Social Media Break Challenge

July 12, 2019July 12, 2019 / Cami Grace / Leave a comment

I have been noticing more and more how much time I spend on my phone and it’s been nagging at me. The sad part is I feel like it’s truly becoming an addiction.

I mindlessly pick up my phone at any given second and start scrolling through Instagram and Facebook. It doesn’t matter that I scrolled through less than a minute ago.

If I purposefully leave my phone in my purse for 15 minutes I literally start thinking about it and feel pulled to take it back out. My thoughts and excuses range from I’m bored or stressed, to I need a break, and then to “what if I missed something”? I mean, how sad is that?!

What’s more sad is that I have an adorable little boy who picks up my phone and hands it to me when he sees me without it. This is just not okay.

While I don’t want to get rid of my Facebook and Instagram accounts permanently, I definitely need a good break from them…and my phone in general. One weekend just isn’t going to cut it, so I’m challenging myself to take a full week off from my social media apps.

Here’s my plan. And, yes, it’s taking a full blown plan, otherwise I know it’s not going to happen.

Who:

Just me. I’ve heard of couples who have done this together, but I’m the one with the phone problem, my husband doesn’t have the same issue, thankfully.

What:

As we just discussed – taking a one week break from my Facebook and Instagram accounts.

When:

Saturday, July 13 – Saturday, July 20

Where:

Ummm…everywhere – home, work, and while I’m out and about.

Why:

For the reasons explained above

How:

I’ve put a lot of thought into this so here are the steps I’ve come up with

1 – Identify triggers

Since I tend to pull out my phone at any given moment, identifying the areas that trigger my “need” for my phone helps me come up with a plan on how to combat my impulse to reach for it.

2 – Come up with alternative activities.

Obviously I need to come up something to do instead, especially when I’m bored or stressed. I don’t want to replace one addictive activity on my phone for another, such as playing games. I need to look for other alternatives. My ideas are…

Pick up a book
Chat with a friend or visit with someone in the office (aka invest in real friendships)
Pick up an actual camera
Simply be in the moment (look around and take it all in – sights, sounds, smells)

3 – Address worry/fears

Ok, this might sounds stupid at first, but what has kept me from taking a break before has boiled down to two reasons: 1 – I might miss important news, 2 – there is a little message when you go to delete the Facebook app that it will delete all its data.

~ A solution to the first worry is to make an announcement on Facebook and/or Instagram that you’re taking a break, so if something big does happen, people know to reach out to you another way.

Honestly, the fact it’s only a week makes it less likely that I’m going to miss something. Even if I do miss something it should be easy enough to catch up.

~ The solution to the second issue was to Google what the message meant. I read that it basically means if you delete the app it will erase any saved passwords and settings you have saved on your phone for that app. So not a big deal. I will make sure that I remember my password and I can always re-set my settings if I need to.

~ Also, if you’re worried about missing reminders for friends birthdays you can always search “Birthdays” in the search bar on Facebook and a list will come up. You can then wish them a happy birthday ahead of time! :)

4 – Delete the apps from my phone.

I know myself way too well, and if I leave the apps on my phone I’m going to “accidentally” click on them, and once I “accidentally” click on them, I’m going to say something like “just this one time”, which will turn into 10. Yeah, no, they’ve got to go.

5. Put my phone away and GO LIVE MY LIFE.

Obviously I still need to use my phone, but I plan on putting it away for much of the week.

While I work, I will keep my phone in my purse that is kept in a drawer. I’ll check for phone calls periodically, mostly because with daycare you just never know. I will open the drawer to take a peek and close it right back up after.

At home I will keep it on the kitchen counter plugged in and the volume turned on so I don’t miss a phone call or text (I don’t get many phone calls or texts, so it’s really not a big deal). If I’m really struggling, I will give it to my husband to hang on to. With the apps completely removed from my device, I don’t think it’s going to be an issue.

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Honestly, I’m looking forward to the break. I’m hoping that through this I will find myself more present in the moment and mindful of my surroundings and the people in my life.

I hope you all have a wonderful weekend!

