Weekly Goals 7-8-12

Last week, I didn't do too bad on my weekly goals.  Not perfect.  But, definitely progress.  So, I'm going to try it again this week!

Spiritual Life

• Try to find a better study time.  Some options are:
• First thing in the morning
• Right after my morning shower
• After lunch
• After dinner (my least favorite since I am often at work at this time)

• Be more consistent in praying for requests on my list. 
• I was really convicted at church this morning about the joy (or lack thereof) in my life lately.  I've been letting a situation in my life rob me of my joy and I have been feeling sorry for myself.  I confessed this, but need to really work on the internal dialogue I've come to use and focus on my blessings.  I need to spend a lot of time in prayer about this and also catch myself when I slip.

Family Life - DH goes back to work Monday

• Play a board game with my kids
• Have kids help with dinner one night this week
• Try to get everything done before DH gets home from work so I can spend more time with him

Home Life

• Clean the bathroom thoroughly.
• Use grout whitening pen I bought and then seal the grout
• Wipe down daily
• Sweep and mop kitchen and living room
• Finish cleaning in the playroom/schoolroom
• Vacuum the basement
• At LEAST one load of laundry a day

Church Life

• Find a song to sing at church and practice
• Attend church on Wednesday evening

Physical Life

• Make a point to go to bed at a good hour
• Start tracking everything I eat!
• Drink more water.  I need to keep a bottle filled and at hand throughout the day.
• Exercise at least once this week.  I know this is smaller than last weeks, goal, but I also didn't reach that goal.  So, I'm starting even smaller.  My best friend and I have a plan to go to a dance aerobics class on Thursday.

Social Life

• Attend dance aerobics with my best friend
• Message another friend

Financial Life

• Update budget software everyday
• Do not overspend!
• Send extra payments for debt snowball

Mental Life

• Go to library on MONDAY.  Not "sometime this week."  MONDAY!
• Continue working on blog

Homeschool Life

• Put together bookcase
• Finish organizing schoolroom
• Start printing notebooking pages for next year and create a filing system for them
• Buy math curriculum
• Start planning Five in a Row lessons and buy a couple of the books

Week in Review 7-1-12

I already posted earlier today, but I wanted to come back and review my weekly goals and see how I did.  After all, why set goals if I'm not going to check and make sure I achieved them, right?  I'm not expecting perfection, just progress.  I'll copy my list over from this past Sunday and add my results in blue.

Spiritual life

• Read my Bible each day and write something in my journal. I read my Bible most days, but not all.  I still need to find a better study time and that will probably be on my list of goals for next week. 
• Pray for the requests on my Prayer List.  I did pray for several of these requests and added a few new ones.  But, I didn't pray for them all.

Family life - DH is on vacation, so this is a big priority this week.

• Take the kids to a 4th of July community party.  Huey Lewis and the News will be preforming!  This was the very first group I ever saw in concert when I was 5 years-old.  Now, it will be the first group my own kids see in concert!  I am so excited!  Sadly, we decided at the last minute that it was just too hot to go stand around with a few tens of thousands of people.  It was 105 degrees out and DH was already feeling a little yucky.  But, there were lots of fireworks in our neighborhood and we watched a movie instead.
• Take the kids to see the new Spiderman movie.  DH is excited about this one. Saw it and it was great!  I actually liked it more than the Tobey Maguire (Yes, spellcheck.  Google says that IS how you spell his name) version.  DH said it was more accurate, too, which is important to him.  Most importantly, the kids loved it.
• Lots of swimming! We did go swimming several times, but once again the heat took its toll.  We are in the middle of a really bad heat wave and it has made our pool more like a hot tub.  DH looked at the thermometer tonight and the water was 101 degrees.  It sort of makes swimming less fun.
• Call my mom lots and invite her to dinner one night.  My dad is gone on a fishing trip for two weeks and she has a hard time being away from him.  It is really pretty sweet!  My mom wasn't able to come over when I invited her last night.  But, the kids and I did go shopping with her for several hours today.  Since my dad will still be gone next week, I'm going to ask her early in the week to come to dinner on Thursday or Friday.

Home life - This is all about the house!

