- Spend disciplined time in prayer and Bible study.
I'm not referring to getting Beth Moore or Priscilla Shirer "homework" completed on time or completing a checklist of verses to read everyday. I have a reading plan (that I started last year) and will continue with it. However, I do not want to read the "required" passage, close my Bible, and move on to "housewife" things. I desire to meditate on what I read and spend time asking God to grant me understanding, to examine my heart, and guide my act of being.
- Maintain the simple, "should-do-daily" chores in our home.
I will admit it. I am lazy. I get tired. I would rather check facebook than put away laundry or sweep the floor. By the time dinner is finished, I have no desire to clean the kitchen and straighten the front of the house...even with the kids' help. However, when I do keep up with the little, day-to-day tasks, I feel better about me and our home. I also have time to add a more time consuming task (or two) to my routine each day. Who knows? My bathroom could get cleaned more than a dozen times this year!
- Prioritize relationships over activities.
I love being around people and being involved in my community. However, in the 2011-2012 organizational year, I did too much of that. I served on THREE executive boards. That was taking things to far. I had too much to do and too many places to be that I missed coffee with friends. I was too tired to spend quality time (much less quantity time) with my family. I became stressed and grouchy. This next year may find me involved again in ONE organization, but I am committed to no longer strapping myself down "doing" that I cannot be "Wife, Mommy, Friend, Mentor" to others.
- Surpass any fitness level I have had since becoming a mommy.
I will never be less than 12% body fat or weigh 125 lbs again. Those days are LONG gone. However, I want the physical conditioning to go for runs with my husband or shoot hoops with a friend and not think my lungs are going to revolt. I want to wear the clothes I already own, but can no longer fit into (and all of them were bought AFTER babies). I started the Couch to 5K program and using MyFitnessPal about 5 weeks ago. So far, I have dropped 8 lbs...even over Christmas!
- Get to know my brain again.
According to many, many studies, women's brains are apparently known for processing non-stop. I have learned via marriage conferences, relationship books, and my husband, that the male brain is capable of actually thinking of nothing. That is a foreign concept to most (if not all) women! My brain runs through my to do list, the grocery list (pardon me while I add "trash bags" to it...done.), wondering what my family might want for dinner, critiquing my appearance and wondering if I really care, grumbling to myself about toys scattered everywhere or toothpaste on the counter, etc. However, with all this brain activity, it is rare for me to honestly think about anything beyond the "surface" of my little world. I read books that I basically have memorized, if any. I have an opinion on just about any subject someone puts before me. However, unless it is related to a matter I have previously thought through, I cannot guarantee that all my opinions are not more than knee jerk reactions. I want to return to a place where I can process all the information and all the thoughts that run through my brain. I want to reflect on my little world and hold to the memories and lessons it provides. I don't just want to wake up in 12 months and find it 2014 and wonder where the last year went. Hopefully, this blog will once again provide that platform.
So, whether a single person reads this blog or not, here begins my attempt in 2013 to visit here more often. If you are reading, please comment from time to time just to keep up my morale. Hopefully in 12 months, this will be an interesting place to visit.
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