An Update!

So I've opened a Patreon page, I felt it would be more appropriate than my GoFundMe campaign. I will not be closing my campaign just yet if you want to contribute follow this link. And if you want to check out my Patreon, follow this link.

Thank you for all of your support, from reading and following my content to your monetary contributions. 

If you want immediate updates from my blog, leave a message in my inbox here and I will add you to my email list.  

Have a fintastic day,

-Seaspray

Discovering Lessons in Yoga

Hey, seastars! At the end of this entry, I'll tell you about an oil treatment for your nails. I've been using an app called Keep Yoga for less than a week now. I'll be honest with you, I already have skipped a day. That said I've been seeing improvement in the four practices I've been working through. I can move deeper into a movement, I feel stronger during more advanced poses, and I don't feel like I've been put through a taffy pulling machine at Wonka's factory. I've also been struggling with being patient with myself. Back in high school, I would practice both yoga and pilates for a total of an hour and a half before going to swim practice. In working with the app, I recognize many poses. My body just won't contort the way it used to, and it frustrates me. I feel like a failure because I can't move the way I used to. I can feel the potential to push myself further and my own body gets in the way. I must admit, I haven't been kind to myself, I allowed the frustration and all of the negative emotions that came with it to take over my mind. Telling myself I couldn't do it, I'm too fat to do it, I'm weak. All of that became a sort of self-fulfilling prophecy. And today I tried something different.

But first, a few quick facts. It can take up to eight weeks to see physical changes in your body when exercising regularly. It is important to properly fuel your body, especially when you are exercising regularly. It is imperative to keep yourself clean after every work out session.

I tried something different today that really made a difference to my routine. I encouraged myself. I sliced through each wave of negativity with positive thoughts. I can do it. I will do it. I am strong and capable. This pose is almost over. I can make it. Henry Ford, the founder of Ford Motor Company, once said: "Whether you think you can or you can't, you're right." Yes, that is super corny. It's also true. I hyped myself up and settled deeper into every pose, lasted through every advanced pose, I could breathe easier.

I feel this practice can be carried into daily life. Instead of settling into a negative attitude and creating a pit of despair, what if we approached hurdles with a positive outlook? What if we told ourselves we can get through anything? Imagine the possibilities!

Before I tell you my nail oil treatment, I challenge you to tackle every problem by leaning into an affirmative mindset. I challenge you to kill every unkind word you tell yourself with kindness.

Alright! You've earned it! For roughly two weeks I've been taking just enough olive oil to easily submerge my nails and cuticles, adding rose essential oil (for the smell}), and warming it up for ten seconds. Then for five minutes, I give my nails and cuticles a massage, making sure to evenly coat them with oil. My nails are thicker, less brittle, and seem to be growing faster. And at the end of a long day, this oil treatment has been like a mini spa day. After the five minutes is up I've been rinsing the oil off in cool water and following up with lotion.

How do you relax at the end of your day? Tell be all about it in the comments below! And while you're in the comments, tell me if you accepted my challenge and how well it works for you.

Thanks so much for reading, seastars! If you'd like more exclusive content, check out Seaspray's Shoal!

Remember, you're fintastic!

-Seaspray

Discovering Hate

Hey, seastars. If you follow me on any of my other social media accounts, you may have noticed I've been quiet for a few days. I needed a break from social media. Not a big, dramatic delete everything and flee to the Himalayas break; just a pause. Recently I woke up to a hateful message in my personal inbox saying I was ugly inside and out and too fat to be a mermaid. At first, I wanted to punch the sender in the face, then I wanted to cry. After some time I realized my initial reactions were from being reminded of all the times I had been bullied for my weight. Once I calmed down, I felt pity for this person who went out of their way to send me a hateful message and immediately blocked me- all at 9:41 in the morning. Just thinking about all that wasted energy makes me tired! Truth be told this is not the first time someone has made a negative comment about my body in my adult life. So let me walk you through what this beautiful body has done.

I am a mother. This body has and is capable of creating and carrying life. Then taking that life and delivering it into the world. On average it takes a woman's body up to a year to fully recover from the effects of pregnancy and delivery. Mine was not an easy delivery, I am lucky I wasn't sent to the OR and I'm lucky to be alive to write this blog. Before that this body was a competitive swimmer for just under seven years. This body had a back injury in middle school from a cheerleading stunt. This body was a powerhouse in soccer for nearly five years. This body carried me through being teased about my mother's work. My mother's amazing work saved so many lives and affected so many others, I refused to be ashamed then even when I was asked if I ate garbage. And I refuse to be ashamed now, again in the face of ignorant bullying. I'm going to be deeply honest with you, seastars. From middle school, all the way through high school I hated my body. I would skip meals and try to sneak hundreds of sit-ups to try and achieve a flat belly. I have a Swedish build, all wide hips, and powerful shoulders. I learned a totally flat belly in a woman is unhealthy, a woman should always have a small pouch at the bottom of her abdomen because that's where her reproductive organs lay. Every body is amazing, and every body is capable of so much more than you can see in a picture.