• Keep the kitchen clean!  I actually cleaned it this past week (I even cleaned the fridge!) and I want it to stay that way.  This went pretty well.  I even got a few more things done!  But, the bathroom (our one and only) isn't looking too pretty.  In my defense, we did re-caulk the tub and toilet tonight and things can't go back where they belong until tomorrow.
• Go through one room of the house each day and find things to sell at the yard sale I am planning next Saturday.  Even the yard sale got delayed because of the heat.  But, I did go through several rooms and everything has price tags, is in boxes, and ready to be taken to my parents' house.
• Grocery shopping (I don't always go every week) Check!

Church life -  This is actually going to be blank this week.  Services were cancelled this evening because we had a big fellowship this afternoon.  And services are cancelled on Wednesday so people can spend 4th of July with their family.

Physical life

• I need to really start watching what I eat!  I am going to make a point to eat smaller portions.  I didn't always make good choices this week, but I was more conscious.  I think I need to make more concrete goals.

Exercise at least two days this week.  I am going to start out small.  This is more than I do now.  I did do a lot of physical work around the house and I did do a little exercise in the pool.  But, for the most part this was a fail this week.  I'm not going to let it get me down, though
 
Social life - With DH home, I won't be doing much socializing with friends.  But, I still need to make a point to do a couple of things.

• Call my best friend to chat a little. Check!
• Message another good friend.  Check!  Plus, I got to find out that she is expecting twin boys!  I knew she was having twins (her second set!), but she just found out they are both boys this week.  How exciting!

Financial life - DH and I are doing Dave Ramsey's Total Money Makeover.

• Yard sale on Saturday.  Put extra money earned toward rebuilding our $1000 emergency fund (we had to spend some when DH had a car accident a couple months ago) Like I said, this was canceled because of the heat.  Good thing, too.  It was a boiling 110 today!  I'll have it in a few weeks when it cools down.  Maybe the first week of August.
• Pay bills  Check!  We even made a little more money than we planned this last pay period and were able to finish up our baby emergency fund and have an extra $200 to put toward our debt snowball!
• Work on worksheets for Teacher's Pay Teacher's store I have with my best friend. With DH home, this got pushed to the back burner this week.  But, I'm back on it next week.

Mental life

• Visit library and check out a couple books Oops!  Our library books are now a couple of days overdue.  I really need to do this next week.  I admit that I just has a bit of a stress out moment.  I want to do this ASAP, but I work Monday evening and I really need to go to the grocery store.  I could go to the store tomorrow, but it is supposed to storm.  I probably just need to suck it up and go to the store.  That means I'll have to plan my menu and make my list tonight.  *Sigh*  There goes watching an episode of Bones.

Homeschool life

• Go through stuff on our school shelves and get rid of stuff we no longer use.  Sell what I can at the yard sale.  Check! 
• Make a list of needed supplies. Check!  Plus, we also had some extra money (I'll have to explain that some other time.  It is something interesting I am learning this month) that went toward school supplies.  This allowed me to purchase another small bookcase for our schoolroom.  Yay!

 
Overall, I'm pretty happy with my progress this week.  There is still a lot to work on, but I felt like I had a pretty good week.  I got a lot accomplished and got to spend some great time with my DH and the kids!

Church Life & Social Life

I'm combining the two categories into one post today.  I figure neither requires too much background and my goals are pretty straightforward.  So, neither would be a long enough post by itself.

Church Life

I guess I'll start by pointed out the obvious.  "Church Life" is a separate category from "Spiritual Life."  Although the two are obviously woven together and overlap in many ways, they aren't one in the same.  No matter how much time I spend at church or doing ministries, it isn't going to get me into Heaven or save me.  For that, you can see this post on my Spiritual Life.  But, I do believe that church is important.  It is a place to learn, to grow, to be encouraged, to be challenged, to serve the Lord, and to fellowship with brothers and sisters in Christ.

Where I Was and Where I am Now

I have attended the same church since I was 5 years-old.  Our church has been through many ups and downs over the years.  But, one thing has always stayed the same - we look to the Bible as our only authority.  God gave us His Word so that we may know Him.  So, I can always be sure to find good, solid, Bible preaching at my church.  For that I am SO thankful!

I've been involved in different ministries over the years.  Right now, I don't really have any ministries I am involved in constantly.  Instead, I get involved in special occasion ministries.  Things like VBS and the Harvest Festival.  This is what is best for my family right now.  But,it has taken some getting used to.  I actually clung to a few things much longer than I should have.  I was overwhelmed and not doing my best in the things I was involved in.  At this stage of my life when I am homeschooling and working, I need to focus on those tasks that God has given me and do my best at them.  When I am stretched too thin, something always has to give.

