckers are a perfect (and cheap!) carb source for gluten free endurance athletes but they do get old after a couple months of daily consumption. Besides, I’m ready to go back to my normal, lower carb diet. I definitely feel stronger and leaner when I limit the carbs a bit more.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I started off early this morning prepping for one of my favorite winter soups: Eat the Rainbow Black Bean Soup from Fat Free Vegan. This soup literally swallows veggies. It is so filling and hearty despite being low calorie.

These are just some of the veggies that go into this soup. When I kept chopping, I swear my slow cooker looked at me incredulously.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I decided to add some tofu this time to up the protein factor a bit more.

I’m hoping the vegetable content of this soup alone will scare off any rhinovirus that happen to be lurking around. I like to pretend that the common cold is uncommonly afraid of spinach.

The soup about halfway through its five hours in the slow cooker…yum!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Since I had the time this weekend, I ventured to Trader Joe’s – one of my favorite places to get groceries that unfortunately is an extra 20 minutes out of my way. I squealed in delight when I saw that they had in their seasonal shipment of brussels sprouts on the stalk. Yes, I got some strange looks. They are more labor intensive to prepare when they are sold this way but they are much cheaper and way cooler.

I just love the alien look of sprouts on the stalk!

I decided to keep it simple. After de-stalking (reminds me of defrocking and makes me giggle!) the little cabbages, I cut them in half and tossed them with balsamic, olive oil, garlic powder, and salt and pepper. I then roasted them at 400 degrees for just over 20 minutes until the leaves were perfectly crispy-black.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I have to admit. I have a strange addiction to these things. As I was attempting to pack them into five containers for my lunch, I kept sneaking bites. I ended up eating almost 1/2 pound of sprouts. Between those and my usual kale and spinach breakfast smoothie, I had more cruciferous veggies before 10:00 a.m. than most people probably eat in a week!

Here’s my addiction – roasted brussels sprouts. I love the sweet and salty crunch of the blackened leaves.

What’s for dessert, you ask? I usually just have an apple or some (gack!) sweet potato, but I decided to make something a bit more special this week. I like to that especially around the holidays as it keeps me from feeling deprived around all of the sweets that invade the school.

I decided to make the Grain-Free Carrot Cake from Ask Georgie. It. Is. Amazing. Stupendous. Unbelievable. Not only will I not feel deprived this week, but I bet others will be envious of my sweets!

Gluten and grain free carrot cake. Nuff said.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The craziness of the last few weeks has been wonderful and exciting but it feels amazing to be home and enjoying the restorative simplicity of preparing food that nourishes my body.

And now for some not-so-healthy veggie nachos and some NFL. Go Ravens and Falcons! Let those birds fly:)