Author: admin

This week I visited the lighthouse in St. Augustine. We had free tickets and my husband thought it would be fun to climb to the top and enjoy the great view. I thought it would be fun too, until I walked in the lighthouse and saw the 200+ open steps.

I wasn’t afraid of a little exercise, I was afraid of falling to my death. 🙂 I climbed up the stairs and made it about half-way when I started to feel a little sick about the whole thing. My brain said keep on going, there is nothing to be afraid of, but my heart said turn back while you can!

I decided I was going to be a big girl and make it to the top. My very gracious husband carried my big camera with the pink strap because it was bothering me as I climbed higher and higher.

We made it to the top and it was worth it.

Even on a cloudy dreary day the view was great, and it was fun to pick out the places in St. Augustine that we recognized.

Going down scared me as much as walking up, but I found another lady who was a scaredy-cat like me and we walked down together.

I realized that climbing the lighthouse was a lot like real life. Many times a job or project can seem overwhelming and we put it off because we can’t stand the thought of tackling it. But, by taking one step at a time you eventually get the job done!

What project is looming over you this year? For me it is finishing unpacking and moving in our house.

When I look back on 2010, I see a year of fly-by-the-seat-of-my-pants craziness. 2011 is going to be different. My theme for the year…

I can’t think of a single area in my life that could not use a bit of pruning. I’m tired of complicated. So for 2011, you’ll see more:

• Simple Living
• Simple Homeschool
• Simple Home Management
• Simple Recipes
• Simple Savings

Now for my 2011 Goals.

Spiritual:

• Read one book a month.
• Set and stick with a consistent bible reading/ prayer time.

Personal:

• Read one fun book a month.
• Complete FB 365 project.
• Walk 3x a week with Cora.
• Remember to take my SuperMom vitamins. (Once again, something I can NEVER remember to do!)
• Consistent wake-up time.
• Plan our yearly trips in January and budget accordingly.
• Sew twice a month.
• Build a photo light box.
• Schedule one date night a week.

School:

• Incorporate more hands on projects with the younger kids.
• Preschool with Trouble 3 times a week.
• Find a better system for record keeping.
• Enroll in a local co-op.
• Plan two field trips a month.
• Research colleges. (I cannot believe I am typing those words!!!!)

In the Kitchen:

• Research and find sources of local/organic food.
• Keep grocery budget under $700 a month.
• One bulk cooking day every two months.

Homemaking:

• Deep clean and organize one room a month in my home.
• Purchase and use the Motivated Moms’ Planner.
• Update phone contacts and address book and transfer information to the computer.
• Find a different coupon organization system.
• Organize storage space in garage.
• Complete all Christmas shopping before Thanksgiving.
• Set up sewing area.

Home Improvement:

• Make curtains for ds’s bedroom
• Make curtains for living room.
• Finish photo collage for dining room.
• Paint living room/ dining room.
• Make headboard for ds’s bed.
• Make headboard for my bed.
• Install fan in back porch. (Already completed!)
• Remove kitchen wallpaper.
• Install new kitchen sink.
• Install office bookshelves. (once my dad makes them. :))

Financial:

• Change monthly budget meetings to weekly budget meetings.
• Begin using Mvelopes.
• Reread The Complete Tightwad Gazette.
• Add an extra 10% on our mortgage every month which will shorten it by 5 years.

What are some of your goals this year?

Attempt #294 at a Christmas photo.

Have a wonderful Christmas!

Last year at this time I was getting ready to start a life changing project. My sister-in-law Amy, challenged me to read The Bible in 90 Days. For years Amy had talked about how The Bible in 90 Days had changed her life and recommended it to anyone and everyone who would listen. Last fall she approached me and asked what I thought about her taking this challenge to the internet. I told her I thought it was a good idea and would help her promote it. I promoted it for her, and in the end agreed to join the January 2010 group.

At first I thought it was going to be terribly difficult, reading the entire bible in 3 months? I didn’t know how I would make the time to invest 45 minutes to an hour a day reading the bible. But then I realized that I probably wasted that much time every day doing things that were much less important than reading the bible. Once I started reading I thought it would be a piece of cake. I’ve read Genesis more times that I can count and I flew through the pages of familiar stories. I kept going, ending up a few days ahead of the group. Then I reached Numbers. It was hard, I struggled to stay focused during my reading time… but I kept going. I ended up reading the entire bible in 87 days. I find it hard to put into words how much this project challenged me, stretched me, inspired me, and blessed me.

If you ever thought you might want to read the entire bible consider reading it in 90 days. There are so many reasons why I think you should do it, but here are some of the things that impacted me.

You Read Through the Entire Bible

I have always found it strange when I meet people who don’t believe in Jesus, but have never read the bible. I’m not saying that reading the bible makes you believe, but how do you know you don’t believe in something if you have no knowledge of it? Conversely, I am surprised to meet Christians who have never read the bible or even significant portions of it. (I’m not talking about new Christians). Why would you follow Jesus, if you don’t know what he stands for?

You Read Through the Bible Quickly

Many people would argue too quickly. I disagree. I have read through the Bible in a year, and I got an entirely new perspective reading it in 90 days. You are able to see the big picture so much better, and all those names in the genealogies finally seem familiar because you are never too far away from something that happened earlier in the bible.

It Creates Self Discipline

This is a side benefit of reading the Bible in 90 Days. You are committed to setting aside almost an hour a day to read scripture. When finished you have 90 days worth of a very good habit.

You Learn A Lot About Yourself

I learned that I have a hard time reading through Psalms, I love the Old Testament, and that I need to memorize more scripture. I also learned that I can be a morning person when I put my mind to it.

Those are just a few of the things I learned by reading the Bible in 90 Days. If you are interested in reading with a group, which I highly recommend, Amy has a new group starting January 3, 2011. You can find out more about the Bible in 90 Days on her website, Mom’s Toolbox.