Words Have Power!

 

In our weekly podcast, Amber, Christen, and I talk a lot about manifesting our best lives and that we use scripting or journaling to set our intentions. We also write out affirmations and gratitudes. I, for one, do a lot of writing; I generally have 7-8 journals going at any given time, each with its own specific purpose and style, so I’m always looking for new journals to track my progress, set my intentions, log my tarot layouts, and more.

One of the journals I use is our Modern Musings’ Words Have Power journal. It was designed for scripting and has 86 lined pages, making it perfect for my daily Gratitude and Affirmation practice. 

Hal Elrod’s Miracle Morning S.A.V.E.R.S inspired this practice. Each morning, after my prayers and meditation, I write out three things I am grateful for, three things I would like to accomplish, and one affirmation. It’s a great way to start my day with gratitude and intention.

In another journal, I document my accomplishments at the end of the day. I find that I have some pretty high expectations about how much I should accomplish in one day – it’s never limited to the three things I list in the morning. My to-do lists read more like War and Peace, and I tend to beat myself up over the tasks I don’t complete. But when I think long and hard, I know that I’ve accomplished a lot, often finishing tasks that weren’t even on the list in the first place. So, rather than be angry with myself for not managing to do x, y, and z, I started a practice of cataloging everything I accomplished at the end of the day. Wow, was that an eye-opener! When I end my day by listing everything I did, whether it was on my to-do list or not, I feel much more productive, and I can go to sleep knowing that I've done my best.

Do you script or journal? If not, I highly recommend it! To begin your scripting or journaling practice, try one of our Words Have Power journals, which are now available on Amazon.com:

https://a.co/d/aNQFkFP

https://a.co/d/2MCw0Dn

https://a.co/d/0M736E6

https://a.co/d/ikTv0eG

Saying Yes to Big Change

Yesterday on the podcast we celebrated 50 episodes! We talked about our favorite episodes that we have recorded so far. One of my favorite episodes and blogs that I’ve written thus far on my Modern Musings journey has been our episode about Cups. In my blog, I wrote about how I refilled my cup with positive energy after years of tragedy.

One of the things I wrote about in my earlier blog was that I tried new things whether I felt comfortable or not, and I have continued that sentiment. When I was younger, I felt trapped. It wasn’t that I was physically trapped but mentally trapped by the things going on in my life. I felt like I couldn’t get out and do something because I had no money or I had people that I had to take care of, so I couldn’t spend time and effort on myself. I believed that I had to put myself last for many years. One of the scariest things that I’ve done is start over from scratch at the age of 37, and it has been an absolutely crazy but enjoyable ride since. Instead of saying “no,” I said “yes”, and my life needed more YES.

In the past two years, I have said “yes” to many things, and most of them have been positive (but not all of them). In my experience so far, saying “yes” to opportunities often leads to more significant possibilities. In the past year, I have said yes to two major events in my life: starting Modern Musings and marrying Jason.

Christen and I have been best friends for 20 years. In fact, we met 20 years ago in the college dorms and spent most of our college experiences together. In a sense, we “grew up” together. I had the privilege to be Matron of Honor at her wedding, and she will, in turn, be Matron of Honor at my wedding next year. Starting a podcast was just something that Christen and I played around with on our occasional girls’ night, but we weren’t sure how to get started. On a separate occasion, Christen had the very same talk with her mom, Cindy, and Modern Musings was born.

I live a very busy life as a teacher that spans all hours of the day, from getting parent phone calls in the middle of the night to emergency weekend Zoom meetings, so I wasn’t sure how I could fit anything extra into my life. It was rocky at first, especially when it came to writing these blogs. When my mom got sick, I gave up on my writing for many years. Once I developed a routine, writing became easier for me. When it became time for us to record our first episode, I was nervous. I never liked being put on the spot, and while I had natural conversations with people in real life, wearing recording equipment while having a conversation was daunting. I barely talked during our first few podcast episodes. Over time, it has become easier, but I still get nervous. Now, I look forward to recording our weekly podcasts.

Next week, Jason and I will be celebrating the one-year anniversary of his asking me to be his girlfriend officially. Just shy of our 11-month anniversary, he asked me to marry him on a dock looking over the ocean on our summer vacation in Gulf Shores, Alabama, and I said yes. We met each other in the spring of 2021 by chance and became friends. At the time, I was finalizing my divorce and wasn’t even thinking about my next relationship or marriage. Several months later, he asked me out on an official date, and I said, yes. He took me to a gastropub near my house, and we spent hours talking and laughing. The date went so well, he asked me on a second date and then a third date, and the rest is history. One of my students asked me recently why I chose Jason. I told him that I have never laughed as much as I do with Jason, I have never felt more relaxed or myself as I do with Jason, and I’ve never had as much fun as I do with Jason. Saying “yes” to Jason has opened my life up to new and exciting adventures, whether it is spending a great night cooking together, going on a day trip to different museums, or attending a baseball game. When we started dating a year ago, we agreed to have no bad days and we haven’t. Yes, we have our ups and downs, but we always end every day on a good note.

