I am a Victorian Soul, who lives in a small townhouse that was built in the mid 1970's, not a huge Mega Mansion!! I just recently lost my Hubby Joe, who was a Retired Letter Carrier. I worked night shift as an RN on a Hospital based Rehabilitation( Physical Medicine) Unit for 37 years before I had Knee Replacement Surgery and officially Retired in 2019 after 41 years working in Direct Patient Care ... I am so glad that we retired at 62 years of age and got to spend that time together before he passed....I still do love Retirement!!!!

I DABBLE IN A BIT OF THIS AND THAT!!!!

" IT IS NEVER TOO LATE TO BE WHAT YOU MIGHT HAVE BEEN"
George Eliot
George Eliot was actually a pen name for a woman named Mary Anne Evans......

BLOGGING FOR FUN AND FRIENDSHIP!!!!!!

Sunday, February 16, 2020

Word of the Month for February, "Contemplate"

Welcome to Debbie-Dabble Blog!!
I am so happy you decided to stop by!!

My Word for the Month of February is "Contemplate"

But before I get into why I chose that word for February, I want to Thank Karren,, over at Oh My Heartsie Girl, for choosing my post, Red and Gold Valentine's Entry in the Living Room as one of her features from last week's Friday Features Linky party!!
Thanks so much , Karren!!

Please stop by and link up to this wonderful party!!!


My "Word of the Month" for January was Productivity!!!
So I how did I do in the  month of January focusing on Productivity????

I think that I did pretty well!!

I was very busy and I felt pretty darn productive.....

This is what I accomplished in January.....

Changed over the outside of the house from Christmas to Winter decorations
 Cleaned thoroughly and changed over from Christmas to Valentine's Day decorations in the Living Room....
  And the Dining Room.....
 Cleaned thoroughly and changed over from Christmas to Winter decorations in the Den
 Cleaned thoroughly and changed over from Christmas to Winter and a bit of Valentine's in the Kitchen........
 Made valances and a curtain for the Kitchen
And in the Powder Room, I removed anything Christmas, replacing it with Valentine's decorations.....
In packing away Christmas, I have also labeled all tubs and kept a record of how many and what kind of tubs and where they are stored for each room.....
I also decided on passing on a few more decorations and donated some to Salvation Army...

I have written down notes about plans for decorating for Christmas next year, crafts I want to make, gifts I am thinking of giving and entertaining I want to do and places I want to go...

 I have managed to go through a few cupboards and drawers in the Kitchen and cleaned out and donated more things to Salvation Army...

So I think I have done fairly well with being Productive in January, don't you?????

Based on all the work that I did in January, I decided that my "Word of the Month" for February would be CONTEMPLATE.....
 I was so busy in January and with the house now re-decorated for Winter and Valentine's Day, I could take a breath and CONTEMPLATE.......

Now what exactly does "CONTEMPLATE" mean??????
con·tem·plate

/ˈkän(t)əmˌplāt/

 "Look thoughtfully for a long time, Think deeply......

To view or consider with continued attention : meditate on
  To look at or view with continued attention; observe or study thoughtfully:

 To have as a purpose; intend.
Okay, we now know what "CONTEMPLATE" means.......

So what am I "CONTEMPLATING"????????

I am "CONTEMPLATING" what I want to do in my Retirement......
There is so much that I want to do........

So I have been going through the house, each room, one at a time, compiling a list of things that I want to do and what needs to be done.........

Like painting walls and woodwork

Stripping wall paper border ( Upstairs Hallway)

Cleaning out drawers , closets, etc.

Reorganizing spaces

I have been CONTEMPLATING what kind of crafts that I want to do and different things that I want to make....

I am also making a list of those things too.......
I am also CONTEMPLATING places I want to go and things I want to do.......

I am not particularly interested in traveling even though many have asked me where are we going to travel to now that we are both retired......

I guess I am also CONTEMPLATING why people assume that I am going to want to travel?????
Joe and I used to travel a lot when our sons were young, going on several vacations a year and many weekend trips......

