Finding oneself

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It has been a hot mess since I last posted. I told myself I was going to post once a week at least and I am sorry I have not followed through with that. Self doubt crept up on me and so much has been going on, I let it break me.

I am sadly no longer with the Cocoa Exchange and that is honestly ok. I realized I need time to work on me and better my inner self. I have posted before that I struggle with self doubt. I am getting better at that but there are times it still kicks in. Some of it comes with how I view myself.

I have let myself go. I wear jeans and a tshirt every day- I am ashamed of my body and cover- My health sucks- I am tired of being a frumpy mom. I know- I am not- my kids and my hubby tell me that daily. And I may sound vain- but I need to work on my health and my outward appearance. So I started working out.

I seriously had no idea my stomach muscles still existed! Seriously I hurt. I do 15 minutes on an eliptical, 10 semi squats (I say semi because I struggle with them) 10 semi lunges (again I struggle- don’t judge) 10 sit ups (although I did 20 yesterday- and I suck at those too lol) and about 30 seconds plank. My goal is to keep increasing those each week. So next monday I want to up to 20 minutes eliptical – 15- 15- 25 and 45 seconds. My big picture goal is to drop 50lbs at least- and go from a size 14 to a size 8 at least. And it isn’t just for looks. I have hypertension and I hate medication- I want to stop taking it and living healthy and being able to keep up with my cross country running kiddos.

I also would like to get back to meal planning- but sadly I am working nights no matter how often I ask to be put back on days ( I was hired to manage the coffee shop portion of a restuarant but was put on night shifts) I am stuck on nights- and that makes cooking dinner hard. Maybe I will start making dinners for lunches and the kids and hubs can have the left overs for dinners.

I usually say I am going to do these things and the let the self doubt creep in- let the “I can’ts” win and give up. But this time I really need to stay focused and stay on top of it. I need to do this for myself and my family. Maybe next week I will even post a picture so we could do a before and after.

Setting Goals

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Today we are going to discuss a bit about my business, my why and my goals. I feel actually putting things out there is the best way to hold myself accountable. And trust me I need something to keep me on track.

So Why did I start Direct Sales? Well because I found a company I believe in. They products are unique, it isn’t saturated (our FB group of reps is only around 700 people) and they actually support their reps. Seriously- they have so many training videos and opportunities. And not to mention they spoil us. The biggest thing is- their pay plan is different than any I have seen. First- in order to get paid at the title you are- you must have a certain amount of sales YOURSELF. Which means you can not depend on just your team. But also- EVERYONE- from reps to managers start at zero at the beginning of every month. I like how that makes up lines actually work instead of sitting back depending on their team. So to get their extra commission a person must have a certain amount for themselves then a certain amount for their team total. I haven’t seen a plan like that so I appreciated it and love it.

My other why is because- I am trying to suppliment income. It was going good for awhile- I was bringing in an extra $300 which for focusing on this part time isn’t bad. But I did let it fall- but I want to get back to that extra play money- and honestly- I am on track to be debt free (except for my house) before my kids graduate school. I want to shorten that and be debt free even sooner and this will hopefully help me with that. I would love to go back to school and finish my degree in marketing but I don’t see that being financially possible- so hopefully this will help. I lost sight of my dream and now time to build it up again.

So my goals this month:

Post more personal looks into our chaos- and more recipes- and continue being more real on here.
Continue posting more relevent content on my social media and content that gains interaction
Business related goal- get at least 1 sale a day- if I average $20 a sale for 31 days that would be $620 worth of sales- I would love to be back at $1500 in sales a month but gotta start somewhere.
Post at least 1 blessing a day to keep a positive mindset through this all!

So now that we are in a new month. What are your goals?

Weary and Burnt Out

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Like millions of other’s across the nation, even world. My kids have been home since March 12th (I know some were out long before that- bless the parents out there). This week has been the most trying of them all though.

You get to a point where you are just done. You’re mentally exhausted, you are tired, you are stressed. School is going wrong and you contemplating buying your children’s teachers a year subscription to Wine of the Month as you pity them and want to thank them for enduring your children’s shenanigans.

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Working from Home

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So- during this time at home I have chosen to work at my business a bit more. While The Cocoa Exchange is my baby, I do want to start sharing some healthier tips and doTERRA is my go to oil so I will hit on that from time to time. But the biggest struggle of running an in home business is building an audience.

It doesn’t matter if it is an etsy shop, an eBay shop, a direct sales company, a service you provide, or even a brick and morter establishment. Getting your products seen is a struggle when you are up against the algoritim gods of facebook. Let’s face it- you can easily have 10K followers and not even have your post seen by HALF of them. That is where I am at. Because I stopped focusing on my page and the personal connection I now have a reach of 200. Time to change that.

So here are my thoughts-

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Some #MondayMotivation

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It is so much easier to focus on the “I can’ts” than it is to focus on the “I can”. Why is that? See for me it is easier to say- well my business is failing because I have zero support from friends and family. And honestly, while that is partially true it isn’t completely true. That is where stepping out of the comfort zone will comeinto play like I talked about the other day. I just have to focus on the big picture instead of what is holding me back. Because if I continue to dwell on the lack of support locally than I will never grow.

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Becoming a Pirate

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Ok first- disclosure – this purely a joke. I actually hardly drink. But lately I have been saying I am going to become a Pirate. When someone asks why I say because it sounds better than an alcoholic. Yep- today is going to be one of those posts.

