Never Settle.

Don't ever settle. Not with relationships, not with jobs, not with your way of life. If you settle, you might be unhappy, and nothing is more important than your health and happiness.

Recently, I've been going through an uncomfortable environment through my place of employment. I was talking to a friend about it and she asked me "How important is the environment that you work in, when looking for a job?". This got me thinking. Yes, the people that you work with can make or break your time there, but I find that it goes so much deeper than that. The environment can majorly effect your mental health, whether it be positive or negative. If the people around you are constantly pushing you up and striving for your success, you will be successful; meaning, you will be more productive and happier, thus causing your mental health to improve. If you are surrounded by people who are constantly bringing you down, it can severely impact your happiness, thus your mental health. Having days where you wake up and have to drag yourself out of bed because you dread going and then coming home feeling emotionally drained are ways your mental health can deteriorate. Having bad days are okay but feeling that way more than once a week is concerning. I answered my friend, "If you're asking me how important is my mental health when looking for a job, I would say it's pretty important."

I once worked with this girl who, at the time, was looking for love. What she said is something I won't ever forget. She said when you ask God for a man, you need to be specific. I laughed at her because never in my life have I heard something so silly. Turns out, she was right. She goes on to explain to me how she asked God for a doctor. So, God gave her a doctor. She didn't like him. She then went on to ask God for a man who made good money. God gave her a man who made good money and she didn't like him either. She then broke it down so specifically to the occupation and place of work for the man that she is wanting in her life and will not settle until she finds him. I found this to be true to my life as well.

I genuinely enjoyed my first place of work. I made a lot of friends, the job was great, pay, vacation - everything! But after a while, I wanted more. I asked God for a relief. The next job I got was a piece of cake, but my environment was not ideal; I felt like I was walking on eggshells all the time. Then I asked God for a better environment, one where I would get along with everyone, including my manager, and would love going to work. I did get it, but the pay and vacation was low. I then became more specific; I asked for a great paying job that I love. Well. Now I have a great paying job that I love but the environment isn't ideal. Now, my next list is so specific that I have it down to the hours I want to work to the pay and vacation that I specifically want, including the type of environment I want to work in. I have 13 bullet points and plan on adding more as I go.

Don't ever settle in life. Life is so short to be miserable. This pandemic has started all across the world and people everyday are losing their lives. Can you imaging living your life with just settling and then dying from a virus? Life the best life you can live and don't give up. If you feel stuck or that you have been settling and want to progress in anyway of your life, I encourage you to make a list of things you want to happen. You can call it a main goal and what you want out of that. Ex. You want to find the love of your life. That would be your main goal. Then, have your specifications: They have to be loving, caring, put me first, etc. and don't settle until you find one that matches your criteria. Some things you may think of letting slide but this is a list of things you want for yourself so make it as true to you as you possibly can. I've made a template here that will help! Use if you would like!

2020

HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!

I know I have severely been slacking on my blog, but it's only because my life has been in full speed since the last time I posted. Let's catch up on what has happened in 2019: 

• I started off unemployed - that's ok. I was coping and trying to get use to the idea of not having anywhere to go, but because I'm somebody that needs something to do, I got bored of it real quick. 
• I got a job in March with a great healthcare organization! I loved the hours, people, job, flexibility, environment, everything! I accidentally ended up applying for a new job with a totally different organization and ended up cutting my time at that job short. I will miss everyone so much! I truly felt accepted and like I was part of a family, even through my time was not long. 
• I spent summer just enjoying myself. I opened out of my comfort zone and try to have as many summer adventures as I could. I would say it was the best summer I've had in a long time. 
• I got a new job in September and absolutely love it! I have been learning A TON and am really enjoying that aspect. The people are also great, the flexibility is wonderful, and the environment has been enjoyable!
• Fall & Winter have been okay. I'm not a fan of the cold so i'm just waiting for this to pass. I would say my favorite day has been December 21 (winter solstice) because now the days are getting longer and I am ALL for that!

I guess not much has happened to me, other than having carreer changes - I know, boring. I think because of that, it has consumed so much of my time that I haven't been able to blog. Let's recap what I wished for in 2018 to happen in 2019:

So for 2019, I will embrace whatever comes my way. I have a feeling that God has something great in store for me and I just need to be patient! (I've also learned to trust my gut feeling. Oh boy. If i only knew what blessings lied ahead for me! I love when I trust my gut. I am SO glad I embraced the things that came my way because I wouldn't be where I am if I didn't!