Where I Want to Be

Eventually, I want to become involved in more ministries at my church.  I honestly don't know when, or what, that will be, though.  I'm waiting on God to show me each step of the way.    In the meantime, I will continue with my seasonal ministries and enjoy the fellowship and preaching!

Social Life

Where I Was and Where I am Now

I am shy.  Most people who know me probably aren't aware of this fact, because I'm also a good actress.  They probably have no idea of my panicked internal dialogue while I am smiling and making small talk.  

Small talk is often a problem for me.  Unless I really know someone, I often have no clue what to say.  Good, in-depth conversation I can handle.  But, how often do you have that with an acquaintance?  With acquaintances you have small talk.  My mind races the entire time trying to think of what to say.  More often than not, I come up completely blank.

I can be sitting in a room full of people I know and be sitting by myself with no one to talk to.  I'm terrified to walk up to someone and just start a conversation!  Mostly because I have no clue what to say.  I am always thankful for a specific topic that can start a conversation.  Shared tasks are great for this!  But, to just go up and start talking to someone with no definite purpose?  Terrifying!

I'm always afraid people will think I am unfriendly.  I realize that I probably look that way.  Especially since most people would never guess that I am actually shy.  After all, I don't fit the stereotype.  I look people in the eye, I'm not quite, I smile a lot, I'm not afraid to speak in front of a crowd, and I am comfortable in leadership positions.  It is just small talk that I have a problem with!

My best friend and me

I do have friends, though.  Good friends.   I've always tended to have a few, very close friends I can share intimate details of my life with rather than a bunch of friends who I just hang out with.  I've already mentioned my best friend.  She and I see each other pretty often.  One of the ways we spend time together is on Saturday shopping trips.  I rarely by anything, but the two of us pack up my kids and spend the day shopping and talking.

My other closest friend is someone I met just about a year ago.  When we met, we had so much in common that our friendship just came naturally.  She is a homeschooler, too, with kids around the same age as mine.  So, we have a lot to talk about!

Where I Want to Be

When I imagine the person that I really want to be - the "perfect" version of me - she is really outgoing and friendly.  She encourages others and always has a kind word.  But, when I really think about it, I realize that this is not me.  But, I can take parts of this person and integrate them into my life.

I can work to be more encouraging to others.  I can purposely look for things to complement and praise.  I can work to listen more and panic less when talking to people.  Most of all, I can pray that God would help me in this area.  I can ask Him to help me to love others as He loves them. 

Overall, I need to have realistic expectation of myself.  But, that doesn't mean I have no expectations!  I need to set very solid, real goals and work, little-by-little, to grow in this area.

Home Life

The first two of my goal categories that I talked about (Spiritual Life and Family Life) are always my top priorities.  The rest of the categories move around on my priority list depending on what is going on in my life at the time.  For example, when I'm planning the Harvest Fest at my church, Church Life moves up toward the top of my list.  Or, if I'm sick, Physical Life move up.

But, this category, Home Life, is one that I often let slide down to the bottom whenever anything else comes up.  And something is always coming up!  I know that it needs to be up in the top four, if not three, at all times.  But, because I dread this category so much, I don't make it a priority.  I know I should.  I could list a million reasons (it shows love to my family, it make my other categories easier, if I keep on top of things it won't be as big of a job, etc.)  I KNOW all this.  I even believe all this.  But, putting it into practice...that's a different story.

I'm a slob.  If my kids are an area I can point to and say, "I'm doing a good job," then housekeeping is an area where I can point and say, more often than not, "I'm failing."  Cleaning does not come naturally to me.  I detest doing it.  But, I love being in a clean house.  And, it is my job to make it that way.

Where I Was

Believe it or not, I've actually improved in this area over the last couple of years.  There was a time when you couldn't walk through my house without stepping on something.  I would do huge cleaning sprees, but I just couldn't KEEP it clean.   I've read other blogs, I followed Flylady for a long time, and I've tried several different systems.  They would all work great for a while.  But, my natural tenancies would start to creep back in ("The bathroom isn't really dirty.  It can wait until tomorrow.") and I'd be right back where I started.  I was overwhelmed by the task in front of me.  And, if I couldn't do it right, why bother doing it at all?  So, I just didn't do it.

Just in case you didn't believe me, here is a pic of my living room/dining room from a few years ago.  This was "normal."  Poor kids.  I'm so ashamed!

