Dealing with COVID Crisis (Ask Amanda)

Question: How are you dealing with the COVID crisis and staying productive?

This is a great question. Sometimes I kind of wonder how I am dealing, myself.

The corona crisis, while I did sort of see it coming gradually, still took me by surprise. Overnight, I found myself first not going into work,then  staying home from everything as businesses started closing and people started wearing masks and gloves to the empty-shelved grocery stores.

Those first few weeks were bizzarre. Everything happened so fast, and decisions had to be made quickly. Events were cancelled. Loss was felt. The fear was high and tension could be cut with a knife.

So back to your question: how am I dealing with this crisis and staying productive?

To be honest, I don’t have as much free time as I was hoping I would have had. Teaching online is no joke, y’all. I feel like I’m staring at a computer screen 8+ hours a day - and honestly, I probably am. That being said, I’m not that mad about having to work from home. 

Here are a few ways I’ve been staying sane over the last two months.

Having a Schedule and a Plan

Having a schedule helps me to stay on track and stay motivated. No regularly staying up late or sleeping in for this gal. 

This may be strange, but I really do need to keep up with my regular meal and habit planning as well. If I don’t, I tend to make poor choices - especially when it comes to food. Having a game plan helps cut down on having to grocery shop and gives peace of mind that I need when entering the kitchen.

Boundaries

As I mentioned earlier, I work a lot more than I used to. Because of this, and because my office is now stationed in my living room most days (I let my husband use our shared office), I need to set hard boundaries. I start work at 9am and finish at 5pm. Not before, and not after. That may seem harsh, considering I’m a teacher, but it’s important for my mental health that work stops at some point, and I can think of something else. 

I feel I can also mention here that one thing I did that I am so happy for was set up a Google Voice number instead of giving out my cell phone. Students would text at all hours if I had done that. I also keep emails off my phone. I need the dissociation of work when I use my personal devices otherwise I get sucked in (I don’t keep the Google app on my phone either - strictly web browser and email).

Frequent Breaks

I have definitely been guilty of working straight for hours on end while at home, and by the end of those spurts, not only can I not walk or sit up straight, my creativity and overall sane-ness tends to wane. In order for me to be as productive as possible, I take frequent breaks to move my body or drink water (or refill my tea mug). I talk a little bit more about getting movement during self-isolation in a post here.

Exercise and Being Outdoors

I’ve always loved to exercise, and I really love that I have time to do even more of it now! Not only does fresh air and vigorous movement help my blood flow and productivity, it also adds to my routine. It’s also nice to be able to do it in the morning stress-free since my starting times are a bit more flexible.

Being outside is another fantastic brain break. Sometimes getting outdoors means lugging my reading out to the balcony. Other times, it means getting into the dirt and gardening. Usually, however, it means going on a hike or for a run. Going outside gives me something to look forward to and something to enjoy. I’m so thankful that the weather has been pleasant the past two months!

House Projects

Well, for us, right now this looks like getting some painting done and deep cleaning for summer. Let’s see what else we’ll be able to get done - I’ve been meaning to share some more of our house projects on the blog!

Hobbies

Well, when I can. Work has been crazy busy, but I do make some time for some writing and a lot more reading. I’ve also been working on some hand lettering. I thought about picking up some crocheting projects I set aside once Winter ended, but I haven’t been able to bring myself to do that with the weather being so nice out!

---

One thing that I haven’t been doing is taking advantage of online learning that is outside of my profession (inside is plenty enough right now!). Honestly, I can’t bring myself to watch another zoom interview or teaching session because it just feels like work.

What have you been doing during this time of self-isolation?

---

Happy Earth Day!

I decided to change up my weekly posts and wait until Earth Day to post!

Even though my analytics say that my readers live all over the world, we ALL call Earth our home, so why not?

While life here may not look like we are used to, there are still things we appreciate about it. For me, a huge positive side is the nature offered. Landforms and landscapes are so varied around the world and each has a beauty. Even though our world is marred with sin and what we have now pales in comparison to what Heaven must be like, I still love that we can enjoy and appreciate beauty here.

