I’m Back From My AWESOME Break!
Y’all, I cannot even tell you how much I needed this last week-and-a-half break. I woke up this morning feeling so refreshed, so excited, and so ready to get back into the swing of things. And more importantly, every bit of stress and anxiety I was feeling a week-and-a-half ago has completely vanished. It’s amazing what a bit of time off can do for a person.
When I last posted, I said that I hoped to come back with a completely finished closet. I also said that I’d be on social media during my break. Well, I changed my mind. 😀 I had planned to give myself that first Thursday through Sunday to relax, and then to get back to work last Monday. But when I got up last Monday, I decided that time off needs to actually mean time off. My body needs that. My mind needs that. So I went an entire week-and-a-half without doing hardly any work. I also decided that time off needed to mean time away from social media, and that was amazingly refreshing as well.
That doesn’t mean I didn’t do anything at all. About the middle of last week, I decided that I wanted to make those last ten flowers for my closet chandelier. That was a fun, relaxing, non-stressful project, and since it’s a crafty and artistic project, it was the perfect project to do on my break. And then yesterday, I finished putting the chandelier together. That was fun, too. You’ll have to give me a day to get back into the swing of things (taking pictures, editing pictures, etc.), and I’ll show you how it turned out tomorrow.
But other than that, I didn’t do a single thing that could be considered “work”. And IT. WAS. AMAZING.
How did I spend my time? Well, I spent a lot of time with Matt. We relaxed and watched quite a bit of shows together. (We’re working our way through The Rookie right now, which is pretty good.) I ate a lot of food that I probably shouldn’t have, but I didn’t care. (I didn’t cook one single meal over the last week-and-a-half.)
But mostly, I sat at my desk in my studio and I read. And I read, and read, and read. I can’t even figure how many hours each day I spent reading. I haven’t spent that much time sitting and reading in…well…ever. And I just can’t even tell you how refreshing that was. Countless hours spent just reading. And because some of you will ask, I was mostly reading the Bible, i.e., the most intriguing, interesting, fascinating, encouraging book ever written. I have never read through so much of the Bible in such a short amount of time in my entire life, and to read through so much of it, in context, and in one long stretch over the course of 11 days, was such a unique, encouraging, and life-giving experience.
The funny thing is that when I decided to take time off, I turned off my morning alarm and gave myself permission to sleep in every day. But do you think I did that? Absolutely not! I think I slept until 7:00 only one day. The rest of the days, I was awake, out of bed, and sitting at my desk at 6:00. And on a couple of days, I was up at 5:30.
There’s just something so amazing (I’m tempted to use the word “magical”) about those early morning hours, when the house and the neighborhood is quiet, Matt is still asleep, the house is still dark, and I can sneak off to my studio desk and turn on my one light above the desk, with Cooper curled up sleeping under my desk, and my little space heater on keeping me warm (yes, even in the summer 😁) that I can’t seem to get enough of. And I’d rather be up and soaking every drop of those hours than spending them in bed sleeping.
Matt’s day starts at 9:00am each day, which is when I help him with his exercises and then put him on his Theracycle, which occupies him for the next three hours. His Theracycle is in my studio right now, and he likes to listen to an audio book while on his exercise bike. But that didn’t stop me from having my quiet solitude at my desk. I treated myself to some Bose noise-cancelling headphones (these are the ones I got — affiliate link), so while he was on his bike and listening to his audio book, I remained in my own little world with my headphones on and playing this “deep focus” music very softly in my ears. Again…magical. I’ve never used noise-cancelling headphones before, and I was amazed at how the world around me really does fade away when I have those on with that music playing very softly.
So it was an amazing break, and very needed. In addition to watching TV, spending time with Matt, eating lots of food I shouldn’t have, and reading, I also took Cooper for about 100 walks around our property. It was nice to have those relaxing breaks throughout the day where Cooper and I could stroll around our large back yard, and he could mark all of the trees and fence lines😀 while I could just…think. There were no thoughts of projects or to-do lists. No thoughts of what I needed to get done before I go to bed that night. Just pleasant thoughts about random topics that I had been reading about while enjoying nature that surrounded us.
Speaking of Cooper, he’s doing really well. We’ve gotten into a really good, manageable schedule with his meals. I’ve gotten his meals down to two a day, and he’s doing great with that! I feed him the first time at 9:00am right before I help Matt with his exercises, which actually takes about 20 minutes. So the timing is perfect. By the time the timer is going off for Cooper to be able to get up and move around again after eating (he has to sit upright 20 minutes after his meals because of his megaesophagus), Matt and I are finished with his exercises and we’re ready to get Matt on his Theracycle.