I want to hear from our readers. What is something in the past year that you’ve said “yes” to that has changed your life? Let’s continue the conversation in the comments or in our Facebook Group: MMC Chat.

Motivation Tips for the Start of the School Year

School Time

Hey everyone! It is August and what does that mean? The start of school here in Texas! It is the time when teachers, students, and parents get out of the summertime mindset and back to the hustle of classrooms and school activities. I was so busy this summer that I swear I blinked and I missed it. I had a list of things I wanted to do (as usual), but I didn’t have time to do them. By the time August arrives, I’m usually ready to get back to school. That’s not the case this year because I feel like I needed at least one more month. So, how do we get out of the summer mindset and back to the hustle?

Last school year was tough for me, as it was for many other teachers. I felt like I needed extra motivation to go back to the classroom for the 2022-23 school year after a few of my coworkers quit teaching altogether over the summer. It is an uncertain time for education, but I am here for it and ready to embody my “Balancing Home and Work” blog. 

Here are some motivation tips for teachers this school year. I promise this will help with burnout and these tips can also be adapted for non-teachers:

Vision Board for this Coming School

1. Visualize how you want this year to go. Towards the end of the summer, I always start thinking about school so much that I have dreams about it. What do I want my classroom to look like? How do I want my classroom to be? What am I going to wear in the first week of school? What are we going to read this year? One of the best tips I can give someone is to make a vision board or make a vision list. Since my year runs August-July, this is the time of year that I start to make a vision board. If you are a visual person, a classroom vision board is a great motivator. We Are Teachers has some great ideas for your vision board.
2. Set goals for the year. This can go hand-in-hand with making a vision board. Ask yourself what the big picture is. What do you want your students to learn this year? What do you want to learn this year? Also, ask yourself how you can accomplish these goals. I like to set goals in two ways: I set them for the year as a whole, and I set them for each unit/lesson I will be teaching. I promise that being this organized will make your year go smoother. Check out my blog on SMART Goals for more ideas.
3. Set daily intentions. Now that you have a long-term idea of what you want to do, it’s time to look at the day-to-day. Ask yourself what you want to accomplish, and go into the day with an open mindset.
4. Don’t sweat the small stuff. Okay, your lesson plan went terribly. Don’t let it ruin your day. My mentor teacher in college told me that the first period is always the “practice period” because anything that would happen to off-put your lesson will usually happen during the first period. You have to shake it off and move on to the next class period. Your first-period students will be back and ready to learn tomorrow. Tomorrow is a new day.
5. Take time out for yourself. One of my past mistakes has been to work through lunch. Most teachers have just thirty minutes for lunch. Take that thirty minutes and get out of the classroom. If students know you are in your classroom at lunch, they will want to be in there with you. Take some alone time. Walk around. Go outside. Your classroom will still be there when you return.
6. Don’t be afraid to try something new. I am not one of those teachers that teaches the exact same thing every year. I may have a set of novels that I teach, but I am always researching and finding new ways to teach those novels, which keeps my job interesting. If I am bored with a novel or a lesson, I like to try something new. The same can be said with any aspect of teaching. If your class rules aren’t exactly working, try something new. Don’t get set in ways that don’t work. Be flexible.
7. Have fun. This one is big. If you are not having fun and enjoying yourself (at least a little), you are in the wrong job. Make friends. Do something creative. Turn your lesson into a game to get the kids motivated. Go somewhere after work to relax. Remember to have fun. As Eckhart Tolle would say, “live in the now.”

I want to hear from our readers. What motivates you? What are some tips you have for motivation? Let’s continue the conversation below or in our Facebook Group: MMC Chat.

My Favorite Day Trips

Hello everyone! It’s Amber here again, and this week we will discuss day trips on our podcast. What is a day trip anyway? You can take a day trip and be back home in one day. There are many different types of day trips that you can take, and I have favorites in each category.