Where I am Now

When I started homeschooling I quickly realized that I had to do better just to function.  I took some of the good things I learned from Flylady and other things I'd read or heard and developed some good habits.  I started to do dishes every. single. day.  I started making my bed every day.  I started cleaning up more.  Little by little, "normal" started to look better and better.  Little by little, my standards are rising.  Right now, I am working on packing stuff up for a yard sale and my living room is full of boxes and junk.  It is driving me nuts!  There was a time it wouldn't have bothered me at all.

Things are still far from perfect.  My house is still pretty messy compared to most people's standards.  But, I am seeing an improvement.   In fact, my DH just thanked me last night for working hard and keeping the house cleaner (Poor guy.  He is so patient with me!).  It literally brought tears to my eyes.  If you have an area that you struggle with like I do housekeeping, you will understand the importance of encouragement when you actually do something right.

Where I Hope to Be

I would love to have a home that my family loves spending time in - a place where friends and family are always welcome and feel comfortable visiting.  For the first time in my life I see this as a very real possibility and not just a pipe dream.  My progress over the last year has given me hope that, with God's help, I CAN do it!

Hopefully, this blog will serve as some accountability.  If I imagine (and I have a vivid imagination) that somewhere out there, some other woman is sitting at her computer reading this while her kids play in the background and she is cheering me on and watching to see how I do,  I can use that to spur me on. 

Family Life

The last two days, I've talked about the first of my goal categories, Spiritual Life.  Tuesday's post was pretty long.  But, in order for anyone to understand the journey that I am taking in my spiritual life, my goals in the area, or my motivations, you have to understand WHY I am a follower of Christ. Yesterday, I posted more on my current spiritual life and what my hopes are for the future. 

Today I'm moving on with the second most important category: Family Life.

Ever since I was a little girl, I've known what I wanted to be.  I've wanted to be a wife and a mommy.  Some girls dream of being doctors or lawyers or even garbage collectors (this is seriously what my sister used to say she wanted to be - she was a weird child).  Since I knew I had to plan for a career, I chose to go to college and major in education.  After all, I really do love teaching others.  I didn't end up getting that degree, but I'll come back to that another day.

The Love of my Life

I met my wonderful husband when I was just thirteen and he was twelve.  We were in the same gifted program at school.  We also had several friends in common, so often ended up hanging out together after school.  We quickly became friends.  For the next 11 years or so, he would remain on my list of my closest friends - the ones I could talk to about anything.  He family moved a few towns away and he switched schools for high school.  But, we'd still talked on the phone occasionally.  No matter how long it had been since the last time we talked, we always picked right back up as best friends who could share our thought, feeling, and dreams with each other.

My Wedding Day

Then, when I was 24, we connected again after a long period of time during which I was away at college.  But, this time, something was different.  It didn't take me long to realize that I was in love and that this was the man I wanted to marry.  A little over a year later, that's just what happened.  I married my best friend!  He'll now tell you that he had been in love with me since he was 13 and it didn't surprise him a bit.  But, I guess I'm a slow learner.

I am thankful every day that God gave me such a wonderful man as my husband.  He isn't prefect, but he is perfect for me.  

My Kids

My beautiful twins!

Finding out I was pregnant was a surprise.  Finding out I was having twins was a shock!

From Day 1 my kids have been as opposite as can be.   My son (whose nickname is Bubby or Bub) is laid back and easy going.  He is also sensitive and has the biggest heart!  He loves to help others and cries when his sister gets in trouble.  My daughter (Sissy or Sis) is driven and works hard - a real go-getter!  She loves to socialize and makes friends easily.

Being their mom is what I believe God put me on this earth for. They are wonderful kids.  And I must have at least a little to do with that!  They are the thing in my life that I can, with confidence, point to and say "I'm good at that.  I have succeeded with that." Please don't think I'm saying I'm perfect.  I'm definitely not.  I don't always do things right, but overall, I am winning at being a mom. 

Raising them is truly a joy!  Plus, as a homeschooling mom, I get to combine my love for teaching with my love of my kids.  It doesn't get any better than that!

The Rest of my Family

Family means a lot to me.  My extended family is really close.  My grandma, uncles, aunts, cousins, and cousin's kids all get together throughout the year.  Not just for holidays.  But, for all the kids birthdays, special events, or just hanging out.