And then I feed him the second time while we’re eating lunch, so that takes no extra time away from my normal work schedule. We all eat lunch together, and Cooper’s 20 minutes are up long before Matt and I are finished with our lunch (or more specifically, before Matt is finished his lunch). So this new schedule with feeding him twice a day is working out perfectly and won’t take any extra time away from my work schedule once I get back into the swing of things. And he hasn’t regurgitated on his food one single time during my time off, so things are looking up in that area.
And as far as the “puncture wounds” on his hind end, I’ve taken him back to the vet twice now for checkups and wound care (nothing emergent, just regularly scheduled checkups after the first emergency visit for the wound), and she said on the second visit that they’re not puncture wounds. They’re from a cyst that burst. That was a relief because as long as I thought they were puncture wounds, I was afraid to let him out into his yard unsupervised. And that was leading to a lot of my time being required to take him out on his leash every day, which was leading to a lot of my stress. So once I could actually start seeing that the area was healing very nicely, I started letting him back out into his yard unsupervised. That has freed up a lot of my time as well.
All of that to say that my time off was amazing. I feel like a new person this morning. I feel no stress, no anxiety, and I’m ready to jump back into things. I did decide that I’m going to start taking time off like this every summer. While Matt and I can’t take actual vacations, I’m actually kind of glad. Vacations and traveling can be exhausting, and that’s not what I need. This type of down time that I’ve had over the last 11 days — sitting still, reading, relaxing — is the exact kind of rejuvenation I need, and from here on out, I’m going to allow myself to do that twice a year rather than just once a year.
So, I’m back. And today, I’m getting back to work. Stay tuned for my finished closet chandelier tomorrow!
Addicted 2 Decorating is where I share my DIY and decorating journey as I remodel and decorate the 1948 fixer upper that my husband, Matt, and I bought in 2013. Matt has M.S. and is unable to do physical work, so I do the majority of the work on the house by myself. You can learn more about me here.
I’m so happy you prioritized yourself and took the time you needed and found it to be so rejuvenating! I’m very much looking forward to your continued blog posts and projects, but glad to know you took the time you clearly needed to rest and reset!
Such a delightful post. Yes, we all need a time of retreat. It is good for the soul (and the mind… and the body 😊).
This rest and reset sounds amazing! Just what you needed to bring the bounce back into your life again. I can definitely hear it in your words. How perfectly and wonderfully done with His help!
Welcome back. Thank you for sharing your time off journey. I too just finished a large project and was still obsessing about did i get everything done/right. This morning I realized that the energy needed to be released which I do through meditation. The journey is amazing isn’t it?!
Spending the day with books and music does sound so relaxing. I also appreciate your sharing a link to the Quiet Quest video. I love having that type of music playing in the background when I’m working on something.
I’m glad Cooper’s doing well on 2 meals a day, that’s unusual for a dog with megaesophagus as they are typically fed 3-4 small calorie dense meals day (retired vet here). Less food per meal means less likelihood of a recurrent episode and it helps to keep the weight on them. Also, after 8-10 hours dogs do get hunger pangs so even if you’re late lunch eaters, he’s spending a lot of hours hungry and dogs tend to gulp their food when hungry.
I should have mentioned that I also give him a bedtime snack. I’ve done that for as long as we’ve had him because Matt and I used to eat a bedtime snack every night (which we’ve stopped doing), but Cooper still expects his. 😀 I used to feed him 100% beef hotdogs cut into little pieces, but that was the first thing he regurgitated when the problem started, so I stopped doing that. So now, I feed him a little of his regular food (Farmer’s Dog mixed with water, about half the size of his regular meals) and still make him sit up 20 minutes after while I get ready for bed and get Matt ready for bed. Then Cooper and I go outside for the last time right before I get into bed. I didn’t mention it in the post because that’s just always been a normal part of our routine, and not something I had to add or adjust (as far as timing or how much time it takes me) because of his megaesophagus. So he’s actually getting food three times a day. I just consider that third time more of a snack since it’s smaller than his other two meals.
I’m curious as to your method getting him to sit up for 20 min…
I put a pillow in the corner of the breakfast room and had him sit on it with his back to the corner. And then I pushed the ottoman in front of him and put his food bowl on it. So he’s kind of trapped there. There’s not enough room for him to stand, so he’s forced to stay sitting. He resisted for the first couple of days, but as soon as he realized it was directly tied to food, he got over his resistance really quickly. Now when he sees me fixing his food, he runs over and sits on his pillow voluntarily and waits for his food. It’s very cute. After he’s finished eating, I set my alarm on my phone for 20 minutes. Again, he was restless and anxious the first few times, but once he realized that once the alarm goes off, he can get up, he now waits patiently (for the most part) for the alarm to go off. Sometimes, there’s a bit of whining during the 20 minutes, but he’s really very good and waits patiently.
