Good morning blogger friends!
I am so blessed to work in education and to receive almost 2 paid weeks off of work during the Christmas break. Not only is it a blessing in the fact that it is paid, but since the whole university is closed there isn't any work to pile up while I am gone!
The break was busy with the normal holiday stuff. Multiple "Christmases" due to meeting with different pieces of family. Shopping. Cooking and Baking. The Monday following Christmas the flooring people arrived to give us new flooring in our entire house with the exception of the bathroom. I new it would be chaotic, but it ended up being way more chaotic that I expected. We had to move literally EVERYTHING in our house from one room to another (some things went out side on the covered back porch and somethings went out front on the drive way) in as organized as a way as we could possibly handle but I am convinced no level of planning can prepare you for the realization of how much stuff you have that you seriously need to get rid of!
Normally on the break I have time to really contemplate the upcoming new year and to assess the soon to be past year...I didn't have a lot of time to do that. So, this post is my attempt to get the thinking I was able to recorded and to make some hard core commitments for the year. I have just made some fresh coffee so let me pour a cup and then I will get started. Go ahead, get you a cup of warmth too...I will wait....
As I write I am going to highlight my goals along with the action items that go with them. I will then write these goals down, by hand, and read them everyday this year. It is proven doing so will help one to be more successful. I will also make a checklist of sorts for each goal to check off through the year.
The first thing I committed to before the new year started and before we received our new flooring was to remove from our house a box a week of "stuff". I am not going to take the time to post it on an online garage sale and frustrate myself with setting up times to meet people and to maintain the posts. I am taking the boxes to a local good will and to another local place that helps those in need. Since good goals are trackable I am creating a page in my planner to keep track of the boxes each week. I will also track how many bags of trash I gather and toss as a result of cleaning out our stuff. I don't have a set goal on bags but I am curious to know plus I think it will encourage me to keep it up! Can you imagine....52 boxes of stuff gone? I am looking forward to it.
Another thing I committed to before the new year was to improve my health. Last year I really made great strides in my health and weight. This year I plan to continue and even kick it up a notch. I am already back on Whole30. My goal is to make Whole30 more of a lifestyle rather than 30, 45 or 60 days of something different. I will do this by tracking my food daily - does that sound overwhelming? Well how bad do I want the success that comes with it? Pretty bad. I must be willing to do something different to obtain something I don't currently have. So I will track daily and either give myself a star for a Whole30 day or not. I also committed to a number on the scale. I have gone back and forth on this one. Do I focus on a number on the scale or a range on the scale?? I have chosen a number...190 or less. This will require me to lose more weight than I did last year, but all in all losing it last year was fairly easy, with a little more effort and focus this should not be too hard. I will log my weight monthly. Work out a minimum of 3x a week - right now that is crossfit - I am allowing myself to change it up if I choose, like with Zumba or a Spinning Class. However, this goal does not include walking/wogging/jogging. That is a separate goal. A minimum of 5 miles a week walking/wogging/jogging. This year I plan to get to the 39 minute arena on my 5K times.
Create and put into work my new War Room - if you don't know what I am talking about here, I highly recommend that you see the movie. With the new flooring and older children moving out I now have a spare bedroom. We moved our youngest to the larger bedroom and made the smallest room our spare bedroom/office. After seeing the movie I decided it was no longer an office, but a War Room instead! Right now it is in a bit of a chaotic state but there is not reason I can't get started on some important things that need to take place. Most importantly I am going to spend designated focused time with God daily in this room! This is also where I will do my homework and take care of our household stuff. Since my desk has been a catchall in the past, that stops NOW. Instead of scattering the bills, important papers and such around the house - they will have a spot on my desk - a spot, not all over the desk. At a minimum, weekly I will tend to these. I will use this spot for menu making and grocery list making. This keeps everything central and clean. It minimizes losing things. I am looking forward to this room this year! Along these same lines I am going to use my planner/calendar better this year. In the past I was so much more organized using my paper planner but with the advances in technology I have tried to adapt with minimal success. Back to what works!
Finally, this one I just added today. There is a blog on blogger called Beaver Tales that is written by Cari Beaver. She recently put out a Less/More list. I have printed it and plan to read over it daily to keep these things in my frontal lobe. I encourage each of you to check it out. I strongly believe we can all benefit from this list.
Thank you for spending this time with me today! I hope it has been as helpful for you as it has been for me! Over the next few days or weeks I will expand on some of these things for my benefit and hopefully for yours too.
