March break is over!!! 

     While on a walk yesterday, one of our neighbours said to the kids, "I bet your Mom is ready for you guys to go back to school!". Well, last Sunday, before March Break started I may have thought, "Let's get this week over with!", but as the week went on, I found myself enjoying the ebb and flow I have with my kids. They are getting older, and we are all understanding each other better. Caleb, although dealing with autism, and being a pre-teen, is managing to get through his days (mostly) in one piece, and the girls have stopped their endless (ENDLESS!!!!!!!) arguing. Don't get too excited about that last one, we had to take away ALL of my youngest daughters stuffies (stuffed animals) on her bed because not only was she arguing, she was hitting, kicking, and generally expressing her anger in violence. So, everyday she gets through without blowing her top, she gets to pick one stuffy to have back. So, that's definitely helping with the arguing piece in our lives! Anywho, that was just a random parenting "aside". 

    Well, still, loving my kids and having an enjoyable March Break doesn't stop me from laughing at these memes I've picked out for today! 

   Can I say that my "motivational Mondays" should actually just be called "Meme Mondays"?. I find memes cheer me up because there are so many, and they can be so funny (because they are so true!). 

      So, here they are! My "Motivational Monday (aka-Meme Monday!) memes to help you laugh and start your week off right! 


​xoxoxox

    Which one made you laugh out loud?!? Let me know!

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     So, at the beginning of February I had my very first giveaway!  You can read all about it here if you want! 

      Anyway, I announced the winner today-you can go check out the post to see who it was (spoiler alert - if you didn't get an e-mail from me about it, you didn't win) : (  Sorry!  
I am so grateful for everyone who entered though! I'm so happy to be able to share these awesome lip balms with other people! In other exciting news regarding Bushel & a Peck (not me, but the other Bushel & a Peck that I'm giving away the lip balms from!), Aimee just released her body balm!!! Go check it out! 

       Moving on, I want to share some funny memes and comics because I can't help it! For me, laughing makes me feel so much better, and when I feel better I feel motivated! We've had a bug going through our house (a sickness bug, not an insect! Well, we have insects too, but, never mind...), so I thought I'd share some memes and comics about being sick! 

       On my health & Fitness page I'm sharing my "Spell Your Name" Workout, so check that out too! 

​    I didn't get sick at all though, so I thought I'd share this meme! 
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    Have a great Monday! 

    Hey there! Thanks for taking the time to stop by!

   Can I just be honest for a minute? 

   Blogging has been hard for the last few months, but, truth be told, so has life. 

   I know Christmas was almost 2 months ago, but this past Christmas left me drained. I don’t need to get into any of the reasons, but when we finally got back from weeks away visiting family and friends back home, I had hopes that my feelings of anxiety and depression would get better. I fully anticipated getting home, and life getting back to “normal”, and that I’d feel like myself again.

   Instead I spent the nights tossing and turning, not getting decent sleep. I’d burst into tears for no reason during the day, and felt so anxious and sad I could hardly cope. 

   I lacked the motivation to get out of bed in the morning, or even to do things I generally enjoy like painting, baking, cooking, or singing. It took me about 2 weeks after getting home to even start working out regularly again. 

   I was not doing great. 

   Sometimes life is really hard for clear and obvious reasons, and sometimes life is hard for what could appear to be “no reason” at all. 

   This “no reason” hard life is often because of one thing: mental health.

   Mental health is a topic often discussed in my home, and among my close friends. Why? Because it matters! Why does it matter? Because, for some of us (myself included), mental health steers the ship of life. It can sometimes seem like a “no reason” reason for life to be hard because mental health is (largely) invisible, and that adds to the difficulty in dealing with it.

   It’s like if you have heart disease, your whole life becomes focused on getting better. You eat, sleep and breath staying alive and living a healthier life.

   Well, the people of the world battling mental health issues feel this way all the time! Going back to my analogy of heart disease, if you don’t have heart disease, you generally get on in life without worrying about sickness because you’re not sick. Right? Perhaps you’re consciously eating well and getting some exercise, but you’re not constantly thinking “am I helping my sick heart become better?”

    That’s how a lot of people who aren’t fighting mental health do life. They wake up with anticipation for their day, look forward to the events and tasks, or people they will see. They enjoy a relatively steady emotional state, becoming happy and sad, but never to extremes, and always get back to “normal” quickly. 

    Waking up with a brain that tells you that you have nothing worthwhile to offer the day, or sucks every ounce of energy out of your body, leaving you aching and miserable gets (obviously) exhausting. 

    Where’s the motivation for today? I know so far I’ve just been Debbie Downer, but here’s the thing: I always feel better talking to, and listening to others who are struggling. Not because I think “well, I’m not THAT bad”, but because there is strength in not feeling alone in a struggle. 

    I take my meds, I do the things I know should help me feel better like eating right and exercising, but sometimes, I just need to feel connected with someone else who wakes up in the morning feeling like life maybe isn’t worthwhile. We know on some level life is worth it, but it can be hard to really believe it sometimes, so sharing with someone who also faces more than an “off day”, has the effect of building up. 

    So, today, if you’re struggling, especially with mental health issues, stop and think, “who will let me talk about what I’m feeling without judgement?”. Then, reach out to that person. Asses yourself and see where you’re at emotionally, then separate what will make things worse, and what will make things better. For some, a face-to-face sharing is better, for others it’s chatting on the phone, and for some, it’s just writing something out in a text or e-mail, and sending it off. 