Much Love,

Cami

Currently – June 2019

June 21, 2019July 2, 2019 / Cami Grace / Leave a comment

What a month this has been! I know we still have a week to go, but here’s a little recap of the month so far.

This month held my husband’s 34th birthday. We went to a fun Junior Police Academy kids event with Gryffin. On our way home from that event we blew out a tire and had to replace a full set of wheels (ouch…but thankful it wasn’t worse!). My husband started a new work schedule (this is only temporary). And we had to replace the alternator on our second car. Needless to say, this has been one expensive month!

Here’s what else we’ve been up to.

Currently Watching

For Mikey’s birthday we went and saw “Dark Phoenix” at the movie theater. The original plan was to actually watch “Avengers: Endgame”, however, we accidentally purchased tickets online for the wrong date (oops!). Sooo, this was our plan B.

I have to say, this movie, which I knew nothing about aside from the fact it was an X-Men movie, was actually really good! I was pleasantly surprised and left feeling glad that I watched it.

This weekend we plan on watching “I Can Only Imagine” on Amazon Prime. It’s been on our watch list for a while, but after seeing a clip of it again recently we are determined to watch it this weekend. I can tell it’s a powerful story.

Currently Reading

The Book of Hygge. Ummmm….I kinda dropped off the reading wagon again. I have gotten really bad at starting and not finishing books.

With that being said, we’ve been spending a lot of time outside taking care of our yard and playing – soooo…that’s a good excuse, right??

Currently Making/Baking

Ultimate Reese’s Cheesecake Brownies. I made these for Mikey’s birthday and they were soooo good! I am kicking myself, yet again, for not getting a picture!

For the link to the recipe and pictures you can click here.

Taste wise, this gets a 10! They were so delicious. Our only mistake was that we didn’t bake it long enough and we forgot to check the middle before putting it in the fridge to cool (oops! rookie mistake). To be fair, we made this the night before around 11:00 p.m., we were exhausted, and we automatically assumed 40 minutes would give it plenty of bake time.

Anyway, this was really easy to make. I highly recommend!

Current Obsession

Canva!! I am seriously a nerd and I like to make logos in my free time. I’m pretty sure I could do this all day long! I really enjoy making the title images for my blog too.

I had a friend tell me she was having a hard time creating a logo and label for the soaps that she and her mom make and I quickly offered to help.

This is what I came up with for them!

Since then they actually ended up changing their business name, so I created a different logo for them that they liked and are using.

Anyway, just throwing this out there – if you ever need a logo created or business cards designed, let me know! I would love to help!

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So there you have it!

Let me know what you’re currently up to in the comments below!

I hope you all have a wonderful weekend!

Much Love,

Cami

When Self-Care Looks A Little Different

June 14, 2019June 14, 2019 / Cami Grace / Leave a comment

I had an “ah-ha!” type of moment a few weeks ago. This really isn’t very profound, but I wanted to share my thoughts.

I don’t know about you, but when I think of self-care I think of mani/pedi’s, a massage, a bubble bath by candlelight, or even just curling up in a blanket with a book.

If I’m being honest, most days, even on weekends, I don’t have that kind of time, money, and/or energy. Even taking time to pluck my eyebrows is the. biggest. chore. I often worry that I’m “letting myself go” as I swore to my younger self that I would never do. Then I start to feel shame that I’m letting myself down.

Then one day I was scrolling through Facebook when I saw a post from a friend that made me stop to think. She had two pictures – one showed a book with a small glass of wine, and the second showed a picture of her laundry at a laundry mat. One of her hashtags read “#selflovecomesinmanyforms”. Suddenly I felt overwhelming relief.

Somehow I had tied self-care with all things luxurious. That, because I don’t have the money for a massage, or that I’m not taking the time to paint my nails, that maybe I’m not taking care of myself as well as I should.

There was freedom in realizing that doing laundry, and making sure my house is vacuumed, and getting everything ready for the week ahead is, often times, exactly the self-care I need.

I’m not saying that quality “me time” isn’t important. While I do believe I ~~could~~ should step up my eyebrow plucking game and also take the time to do something I truly enjoy, it was just a nice reminder that one form of self-care can be just as important as another.

~ Cami