Welcome to my weekly Sunday post where we take a break from money-related posts and I share about what I'm loving right now and give you a little peek into our life from the past week.
Whew! It was a BIG week at our house! Here were a few of the highlights:
- We met with the school advisor this past week about Kathrynne’s class choices for next year and got Kathrynne enrolled in lower division for next school year (Junior High! The school switches to a University Model in 7th grade so this is all new territory for us as parents! I can’t believe she’s 12!).
- Kaitlynn had her pre-preliminary Moves in the Field testing for figure skating and she PASSED! She’s had three more tests before judges to pass and then she will officially be in the preliminary level. We set a big goal for her to be at at the Juvenile level by the end of the year! We’ll see!
- Silas tried out for the traveling baseball team on Saturday and made it on the team! He was THRILLED! So it looks like there’s going to be a lot of baseball in our future! 😉
- We got multiple offers on the rental house we put on the market a few weeks ago! So there’s a good chance we will have a buyer very soon!
I feel like my life has changed so much this past year — in such good ways. The kids are growing up and, with that, comes a lot of extra conversations, decisions, and outside activities and commitments.
I’m so grateful that we made so many changes work-wise and business-wise last year so that I have such a flexible work schedule that allows me to be available to go to most of their activities and be available for the conversations. I also have a whole new appreciation for moms of teenagers!
What I’m Loving
This week, I got to go on a field trip with Kindergarten and 1st grade to the Adventure Science Center. I’d never been there before and we had so much fun!
I was very impressed with all of the interactive exhibits, how much variety there was, and how the kids never got bored or ran out of things to do. That’s saying a lot since there were 15 really energetic kids on the field trip and we were at the Adventure Science Center from 9:15 a.m. until 1:30 p.m.!
Silas loved getting to try out the Moon Walk exhibit. (Watch a video of him trying out moon-walking here.)
A lot of life can feel like moonwalking. Where you try to go two feet and keep getting de-railed or knocked down or thrown a curveball. What’s the best solution? Hang on, don’t give up, and just keep going. And try to enjoy the ride, too!
This box came in the mail — how fun is it??
As I’ve mentioned before, I ADORE getting letters from readers, but this one was particularly meaningful to me because Amber sent me a beautiful card and told me how I had inspired her to try hand-lettering. After a lot of practice, she decided to use her newfound skill to make and sell these beautiful Christmas ornaments to help support her local community.
I was so touched that she’d take the time to write, but also that my blog had impacted her in this way! Go check out her beautiful Instagram page here for lots more hand-lettering inspiration.
We had a fancy dinner out on Saturday night (thanks to Jesse’s parents for the gift card!) then I made Jesse stand in the middle of the street and take a picture with me.
He thought it was a crazy idea and was like, “Why are you dragging me to the middle of the street for a picture??” And I was all, “It’s my Year of Yes! And I feel like saying Yes to something a little bit crazy tonight! So come on!”
And then we laughed and giggled as we ran out to get a picture while there was a lull in traffic.
Y’all. Why didn’t anyone tell that “living (a little) on the wild side” was this fun?!? I think this Year of Yes is going to be the best year yet!
What I’m Reading
This week, on the treadmill, I read: Mindspace: 30 Practices to Help You Let Go of Mental Clutter, Never Ending To Do List: One Hour Solution for Busy Parents, and Spend Your Days: How to Control Your Time (by Tsh Oxenreider).
I also finished Thirty Chic Days. This book came highly recommended by Carrie Willard and I was intrigued enough to buy a copy based upon her raving recommendation.
I was not familiar with the author or her works, but I really enjoyed this book. There’s nothing earth-shattering in it, but it really encouraged me to slow down and savor life more and look for ways to cultivate beauty in my every day life.
The author isn’t writing from a Christian perspective and she doesn’t have any children, but she gave lots of practical ideas, she inspires you with really doable and realistic suggestions, and she makes you feel like you actually can find ways to weave more beauty and inspiration into the dailyness of life.
