Busy Bee Mama

When I was 12, I went through a big trauma in my life. Going through trauma and becoming a teenager at the same time is not a good mix. The way to cope with it? Rebel. Rebel. Rebel. I started doing the stereotypical rebellious things: dressing in black, listening to rock/metal/alternative music, and using bad language. I didn't want to be cool. I wanted to be someone else. I wanted to feel better. This was long before I had a struggle with anxiety and depression. I was depressed at the time, but no where near what I feel now as an adult. I didn't want to feel weak or be perceived as weak so I wanted to feel a way to cope. How did I cope? With cigarettes. My mother was a smoker for as long as I can remember and probably even before I can remember. When she felt stressed, she smoked. After she ate dinner, she smoked. In the car, she smoked. Relatively, I felt like my mother was someone who was 1) my role model at the time and 2) she had her shit together. As an adult...

2017 was a really hard year for me. I learned a lot. I lost a lot. I gained a lot. 2017 was indeed a huge roller-coaster for me and my family. Unfortunately, by the end of 2017, my brain and my heart were both broken. One evening, I sat down and really reflected on my life and what things need to be done to achieve my idea of happiness. This year will be the year that I truly focus on myself, my needs, my family's needs, and create a platform for me to continue this journey/grow on. 2018 will be the year I focus on my happiness, my health, and my wants/desires. I'm 25. I'm not spending my life miserable. I'm taking control. Here's the goals and resolutions for 2018. Some are leftover from 2017, but some are new and different. I'll update you throughout the year as I did with 2017. Happy New Year!  XOXO Dori  B. Goals and Resolutions for 2018 Marathon/Run .  I would like to either run in a marathon or a fun-run type activity. I am not good at running o...

Goals and Resolutions for 2017 Marathon/Run .  I would like to either run in a marathon or a fun-run type activity. I am not good at running or walking for that matter, so that is one thing I'd like to do in 2017. Niagara Falls .  The farthest north I have ever been is Connecticut. I would love to travel to Niagara Falls and just feel the mist on my face. Plus, I would love to drive on over to Canada. Maybe I'll do that one next year. Go to the beach .  As a person who lived near the beach for 14 years of their life, I never liked the beach. I went to one in 2015 (the Bahamas) and fell in love with it. I want to go this year with Jude since he has never seen a beach (except in pictures).  Toes in Lake Erie .  I do not know how sanitary or legal it would be. I want to stick my toes in Lake Erie.  A trip to Washington, D.C .  I have not been in a while. I mainly want to sight-see. Monuments and museums all day every day. Cruise .  Not parti...

It's all right- this isn't the end of it. Endings and beginnings are as different than exits and entrances. Today is the last day of the year 2017. It's a time to reflect. In my own life, there has been so much change in my life. The person I started the year as has metamorphosed into a new person. At the beginning of this year, I began a blog. I have posted over 80 blog posts since then. This started as a way to talk about television shows and express my inner thoughts. It was supposed to be more focused than a diary or a journal. It was going to be about criminal justice research too. This changed over the year, as have I. Today's task: Start a journal or a blog. Write about your day. Write about your thoughts. Just write. A word. A sentence. A paragraph. A novel. Just write. Start it for 2018. Save it and hold it to look back on. Continue it for years to come. It's a release.

Today is December 30th. The day after tomorrow is 2018. Isn't that nuts? I feel like we just started this year and we're already saying goodbye. The days go by like hours. The months go by like days. Our lifetime passes so quickly that we miss out on simple things. Do you feel like electronics are taking away the way we communicate and express thoughts? When is the last time you have talked on the phone? When is the last time you have written a letter by hand? There is a little joy that a person feels when they receive mail (that is not a bill). It is becoming slightly archaic due to the rapid changes in technology. Today's task: Post on social media. Ask for addresses. Write pen pal letters. Talk about your day. Talk about your favorite books. Your favorite quotes. A story.  Write it and mail it. Stick that stamp on it and let it go. Extra : I have been doing these tasks alongside you guys (minus maybe one or two because I'm human and get busy too). This one...