D. J.
Monday, January 4, 2016
Thursday, November 5, 2015
Randomness
I think sometimes I go to hard and worry too much and then I get "sick". Fortunately, I think I caught this one before it blew into a full blown, go to the doctor, kinda sick. I haven't felt great for the past couple of days, super tired and headaches. I considered it to be the withdrawals from carbs since starting Whole30 this time. But, when I did Whole30 before I sure didn't feel like this. This morning I could not deny I was not feeling good at all. I hate that I am not superwoman but I stayed home rather than toughing through it and risking getting sick. I slept a solid 8 hours last night. Woke up feeling like I could sleep a lot more. Got Brandy ready for school, met pops for breakfast, was back in my bed by 8:30 and I slept until 2:00. A phone call from my hubby checking on me woke me up. I still feel a bit odd - but I think maybe a bit better. It's 8:53 PM right now and I am ready to head back to bed.
My previous post stated that my husband was doing Whole30 this time with me. He lasted a day and two thirds...he was kinda making fun of Whole30 and I asked/told him that wasn't being very supportive of me to which he responded that he had a whole new respect for me being able to do Whole30...brownie points for him! I am sad he didn't make it though. I really would like him to feel the goodness after sticking to it for just a short amount of time.
I have stuck to Whole30 today - it wasn't that hard since I slept a better part of it ;-). So this is Day 5. I am still excited to be on this journey again. I do feel like this is forward progress. I feel more confident than ever that I am going to make it to a much healthier and lighter me. I am tired of this being one of my battles in life. I have other battles to tackle. So, my healthy lifestyle needs to become natural for me, without effort.
Days like today always make me ponder life a little bit. Today I realize I am way to stressed and worried. It takes a lot for me to actually recognize that in myself. I need to rethink how I am approaching life right now. With mom passing and dad become a bigger priority a lot of worry has settled in. I want to do what is right and best for him. That's a big burden. But the fact is, he is a grown man, totally able to make his own decision at this point in his life, and I may be taking on more than I should at this time. Like, thinking I need to do certain things before they actually need to be done. He is very capable of taking care of himself for the most part. I need to let go a little bit. I also just need to breathe and take everything in stride. I don't know. I just know I can't keep getting so worked up.
That's my random post for today.
Until my next post.
D. J.
My previous post stated that my husband was doing Whole30 this time with me. He lasted a day and two thirds...he was kinda making fun of Whole30 and I asked/told him that wasn't being very supportive of me to which he responded that he had a whole new respect for me being able to do Whole30...brownie points for him! I am sad he didn't make it though. I really would like him to feel the goodness after sticking to it for just a short amount of time.
I have stuck to Whole30 today - it wasn't that hard since I slept a better part of it ;-). So this is Day 5. I am still excited to be on this journey again. I do feel like this is forward progress. I feel more confident than ever that I am going to make it to a much healthier and lighter me. I am tired of this being one of my battles in life. I have other battles to tackle. So, my healthy lifestyle needs to become natural for me, without effort.
Days like today always make me ponder life a little bit. Today I realize I am way to stressed and worried. It takes a lot for me to actually recognize that in myself. I need to rethink how I am approaching life right now. With mom passing and dad become a bigger priority a lot of worry has settled in. I want to do what is right and best for him. That's a big burden. But the fact is, he is a grown man, totally able to make his own decision at this point in his life, and I may be taking on more than I should at this time. Like, thinking I need to do certain things before they actually need to be done. He is very capable of taking care of himself for the most part. I need to let go a little bit. I also just need to breathe and take everything in stride. I don't know. I just know I can't keep getting so worked up.
That's my random post for today.
Until my next post.
D. J.
Sunday, November 1, 2015
Whole30 - couple style!
I am so excited to share that my husband is giving Whole30 a whirl! When he told me he wanted to do it, I thought, "yea, right"...but we have talked about it over the past week and by golly he is serious! Today he even fried his own egg for breakfast!! I can't express my level of excitement! I believe it will be harder for him than it was for me. A large part of his normal eating style includes breads/starches and sugar. I hope he has the resolve to make it through this first week. I know it's a huge change for him. I hope I don't inundate him with Whole30 info..I get so excited!! So, more later on Day 1 couple style Whole30.
Well it looks like we have made it through day 1 and hubs handled it like a champ!! I am very proud!
Breakfast was eggs for both of us. He fried his in oil. I had coconut oil in my coffee. Lunch we grilled steaks and had green beans and carrots with ghee...it was so good we had it for dinner too!! I am getting ready to pack our lunches for tomorrow and call it a day!
Thanks for reading!
