First off, Happy Veterans Day to all of the men & women who have served our country and made so many sacrifices to protect us! The USMC birthday was also yesterday, marking 238 years of its existence.
It’s kind of funny to think of my hubby as a veteran, since he only got out of active duty as a Marine earlier this year. You know what they say though: Once a Marine, always a Marine!
Mother Teresa once said, “To keep a lamp burning, we have to keep putting oil in it.” To me, this encompasses all of the things we need to/should do in order to keep our bodies healthy, our minds clear, our stress levels at bay and our relationships with both others and ourselves strong.
Sometimes taking time just to unwind — whether it be 10 minutes of meditation or two weeks of vacation — is exactly what we need to keep the lamp burning, so to speak. A lot of my time last weekend was spent doing things that relax and rejuvenate me, including:
A Massage
That $20 hour-long massage my hubby convinced me to try with him? Much better than expected and nowhere near as terrifying as my last cheap massage experience in Thailand! We went to San Jose’s Life Reflexology. It’s one big massage room, so you keep your clothes on and lay down on a comfy little couch, where they put blankets over you. It is a little strange having a massage in a communal room and the massage obviously isn’t as individualized, but they give it a decent ambience with low lights, soft music, and sounds of waterfalls, and it was definitely worth $20.
Yoga
I love practicing yoga on a lazy weekend morning. It’s so nice to sleep in, then roll out my yoga mat in the living room for an at-home session to make me feel strong and energized.
Cooking & eating well
homemade butternut squash ravioli
A loaded veggie sandwich from New Leaf
Greek yogurt protein pancakes topped with strawberries and cinnamon
[the pancake recipe can be found here]
Laying by the fireplace
Need I say more?
Wine
Sunday evening we went to our favorite local winery, Clos LaChance, for a member party. It was a strange feeling to be heading to a winery when it was already dark out, but it was nice to polish off the weekend by enjoying a glass of wine and picking up a couple of bottles!
How do you unwind?
I love to get up a little earlier than is necessary in the mornings so I can sip my coffee leisurely while reading blogs. While not unwinding, it helps me get my day started right. To unwind, I just love to put on my comfies and read! Or watch mindless tv 😉
Ah yes, mindless TV or reading in PJs is always relaxing! I love to get my day started on the right foot too.
Please tell your husband Thank you for his sacrifice to this country. Also, from one former marine wife to another – THANK YOU <3 <3
Sending much love to you my fellow Marine wife!!
I bet you’re relieved that your husband is a veteran now. I love that pic of you with his gun; that thing is huge!
I need to have a relaxing weekend soon too. It’s so important that we are as mentally healthy as we are physically. I’m loving the wine decor around your fireplace too.
What kind of yoga do you do at home?
Haha. I love that picture because it’s ridiculous!
Ohh thanks, wine decor seems to be the theme in my whole living room! 😉
Usually I’ll do vinyasa flow or power yoga. I have a few DVDs I like, will pull up YouTube yoga workouts, or just do my own thing.
Love this post – it made me more relaxed just reading it. Love the Mother Teresa quote, a good one to remember.
Thanks for reading, Ashley!
I love the photo montage of you and your hubby! You guys are adorable! Happy Vets day!
I love all the things you list as ways to unwind. It’s so important during the holiday season especially to remember to take a few moments and recharge.
Thanks Britt!!
Definitely, we all get so busy that we forget to unwind sometimes or just don’t make it a priority. But recharging the batts sometimes should be a top-of-the-mind thing in all of our lives!
It sounds like a great relaxing weekend to me! I like to unwind by laying in my jacuzzi while listening to music.
Now THAT sounds super relaxing!
Love this post! Sounds like a pretty perfect weekend. I hit the spa yesterday and it was such a nice treat. Please say thank you to your husband from me!
Nice lady!! Gotta love the spa.