Here are a few of my favorite places on Earth:

Some Earth Day posts:

---

What’s your favorite thing about living on Earth?

---

Spring Bucket List

As I know I’ve mentioned before, I love Spring. Really, I love both of the “in-between” seasons (Fall and Spring), but I have a special spot in my heart for the Spring. Maybe it’s because I was born during this season, or maybe I’ve only happy memories from it. Either way, I really enjoy Spring. Last Summer, I sent out a season bucket list to those of you who subscribe to the Good Intentions Guide, but this time, I’ve decided to publish my own Spring Bucket List right here on the blog! If you have any more suggestions for me, leave them in the comments below!

1. Fly a kite

2. Go on a picnic

3. See the cherry blossoms

4. Surprise someone

5. Have a tea party

6. Enjoy the rain

7. Find a Farmer’s Market

8. Do some Spring Cleaning

9. Plant an herb garden

10. Do Pilates outside 

11. Walk along the beach

12. Climb a tree

13. Learn to identify a new type of bird

14. Learn to identify a new type of tree

15. Keep fresh flowers

---

What kinds of things are you including on your Spring bucket list this year? Are any of these on your list?

---

Can I Become a Morning Person? (Ask Amanda)

Question: Help! How can I become a morning person? Do you have any tips?

If you have been following Maple Alps for a while both here and on Instagram, you know that I am a morning person. So many of you have asked this question in the Ask Amanda, that I figured I’d best get onto answering it!

A little bit of background before I go into this: I was not always a morning person. In fact, I hated getting up in the mornings because I was not getting enough sleep. I would stay up all hours of the night with thoughts running through my mind on full speed. As a result, my sleep was not restful, and mornings were a drag. I could sleep in for hours if allowed to. I could even sleep through the most dramatic of situations and fall asleep anywhere.

It wasn’t until I was forced to unplug from everything that I finally trained my body to wake up early. Now, I know that sleep is a pretty complicated thing and not everyone is designed to be a “morning person” but here are some things that helped me get a handle on waking up earlier and more refreshed on a regular basis.

Create Routines around Bedtime and Waking Up

Having evening and morning routines can trick your body in profound ways. Waking up at the same time - even during vacations and on the weekend can help! I read somewhere that even if you went to bed late the night before, you should wake up early the next day. I’ve been doing this for years and find that I’m greatly productive in the mornings - especially on the weekend because I’m less stressed about my usual schedule. Eventually, like me, you won’t even bother setting your alarm anymore because your internal clock knows what’s up!

Do Something Positive or Productive

I like to start my day out spending time with Jesus. It sets the tone for my day and helps me be productive later. Once I’ve spent some time meditating on the Word and noting what I’m grateful for, and journaling and praying, I feel more ready to take on my day. In fact, once I started doing this, I began getting up even earlier because I wanted more uninterrupted time to do it. 

Make Your Sleeping Area Your Haven for Relaxation

My parents always told me that I shouldn’t study or read or work in my bed so that my brain would associate my bed with sleep. They must have been talking to some experts about the insomnia I was suffering from. Turns out they were pretty much right (okay, okay, see parents?). While I am guilty of even typing out this post from my bed right now, I have experienced the benefits of making sure my bedroom is a haven for relaxation. Making your room cozy and having your brain associate it with relaxation will make for better sleep. 

Sleep When You’re Tired

Listen to your body at night when it tells you it’s tired and go to bed. If you wait too long, you won’t be tired anymore. Kind of like when you take Melatonin and stay awake too long and force your body up and it’s not effective anymore. No one else? Just me? Okay. 

Try a Smart Alarm

I’ve had little success with smart alarms - alarms that wake you up during a specific frame of your sleep cycle rather than at a specific time of the day - but I know others who have. Doesn’t hurt to try it and see if it wakes you up feeling more refreshed than usual! I’ve also heard of alarms that wake you up with light. 

Get Up and Out

When that alarm goes off, get up and out of your room ASAP. Go grab a drink of water or take a shower or exercise, but since your brain is going to be associating your warm bed with sleep now, you have to tell it that it’s time to get moving! 

