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14 Days To A New You #ProjectMeAgain: The Ultimate To-Do List To Help You Achieve A Stress Free Life

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Are we ready for another challenge? I hope you had enough time to incorporate Day 2’s task into your life and make it a permanent fixture. Don’t know what I’m talking about? Take a step back – my friend – before you move forward. I would love for you to do all the things I’m suggesting in Project Me Again – not just hop in here and there. Over the last few months, I made some big changes and they are LASTING.

Everything I’m suggesting is simple. Small. Easy. Doable. It’s in you. It’s inexpensive. It’s a small shift of consciousness if you will.

So, what’s today all about? It’s about your flaky arms, your chapped lips, and your dry feet. I’m talking to you but I’m really talking to ME. I have VERY DRY SKIN. Like – ridiculously dry. I have to work really hard at feeling human. I need to exfoliate and moisturize my arms and legs at all times. If I don’t, my skin can literally crack and bleed. It’s horrific. The winter is the hardest season for me. It becomes a chore… a mandatory chore. Because like I said, if I don’t keep up with it all, it’s trouble. I feel like it’s pretty much borderline eczema.

I used to be so frustrated by the process.

UGH! I have to moisturize! UGH! UGH! UGH! Chore. Responsibility. Not Fun.

And then one day something clicked – it doesn’t have to be so boring. It can be beautiful and yummy and feminine and delectable! So, I started a nightly routine that I actually look forward to now. My daughter has also taken up the process. I want to encourage you to do the same.

 

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Instead of using plain moisturizer and scrubbing my legs and arms in the bathroom while using the toilet to help me balance — YES THAT’S WHAT IT USED TO LOOK LIKE — I now turn to my bedside table and look through my basket of wonder!! I purchased a few scent-y items that have made this nightly routine into a pleasure.

Before I get into the WHAT – I do want to say that it was important for me to remember that I was worth taking care of. This revelation came to me while  I was putting cream on my son’s cheeks. They were so red and chapped because of the cold and I immediately tended to his needs. I was SO CONCERNED. I was so panicked. I was in a rush to fix it and make it right. And in that moment, I realized that I don’t react that way when it comes to ME. When it’s my legs that are chapped (and sometimes even bleeding) , I’m frustrated and annoyed. I used to slap stuff on in a huff and be completely inconvenienced by the entire process. There was no love or care for my hurt.

It took my son’s chapped cheeks to help me recognize that there was a discrepancy. And like a lightbulb turning on… I just got it. I got the point that I am important enough to care for in a way that is loving. I am not a chore. I need to be tended to just as my children do.

That day, I headed out to the store and picked up a few things. BECAUSE I have such sensitive skin, I can only use a handful of moisturizers. HOWEVER, I added a few body oils, bath add-ins and essentials oils to help add in fragrant aromas to my nightly massage.

For the bath, I made sure I picked up bath aromas (I like Lavender) and soaking salts (like Burt’s Bees Bath Crystals) and of course stocked up on bubble bath bottles (hellooooooo Philosophy Cinnamon Buns)!!

For my end table, I made sure to have scents like Eucalyptus oil to add to my moisturizer. I might have went a bit overboard and opted for a few other names as well. Hey! This girl needs options. But you don’t have to be psychotic like me. Get one and call it a day. The oils are critical to my nightly routine because they give me the aroma I need while still allowing me to use the right cream for my skin. I also made sure to have body oil (snagged a really great one from Nuance in CVS — not online) just in case I wanted to change things up every now and then.

I only sleep in a T shirt. Before I call it a day, I rub my entire body with either the lotion /oil mixture or the Nuance oil. It smells so good and no longer feels like this horrific thing I have to do. As a side note, this happens RIGHT before I go to sleep — so I rub my feet as well. You should make sure you aren’t getting back up again because it could get a little slippery. 🙂 As soon as I am smelling good and feeling soft, I wrap myself up in my comforter and go to sleep. The heat only helps the moisturizer work its magic!

Happy PLACE!

Do you have a nightly routine? Do you take care of yourself in a positive way?  If not, I hope you’ll consider changing things up!

That’s it for this week. Hope you will join me in making this really small change. This new outlook has made a world of a difference!

Check back in a few days for the next challenge.

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I would love for you to share your thoughts about #ProjectMeAgain on social media.

Take a picture of the moisturizer you love and use the hashtag #ProjectMeAgain on Instagram or Twitter and please tag me – @VeraSweeney.

<– Read Day 2’s challenge.

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