Today is December 29th. There's only a few days left until 2018. How will you be spending your last days of 2017? I'll be catching up on Doctor Who, blogging a lot, and other miscellaneous things. I watch a lot of television. If that's one thing you can gather from my social media accounts and my blog, it's that I watch way too much television. I have a long list of television shows that I follow. I watch most of this on Hulu or other apps. I do have to record some shows on my DVR. Some people may not even have cable, especially with most people streaming nowadays. Today's task: Clean out your DVR. Whether that means removing shows you haven't seen or removing shows that you don't want to see (but for some reason recorded), remove them. Narrow it down. Watch the ones that are waiting to be watched. Don't have a DVR? Do you have a list of shows that you've been putting off watching? Or a list of movies? Cross them off! Spend a day and just catc...

Today is December 28th. There are 4 days until 2018. FOUR! Less than a handful. Crazy. I have so many goals that I didn't accomplish this year. Sometimes things don't go as planned. It's unfortunate, but I try to be the best person I can be and do what I set my mind out to do. A lot of people have this happen every year. We will set out a long (or even short) list of resolutions or goals to complete throughout the year, but some/most are not accomplished. It's hard to discipline yourself sometimes. I know it is. I find myself having issues completing simple goals, mostly because of money or some other reason. I tried to complete as many as I could this year (and I'll make a separate post about which ones I did accomplish). There are a lot of things I want to do next year. I think I want to do more and learn more. I want to become less of a homebody and more of a person who grabs life by the balls. I get one life to live and I want to live it to the fullest. The...

Today is December 27th. I'm so happy that Christmas is over. My Christmas tree and decorations are already down. The only thing left is to wash my Christmas hand towels and table cloth. Then it'll be over! Speaking of over, the year will be over in only a handful of days. I'm going to be planning out my last few things to do before the end of the year. I'm a planner. I plan everything. I plan what I'll do each day. I plan out my plan of action in a store. I plan out my blog series and blog posts. I plan everything. I also love making lists. One thing I don't plan out is my meals. I'll decide what I make for dinner exactly thirty minutes before I start cooking. When I go grocery shopping, I buy a little of everything because I never know what I'm going to make. I think, in 2018, I'm going to start planning out my meals better. This means I'll cut down on costs. The reason I'm posting this before 2018 is so you have time to plan and real...

Today is December 26th. It's a Tuesday! Christmas is over. Back to your normal lives (unfortunately). Today is a new day and, in 6 days, it'll be a new year! That means you'll say goodbye to the things that are over in 2017. One thing that I do several times a year is check expiration dates and clean out my freezer/fridge/cabinets. It's easy not to notice when your mayonnaise expires. I don't want to be that person who accidentally ingests something expired or rotten. It's something that I've always been weary of. If your trash pick-up is on Mondays, your trash will be picked up Tuesday probably. And hey, guess what? It's Tuesday. Perhaps I should have posted this yesterday... Today's task : Clean out your fridge, your freezer, your cabinets, etc. Check expiration dates. Check for mold or mildew. See if it's frostbitten. Throw it away!

It's Christmas! It's Christmas! It's Christmas! Less than a week until 2018, but who cares because it's Christmas! It's Christmas! It's Christmas! You're possibly going to get presents today. You may get a lot. You may get a little. You may get that 60" television you've been wanting. Or you may get something that you may need or already have. Regardless, someone took time out of their life to think of you. They thought you deserved something . It's important to remain grateful and humble during this day. It is easy to get lost in the greed of the season. Let's take today to revisit some manners. Today's challenge: Say thank you. Don't forget to tell everyone who got you a present today those two simple words. Thank you! Thank you for reading this blog. Thank you for buying me a present. Thank you for spending time with me today. Thank you for being you. Don't forget to say thank you! Today's task: Make a list. You...