Grapevine Lake

• Nature Trips: When most think of day trips, they probably think about nature trips such as a trip to the lake which is just one type of nature trip. I love going to the lake, especially if the lake is surrounded by trees. I love trees and water. I don’t necessarily like getting in the water, but being around a placid lake surrounded by trees is soothing to me. Living in the city can be tough when you want to get away from the hustle and bustle, but there are plenty of nature trips in or around the city if you take the time to investigate. My perfect time at the lake would consist of sitting by the water, reading a book, and listening to the sounds around me. My favorite urban body of water to visit is Grapevine Lake and Katy’s Woods in Grapevine, Texas.
• Shopping Trips: One might not think of shopping trips as day trips but, for me, shopping usually lasts most of the day depending on where I go, especially if I go antiquing or to estate sales. Every few months, I like to go on a metaphysical day trip and visit as many metaphysical stores or markets as I can in one day. My favorite locations to shop at are in the North Dallas suburbs:
• Denton Community Market
• Every Witch Way Market
• Juliet’s Jewels
• The Storm Witch
• Indigo Dreamz Apothecary
• Sleeping Lizards
• Bewitched Denton
• Patchouli Joe’s
• Miracles of Joy
• Lightworker’s Sanctuary
• The Groovy Coop
• Boho Moonchild

The Samurai Collection

• Recreational and Historical Activities: Activities can also be considered a day trip. One of my favorite activities to do in my area (aside from shopping) is to visit the local museums and art galleries. Recently, my boyfriend and I discovered The Ann & Gabriel Barbier-Mueller Museum and historic art walk in downtown Dallas. It is a small museum that focuses on the history of the Samurai. Another museum we recently explored was the Perot Museum of Nature and Science which has “adult only” nights featuring live music, dancing, and food trucks. Recreational activities could also include visiting the local water park or amusement park. 
• Other activities you can do in a day:
• Geocaching: Using your navigational skills to locate hidden containers or “treasure.”
• Urban Exploration: If you like photography as I do, exploring abandoned places and historical landmarks is a fun way to get out of the house.
• Trying new restaurants: As a food blogger, I do this quite frequently.
• The local music scene: In the Dallas area, we have a neighborhood called Deep Ellum where a lot of local and national artists play.

Perot Museum

I want to hear from our readers. What is your favorite day trip? What do you think constitutes a day trip? Let’s continue the conversation in our Facebook Group: MMC Chat!

Manifesting Perfect Moments (Even for a Second)

It’s 2022. Am I weird that I don’t actively think about manifesting? Manifesting is all about goal-setting, right? We talk a lot about goal-setting on our blogs and podcast and it’s a subject that’s near and dear to me. This year one of my goals is to manifest great moments in my life. 

Dave Elkins from MAE

Recently, one of my coworkers and I went to a concert of my favorite band, MAE (Multisensory Aesthetic Experience), at the Granada Theater in Dallas and it was a perfect night to manifest great moments. Normally, I would leave with the crowd afterward but she convinced me to stay behind and see if we could catch the band. I’m glad I listened to her because I actually got to meet my favorite singer, Dave Elkins. This moment was special to me for two reasons: The first was that I was at their initial Granada concert when they came to Dallas seventeen years earlier and the second is that MAE was actually one of the things that got me through quarantine two years ago.

Dave Elkins and I

Aside from being incredibly nervous talking to my favorite singer, I told him that his music literally saved my life. He asked me to elaborate. Quarantine was a dark time for me. Not only was I isolated from my friends and my family, but I was also stuck 24 hours a day with my then-husband. Being stuck with someone that you don’t normally spend much time with (because I work a lot) can go one of two ways: endless gratefulness for the time spent together, or realization that maybe there was a reason I subconsciously elected to stay at work long hours at a time. 

When the pandemic started, Dave started giving acoustic concerts every Saturday on the band’s Facebook page. You can watch those videos here. I lived for those Saturday concerts. I eagerly waited for the setlists to come out every Wednesday in anticipation of his upcoming acoustic shows. I watched and commented and sang along to the music. That was one of the only things keeping me going during the pandemic other than work. When MAE announced they were touring again, I was ecstatic. I constantly checked their website for tour updates in the hope they would come to Texas. Finally, they announced a fifteen-year anniversary tour of their second album, The Everglow, and they had planned dates in Texas. I knew I had to attend the concert. Surprisingly enough, my work friend got us tickets and gave them to me as a secret Santa gift.

I don’t often claim favorites in my life unless I like everything about that particular thing, and this includes everything from bands to authors. If I claim something as my favorite, I’m going in full force. I ran across the band MAE in 2003 after they released their first single “Embers and Envelopes” from their debut album Destination: Beautiful, and quickly bought their CD. I loved every single one of their songs because I thought their laid-back music embodied my personality. I always described my love for the band as if my soul could represent a form of music, it would be their music. Over the years, MAE has been the one band that I consistently followed despite only attending one of their concerts before.

