11 Things With Andrea #2

Let’s just jump right into it!

1. I recently tried Fabletics for the first time and overall I loved my first purchase. I got two pairs of cropped leggings, one full length pair, and a sports bra that zipped up the front. I was really hoping to find a sport’s bra that was thick and good quality (the zipper ones usually are for higher impact sports), but unfortunately the fabric is just too thin to be super supportive. I LOVED the leggings though. The trinity high-waisted leggings are amazing. I highly recommend them. I asked you guys on IG your thoughts on Fabletics and most of you said that it’s not really great for sports bra, but the leggings and tops are awesome! While it is a monthly subscription I don’t think I’ll be purchasing every month (you can skip months), because I’m pretty set with leggings for now!

2. I have been reading a lot recently (I’m on my 6th book for the month if that tells you anything). I did a book post recently (click here to check it out) and I’m excited to have some extra time next week to relax and read because the families I nanny for are on spring break! I picked up ‘The Shape of Water’, ‘Big Little Lies’ and ‘The Devil in the White City’ from the library and you all voted for me to start with ‘Big Little Lies’! I’m excited to read all three of these so make sure to check back in a little while to see my review on them.

3. I currently have a GIVEAWAY going for a $100 Gift Certificate to JORD watches! If you haven’t entered it yet, CLICK HERE to check out the watch I was gifted for Mikey (my sweet watch obsessed other half). You don’t want to miss out on this awesome chance to win! You also get a 10% off code for entering so what do you have to lose?

4. Wedding season begins this Saturday. While I had one wedding in January, this weekend starts the doing something almost every weekend for weddings and I AM SO EXCITED! I love my brides! I only have 2 Saturdays left and many Fridays and Sundays available so if you’re a 2019 bride who still needs a makeup artist, please contact me ASAP! (Click the CONTACT tab in the menu on the left).

5. I’m really excited to be on track to be under $10,000 in debt by my 29th birthday this May (my goal is to be debt free by 30, which I am also on track for)! I know I don’t talk about it a lot on here, but for all of you working your butts off to become debt free, I AM WITH YOU! It’s probably my biggest goal that I’m working towards every day and if you’re also going through it, I know the struggles and tough work it takes. WE CAN DO IT!

6. Please send all Netflix/Hulu/Prime recommendations my way. Like I mentioned before I have spring break coming up and am going to attempt to watch something since I suck at it. Working on learning how to be comfortable being relaxed and lazy, but it’s a process.

7. I’m happy to report my anxiety is much lower than it was in January and February. I know I talked about it a lot on my IG and a little here, but if you don’t see me talking about it as much as I was, just know it is always something I am dealing with and working with. You are not alone. Always message me if you want to talk to someone.

8. I’ve been trying a lot of new to me products from Drunk Elephant, Herbivore Botanicals, Tarte, Mad Hippie, etc and I’m excited to put together a post devoted to what I liked/ didn’t like.

9. Cookbook writing is still coming along well! Every week I feel like I see the vision of my final cookbook becoming a little stronger which is really exciting. To all of you who consistently ask me how it’s going and are as excited as I am…you will NEVER know how much I truly appreciate your support and love. I am writing this cookbook for you and I think you’re going to love it! If you haven’t already signed up for cookbook updates, please click here to be added to my email list!

10. If you’re in the Midwest, you’ve been experiencing some lovely SUN the last few weeks and it’s been AMAZING! Am I the only one who’s always constantly amazed at how much it affects our mood. We are different people when the sun is out and I love it! Spring is my favorite season so I’m excited to return to running outdoors and stopping to check up on all the blooms.

11. If you caught Samin Nosrat’s phenomenal Netflix series, ‘Salt, Fat, Acid, Heat’ you might have checked out her cookbook of the same name. If you checked out her cookbook you probably oo’ed and aaah’ed at the beautiful artwork in it. I preordered these TO DIE FOR prints from the cookbook and if you need some extra kitchen art (I’m planning a beautiful kitchen gallery wall) you NEED to order these prints. They are so inexpensive for what beauty they really are!

