So, This Is 45

Today is my 45th birthday. It feels like a milestone for me and I am not sure why. I do feel like I am currently at my best. I am finally doing what I have wanted to do for 20+ years - writing and voiceovers; I celebrate 19yrs of marraige in just over 2 months; the hubs and I have a solid game plan for the next 1-5yrs; I am on a health journey that I have fought to be on for the last 7yrs - fight with myself and not wanting to give up what I know I need to give up. I have also come to the realization that I am just not the girlfriend type. You know what I am talking about. The women that have a group of women that go out with for drinks, or coffee, or a girl's weekend. Or even on their birthday. I honestly don't know if I have ever been that type. Maybe when I'm old I will have some blue haired friends I drink coffee and play shuffleboard with. For now, though, I am content to have birthday breakfast with the babe, snuggle on the couch with the fur kids, and sneak a peek at where everyone else is going and what everyone else is doing. We will get there. And when we do, we will enjoy it more because like cheese and wine, life gets better with age. For now, this is it as I still need to have my quiet time - Randy whisked me away for an early birthday breakfast today - and I have a book to continue editing the audio on. TTFN

Over The Last Month

There is a lot to do when starting a new business you plan to run as a business. Names to register, accounts to open, business opportunities to pursue. All of that has been happening since my last post. I have also read a couple of books, picked up two voiceover accountability partners and lost 10lbs. All on purpose. This past Monday was the start of week 4 of our new way of eating. Part One was to get rid of ALL the things in the house that could tempt us. If it had sugar, flour, or rice in it, it made it's way into a box and out my front door into my little sister's waiting van. Four boxes by the way. Four. For the first two weeks, I was very strict on what I ate and what I did. Not eating any white foods - sugar, flour, rice, pasta - was not as hard as I thought it would be because, well, I had removed the temptation. I decided at the end of week 2, which coincided with a family baby shower and BBQ, that I would allow myself one day to eat what I wanted without feeling guilty about it. I did and in the process gained back 2lbs of the 12lbs I had lost in those first two weeks. The following week I decided I was tired of not enjoying my morning coffee and went back to my creamer - International Delights, Sweetcream. The difference this time, is that I only put in enough to cover the bottom of my mug, instead of filling it up about 1/4 of the way with creamer. Having a day - Saturday - that I know I can eat what I want, helps me stay on track for the week. The convo in my head goes something like this: Sunday and Monday - crickets, cause I just ate whatever I wanted two days ago Tuesday - "Seriously? Do you want to undo all the work you've put in? Cuz that's what will happen. Give in now, and you will keep giving it and 'start over Monday'" Wednesday and Thursday - "Good job. You've made it to the middle of the week and look, only three/two more days to go. You totally have this." Friday - "Tomorrow. Tomorrow. I can make it to tomorrow." Saturday - Can't think of what I actually want to eat that has been off limits all week. Randy has been doing better than me, in that he hasn't had anything we agreed to get out of the house since we started. His shirts are getting loose, he is able to wear shirts he wasn't able to a month ago, and he has moved his belt two notches. Super proud of him. For both of us, it is a new way of eating; a new lifestyle we want to live by and our agreement to one another is that our decisions are ours and we won't give each other a hard time for what we are choosing. I am looking forward to fitting back into the little dresses I was able to wear 5 years ago that have been in plastic bins ever since. As for my voiceover work, I am finishing up the book I was asked to record - it has a contract end date of 12/31/21 - and my website went live yesterday. I am getting organized with my time and making time for all the things. Over the course of the next month, I will have a weekly blog post, YouTube video, and podcast go live. In order for people to want to hire me for my voice, I have to give them all the ways to hear it. Wish me luck. TTFN

It Is All Coming Together.....

.....And not how I thought it would. This time last year, I was thinking of writing again. I have wanted to be a published author for 20+ years and with my new found time, I decided I would push through. In April of 2020 I joined an online community of writers, Stop Writing Alone. With them, I entered into a novel writing contest (I wrote 27k words in one weekend), I "won" NaNo (50k words in November), and I have 5 - yes, 5 - works in progress (WIP). In August, I began my voiceover coaching with Such A Voice. Being a voice in a full-length animation film has also been a dream of mine for 20+ years. To see them both come together at the same time, is awesome and overwhelming at the same time. Since my last post, I have made some adjustments with my time and schedule. Time blocking has always been my go-to. It was what I was known for in my real estate office. Planning and time blocking. I have recently discovered the concept of time blocking - setting aside set hours to get something done and then moving on to the next thing when time is up - is no longer working for me. I know. I was shocked, too. What I have discovered is setting aside full days for specific categories. I have four categories my week is divided into - Catch All, Voice Over, Writing, Catch-Up. Two days are devoted to writing and two to voice work. Monday starts my week with Catch All and Saturday ends it with Catch-Up. I get all the mundane done on Mondays - laundry, vaccuum, groceries, etc - and Saturdays are for finishing up anything that can't wait until Monday. Right now, it is a lot of homework for my Theology class. Oh, I don't think I mentioned that. Randy and I are in our second year of Theology School being taught at our church, Celebration, and being taught by Dr. Michael Heiser. I have tried this new schedule for a couple of weeks now and am finding a freedom in my days I was not expecting. Instead of feeling like I can only do an activity at a certain time, there is freedome in when I do the activity that day. There is no more feeling like I messed up my whole day if I miss a time block....because there aren't any. And....this past weekend I received my demos and it is a pretty cool feeling to hear yourself doing what you have always wanted to do. On the same day, I booked a job. Knowing that this will be our moneymaker, I am having to remind myself this needs to be my focus. Writing is still in the mix - see above - and I am gazelle focused on making my voice acting career a success from the beginning. Which means.... Milwordy is on hold. I have not written much since the conclusion of NaNoWriMo in November and I have to remind myself that that is okay. Goals change and I am learning to be flexible with it. It may be something I get back to later in the year. For now, honing in my skills on Audacity and booking gigs is my focus. I am glad to have you on this journey with me. I can't wait to see where it takes us. TTFN