    If you have no one you feel you can talk to, feel free to comment here or by privately e-mailing me! Just reach out, I promise I won’t judge you. I am there with you! 

    Can I offer another tip? It may seem a little random, but it’s not, I promise! 

    Music can heal your soul….so, when you’re feeling awful, resist the urge to listen to music that is depressing. 

   Instead, turn on an album or playlist that you feel creates energy in you. Honestly, this can be very different things for each person, but you know what does it for you!

    My favourite thing to do is to go onto YouTube to find a playlist that’ll fill me up. I find that having music playing in the background of my day helps enormously. If you picture a movie or t.v. show, you know that the music drives the mood of a scene. So, pick happy music for your “scene” today! 

    Thanks for letting me share. Sometimes this blog is just my online diary, and that’s what it is today! I appreciate so much that I can do this, that I can share my heart, and know I am not alone in my struggles. 

     I thought I'd also share some mental health memes, if that's ok. I don't take mental health issues lightly, but sometimes I can take it too seriously, if that makes sense? So, I thought I'd share some memes that were on the funnier side (as memes were intended to be!), because after some good music and sharing, laughing (out loud) is really good for mental health! And these made me laugh out loud! 

​So much love,

Amy-Lyn ​


​....Ok, one more.....I can't help it. This IS ME!!! 


​xoxoxo 

   Oh, also, I did post over on Health & Fitness today too! Check that out if you want! 

   Let me cut to the chase and tell you that the guy with no shirt on is my new favourite YouTuber, Mike Donavanik! 

    I share about him on my Health & Fitness page! Go check it out! Pleeeeeeeease!!! : )  

    As for Motivational Monday here, I'm just going to share a funny meme with you because I LOVE funny memes!!!

   It's good, right!? Haha, seriously makes me laugh out loud every time! 

   Also, I share the picture below on my Health & Fitness post, but I wanted to share it here too because I think it's great! It's a collection of fabulous photos from a photo booth at my husband's work Christmas party this past weekend!

    Yup, we're unashamedly geeky! : ) 

​    I hope you had a good Monday, and have a great week! 

   Hello!!

   I'm still here! 

   Life has felt a little topsy turvy lately, but I'm here today to share on my Health & Fitness page some tips for dealing with stress! Check it out, would ya?

    And here, to help with any stress, is a few funnies! : )       

   
​ I know, right?!? I didn't realize this, but now that I know....life changed forever! 

 

     My sister sent me this one and it made me laugh out loud, and want cupcakes...(whomp whomp)

      Alright, well, I'm signing off here! Happy Monday one and all! 
​   

    My sister sent me this, and I literally laughed out loud! 

    So, enjoy a good laugh this Monday on me (via my sister)! 

​

      On my Health & Fitness page I share a new  workout that I'm loving lately. It's a Body By Simone workout created for Sweaty Betty's GetFit4Free campaign. 

​Happy Monday! 

 
      Hello!

     Over on my Health & Fitness space I talk about helping to keep kids active! Go and check it out!  Aww, go on, just go. : )  

     For a little Monday laugh, I wanted to share one of my all time favourite YouTube videos of a dear wee lass trying her darndest to get into first position in her ballet class. She's a freakin' hoot! 
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     I hope everyone had a great Monday!
​

   Hello there!

    Today I bring to you a guy who makes me laugh (and laughing makes me feel better, and feeling better motivates me to get stuff done!!!), Zach Anner! 

     This guy is so hilarious, you'll just love him. I've shared another one of his videos before, but in case you don't know who he is, his YouTube description goes like this: "Hi! I'm Zach Anner and I make videos for your enjoyment and my embarrassment."  You have to love someone who has such a great sense of humour!

     On his official website you will be greeted with this :
"Comedian Zach Anner opens his frank and devilishly funny book, If at Birth You Don’t Succeed, with an admission: he botched his own birth, entering the world with cerebral palsy and an uncertain future. So how did a kid who almost failed kindergarten blossom into a viral internet sensation who’s hosted two travel shows, impressed Oprah, driven the Mars Rover, and inspired a John Mayer song? (It wasn’t “Your Body Is a Wonderland.”) If at Birth You Don’t Succeed is a hilariously irreverent and heartfelt memoir about finding your passion and your path—even when it’s paved with epic misadventure."

     I'm sharing some of Zach's high fives today! Enjoy!
​

   High Five!!!
​

    Bonjour bonjour!!!

    Today on the Health & Fitness section of my site I talk about The Great Potato Debate! Are potatoes as bad as they are made to seem? Hop over there and have a read! 

   So, for today's "motivation" I want to share some funny potato memes. Who knew there even were such things! Haha!

   I hope they give you a chuckle and brighten up your Monday! 

    Well, hello there. Sick days probably seems like a strange Motivational Monday idea....but I was up all night with my youngest who threw-up at 12:45am....and approximately every hour after that until 5:15. At one point my middle child said she had a head-ache, and I believed her once I felt her head an realized she was burning up! My eldest who has been fighting a cough and cold for well over a week woke up crying around 3am, but with no real reason why, so I (lovingly) assessed that he was low on the list of things to give a crap about, and sent him back to bed (with a kiss on the head, of course)! My husband realized the sick night was going to be a never ending event, and moved to the couch at that point, and so got a solid (tongue in cheek) 2 1/2 hours of sleep before his alarm went off at 5:30.   
 
      It were a looooooong night, I tells ya!!!

     So, in my tired, coffee fuelled state I decided that a sick day motivation was in order!

     Enjoy!