My more immediate family, (parents, sister & brother-in-law) see each other even more often.  My mom watches my kids for me when I work in the evenings, so they are at my parent's house a couple times a week.  My mom and I also talk on the phone at least once a day.  My dad takes my son to Cub Scouts since my DH has to work and is always available if I need a handyman.

My sister is nine years younger than me.  So, our relationship isn't like most sister relationships.  But, she is one of my favorite people in the world.  She gives Bubby tennis lessons and she and her hubby often takes the kids on outings.  I'll give my brother-in-law a shout out, too.  He is a great uncle and friend.  Together, they have recently started their own blog.  It is nothing like mine, though.  In fact, it is just about as different from my blog as my sister is from me.  Their blog is about baseball.  More specifically, their goal to visit every MLB ballpark.  It is called The Ballpark Project.

And I can't forget my "second sister," my best friend.  We met when we were roommates in college and she is just like another sister to me.  She attends all our family events and is great with my kids!  They love her just like an aunt.  Together, the two of us are working on building a Teachers-Pay-Tachers store. 

Where I Hope to Be

Like other areas of my life, I have goals here, too.  I am constantly working on being a better wife, mother, daughter, and sister.  But, wife and mother are definitely my priorities.  I am working to pay attention to how I spend my time when my whole family is home.  I don't want to be working on projects or cleaning the house when I could be spending time with my family.  This is an area I need to work on.  I know that all it will take is better time management!

I also have goals in other areas that will help with this.  One of our financial goals is for me to be able to quit my job and be a full-time stay-at-home mom.  That will give me more time with my kids, and a LOT more time with my DH.  And, as my housekeeping improves, we will be able to do more around the house.  Gathering at the table for a board game is hard when it is covered with junk!

Tomorrow, I will post more about that with my Home Life category.  

Spiritual Life: Where I am and Where I Hope to Be

I posted earlier about where I started out in my spiritual life.  I really do promise this will be the longest of these posts about my categories.  There is just so much wonderful information to share about why I am a Christian and why I am where I am today because of Christ that I couldn't help it!  That brings me to...

Where I Am :

I am a Christian saved by God's grace.  That doesn't mean I'm perfect.  Far from it!  In fact, much of this blog is about my failures.  I want to learn from then and become a better person as a result.  My spiritual life is no different!

I know how important reading my Bible is.  I know how important it is to pray.  If my goal is to be more like Christ, I have to know what He was like, right?  I have to understand Him better and know His character.  I also have to talk with Him.  I have to share myself with Him in prayer.

But, this is another are I often fail.  It is something I need to improve.  It is one of my goals.

I started a read-through-the-Bible-in-a-year program this year.  I use the YouVersion app on my phone and iPad.  I'm behind.  REALLY behind.  But, I haven't given up.  Some days (a lot of days) I just don't read the entire days worth of readings.  Why?  Time is part of it.  But, it has more to do with quality vs. quantity.  If I can get in 10 minutes of reading where I can really concentrate and focus on God and what He has to say, that is better than 30 minutes with kids interrupting, DH trying to talk to me, or my own cloudy brain not staying focused.  So, I often don't finish a whole days reading every day.  I might stretch it out for a couple of day.

But, I have recently started a journal that helps me make the most of this limited time.  While I read, I write down any thoughts that come to me.  Questions, inspirations, things I want to remember, prayer requests...whatever I happen to think about.  I also have a section in it for prayer requests.  But, I need a better system for that.

Where I Hope to Be:

My biggest goal right now is to consistently read my Bible daily and pray continuously throughout the day.  This is hardest to do on days that I work.  I generally read my Bible at night since I am hardly ever up before my kids in the morning.  But, when I don't get home until midnight or later, I'm just ready to fall into bed.  I need to come up with a better plan!  So, I might try to experiment with different times over the next few weeks/months to come up with something better.  I know I can't be the only one with this problem.  I'd love to hear any ideas someone has to share!

Spiritual Life: Where I Was

So, here it goes!  A little insight into where I started, where I am now, and what I hope for the future.

I'll start with the category "Spiritual life."

Funny, until I wrote that, I thought this would be a quick once-over of my life.  But, this category alone requires so much more!  I promise, though that this one will be the longest.  Simply because it includes more explanation since many people won't understand without it.  As a result, it is going to have to be broken down by where I was and where I am and where I hope to be due to length.

Where I was:

I was 5 year-old when I first heard about Jesus.  Now, I might have heard the name at Christmas time or Easter (or as a swear word) before that.  But, I didn't know anything about Him.  I didn't know who He was or what He had done.  I didn't know that He was important or that He mattered.  But, when I was five, my dad started taking me to church.