Like everyone else across the world we have been stuck at home. Well sorta. With husband being an LEO and me managing a restuarant we are both considered essential. My kids on the other hand. Well (turn sound on):

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Stepping out—

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So this week has made me go outside of my comfort zone as I realize things about me that I really did not want to realize. Like how I put more pressure on myself than others do. If only I turned my “I failed at….” thoughts into a “I did…..” thoughts. That is honestly out of my comfort zone. And honestly- so is promoting myself. I got to thinking about why my business is not working- Well – because I don’t like drawing attention to myself. I can market for other people- I actually LOVE marketing and am working on some classes through LinkedIn Learning to help me learn more about graphic design. But marketing my own business. I don’t want to seem pushy or needy. Continue reading →

Back to the basics

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You know I have been blogging since 2011. I reached a point where I was burnt out and just post here and there now- but there is something that is missing.

With everything going on it is easy to listen to those “you are not good enough” voices in your head. And man have I been listening to them this past year. My parents got divorced after 32 years- my mom became severly mentally unstable and blamed us grown kids. It was rough- My business with The Cocoa Exchange is not doing well- I haven’t been able to finish school for Graphic design. Get the picture? It was easy to fall into the “You are not good enough” darkness.

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#Summertime #Pasta Salad & #ColeSlaw #Recipe

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Ok this one is really a good 2 in one deal. Although I do not have a picture for the cole slaw. I just wanted to share it because it is the dressing that is used for the pasta salad!

So you know me. I am far from a professional chef/food photography ect. A lot of my recipes are literally dump and go but I try my best to keep track of what I use. I made this pasta salad for a BBQ/Pool Party last night and it was a HIT!

So to start- the dressing this is a basic Cole Slaw Dressing:

1/2 cup mayo

1/2 cup sour cream

1/4 cup white vinegar

1/4 cup sugar

dash if salt

dash of pepper

dash of onion powder

dash or two of celeray seeds

So the sugar start small and add to your level of sweetness- if you like a more sweet sauce you can use more then 1/4 cup but I found that was sweet enough for us. Mix all those together and let chill for at least an hour (can chill for up to 24 hours!)

Now- this dressing can be used in a cole slaw- either buy a bag of cole slaw mix this amount makes a little more than needed- Or get to chopping! Chop that cabage- get some chopped carrots. You can easily double the dressing to make more for a larger serving.

The salad:

1 box of rotini noodles

cucumbers

carrots (diced up or buy a bag of shredded carrots)

Tomatoes

(Other options for veggies would be gr pepper and broccoli- have fun with it!)

Cook the noodles according to the directions and let chill completely. Start chopping up veggies! The fun thing about this is- the amounts are really up to you and what your family likes! You could probably even add some shredded chedder cheese or colby jack. Pasta salads are really easy to make your own! Once you get all that chop let chill until ready to serve. Add the cole slaw dressing when you are ready to eat and enjoy!

Now another option:

To the dressing add 1/2 tbsp of White Chocolate Raspberry Honey Mustard and mix well. This will give it a unique sweet/tang twist. You don’t want to use to much because you are already using vinegar/oil but this Honey Mustard is so full of flavor that a little bit goes a long way on any recipe. This is a product that is sold by The Cocoa Exchange so check it out HERE!

ENJOY!

~The above recipe contains a link to a site where I do make commission off of any sales. I am not paid any extra for posting this. these are my own and personal opinions. ~

Strawberry Ice Cream Cake #DIY #recipe

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So this year for my son’s 14th birthday, as always, I asked him what kind of cake he wanted. At first he was like “why do we have to have a birthday?” So I said we have always had cake! He jokingly said a Strawberry Ice Cream cake thinking I would be like… nope… not happening. But instead he got a- ok I will figure it out. He didn’t take me seriously until I bought the stuff a few days prior.

Now there are 2 things I learned during this process- 1- I am not perfect at makin cakes look pretty- so if anyone has tips for not getting the wrinkles I would gladly take them. The second thing was- Don’t put the strawberries on top until you are ready to serve- they were as hard as a rock.

Now this is not 100% made from scratch- I am totally not that good lol. So here is what I bought:

1 package of Pillsbury Strawberry Cake Mix

1 jar of hot fudge

1 package of oreos

2 pints of Strawberry Ice Cream

I did not take step by step because it is all rather self explainatory. Also I didn’t know how it would turn out. So above is the cake as a whole (see those wrinkles lol).

First I made the Pillsbury cake mix according to the direction on the box- I took about 1.5-2 cups of the mix and put it in a 9 inch pie pan to form a thin layer for the bottom. Baked at 350 for about 15 minutes (toothpick test!). Bonus cake! There will be so much extra cake left- I just put it in a 9X11 casserole dish and baked it until it was done- we just ate it over the next few days but you could serve it as an option for those who can’t have dairy.

Place the cake layer in a spring form pan lined with syran wrap. Freeze for at least 2 hrs

This is where it will get repeatitive.

Let the strawberry ice cream soften- Thinly slice strawberries and place around the edge of the cake standing upright against the pan. Then carefully spread about half the pint (or more if you wish) ontop of the cake. Freeze for at least 2 hours.

Slightly Warm up the hot fudge and spread a generous layer on top of the ice cream- crush the oreos and spread on top of the fudge. You guess it….. FREEZE. This time I let it freeze over night.

Add your last layer of Ice Cream- I used a little over the half pint (which is why 2 pints is needed) and then you guessed it……… FREEZE- again I let this layer freeze over night. But I am sure as long as you give it at least a good 2-3 hrs you will be fine.

When you are ready to serve- take strawberry halves and form a circle around the top (see above picture). Drizzle some hot fudge- sprinkle more of the crushed oreos- Then remove the cake from the pan and the syran wrap. And serve!

This cake is more time consuming then anything but it is well worth it- I am not being asked if I could do a peanut butter cup ice cream cake for my daughters birthday. I may have created monsters!