To the people who think it is okay to belittle, hurt, tear down, or harass anyone else. Stop it. We see you for who you are, and you need to learn to love yourself. I've been taught to know people see something in me they are envious of and try to attack that something to try and snuff it out of me. To quote one of my favorite movies, "No matter how much the wind howls, the mountain cannot bow to it." Seastars, you and I are those mountains. And anyone who tries to rip you down is no more than wind. Stand up and shine that light you have deep down inside of you. Shine your light so bright it will banish all the darkness those antagonizers try to bring into your life.

And to the person who thought they could hurt me, I have a song for you. You cannot tear me down. You cannot hurt me. You, feeble wind, will never be able to make this mountain bow. My body is not for anyone else but me. My body is beautiful. My body is powerful. My body will carry me past this one fleeting moment and forget you.

Seastars, please. If you are being oppressed, antagonized, or bullied try to ignore them. Those people are ignorant and hateful. Those people are trying to cover up their own pain. Hurt people hurt people. You can end the cycle of hurt, you are strong enough. You are strong enough to come out of the harassment and rise.

I believe in you,

-Seaspray

Discovering ADHD Hacks

Hello, seastars! Today I must share a secret I've recently discovered to help stay focused. First, I've been working on developing a program to help build reading confidence in children. That means creating policies and procedures and hours upon hours of research. All of which I love doing! However, just because I love doing something doesn't mean it doesn't get hard. I'm fairly certain I have ADHD. Please keep in mind this is a self-diagnosis (yes, ug, I know). I will go get a proper diagnosis as soon as I am able.

I've always loved music, but music has always been a bit of a distraction for me. I have this tendency to turn a cleaning day into a dance party. I have finally found a way to combine music and work! My secret to productivity ( at least in writing documents) is gaming music. I've been listening to ambiance music from the video game Skyrim. I know this hack sounds a bit silly, but gamer music is designed to make the brain pay attention. And it works! I've been able to regularly sit for 30 minutes or more and type without noticing the time passing.
For me, instrumental music works best. I have read that you should avoid music with lyrics in your language because your brain will process the lyrics and won't focus on forming other thoughts.

Alright, let's get serious. We are all guilty of this, but it is not the best idea to self-diagnose. If you feel you have a certain condition, please talk with a doctor and confirm your suspicions! And please listen to your gut. If you feel you have not received proper care, go find a second opinion! Do not be afraid to advocate and speak up for yourself. It's easy to let the doctor just talk, but you know your body better than anyone else. Be honest, be firm, be involved. The only reason I have not yet seen anyone about my personal suspicions is that I currently cannot afford it. That said I have already taken steps to remedy the issue. Make sure you are well informed about your area's insurance laws and regulations; keep on top of that paperwork folks!

Okay! Let's really get off topic! I have an active GoFundMe campaign designed to allow me to interact with you, seastars. Funds will go to marketing materials, supplies for my one-of-a-kind accessories store I hope to open later this year, fabric for a completely eco-friendly costume, expedite my reading program, and allow me to build my inventory for events and Seaspray's Shoal. A big dent has already been made in my goal of $745. "Vision of a Mermaid" has been live for less than two weeks and I have great plans to utilize donations. If you have questions for me, you can send me a message here.  

Thank you so much for reading! If you want to find more of my content search "Seaspray Mermaid" on Facebook, Holonis, Instagram, Twitter, and Youtube.

Starfish wishes and mermaid kisses!

-Seaspray

Discovering How to Rise Again

Vincent Van Gogh, one of my favorite artists once said: "In spite of everything, I shall rise again." Lately, I've been slacking on my resolutions and wallowing in the guilt. I told myself I was doomed to live in a body I was not happy with, doomed to always feel at arm's length from God, doomed to eat poorly. I really threw myself a pity party! And it's time to throw the guests on their ear. Guilt, shame, doubt. All of them-gone! I read a radical post online recently stating we have the power to change our lives in every decision. Think about it, you can put down your device, walk out the door and join the circus-completely changing your life. I choose to change my life and start over. As far as I'm concerned the New Years ball is about to drop and I'll pick up where I left off. Even though it means I have to completely rearrange my schedule, again. I will live a healthier, happier life.

