I’m not sure who needs these reminders today, but I did. Sharing the inspo that pulled me up and I hope they do the same for you 🤎
Love y’all! Let me know which one is your fave!
Xo Aurora
Take Care of Yourself, Seriously
Tag: Loving Yourself
Let Go of Those Who Are Already Gone
10 years ago I posted this, and felt inspired to share it now since it popped up recently.
Positivity can come in all forms, even if it’s masked at first as feeling a bit yucky.
I think it’s really cool to know that some of the most incredible relationships you’ll ever have may not have even started yet… and that others you treasured most maybe weren’t meant to last forever. The journey of life is really amazing, because it all unfolds as it should 🤎
This is posted on my Facebook page that is solely meant for inspiring, connecting, making those who follow think a little deeper, and maybe even laugh. It’s been 8 years of inspo, and I’d love to have you join 🙂 You Can Join It Here ✨
To the adventure 💕 Cheers
Aurora
@SparkleWithAurora
✨ Cheers To 8 Years ✨
This month marks 8 years since I began my blog TheWeeklySparkle.com 🥳🤯 I have no clue where the time has gone!
Since the beginning, my blog has focused on the real and raw aspects of life, offering my own insight, personal feelings and inspiration along the way. My hope was always that whoever stumbled upon it could find some words that inspire them, that they can relate to, or depending on the topic, assure them that they’re not alone.
Well, after 8 years and 300,000 views later, I thought it was time to give my blog and Instagram a refresh! My new Instagram handle, Sparkle with Aurora, is an expansion of The Weekly Sparkle blog & I’m SO EXCITED to share that in 2021 you can expect to see:
▪️Pretty updates to TheWeeklySparkle.com 👩💻
▪️Real & raw content from yours truly 🌱
▪️Insight into my adventures as a new Mama🤰
▪️Increased content for you that focuses on the sparkle and inspirational around us all each day: fashion trends, feel good energy and inspo & of course, gratitude to the big G 🙏
I believe that no matter where you are in this journey called life, you should always focus on the things that makes you feel alive and sparkle- sharing these pieces with all of you does that for me ♥️✨ Thank you for following along and for the love and support along the way!
Xo Aurora
Wearing Gratitude Glasses
Having a gratitude filled perspective isn’t something many of us learn in life. If you have grown up this way, you’re ahead of a lot of us, and I’m jealous of you! If you’re like the many of us who need to work at this, or even have to realize the need to work on it, this is for you!
As someone who is primarily a positive person, I get asked sometimes how I do it. If I could answer this question and give away some kind of magic secret in a 2 minute conversation, I would, but that’s not the reality of seeing your world through a grateful lens. Or as I call it, seeing the world through your Gratitude Glasses.
Having a heart full of gratitude helps you see your cup as half full! When you start going down Complaint Road and Woe Is Me Lane, it’s easy to snowball and get to a place where nothing feels good enough. This is where negativity lies, self doubt lives and the feelings of “why doesn’t anything go my way,” overwhelm you.
.
The truth is, it’s a practice to have a grateful heart; you have to work on it and it takes time. When the negative thoughts start creeping in, you need to actively remind yourself of the blessings that surround you, and the cup that’s currently half empty slowly shifts to becoming half full.
Mental Exercise time 💡💪: Doing this helps me remain present and reminded of the blessings in my life- when you wake up each morning, say 3 things to yourself that you’re grateful for. It only takes moments, but it starts your day off on the right foot and with a grateful heart ♥️
I’ll start: I’m grateful for 1️⃣ The health Baby Brunovsky has and the positive visits we keep having about her 2️⃣ My relationship with my husband and how in sync we are 3️⃣ That today is the last day of work until 1/4/21! Wooo! ✨✨
Now it’s your turn! What 3 things are you grateful for today? Can you try to start each morning this week with this exercise? It’ll start your day off with reminders of how blessed you are, even if in a tough season, and give you the opportunity to proceed into the day wearing your Gratitude Glasses.
Cheers to living the glass half full life!