Tuesday, October 13, 2015
Blogging Therapy
10/13/15 9:28
I need some blogging therapy today. I don't have the money to do retail therapy...well and I don't love to shop. I haven't made it back to the gym yet for that form of therapy. This post is mainly for me to work through and process a bit of life as it is right now in hopes of kinda getting back on some sort of track. But, at the same time, by sharing I hope this helps someone else in some way.
On the morning of September 26th my step mom of 30 years passed. Since I am being transparent here, let's get it all out. I am married to my step moms son. That's right, my dad married my husbands mom. So she is more than just a step mom. She is my mother in law. She is my dads wife. She is my children's grandmother. She took good care of my dad for the 30 years they were married. She showed great love to her grandkids and her kids. She came into my life when I was about 15 - so like all normal teenagers from broken homes, I didn't like her in the beginning. She also brought a pesky little 9 year old girl with her...my step sister/sister in law. I rather like this sister now. Through the years mom grew on me. Not because of "our" relationship, but because of the relationship she had with my dad and my husband. Like I said, she took good care of my dad...that meant a lot to me. Obviously, my husband came from a broken home. After his parents divorce he stayed with his dad. In his younger years he experienced a lot of rejection and lack of value (my words, not my husbands). When mom and dad moved here 3 years ago, she was able to begin to help heal his wounds of rejection and to turn around his "no value" thinking. Again, that meant a lot to me. I didn't always agree with her - she was of a different faith - which caused a bit of strain within the family (but what family doesn't have strain). But, we were family. We were a lot of pieces of broken family that all came together, rose above, and created "good" family.
Now, here we are, without mom. My dad is trying to exist without his soul mate. My husband without this woman who was helping to heal deep wounds that only she could heal. For my three girls, this is their first experience with death. My step sister - a daughter living without her mom. They are each facing their own struggles with this loss. My struggle has been different though. My struggle isn't with my personal loss of her. I know that sounds cold and that's part of why I am struggling. It's not me being cold. My arena of thinking isn't mainly on my personal loss. Its on the loss that my loved ones are experiencing. My personal loss in this is nothing compared to theirs. Which is another piece of my struggle...if I do allow myself to mourn personal loss, I catch myself thinking I don't have the right to do that because I am one with the least significant relationship with her. I also just don't really know how to help my loved ones through this. They all grieve in such different ways and I want to help them but without nagging them. Ultimately I don't want them to hurt. It's hard to accept that I can't take that away from them. It's hard to hold on to the fact that I know they will all be okay....because right now they are not.
I would have to assume death has the potential to cause everyone affected by the death to think about life and how we are living it. I have been doing that. I wonder about regrets. What will mine be? What can I do now to eliminate potential regrets? What do I need to change right now in regards to how I live my life?
All of this is further complicated by the fact that life does not stop, it doesn't even slow down, as we try to grasp all that death brings to us. Time to process...some of us are forced back into life. We have our jobs, our children, our obligations that need our attention. Time to process...some of us just want to jump back into life though we know not how to live without the one we lost. It's as if we jump and find ourselves landing in an unfamiliar area that is exactly where life used to be. Sidebar: If I were an employer I would implement a policy of paid time off of a minimum of 2 weeks with a maximum of 30 days for those losing a close family member...regardless of their work status, part time, full time, salary...as a society we need to take care of each other and allowing time to grieve is part of that.
Okay - life didn't stop. Life backed up and life changed. This is where I am at personally. I had to drop a class because there was little chance of getting caught up after missing over a week and this particular professor didn't show an ounce of concern. While that was/is frustrating, I am believing I will get a better teacher for this class next semester and my learning experience will be better quality. The other two classes that I still have, I have had to catch up and make up ground. This is difficult even with the kindness extended by each of these professors. Just this alone has made me rethink my goals for graduating at a certain time and even my major. I fell out of my 5am workout routine and have been so physically and emotionally tired that I have yet to get back into it for even a day. This is frustrating to me. I need to accept that I am going to have to do it and risk being tired!! My eating when totally off. Which may be contributing to my feeling so tired. Actually the off eating and no working out I am sure affect my whole "thinking/processing" ability. While mom was sick I was always concerned about my dad eating well and taking care of himself, but he did pretty good overall. Now though, I need to be a bit more attentive to him and this is a shift in my normal. Then my sweet loved ones, my hubby, my girls, my sister. I am trying to make sure I make contact and connection with them to see if I can help with their grieving. Bare minimum to love on them.
