Productivity Tips from the Master (Yet Successful) Procrastinator

I may be a procrastinator but I did accomplish a lot. This is my bragging moment. So please let me.

This week, I went over my tools for sanity and productivity. So I decided to write my gratitude on the productivity and lifestyle apps I used to get by last year and this year, 2020. How about some productivity tips from your very own master of procrastination who accomplished a lot from my goals list last year? Here I go.

• I am grateful (again) about my phone camera that is very accessible to take quick pictures. Snapping shots of happy moments are so much fun. I don't always have time to write, but a few seconds of taking pictures, I have time for.

• I am grateful for my grandson, who makes me smile. I “put him to sleep” in my arms. But as soon as I put him to bed, he quickly removed the blanket, got up, and laughed at me. The little stinker! What can I say? Babies can be so much fun, especially that I can just borrow occasionally and not take full responsibility.

• The $10 reward I got from Dick’s store. I was debating about Yeti and Hydro Flask. I picked Yeti on sale and dishwasher safe. Since I got it, I feel motivated to drink more for some reason. A hydrated body is an energized body ready to conquer routine-boring-work.
• I track my steps through Fitbit and earn points with it to Dick’s store. $10 is not enough for the Yeti bottle, but I still had to pay less because of it. The reward alone motivates me to move my feet and get going.

• I began to track my activities (steps, weight-checks, tracking food, reading mindfulness, productivity, stress relievers) that I already earned $150 so far. I can potentially earn around $800 this year. I thank my employer for sponsoring this. Hey, a less-stressed employee is a productive employee. This year we are using the Virgin Pulse app. So far, so good. Hey, who does not want to get rewarded for doing healthy activities?
• I thank my gym, Planet Fitness. It is affordable and my black card membership includes the use of massage machines. Love them.

• Some of the motivation apps I used right on my phone.

• HabitBull paid subscription to track my routines, Achievement where I also earn money to Paypal for tracking healthy activities, the Calm app from work, 1-year premium subscription I use for meditation. 
• Swarm is where I check in to healthy places and earn points that link to Achievement. 
• Donate is where I donate pictures for $1, each applicable to organizations of my choice. Save the Children is my favorite cause. I donate some digital images and Johnson & Johnson match each for a dollar. Giving is good for my soul. It makes me feel good. 
• The Insight Timer is another meditation app I use. I vary my meditation apps to eliminate boredom. 
• The Lotus Yoga app is one of the paid apps I purchase on Yoga. I like the clear videos that go with it. Oh, yeah, we know that yoga is good for stretching and physical and emotional stress.

• I used Google calendar and Dream Book Planner to log my daily reasons to be thankful and to plan my days so I get to concentrate on the most important tasks.
• And last but not the least, I thank this blog and the Ttot team for a chance to share my gratitude for the week. Both systems inspire me!

What are my accomplishments in 2019?  Here are some:

1. I purposely lost weight thru careful food choices and tracking my steps. I succeeded.
2. I made time for a Hawaii vacation without other families except for Paul. We had such a great time with no drama. The beaches are the best I have seen in my life.
3. I passed Statistics with a B. For a subject that is super hard for me; I say I had an excellent grade.
4. I earned my Cardiac Surgery Certification for work. I am the only one in my unit to have the CSC title.
5. I took and passed five advanced nursing courses while working full-time.
6. I earned excellent reviews at work and got a raise.
7. I bumped up the monthly retirement contribution that I was dreaming about for many years. I finally did it to my goal.
8. I got to do a weekend visit in Oregon and Washington while doing schoolwork with my Laptop in between.
9. I got to visit friends and family over the summer and had time to bond in California.
10. I got to visit Omaha, Nebraska exactly a year ago and got to eat in excellent restaurants.
11. I got to visit Florida for a nursing convention combined with pleasure visiting Coco beach.
12. I earned my bachelor's degree in nursing. (I had an associate for a while). This is my 3rd degree.
I had a good 2019 — productive and exciting many times. Life was good.

There is always room for improvement. Among other things, this year, 2020, I plan to make punctuality a habit and do more self-care to build up my resiliency. I also plan to read at least 30 books this year. This does not include the nursing books I need to read for Masters. Have you viewed my sidebar and footer?

2020 Begins with Gratitude

What am I thankful for, this beginning of 2020?

• The little people around me. Look at my grandson about to throw his Happy New Year headband. I only have a second to snap this picture.

• Talk Therapy

The last couple of weeks of 2019 was rough. I scheduled to talk to the therapist and it is finally here. Have you ever want to just spill your guts out but do not want to affect your loved ones in the process? The therapist has the perfect ears for that.

• Podcasts

I have my favorites and here are some by Suze Orman, Dave Ramsey, Dr. Michael Greger, and more. I shared this with a friend today who has some money issues. I especially recommend Dave Ramsey. Sometimes  Many times I need some scolding so I listen to his podcasts a lot.

