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My Brain Feels Like Scrambled Eggs

August 30, 2018

Do you feel like your brain is scrambled? Do you try to start one thing on your to do list, only to find out an hour later, you have been down a rabbit hole because you opened a browser window on your computer and ended up on Facebook or YouTube watching videos mindlessly? Do the notifications on your phone stop you from what you are doing and pull you off track?

Scrambled Egg Brain

If you are suffering from symptoms of feeling overwhelmed, lack of concentration, lack of motivation or loss of focus, then welcome to my club. This past weekend I went up to Boston for a 24 hour trip to visit with my best girlfriends. They were in town for a conference and there was no way I was going to miss seeing the both of them at once! Karen lives out in California now, and Heidi and I haven’t been able to connect throughout most of the summer because of our schedules. I NEEDED to see my girls! I needed to talk to them about all of these feelings I was having. I needed to know if I was going crazy.

We went to a restaurant for dinner and I felt wound up. I was so glad to see them but I wasn’t “relaxed”. It was so bad that even the waiter noticed, sat down next to me and told me to chill out, take my time, take a breath and there was no rush to get our order figured out and put in right away.

What Is the Prescription for Scrambled Egg Brain?

I had an excellent conversation with another close friend of mine today and she told me the first thing that I need to do is BREATHE. She nailed it on the head! I haven’t been breathing. I am drowning in my own thoughts. I am my own worst enemy. Here are four steps to help you get your head back on straight.

Breathe. Before you work on something you need to focus on, set aside a few minutes to breathe. If you are about to sit down and work for the day, sit down to meditate first.
Learn to say no. This is a big one. Since I am new to starting off blogging as a business it’s hard for me to turn away opportunities. I need to be specific and selective with the type of work I am going to do. I can’t take on jobs just for the sake of making a quick dollar. The work needs to be purposeful and hopefully will end up turning into more opportunities. My friend Claudia shared this video today from Shonda Rhimes that I feel is perfect.
Take time out for YOU. If you can’t take care of yourself, how are you going to take care of everything else? I KNOW that I haven’t been taking care of myself. I am not getting my endorphin fix from working out and running like I used to. I have completely fallen off my wagon of running because of the heat these past few weeks. I have to stop making excuses and start moving.
Set your intentions. This is key for me. Once my goals and intentions are in place, everything else will fall into place.

Unplug

I found out that one more thing has been helpful to me in the past week. I am intentionally leaving my phone in another room when I am done working for the day. My next step is going to be to turn off notifications so that I don’t have to see every email or tweet that comes across. Rather than having it pushed to me I would rather go fetch the emails on my time. Same for other notifications. I feel that today’s habits are now ruining the way we think, act, and socialize. I want to get back to the old way of doing things. Like when you went on vacation and didn’t have a laptop with you, you couldn’t check your email until you got home! Imagine that???

Do you feel like your brain is scrambled? Are you overwhelmed? I would love to hear how you are handling it.

Dare To Dream Giveaway Hop

July 31, 2018

Welcome to the Dare to Dream Giveaway Hop brought to you by The Hopping Bloggers!

Hosted By: Mama’s Geeky & Women and Their Pretties

Each giveaway has a value of a minimum of $15, however some are worth much more. Be sure to enter to win all of them because there is no limit to how many you can win. GOOD LUCK!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

If you’re a blogger looking to connect with brands: Join The Hopping Bloggers database and get started today!
If you’re a brand looking to work with a network of professional bloggers: Check out the creative campaigns The Hopping Bloggers has to offer!

The Clay Cooper Country Express in Branson, MO

July 5, 2018

In a town where the theme is about fun, entertainment and food, The Clay Cooper Country Express is just one more wonderful thing you can do for fun and entertainment while visiting Branson, Missouri. Did you know that Branson is home to over 50 theater venues? Did you know that Branson is the “Live Entertainment Capital in the World”?

The Bloggers who attended the #BloggingBranson trip in April have written several blog posts about their experiences at the Clay Cooper Country Express. You will laugh until your stomach hurts. You will be entertained on a personal level. And you won’t walk out of there disappointed.

Learn More About The Live Entertainment At Clay Cooper Country Express

Read the insight from several of the #BloggingBranson bloggers below.

http://talesofonemomsmess.com/spend-an-evening-at-the-clay-cooper-country-express-in-branson-missouri/

https://www.couponmamacita.com/clay-coopers-country-express-at-clay-coopers-theatre-branson/

https://footprintsinpixiedust.com/blogging-branson-clay-cooper/

http://moneysavingparent.com/clay-coopers-country-express/

https://www.southernfamilyfun.com/clay-cooper-theatre-branson/

Now that you have a little more insight on what to do in Branson, I’ll share with you more entertainment coming up with the Baldknobbers, followed by some great restaurant recommendations!

Stay tuned!

Silver Dollar City Attractions in Branson, MO

July 1, 2018

In my series of Things To Do In Branson, Missouri I am now going to share with you an amazing place called Silver Dollar City. Silver Dollar City was one of the stops that the bloggers from the Blogging Branson trip went to on their April trip to explore the many treasures the town of Branson has to offer. Silver Dollar City is listed as one of the top five Amusement Parks in the US and is open throughout most of the year. Refer to the Silver Dollar City website for current times and hours.