Xo Aurora
Becoming Yourself Again
“Keep Taking Time For Yourself Until You’re You Again”
YOWZZAAAA
Did this hit me like a ton of bricks or what? WARNING: Lots of honesty in this post. Over the last few months, I haven’t been feeling much like myself. And when I say like myself, I mean, the person whom I thought I was; the person people tell me I am: happy, cheerful, positive, go-getting, someone who starts each day with a bright perspective etc. I know I’ve talked about it here before, but I couldn’t 100% put my finger on what it was that felt different. All I knew for certain was that I wanted a change, because something just didn’t feel right. So these last few weeks, I began asking myself:
“When was the last time you felt most like you and what were the things in your life that were making you happy?”
I pulled out my handy note-book where I do my “brain dumps,” and began jotting things down. When I felt the most like me, I was:
- Getting in some kind of physical activity multiple times a week (going for walks, going to the gym, karate etc).
- Spending time each day talking to God and feeling a stronger connection with him.
- Getting sleeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeep. My GOSH this is a big one!! My normal bedtime these days is anytime after 11:00pm. Even on
schoolwork nights! This is partially because I like spending time with my husband and catching up on our day, but it’s also partially because I have a hard time falling sleep. - Blogging regularly/connecting with readers.
- Volunteering and giving back to my local community as often as I could
- Eating/Drinking well. Less fast food, more fruits and veggies, less adult beverages, more Crystal Lite (hah, you expected me to say water?? NOPE)!
- When I felt most like me I was Confident.
- And lastly, spending time with people who inspire, motivate, challenge and excite me when I’m around them!
PHEW, what a list huh? Did any of those resonate with you too? I don’t feel like I have lost any of these completely, but they were all part of my normal routine and contributed to my overall happiness… my overall ME. So in the last few weeks, and especially this week, I’m starting to feel like I’m getting some of the old me back. It’s all of the above and making the time for them- not making excuses as to why they’re not a part of my life at the moment.
So I have to ask, when was the last time you felt like YOU? If the answer isn’t right now, I challenge you to have the courage to stop what you’re doing, and dig a little bit as to where you have been, and how to get yourself back.
My process began right before my last post, When You’re Tired, Rest. and is continuing each and every day. If there are things you need to pump the brakes on in your life to find you and your happiness again, do it. Break the plans, say “No” to things that get in the way of your path, have courage when thrusting yourself back into something that might no longer feel comfortable and r e l a x. It won’t all happen overnight, so remember to have patience with yourself. And if you need someone to help you figure out how, I’m only a few key strokes away.
To finding ourselves again,
-Aurora
Love Yourself This Valentine’s Day
Happy Valentine’s Week friends!
Ahhh I love, love. Valentine’s Day is always one of my favorite holidays because we’re taking the time to acknowledge the love in our life in a way that’s more than we typically would. I am one of those people who believe we should ALWAYS celebrate the love in our life, but I also love the day that’s devoted to it– Valentine’s Day! ❤️
There is something though, that I know many people can relate to, and feel this time of year, and that’s being alone on Valentine’s Day.
So how do you celebrate a holiday that’s focused on love, when you’re not in it?
I think an alternative to throwing a SICK Anti-Valentine’s Day Party is that you can also celebrate the love you feel in your life and the love you have for yourself. I know, not as fun and less of a party- BUT the day itself celebrates love, so why not celebrate the love you have for others (even if not romantic), and the self love you have (or need to work on) for yourself?
I think it’s so important to ALWAYS practice self-love, whether you’re in a relationship or not, so why not use the day as a treat-yo-self, love yourself, remind yourself– day that you’re worthy of love?
So to my single friends and readers, Happy Valentine’s Day- I hope you spend the day remembering that the day is about LOVE and not necessarily about being in it. I think it’s important to remember that this day is going to change meaning throughout all of our lives, so while you’re waiting for your person to enter your life, love yourself a little bit extra and remember that love surrounds you always.
To my friends and readers in relationships– I echo the above message 10 fold, and also want to remind you to use this day and appreciate, love on and reflect on the love in your life. Love is magic, and all too often, we don’t treat it each day like we do on Valentine’s Day.