Today is Christmas Eve (!!!!!!). Tomorrow is Christmas! Ah! Don't forget to put out your milk and cookies. I make my son write a thank you note with his milk and cookies. I try to keep him grounded and not greedy. I TRY. I know the holidays can be extra stressful. You have to deal with family members, even ones you may not like or who may judge you. You have to deal with rotten kids. You have to spend more money than normal for presents that people may or may not like. You have to do this and do that. You feel exhausted or fatigued. You need a break. Unfortunately, Christmas hasn't even happened yet. There's more to handle! It's important to stay level-headed throughout the holidays. Today's task: Go on a walk. It can be a walk around the neighborhood or around a park. Just go for a walk and enjoy yourself. Get lost in your thoughts or listen to your favorite artist with headphones on. Try to lower your stress level. Just take some time for you. If you...

Today is December 23rd. Two days! Two! I am so excited for Christmas. What else am I excited for? 2018! Only 9 days! Lots of exclamation marks to note my excitement! What are you guys doing on Christmas? I'm going to wake my family up way too early (because I always do) and then I'll watch everyone open their presents (because it makes me happy). Then, Jude will play for a little while and I'll make a Christmas lunch. Finally, we will go to my sister-in-law's house to have dinner and spend time with Caleb's side of the family. I have no idea what I'm making for Christmas lunch? I have a bunch of cookbooks (I'm talking 20+ probably). I have never opened them or really cooked from them. I think I will this year. I have no idea what I'm going to make, but hopefully, these will give me an idea! Do you have cookbooks that collect dust too? Why do we collect them and never use them? Today's task: Crack open a cookbook (or a website dedicated to re...

Today is December 22nd. It's 3 days until Christmas! It's crunchtime, baby! Oh and it's only 10 days until 2018. You can count down to 2018 on both of your hands. You don't even need to include toes now! The word of the day is: RECOVERY. Recovery is a return to a normal state of health, mind, or strength. Recovery is important because sometimes we get very busy and slack of maintaining our normal state of health, mind, and strength. There are many ways to do this. It may require forgiveness, love, or therapy of some sort. Today's task: Recover. Focus on a certain aspect of your life and fix it. Make it well again and return to your normal state. There are many aspects you can fix: a friendship, a relationship, stress level, health, etc. Pick one and focus on your recovery today.

Today is December 21st. There are four days until Christmas and eleven days until 2018. What are you guys doing for Christmas weekend? (Write in the comments below). Have you ever watched Parks and Recreation? The show with Amy Poehler and Nick Offerman (and countless other wonderful actors)? It's about Pawnee and the Parks & Recreation office. I loved that show so much. Unfortunately, it ended in 2015, but you can still catch re-runs on television and on streaming networks. I highly recommend it! In season 4, there's an episode called "Pawnee Rangers". In this episode, Tom, Donna, and Ben have a "Treat Yo Self Day". It is technically celebrated on October 13th. On Treat Yo Self Day, you spend the day treating yourself to things you probably wouldn't buy on an ordinary day. Things worth buying on Treat Yo Self day, according to Donna: clothes, fragrances, massages, mimosas, and fine leather goods. Today obviously is not October 13th, but ...

Today is December 20th. FIVE DAYS UNTIL CHRISTMAS! We are down to counting with one hand. And 12 days until 2018. So much left to do until both! I try to make homemade presents every year. This year, I decided to just buy presents because I have been busy and stressed out. Normally, we send out Christmas cards as well. This year, I haven't been as on top of everything (maybe next year!). Today's task: Make a few handwritten cards for your loved ones. Or at least buy cards with very sweet messages inside. Brighten up their day and wish them a happy holidays. Stamps don't cost all that much! You can do this. Extra: Make a post on social media and ask who wants a card. Send one to everyone who comments! Some ideas on Pinterest