We went to Wildwood, NJ.  ( the jersey shore) for an entire week every year and then when Joe started going to Ceasar's in Atlantic City , we stopped going to Wildwood because we were staying for free, eating for free and seeing concerts for free on Joe's Comp points at Ceasar's in Atlantic City.....

We would stay for several nights, 5-6 times a year with the boys and my Mother....

We went to Disney World in Florida, Niagra Falls in Canada, Williamsburg and Busch Gardens in Virginia...

I enjoyed it but it was always a huge hassle for me because we frequently left after I got out of work in the morning after working all night...

And when we would return home, I sometimes had to go to work that night.....

I felt I needed a vacation from the vacation....

That all stopped when Joe started working at the Post Office because for the first 6 years, he was not able to refuse overtime and was working 6 days a week, at least 60 hours a week.....

I never wanted to travel far distances or travel abroad........

And because of several medical issues that I have, I realized a long time ago that traveling was not going to be in my future....

BUT......

There are a lot of local places that have been here, right in front of our faces so to speak, that I would like to see and different events that I would like to go to.......

One day trips or maybe an overnight weekend......

I am also compiling a Bucket List of those places......

I am also CONTEMPLATING what to do with all this time that I now have.......
 Yes, I have a list of projects to do, crafts to make and places that I want to go and things I want to do......

However, eventually, I hope to finish off those Lists......
So I am also CONTEMPLATING other things..........

Like learning new things......

Maybe photography

Taking craft classes

Taking "How To" classes at Lowe's or Home Depot because after all, I am a Carpenter's Daughter and I pride myself on all the projects I have done through out the years by myself!!

Maybe even learning to quilt

And scrapbook....
 I have a huge project of going through and organizing tons of pictures both from our family and pictures that were my Mother's....

And guess what???

Yes, I am compiling a List of all these things too!!!
There are other things that I am CONTEMPLATING doing......

Like reading a lot of books

Watching movies that I have waited to watch

Listening to some Podcasts that I recently discovered

Spending time discovering interesting Blogs and doing more writing on my Blog but still keeping it as personal as I can

Becoming more physically active

Eating healthier

Spending more time with family and friends

Volunteering
 Now I know that I don't have to CONTEMPLATE all these things in just the month of February......

But it seemed like a good month to start to do so.......

So how about you????

Are you contemplating what your future holds?????

 I also chose POSITIVITY as my THEME for this year.......
 And so far, I am doing pretty good with staying positive after having such a negative year last year.....

But I do agree that you have to CHOOSE to be positive as it is so easy in this World, especially today, to be negative!

Do you have a Word of the Month or a Word or Theme for the Year??????

How have you used that to improve your life???

Let me know about it in the comments, please!!!!

 And I hope you will stop by to visit again soon!!

Thanks to those who took the time out of their busy day to spend a little bit of time with me!!

If you do not have a blog, PLEASE  give me some way to reply to your comment, maybe by including your email in your comment.  If I can not find a way to reach you, I will reply on the post where you commented so please check back......

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14 comments:

  1. CarolFebruary 16, 2020 at 8:36 AM

    Wow! I would say you were productive and I believe that you will certainly be contemplating a lot in February. I chose a word of the year and it was Patience. I have found that I am losing mine more and more each day. I find that I feel on edge more these days and I need to practice being patient more. I am glad that you have plans for retirement, but I personally would travel as it is one of my favorite things to do. I wish my husband enjoyed it more. I am lucky that I have friends that like to travel as well and some of my best vacations are with them and my children.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Laura | Everyday EditsFebruary 16, 2020 at 11:15 AM

    Can't wait to hear what ideas to contemplate lead to new habits! Can you believe we are on the back end of February Debbie? Love to read your blog, laura

    ReplyDelete
  3. Katie MansfieldFebruary 16, 2020 at 12:46 PM

    I hope you will link this up to Keep In Touch. I just love it and will feature it. If you travel, my friend, please make plans to visit Texas when the Bluebonnets are blooming. It is bucket list worthy. Look me up and we'll have you and Joe over for dinner. I did not have a good retirement plan since I left my job because of angst with administrators. I am perfectly content with semi retirement, only working Mondays and Wednesdays. I think it didn't help that Bill isn't retired. I found myself without a good plan and it made me a little depressed, I think. I should have spent more time in contemplation about it. Have a good month contemplating and I can't wait to hear all you come up with at the end of the month.