My boyfriend is someone that I love with all my heart... I realize how much I appreciate and love him. I already know that 2019 will be the best for us! It WAS a great year for us! We have learned and grown SO much together. I feel like he is my best friend and everyday, I love him more than yesterday. 

My list for 2019 includes to travel more, have excellent health, have a great paying job that I love, pay off my car, lose a couple more pounds, and learning new skill sets. Although I didn't travel outside of the state, I did get to explore more of my "backyard" and loved it - there are hidden treasures everywhere! My health has been better than the previous year and I am SO thankful for that! I did get not one, but two, wonderful jobs this year and am sooo blessed for that! My car is still not paid off but that's okay, I can move that goal to 2020. I did lose a couple pounds... and gained it back.. lol I have nothing to comment about that. And as far as learning new skill sets, I think not only with my jobs, but with life, I have learned a lot this year. My eyes have truly opened up to a lot more that has been happening around me. 

But here's to 2020 ! I hope it's the happiest and healthiest (physically and mentally) year for everyone! Like I said in my 2019 post, I make a list every year of things I want to accomplish - whether it be materialistic items, mental, emotional, or just wishes. I find that if I have this list, I can refer to it and try to see about accomplishing my goals as much as I can. I didn't get to accomplish all of them but that's okay too - I will add them to my list for 2020.

For 2020:

• I want to have a more positive outlook on life. I want to enjoy every moment I am in - not just think of the happy moments in the past. I want to laugh from my belly and just be in the moment. Happiness is not a destination, but rather a journey. 
• I want to gain more clarity. There have been many things in my life that I feel I need more clarity in. I think having a lot of self reflection is a positive goal I can have, in order to think through how I'm doing and what I can improve on (as well as what is going well)
• Grow stronger relationships and keep working at them. My current relationships are thriving but there are some that I could work on. I think being open to working on those relationships will give me more insight and growth. 
• Then I have my other goals - some fun and others materialistic - ride a motorcycle, drive a manual stick shift car, ride a horse, donate more clothes that I don't need, get an even better job, pay off my car, lose some weight. Those are not necessarily for 2020 but I will try my best to meet as many of them as I can. 

As the year flies by, I hope to see myself grow and learn. I hope I can get to a happy mindset and continuously feel that way. I hope to be a better person, overall. 

Happy New Year! I hope you meet your goals and meet them as best as you can!

Summer Break

Hello again!

I haven't been keeping up with my blog because I took some time to myself for some self-reflection. I do love blogging and sharing my golden finds but I also believe that mental, emotional, and physical health are important. As I started my new job and the summer began, I took it upon myself to stop wallowing over my life and dedicate every moment of summer to myself (or as much as possible). I have done some new things and have embraced them with open arms!

 I went to the pool by myself for the second time in my life! It actually took me a lot to talk myself into going because I kept thinking, "What if I see somebody I know? What if it's too crowded? What if it's weird?" Well one day after work, it was about the first 100 degrees that Denver got, I decided I'M GOING TO THE POOL. So I packed my bag and went over to our neighborhood pool. There were like 4 people there and it was really nice and relaxing. The second time, I had to talk myself into it again but after I went, I saw it wasn't weird at all. There were families with their kids, elderly people, others having a BBQ. I knew I wanted to go to the pool and I didn't care if anybody went or not and honestly, I'm glad I went. Because of that new courage, I'm able to go 100 more times and not feel weird about it. :)

I went ATV-ing for the first time and let me tell you, I was like 1% away from peeing my pants. It wasn't fast (we couldn't go over 20mph) but it was bumpy and uneven and all I kept thinking was how we were going to fall over. AH!! But luckily we didn't and it was actually a lot of fun!

 I also fired up the firepit in our backyard and made some s'mores, along with hot dogs, corn, and bosnian food - cevapi! MMM! What a great summer adventure! My favorite part was the mosquitoes - LOL JK. Nobody likes mosquitoes!

Through these fun things, I've realized that I'm tired of just laying around and not doing anything, WISHING that I would have a great summer. I've learned that sometimes wishing and thinking about something isn't enough to actually make you happy. You have to go out there and just go for it. If there's something out there that you've been wanting to do, but haven't because of every excuse in the book, I'm telling you right now to just go and do it. Wanna take a run in the park? GO! Wanna learn how to roller skate? DO IT. Wanna travel on your own? GIRL, YOU BETTER GO. If you don't experience things in life, how can you expect yourself to grow? The only person holding you back is YOU. So go out there, enjoy your summer, fall, winter, spring, and LIFE. Do what makes you happy, enjoy yourself, because life is too short.

