I can't do everything but I need to do more.

"You can't do everything." -My dad

My dad warned me of this when I was a teenager. When I was in middle school & high school, trying to run here & there, participate in this & that, make two parties in one night, you know, typical crazy  busy-people things. I don't know if it was age or exhaustion, but I finally realized that {bracing myself to say this} but... My. Dad. Was. Right.

After a long day of working, I would love love love to: eat dinner, spend time with my grandparents, watch some TV shows, do some laundry, do the dishes, blog, read for pleasure, do a nightly devotion.....oh, and see my boyfriend.  The bad thing is is that my nights usually look a little something like this: Work til 6:30-7:00ish, go to my grandparents to eat dinner (kill two birds with one stone), get home around 8ish, thank God my boyfriend doesn't mind traveling to BFE to come hang out with me, watch a couple shows with Mom & Alex, head to bed to play on my phone for a little while I "wind down" & hope to be asleep before 11:30. {It takes me forever to get to sleep.} Guess what didn't get done: everything else.

I don't know what's going on with me, but I am a super sleeper lately. I should say super napper instead of super sleeper because it takes me forever to get to sleep & it is an act of Congress to get me out of the bed in the mornings.  Alex  blames soft drinks, of course, but that's a risk I feel like I'm going to have to take right now. ;) BUT- this weekend, let me tell you, I have slept like a DOG! I have napped until I felt guilty. I have slept, slept, and slept some more. I chalked it up to saying on Twitter, "Saturdays are for being lazy," and "Sundays are for church and napping."

Now, one could argue that I can't get anything done if I nap, but I am being serious when I say that I have felt SUCH the need to sleep sleep and sleep some more lately. I don't know why! But, I know I've got a busy week ahead & I've got to be prepared, and hit the ground running! That is my plan, so, tonight I spend my Sunday evening catching up on paperwork from work, and feeling SUPER rested after a FOUR hour NAP after church this morning. SERIOUSLY. I have slept this weekend away!!

How does that tie in with the quote from my dad? I don't know. I think I'm procrastinating again but I DO think I had a point. And I think that point is: I can't do everything, but I need to find a way to do more.

So, the weekend's almost over. I must go back to work.
I need to figure out a better plan though because this not getting anything done crap is for the birds.
One thing I can say proudly is that FACEBOOK has not been the reason for me not getting things done.
I can proudly say that I have spent 6 whole days OFF of Facebook and I haven't really missed it have only missed it a little. :) Yay me!
I'll be honest: I am tweeting more but, I mean, come on! {I will work on it. I promise.}

Until then: holler at me on twitter: @nsykes0921 -- say hello! I would love to know who actually reads these durn things. :)

Attention Deficit Disorder

Having ADD myself, this video is like an AH-HA moment! Of course I could have told you this was what I was doing all along, but watching a silly video of "myself" just makes me realize that I need a good cattle prod every now & then to finish a task! I have a couple hours to kill before we go eat a fabulous Japanese steakhouse dinner tonight, so, I think I'll go finish an incomplete task I have floating around....I can see a couple in sight right now! Who's with me?? :)

Happy Friday everyone!

I Drive Myself Crazy

So, as a future counselor, if I have a client that comes in, super stressed out with the world on their shoulders one approach in helping them would be to help them figure out what they can & can't change, and then working with them on figuring out ways to help them change/control what they can & worry less about what they can't fix. For those of you who ARE "that client," easier said than done, right? Right! I know I can say that with an exclamation point because I am "that client." I always stress out way too much, get upset about things I can't control, and then don't take time for myself, focusing on what I can control. One thing I should be controlling, and should have been controlling for years is my to-do list. Things should never stay on your to-do list for months. Seeing the list grow is just anxiety forming. Then follows the guilt of not accomplishing tasks, false promises of doing better tomorrow, tomorrow approaching and you're in over your head again, pushing your tasks to the side, holding them off until tomorrow. Then the whole cycle repeats, doesn't it? Drives. Me. Crazy. But I do it anyways, knowingly! Drives. Me. Even. More. Crazy! But really, I am aware, and I am a big girl. What I do or don't do for myself is my own fault, my own choice, and I'll face my own consequences. 

