Monday, September 13, 2010

Mindful Monday

On The French Chic board on yahoo (a lovely group of tres chic ladies) I have been trying to help get the board more talkative, and this includes Mindful Mondays.  Today as I was getting ready to post this I realized that it would make a good post for here too!  It's simply what I'm doing to remain mindful about the life I like to lead.  Obviously different life choices would make different lists.  The point is to do things thoughtfully.

My mindful Monday is consisting of cleaning up our tiny little bathroom to make is a better working space.  I have vintage trays that hold products on a shelf, but looking at it I realized I don't really want products I use once in a blue moon taking up valuable shelf space.  So I will be re-organizing to make it only things I reach for often.  Same goes for my tray of make-up.  The occasional use items will get stored under the sink so I can easily find them, but not have them cluttering up our limited space. 

I'm also taking the time to do things for myself, beauty wise.  My toenails haven't been painted in over a month, and my eyebrows haven't been waxed in a year!  So I called a place that came highly recommended for my eyebrows, left a message and hopefully will get that done this week.  I will be getting out the polish after posting this (it can dry while I clean).  And it's Monday, so it's a good day for some pampering.  

I also of course was careful in my lunch, choosing some arugula, tuna, onion, tomato, and radishes for a salad drizzled with honey dijon dressing.  I sliced a piece of french bread, got out a bottle of pellegrino, and chose an apple from our massive bowl of apples.  I'm planning on going for espresso this evening with G and bringing a couple squares of dark chocolate to share.  

G dreads Mondays because of his return to work, but I'm hoping by working on looking nice and having the house nice for when he comes home he'll soon find sweet relief.  We got rid of our claw foot sofa yesterday so our sitting room is open and airy once again (and nice and tidy too), so hopefully he is able to leave work at work and begin to dread Mondays less.  Have you done anything purposefully today to make your life just a little bit nicer? 

7 comments:

  1. I've started doing a short yoga routine most days - especially during the week. I try, as soon as I get in from work, to change and do a short 15 minutes, and it is amazing how much it helps me de-compress after work/driving home. Even when I spend the whole 15 minutes muttering "this is ridiculous, this is a waste of time", as soon as I finish, I feel great, relaxed, and set up for the evening, if that makes sense...

    I love your title "mindful mondays", what a great focus :) xx

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  2. I used to wash my sheets and remake the bed on Fridays (I just have one set of high quality sheets which I wash and replace on the bed - by design) but a few years ago I switched to Mondays. I decided it was a nice little treat on a day that isn't always the most pleasant for my husband.

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  3. I try to do a lot of my heavy cleaning on Mondays - wash clothes and some towels and vacuum the house. This sets a good tone for the rest of the week.

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  4. Ha! You know, I've been on that board 2 years ago and haven't written or share anything:/ I think I prefer reading what others have to say. Anyway, I do like your topic. Like you said to do things thoughtfully. I have a small house and sometimes I just pick or arrange things but not really cleaning it? I mainly focus on my bathroom and kitchen throughout the week. Again, I should sit down and write out a list for mondays.

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  5. Your lunch sounds just like mine. I find it very satisfying and so healthful! I love this post, it's very inspiring. Like you with your eyebrows, I decided my hair needed a desparate trim and booked in last Friday. It's such a pleasure to take care of something.

    My husband dislikes Sundays, he said he always has, because of the 'work on Monday' thing. So we try and do something more fun on Sunday evenings like watch a movie and have a dinner we might not normally have. Because I have Sundays off work I like to have the house looking lovely for him too.

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  6. Like G I kind of dread Sunday nights/Monday mornings for the return to work. I always find everything on Monday a bit harder - getting up, facing a work day, and I seem more tired on Monday nights. I try and counter this by making sure I clear my desk at work (and all things open on my computer desktop!) and write a list of the urgent things to do for the following Monday. If I do this I have a mroe relaxing weekend and don't suddenly freeze and think "I must remember to do x!"

    In recent weeks I have been giving myself a night off from cooking on Monday and picking up some healthy takeaway (sushi, dumplings, chicken and salad) which I still eat at the table with nice plates and a tablecloth and napkin etc. But having two less things to do (the cooking and the washing up!) on this horrible day, make it a better day for me.

    Is that bad to admit??

    J

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  7. I've been trying to make a really nice dinner on Monday nights and reset the house so it's something nice to come home to. I really like the idea of changing the sheets on Monday though and I think I'll be doing that one.

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