Yes...that is a picture of my feet.....and my new shoes!! I never thought I'd purchase a pair of TOMS, but I gave in and did it the other day. I couldn't resist when I saw they said "Carpe Diem".
Not only will do these shoes make me happy and energized about life whenever I look at them, but I'm excited for them to be a conversation starter at work. I am sure at least one kiddo will ask me..."Miss Toyos....what do your shoes say?" If there's one thing I hope to teach the kids I work with, it is to not be discouraged and feel like they don't have the power to do great things with their life. Whether one has special needs or not, everyone has challenges and it's a choice to let our challenges determine how we want to live our life. So get your new year off to a good start and keep this in mind. CARPE DIEM. Seize the day, and don't let what happened today or the thought of what may happen tomorrow get in the way. Every day is a new one, and it's important to focus on what you're going to do at this moment.
YOUare creator of the life you want to live.
There's an ounce of motivation for ya! Happy Sunday!
thank you again to zenhabits, you've outdone yourself again! Your "6 money lessons for my college-aged daughter" is one of the best money lessons posts I've read. Find a cool spot and read this. It just might change your life.
Growing up, my dad has always enforced good spending habits. Being an accountant and a money-smart man, he has always made sure he's putting his money in the right places. I would never call him a penny pincher, but he does always make sure he does not get short changed. Whether it's buying a car, researching the best savings accounts, figuring out which credit cards will give you the most money-back for what you spend....he's definitely pulled me to his side of the fence. I never really payed attention to his money-savvy ways, until college. He's taught me the important of waiting before spending (even though it can be SO SO hard!), and taking care of yourself first...which may mean you don't always get what you want. Personally, I love hearing his ideas about people getting themselves into a mess because of their greediness to get what they want, even if they don't have finances to afford it. I've grown to be more like my dad in this area, and like him, I could easily start up a similar conversation. I laugh at all the real housewives families who have had their homes taken away. It's just silly. Either people are choosing to NOT pay attention to what's going on in the bank, they're in denial and they want to play make-believe, or they're just oblivious to real life. Come on people...let's be smart. Think before you buy :) Simple as that.
What's the first thing that comes to mind when I hear the word spring? Sundresses! Too bad the clouds decided to play games and rain on So Cal today. And to top it off, my boyfriend just texted me about crazy thunder. Come on...
One thing I love about working in a school is that I can wear cute, tasteful sundresses. I always like to browse new dresses online for ideas. Usually my first stop is anthropologie, even though I have no plans of actually purchasing clothing from there.
Here's one that I love!
Of course with every dress, a girl needs the perfect pair of shoes. These would be my pick, minus the $178 price tag.
After browsing at anthropologie, I normally find myself back at forever 21, Old Navy, and Macy's. So many people I know have had such horrible luck with Forever 21.....clothes fall apart and all this other crazy stuff. Somehow I've been lucky enough for that to never happen to me. My faith in Forever 21 hasn't faltered yet. Unfortunately, I don't find much clothing there I'd wear anymore. However, when I do find something cute, I'm super duper happy.
For example, I absolutely love my forever 21 sundresses. Why pay $150+ for a dress....when I can buy one under $30? It's called being smart. Also, most of the dresses I buy tend to be classic, so I wouldn't get rid of them after a season, unless my closet was bursting...which pretty much always seems to be the case.
Here's one I found that I'd definitely wear!
And even though it seems short for work, since I'm short, the length is always perfect! At $19.80...this dress wins. That's an 87% savings compared to the dress from anthropologie.
Now you have a taste of what goes through my head when I go dress shopping :)
The past few weeks have been so exhausting with work and school. Even though I'm a part time aide at school, sometimes I feel like I work the entire day. I even bring work home! And I'm only going to class twice a week. I have a paper due in one of my classes this Wednesday. Luckily, I'm basically done with it already. Having to work on a paper on a day I have work and class would be so difficult. By the time I get home from class, I'm ready to go to bed and start all over again the next day! Some days I wish school would just be over....but then I think about the choice I made to go back to school to help children who need it the most! My motivation in the morning is knowing I'll make some children smile and they'll definitely make me smile.
Every day during lunch I walk around the table and ask how the kids day's are. Now, there's a certain student who asks me, "Are you having a good day, Ms. Toyos?" He'll even ask me how my weekend was, and if I did anything fun. On Friday, he asked me if I was doing anything fun this weekend! Those moments make me so happy and motivated to continue working so hard. Children have such big hearts and deserve the best!
Cody and I went to Disneyland on Friday! We also picked up our Angel tickets for a game in August. They were part of his Christmas present from me this year. I used to watch him play softball over the summer. Baseball was such a large part of his life, since he was young. Seeing him in his element made me so happy! I'm super excited to be with him at an Angels game.
Here are some recent pictures from random events :)
My little sis, Erica, picked up TWO little sisters! I have 2 new grand-littles!
Despite my granny-ness(which I'm not really ashamed of!), I went to DT fullerton with my girl friends!
For my V-Day Surprise for Cody, I took him to the OC Zoo!
He surprised me on V-day with a romantic, home-cooked meal! I am so thankful for Cody <3>
Need some inspiration for the day?
Here are 9 Mindfulness Rituals to Make Your Day Better :)
And to end on a feel-good note...and in spirit of St. Patrick's Day
"May you always walk in sunshine. May you never want for more.
May Irish angels rest their wings right beside your door."
