I’m proud of myself today. I got up early and went to yoga class. It is a level 2-3 class, not the basic class. The instructor J is so great. She said we should honor our body and our mind every day. J said we should focus on the things we do, versus the things we are not able to accomplish each day.

I’ve been trying to do just that. Trying to set more manageable daily goals. Yes, I still have my four page “to do” list that I put together on my way back from Flo-ree-da this past week. However, I’ve been trying to break my “to do” list into chunks. I’ve been trying to start each day with a list of three or four things I plan to accomplish. At the end of each day I check my list (sometimes do a mental check) to see if I kept to my plan.

Needless to say, this has been a challenge for me. That’s because I am a multi-tasker. Did I say I was a multi-tasker? Actually, I’m a multi-multi-multi-tasker. My astrology reading a few weeks ago confirmed this part of my personality.

“You like to expand, grow, see the world,” said Astrologer Carolyn Crawford during my astrology session at the Miraval Spa. “You over do things, yet you balance it with discipline. You accept responsibility, are good at executing things and very organized. However, you are very hard on yourself.”

Taking Time To Take Care of My Plants
“Your flowering plant is so beautiful,” I said to my boyfriend L when I arrived at his home yesterday. I think he has a green-thumb. (I, on the other hand, do not. In fact, I don’t remember any particular green color or green-thumb mentioned as one of my strengths or as any part of my personality during my astrology reading.)

“My flowering plant, the same flowering plant that I gave to you, is very sad looking. The plant’s leaves are all dried up,” I added. (Here I go, being hard on myself.)

“You have to give it some loving care,” said L. “You are too busy.”

L is right, I am too busy. I have to continue to set limits on my daily “to do” list so the flowers on my flowering plant will bloom again.

Slowing Down In Flo-ree-da

I practiced setting limits in Flo-ree-da during my visit with my mom. It’s always good to slow down with my mom. She walks slow with her walker, she eats slowly, she takes her time and doesn’t over plan her day. Each activity is more enjoyable that way.

I loved spending Valentine’s Day weekend with my mom. (Astrologer Carolyn said that my mom had a stronger influence on me while I was growing up….more so than my dad. That is SO TRUE. I wonder how astrologers know these things? It’s amazing!)

We took things nice and slow. My mom has no internet access in her Flo-ree-da condo, so I left my computer and my iPod in shutdown mode. (What a sense of freedom that created. Ahhhhh! By the way, that also is why I was unable to blog and tell you all about my Flo-ree-da weekend.)

On Saturday evening, we went to Panera Bread for dinner. We each had soup and salad. But, when it was time for dessert, there was nothing left in the display case, but a few lonely cookies.

“I’m really in the mood for dessert,” said my mom. “Let’s go get some dessert at the market.” (This is why I love my mom. This is why she was and continues to be a great influence in my life.)

“Absolutely,” I agreed as I drove to Publix supermarket and picked out a special dessert in honor of Valentine’s Day. I bought a tiny cherry pie and a container of Haagen Dazs Dulce de Leche frozen yogurt.

“What did you buy for dessert?” asked my mom when I returned to the car. “I bought a tiny cherry pie from the bakery and Haagen Dazs frozen yogurt,” I replied.

“That’s great, we’re living it up,” said mom. (This is why I love my mom. This is why she was and continues to be a great influence in my life.)

We enjoyed our cherry pie and frozen yogurt that night and finished off the pie the following night. (Night Two included my mom’s favorite meal which she makes for me during my visits. Can you guess? If you guessed ‘veal and peppers’ you guessed right.)

We took things nice and slow the rest of the weekend.

On Sunday, we went to the movies. We left an hour in advance so we had plenty of time to get lost and still get to the theatre in time for the show. (You know what? We didn’t get lost. This was the first time ever that we DID NOT GET LOST.)

On Monday, we went shopping to Dillards and then we went out to dinner. Can you guess where we went to dinner? I’ll give you two choices – The Olive Garden or the Chinese restaurant. If you guessed The Olive Garden, you guessed right. We did not go to the Chinese restaurant because it was past 6:00 pm and after 6:00 pm everything is ala carte, so the Chinese restaurant was off the list during this visit. “I will go have Chinese food when your sister visits next week,” said mom.

I thoroughly enjoyed my visit with my mom and was sad when I had to leave Flo-ree-da. I was pleased with my accomplishments each day and savored the time I spent with my mom. We set limits and we kept to them. We didn’t make our daily “to do” list too long and we accomplished the two or three things we set out to do each day.

“Do you have any Listerine?” I asked my mom one night.

“Yes, look on the shelf in the bathroom,” said mom.

I looked and looked, but could not find the bottle.

“It’s there,” said my mom, “look for the glass bottle with the black top.”

“Oh, yes, now I see it,” I said. I didn’t notice the bottle of Listerine because it was a glass bottle. (According to Wikipedia, Listerine was packaged in a glass bottle inside a corrugated cardboard tube for nearly 80 years before the first revamps were made to the brand. In 1994, the brand was introduced in plastic bottles. That means that the bottle of Listerine my mom has is at least 16 years old, and likely older than that.)

“Do you think the Listerine in the bottle can go bad?” I asked mom.

“Why would Listerine go bad?” said mom. “Try it and see.” (This is why I love my mom. This is why she was and continues to be a great influence in my life.)

I tried it and I’m still alive. What a risk-taker I’ve become at 52 years of age!

Note for my limited “to do” list for my next visit to mom: Get a new plastic bottle of Listerine for mom. Take old glass bottle to antique shop and see if it is worth anything.

Judi