On a personal note…
I’ve seen the meaning of Valentine’s Day evolve over the years in my own life. And year after year, I become more and more grateful for the love I have with my husband, our incredible family and the love we receive from close friends and people in our lives. I’ve had this day pass where I didn’t feel much love at all, and days where my heart is bursting. So this year, I’m tearing a page from all the above and just appreciating all the love I feel in my life. I know I’m surrounded by it, so that’s what I’ll celebrate this year.
My dear friends, Happy Valentine’s Day. If it makes a difference, I LOVE YOU and am sending it to you no matter where you are.
To you & your Valentines… ❤️
-Aurora
PS, Xerox also has these addddorrrrabblleeeeeee FREE card print outs if you want any for your friends or loves!!!
Pause & Be Grateful
The last few months I have been researching gratitude and prayer journals because I knew my life had been:
Go Go GO
… and I wanted to slow it down. I’ll be the first to say I know I have a blessed life, so stopping and being grateful for the goodness around me is something I wanted to make a priority. I wasn’t looking for anything fancy, just a few pages where I could visit each day and jot down what I was most grateful for. The other thing I wanted to be more intentional about, was my relationship with God & taking a few moments each day to write out what I was praying for, focus on a verse that stood out to me and lastly, write out what I’d like God to help me learn/work on in my life.
Guys- I found the jackpot!!!!
These journals serve as both my person gratitude check and check in with God… & um, they’re GORG!!!! 😻
They’re perfect! I plan on using them both starting tomorrow morning as a way I want to start my day. Beginning each morning with a grateful heart and open conversation with God is something I know will start my day off on the right, positive note. If you’re looking to increase the happiness in your life, you can start by looking at all the blessings you already have!!
The Good Days Start With Gratitude Journal & My Prayer Journal are two great (and inexpensive!) ways to begin your daily gratitude journey! Do you already practice doing daily gratitude? If you don’t and you’ve been thinking about it, here’s a nice way to get started:
I think it’s so easy to fall into negative patterns and lead a life that feels pessimistic and like there’s a rain cloud constantly over your head. Sometimes I find myself going deeper and deeper down the rabbit hole of negativity, self doubt and gossip. I believe that when you have a grateful heart, put God first and are open about your struggles/needs/imperfections, you can truly begin to see a change in yourself. This is my hope anyway, since this is going to be a practice I start today in search of that!
Don’t have a relationship with God (or any higher power)? That’s okay– if it’s for the simple fact that you don’t know where to start, I’d say this journal is a great beginning mark. I also downloaded This Bible App, because it’s free, offers daily verses and inspiration and sends you daily notifications to remind you it’s time to get your God Time in! ☑️ Honestly, it’s great.
I know we’re all on a journey to better ourselves (I’m sure that’s how you made your way to my page), so gratitude is where I want to focus next. It’s all a part of my wanting to Live Intentionally and form a life of gratitude, reflection, growth and living my best life.
I’d love to hear if you use a gratitude journal or practice gratitude in your own way in the comments! I’ll be sure to write a follow up on how the journaling is going…
To being grateful for (and aware of!) life’s blessings,
Aurora ✨
Me… 10 Years Ago Vs Now #10YearChallenge
Happy Sunday friends! I went along with the other couple million on social media and completed the #10YearChallenge a few days ago. If you have been hiding under a rock don’t know what I’m talking about- the concept is simple: you find a photo of yourself from 10 years ago and one that is current, and you post the side by side views.
WOW
The intention of this challenge was to show how different we all look after 10 years. At 31 however, I found myself looking at the girl on the left, and thinking: “WOW, if I could talk to this girl, the things I would tell her about her life to come.”