I have so many things I WANT to do, for myself. So many things that I blogged about it last month. Since I blogged, what have I done? Well, I have started to work out, and I have started to run again. I went to "the beach" but I didn't see the ocean- so I don't think that counts. I must make another trip! ;) Other than that, I've been slacking! Oh no! I also have been reading Made to Crave and going to church on a weekly basis! So, I guess I didn't make my summer to-do list too unrealistic, but I definitely should have added 300 hours of interning to that list to make myself feel better about devoting so much time to "things" off the list.

I would like to start a girls get-together/Book club/Bible study/whatever else you want to call it. Like I said, I'm reading Made to Crave and LOVE it and feel like so so so many girls need to read it too, and would love it with me! It's something you can read by yourself, but I can see why they have groups of women read it together. Accountability is such a powerful thing! If you are in the Lincolntonish area & would like to join me, let me know! I would love to share this experience with you! 

Well, that's enough for tonight....

My hot shower made me sleepy and I need to NOT be up until 1:00 again tonight. So, I'm going to try to get some rest earlier than normal tonight. I'm really really really trying this normal sleep cycle thing. It's not working out well, but darn it, I'm still working on it! :) 

"If at first you don't succeed, try and try again." 

♥

Total rambling on my part....rambling with a purpose

I love how the Lord moves in you when you least expect it.

I know how people say God gives you a peace beyond understanding, but for this season in my life, I am praying for energy & motivation  beyond understanding! The Lord needs not only to move in me, but move ME! Set my heart on fire for what HE desires in my life & help me move towards that goal. I'm telling you now, it won't happen otherwise. I am human. I am lazy. I lack(ed) motivation. I procrastinate. I at times wish to take the easy route. So God, I know you're listening: Get. Me. Going!

I am excited about starting anew. Starting a new day, a new week, a new semester, a new internship, new friendships, and my new business in Mary Kay! The desire of my heart is to make things different, BE BETTER in all that I do. Put forth more of myself & make more of an effort.

I realized (one of) my problem(s). I have a lot I want to do, and get overwhelmed with that to-do I-want list, that I just say, "I'll get to it." And then by the end of the day, I'm tired, and that "I'll get to it" turns into "I'll get to that tomorrow." And then tomorrow it was, "What was I gonna do again?" & while I think about it, I get on Facebook! Oh, the life...

So tonight I began my list of everything I want to accomplish in a day. That way, I can attempt to hold myself accountable when I sit on Facebook. I can ask myself, "what else do I have to do before I can spend time on here?" Because Lord knows I will be on Facebook, getting sleepy, & then head to bed without getting what needs to be done done! There are silly things on this list, like "make the bed" but I am so Type-A. I need a list. I need to check things off the list. And if it's not on a list, it might not get done. What can I say? I am my father's daughter.

Tonight I was going through my Mary Kay order, sorting everything out & bagging everything into cute pink bags with ribbon, and I came across my new microdermabrasion set. {Please note that I also have ADD, so, I am easily distracted.} I thought, "Oh wow! I wanna try that tonight!" but I am so weird about applying skin care. I want it to be first thing in the morning or right before bed. So what did I need to do? Get in the shower & wash my face so I can use the microdermabrasion set. I always get so side-tracked with what I need to be doing {clean my kitchen!} & go off into LaLa land, doing what hit me that very moment. That's got to stop or else I'll get nothing done. BUT, my face feels FABULOUS tonight!!

Side note: In the shower I had some NICE prayer time with the man upstairs! I love it when that happens! I feel like the shower is "my prayer closet" as my preacher, Mike Devine, calls it. It is a {pretty dim lit} "box" where I am warm & comfortable & not worried about anything or anyone else. It's the perfect time for one-on-one with God if you have time to just stand there under the relaxing hot water. :) In that prayer time, I developed my "I Story" for my business, which is my inspiration for joining Mary Kay and what I hope to achieve in the future. I would love to share it with you some time.

My simple point in this was to say that I am excited for the future. Excited for the days & weeks to come. Excited to see my business grow and for this semester to be one of the best, as well as fly by! ;) I am excited to see what GOD will do in my life and who He will bring into it! Lord, prepare my heart for this season because I can not do it without you!!