• My Phone Camera

It is really handy to take pictures of my grandson. Look at him eat as he sat on the used high chair I bought for cheap at Facebook Marketplace, and as they play with the used toys I bought or got for free from the same platform. The Marketplace is my new Craigslist with the convenient ways to pay and people you can preview. One of the sellers, I learned, I have common friends with.

• Noise-Cancelling Headphones

I listened and watch some coaching exercises with the Aaptiv app without disturbing other gym-goers.

• Veggie-loaded Eggs Benedict

It is so good, I did not miss the meat at all. I was so upset a few days ago, I went out by myself for breakfast on a fave breakfast place. OK, it is at Rupert's! This restaurant did not disappoint.

(I want to blame the snow and the slippery road, and not the young driver who insisted on driving thru it without practicing in the snow with an experienced driver first. I mean two accidents in 45 days [however injury-free] is JUST TOO MUCH).

That is my ten (bolded) gratitude kinda-list. What are you thankful for? Anything similar to mine?

Christmas Celebrations 2019

I am still nursing a cold but managed to do three 12-hr shifts this week. Today is my day off and I feel like blah. Receiving bad news today did not help and I choose not to dwell on it at the moment. I felt so bad that I needed to look at the pictures on my phone that, hey, this week is not all bad. We had family times. You see?

December Evening Celebrations

After Work Hospital Unit Party

December is usually a busy month when groups get together and celebrate outside of usual activities. This year, I skipped the holiday luncheon at work because I do not work that day (the 11th) and it was my son's birthday. We, in the intensive unit group, had a separate celebration on the 12th. It started before my shift was over, but I joined after work. I had one hour left of a 6pm to 9 pm all-you-can-eat-limited-choice drinks and appetizers as Paul and I arrived at around 8. With the time we had, we had 2 servings of alcohol, and a few bites of appetizer. I am thankful for days like this. It is great to just relax with co-workers outside the walls of the busy hospital in the intensive care unit.

Daughter's 2oth birthday (In Nike army shirt)

Saturday was my daughter's 20th birthday. She is my baby and looks young for her age, I think. She is still my sweet, fragile, sensitive little girl. We went to an arcade place but that night was an especially busy night. We did not even get a table to sit for appetizers and drink. The savvy prepared for this possibility and had the family have the cake and supper at home before we left. We played arcade games for 2 hours and spent at least half an hour claiming junk  toys with their tickets. I played a few piano games thinking my grandson would punch the keys too. He is 8 months and the keys are huge. Most of the time, I walked around carrying him with me and we went to visit the "big kids" playing.

Son's 21st Birthday

Last Wednesday, was my son's 21st birthday. I am surprised he is spending it with family and not doing some wild party somewhere with his friends. I got him his first legal drink at legal age. Surprisingly, he ordered a mixed drink and not some hard alcohol. Each of us had 2 drinks and we all "Ubered" home. I am thankful for Uber for keeping us safe.

Looking back, this year's December birthdays are the first in a long time we were all together. Nobody was on the run. They are too old for that anyway. My daughter and son were both home and not thinking about spending all day, all night with their friends instead. I am thankful for the togetherness. I am thankful that their wild, young days may be over, or did not happen this year, yet(?).

Happy December

Christmas party of PNACO
the whole family is welcome

Ho,ho, ho

Here we go

With my favorite nursing group

of P-N-A-C-O

We're the volunteer group

Here in Colorado

Please join our clan

Come on and follow

I am thankful for this month

It's been good so far

I am grateful for my family

Food, health, and my little star

My little star is my grandson

Who was the highlight of this party

He was so well-behaved

And was such a cutie

He stayed behaved throughout the day

And not at all fuzzy.

He was our little Santa

And he won the best-dressed too

Among other children

Of Santa's little crew

My whole family also won

The best-dressed for the day

We're the "We love Santa" group

We just don't have our sleigh

Speaking of the sleigh

I am glad my car is back

After a long wait for a repair

It's finally back on track

I'm also thankful for the weather

No more snowstorm for now

The road is now better

The drive feels much safer.

Kauai Vacation

Kauai vacation pictures outdoors

Paul and I are lucky enough to go out of the mainland and visit Hawaii's Kauai island. We prepared for this trip with money-saving in mind (we cooked most meals and did not order drinks when we ate out). We also lost weight before leaving. Here is my gratitude list.