The first thing I learned about Jesus was that He loved me.  You all know the song "Jesus Loves Me."  I think that might be the first song almost every kid in church learns.  It is so simple, yet expresses something so deep.  How do we know that Jesus loves us?  Well, the Bible tells us so, silly!  So, what exactly does it say?

Romans 5:8 says:

But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.

And therein is the Gospel.  I learned that I was a sinner.  Once I knew what that word meant, I knew it was true.  So many people think of murder or robbery when they think of sin.  You know, things you would go to jail for.  But, sin simply means disobeying God's commands.  The 10 Commandments (found in Exodus 20) can give you a good picture of how I knew I had disobeyed.

Commandment 1:

Thou shalt have no other gods before ME.

Commandment 2:

Thou shalt not make unto thee any graven image, or any likeness of any thing that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth:

Thou shalt not bow down thyself to them, nor serve them: for I the LORD thy God am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children unto the third and fourth generation of them that hate me;

And showing mercy unto thousands of them that love me, and keep my commandments

Commandment 3:

Thou shalt not take the name of the LORD thy God in vain; for the LORD will not hold him guiltless that taketh his name in vain.

Commandment 4:

Remember the sabbath day, to keep it holy.

Ex 20:9 Six days shalt thou labour, and do all thy work:

Ex 20:10 But the seventh day is the sabbath of the LORD thy God: in it thou shalt not do any work, thou, nor thy son, nor thy daughter, thy manservant, nor thy maidservant, nor thy cattle, nor thy stranger that is within thy gates:

Ex 20:11 For in six days the LORD made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that in them is, and rested the seventh day: wherefore the LORD blessed the sabbath day, and hallowed it.

Commandment 5:

Honour thy father and thy mother: that thy days may be long upon the land which the LORD thy God giveth thee

Comandment 6:

Thou shalt not kill.

Commandment 7:

Thou shalt not commit adultery.

Commandment 8:

Thou shalt not steal.

Commandment 9:

Thou shalt not bear false witness against thy neighbour.

Commandment 10:

Thou shalt not covet thy neighbour's house, thou shalt not covet thy neighbour's wife, nor his manservant, nor his maidservant, nor his ox, nor his ass, nor any thing that is thy neighbour's 

Clearly, even as a child, I was guilty of many of these!  I had lied to my mom, disobeyed my dad, been jealous of my cousin's new toys, and, since I didn't even know God, He certainly wasn't number one in my life. 

So, I knew I was a sinner.  Where did that leave me?   Well, that verse I shared, Romans 5:8, said that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.  What does that mean?  Well, our sin required a perfect sacrifice.  That sacrifice was Jesus Christ.  He shed His blood for our sins.  He gave Himself so that we could be forgiven!

But how do we receive that forgiveness?  First we have to admit that we have sinned.  Next, we have to confess and repent of our sins to God.  We have to be willing to turn from our sin.  We will still fail sometimes, but we have to make an effort not to sin anymore.  We have to believe that Christ died for us on the cross and can forgive our sins.  And we have to receive Christ into our heart by asking for that forgiveness and for Him to be Lord of our life.  When we do that, we are forgiven, saved, redeemed, and become a child of God.   And that is just what I did!  

My life since then has been far from perfect.  I've failed.  I've sinned.  I've been angry at God.  But, throughout it all, God never gave up on me.  He loved me.  He lifted me up.  He forgave me!  I have never regretted the decision to follow Christ.  I don't know how I would have made it through some dark times without Him.  

If you have any questions, please let me know!  I love to talk about what Jesus has done for me and would be happy to talk with you.  If you want more information, you may find this site helpful: Need Him. 

 

One Step Behind

I didn't post yesterday.  In the past, I would have seen this as a sign of failure.  Like I was one step behind and I would already be dreading catching up.  That dread would make me just quit.  After all, why try when you are just going to fail?

Honestly, it still feels that way.  But, the difference is, I realize that is a lie and I'm not going to give in to it.  So, I'm back today.  I'm posting and I'm not giving up.

Yesterday was a long, busy day.  I got up and started working on planning a menu for the week and making a shopping list.  Then, I headed to the grocery store.  When I got back I had just enough time to eat lunch before heading to work.  I was at work late (I got home around 1:30 this morning) because it was the first day with a new computer system and we were really behind.  I'm tired this morning (DD work me up too early!) and I need to go back to work tonight.  But, I'm going to suck it up and work to reach some of my weekly goals.