Don’t Stress

Life happens. Don’t stress when you can’t sleep when you want to. From experience, it keeps you up even longer. Don’t stress when you sleep a little later than you wanted to. Even if it makes you late. Life happens, and taking it in stride will make you happier and healthier.

---

How do you make early mornings more desirable?

---

If you have a question, feel free to leave one below for a future segment of "Ask Amanda!"

Top 6 Reads of 2019

2019 was the year I rekindled my love of reading. I have the feeling I read more in 2019 than I have in a long time - even more than in 2017, which was the last time I did a top reads post. With everything that has been going on in our lives, I had to make an intentional decision to read more. Most every evening, when 7pm comes around, my devices go away, and a book comes out. Of course, if I’m reading on my iPad or Kindle, that stays out, but the point is that I read. No Instagram scrolling. No Facebook messages. No Netflix or Hulu. I read. And I’ve loved it. I’ve devoured books. I’ve put books back that I wasn’t feeling (I feel life is too short to read a book for fun that isn’t interesting to you…). I’ve listened to books on commutes. Books. Books are great - I’ve always thought so.

I know you want to get to my top reads, but I totally have to share this story: when I was young, I was an avid reader. I’d even read in the car - in the dark! I’d wait until we were under street lamps to get the next sentence in. My parents swear to this day that it’s the reason I had to get glasses. If it was - it was worth it (but let’s be honest, that was not the reason. Haha!)

I only chose 6 books again, even though I read a lot more than 6. Actually, my book reading goal for 2020 is at least 24 books, so maybe I’ll have a larger list for you next year. Ready?
(By the way, you can find even more of my favorites on my Amazon page here!)

Affiliate links are used in this post

1. The Mark of the Lion Series By Francine Rivers

Okay, so I suppose this is technically three books, not just one, but this series was so hard to put down! I was gifted the first in the series for my birthday. It was so good that once I was done, I was seriously tempted to pick them right back up and start again. I figured I should let some time go by before doing that though. Francine Rivers is one of my favorite authors and I know I’m behind to the party, but this series was fantastic. It challenged my faith in such a positive way, and I’ll definitely be revisiting this series. (I bought these one at a time, but you can even get a boxed set!)

2. Pax By Sara PennyPacker

Even though I don’t teach language arts anymore, I couldn’t resist checking this book out. I love a good middle school book. A sweet story of a fox and his boy that I thoroughly enjoyed and would recommend - especially if you love a good tear jerker. I also learned a lot about foxes! (Get your copy here)

3. Everybody Always: Becoming Love in a World Full of Setbacks and Difficult People By Bob Goff

Wow wow wow. Such. A. Good. Book. This book moved me to tears, and it was so hard to put down! It challenged me, it entertained me, and it really made me think twice about how to love others. And really desire to do so. A definite must-read. (PS: I read the first book from Bob Goff, Love Does, and talked about it in my 2017 reads! Get your copy of Everybody Always here!)

4. Capital Gaines: Smart things I Learned Doing Stupid Stuff by Chip Gaines

Going off my theme of continuing books from 2017, since I read the Magnolia Story then, I read Capital Gaines now. As expected, I finished the book wanting to quit everything and follow my dreams. I guess I don’t have to quit everything to follow my dreams, but you know what I mean. Worth the read - and it’s a quick one! (Get your copy here)

5. Last Child in the Woods: Saving Our Children from Nature-Deficit Disorder by Richard Louv

I actually started this last summer, and finally finished it this year - took a while, but not because it was not interesting! This is an older book from 2007 and it talks about the possible complications (and solutions to them) that can arise when children are alienated from nature due to several reasons. As someone who works with children, and someone who wants some one day, this was definitely an interesting read and I could totally resonate with it. (Get your copy here)

6. Girl, Wash Your Face: Stop Believe the Lies About Who You Are So You Can Become Who You Were Meant to Be by Rachel Hollis

I didn’t want to read this book just based on the reviews I read on it, but I was pleasantly surprised by the content! The author told stories from her life connected to lies she believed in her past and how she overcame them. It was full of tough love, which we all need sometimes. I can’t wait to read the sequel. (Get your copy here)

---

What were some of the best books you read in 2019? I'd love some recommendations for 2020!

---