After the concert, Dave and I talked for a while. We talked about quarantine and the last time the band played at the Granada. He ended up giving me a copy of the setlist, and the band members signed it for me. Not often do I get to experience moments that I describe as perfect. To me, perfection rarely exists, and the beauty of life is in its flaws. But, that night, the stars seemed to align at that moment at that concert, and it took me back to all the moments I spent in 2020 listening to Facebook live. In those quarantine moments, the world was uncertain. We didn’t know when or if life would go back to normal. Slowly but surely, two years later, I am doing things again like going to concerts or the movies that I hadn’t done since the fall of 2019. When it comes to healing, all it takes is time.

I want to hear from my readers. What was one thing that got you through quarantine? Let’s continue the conversation on our Facebook Group: MMC Chat and on our Facebook Page.

My Favorite Flavor

If you know me, you know I am a sucker for weird holidays. Did you know that March is “National Peanut Awareness” month? According to Peanut Allergy Facts, about four percent of teens and adults have peanut allergies. Peanuts have always had an important role in my life. Another little-known fact about me: My family, and by extension I mean “I”, owns a peanut farm.

My whole life, I have always said “my family” because I never felt part of that equation. I have always felt far removed from that scenario as it never seemed possible t that I would inherit the farm; the farm would never make it past my mom’s generation. Then, my mom died, and now I own half of a farm.

Going back generations, my family had always been farmers. My mom even grew up on the farm until my grandparents moved permanently to town when she was in college. That was when they allowed someone else to farm their land for a share of the profits. The farm grew other things besides peanuts depending on the season and who was in charge of farming it. Somehow, though, the farm was always there in the background. We visited it during crop seasons, and my grandparents dealt with the taxes. 

Growing up, I have many memories involving peanuts. Mid-fall, whenever the crop was harvested, my grandmother would receive bags of raw peanuts that she liked to shell herself. So, I would sit with my Maw Maw and shell peanuts; I began to hate peanuts.

As I mentioned in my last blog, I grew up poor. A staple in many less-fortunate households is peanut butter and white bread. Peanut butter is pretty sustainable and if you are hungry, it can be satisfying on the cheap. Aside from peanut butter sandwiches, we ate peanut butter and saltine crackers almost every day. To this day, my grandma still likes peanut butter and saltine crackers for an afternoon snack and peanut butter and jelly sandwiches for dinner.

After I moved out, I didn’t eat peanut butter and jelly sandwiches because they reminded me of my childhood and poverty. Then things changed. Three years ago, I had a life-changing surgery that altered the way that I eat and taste food (watch for a blog post in the near future). If you ask me to name my favorite thing to eat, my answer now will be peanut butter (or any kind of nut butter, really). Why? Quite simply, my taste buds changed, or adapted, since I started my weight-loss journey. Despite my earlier disdain, I am obsessed with the flavor. It no longer represents poverty but protein, and protein is life-sustaining. Nuts and nut butter were among the few things my stomach could tolerate post-surgery, and I enjoyed a bite of peanut butter as a “sweet escape” if I wanted something to curb my cravings.

It’s funny how we tend to avoid certain things that remind us of our childhood. It’s not like peanuts held a particular trauma for me. I may have simply not enjoyed the taste. I’m thankful now that I can look back at unshelled peanuts and be reminded of my Maw Maw but I will always buy them shelled in the store.

My favorite ways to eat nut butter:

• Perfect Bars™: Perfect Bar™  is an organic, gluten-free, high-protein bars made out of nut butter. They offer many different flavors at your local grocery store, but my favorite will always be the dark chocolate chip.
• Spread on a keto waffle: One of my favorite things to make is a Birch Bender’s® keto waffle. You can buy waffle mix or ready-made frozen waffles. I like to pair my waffle with Fix and Fogg Everything Butter®.
• Keto Peanut Butter Balls: I use this recipe from Beaming Baker, and I like to use Swerve®, sweetener, and 365 Organic Creamy Peanut Butter®.
• Keto Fat Bombs: I recommend this recipe from That Low Carb Life using Swerve® and Lily’s® baking chips.
• As a dip with Cauliflower Pretzels: My favorite cauliflower pretzels are From the Ground Up®.
• Keto Peanut Butter Pie: I found this recipe from All Day I Dream About Food using the same keto ingredients mentioned above.
• Keto PBJ: My favorite keto bread is Chompie’s®, and my favorite sugar-free jam is Good Good®.
• Smoothie King Keto Champ Coffee™: I love a good protein shake and this smoothie features almond butter.
• Premier Protein™  Chocolate Peanut Butter Shake: I can’t leave this out because protein shakes are a part of my everyday life now.