So I posted this photo on My Instagram (Click to follow) and I wrote the caption:
What would I tell Aurora Boo 10 years ago if future me had a chance to speak to her? YOU LOOK AMAZING, STOP THINKING YOU AREN’T GOOD ENOUGH AND THAT YOU NEED TO LOSE WEIGHT. Oh, and THE LOVE OF YOUR LIFE IS ON HIS WAY, HANG TIGHT GIRLFRIEND❤️ {& keep your signature picture pose- it’s gonna be a hit later down the road}! I can’t believe the #10YearChallenge just inspired my next blog post! See you all on Sunday! 😘
So here we are…
THINK about this, where were you 10 years ago and what did you think of yourself? Were you in school? Were you in a relationship? Did things feel awful? Did things feel perfect? Now I ask… how different does it look than you thought it would?
Did you think you’d be married? Did you think you’d have kids? No kids? Did you think you’d be advanced in your career? Or are you in a career you never thought you’d be in? Did you think you’d be retired already? My friends….
This is called, LIFE!… & growing up/ growing old
BUT!…. I have to laugh when I think back to myself at 21. Didn’t we all think we’d have kids in a few years and consider our 30’s being OLD? I certainly did. Never did I think that at 31 years old, I wouldn’t have at least 2-3 kids. Why did I think that? Because my parents had me and my siblings when my mom was in her 20’s… and we’re supposed to be following the footsteps of our parents, right? Man, I’m literally sitting her smirking thinking about what I thought life would be like and how it is.
I truly, wholeheartedly, love my life. Every aspect of it: the people in it, my marriage, my relationship with God, my career, my accomplishments, the life lessons (difficult and positive), and where my life is headed. It just looks so different than how the girl on the left thought it would look.
So, what would I tell the girl on the left at 21, that I know now at 31?
I would pat her on the back and tell her she’s doing a great job, even though sometimes she doesn’t feel good enough or that she’s on the right track. I would tell her that it’s okay to challenge people you love, even though you worry it’ll be perceived as disrespectful and that growing up comes with forming your own beliefs, non-negotiables and boundaries… but that kindness is imperative. I’d tell her that one day the people she’s challenging will actually appreciate her for that, and thank her for helping teach them a thing or two along the way. I’d tell her that it’s okay if you’re not 100% confident that your current relationship is the forever relationship, and that what you’re feeling in the relationship is valid, and should be heard. I’d tell her she can have more than one deep love in life and that her soul mate is out there. I’d also tell her that she’ll find him soon and to go with her gut. Lastly, I’d tell her it’s okay to say NO sometimes.
Things I would want to tell her, but I wouldn’t, because they gave her the best life experience and growth: Don’t take out more student loans than you need- future Aurora will thank you. Drop the friends that make you feel bad about yourself, or cause too much drama in your life- they’re using you for your energy, and this will eventually burn you out.
It’s amazing how this fun internet challenge really inspired me to think a little more inward. What I gained by looking back is something I will take with me looking forward: Things that are paining me now, or keep me up at night, will all iron themselves out over time, and stressing about them now, and feeling negative about them, won’t make them go away- they’ll just continue giving me stress and worry. So, looking into my next 10 years, I will try harder to shake the things that worry me, and instead focus on and LOVE the heck out of the things/people in my life that bring me joy.
Did you complete the 10 Year Challenge? If so, what would you tell yourself 10 years ago if you knew what you knew now? Would love to hear it in the comments!
Love,
Aurora ✨✨
The Reel is not Real
The reason we struggle with insecurity is because we compare our behind the scenes with everyone else’s highlight reel
I’m going to start this post with a hashtag that I’ve created: #TheReelisNotReal
How many of us become insecure because of something we see on the internet? Ladies, have you ever looked at another woman’s post and thought: “I wish I looked like that.” Have you ever seen someone’s relationship posts and thought: “I wish I was that happy in my relationship.” To the gents out there, ever see abs you wish you had or the perfect woman with the perfect guy and wish that was you? Ever see someone with the perfect job you wish you had? Welcome to Instagram and most of social media my friends.
BUT LISTEN UP::::::::
The Highlight Reel of peoples lives that you see online is not their life, I would gamble, 90% of the time! The loving relationship, perfectly fit body, amazing career, perfect hair… these are all things we want, but comparing your whole life situation to one persons post, is causing more issues and insecurity because you believe that what you’re seeing is someone’s 100% life. It ISN’T!