I am a lover of routine. I can't just get back into my routine now though...first of all, I am playing catch up and second of all my old routine doesn't exist anymore. I have to find/create the new routine which for me is hard. This is where I have to remind myself to take baby steps. Get a few things in place first, then add a couple and allow the new routine to develop rather than thinking you have it have it all figured out today and start it tomorrow. I can still plan each day, but the new daily routine will take a bit to develop. This is why I write...I haven't made it to that place in my thinking until just now. How do you eat an elephant? Along with the development of this new daily routine...things are going to change before I get to the final new routine. I wouldn't be able to plan an adequate one right now if I wanted to because I don't know what life will look like in even two weeks! Unfortunately, life will always be about finding a new routine. We don't know how long a routine will get to last. Life changes without asking our permission. I do believe we need things so incorporated into our daily living that when life does change these things are not shaken. I am not there yet.
I feel like I just need a day of reflection. I am not afforded that right now. So for now I will do my best to just make a little bit of a pocket of time to spend reflecting. That's what I have done while working on this post. I have been interrupted a few times but at the same time I have sat here and taken several deep cleansing breaths over the past hour and a half. Those deep breaths allow us to get a better grip on reality and on right perspective.
Funny but serious note. This weekend I dropped my phone in the toilet...go ahead...laugh...ha ha.....so I had to get a new one. Thank goodness for iCloud! I lost nothing! While looking to set up my new wallpaper on my phone I came across this that I had saved and I totally don't remember saving it, "Gods PLANS for your life far exceed the CIRCUMSTANCES of your day. I have MADE you and I will CARRY you; I will SUSTAIN you and I will RESCUE you. Isaiah 46:4. I encourage you to read it - this is really what it says!! It speaks to me today.
Thanks for reading! Feel free to comment.
D. J.
I need some blogging therapy today. I don't have the money to do retail therapy...well and I don't love to shop. I haven't made it back to the gym yet for that form of therapy. This post is mainly for me to work through and process a bit of life as it is right now in hopes of kinda getting back on some sort of track. But, at the same time, by sharing I hope this helps someone else in some way.
On the morning of September 26th my step mom of 30 years passed. Since I am being transparent here, let's get it all out. I am married to my step moms son. That's right, my dad married my husbands mom. So she is more than just a step mom. She is my mother in law. She is my dads wife. She is my children's grandmother. She took good care of my dad for the 30 years they were married. She showed great love to her grandkids and her kids. She came into my life when I was about 15 - so like all normal teenagers from broken homes, I didn't like her in the beginning. She also brought a pesky little 9 year old girl with her...my step sister/sister in law. I rather like this sister now. Through the years mom grew on me. Not because of "our" relationship, but because of the relationship she had with my dad and my husband. Like I said, she took good care of my dad...that meant a lot to me. Obviously, my husband came from a broken home. After his parents divorce he stayed with his dad. In his younger years he experienced a lot of rejection and lack of value (my words, not my husbands). When mom and dad moved here 3 years ago, she was able to begin to help heal his wounds of rejection and to turn around his "no value" thinking. Again, that meant a lot to me. I didn't always agree with her - she was of a different faith - which caused a bit of strain within the family (but what family doesn't have strain). But, we were family. We were a lot of pieces of broken family that all came together, rose above, and created "good" family.
Now, here we are, without mom. My dad is trying to exist without his soul mate. My husband without this woman who was helping to heal deep wounds that only she could heal. For my three girls, this is their first experience with death. My step sister - a daughter living without her mom. They are each facing their own struggles with this loss. My struggle has been different though. My struggle isn't with my personal loss of her. I know that sounds cold and that's part of why I am struggling. It's not me being cold. My arena of thinking isn't mainly on my personal loss. Its on the loss that my loved ones are experiencing. My personal loss in this is nothing compared to theirs. Which is another piece of my struggle...if I do allow myself to mourn personal loss, I catch myself thinking I don't have the right to do that because I am one with the least significant relationship with her. I also just don't really know how to help my loved ones through this. They all grieve in such different ways and I want to help them but without nagging them. Ultimately I don't want them to hurt. It's hard to accept that I can't take that away from them. It's hard to hold on to the fact that I know they will all be okay....because right now they are not.
I would have to assume death has the potential to cause everyone affected by the death to think about life and how we are living it. I have been doing that. I wonder about regrets. What will mine be? What can I do now to eliminate potential regrets? What do I need to change right now in regards to how I live my life?
All of this is further complicated by the fact that life does not stop, it doesn't even slow down, as we try to grasp all that death brings to us. Time to process...some of us are forced back into life. We have our jobs, our children, our obligations that need our attention. Time to process...some of us just want to jump back into life though we know not how to live without the one we lost. It's as if we jump and find ourselves landing in an unfamiliar area that is exactly where life used to be. Sidebar: If I were an employer I would implement a policy of paid time off of a minimum of 2 weeks with a maximum of 30 days for those losing a close family member...regardless of their work status, part time, full time, salary...as a society we need to take care of each other and allowing time to grieve is part of that.