Silver Dollar City

Here are the blog posts about Silver City from the bloggers points of view.

https://www.footprintsinpixiedust.com/blogging-branson-six-things-silver-dollar-city

http://www.thecreativesahm.com/2018/05/24/silver-dollar-city-a-branson-marvel

https://www.week99er.com/new/explore-silver-dollar-city-with-us-food-rides-shopping-and-more

Things to do at Silver Dollar City Besides Ride the Rides

Silver Dollar City, It’s More Than A Theme Park

htps://www.momontheside.com/branson-itinerary-couples-and-families

https://www.midwestmomlife.com/branson-missouri-vacation-with-kids/

https://www.southernfamilyfun.com/branson-missouri-travel-guide/

https://www.couponmamacita.com/5-things-to-see-at-silver-dollar-city-in-branson-mo/

http://www.moneysavingparent.com/silver-dollar-city

The Time Traveler

The Time Traveler Ride is what looks most exciting to me! I’m not sure if I would be too chicken to ride it though! A spinning roller coaster….. not so sure I can handle that!

I really hope I get the chance to get to Branson, MO. I am so impressed by everything this place has to offer! Silver Dollar City alone makes me want to make the trip out there with my family! I also heard the holiday lights for Christmas are a reason alone to take the trip!

Summer Lovin’ Giveaway Hop

June 30, 2018

Welcome to the Summer Lovin’ Giveaway Hop brought to you by The Hopping Bloggers!

Hosted By: Mama’s Geeky & Women and Their Pretties

Each giveaway has a value of a minimum of $15, however some are worth much more. Be sure to enter to win all of them because there is no limit to how many you can win. GOOD LUCK!

Enter to win an $25 Gift Card Towards a Disney Vacation booking through my agency at Main Street Magic LLC.

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How To Heal A Sprained Ankle And Not End Your Running Career

June 29, 2018

I sprained my ankle while running on May 11th. I immediately iced it and started RICE therapy. I also used a combination of frankincense, cypress, peppermint and lemongrass essential oils to help reduce the swelling. I took off several weeks from running and I saw my chiropractor a month after it happened. He said I should have seen him sooner. There are exercises he gave me which I should have started soon after to my injury to help me with my mobility.

When I first tried the exercises in his office I couldn’t believe, that even though my ankle felt ok, I really couldn’t bear weight the way I should be able to. I thought my ankle still looked a little puffy; but I thought it was my imagination. When he took a look at it he said there still was some swelling. I was surprised. I figured it was almost four weeks since it happened, I can walk on it without issues, so I was just going to give it another two weeks before I ran again.

Doctor’s orders – no running yet. I have to continue to ice and heat to get the swelling down and the blood flowing back in that area; and I was told to do the two exercises he showed me without assistance. I did them because I wanted to run again, sooner rather than later.

What Happens When You Sprain Your Ankle?

When you sprain an ankle there are nerve endings that get damaged from the stretch of the tendons. Just because you can walk again without pain or the swelling has gone down, doesn’t mean you are completely healed. My doctor explained that there are three ligaments on the outside of the ankle. When those ligaments are strained or torn, the nerve ending are also affected by it.

He had me stand on one leg and balance myself and then raise to my toes with that leg only. Then when I did that on my injured ankle, I was completely wobbly and could barely raise myself onto my toes. I was shocked at how much mobility and stability I had lost. I had to rebuild the strength in that area of my ankle. I also had to help the nerves heal so that my running gait wouldn’t be affected.

I continued the exercises for the next two weeks and also just did my Beach Body workout programs while I wasn’t running to continue my strength training. Especially for my glutes and hamstrings.

Not Running Made Me Crazy

All during the time that I couldn’t run, my mood and energy level dropped. I really missed running. I bet if I read any earlier blog posts of mine where I had an injury I had the same feeling. This time when I took the time off to heal I didn’t try to run through it like I had in the past. I really needed to NOT RUN. I had to listen to my body and my doctor. I’m glad I did.

How To Get Back Into Running After An Injury

After taking the required time to heal, doing the prescribed exercises and icing and heating my sprain, my doctor was happy with the strength I showed in my last visit a week ago. He told me I could start running again. But that didn’t mean I could get out and run like I used to.

Getting back into running after an injury requires patience and the following:

Lower your intervals to a shorter run time than prior to your injury. Instead of running 30/30 I went to 15/30
Don’t worry about your speed. Right now you have to focus on maintaining good form and you can’t get caught up in your head about how much speed you may have lost during your time off.
Don’t worry about your distance. Same concept with speed, you are going to have to build your mileage back up again. Follow the rule of 10% more each week. Anything more than that, and you are asking for trouble.
Listen to your body. If anything is starting to hurt again, STOP. Listen to your body and make adjustments accordingly.

My chiropractor told me that several people ruin their running career after an ankle sprain because they don’t give themselves sufficient time to heal. Ankles are tough. If you get a sprain it can sometimes be the end if you don’t take care of it.

I’m happy to be back out on the road again, despite the current heat wave we are experiencing. I’m going to enjoy the miles I can start accumulating and work on my goals for the upcoming months.