April Showers, May Flowers #SecretSubjectSwap

Welcome to April's Secret Subject Swap. This week fourteen brave bloggers picked a secret subject for someone else and were assigned a secret subject to interpret in their own style. Today we are all simultaneously divulging our topics and submitting our posts. 

My “Secret Subject” is:

Are you showering for May?

It was submitted by: http://notthatsarahmichelle.blogspot.com

Confession.... I almost just typed out "Yes." and called it done. That would fulfill the subject. Yes? No? Well, in my head it worked. I would have felt like I took the super easy way out though. Part of me is just so bogged down these days, that the easy way was tempting. I did not join onto the Secret Subject Swap group to go the easy way. I joined to challenge myself, by allowing my fellow bloggers to challenge me, with the subjects they concoct. If you have followed my blog, you know they have certainly challenged me over the years. I like to think I have risen to the challenge, at least most of the time. I am sure I fell short here and there, but I also like to think that I have done my best, and I think that is what matters. Though, admittedly, I still struggle to consider myself a bonafide blogger.

So, of course I decided to not take the easy way out, and I spent time pondering the subject. Am I showering for May? April showers bring May flowers. Showering. Showering for May. Showering in April for preparation for May. Showering for May. My mind went to so many places, and I really wanted to go to Sarah and say... What do you mean am I showering for May? Are you trying to say I smell?! Hehe. 

At the end of the day, this is how I decided to answer this question....

Am I showering for May? Yes. Cleanliness is next to godliness, and I love to be clean, so showering just kinda comes with the territory. I am currently addicted to Soft Soap body washes, especially their pomegranate one. I am also in love with Neutrogena's RainBath. That is a love that started over twenty years ago though. I just bought a new one. The purple one. No clue what the scent is, and I am too lazy to go look at the bottle. I usually only use the orange one, which I LOVE. Have you used it? You should.

I am also planning on a few other showers.

I plan on showering Gigi with love. She will soon be four, and my threenager will be gone forever. So, I am going to love her a bit extra this month, and next. Then I will love her even more once she is four. 

I plan on showering myself with love. I think I have been too hard on myself in recent months. I think I am due for a break. So, for April, I will shower myself with love, acceptance, and appreciation.

I plan on showering myself with challenges. I have several writing challenges in place for myself this month. I also have some physical challenges in store. I have two 5ks I am doing this month. One benefits MS research, and the other benefits our local Second Harvest Food Bank. Both are causes I LOVE. 

I plan on showering my flower garden with plants, seeds, and actual water. It is that time of year, to get it in shape for the rest  of Spring and Summer. I had a talk with Gigi about the garden, and her sister in Heaven (Kateri), and explained how it is a memorial garden. So, I feel like her help with the garden will have even more significance this year, since she actually understands what it represents.

I plan on showering myself with peace. I will dive deeper into my me time and self care. I will do more meditation. I will let myself find a deeper peace. I need it. I have been feeling stressed and chaotic for too long. It is time to give myself the gift of peace.

I plan on showering my community with my time. I have a few volunteer activities planned for this month. I am also hoping to add more volunteering into my entire year. I love volunteering. It makes me happy, and I need more happy.

I plan on showering my fellow moms with love and acceptance and compassion. I want to grow even stronger in my Mommitment. The last few months, I have seen some instances of judgement among moms, that have made me believe even more, in the importance of the Mommitment movement, and I want to spread the word even more. We are all moms, who are doing our best, and we need to be built up, not judged and torn down.

I plan on showering my friends with love and encouragement.

So, yes, I am definitely showering for May. 

I am also excited for May. This is major. I normally dread May, and in some ways, I am dreading May still. I just also have some awesome things planned, that I am genuinely excited for. Kateri would have been fourteen this May. I think it is time to stop spending the entire month of May being depressed. I think it is time to start showering May with some happiness. 

I hope you enjoyed my take on my Secret Subject. How about you... are you showering for May?!?! I hope you have a lovely Friday, and an amazing weekend!! Definitely go check out what subjects my fellow bloggers received, and see how they handled them!!

Here are links to all the sites now featuring April's Secret Subject Swap posts.  Sit back, grab a drink, and check them all out. See you there:

Baking In A Tornado

Spatulas on Parade

The Diary of an Alzheimer’s Caregiver

The Lieber Family Blog

Bookworm in the Kitchen

Never Ever Give Up Hope

Simply Shannon

Southern Belle Charm

Not That Sarah Michelle

A Little Piece of Peace

The Angrivated Mom

Climaxed

When I Grow Up