Okay - life didn't stop. Life backed up and life changed. This is where I am at personally. I had to drop a class because there was little chance of getting caught up after missing over a week and this particular professor didn't show an ounce of concern. While that was/is frustrating, I am believing I will get a better teacher for this class next semester and my learning experience will be better quality. The other two classes that I still have, I have had to catch up and make up ground. This is difficult even with the kindness extended by each of these professors. Just this alone has made me rethink my goals for graduating at a certain time and even my major. I fell out of my 5am workout routine and have been so physically and emotionally tired that I have yet to get back into it for even a day. This is frustrating to me. I need to accept that I am going to have to do it and risk being tired!! My eating when totally off. Which may be contributing to my feeling so tired. Actually the off eating and no working out I am sure affect my whole "thinking/processing" ability. While mom was sick I was always concerned about my dad eating well and taking care of himself, but he did pretty good overall. Now though, I need to be a bit more attentive to him and this is a shift in my normal. Then my sweet loved ones, my hubby, my girls, my sister. I am trying to make sure I make contact and connection with them to see if I can help with their grieving. Bare minimum to love on them.
I am a lover of routine. I can't just get back into my routine now though...first of all, I am playing catch up and second of all my old routine doesn't exist anymore. I have to find/create the new routine which for me is hard. This is where I have to remind myself to take baby steps. Get a few things in place first, then add a couple and allow the new routine to develop rather than thinking you have it have it all figured out today and start it tomorrow. I can still plan each day, but the new daily routine will take a bit to develop. This is why I write...I haven't made it to that place in my thinking until just now. How do you eat an elephant? Along with the development of this new daily routine...things are going to change before I get to the final new routine. I wouldn't be able to plan an adequate one right now if I wanted to because I don't know what life will look like in even two weeks! Unfortunately, life will always be about finding a new routine. We don't know how long a routine will get to last. Life changes without asking our permission. I do believe we need things so incorporated into our daily living that when life does change these things are not shaken. I am not there yet.
I feel like I just need a day of reflection. I am not afforded that right now. So for now I will do my best to just make a little bit of a pocket of time to spend reflecting. That's what I have done while working on this post. I have been interrupted a few times but at the same time I have sat here and taken several deep cleansing breaths over the past hour and a half. Those deep breaths allow us to get a better grip on reality and on right perspective.
Funny but serious note. This weekend I dropped my phone in the toilet...go ahead...laugh...ha ha.....so I had to get a new one. Thank goodness for iCloud! I lost nothing! While looking to set up my new wallpaper on my phone I came across this that I had saved and I totally don't remember saving it, "Gods PLANS for your life far exceed the CIRCUMSTANCES of your day. I have MADE you and I will CARRY you; I will SUSTAIN you and I will RESCUE you. Isaiah 46:4. I encourage you to read it - this is really what it says!! It speaks to me today.
Thanks for reading! Feel free to comment.
D. J.
Wednesday, July 29, 2015
Whole30 R2 D3 Done - Prayer blog
07/30/15 12:56 AM
Day 3 is done. I am telling you, it is so stinking easy to stick with this. I love doing this with friends this time too. The past 3 days I have not battled any intense cravings, I haven't felt hungry, and I haven't had any significant side affects. I have been on vacation which may be helping as I have napped the past three days in the afternoon...ohhhhh that has been so nice. Even with the naps the first two nights I still went to bed rather early. I do think I was a bit lacking in the sleep department due to finals week. So, I may be catching up. However, when I did my first W30 I was very aware of my body needing sleep when I first started...perhaps this is just an area I need to work on. Tonight, I can't sleep. I am plenty tired but my mind is going 90 to nothing! I am yawning as I type this. I am hoping that taking time to do this will help. My 4:20 alarm to do 5:00 cross-fit is about to get turned off...that's the most frustrating thing to not being able to sleep tonight. Why can't I sleep? I had a good amount of energy today. I drank over 50 ounces of regular (caffeinated) tea after 7:00 tonight...did that do it? Or is it because I am thinking (worrying) about people I love? Or maybe a combination of both. I have decided to blog/pray to help. They writing/typing is therapeutic for me and well praying is good for everyone!
Father - first of all thank you for knowing ahead of time everything that is going to happen in our lives and thank you that you already have a plan to bring us through each trial. Thank you for your Word and your faithfulness. Thank you for all the experiences that I have had that have drawn me closer to you, that have made me more dependent upon you, that have grown my faith and trust. Thank you that I can now look at other peoples trials and know they are going to be okay because You are taking care of them.