Also...if any of you are curious to learn something new....learn about positive behavioral support(PBS) in the classroom. I had my first class on PBS yesterday, and OMG is it effective. Today at work, I applied some things I learned...and the results were so wonderful! Enforcing good behavior wins! For both the teacher...and the students :)
We went to Disneyland today for a few hours :) Parked for free.....had some fun...then we were ready to leave. The beauty of an annual pass....no pressure to ride every ride, regardless of if the line is long or not. We left before everyone else decided to come....thank goodness!
Also....*big claps* to Cody! He just found out he passed his CCFE test! I'm so proud of him. If you ever need a forensics examiner...let me know!
Hope everyone had a good weekend....and 3-day weekend for some of you!
Here's a good article I found on "How to Focus on What Truly Matters" :) Enjoy.
I had to start this entry with a picture of my bestie and I! Hillary Feeney has been braving the cold out in Rhode Island, now that she lives there. She is a multitasker like no other - in an MBA program, practically working 2 jobs, acing her classes. That's my bestie :) She makes anything possible. It was so nice to see her while she was back in Yorba Linda during Christmas! I can't wait to see her again soon....I have a feeling the next time I see her will be around Easter....and then it will be when her older sister gets MARRIED! Ahh! I remember when her sister and I would play Barbies under blanket forts. It's ...i don't know about crazy....but kind of exciting seeing people from high school getting engaged....married..having babies. I guess that time is approaching....am I ready? We'll see whenever that stage in my life arrives. LOL
Another year has begun, and I'd have to stay things seem to be going really well! Work is good....I love my school! Meadow Park was just named #1 Public Elementary School in OC by the OC Register! I couldn't be more blessed to work at a place where all the teachers, staff, and students are so wonderful. Meadow Park truly is like a family, like the parent said in the newspaper article :) here's the link if you'd like to check it out!
This weekend is my last three day weekend before school starts. I'm going to take the pre-req classes for the Special Ed program at CSUF. Even though I applied for the Mild/Moderate Credential, I'm trying to change it to Moderate/Severe. I absolutely love the children in the special day classes at my school and my dream would be to have a class with students like them. They are the sweetest children in the world, and they always make me smile :) I love seeing them have fun and laugh at school - the SDC teachers at my school are awesome! They have such big hearts for their students, as with all the other teachers and staff :) Besides work and school, I've been going to the gym the past few days! I woke up at 8am today....for a saturday, that seems pretty early...but I can wake up early, I will! I feel so good right now...it's 11 am and I feel like I've accomplished a lot already. I'm a sucker for anything that has to do with zen or relaxation lately too! If you ever feel unmotivated or tired, you should go to this blog called zenhabits. There are so many motivating entries...the writer, Leo, really knows his stuff. I always feel so good and relaxed after reading some of his entries. A lot of the entries have to do with how to live more simply, not worry so much, etc. I leave his site feeling very thankful for everyone and everything in not just my life, but life in general :) Here's a pretty good article on how to slow down and enjoy your relationships with others.
I've fallen in love with a new musician...and yes, he actually writes his own music. Mat Kearney. You might have heard of him...or maybe one or two of his songs....but this guy is amazing! I love all his music. I've created a Pandora radio station in his name :) One of my favorite songs of his is called Fire and Rain....it always makes me feel so uplifted and inspired! Listen listen!
Last weekend my family and I went to a horse race for the first time at the Santa Anita Park! It was pretty fun...super cold though. I'd definitely like to go again. It's a really fun thing to do, if you want to socialize with friends because each race lasts around a minute, and then you have a half hour to wait until the next race. People make bets ....we just bet a few bucks :) li This week I went to Cody's little sister's and niece's dance recital. They were the cutest little dancers on the stage! They both knew what they were doing, and there were times when I could tell they were frustrated with the other little dancers who didn't know exactly what they were doing. Good job girls! I love dance recitals....especially when I know someone in it...or I'm in it myself! I need to find a way to get into a dance recital...i told Cody I may get so inspired at the recital that I'll jump on stage and dance. I was able to control myself. I WILL get back into dance soon tho...it's just so hard because all the dancers are so young, and even though I'm not old, I'm definitely older than most amazing dancers these days. I guess it's good I look younger than I am!
Cody and I are super duper happy! Below if our Christmas photo :) On Monday, he's taking me to Disneyland with his little sister. I can't wait! He's the best <3 Most recent purchase for myself? New perfume! I was reading a magazine one day and I came across this ad and I fell in love with the smell and the picture. Good ad, Estee Lauder. You win.
Thanks to Santa's gift card to Nordstrom, I decided it'd be a smarter decision to buy perfume that will last me for a long time rather than buy clothes that I'll probably wear for a season and then get sick of. Working at school has really reminded me the good that comes from making good decisions. I always have to ask myself....what would be a better choice? Just like I ask some students.
Actually...whenever I go shopping now, I tend to leave empty handed. It's bittersweet because I don't spend money, but I also don't have any clothes! Often times I see super cute clothes...but then I realize I wouldn't wear it to work...and I wouldn't really wear it unless I was going out. My use of money has completely changed over the past 6 months. Welcome to the adult world, I guess. I prefer to live debt-free and pay off my credit card balances every month...thanks dad for raising me well ;) If you're looking for advice on how to improve your finances, check this out. Even though this blog is geared towards 20-somethings, it's really helpful information for anyone!
I've decided to start something new and each entry with a quote..whether it be one that is about happiness, success, joy, simplicity :) I'm going to TRY...REALLY TRY...to make a daily quote post. Even if I don't blog about anything else. It's just be something to think about, and hopefully feel good about!
"I have learned to seek my happiness by limiting my desires, rather than attempting to satisfy them." -John Stuart Mills
