Day 3: So...freaking...tired #5amChallenge

Day 3 was the most difficult day for me so far. Not only did I get the least amount of sleep so far this week (under 6 hours), but I also ended up having a really hectic day at work. I came home exhausted, defeated, and craving sleep! I was seriously curled up in bed by 530p. I knew I needed to purge out my negative energy, so I ended up having a roasting session in GroupMe with some girlfriends!! It was hilarious to talk shit with friends for an hour and let out some belly laughs. Laughter really does heal a lot of ailments. Next up was an aura protection bath to help rid myself of that negative energy and usher in some fresh, positive vibes. I used a recipe I found from The Hood Witch and it was truly relaxing.

Fitbit Sleep Tracker - Day 3

Hump day can always be a toss up as to whether or not it'll be smooth sailing or a shit show, but I learned my lesson not getting enough sleep. It was hard to make it through the day and even though I was still early to work (only by a few mins), I realized that sleep really was the foundation for setting myself up for success. Dragging sucks.



Day 3 Tips
I was able to save a lot of time in the morning by cutting out things that waste time, streamlining certain processes, and just not being on fuck shit. You know, just saying no to fuck boy shit to get my life together lol (and yes, you can be a woman and still be considered a fuck boy). Anyways, the main ways I saved time in the morning:

1. Not spending 10 mins scrolling through my Instagram feed. I'm not sure if I'm alone in this, but I tend to go to bed and wake up looking at Instagram. In the morning, right after I hit my alarm... I tend to "wake up" by laying in bed and looking through Instagram. This is a huge time suck and something I've actually enjoyed passing on in the morning.

2. Drying off in the shower. This may seem weird, but I usually get out of the shower and start wasting time (small amounts) moving slow, drying off slow, fumbling around with my "rise and shine" Spotify playlist. Those minutes add up, so I started drying off in the shower before I get out and it's saved me at least 5-10 mins.

3. Putting on my body oil before I leave the bathroom. Just like I wouldn't dry off in the shower, I'd move around and start doing other stuff and wait a while to moisturize my body. I don't really know why, but it's just another time waste for me. I've started drying off in the shower and then putting on my body oil as soon as I get out. It's been awesome to streamline my process and really realize where I've been wasting time. Even small amounts of time can add up to a ton of wasted time in the morning.

Day 2: Why the f*ck is it so dark outside? #5amChallenge

 I woke up this morning (Read: Tuesday) and realized just how dark the days are in Seattle. Like, you wake up and it's dark. I mean... it's dark at 8am. DARK! We haven't even officially started winter yet and I'm already scraping together the fragments of my life force. Pulling yourself out of the bed when it's pitch black outside is nearly impossible. On top of that I didn't really get to bed any earlier the night before, so I was setting myself up for a slight fail.

Similar to Day 1, I instinctively hit the snooze on my 5am alarm. It's kind of funny just how many intelligent choices your body/brain can make when you're sleeping. I mean, sleeping Ishea is kind of a clutch player. Snoozing 5am alarms and what not... like, she's the MVP. She's bae.

Fitbit Sleep Tracker - Day 2

Anyways, my goal from Day 1 was to snooze one less time on Day 2. I'm happy to report I was successful since I only snoozed my 630a alarm twice. That's progress over snoozing it 3 times on Day 1 lol. Listen, any step forward is technically progress, no matter how small. Thus, progress was made!

I had success doing an abbreviated version of my morning routine on Day 1, so I repeated that on Day 2. I walked my dog for a shorter amount of time (though I actually felt bad about it this time), had already prepped my hair the night before (saved more time), and had my work stuff ready to go.

Waking up to pitch black affected me. I was moving a bit slower... Not a lot, but I did leave the house about 10 mins later. I still got to work early (which is a win), but I know for Day 3 I'll need to check the bus arrival times when I'm getting dressed and make sure I leave in that commuter "sweet spot".

Is anyone else doing the challenge? If so, how's it going?