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  4. SandyFebruary 16, 2020 at 4:11 PM

    I'm not much into day trips, but do LOVE to travel. Hubby is not yet retired. He's proposed date to do so has changed more times than I can count. Apparently he's not ready. I retired a year ago. We travel generally 4 or 5 times a year using our timeshares/and points etc. Our first travel abroad was Spain which was really nice, then Ireland which was lots of fun, then Italy......which I LOVED, and next will be France. I love your word of the month, clever idea. Your Valentines decorations are very pretty.

    ReplyDelete
  5. mamasmercantileFebruary 16, 2020 at 4:24 PM

    You were certainly productive, you achieved so much. I love the idea of a word each month and am a great fan of a list so I may join in the fun. You certainly have lots of ideas for your retirement. We found since taking early retirement that there is never enough hours in the day and often wonder how we ever had time to go to work.

    ReplyDelete
  6. Cathy @ My 1929 CharmerFebruary 16, 2020 at 8:27 PM

    Wow, you sure have had a productive January! May I ask what vitamins are you taking? I need them!

    I've been contemplating a lot myself! But my main goal is getting organized and rushing myself of so much stuff!

    I've started substitute teaching and working much more than I planned..

    ReplyDelete
  7. ConniecrafterFebruary 16, 2020 at 9:03 PM

    I do not have a word that I chose. We have decided to do our traveling now just because we have heard from many that decided to wait until retirement to travel and then ended up being in bad health and couldn't, we aren't getting any younger so we thought it best to do it now. Sounds like you have a lot of great ideas of things to try!

    ReplyDelete
  8. LeanneFebruary 17, 2020 at 8:57 AM

    Hi Debbie - you've certainly been busy in January and I can't believe how many things you're already contemplating doing in the days ahead! I also liked your Word of the Month rather than just one Word of the Year - I have a WOTY every year - this year it's Symphony and it's been quite inspiring and a bit left of centre. The idea of creating a Midlife Symphony where all the previous decades come together as preparation for this second half of life really appeals to me.

    ReplyDelete
  9. Nancy Andres at Colors 4 HealthFebruary 17, 2020 at 10:35 AM

    Hi Debbie, From this post and others I've read, I sense you a thoughtful woman. I like that and can relate. My word for the year is kindness and I contemplate that a lot as I interact with others and even myself. Visiting you from Pinch of Joy Busy Monday 404 and wish you a Happy Valentine’s Day.

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  10. annies homeFebruary 17, 2020 at 9:45 PM

    awesome word seems like I do that a lot these days

    ReplyDelete
  11. Powell River BooksFebruary 18, 2020 at 9:11 PM

    You pick good words of the month. - Margy

    ReplyDelete
  12. Creations By CindyFebruary 19, 2020 at 3:24 PM

    Girl, you are one productive gal and I so wish I had your energy! I love all that you seem to do and accomplish. Loving those sweet V-day trees! Hugs and blessings to you. Cindy

    ReplyDelete
  13. Sylvia Graceforagypsy.comFebruary 22, 2020 at 11:34 PM

    I like the word "contemplate". We are retiring at the end of this year, so we have been doing a lot of contemplating! Thanks for linking up at A GATHERING OF FRIENDS LINK PARTY 12 pinned!

    ReplyDelete
  14. Stephanie SuzanneFebruary 23, 2020 at 3:41 PM

    Hi Debbie, I'm visiting for Pink Saturday. I'm back to blogging after years of absence. I used to visit you back then and you may remember my blog Queen Of Dreamsz? Anyhow, I'm back with a new blog trying to align myself to the simple things in life. Your word contemplate is a very good one. It fits me very well in just about every month! HA I always loved your home as it felt so welcoming and like being in a candy story...pretty things everywhere. I love the hanging hearts in your kitchen and how you change your trees and your outdoor setting for each season and special days. I do hope you come by for a visit and chat with me a bit. I've missed the connections over the years. Have a wonderful weekend, Stephanie

    ReplyDelete

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