I have young loved ones tonight who is getting hit really hard by attacks - financial, physical, mechanical, probably emotional as well. I pray your blessing over them. I pray unexpected abundance in any area You see fit for them. I pray peace over their minds. I pray their desire to reach out to you in prayer and in dedication to you is increased. I pray they are able to see you at work in the little and in the big things over the next few days. I pray Your big solutions over their situations while also blessing them with life/faith lessons along the way. I pray they become stronger as a result. I pray as You bring them through this season in their lives that the power satan tries to have over them is greatly weakened. As I have opportunity to talk to them that You would give me the words to speak to them.
Another loved one is growing in so many ways, beautiful ways. Sometimes growth is painful. I pray peace over this one as well. I pray heart wisdom for this one. I pray during this time they draw close to you and become forever closer to you. I pray joys through their day. I pray for unexpected joys! I also pray you blessing over them. Again, I would pray that you would give me words when I am in conversation with this one.
Another loved one is so rocked by situations around them that can't be controlled or necessarily fixed. They bask in the issues rather than seeking your solutions. They stress out so much. Lord I pray Your vision become so bold for daily life that the issues become irrelevant! I pray that seeing what Your plan is brings this person more into your playing field than that of the world around them. I pray blessing over this loved one too. I pray for Your words as I speak with them and for patience and encouragement.
I hate to see my loved ones in turmoil. I hate but love knowing they are going to be okay, be taken care of...I hate not being able to give them that piece of faith, I love knowing this is only temporary for them. I hate seeing them worry and hurt. I hate not being able to fix things for all of them.
I love having them in my life. I love being part of their lives. I pray that I am a valuable piece to their life - the value I desire to be is the value of someone who loves them, believes in them, and points them to You. I am thankful you have given me resources to help on a moments notice. I am thankful that you help us pull through when we don't have a lot of support around us.
I pray father that each person I have prayed over is resting soundly and peacefully. I pray you are refreshing their bodies, minds and spirits to the fullest tonight. I pray when they each wake up in the morning that they are full of hope, clarity of thought, and full of joy and love.
I pray over my day father - I pray I am able to sleep soon. I pray I am able to make good decisions all day long. I pray for a productive day in the ways that I need to be productive. I pray over this yard sale - I pray for support and help in it. I pray that since I have laid these concerns before you that I am able to leave them there..I know you are watching over them. I pray that I glorify you and point people to you.
In Jesus Name I pray - Amen.
Day 3 is done. I am telling you, it is so stinking easy to stick with this. I love doing this with friends this time too. The past 3 days I have not battled any intense cravings, I haven't felt hungry, and I haven't had any significant side affects. I have been on vacation which may be helping as I have napped the past three days in the afternoon...ohhhhh that has been so nice. Even with the naps the first two nights I still went to bed rather early. I do think I was a bit lacking in the sleep department due to finals week. So, I may be catching up. However, when I did my first W30 I was very aware of my body needing sleep when I first started...perhaps this is just an area I need to work on. Tonight, I can't sleep. I am plenty tired but my mind is going 90 to nothing! I am yawning as I type this. I am hoping that taking time to do this will help. My 4:20 alarm to do 5:00 cross-fit is about to get turned off...that's the most frustrating thing to not being able to sleep tonight. Why can't I sleep? I had a good amount of energy today. I drank over 50 ounces of regular (caffeinated) tea after 7:00 tonight...did that do it? Or is it because I am thinking (worrying) about people I love? Or maybe a combination of both. I have decided to blog/pray to help. They writing/typing is therapeutic for me and well praying is good for everyone!
Father - first of all thank you for knowing ahead of time everything that is going to happen in our lives and thank you that you already have a plan to bring us through each trial. Thank you for your Word and your faithfulness. Thank you for all the experiences that I have had that have drawn me closer to you, that have made me more dependent upon you, that have grown my faith and trust. Thank you that I can now look at other peoples trials and know they are going to be okay because You are taking care of them.
I have young loved ones tonight who is getting hit really hard by attacks - financial, physical, mechanical, probably emotional as well. I pray your blessing over them. I pray unexpected abundance in any area You see fit for them. I pray peace over their minds. I pray their desire to reach out to you in prayer and in dedication to you is increased. I pray they are able to see you at work in the little and in the big things over the next few days. I pray Your big solutions over their situations while also blessing them with life/faith lessons along the way. I pray they become stronger as a result. I pray as You bring them through this season in their lives that the power satan tries to have over them is greatly weakened. As I have opportunity to talk to them that You would give me the words to speak to them.