Speaking of goals...I mentioned that I might come back and go a little more in depth about each of my goal setting categories.  I figure that, even though no one is reading this blog now, someone, someday, might.  And that future-reader might want to know a little more about why I'm writing and what I hope to accomplish.  Since this blog is all about the work God is doing in my life, you - wonderful, dear, imaginary reader - will need to know where I started in order to really understand the journey.


I'll start that in my next post (which I'll write right after this).  I don't want these posts to become novels or for things to get lost in the vast sea of words that I tend to put forth when pen (or fingers) hits paper (or keyboard).  Be back in a jiffy!

Weekly Goals: 7-1-12

Here are my goals for this week.

Spiritual life

• Read my Bible each day and write something in my journal
• Pray for the requests on my Prayer List

Family life - DH is on vacation, so this is a big priority this week.

• Take the kids to a 4th of July community party.  Huey Lewis and the News will be preforming!  This was the very first group I ever saw in concert when I was 5 years-old.  Now, it will be the first group my own kids see in concert!  I am so excited!
• Take the kids to see the new Spiderman movie.  DH is excited about this one.
• Lots of swimming!
• Call my mom lots and invite her to dinner one night.  My dad is gone on a fishing trip for two weeks and she has a hard time being away from him.  It is really pretty sweet!

Home life - This is all about the house!

• Keep the kitchen clean!  I actually cleaned it this past week (I even cleaned the fridge!) and I want it to stay that way.  
• Go through one room of the house each day and find things to sell at the yard sale I am planning next Saturday.
• Grocery shopping (I don't always go every week)

Church life -  This is actually going to be blank this week.  Services were cancelled this evening because we had a big fellowship this afternoon.  And services are cancelled on Wednesday so people can spend 4th of July with their family.

Physical life

• I need to really start watching what I eat!  I am going to make a point to eat smaller portions.
• Exercise at least two days this week.  I am going to start out small.  This is more than I do now.

Social life - With DH home, I won't be doing much socializing with friends.  But, I still need to make a point to do a couple of things.

• Call my best friend to chat a little
• Message another good friend.

Financial life - DH and I are doing Dave Ramsey's Total Money Makeover.

• Yard sale on Saturday.  Put extra money earned toward rebuilding our $1000 emergency fund (we had to spend some when DH had a car accident a couple months ago)
• Pay bills
• Work on worksheets for Teacher's Pay Teacher's store I have with my best friend.

Mental life

• Visit library and check out a couple books

Homeschool life

• Go through stuff on our school shelves and get rid of stuff we no longer use.  Sell what I can at the yard sale.
• Make a list of needed supplies.
  

Setting Goals

A while back I was part of a ladies' Bible study at my church where we read the book, A Woman's High Calling: 10 Essentials for Godly Living by Elizabeth George.  I highly recommend this book.  In fact, I read it again just a few months ago because I needed a refresher.

One of the things that she wrote about that really stood out to me was her attempt to keep her life balanced.  In chapter 13, Mrs. George wrote about the way she sets goals and figures out her priorities.  She targeted several key areas of her life and writes goal for each of those areas each week.  Some of the areas she includes are:

• Spiritual life
• Family life
• Home life
• Church life
• Physical life
• Social life
• Finacial life
• Mental life

This process really stuck with me.  But, I admit that I haven't always done it consistently.  I know that when I do, it really helps, but I sometimes let life get in the way.  But, now that I have this lovely little blog, I am going to try and be consistent with this.  Perhaps this blog will serve as a sort of accountability.

When it comes to the term balance, I've come to a realization.  Every day is not going to be balanced.  Sometimes, entire weeks won't be balanced (VBS week last month jumps to mind!).  But, overall, I can't neglect whole areas of my life.  This is something I have been guilty of when it comes to housekeeping and when it comes to my physical life.  But, if I can write goals for every week, it will help me really see when I am neglecting an area of my life.

So, each Sunday I am going to write down my goals for the coming week.  My categories are going to be a little different than Mrs. George's - after all, I'm a different woman!  I know that "Homeschool life" is going to have to be a part of my list since I homeschool my kids.  I also know that my categories me change as my life changes.

This week, I am going to start with my weekly goals and each day I might explain a little more about each category, where I am in that area, and where I hope to be in the future.

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