12. BONUS: This last one isn’t about me. It’s about you. You’re great. And I hope you’ll keep coming around to read what I write. I still get such amazing messages from you all about how my content is inspiring you and lifting you up and all I can say is, YOU are the one inspiring and lifting me up when you say these things. You are great! Thank you

Have the best weekend you tootie cutie patootie people,

Andrea

Disclosure: Amazon links are Amazon Affiliate links meaning that I make a commission off the purchase of the product through my link. I would never recommend a product that I didn't love and all opinions are my own. I am thankful for you choosing to purchase through my links, as it helps me create more content for Andrea Fontana Beauty.

The Routines I Use to Minimize My Anxiety

If you've been following me for a while, you probably know that I have anxiety. I’ve had it ever since I was a kid, and share my story on IG and on here every so often. I think talking about mental health on my blog is really important for two main reasons. First, it is very therapeutic for me to process my anxiety and really reflect on it by writing and constructing thoughts that make sense. The second reason is that it shows my readers that if they are dealing with similar situations, they are not alone. I cannot tell you how much it means when I get messages from you telling me how much they understand what I’m going through and how grateful they are for me sharing my story because they can relate to it.

It has been no secret that I have been really struggling with my anxiety in the last two months. It’s probably the worst that it has ever been, but I feel like I’m finally turning the corner. While I know that anxiety is something that I will likely have to deal with for the rest of my life, there are definitely moments of highs and lows. My goal with this post is to share what has helped me in the last few weeks in hopes that it will help even one reader. Even if you already know everything I’m writing, I hope you just recognize that this is something I deal with. I don’t ever, for even one moment, want you to think my life is completely put together and stress-free. I want you to recognize me as a safe space and open person who’s willing to talk to you if you need it.

1. Find your person to vent to.

   I find that when I’m anxious, I need to word vomit everything out of me, as if to hear out loud what I’m thinking, recognize it as completely irrational and not true, and call it what it is; my anxiety talking. Whether you say it out loud to someone, or you write it out, I think finding someone that is a safe space to say things is important. Knowing that they won’t hold it against you, the thoughts you need to get out in the moment, is a great feeling. For me this person has been my boyfriend, but it can be anyone you feel like you can trust.

2. Eat a good breakfast.

   What I eat really affects my thoughts when I’m anxious, so I always make sure to not skip breakfast because it starts my day off on the right foot. When I have a good breakfast, I seem to make healthier choices throughout the rest of the day in regards to my diet, and it’s crazy how much what I eat can affect my mood.

3. Move your body everyday.

   When I hurt my tailbone and had to drop my entire workout regimen, my anxiety skyrocketed. I knew that I needed to rest and let my body heal, but it really messed with my head. You don’t have to have intense workouts every day, but focusing on moving my body every day is really important for me to lessen my anxiety. Now that my injury is healed, I am working out almost every day (some days it’s just a walk though so don’t be intimidated) and it’s the thing that I think is helping me the most to get back on track.

4. Get more sleep.

   I have been sleeping so well ironically through this time of anxiety and I think it’s because I’m emotionally exhausted at the end of the day. Allowing myself to say, “I’m tired…I need to go to bed early tonight” has been really important in this journey. However, my anxiety seems to strike midday from about 11 am to 5 pm, so I think this also might be why. I usually wake up less anxious and go to bed the same way, but this could be different for you. My point is to really push yourself to get the rest your body needs during this time.

5. Make a list of happy activities.

   This is something I find really useful for days when I am really struggling. I have a list of activities that make me really happy, that lives in my purse. These are things I can easily do so that if I feel anxiety growing, I can pull the list out, pick an activity and shift my focus somewhere else. My list has things like watch my favorite Netflix show, read a book, call a family member or friend, do yoga, or cook a meal. I typically carry a book with me always because I love escaping into a good story for a moment, but regardless of what your happy activities are, writing them out really helps you in the moment when you can read it.

6. Re-evaluate your goals.

   In the last few months, I’ve had to reevaluate my goals and decide what’s important in this time when I’m going through some tougher times. It’s ok to say, I don’t have the mental capacity for this right now, and make it a goal for later on. I know it can feel defeating to do this sometimes, but your mental health needs to be a priority and that goal can wait.