P.S. Don't worry - summer isn't over yet! You still have time! & You sure can bet that I will be enjoying every single second!

Old Navy Sale!

Right now, Old Navy is having a sale where most of the store is 40% off - I actually think it might be the whole store but I don't want to misquote it. Anyway, I found some SUPER cute things and that I wanted to share with all of you! Don't mind me obsessing over them!! (insert heart eye emoji here!)

First up is this SUPER CUTE Fit & Flare Tiered Cami lilac dress (click here). Honestly, I've never been a huge fan of purple, but I get so many compliments when I wear it so I thought why not just start wearing more purple.. Well, when I saw this cute dress, I died. I knew I had to get it. Usually I'm not a fan of the ruffles at the bottom but wearing it, it just adds a perfect design to a simple dress. It's true to size!

The denim jacket (click here) is also a fav of mine. I purchased mine a few years back and it's just amazing. You can literally pair it with almost any dress and it would work perfectly! I think having a jean jacket is a huge staple to a closet. This is true to size and the medium fit snug on me. It wasn't too tight or too loose but of course if you want to adjust, size up or down.

The Faux-Suede Knotted-Twist Slide Sandals (click here) are pretty much my new favorites because I am totally in love! They come in many many colors and are super comfy. A lot of Old Navy shoes have comfy soles now, which make them great to walk around in without your feet hurting! These are true to size!

Next up is striped dresses! There are two different ones. This first one is the Jersey Swing Dress (click here) and is only $8!!! This one (compared to the other one I will show) is more form fitting because the sleeves are hugging your arms. It's about a quarter length sleeve and super comfy! I would've bought this dress if they had talls in store, but because they don't, I ordered online! It's super comfy and perfect for those summer days. If you have a great day at the pool, this would be a good summer dress to wear after or before. The material is thin but it's not see-through. I would recommend getting your true size!

The next striped one is this Ruffle-Sleeve Tee Dress (click here). I will say that it's a little oversized so I recommend to size down! But if you like your dresses loose, then stay your regular size! It is a little thicker material than the last dress so I wouldn't recommend wearing it on 100 degree weather days, but if it's slightly cooler or if you're indoors with the AC blasting all day, then this dress would be perfect!

Next up is this green Sleeveless Jersey Swing Dress! (click here) This is like the previous (first) striped dress but just sleeveless. It's pretty thin but not see-through at all! The length for me was a little short, so I would have to get the tall size, but if you're not a tall gal, then I recommend to stick with regular. I think this would be great with a jean jacket and some flats or sandals. I didn't have any matching sandals so I didn't add them here but maybe some Espadrilles like these (click here) would look super cute with them! Or even wedges!

Next up are two shirt and pant looks! This Lightweight Flutter-Sleeve Blouse (click here) is the cutest and I totally fell in love with the color! The blouse is super lightweight, almost paper thing, but surprisingly not see-through! The ruffle sleeves are my favorite part because it gives it a little detailing. The V-neck is also a favorite because it's not too deep and very flattering!

The jeans are a new Rockstar from Old Navy. I think they have started to change their sizing because this is the second pair that I had to squeeze into for life. I totally recommend sizing up on these. Besides the sizing, they are super cute. They are the High-Rise Secret-Slim Pockets Button-Fly Rockstar Raw-Edge Ankle Jeans (click here). They are all button, no zipper (so weird, but works!) and the bottom is cut off with the sides also slit. I think it's just such a cute design! One thing Old Navy does great is make sure their jeans are not see-through and this is no exception. I love these!!

The shoes are the Metallic Faux-Leather Tubular-Strap Sandals (click here) and they totally caught my eye as I was shopping around. They come in many other colors but the metallic ones stood out to me the most. They are super comfy and true to size! Although they are metallic, they are a tad on the warmer side so you can totally wear them with warm colors - yellow, red, orange, etc.

Finally, this outfit is the same as above, except the shirt is different. The shirt is the Striped Slub-Weave Popover Tunic (click here). I am totally in love with this shirt because of the material. It's a woven material and super cozy. I think this shirt would be great with white pants or a pair of leggings. I love to wear tunics with leggings, because hello comfy is priority, but if you want to be a fancy pants, I recommend white jeans!

There you have it! Old Navy is one of my favorite places to shop because of their tall sizing and their new spring line has got me HOOKED! Hopefully this helped :)