from Kris B.

Something I’ve learned about myself recently is that I’m not very good at simply relaxing.  I say i’m going to do it, I sit myself down, and then my mind starts going through all the other things I should be doing.  The next thing I know, I’m up and going again.  This is how/why I find myself both physically and mentally exhausted much of the time.

I’m not one who makes resolutions at the beginning of the new year, but I do re-evaluate and set new goals for myself.  This year, I am going to be more intentional about taking time to relax – to allow both my body and my mind be quiet and rejuvenate.  Ideally, this would happen for some time each day.

The first thing that I had to figure out was what relax actually means to me.  I do sort of regular zen meditation and that is relaxing, but in a way that is focused and intentional.  If I did it every day, which I don’t, it may better serve my goal.  So what can I do every day that will help me to relax, to ease the stress of everyday life?

1. Knit – Knitting is relaxing, but only when I’m knitting something simple like a dishcloth, a hat, a blanket with easy repeats, or a scarf.  Once a more complicated pattern is involved, lace or color work, then the level of mind power needed increases and the level mental relaxation decreases.
2. Read – As with the knitting, what I read determines how relaxing it is.  Because my time is often limited, I tend to use the little reading time I have for academic stuff for school.  That is not the least bit relaxing!  For reading to be a down-time kind of thing for me, it needs to be “brain candy” fiction, something that once I’ve read it, I don’t have to hold onto it; or, magazines.  I am a magazine junkie, although, admittedly, magazine articles have changed a lot in the last ten years or so.  Most of them now are short and lack a great deal of substance.  That said, I do still enjoying reading many of them.
3. Watering the Plants – There is a lot of real work that is needs to be done in the greenhouse, but the daily watering is quite relaxing.  The sound (and sometimes the feel) of the dripping water is soothing.  Being surrounded by the lush colors and the smell of dirt, or growth, of life, touches my soul in a way that nothing else does.  I need to remember when I go out to water to think of this time as a gift and not as a chore.

When it comes right down to it, it is not so much the “what” that helps to achieve a feeling of rest, relaxation , and rejuvenation, it is also the mindset with which we enter into those things.  If we slow down and try to enjoy all that we do a little more, perhaps our stress levels will diminish.  Maybe it comes down to being present to the process, taking one step at a time, rather than always having an eye on the finished product that looms out there somewhere.

Who knows…

What I do know is that I need to relax more this year and I’m going to do my best to figure out how to make that happen!

from Tracey G.

I too seem to have trouble just trying to identify what constitutes relaxing to me. Trying to figure out activities (or non-activities) that feel rejuvenating after (or during!) doing them. I have lots of things I love to do, but like Kris – that doesn’t mean they’re always “relaxing”. When I intentionally think about activities, and what about them that I find relaxing, the one characteristic I find that keeps coming up is that it must be something I can lose track of time with!

You know, that thing you’re doing and you look at your watch and find hours have gone by and you didn’t even realize it! Generally, I don’t always have “hours” to dedicate to something, but that’s the kind of thing I look for. I like to get so focused on something that time just flies by.

After some thought, this is what I’ve come up with:

1. Reading – Once I’m involved in a book I’m enjoying, the house could crash down around me and I’d never notice – until I got up to get more coffee and discovered the coffee pot gone! I love getting lost in a good story, so I’d have to say this is one of my favorite ways to relax! And, it’s easy to do wherever, so that’s helpful! Although, the stress of waiting for the 9th book in the Outlander series is rather stressful at the moment! Hoping 2019 is the year! Please…

2. Cookie Decorating – This does have some caveats, though. For instance, sometimes the coloring of the icing is nice & relaxing, and sometimes not. But, the outlining & flooding of the cookies is always something I lose track of time on. I love that part of the decorating – I get focused and it’s all I’m aware of! Sometimes the detailing has its merits as relaxing and, like the coloring of the icing – sometimes it’s not!

3. Watching A Movie or Favorite TV Series – This is one of those activities I don’t seem to get to do very often. These days I save the majority of my favorite TV series for viewing on treadmill, I need my “carrot” dangled in front of me to motivate me to get on and get going! But, there’s a couple I like to save for when I just feel like taking a break, and I watch them whenever I have a bit of downtime! I must confess, there’s only 3 that I let myself watch without working for it: Blue Bloods, The Walking Dead & Talking Dead. As for movies, those are harder to come by downtime for – a bigger block of time is required! But a couple weeks ago while my guys were out of town, I sat down and treated myself to one of my all-time favorites, “Bram Stoker’s Dracula” with Gary Oldman, Winona Ryder, Anthony Hopkins & Keanu Reeves. It was so much fun to grab munchies, camp on the couch and watch a movie! (I also love the actual book as well, read it freshman year in high school and it has stayed with me ever since!)

I too am determined to have my “me” time this year, doing whatever catches my fancy! And I agree with my blog partner on the fact that most of the time it doesn’t matter what you’re doing, but the attitude you go into the activity with. For example, when I finally realized that decorating cookies sometimes would be a slow-going process, it freed me from stressing about it. Realizing that all the beautiful cookies I wanted to make, required me taking my time, therefore no need to feel that I was doing it “wrong” or that I had no talent for it because I couldn’t speed my way through, which I thought all the cookiers worth their salt, did. It transformed the activity for me, thereby creating one of those things (like coloring) I could get lost in for awhile!

Be sure to find your relaxation/rejuvenation groove this year! Make 2019 as peaceful a year that you can!

Hey everyone don’t forget this is the last chance to add your comment and score an entry to win the $50 King Arthur Flour gift card! To enter on this post, let us know YOUR favorite way to chill out and relax! Cut-off time for entering is tonight (01.11.19) at 11:59 EST! Good luck and thank you for supporting us by reading what we enjoy posting!

Kris & Tracey