I am so happy that you feel so relaxed and rested. And you and Matt deserve spending relaxing time together. Absolutely take a couple of weeks off whenever you feel stressed. I am sure Cooper also enjoyed the extra attention
My best vacations are “enjoying my mortgage” and they don’t cost any extra 😉 So glad you were able to relax and get some much needed rest!!
“Enjoying my mortgage” is my new phrase! Thanks!!!
Welcome back! You were missed!
Wonderful!
Quick question — are the Bose headphones comfortable to wear with your glasses?
I assume they are since you have worn them for some extended time, but would like to know your experience.
Thanks.
They are VERY comfortable on my ears! They don’t bother me at all with my glasses. I can’t guarantee that you would have the same experience, but I haven’t had any discomfort at all, and I’ve worn them for hours on end.
I should mention that the same can’t be said for earrings. I put them on yesterday while I still had earrings on, and after about 30 minutes, I was wondering why my ear hurt so badly when I had been wearing the headphones all week and they felt so comfortable. I realized it was my earring. It was all good once I took the earrings off.
That’s funny about the earrings but as I think about it, it makes sense! Thanks for sharing your experiences with the Bose over-the-ear headphones.
Welcome back Kristi!! ❤️
This makes me so happy for you! All good things! Might be something that you can build into your schedule each month, why not, and I’m sure Matt and Cooper were enjoying it, too! Time off is such a rejuvenating thing, and brings clarity to so many other things as well. All the best to you!
Yay, you’re back!👍🏻🎉🙌 and so very happy for you that you were wise enough to take this time off and it rejuvenated you as it did. Welcome back, dear Kristi
Thank God! Yay! Hurray! This is such good news, Kristi, and a GREAT reminder for us all. Welcome back!
I am with you on Staycations. If we go anywhere I like 3 days away at most. We worked hard to build a life and home and I love enjoying my home. I am very happy for you that you took time to just be. I wonder if it can be exhausting to be constantly creating or thinking about creating. When does your mind just shut down and let you rest? Anyway, happy to see what you get done after your break. And I will be around after every break you need and take.
Sheila F.
Welcome back Kristy! There’s a psychological condition called the “helpless helper” It’s when you are so thoroughly depleted that you can’t help anyone, much less yourself. The work you do is a job, and most people take time off from their jobs. I know you love Matt dearly but taking care of him is another job on top of all your other work. You’ve had some real stressors recently and your body and mind said “enough” I’m so glad you’ve taken time for yourself and agree wholeheartedly that you should do it at least twice a year. We’ll all be waiting right here when you’re back!
Welcome Back! I know we all missed you, but our prayers were answered with your rejuvenation and relaxation, I love staycations myself, since we have a farm, we turn our few days off into something like exotic travel if I get to the fishmonger in town and pick up supplies. I love a good rhythm of homelife, it is very stress releasing and works wonders on sleep and wellbeing.
Cheers to you, Matt, and the fur babies!
We do staycations every now and then. I love them, no cooking or cleaning allowed, pretend we’re at a fancy resort (although we do joke that the service isn’t very good 😂) but the comforts of home with your own bed and shower.
Simply wonderful! Way to go, sharpening that saw!
Your time off coincided with mine. My husband is blind but highly self-sufficient. That is, he is safe to leave alone but needs certain care, like chauffeur service, being led into Dr’s offices that he hasn’t been to before, etc.
A friend in California wanted me to visit and help with organization and redecorating. Best priced ticket was for 10 days, about the same ten days you were off. So I went, even though a little nervous. But we lined up his Uber app on his iPhone (a wonderful device for the blind!), car service through the local association of the blind and my sister and brother and brother-in-law on call in event of emergencies (they live about 15 minutes away). And there were NO emergencies!
While I missed him terribly, being with my friend of 55 years plus at her condo in so.cal. was so relqzing and fun. We organized and cleared her garage, found, bought and hung curtains, bought fabric, padding and batting and recovered dining chair seats, refinished her dining table, garden refresh (trimming, deadheading dozens of rose bushes), and lots of family time, going to church together, eating wonderful meals and catching up. My soul is filled.
Brought back the extra chair upholstery fabric (how on earth did I calculate SO badly?) and will make a couple of throw pillows for her sofa and a throw quilt as well, to tie in the dining and living areas, color and decor wise.
So yes, you did well and setting an intention to do so 2x/year is an excellent idea♡♡♡. My friend will be back east this fall so I’ll get to see her again soon and we plan to visit friends while she’s here.
I’m so relieved Coop is healing. The only thing I missed other than Rick while I was gone was our dogs and cats. But my friend’s adult children have pets and we also visited a rescue foundation so that was fun and let me be less homesick for my fur friends.