OH! & another thing I want to start doing is GETTING PLACES EARLY! If you know me, you know I'm never early and rarely on time. I am sorry. It's inconvenient, rude, and so on & so forth. I know and I never intend to be late it always "just happens!" I want to strive to be on time, and early if possible, but let's not get carried away. So what does that mean? Ok, so, I have to be somewhere at 9:45ish in the morning. I will be realistic and give myself two hours to shower, dry & fix my hair, apply my makeup, eat breakfast, find something to wear, & take my dog out. {Yep, that will take about 2 hours} What does that mean? I have to get up at the latest by 7:45. The dishes need to be done and a(nother) load of laundry started. I am going to set my alarm for 6:45, snooze til 7 {a bad habit of mine I don't think I'll ever be able to break} & get up & see what I can get done in those 45 extra minutes I gave myself!

It's 1:33AM now, which means I will hardly get five hours of sleep. Ironically enough, another thing I absolutely have to start doing is get more sleep. Good thing I'm sleepy now so it probably won't take my usual 30-45 mins to get to sleep.  Let me tell you: five hours of sleep isn't nearly enough for me, so pray for me as I begin my day tomorrow. Pray I can get up & get going! Pray I stay productive during the day. Pray I can get everything on my list done. It's realistic. It's possible! Let's just hope that I maintain this blessing I call motivation that I received tonight out of nowhere. I am praying for energy & motivation beyond understanding...because Lord knows this girl needs more than 5 hours of sleep!!

Any suggestions you wanna send my way as I begin this venture to betterness? Send them my way! & I apologize if this was complete nonsense-sounding, rambling to the nth degree. It's late; forgive me!

Reality Check

It just hit me. I go back to Hickory in less than 2 days. This Christmas break is almost OVER.

Did I tell you I had 11 {yea, that's not a typo- I said ELEVEN} papers to write before mid-January & planned to do some over break? Well, guess what...I didn't. Did I tell you I wanted to get on a good sleep schedule while I was at home? Didn't do that either.

My first week of break was full of last  minute Christmas things and spending time with some of my friends I hadn't seen in a while! then came the two days of Christmas, followed by a *fabulous* snow storm that started Christmas morning, and then a couple days of Christmas clearance shopping... and then the rest is a blur!! Time has flown by and that is not good!!

It's funny about time flying...it flies when you don't want it to & ticks slowly along when you're anxiously awaiting something! That figures. I guess we all need to learn to cherish those special moments because they'll be gone before you know it and to be a little more patient and a little less anxious for those things we are waiting on. Easier said than done....*trust* me!

Now that I know it's coming I am anxious ALREADY. What was that...a whole one second before I quit practicing what I was preaching?? Great, Nicole... I say I'm anxious only because I dread what's coming...packing the car up & heading back to Hickory, only to need to unpack things, get things ready for the upcoming semester, taking down Christmas decor at my apartment, getting things ready for the new transfer freshmen coming in, oh, and those eleven papers I mentioned above. So much for a peaceful week before school starts!! I am just ready to get the car packed up and get up there and get it all DONE! I do *not* want to start this semester off with a messy apartment and a to-do list a mile long.

One thing I am looking forward to is living back in Hickory. I've probably gone to Hickory six times in the two weeks I've been home in Lincolnton. It's about a 25 minute drive, but six times...with rising gas price!! It gets old after a while. All my favorite stores are in Hickory & I do my grocery shopping at the Super Wal-Mart. {Lincolnton needs to hurry up & get theirs up & running!} Hickory also has something else Lincolnton doesn't have....and that, my friend, is a *Starbucks!*

I have never been a Starbucks coffee fan {therefore I don't usually go to Starbucks} but I found myself with two $5 gift cards, {much} thanks to sweet Maylen and sweet Maggie. :) I went up through the drive-thru and said to the man behind the speaker, "What do you have hot and non-coffee tasting?" He listed a couple seasonal-sounding drinks that sounded a bit nasty to me, until he said the beautiful words..."and we have a caramel apple spice." My world will now never be the same.

Starbucks.com says, "If you’re longing for the toasty warmth of a woolly blanket and crackling fire but don’t have the luxury of escaping to a cabin, we suggest a freshly steamed Caramel Apple Spice. Prepared from 100% pressed apple juice sweetened with cinnamon syrup, whipped cream and our own buttery caramel sauce, it strikes a soothing balance between sweet and tart that never fails to hit the spot."