I've been learning to appreciate the small things in my life. Access to clean water, for starters. That's a luxury far too many people don't have. I'm teaching myself to have a grateful heart, instead of only seeing what is not in my life. Part of having a grateful heart is serving, wherever possible. I have often told my friends to step out of their lives and volunteer somewhere when they couldn't seem to shake their bad mood. I finally can take my own advice by serving in my church. Yes, there are a few circumstances out of my control, but I'm also taking steps to get some control of my life. 

Learning to find every blessing, adjusting my priorities, and setting fresh goals have all really opened my life up for massive changes. I'll be going back to school soon to pursue my dream of studying aquatic biology.  I'll finally have a license and be able to take my daughter on outings. I've been planning better quality meals. I'm taking several steps to grow my business. Once again, everything feels back on track. 

Of course, everything is still a journey. Part of growing my business is my GoFundMe campaign, which is designed to allow me to interact with my fans and followers. One of my goals is to provide higher quality trinkets for my group on Facebook, Seaspray's Shoal. These trinkets will eventually be available in my store as soon as I can open. 

Despite every obstacle, perhaps to spite every obstacle, I will be making a conscious, daily choice to follow Vincent Van Gogh's words. 

I will rise again. 

-Seaspray

Discovering Persistence

Hello, seastars! Today I'm celebrating an officially monetized blog! Great, right? This blog would not be monetized without a lot of patience and persistence. In fact, a lot of things in my life wouldn't exist as they do without persistence. It's a lesson I've learned and re-learned countless times, and I know I'll keep learning it in the future. For now, I'll just enjoy the success.

I'll be the first one to tell you I have a tendency to throw in the towel early, a habit that deeply annoys me. Yes, you read that right. I annoy myself with my own habits. What happens is I get way ahead of myself and plan out something to the very last detail, if my plans are more long-term I get discouraged when I don't see results right away. A perfect example is my active GoFundMe campaign. My campaign, "Vision of a Mermaid", has only been live for a few days and so far I have not had a single donor. And to date, I have been the only one to share my campaign link. I'm happy to broadcast "Vision of a Mermaid", to be completely honest I wasn't sure how the campaign would be received. Ultimately, my plan is to take the funds earned from "Vision of a Mermaid" and invest in supplies to start a Kickstarter campaign. Yes, I have other goals for my GoFundMe account, like a high quality, completely eco-friendly costume. This costume would allow me to perform (hopefully) in tanks.  To read more about "Vision of a Mermaid" check out this link.

I've been learning to take the big projects that usually end up discouraging me one step at a time. Literally. It is far less intimidating for me to do one productive activity a day related to each of my projects. The difference this approach has made in my life, professional and personal, is truly astounding. I'm far more productive, I feel better about my progress, I'm happier, and my list of projects is shrinking (because they are actually getting done!). If you're like me and find big, long-term projects a daunting hassle, I highly recommend breaking your project up into small steps and making a little bit of progress every day, or as often as you're comfortable. 

Speaking of projects, I recently launched a secret Facebook group through my fan page. Seaspray's Shoal is an exclusive group for all ages to connect to a real-life mermaid, find members-only sales, secret meet & greet days not scheduled anywhere else, enjoy live videos, and see top-secret sneak peeks of all the wonderful things I have planned for this year. To learn more about Seaspray's Shoal, check out this link.  

One last thing before I wrap up today's post, I'm starting to learn every day is a special occasion. What I mean by that is I'm not going to wait for some unknown big event to use my fancy store-bought face mask. I'm going to use my store-bought face mask because today was a good day. Don't wait for some big reason to indulge in something, or you may never have a reason. Life is meant to be lived in the moment, not in anticipation of a moment.

You are amazing, seastars. Never forget that.

-Seaspray

Discovering Courage

Alright, seastars, this one is going to sound a little silly. I've always had an issue with accepting gifts and money, regardless of the reason. And today I launched a GoFundMe campaign to help me build a better business, create quality content, launch a program designed to help children love reading, design a completely eco-friendly costume, and finally have a personalized domain for my website. 

This year is going to be a great year!

If you would like to donate to my campaign, follow this link. And if you have any questions about myself or my business, feel free to contact me here.

Okay, with the business stuff out of the way, I owe you a massive apology. I had said I would be posting every other day and it's been nearly 2 weeks. I am so sorry! My personal life suddenly got a tad dramatic and I had to withdraw and recollect myself. In the future, I will do my best to either schedule posts or warn you of a potential lapse in my blog.

Starfish wishes and mermaid kisses,

Seaspray