Today is December 18th. There is ONE WEEK (!!!!) until Christmas and TWO WEEKS until 2018. Holy cannoli! Can we just take a moment to... I'm just going to start having miniature sing-a-long blog posts. Maybe I should get better at singing or writing. These are skills I have, but they're not very great. I could probably improve on a few different skills of mine. Why is it important to improve on skills?  Certain skills can help brighten up your resume Knowledge and skills are things you should always improve Reap personal rewards To get a certain job  To be a better person Because you're bored and want to be the very best like no one ever was ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Today's task: Pick a skill (or two) and improve them! Or pick a new skill (or two) and gain them in general. You can always improve! ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Some Skills (or Talents) to Improve on (or Gain) Communication skills ...

I want to take a moment to really appreciate the humans in this photograph. Oh, and Bandit, who is like a human but is clearly a dog.  On December 9th, I threw a Christmas party! I was really excited about it. Obviously because I love party planning and human contact (sometimes). I really like holidays, even though the days surrounding them seem to be questionable. Regardless, I figured a party would cheer me (and everyone else!) up. I invited a butt ton of people, but only these (+ my mom) came. And that was okay with me! I made some new friends and it was rad!  The Ugly Sweaters were bomb. I was actually incredibly impressed by the variety of ugly sweaterness that entered my home. A few were really really ugly (Looking at you, Syd & Brandon). Asia won the Ugly Sweater contest though! I wish I would have gotten a picture of it because she definitely deserved to win.  We did Secret Santa as well. It was hard because most people didn't know each other ...

Today is December 17th. There are only 8 days until Christmas and 15 days until 2018. What even! I am stunned. Can you believe it? What are your plans for Christmas? Comment below, I really want to hear them! Do you ever feel like you need a break? Do you feel like you need to get away? Do you want to travel somewhere new but don't want to break the bank? The title of this post is "baecation". Part "bae", part "vacation". What is a baecation? It's the term I'm using to label taking a vacation, having a little "me" time, and/or spending time with the people you love the most. Sometimes you need to take a little break. Sometimes you need a mental health day. Today's task: Plan a baecation. Plan a mental health day. Take one full day to do things to make you happy. Get your nails done. Go visit a beautiful place, like a waterfall. Go see a movie. Read a book in the park. Plan a day. Do it. Turn your phone off. Relax. Be you....

It's December 5th. There are 20 days until Christmas (less than 3 weeks!). Sadly, there are only 26 days left of the year. Deep cleaning is something people should do multiple times a year. If you're like me, you only do it about four times a year. You're supposed to clean most household appliances and rooms every week. Isn't that crazy? As the new year approaches, you should deep clean your home. Out with the old, in with the new. Get rid of that scum, that dust, that dirt, that trash. Don't just spray some lysol and call it a day. Today's Challenge: Start deep cleaning. You could do a room per day if that would help (I know we all get busy) or you can knock it out all in one evening. Rent a carpet cleaner, go to the local Dollar Tree for cleaning supplies, and ask a family member or friend for help. If you like to make lists, plan out what rooms/things you'll do in order or which day (Example: Clean toilets on Thursday). Great articles for you ...

Today is December 3. There are 22 days until Christmas and 28 days left in 2017. Each day seems to be going by so quickly. I feel like 2018 will be here before we know it. It's Sunday. It's a lazy day. Do you have a computer? A laptop or a desktop? I have a laptop. I use it frequently (like right now). It's important in my life since I am in graduate school and teach and blog and other things that require a computer. The one thing I hate about computers (and any electronic) is that memory is limited. Today's Task : Clean out your folders on your computer. Erase/trash any files or items that you no longer need. Organize your files into folders for easy organization. Don't forget to empty your trash can afterward. My download folder is horrible about getting overloaded. I usually do this two or three times a year. I'll show you an example of what I'm talking about as far as today's task. Before: After: Doesn't that look so mu...