7. Work on setting boundaries.

   This one can be really hard and I am definitely working on it. I’m proud of excusing myself from conversations and just flat out saying no to things that I can’t entertain while I’m working on myself right now. You are allowed to say “I have too much on my plate right now”. You don’t have to explain yourself to people if you don’t want to. Those who love and support you will understand.

Overall, I hope this post helps you feel less alone if you are also dealing with anxiety or any mental health issue. Go follow my Instagram here if you are wanting to read more about my posts on my anxiety. This is a topic that I will continue to talk about and I hope you know how loved and beautiful you are.

Have a beautiful day,

Andrea

January Schmanuary

I’m sure you’ve all seen the memes joking about how January has felt like it’s lasted a year (I just posted one to my own stories…so I’m with you). I knew at the beginning of the month I wanted to reflect on January when it was over because first off, I’m big on self reflection, but secondly, I was curious to see how it compared to January 2018. So here we go. While these reasons might not apply to you specifically, the purpose of this post is to get you to think and self reflect about your own first month of the year. Self reflection is my greatest tool for making changes in my life and learning how to grow.

This month threw me for a freaking loop. I started it off feeling refreshed from extra time off around the holidays, spending much of it with family and generally feeling ready to tackle the new year. I’m not one to set new years resolutions, but I have always been excited to jump into new goals and get going again.

So I went on my merry way, creating timelines and ideas for Andrea Fontana Beauty, announcing my cookbook, and overall feeling really good about where I was heading. I was blessed enough to welcome a new niece into the world within the first week and things were really looking great! But then the next morning, I slipped on ice and bruised my tailbone terribly by falling down concrete stairs. At that moment the energy changed for the whole month. I thankfully had a mastermind weekend full of inspiration the following weekend, and while I thought this would prevent me from feeling low, it didn’t.

I spent the majority of it feeling frustrated, lazy, and mad at myself. But, if I could pick one way to describe how I felt at the end of January 2018: anxiety. If I could sum up how I felt at the end of January 2019: anxiety.

Anyone else sensing a pattern here besides me? Haha I’ve noticed on social media that this seems to be a common trend for others, so let’s dig in here a little bit. Why do I feel so anxious when I start the year off?

Goals are great, don’t get me wrong, but I struggle with the constant ‘DON’T EVER STOP WORKING’ mentality that you can find among the entrepreneurship community. Que the ‘Beyonce has the same number of hours in a day as you do’ memes. The ideal that there is always something you can be working on is great, but honestly poses a real threat for me because I’m a person who doesn’t know how to shut off sometimes. I can get going, full steam ahead, and forget about how to care for myself and to simply just sit and be.

Overall, I’m a person who enjoys schedules. I like to plan and know where I’m going to be one month, or even 3 months out. A lot of that is because the nature of the wedding industry involves planning so far out in advance, but I can be shaken by large changes to my schedule. Last January and this January both posed the same threats to my anxiety. Two situations, completely out of my control.

I’m hoping tomorrow when the calendar changes from January to February, I’m able to shake off the guilt of losing my entire workout regimen that I had cultivated for months and also not really working much this past week with the polar vortex. I was able to start fresh last February and look at it as a new month, so I’m hoping to see a similar trend this year.

So what have I learned?

My new theme of January is going to be GRACE. Give myself grace with the fact that January just is not, and maybe will never be my month, and THAT IS OK! I will probably not work as much as every other month and that is ok. It will likely include snow days and cancelled plans, and that is ok. I may fall on ice and not be able to visit my gym for a whole month, and that is ok. I might not put out as many blog posts as I wanted to, and that is ok.

Because here’s the thing. It’s going to be ok. Anxiety has this weird ability to trickle down into every category of your life and make you feel like you are a failure. But guess what, you are not. I am not.

I’m personally trying to view my life in a more seasonal way, as opposed to needing every month to look the same all year. I may run more in the summer than in the winter, but that’s just what life is. Seasons of success and seasons of rest. Both can exist at the same time. Sometimes resting is succeeding. Sometimes running too fast is failing you. Regardless, GIVE yourself grace when it comes to goals and do not let yourself think for a second that you are not doing a good enough job.

You are enough and I am here for you if you want to talk about this more.

I hope February is kind to you, regardless of what January looked like.

Andrea