Weekly Post 3: Faith and Creativity

Hello Blog World! This weekend we celebrated my husband's birthday (his first as a married man). It was mostly low key, but a really good weekend overall. Friday night I cooked a lovely Italian inspired meal - baked balsamic eggplant parm, rosemary-garlic roasted potatoes and homemade tiramisu (his favorite) for dessert. It was accompanied with a lovely red wine and nice conversation. Saturday we went to our favorite local place for brunch followed by an outing to the movies. Afterwards we came home, rested, then cooked dinner together. Sunday we went to morning mass for Palm Sunday then talked to his parents briefly, rested for a bit, then headed off to have dinner out with my side of the family. After church this weekend, and as we approach Holy Week, I have decided I need to work on limiting my use of technology more to focus on the meaning of the season. While my prayer life can always use a boost, I feel like I often turn to the internet or tv to relieve anxiety lately, and realized maybe something was missing. When I think back to the times I have been most happy and productive, it is when my faith/spiritual life is strong and when I am utilizing my creativity more often. I feel like the most I have used that creativity lately was in developing meals and the sign I made saying "happy birthday" to my husband. I opened an email this morning from the Zentangle founders and realized I need to dive deeper into my creative life. When I first started learning and practicing the method of Zentangles, I was so excited! It was relaxing, creative, and productive. It gave me a sense of accomplishment, as well as keeping me grounded in the moment. So, my main goals this week are as follows: 1. Strictly limit use of technology (more specifically facebook and internet - as I tend to waste a lot of time/procrastinate with them)- I'd like to say 15-30 min max per day - and none Friday ("fasting") 2. Build up spiritual life in preparation for Easter - spend more time in prayer and contemplation, attend religious functions for Good Friday 3. Allow art to take a more central role in my life again as a means for using my leisure time in a more beneficial and creative way to soothe my soul My hope is that by the next time I post, I can include some updated pieces of art to share. :) Thought for today: What are healthy ways you deal with anxiety and "soothe" the soul?

Weekly post 2: Living in the Moment

So I'm slipping already and missed one week! Last post I contemplated healthier eating, and we have been working to incorporate veggies and fruits into our diet better. I worked this weekend and was treated to two delicious meals home-cooked by my honey on Sunday. Being the wonderful husband he is, he brought me a hot meal to work for lunch, and we worked together in the evening to create a very tasty chicken biryani (ok, maybe not the healthiest, but super delicious!). It's about the fourth time we made the biryani together and it just keeps getting better each time (especially as we are getting more coordinated at working together). The cabbage made it's appearance again (for lunch) as it was in need of being used up! My next food challenge is to use the eggplant, broccoli and potatoes that I bought last shopping trip, and make a grocery list for this week that stays within the rest of our budget for the month. Below is the photo of the biryani from the last time we made it.

I also made a goal chart last week (there we go, not on the blog, but still reflecting on goals!). I included personal, health, financial and career goals for the month, next 1-2 years, and 5 to 15 years that follow. A lot of good things to work towards! Mostly it comes down to building positive relationships - with my self, my husband, extended family, clients, and most importantly - God. Something I noticed about myself lately is how I've grown when it comes to not jumping too much to conclusions about the future outcomes as much as I use to. I'm starting to get better at living in the moment (though I still do get anxious about the unknown and future), but I'm learning how to live with what comes and talking myself (and others) back to the moment. I definitely noticed doing it twice yesterday - once with a very anxious client, and then again when my husband was worried about the dinner being ruined, after we forgot to add more water into the pressure cooker. It turned out fine (slightly more browned chicken, but nowhere near ruined). For once, I was the logical and reassuring voice of reason. (Usually it's the other way around). Needless to say, despite the challenges we sometimes face in communicating, we make an excellent team when it really comes down to it. I could not be more blessed to be where I am today, with my family life and career. Sometimes I try to rush ahead to the next thing, but I"m realizing more and and more that there are so many wonderful things to learn and take in from my life in the present. I am not where I thought I'd be as I start to approach 30, but I cannot imagine my life being any different. I am excited to see what the future will bring.

Weekly Post 1 : Eating Healthy

One of many goals I have is to eat healthier. Of course, don't most people want to accomplish this? (I mean, unless you are a total junk-food addict who doesn't really care about your health, or already do a great job at eating well balanced meals). After marriage and taking on responsibility for most of the cooking, I have become more aware of what it means to cook meals to nourish both our bodies and our souls. Since marriage, I have really been honing my skills at South Indian cooking (Kerala style, to be more specific). I have slowly gotten the hang of the detailed and laborious process that goes in to cooking my husband's comfort foods, and may even say I've gotten really good at making a few dishes. :) Sometimes we do our grocery shopping and cooking together, and have been trying to workout a budget and pick foods that are both healthy and within our budget. We have also been trying to incorporate more fruits and vegetables into our diet. This week I found cabbage on sale, and decided to buy it. I've never really been a big fan of cabbage, though did like when my mother had made stuffed cabbage polish style, and the couple times I'd had cabbage made by my mother in law and others in India. So I bought it, and last night cooked up some red fish curry (with salmon - yummy!) and green cabbage thoran. Everything came out delicious - and it was healthy! My next task is the polish style stuffed cabbage, or a recipe I found for a cabbage and white bean soup. I'll definitely be buying more, as it was cheap and easy to use! After much consideration today, I have decided to challenge myself to buy and use one new vegetable each week. I am finding that when I cook these veggies I disliked as a child, in a new way (say, as a thoran or with a lovely mix of spices), I love it. I then saw a challenge on some article online about trying "one new fruit that scares you each week". So, I am going to embark on this adventure in food: Try one fruit or veggie each week that is either new to me, or that I disliked before, in a new way. The second challenge is to try to use it in more than one way during the week so it doesn't go to waste if not used in one meal! I find too often we have leftovers that are past their prime, or veggies I have to get rid of with deep regret because they sat around too long in the fridge or on the counter. For any readers: Any suggestions for ways to eat healthier and save money at the same time? What are some good vegetables or fruits to try?

Another Leap of Faith

Hello again, blog world! I've decided it's time to once again sit down and send my thoughts out into the vast world of the internet. Life moves both slowly and quickly at the same time, and sometimes it helps to just sit down and reflect on it. Recently I have been diving in to reading a couple blogs, and one I follow regularly and enjoy, got me wondering why I stopped writing and creating art, and sharing with the world at large. Yes, I am a fairly private person, but there is a sort of joy that comes in connecting with others over lifestyles and allowing the vulnerability that comes with sharing parts of oneself. It's what I enjoy about working with people, despite the social anxiety that I often face. It's why I choose to push myself out of my comfort zone. I like being able to sit down and listen to someone else's story- to see their struggles and triumphs, to see the individual in each person as well as the common ground we all share - regardless of our identity or backgrounds. I like to see the growth that happens, the learning that we can do in each moment. So I'd love to use this blog to continue to reflect on my explorations of the world around me. To make a log of the growth I do as an individual and part of the community at large. To jot down the thoughts and feelings that come with spiritual and emotional growth. To reflect on marriage, social justice, religion, literature, cooking, family, mental health and more. To take on challenges posed by the outside world, and from myself. I'd love to write daily, but my goal is to start small - with a weekly post on goals, dreams, and thoughts, and see what this might grow into. To express my gratitude for what I've learned from others about love, faith, and food. To practice self care and maybe help just one other person to see things a bit differently than before to improve on the quality of life for themselves and another. Even if not one single person reads what I have to say right now, may it someday surface and be a source of hope in the future.