I start the morning out — as I usually do — by spending time reading God’s Word, journaling, and writing in my Blessings Journal.
Then, it was time to get some blogging work done. Monday mornings are always busy because I take Sundays off and there’s always some catch-up work to do.
I drafted some deal posts, answered some emails, scheduled some social media posts, and responded to some comments. About then, Jesse walked in the door… and well, things didn’t go so well for the next 45 minutes.
You see, we had some decisions to make about some things and I needed to know answers this morning. As we started discussing things, I said a few things in a wrong way, he said a few things in a wrong way, and we both misinterpreted what the other person said.
Pretty soon, we were in the midst of a heated argument over something that really wasn’t that big of a deal… but it sure felt like a big deal at the time!
We’ve learned to — mostly! — keep talking when things get heated as we usually can resolve things and get back on the same page. It sometimes takes extra time and effort and a willingness to bite one’s tongue and actually listen to the other party, but it’s rare that we don’t finally calm down and resolve the issues.
It may have taken 45 minutes, but it was worth it as we worked through some things, got back on the same page, and both asked forgiveness. Marriage is hard work some days, but I’m so grateful to be married to a man who is willing to work through and work on these things together.
After our heated discussion, I got the kids up and they made oatmeal and bacon and eggs for breakfast while I unloaded the dishwasher and made a fruit salad for dinner.
I helped Silas with his school while the girls finished up their breakfast.
They both read a book together while eating their breakfast. I love how these girls can never get enough of books and good stories!
We started The Green Ember today and, so far, we were quite impressed with it. I’ll let you know what we think of it when we’re farther into the story, but if today’s response and engaged audience is any indication of how it’s going to be, I think this may be a favorite book for us.
While I read aloud, the girls practiced drawing. (This was Kaitlynn’s — in case you couldn’t guess!)
{And this was Kathrynne’s. I love how their styles and personality comes out so clearly in their drawing!}
Once we were finished with Morning Time, the kids got busy on their Daily Lists. I love how helpful they’ve become in the last few years. Between the three of them and the chores they do on a regular basis, the house stays quite orderly, clean, and picked up.
While they were working on their chores, I tidied up my room and helped oversee their chores and make sure they stayed on task. (They sometimes need a few gentle reminders to stay on task or to finish a job well!)
This little guy got all of his school and chores done early, so he got to go out and play baseball with Daddy — one of his favorite things to do.
Kaitlynn gets to do a handwriting page or write a card every day. She almost always opts for writing a card as she loves to make and write cards for others. I love to see her creativity shine!
Kaitlynn has also been working on this fairly detailed paint by number project. I love to see her developing such attention to detail!
The girls finished up all their chores and Daily List projects and then started in on their independent work while I handed the reins over to Jesse and then buckled down to finish my list for the day.
I had planned to head to our office space to work in the afternoon, but I was still in my yoga pants, hadn’t had a chance to exercise yet, and still needed to tackle the closets. So I decided to just work from home in the afternoon since Jesse was going to be taking the kids to swimming for a few hours.
After they left for swimming, I finally had a chance to hop on the treadmill and get in my daily run and then headed to tackle this closet. It wasn’t quite as bad as last week’s closets, but it definitely needed some help!
Much better!
I made myself a snack-y lunch (never mind that it was almost 4 p.m.!) and sat down to get some more blogging/business work done.
Jesse and the kids arrived home around 5 p.m. and we got ready to go grill out with friends. We brought marinated chicken and fruit salad and enjoyed an evening of laughter, heart-to-heart talks, and lots of yummy food.
All in all, it was a good day. And I’m heading to bed fairly early so that hopefully I can wake up a little earlier tomorrow.
How was YOUR day today? Did you get any cleaning done?
When I went to update my goals list this week, I was quite surprised to realize that I had actually crossed everything off my goals list for last week. WOOHOO! That feels so good.
We had such a great time at the homeschool conference. I got to spend time with old friends (pictured above — getting to hang out with my long-time friend, Trina Holden), meet new friends, listen to encouraging sessions, shop for homeschool curriculum with Jesse, hang out with my kids, and be inspired by a number of speakers. All in all, it was a great weekend!
8. Invite a family who just moved to Nashville to have a meal with us.
Business Goals
9. Outline/write 3 substantive blog posts for next week.
10. Finish getting all the permissions for stories used in my manuscript.
How did you do on last week's goals? What are your goals for this week? I'd love to have you share your progress on last week's goals and your goals for this coming week in the comments. Of, if you've blogged about it, leave your direct link below. Let's cheer each other on to live purposeful and productive lives! You can download a free customizable weekly goal-planning sheet here.
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I love how these girls can never get enough of books and good stories!