I'm always seeing "627" in my life

Day 2 Tips
Monday night I decided to prep my hair so I wouldn't have to rock a scarf again. This is one of those annoying things I hate about being natural... just the extra time it takes to "prep" your hair for a style. Anyways, doing my hair the night before only took about 20 or so mins and saved me that time in the morning. If you do your hair in the mornings and that same style can be achieved the night before, I'd highly suggest

Day 1: Ain't no Party like a "snooze" Party #5amChallenge

Let's be honest. I knew I wasn't going to wake up at 5am when I was brushing my teeth for bed on Sunday night. For some reason I failed to realize I'd actually need to adjust my sleep time Sunday night when I decided to do the challenge, so I was mentally prepared to sleep in. When my alarm went off at 5am, shit didn't even have a chance to get real because I instinctively hit snooze. I didn't even bother waking up. My life force just knew the 5am shenanigan wasn't about to come into fruition.

With that said, I did keep my original 630a alarm, but that got snoozed through, too... 3 times! Lol! Tell the truth and shame the devil.

Fitbit Sleep Tracker - Day 1

But there's good news to report -- Even though I snoozed the original 5am alarm, snoozed my 630a alarm 3 times, and didn't get out of bed until 7am, I still managed to leave the house 30 mins earlier than normal!!

I honestly shocked myself. I didn't rush to the bus. I didn't rush into work. I didn't rush to my morning meeting. I didn't rush at all!! On top of that, I was extremely positive and chipper... at 8 freaking 30 in the morning. I was smiling. Genuinely smiling... and asking people about their weekend... and actually listening to the response and engaging! Y'all -- this was awesome. I'm actually excited about Day 2 of the challenge. Let's see if I can snooze one less time.

Day 1 Tips
I saved time in the morning by doing an abbreviated version of my normal routine. Since I snoozed so many times, I knew I'd have to skimp in other areas. I walked my dog for a shorter time (10 mins instead of 30), styled my hair with a scarf (saved about 20 mins), and didn't pack a breakfast/lunch for work (ate out). I also grabbed the first outfit that came to mind and didn't waste time standing in the closet wondering what to wear.

Waking up at 5am Challenge (via @Refinery29)

I used to be a night owl, but something crazy happened once I turned 30... I actually started appreciating sleep! Yes, sleep... the thing we used to cry and fight about as kids... it's just this beautiful thing that you don't realize is as precious as gold until you become an adult.

With that said, I started paying more attention to the amount of sleep I was getting once I received a Fitbit Charge HR for my birthday back in June. If you want to be faced with some cold, hard facts just look at your Fitbit stats at the end of the week and see how much sleep you're actually getting each night. It was sobering. I realized I was averaging maybe 5-6 hrs of sleep a night and it was a wake-up call that I needed to implement a schedule.

Turning up instead of sleeping

So, where am I today? I'm getting more sleep each night (averaging between 6-8 hrs), but I'm not really waking up any earlier in the morning. In fact, my alarm usually goes off around like 630a, then I snooze for maybe 45-60 mins, then start thinking about what I should do with my life lol. My morning routine is a shit show and I know that it's time to "grow the fuck up" and put a plan into place. Seriously.

When I saw xoNecole share a post from Refinery29 on "5 Days of Waking Up Early" I knew this was perfecting timing and something I needed to try. So, this week (Mon - Thurs only) I'll be giving this 5am challenge a try.

If you're bored, Read a book #TheAlchemist

I think I'm part of the last generation who were told to "go read a book" if they ever complained about being bored. Tonight (Read: Saturday Night), I decided to crack open a book that had been collecting dust on my bookshelf since February.

I was originally gifted "The Alchemist" back in February during a gift exchange with some girlfriends, but hadn't taken the time to read it. I remember hearing great reviews from people, but I ended up enjoying the way the book thickened up my bookshelf more than having the desire to actually read it.

A blogger I follow (McKenzieRenae) recently posted about recognizing moments in your life that can serve as a "jumpstart" to something amazing. She recommended "The Alchemist" as a good book to read and I realized that was the same book that'd been sitting on my shelf for months.