1. Losing weight and getting fitter. We tolerated short moderate to difficult hikes to go to the smaller and more private beach to avoid the crowds. 
2. Beautiful beaches we enjoyed for free. The beaches are all public in Hawaii.
3. The beautiful, lush, and shady hikes to complement sunny days.
4. Natural rocks to sit on to watch the waves and enjoy the cool breeze for hours.
5. Jojo's shaved ice with macadamia ice cream on the bottom. We enjoyed the tropical breeze flavor almost daily!
6. Hawaiian feast and show called Lua. That was fun to watch.
7. The company of friends from Colorado. Of all places, we got to meet in Hawaii after many years. How odd but nice. They stopped over from a cruise.
8. The pink sarong Paul encouraged me to get. It is so versatile wrap/dress/top/or skirt! I never had one. It is a must, especially when going to the beach and going somewhere else right after.
9. All the beautiful experience we had on vacation. It made me more resilient facing problems waiting at home. My neighbor "mistakenly constructed a fence" some-20 feet passed her property line into my lot. This is partially resolved. Thank goodness in part for my children 19- and 20- year olds adulting. This issue started the next day after I left for an 8-day vacay. Oh, and also, my daughter slipped driving my car on a snow day days later. My car is still in the shop. 
10. My daughter is not hurt in the car accident. The other party did not get hurt either.

Halloween Gratitude 2019

Halloween 2019

 It is the month of November. Halloween just passed. Next comes Thanksgiving, then Christmas, then the New Year 2020. The year is almost over. I haven't finished my goals this year yet. I still have time. But I should not procrastinate.

Anyway, just as important, I have many blessings to fall back on this fall. Here is my list of gratitude.

1. A moment to enjoy my grandson's Scooby-Doo picture. Isn't he the cutest Scooby-Doo baby this year? All that I asked agrees with me!
2. Just eight years ago, my son, now a father, still dressed for Halloween. You can't see it here but he was a wounded skateboarder. (He had left his costume at a friend's house an hour away. . . ) How can he have a kid already? He is only (still) a/my kid!
3. Snowball was younger then. He is still cute now but he is missing a lot of teeth and his tongue always hangs on the left side. I love old pictures.
4. My daughter dressed up for Halloween this year still. She is 19 and still going to college. I am happy about that.
5. I work last Halloween. I am thankful nothing scary or gruesome happened at work that day.
6. I am thankful for a good talk with my boss last week. It makes me nervous sometimes when bosses make an appointment with me "just to talk." 
7. I am thankful for the reimbursement from work for my expenses obtaining a second nurse certification.
8. I am thankful that so far I am not behind taking two college courses at the same time while working fulltime. I am still alive and not buried with tons of homework. I am keeping up.
9. I am thankful for my health. I remember this every time I hear about another young woman diagnosed with breast cancer. I get sad then cheer up for MY HEALTH. 
10. My presentation went well in nursing education day. Speaking in front of others makes me nervous but I did alright.

May you have a list of gratitude to think about. Have a good week!

September Morning

My not-so hectic week in pictures

It is the month of September. It is getting cooler. We have two months left in the year when the weather is still tame and every morning is still good for a nice stroll in the park. I have some things to be thankful for. I will try to list ten.

1. Sweet cookies from the Donation Alliance for the nurses.
2. A cute pose by Velvet in the morning. Isn't she cute, up-side-down or right-side-up?
3. Twin Lakes Open Space walking trails. This trail has lots of shades!
4. Paul walking with me.
5. We are still shedding some unwanted pounds.
6. Healthy food to help us lose weight. Paul does it with reducing fat intake mostly and walking alone.
7. An exercise coach to motivate me to do my home workouts. Paul and I are hoping to shrink one size smaller to look good in swimsuits for a future trip to . . . 
8. My daughter and I doing well so far in college. 
9. Installment plans to pay for college.
10. Sprouts grocery store for refunding me my money for a bad service one day.

Grateful for August 2019

August 2019 comes to a close. Just looking at this past week makes me feel lucky. It is a good month with some simple reasons to be thankful. 

• A nurse wine glass from Paul he got from the wine tasting event. He got some wine too but the glass is especially cute. Why doesn't the nurse have eyes, I do not know.
• Free cactus vegetarian tacos from the employee recognition day with melon juice. I especially like the juice. It refreshed my dry mouth on a busy day in the hospital.
• A smile from my grandson quenches my thirst as well in a different way. Many times at work, in the intensive care unit, I feel stressed, depressed, and helpless dealing with critical patients. My grandson, however little, cures all the negative feelings. 
• Nature hikes this weekend feeds my soul while I get my work out. It is nice to see the great outdoors in Colorado.

• Flowers brighten my day. The red ones are from the Farmer's market Paul got me today. The others are from the hike at Pella Crossing Trail this morning around the lake.

• Here are more flowers from yesterday's hike at Apex and Enchanted Forest trails.