Another loved one is growing in so many ways, beautiful ways. Sometimes growth is painful. I pray peace over this one as well. I pray heart wisdom for this one. I pray during this time they draw close to you and become forever closer to you. I pray joys through their day. I pray for unexpected joys! I also pray you blessing over them. Again, I would pray that you would give me words when I am in conversation with this one.
Another loved one is so rocked by situations around them that can't be controlled or necessarily fixed. They bask in the issues rather than seeking your solutions. They stress out so much. Lord I pray Your vision become so bold for daily life that the issues become irrelevant! I pray that seeing what Your plan is brings this person more into your playing field than that of the world around them. I pray blessing over this loved one too. I pray for Your words as I speak with them and for patience and encouragement.
I hate to see my loved ones in turmoil. I hate but love knowing they are going to be okay, be taken care of...I hate not being able to give them that piece of faith, I love knowing this is only temporary for them. I hate seeing them worry and hurt. I hate not being able to fix things for all of them.
I love having them in my life. I love being part of their lives. I pray that I am a valuable piece to their life - the value I desire to be is the value of someone who loves them, believes in them, and points them to You. I am thankful you have given me resources to help on a moments notice. I am thankful that you help us pull through when we don't have a lot of support around us.
I pray father that each person I have prayed over is resting soundly and peacefully. I pray you are refreshing their bodies, minds and spirits to the fullest tonight. I pray when they each wake up in the morning that they are full of hope, clarity of thought, and full of joy and love.
I pray over my day father - I pray I am able to sleep soon. I pray I am able to make good decisions all day long. I pray for a productive day in the ways that I need to be productive. I pray over this yard sale - I pray for support and help in it. I pray that since I have laid these concerns before you that I am able to leave them there..I know you are watching over them. I pray that I glorify you and point people to you.
In Jesus Name I pray - Amen.
Monday, July 27, 2015
Official Whole 30 round 2 with friends!! Day 1
July 17,2015 10:12 PM
Today was day 1 of my 2nd round of Whole30. This time I am in it with 5 - 6 friends! I am pretty excited! We have all agreed to a check in daily through FB messenger. So far so good! I am also on vacation this week. I am trying to deep clean my house and declutter it as well. Planning on a yard sale this weekend. I am enjoying time with my very energetic 8 year old.
Tomorrow I will be doing my first crossfit something...I am meeting my daughter at 5 am! UGH! I am excited but super nervous. I know I will be the biggest woman there. I think it will be fun but I hate being the biggest.
My summer classes have ended. I ended up with a strong A and a barely B. I am so thankful.
Real quick - my meals for today:
Breakfast - Jimmy's egg with my dad. Veggie omelet with avocados (no cheese) and canteloupe and honey dew. Coffee
Lunch - turkey lunch meat and cabbage with a mayo/vinegar dressing.
Dinner - Pork Steak, cabbage, green onion, tomato and red bell pepper salad with mayo/vinegar dressing.
Went to the gym and just did a fat burn program on the treadmill for like 35 minutes.
Had a bit more pork with mayo when I got home because I thought I might be hungry. I was full/satisfied real quick.
It was an EASY day!
Lots of love!
D. J.
Today was day 1 of my 2nd round of Whole30. This time I am in it with 5 - 6 friends! I am pretty excited! We have all agreed to a check in daily through FB messenger. So far so good! I am also on vacation this week. I am trying to deep clean my house and declutter it as well. Planning on a yard sale this weekend. I am enjoying time with my very energetic 8 year old.
Tomorrow I will be doing my first crossfit something...I am meeting my daughter at 5 am! UGH! I am excited but super nervous. I know I will be the biggest woman there. I think it will be fun but I hate being the biggest.
My summer classes have ended. I ended up with a strong A and a barely B. I am so thankful.
Real quick - my meals for today:
Breakfast - Jimmy's egg with my dad. Veggie omelet with avocados (no cheese) and canteloupe and honey dew. Coffee
Lunch - turkey lunch meat and cabbage with a mayo/vinegar dressing.
Dinner - Pork Steak, cabbage, green onion, tomato and red bell pepper salad with mayo/vinegar dressing.
Went to the gym and just did a fat burn program on the treadmill for like 35 minutes.
Had a bit more pork with mayo when I got home because I thought I might be hungry. I was full/satisfied real quick.
It was an EASY day!
Lots of love!
D. J.
Sunday, July 19, 2015
How long will the quiet last...