Keeping it 100 -- This is the first book I've read in years and honestly, it made me excited to 1) Get through the whole thing in one night and 2) Actually read a book instead of watching Netflix/Hulu or wasting hours on the internet. I feel inspired to start reading more books again, so if you have any suggestions please send them this way! I've been fanning out over Mindy Kaling lately, so I think I may pick up her book "Why Not Me?" next.

My snazzy way of taking notes lol #StayWoke

The Walking Dead: "Start to Finish" Season 6 Episode 8 #TheWalkingDead (Mid-Season Finale)

Thoughts while watching the show:

1. Here we go with this creepy ass fucking kid again. Look at him with that whole setup, complete with creepy drawings.

2. Those ants are kinda symbolic of how the walkers got into their area.

... so far this is the weakest intro all season ...

3. Uh oh... those walkers are going to just appear out of that mist. This sucks...

4. Didn't they get up on Rick pretty fast? Like, that timing seems VERY off.

5. Deanna is so fucking nuts. She's a damn liability. "No, WE need to get back..." Then she's not even shooting well.

6. Come on Carol!! We can't be falling down and shit.

7. Deanna is gonna get someone hurt or killed.

8. Why was Maggie on the ground that long? What's wrong with her? She's acting really stupid. They're gonna knock that platform down. Maggie was really stupid right now.

9. Eugene is over here sucking as usual. "Help..." he always has someone save him. Dude... step the fuck up!!!

10. I'm glad that chick Rick liked stepped up and got her shit together. Finally one of the Alexandrians is acting clutch. There goes their little town.

11. I'm glad Glenn is still thinking.

12. That kid is definitely going to grow up and murder someone. Like, for sure... we're certain of death, taxes, and that creepy ass kid.

13. I'm glad Carol and Morgan are stuck together. I hope they can work out their differences.

14.  He has that W guy down there? Ick. He's so creepy... and this guy is gonna fuck around and mess more stuff up. What kind of wound is that?

15. * GASP * OH WOW.... She got bit!!! OMG. I knew she was gonna fuck something up. Bye Deanna.

16. Deanna has a super long monologue.


17. This kid is really gonna try and kill Carl? He's so fucking crazy. This kid is stupid. He's so stupid. He's going to get everyone killed. That kid sucks.

18. Carl is gonna have to shoot him.

... my heart is seriously beating out through my chest ...

19.  Deanna is gone. Holy shit! Did Deanna eat the baby? Holy shit... I can't handle these people. They're making me nervous. Making me shake and shit.

20. "Or that you can grow one hell of a beard..." Deanna cracking jokes on her way out lol... #BeardSeason

21. Oh, I forgot that Glenn is still out there. He can maybe help them. I totally forgot that Abraham, Daryl and Sasha were still gone.

22. I hope Carol is okay.wait... where'd she go? She's a sneaky mf'er. What? She's off the chain!!

23. Damn... that kid really fucked them.They're trapped in that house.

24. Are Morgan and Carol gonna go at it over that W guy?

25. Ugh. This is so disgusting. Gutting those things.

26. Okay Michonne. That's enough of a conversation. Leave her there. Y'all gotta go. This is a touching moment... but Michonne is the boo. She needs to get out of there.

27. "What do you want? Now you figure it out." - Deanna

28. This little boy is having a break down and she needs him to be clutch right now. motherhood has a lot of pep talks.

29.  <SCREAMED> Holy fucking shit... Morgan AND Carole are knocked the fuck out. This sucks. They're so foolish.

30. Cam'ron with this lackluster boost of confidence.

31. If Morgan AND Carole die this episode... Ugh! Don't lower your guns. They're all stupid. The nurse is gonna die? He's taking her? Everyone has been stupid this episode.

32. This is a really tense scene with them walking with the walkers.

33. This little boy is gonna fuck it up....


wait... that's the end? Okay. Slow clap for Walking Dead producers. They did a phenomenal job wrapping up for the mid-season finale.

34. Oh wait. I totally forgot about Daryl, Sasha and Abraham. Uh oh. Who are those bike gang dudes? They should've just mowed them down.