I do believe that majority of people who post their Highlight Reel aren’t trying to make anyone feel bad, insecure or less than them- they’re posting the things that make them feel good, proud, pretty, lucky etc. We all do that! BUT this is about our responses to the Reel. You can’t be critical of yourself over perfection you see on the internet. The perfection that most likely took:
- 25 takes
- The perfect lighting
- Face Tune
- Do-overs
- Photoshop
- etc etc etc etc etc
It is proven that depression rates have gone up in our country among children and adults because of what they compare themselves to online posts. It’s. So. Sad. But it’s also a reality. So how do you stop this? How do you feel more secure with yourself and not compare yourself to ideals you see online? I haven’t mastered this yet, but I tell myself that anyone or anything I admire on the internet, 9 times out of 10, has their own issues, too. The seemingly perfect couples gets into drag out fights, the girl with a perfect body took a half hour picking a filter and whitening her teeth with FaceTune (although I do love that app), the person who lost 100lbs (GO THEM), feels like they haven’t lost enough… it’s in all of us! And what better way to help dig yourself out of your thoughts than to realize you’re not alone? ♡
The internet is a tricky place. Especially social media. How do you fall in line with posting positive things & not airing your dirty laundry? The truth to that, I think, is being an authentic post-er. I thought about this after following an amazing initiative #Realstagram through Raw Beauty Talks and how they’re empowering instagrammers and social media gurus to be themselves online, while still posting or promoting what they are all about or trying to sell. How…? By posting a makeup-free selfie or writing the truth behind the perfect picture you just posted (*not seen: my dog bitting a hole through my favorite shoe as I capture my perfectly puckered kissy face*). I love this.
In closing, friends- try and be nice to yourself. And while you’re at it- remember that the entire internet who posts away each day feels the exact same way you do– just a tad bit insecure. But just as they share that with you, remember their posts are mainly their Highlight Reel and not their Behind The Scenes. We all have that, too. ♡
To appreciating the genuine you ★ ☆ ✰
-Aurora
Being Able To Move Forward From Personal Fears And Suffering
“People have a hard time letting go of their suffering. Out of fear of the unknown, they prefer suffering that is familiar.”
I’m so hard on myself. Do you ever feel the same? Ever have something happen to you, whether it’s a moment of something hurtful or it was over a period of time, and you just can’t let it go? You allow this occurrence to take up so much room in your heart and mind, and feel like you’re about to drive yourself crazy? In reality, I’d say it’s comparable to self torture.
You take the occurrence that happens, and allow it to snowball in your mind {to places it shouldn’t be} and let it effect your daily thoughts and mood. It’s so sad, and unnecessary for us to do this to ourselves.
While I know it is easier said than done {I’m living proof of this all time!}, it’s so important to take these burdens off your shoulders and try to move into a more positive, suffer-free future.
I’ve been thinking about this a lot lately, as I’ve had things over the last few months I let continuously bother me. Where I found that many of us do it too, is in recent situations where friends and family have shared their suffering as well.
We hold onto relations we shouldn’t, hurt ourselves with past disappointments and rather than move on from it, we sometimes stick with that suffering because it’s familiar and what we’re used to. It’s easier to stand still sometimes rather than deal with the fear of moving forward. I get it… Because I’ve done {and do} it.
So what do you do to move forward? You tell yourself what you would tell a friend… And do it. Ever feel like you can give great advice, but when it comes to taking it, you can’t? While it’s always easier said than done, you owe yourself the opportunity to move past the negative in your life and to open a new perspective.
So as I write this, I am committing to closing a door that has bothered me for awhile, and am choosing to put down a cross I have carried, knowing it will improve my overall well being and mental solitude.
Take your advice you’d give to a good friend and run with it. You deserve to put the past BEHIND you and move forward. And I’m not saying it’ll be easy, I’m saying you can’t head down the road, until you take the first step.
♡-Aurora Beani
The Weekly Sparkle 