Doesn't that just sound delicious??? Trust me, IT IS! I get it with no whip cream on top {and usually spill it all over my arms as I am walking into class}. Just go ahead, take my word for it, and go on out & get you one before they quit selling it because I'm sure it's a seasonal drink! You can thank me later.

The school part of graduate school--

Omgosh. Grad school is definitely doing a job job kicking my butt right now.

I have learned that you can't just take pride in finalizing your to-do list. You have to get things done so your to-do list gets smaller or smaller. The thing with me is, I'll keep adding crap to the list. Just so I won't forget down the road.

My to-do list currently has on it: work on paper due next week and finish painting apartment (which we all know probably won't happen until the summer). Who am I kidding?

I do take pride in the fact that our STUPID paper was completed tonight at 11pm. It's due tomorrow. Figures. It's so hard to get us all together. We are all adults, living individual lives. It's not like undergrad when the majority of students don't have full time jobs, or children, or spouses. It is seriously difficult to get a group of 4 or 5 of us together to work on a group project. But we did it! We spent 7 hours together this work working on it...not counting the time we worked on it individually. Group papers are the worst I think. Ahh but it's DONE! :-D

November 18th is a big day for me. I have tons of crap due that day - tons! Including a paper on a book I haven't read yet. (Date check - yes, it's Nov 13th!) I heard it's a good one though ... one about the experiences of living in a concentration camp during WWII. I've been told the main point of the book is "it's not about what happens to you, but how you react to what happens to you" so .. I'm sure I'll finish it quickly! I better, huh?!

After that I'll only have a couple more assignments due for the semester and the Monday & Tuesday before Thanksgiving I'll get TWO out of 3 of my FINALS to start completing. Grad school finals are awesome. Yeah, they're cumulative, which sucks, but they're take home, open book essay finals! The sooner I start, the sooner I'll get done .. which means the sooner I can get back to stalking people on Facebook! ;) juuuuuuuuuust kidding. (right.) No, but I do miss it...

On a different note - I registered for classes already! November 9th. I thought that was kinda early but maybe I'm wrong. I am taking 3 classes right now (9 hours), all of which are kicking my butt, but to my defense, only because I procrastinated. So what do I do? I sign up for FOUR next semester! You know me, trying to get out of school as soon as I can! At the going rate I'll graduate December of 2011. Gah, that seems forever away but I'm sure it'll be here before I know it. Anyways, four classes. I was going to take a week-long class in December on spirituality but I think I'll take that time to go home and have a break with my family. Oh! AND .. one of those classes next semester is only 3 weekends long. How awesome is that? 3 weekends and I'm done. Grad school DOES have its perks!

I am so blessed to be here. I try to thank God every day for the job He gave me here and for the opportunity to further my education, for free, because otherwise I'd just have a Psychology degree and I'd either be doing something I hate or working a job that doesn't require a college education. He DEFINITELY was keeping His eye out for me! I have no doubt in my mind. Thank you, Lord! :)

peace out, facebook!

So, I blame Facebook for distracting me the most. As a result, I have decided to get off Facebook until all my work for the semester is complete! I did this once before, you know, when you temporarily deactivate your Facebook, knowing that the minute you sign back in everything pops back up, as if you never left. Yeah, I tried that-- I was productive an entire day and then later that night, what did I do? I signed back on! I have absolutely no self-control. Or, I didn't. Who knew that all it would take to get me off and focusing on things that are more important was a bribe? I didn't, but it's seemed to work so far. Okay, okay....so I'm only two days in! It's been a pretty productive two days!

Yesterday I was pretty proud of myself. I wrote a nine page paper in APA format with 20 references, ate in the caf twice (not my norm), had a salad instead of something greasy, and got water instead of Mountain Dew, twice! If you know me, you're probably proud too- haha... I'm working on productivity! There are so many things I need to do but so also so many things I WANT to do. So, I'm getting items in my to-do list marked off one by one, less slowly and more surely than usual! I must say, I like this no Facebook idea.

Sidenote: if for some reason you see a status update or something, it's ONLY because I said that I would ONLY and I mean ONLY get on Facebook to post updates to this blog and updates to my devotion Facebook group, "ten minutes to get you through your day." I'm staying true to my vow and not just because I was promised one of my favorite TV shows on DVD. :)

Enjoy your Tuesday!