Blessings to you, Matt, Cooper, Felicity (and outdoor kitty who’s name escapes me). So glad you’re back. Missed you!
Glad you are rejuvenated and coming back. It certainly sounds like you really focused on relaxing! I wish you could take a solitary ACTUAL vacation just for YOU, because I’m sure caregiving can be draining. Sometimes daily activities will wear us down too. Even a weekend away from LIFE can rejuvenate us. ( I need one myself!) Those walks around the yard with Cooper were especially good too, for the fresh air and sunshine. My doctor told me I need to do that for the Vitamin D, so I try to get in at least 15-20 mins. in the sun (if we have it!) but the rains this spring have hindered me! Looking forward to seeing you back to projects!
I am so happy for you. You have several full time jobs, so no wonder you hit a brick wall. Happy that you got the rest and relaxation you (your body & mind needed! We’ll always be here waiting with bated breath to see what you accomplish when you get back into the swing of things. Always!
Hooray for a good vacation!🎉 Welcome back. Don’t rush back into too much on our accounts, a slow start is fine! 😄
Having just returned from 21 days on the road logging 5400 miles throughout our beautiful country, I can attest to the fact that travel is exhausting! But I wouldn’t trade our adventure for anything. I swear I can hear the joy in your writing. Because you run the whole show in your home, you definitely need downtime to recharge your batteries and psyche. After all, who will take care of Matt and Cooper as well as you do if you get really ill or exhausted? I embrace naps which are so rejuvenating for me. but it sounds like you did exactly what you needed to do for you.
Well done, and welcome back!
I have always enjoyed my early morning time, free of children and chores, to just enjoy the quiet. I live in a pine forest in upstate New York so my morning noise is usually just the birds and the wind in the trees. Glad you were able to take some downtime for yourself. But glad you are back too.
Sounds like a perfect eleven days! We can hear the joy in your writings that comes from being rested both mentally and physically. So relieved you and Cooper are on a great schedule and that the wounds were from burst cyst. I suspect he is thrilled to have run of the yard again. Feel free to take time whenever you need it, you cannot take care of Matt and Cooper if you are exhausted; much less finish your house and write the blog. We will always be here for you. Welcome back!
So glad you’re feeling better! Why limit yourself to 2 times a year—quarterly is nice, then you can have one break each season? Please take care of yourself—creativity is difficult with an exhausted mind!
I am so glad you had a true vacation break. Some would call that a true staycation with no social media.
I think you need this every year.
Welcome back! I’ve been thinking of you and hoping you recharged your batteries fully and it sounds like you have. Yay!
Well that was just lovely to read about! I’m glad you were able to be refreshed — body *and* soul.
Welcome back! I’m glad you had a lovely few days of your break. Reading is always a great use of relaxing time. Looking forward to your future posts.
I’m so glad you had a wonderful break like that! I was able to do a week like that the first week of July, and it was so lovely.
I am so happy for you, I always found it amazing how a “staycation can revitalize you and make you feel even better than taking a vacation that has a lot of activity going on. Thank you for posting the 2013 vlog about your Father adding a 2nd story to your childhood home. I had forgotten that post and then remembered it while reading. I am still in awe of your Father…the exact feeling I had when I read it the 1st time.
About eating foods, you shouldn’t, I don’t believe in that you should or should not eat certain foods when on vacation, whether it is abroad, at home or in your own backyard!
Kristy so happy you had time off! What a magical time for reading and choosing to incorporate the bible each day is something I have tried to make happen. Most importantly enjoying time with Matt and Puppy time. Our dog loves us to walk her and we cover a lot of miles in a day for a little 15 lb puppy. She is such a picky eater and I checked on The Farmer’s Dog; but it was expensive. We started buying quality canned food and adding tuna & some grease. Just recently looked again at Farmer’s Dog and see complaints about it maybe causing Pancreatitis. It wasn’t a few complaints it was a LOT. Hopefully it differs by dog…and how they tolerate fatty foods.(?)
So glad your break was so healing. We all need to do time outs. I will be 76 too soon and am finding that l need more breaks. I’m a never stop person too.
Glad Cooper is doing well and got to catch up on his ” Pee Mail”.
Good for you for recognizing your needs, all your needs, including your spiritual one! And you’re right, the bible has a lot of beneficial information that has stood the test of time, even for our modern lives. I know faith isn’t the direction of your blog, so not looking for a religious debate with any of your other readers…just giving you kudos for recognizing what fills your soul.
Oh, great idea…everyone else takes vacations from work…and you work more hours! Maybe every few months you need to get some long weekends…like many do, and a few long week or two for a real reset vacation. Missed you, but knew you needed that even before you mentioned it.