52-Week Challenge: Week Nine

Hello all!  Sorry this post is coming a day late; we have family in town, and blogging is taking a back-seat. Anyways, how did everyone do with last week's challenge to eat more vegetables?  I don't know if I got exactly 4-6 servings of veggies each day, but I DID have vegetables with every meal (except breakfast) for the entire week.  I usually had a large salad filled with a variety of veggies OR a veggie-filled soup for lunch, and then I incorporated veggies into our dinner meal, either adding them to some recipes or having veggies as a side.  I didn't measure them so I'm not sure if I got the servings I was supposed to get, but I know I got more than I USED to get.  And coming from someone who was struggling to eat vegetables before this week, that's DEFINITELY an improvement.

This week's challenge is called "Enjoy Some Alone Time."  The challenge is to carve out at least a half an hour per day that is just for you.  No kids, no husbands, no friends, no cell phones!  It's just you and whatever you want to do.  This is a good way to relieve stress, clear your mind, and gain some confidence in yourself (if you struggle with being alone).

I personally crave alone time.  I love my husband, my son, and my friends but I NEED some time by myself each day.  I tend to get a little grumpy if I don't.  Luckily, with my husband at work, I usually get my alone time during Matty's nap time.  However, I'm going to take a step this week to turn that alone time into something I do for ME; I'm going to spend at least a half hour of that alone time NOT doing laundry, cleaning house, cooking dinner, etc.  I'm going to do something that I enjoy, such as running, reading, writing, sewing, or watching a movie.

If you don't have the luxury of naptime, the author has a few suggestions on ways to incorporate alone time into your day:

1.  Get up a half hour earlier or go to bed a half hour later (but remember to keep your 7-8 hours of sleep each night!)
2.  Take your lunch break from work alone.
3.  If you're a stay-at-home mom, have someone watch your kids for an hour.
4.  Set a technology curfew by turning off your cell phone, laptop, etc at a specific time and for a specific amount of time.  This will allow you to really utilize your alone time.

So, what to do with your alone time?  Here are some ideas.

1.  Exercise.
2.  Read.
3.  Bond with Nature.
4.  Learn Something.  Take a class, go to lecture, watch a documentary.
5.  Explore a new area of your town.
6.  Start a project
7.  Get pampered.

Bottom line--do something you ENJOY!  Alone time is not alone time if you spend it working!  Good luck!