I also want to give a small-business shout-out to Spread Happiness Nut Butters and their keto-butter products as well as Ten Berries and their low-sugar jams. I first ran across these businesses at the Denton Community Market a few years ago when I moved back to the area.

I want to hear from my readers. Do you like peanut butter? What are some of your favorite peanut recipes? E-mail me at modernmusingsmmc@gmail.com and share your recipes with me.

As an Amazon Affiliate, Modern Musings earns from qualifying purchases.

SEE ⇢ THINK ⇢ BELIEVE ⇢ DO ⇢ BE

With all the talk last week about bad luck and superstitions, this week’s topic of manifesting is a welcome change. When I read Christen’s blog about positive affirmations last Thursday, my first comment to her was, “I don’t do that,” a phrase often used by my granddaughter in answer to something she doesn’t want to do. I laughingly told Christen that I’m always afraid to say some affirmations out loud (or even think them) for fear of jinxing myself or tempting fate…you know, say something positive and then knock on wood to make sure it stays true. Wow, I am superstitious, aren’t I? The funny thing is, I do believe in positive affirmations, just not in the same way that Christen does.

Last month, we talked about vision boards as a method of visualizing the things we want, and that is the start of a technique I have dubbed, “See Think Believe Do Be”. The idea started when I was working on my vision board for One Little Word. We make a vision board every year for this project, and I usually go about it the same way, as demonstrated on the blog linked above. But this year, we had a guest instructor “Lu” lead us through a few alternative ways to approach the vision board, and one of them reminded me of a positive affirmation technique I’ve practiced many times through my morning “mindfulness” ritual.

Visualize the life you want to have. Plan out the perfect day. See yourself doing the things you want to do. Feeling the feelings you want to feel. Imagine yourself being the person you want to be and living the life you want to live.

This is the “See” of my technique. When you write or draw out your vision, do it with as much detail as you can imagine. Really describe all of it. Really SEE it. Be specific. KNOW what you want. I wrote out a detailed schedule of how I wanted a typical work day to go, starting from the time I woke up to the time I went to bed. I added in all the things I wanted to do, and as I was writing it out, I closed my eyes and imagined what it looked like and how I felt. There were no negatives…this was my perfect workday.

I’ve found that once you can actually see the future you’d like to manifest, it tends to stay with you. It’s not some vague notion of being successful at work, or losing lots of weight…it’s the ideal image of what you want emblazoned on your brain. It makes it something tangible. Something real. You start to think about that life and really want it. And then, when, through the course of your day, you are faced with choices – decisions that will affect the outcome of that vision – you tend to think back on that idea, and it helps you to make the better choice. This is the “Think” part of the technique.

Since creating that daily schedule, I’ve found that I’m a lot more productive in my day. I’ve got a plan. I’m getting things done. I’m thinking about my goals all the time. That vision is an ever-constant reminder of my end game, and I’m constantly weighing choices and options to see whether they fit with my overall plan. Some people call this “alignment” with your “higher good”. I call it the “Believe” part of my technique because this is when I really start to believe that my goals are possible.

Once I start to believe that I can have this life I envision, then I start finding ways to make it happen. I find that I am constantly checking that alignment against what I’m doing, I start breaking those goals down into smaller steps and then start ticking them off, one by one. I’m not rushing to finish…I’m just working the plan, taking the steps, doing the work. Little by little, I’m making progress. This is the “Do”.

If you look at my technique and you see that “Be” is the last step, you might think it’s the end, but it’s not. Be actually comes into play from the very beginning; from the minute you start to visualize the life you want you start to become that person. And that’s really what manifesting is all about. If you can dream it, you can be it, and at each step of the process, you are actually doing the things that someone who “is” does. BE that person. LIVE that life. If you can imagine that life, if you can see that life, then you can live that life. All that is left is to do the things that make that life a reality. A person who is healthy has a healthy exercise routine, so be that healthy person - get up and exercise. A person who is successful at their career has certain objectives they need to meet, so be that successful person – line up those tasks or quotas and figure out what it will take to meet or exceed it, then just do it. 

See⇢Think⇢Believe⇢Do⇢Be

It all starts with see. You can think it, and you can believe it, but you have to do it to be.

As Henry Ford once said, “Whether you think you can, or you think you can’t, you’re right.”

Let’s talk some more about visualizing our perfect day or our perfect life. I’d love it if you would share your thoughts here in the comments, or on our MMC Chat Facebook Group.