July 19, 2015
It's 4:37 PM and my hubby and daughter are napping. I have some peace and quiet, the house to myself. I am tiptoeing around hoping to extend the length of this quiet time. The past few days have been FULL! Brandy's birthday was Friday and we literally celebrated the whole day! Shopping, water park, more shopping~this time to get ready for her party, then we had family and friends over for her party, she had a friend stay the night, family stayed and played games until almost midnight. My sister and one of my daughters stayed the night too. The next day Brandy and her little friend played and played and played! I cleaned up a bit from the day before. Then we went out to lunch and to drive around our town to show my sister new stuff she hasn't seen before. We had to run and get a gift for another one of Brandy's friends who was having a party that evening. We took her overnight friend home and came home for a quick nap. Off to the park for the birthday party, it started there, went to the splash pad and then a little ice cream place across the street from the splash pad. From there back to the park for MOVIES IN THE PARK! We got home just before 11:00. Everybody to bed, my sister stayed the night again. Then....I could not sleep. So I got up and worked on homework until after 2 AM. Up for church ~ there by 7:45. After church an errand and then out to lunch with my sister, and my oldest daughter and her family, and of course my husband and 8 year old. We all went back to our house afterwards. House was empty by 2:15 and it was nap time! We are all tired. I don't nap for hours like I used to. So now I get the benefit of enjoying a quiet house. However, the 8 year old is stirring.
I savor this time, it is so minimal. I know when they wake up we will be a full throttle again. We need to get the house caught up so we can start the week organized and I have homework. This week is finals week, prayers please, but also PRAISE THE LORD! I look forward to about 3 weeks of no homework.
A little over a week ago I heard or read about praying for unexpected abundance. To no pray for it in a specific area but rather to leave that up to God. Last week my sister and I started reading The Prayer of Jabez together and it discusses praying for Gods blessing - blessing being supernatural favor - again leaving the area or the specifics to God. Friday I noticed I had an expected deposit in my account. We would have been okay without it but it was going to be a tight next 7 days, especially with the money we budgeted for Brandy's birthday. That unexpected abundance took the pressure off. Thank You God!
Today, pastor preached a great sermon! I mean really great. One we all needed to hear but I know my sister needed to hear it especially. The blessing of teaching and understanding. God is Good.
It's 4:52 and I hear my stud (husband) getting up. Looks like my quiet time is over. I am sure happy I had a few minutes to blog!
Lots of love!
D. J.
It's 4:37 PM and my hubby and daughter are napping. I have some peace and quiet, the house to myself. I am tiptoeing around hoping to extend the length of this quiet time. The past few days have been FULL! Brandy's birthday was Friday and we literally celebrated the whole day! Shopping, water park, more shopping~this time to get ready for her party, then we had family and friends over for her party, she had a friend stay the night, family stayed and played games until almost midnight. My sister and one of my daughters stayed the night too. The next day Brandy and her little friend played and played and played! I cleaned up a bit from the day before. Then we went out to lunch and to drive around our town to show my sister new stuff she hasn't seen before. We had to run and get a gift for another one of Brandy's friends who was having a party that evening. We took her overnight friend home and came home for a quick nap. Off to the park for the birthday party, it started there, went to the splash pad and then a little ice cream place across the street from the splash pad. From there back to the park for MOVIES IN THE PARK! We got home just before 11:00. Everybody to bed, my sister stayed the night again. Then....I could not sleep. So I got up and worked on homework until after 2 AM. Up for church ~ there by 7:45. After church an errand and then out to lunch with my sister, and my oldest daughter and her family, and of course my husband and 8 year old. We all went back to our house afterwards. House was empty by 2:15 and it was nap time! We are all tired. I don't nap for hours like I used to. So now I get the benefit of enjoying a quiet house. However, the 8 year old is stirring.
I savor this time, it is so minimal. I know when they wake up we will be a full throttle again. We need to get the house caught up so we can start the week organized and I have homework. This week is finals week, prayers please, but also PRAISE THE LORD! I look forward to about 3 weeks of no homework.
A little over a week ago I heard or read about praying for unexpected abundance. To no pray for it in a specific area but rather to leave that up to God. Last week my sister and I started reading The Prayer of Jabez together and it discusses praying for Gods blessing - blessing being supernatural favor - again leaving the area or the specifics to God. Friday I noticed I had an expected deposit in my account. We would have been okay without it but it was going to be a tight next 7 days, especially with the money we budgeted for Brandy's birthday. That unexpected abundance took the pressure off. Thank You God!
Today, pastor preached a great sermon! I mean really great. One we all needed to hear but I know my sister needed to hear it especially. The blessing of teaching and understanding. God is Good.
It's 4:52 and I hear my stud (husband) getting up. Looks like my quiet time is over. I am sure happy I had a few minutes to blog!
Lots of love!
D. J.
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