Friday Favorites
What a blessed week it has been! 🙂
I hope that you can say the same. I’m trying to be more intentional about slowing down and giving thanks for all the blessings in my life. It has really helped me to enjoy each day as it comes-no matter what happens.
I’ve also been more intentional this week about getting better sleep. I’ve always had trouble sleeping. Ever since I can remember, it’s always taken me a long time to fall asleep and even then, I’m a light sleeper. Not the best combination.
To set myself up for a good night’s sleep, several things need to happen:
- Noise. ALWAYS. Silence is not good. I need a fan. Or a sound machine. Something constant to block out any random noises.
- Essential oils. I use to spray the Bath & Body Works Lavender Vanilla pillow mist on my pillow, but in recent years, artificial fragrances have really started to bother me! I never thought this would happen. I worked at Bath & Body Works for over 10 years! I loved and used their products religiously. But after we moved to the South, I slowly stopped buying their products and replaced them with more natural options. I love to rub lavender essential oil on the bottom of my feet and on the inside of my wrists. 🙂
- A cup of tea. Many nights I like to have a cup of tea before I go to bed. It helps to relax my mind and body. My favorites are Sleepytime, Chamomile and Mint Medley.
I’m pretty consistent when it comes to my nighttime routine and I rarely do anything different. But if I want to sleep better, I’ve got to change something, right? I recently read another blogger’s nighttime routine and loved it so much that I decided to incorporate a few of her ideas into my own routine! You can read all about her ideas here.
One of her ideas that I really wanted to try was the sleep mask! I’ve bought a few sleep masks in the past because they came with pajamas, but I’ve never used them. I didn’t think I needed them or I thought they were weird. Our bedroom gets bright pretty early, but I never thought that the light was disrupting my sleep. I bought this mask and I’m shocked how much it has helped! It is soft, comfortable and it doesn’t make my eyes or face feel suffocated. You know what I mean?
I think this mask has helped me fall back asleep faster because when I wake up, I usually open my eyes and look around. When I wear the mask, I open my eyes and see nothing! Lol. If you have an issue with a well lit bedroom, you should definitely give a sleep mask a try!
Another thing I’ve been trying really hard to do is to stop looking at my phone right until I go to bed. This has been so haaaarrrrrrrrd. I’ll cuddle up to Eric or read a magazine or a book. Usually within 20 minutes, my eyes start to get heavy and I feel tired!
I have one other thing I purchased to help me sleep better, but I haven’t used it yet. 😉 I’ll report on that later!
What does your nighttime routine look like?