Being very sick and exhausted these past months while being pregnant has given me time to think, dream, plan and rest!

I think there are so many fabulous people, women in particular, in this world we can look up to, but often that “noise” can be distracting and cause us to pursue what really isn’t right for us!

YOU are uniquely you and I am uniquely ME—what I do, or what works for me does not necessarily mean it is right or the best, it is just the best for me!

I thought it would be fun to share what I don’t do everyday to get you thinking about your own priorities and how you want to organize your life, passions and time!

I firmly believe that we are not commanded to do-it-all, have-it-all-together or please everyone.   <— that last one is gold my friend!  Remember, you do YOU and don’t compare your success or failures.

10 things I don’t do everyday

I don’t post to social media every day

I absolutely love social media, in particular Instagram as I am not a big Facebook fan, but it can quickly become consuming, especially when a part of your job is navigating social media.  I LOVE the community (YOU!), and most often only ever get encouraging, kind messages from you all…which I am so thankful for!

But ultimately, scrolling on social media can be a big time waster and make me fall into the dangerous comparison trap.

I also firmly believe in boundaries!  I am not the girl who will Instagram story my whole life, what I eat with every meal and tell you everything I do all day long.  I don’t believe my entire life needs to be shared in public, but when I do share I am always completely honest with both the good and bad!

I don’t drink caffeine every day (well MOST days)

In June of 2017, I gave up caffeine and honestly have never looked back! It was one of the best health decisions I ever made.  Yes, I know matcha and decaf coffee have a bit of caffeine in them, but for the sake of this post I am not including those.  (More on how to naturally solve adrenal fatigue HERE.)

I am a coffee lover and snob (yes!) and absolutely crave the ritual of coffee in the mornings!  But giving up caffeine helped me heal my adrenal and hormone issues and has in turn given me SO much more energy each day!  To add a little pep to my days I drink this Swiss water process decaf or this iced matcha.

I don’t eat kale

Honestly, kale just tastes like grass to me and I personally think it is gross!  Plus, raw kale is *very* difficult to digest (which can create digestive issues) and is a thyroid hormone inhibitor so I always recommend people cook kale rather than add it raw to smoothies or salads.

I don’t get to talk to my husband every day

Now with modern technology that has changed a bit, but during our first married deployment I would go a week or two without hearing from him and in 7 months only got about 3 phone calls.  I truly don’t know how the wives of World War 2 did it, but I guess they knew no different.

Being a military wife has taught me to be very independent and although I miss my husband terribly, we cherish the time we do have together and have a beautiful relationship!

Little known fact: We dated entirely long distance and got engaged 2 weeks after I returned from school in France, so we were set up for military life from the start!

I don’t check my email or social media first thing in the morning every day

I am my most creative productive self first thing in the morning, well after puppy snuggles and decaf coffee, so I don’t like getting distracted by email or social media.  I don’t always stick with this, but do feel the most accomplished when I knock out my big 3 tasks plus get in a long walk with Libby before tackling the inbox.  Sometimes there are negative or stressful situations on social media or email, so I prefer to keep my mind positive in the mornings.

I don’t say YES every day

Biggest lesson I learned last year: saying NO can be more powerful than saying YES.  Learning to say no allowed me to be much less stressed and much more content but also opened up so many better opportunities for me, both personally and professionally.

As women, we often feel like we have to do it all and please everyone, but that only leads to exhausted, distracted and not fully invested humans.  You don’t have to please everyone, but learning to re-focus your priorities and say NO will change your life!

I don’t follow a strict plan of action for every day

I am a to-do list, plan of action type of girl and most days—yes I feel the most productive and content at the end of the day when I follow my list, get my big projects done and then turn off my brain to some Netflix and husband snuggles.

But, I have to balance this stricter side with giving myself grace—a not always easy task.  So yes, I do usually have a plan of action each day (Monday-Thursday), but also do not stress myself out when life happens, when my creative brain takes me down a rabbit trail or when my husband is home from deployment and comes home early for the day.

On weekends, I LOVE not having any plans!! Those are my favorite days to just let life surprise you and my husband is really good at spontaneous adventures.  And nope, I don’t meal prep on the weekends!

I don’t own an insta-pot, crock pot or microwave

Probably going to make some people mad here, but I am just NOT a fan.  Not only do I think the food tastes weird, but I also have some safety concerns about the materials used (I’ll let you Google away there). Gadgets take up space and personally I own less about 5 pans, so I would rather have less of the quality items I love!

My mom didn’t own a crock pot either so I am sure I got that trait from her!

Easy alternative: Staub or Le Creuset dutch ovens work like a dream and you can leave on low all day long to cook your food!

I don’t do all the housework

This is one I struggle with because I absolutely love being Stephen’s wife, but do not feel called to be a 100% housewife.  I do wish I had more time to keep the house *perfectly tidy* or bake chocolate chip cookies and gourmet dinners but ultimately there are only a limited amount of hours in the day!  Stephen loves that I pursue my passion of a job each day and he truly is my biggest cheerleader! Yes he cooks dinner often and yes, I do to, but we always strive to do things together as partners!

Yes, we have help in our house, and yes my husband folds his own laundry, takes out the trash daily and occasionally vacuums.  I believe that a marriage and living together in the same house is a partnership and when both people are satisfied in their daily tasks, a marriage will be that much stronger.

Little known fact: in our marriage vows Stephen promised “never to make me iron.”

I don’t wear yoga pants everyday

Ok, yes many days I don’t change out of my workout clothes and when pregnant, I wore yoga pants a lot, but I feel SO much better about myself when I put on an comfy but cute outfit.  I find myself being more confident in myself and my decisions plus feel more content at the end of the day.  I feel that how I am in my personal life reflects in my professional life, but that is just me.  Plus, Stephen is not the biggest fan of “lounge wear.”

I don’t however wear makeup everyday and when I do, it usually is just a bit of Beautycounter’s Tint Skin Foundation, Twig Lip Sheer and Brow Pencil.

*I will also be the first to admit that by 6pm I usually am in PJs, most often before dinner!*