If you’re interested in this book, you can see all of the titles of the chapters here. You can also check out the author’s YouTube channel here where she shares more from the book and even reads a few chapters. You can also subscribe to her email newsletter and you’ll get the first three chapters of her book for free.
This week, I'm reading: Answers to Prayer (an old Christian reprint), Be Real (a spiritually encouraging book), Hope in Front of Me (a story-driven book), and The Cozy Life (a book on life improvement).
I'm hoping to finish Hope in Front of Me, Be Real, and The Cozy Life this week. I'll let you know how that goes next week! {See my Reading Goals for 2017. Also, see the 15 books I've read so far in 2017 here.}
What I’m Watching
In addition to watching another episode of Hunted and Timeless, we had a Church Movie Night on Friday night and watched Inside Out. The kids all get to wear their PJs and bring blankets and pillows and watch the movie on the big screen at church. There was pizza and popcorn and movie candy — and some of the church staff even dressed up as characters from the movie. 🙂
Life is so much richer and sweeter when you do it in community! And when you have a sense of humor and don’t take life too seriously!
I think the photo booth at the church movie night tonight was supposed to be for the kids, but that didn’t stop us adults from our Community Group from getting in on the fun.
We’re so grateful for these couples and the opportunity to do life with them. (We missed you, Paul & Amity!) And yes, I may have forgotten to match my facial expression to the mask I’m sporting! 😉
What I’m Listening To
This week, I listened to Chalene Johnson’s podcast on taking time off for vacation and it really made me think about ways to set up time I have planned off this year for success.
I also loved the Read to Lead podcast on How to Consistently Step Outside Your Comfort Zone. It challenged me on some of the things I’ve always thought about how to successfully face fear and step out and do things that scare you.
If you‘re a mom who struggles with anger and frustration with your kids, you have to check out Lisa-Jo’s Temper Toolkit. I’ve been going through it this week and, I don’t say this very often, but I can‘t recommend this course highly enough.
It’s SO well worth every penny! And it’s exactly what I need right now. Check it out here.
I love Lisa-Jo’s premise in the course: TEMPER is not an incurable disease but a treatable condition.
Yes, yes, yes! That gives me so much hope!
Moms, we don't need more guilt, do we? What we need are the tools to help get us through.
That's why Lisa-Jo created the Temper Toolkit — a collection of all her practical strategies, honest stories, and Biblical resources from one mom to another to help you take control of your temper BEFORE you lose it.
She has packaged up everything she's learned over the last decade of parenting, and what she teaches at her workshops so that you can put it into practice in your own homes.
Here are the topics she covers in her 7-video course:
1. The one thing you can stop feeling guilty about right now
2. Discovering the roots of our anger
3. The one simple scheduling trick to help you tame your temper
4. What to do when parenting feels like a hostage negotiation crisis
5. Why having a bad day doesn't make you a bad mom
6. What to do when your temper has nothing to do with being angry
7. So you lost your temper, what comes next?
I told you it was good! I need every single one of these lessons right now as it’s been a somewhat rough parenting patch the past month. So I’m just eating up Lisa-Jo’s every word!
If you can relate to any of my temper issues, you need to check out this course! And it’s just $29 through Monday (February 6, 2017). Go check it out here.
What I’m Thinking About
This might not look like much is going on here. But this picture speaks volumes.
I was sitting here reading my Bible and planning my day earlier this week while Jesse was patiently going over math problems with Kaitlynn. I was reminded yet again how blessed I am to be married to a man who invests in our kids, who is my true partner in every sense of the word, and who is so much better at explaining math than I am!
Showing love to your spouse doesn’t always look like red roses and romance. Often, it’s demonstrating it in the dailyness of life — like overseeing homework and helping with math problems!
If you’re married, look for ways to say “I love you” in the way you live your life today.
In Case You Missed It
My Posts This Week:
My YouTube Videos This Week:
What are YOU loving, reading, listening to, watching, or thinking about? I'd love to hear!