• Pella crossing trail hike was nice around 7 to 8 am this morning. The trail can be heavily trafficked by the locals but the earlier hours are not crowded at all.
• Yesterday afternoon, my daughter and I got 15-year old Snowball, our miniature poodle his shots and renewal of dog license. We spent $75 for everything in the clinic. That is pretty good price, we think.
• I have yet to thank some of my fellow nurses. They helped me a ton trying to stabilize my patients last Wednesday and Thursday to prevent them from crashing. Everybody's effort helped make a difference in my patients' life. I feel lucky to be apart of a highly efficient and helpful team.
• And last but not least, the All Trails app that helped me find easy to moderate trails in my area. It is a great app in the U.S. I heard you can use it too in other countries like Mexico, China, the Philippines, France, England, and Ireland. It is available for free and paid pro-membership as well.

Fresh Dahlia

Hello. Another week, another time to recognize my blessings. My family went to our regular schedule this past week. It is back to college for my daughter and me. We have no vacations planned so far. Life is smooth and we plan to keep it that way. Smooth is fine and we feel grateful. Here's my list.

1. A $1 dahlia from the farmer's market because even a single stem puts a smile on my face.
2. The farmer's market on good weather to get local veggies from.
3. A table for studying as I am back to school again to get my master's in nursing.
4. Leftover flowers from the week prior and carrot leaves (LOL) to make a bouquet with my dahlia.
5. Coffee candle to keep me awake while studying.
6. My last lipid panel result. I got my total cholesterol and LDL within healthy limits finally.
7. Losing five pounds and keeping it off.
8. Thanks to the Noom app to help change my mindset about food.
9. The slimming coffee my sister gave me. Between Noom and that, I lost weight without struggle.
10. My kids helping around more around the house. They even did the lawn in the front and back of the house.

Thankful for the Great Outdoors

The Main Reservoir walk in Colorado

The Rooney Trail before the bikers and runners came

I feel proud of myself for making time to post in a few weeks streak. It just means one thing. I focus on gratitude for weeks now. What a great feeling.

This week, I am thankful for:

1. The beautiful mountain views in my city, just over ten minutes drive.
2. 60-degree mornings, so the hike felt very refreshing.
3. The energy to rise early and avoid the crowd.
4. My dog joining me in the otherwise solitary walk.
5. The effect of going outdoors has on me--wonderful happy feeling.
6. Calories used for exercising. 
7. Days off to enjoy life outside work.
8. Coffee to keep me going on my workdays in the hospital.
9. My son adulting. He paid for his two old tickets!
10. Apps to motivate me and lose a few pounds. 

Summer Outdoors

Beak Creek Nature park

While visiting the beaches in California, my former state before Colorado some 20 years ago, I realized how I took for granted the beauty of the large body of water when I was living there. How could I not appreciate the beautiful waves and sunset kissing the water when I was minutes away from it? How could I not walk the warm sand at least weekly, the same way I enjoyed it now massaging my feet as I walked? Now I can only do it rarely unless I fly to the west (or east) coast weekly. 

Last June while in Florida, and had a few days by the beach, I did not think about it. I used to live close to the beach, in California, that 's where I stayed for over ten years. Anyway, now that I am back to beautiful Colorado, I told myself not to take for granted the beautiful weather, mountains, and lakes we have here. We have numerous parks to visit, some only a few minutes away. 

Here, my nursing volunteer friends and family visited Colorado Springs. It is over an hour away from Denver but we visited for different scenery and to eat in a Filipino cafe afterward. We squeeze in our Philippine Nursing Association of Colorado (PNACO) monthly meeting to talk about our next project of offering a day of the health fair for the Denver community.

Here is my gratitude list for this post.

1. Beautiful California beaches 
2. Scenic Bear Creek Park
3. A day off to spend with nurse friends
4. My own health and I am glad I can volunteer some time to help others
5. Filipino cafe where I can eat native cuisine I did not cook. I had pancit noodles.
6. Cooperating weather. We did not get rained on.
7. Smooth traffic on the way and back 
8. Hat
9. Sunscreen
10. Money to buy school supplies for my college daughter

That's all for now. What do you like about your surroundings?

Summer Gratitude 2019

Hello from the hot summer in Colorado. I just got back from a vacation with my family. I attached my recent pictures down to my graduation. I finally finished my bachelor's in nursing. I had an associate degree for many years but not I can officially say I am a bit smarter. :)

Look at me hanging out with the stars in Los Angeles, California, the wax museum, that is.

A visit to California is not complete without the scene of the Pacific Beach. Here we are in San Diego with the water warm enough, we could actually go wading comfortably.

Paul and I are back in Colorado shopping at the farmer's market. 

The other pictures are with my family in California for a mini-reunion. 

I can't help but notice that sign on the white truck in La Jolla, "People are important." Yes, indeed, no matter what race or color, I should add. 

 More beach pictures. Can you spot the seals and sea lions?

And look at how we positioned ourselves in the picture as a family? We did not plan that special line up.

And here are more family pictures. I have to post a picture of my grandson. He is now 4 months old. The last one is, of course, my graduation day before I headed to a much-needed vacation.