Holy moly fritoly! Today has been insane!!! I have had to play the catch up game from the moment I awoke this morning. Does anyone else feel like things multiply into a tremendous mountain of to-dos if you leave things for a few days? I sure do. And the proof is in the pudding laundry, dishes, and emails – oh my!

This morning when I woke up I wanted to get to the gym…badly. I was ready to tackle a great workout before dropping Makenzie off at preschool. I got dressed to go and had a smile on my face.

Then, I came downstairs and saw the incessant things that needed some tender loving care. I don’t function well if our main living spaces don’t have some semblance of order, so I scratched the workout for some speed cleaning instead.

Bing. Bang. Boom. I knocked out quite a lot of those pesky little tasks and could breathe easy. Things may not be truly clean clean, but they work well enough for me. Honestly though? Things are never really clean clean in this house. I am a very superficial cleaner. Wipe off the counters. Put away dishes. Sweep up the floors. Maybe dust a bit or swipe a brush through the toilets if you’re lucky. I don’t think I can tell you the last time I did anything like clean the baseboards, deep clean the tubs/showers, or give my floors a good cleaning. I have enough trouble showering myself!

After this morning’s quick clean fest I got to thinking that maybe I should take care of that. Or invest in a monthly maid visit. That sounds better. I have thought of allowing myself a monthly massage indulgence as a reward. Maybe I could switch that out for a cleaning service indulgence? There’s a thought. Although, gah! I don’t know which would be a better choice! Which needs a better rub down? My body or my baseboards?

I think I know why I have such issues with staying on top of cleaning. Many days my time boils down to the following: cleaning or playing with my kids? Cleaning or blogging? Cleaning or going to the gym? Cleaning or watching Bachelor Pad? Ahem. You can see why cleaning just doesn’t happen around here.

I need to figure out what super powers got into me today though. I somehow did all of those things today…cleaning, blogging, gym (went to spin class this afternoon), and of course playing with the two most adorable beings on the planet!

I swear they have grown since I left for Healthy Living Summit. And gotten smarter. And cuter. And funnier. And snugglier. I missed them so much! I even miss them now while they are in bed. I guess Bachelor Pad a supremely insightful book, podcast, or whatever will keep me company instead. Good night loves!

• Which would you choose – monthly massage or monthly cleaning service?
• Are you a superficial cleaner or are you amazing and deserve mad props for staying on top of deep cleaning?

Fancy meeting you here again this afternoon! I bet you didn’t expect to see me until a bit later, huh? Well, with Makenzie in preschool and Braedon getting in his morning nap, I found some extra time and decided to use it to hang out with some of my other favorite people. That would be you.

Plus, I couldn’t wait to give you more of the details on the panel discussion – The Numbers Game -  Janetha, Beth, Lisa, and I shared at the Healthy Living Summit!

What exactly does “The Numbers Game” mean? Well, as healthy living bloggers many of us have goals in some form or fashion. They may be specific…or just to live healthy in general. No matter our goals, numbers usually play a factor in some way.

Allow me to break it down for you here so you can feel like you were right there with us. Or so you can be there again. PS – If you came, you’re my new best friend. <3

Examples of How We Use Numbers In Goals 

• calories/points/number of veggies for a dietary goal
• scale weight or measurements for a weight loss goal
• mileage or pace for a running goal
• number of workouts done a week for a fitness goal
• blog subscribers, page views, etc for blogging related goals

Our panel touched on our own personal goals to share a variety of perspectives on each of these. Numbers can be a very useful tool in our goals and should be used accordingly. The use of numbers has many positives to helps us in achieving our goals.

Positive Use of Numbers In Goals

• to serve as a benchmark to help track our progress in a concrete, measurable way
• to give us feedback on our actions so we can adjust as necessary
• to motivate us to keep going when we see the desired results

Numbers obviously have their place when it comes to our goals. If you want to PR in a race, complete a set of 20 pushups on your toes, or eat more vegetables – you will likely use numbers to help get there.  However, the positives of numbers in goals can easily get sucked into a negative black hole if you don’t proceed with caution.

Some Negative Ways We Use Numbers In Goals

• the comparison trap with others OR with our previous selves
• feeling frustrated and wanting to give up when the results aren’t as great as hoped
• getting prideful and not putting in the effort when get close to achieving a goal
• losing sight of realistic goals or wanting to continue progress beyond what is healthy for you or your body

Just because there are some negative ways goals can crop up doesn’t mean we need to say “forget about it” and not use them at all. Definitely not! They have their place. Our panel hoped to emphasize a few things to help keep that healthy balance and that could take up a whole other post. So, stay tuned for ways to use numbers without going insane in the membrane. I don’t want to send you into overload right now. Heck, my mind still needs a bit of a break so it doesn’t go into overload after this weekend!  

But for a little fun…let’s end this post with some quite interesting blooper shots. I can get pretty intense!

Time for me to catch you later! Now, if only I had time for that little cat nap…

• What are some ways you use numbers for goals and their pros or cons?
• Do you get nervous public speaking? I surprisingly didn’t once I got up there!