Recipe for Success
Happy Monday guys!
On this lovely Recipe Monday we wanted to share a Recipe for Success …. Hehe get it? It’s a play on words.
Hopefully not too many of you have left with that awful joke! Haha.
But for reals, today we want to be open about our Recipe for Success: Stress Edition.
The last time we posted was 8 days ago. How? Why? What? When?
Don’t worry, we are just as bummed out as you are!
Tyler and I have noticed that there are days and weeks that seem even busier than others and in a blink of an eye another week has come and gone!
The best thing we can do is pick ourselves up and keep on going!
Tyler and I both work; Tyler is attending school full time.
As soon as I get home from work I dive into my photography and work late into the night!
This is my passion and I try to give my full heart to it.
Then around 10pm Tyler is done with homework and I instantly put everything away and I snuggle him! My favorite time of day!
And we usually fall asleep watching a show or talking in bed.
And this usually goes on day after day. We love it! We love being busy and following our dreams, but sometimes these schedules can take a toll on us.
So what do we do to stay sane?
We love being outside and we love exercise.
Tyler and I boulder/climb 5-6 times a week!
This has been such a huge passion of ours and we love it!
I (Jen) love working out as well! Running, lifting weights, and spending time at the gym is always a good time.
I usually work out with my broski Eric and I love being able to have a motivation buddy!
Hiking and camping are high on our list of fun activities!
Walking our doggie Ruca is another! Ruca loves being outside and he loves hiking so we take every opportunity we can to take him to the mountains!
Baths are amazing.
Netflix and cuddles are amazing.
Laughing and watching “Vines That Cure Depression” is also a weekly occurrence in our house!
I know what you’re thinking, "there’s no way that you can have time to do those fun things on your list if you’re as busy as you say, Jen and Ty."
Well, we do! And here is how we do it!
Tyler and I have a schedule we follow! As soon as he and I get home from school/work, we go spend time outside or climb. This is the perfect time to get in a small hike or workout. The trick is to be active right away instead of coming home and sitting on your couch! Hehe it’s hard to get back up once you’re already comfy and cozy. I (Tyler) am victim of this way too often haha.
We always review how much homework/work we have and do it at the same time. That way we can be done at the same time! We usually do homework in the evening after the sun has gone down, that way we can spend as much time outside while it’s warm and sunny.
We love our crockpot! As much as Tyler and I love cooking together, we love letting our crockpot do the work and having dinner ready for us when we get home! So easy! And we always eat dinner together, this is probably our favorite time of day because we get to catch up and eat yummy food!
We believe it is important to take care of our mental health and so we encourage each other to do things that make us happy. So I will usually go to the gym and Ty will play PUBG (hehe many things can help our mental health!). This is also a great time to sneak in a warm bath, a meditation session, or a nightly walk.
We love planning and being organized. I (Jen) love planning everything. Like EVERYTHING. I plan my whole day to ensure that I will accomplish certain goals and so that I can be accountable. When you have a lot of things to do, planning is great! And guess what? You can totally plan down time, nap time, and play time. By having both work and play in a day, you can accomplish goals and have fun all at the same time! We know that not everyone needs this; Tyler plans in his head and will remember all that he has to do. So plan in a way that helps you! You do not have to be as crazy with it as I am, it’s just what helps me accomplish things, be on time to events, and still find time to play!
It is okay to put work away and go to sleep. One of the greatest things Tyler and I can do is get the rest necessary for us. We have learned that it is okay to go to sleep on time and to continue our projects the next day. This goes hand in hand with planning. If you have allocated enough time to finish homework and work, you shouldn’t have to stay up too late every night. Plan out homework assignments, projects, and events ahead of time and always give yourself enough time to accomplish everything. But we totally understand late nights and all-nighters ;) It happens!
Be happy and positive! Encourage yourself, your spouse, family, and friends to be happy as well. Good vibes will do more than bad vibes ever will! Tyler shows me so much love and support when I feel extra stressed and I am so grateful for it! He knows how to make me laugh and how to pick me up. Learning other’s love languages will really help with this one!
BE SPONTANEOUS! I know, I know. You’re thinking I’m a hypocrite after stating that I plan everything ;) Well, maybe I am. But I plan for moments of spontaneity! If someone asks you to hang out, say yes. If you want to go to a dance party, go dance. If one of your favorite bands are coming to town, go! (LANY we’re coming for you in 2 days!) I usually plan these moments for the evening/night time and try to not schedule anything between those hours.
Communicate your feelings. This one might sound funny, but is the cause of many a stress. When Tyler and I run around all day going to school and work and activities, sometimes I feel as though I do not have time to communicate with him and so I don’t. So what once was a small concern could turn into a large scale issue if we don’t talk about it. Stress seems to do that to our brain! Crazy, huh? So take time to talk about the fact that you forgot to take the car in for an oil change or that you forgot to pick your lovely wife from work (hehe), etc. If shared in the moment and light-heartedly, no issue will arise and we can laugh about it instead of arguing about it.
Live your life the way you want to and don’t let anyone change that! This one has added a lot of unnecessary stress to our lives. Guys, here’s the deal. Live your best life and let others live theirs. Do good and be happy. If you do these things then don’t worry about what others are saying!
