Joyful Gratitude: Happy Thanksgiving

I Am Thankful For:

Having my sisters together for support
Surgery went well
The Man of the House bringing dinner to the hospital
Laughing in the waiting room
Singing of wind chimes
Chocolate brownies
A beautiful morning
27 years of marriage
Warm autumn days
A dog sticking his head out the sunroof
Dad going home sooner than expected
Tuna steaks
Being able to help out
Sugar free cocoa
A morning with my Dad
Close games
Facial masks

Sunday Inspiration: Be This, Not That

Joyful Gratitude: November 21

I Am Thankful For:
A beautiful warm day before the chill
Gingerbread popcorn
A day with the grandkid
Wintery morning
My family all arriving safely where they need to be
Going with the flow and making it work
A bright full moon
Listening to podcasts in the car
A visit to the Football Hall of Fame
Layers and layers
A warm blanket
A win for the home team
Football insanity
Coming home
God's protection

The Rest of Your Life

What's the old saying?  "Today is the first day of the rest of your life".  Or something pretty much like that.

Cliché, right?  Yep.  But... I'm feeling all those vibes today.  No matter how much of a cliché it may be - today IS the first day off the rest of your life.

What do I want the second half of my life to look like?  Healthier.  Happier (even happier than it already is).  Travel.  Success in my business.  Full of all the abundance that God promises.  In three little words -  The.  Good.  Life.  

That's what I want for myself.  All of that and more.  So much more.  Because today IS the first day of the rest of my life.

Now that I have those intentions set, the next step is to decide what steps I am going to take to get there.  Not an easy task.  But so very important.  Because there is another saying "If you do what you've always done, you'll get what you've always gotten."

What do you want the rest of your life to look like? And what do you need to do to get there?

Sunday Inspiration: Choose Joy

Joyful Gratitude: November 14

I Am Thankful For:

Finding cute sheets on clearance
Sugar free peppermint mocha creamer
Getting back on track
Spaghetti squash
Filling the bird feeders
Cat playing with his new toy
Stars
Kisses in the airport drop-off zone
Deep conditioned hair
Sunshiny cold mornings
Happy curls
The Man of the House finally getting on a flight home
Soup for dinner on a chilly night
Giggles
That first sip of morning coffee
Nail-biter endings to a football game
Homemade salsa

31 Days of Joy

Y'all know that I select one word as my focus each year, rather than making resolutions. My word for this year is Joy.

I try to do Bible studies and read books that help me to learn more about and grow in the word that I have chosen for the year.  As I read my Bible each day, I make note of verses that include my one word (or some version of it or a related word).

For a while, I have thought that I would like to take those verses I collected and create a Bible study or reading plan.  After putting it off for far too long - it is now a reality!  My first ever original Bible Reading Plan.

These are all verses focusing on Joy.  Ones which spoke to my heart throughout this year.  My prayer is that they help you find joy also.

Want a printable version?  Find it HERE:  31 Days Of Joy

I recommend reading each verse a couple of times.  Then take a few minutes to journal your thoughts and feelings.  Make notes about what stands out to you from the verse and how it applies to your life and/or circumstances.

Please let me know if you try the reading plan.  I would love your thoughts and feedback!

Sunday Inspiration: Fear

Friday Favorites: Pens, Planners and Notebooks

I think everyone has their favorite thing.  That they can't get enough of.  That one thing that others may not fully understand.  And that's ok, others don't have to get it.  It just makes them happy. 

For some people it's shoes. Or handbags.  Or some sort of figurines.  Or electronic gadgets.  Or... well, you get the point.

My thing is pens, planners and notebooks.  It's no big secret either.  Which is probably why I received three different kinds of pens for my birthday! From three different people. 😂

I adore a good colorful pen.  Felt tip, ball pint, gel pens.  I love them all!  Who wants to write with a plan ol' black or blue pen unless they have too?  Not this woman!

I also received 3 planners and notebooks on my birthday!

I don't know what it is about planners and notebooks.  But I love them.  I use them for journaling, making lists, keeping track of events, orders and blogging plans.  Obviously, the cuter the better.  But even a good ol' spiral notebook can make me happy.


What's your favorite thing?

Joyful Gratitude: November 7

I Am Thankful For:

A bonus day with the Grand Kid
Unexpected afternoon nap on the couch
Birthday planning
Catching up on things
Low WW point tacos
Making lists
Looking forward
Rainy Autumn days
Birthday rewards
Goals met
Halloween
Costume pictures from my favorite spooky people
Birthday flowers
Having the best friends in the world
Early morning happy birthday wishes
Free birthday drink from Starbucks
The Male Offspring cooking dinner
Birthday sundae
A new FitBit
Eggs benedict
Feeling cute
A new bee shirt
A perfect Autumn day
Grand kid hugs
More birthday gifts
Nachos

Another New Year

Happy Monday y'all!  I had a lovely birthday weekend.

Typically I start the week off by sharing my goals for the next 7 days.  But, this week, instead of weekly goals - I want to talk about the coming year of my life.

You may recall my Before 50 post of a year ago and which I recapped just last week.  A list to keep me focused on things I want to work on - or things I have been working on and want to finally accomplish.  I enjoyed having a list of plans, goals and wishes to work toward achieving throughout the year so much, that I decided to make it a regular thing.

You'll see a few are items that didn't get marked off last year's list.  Many are new.  Some are simple.  A couple of them will tug me right out of that ol' comfort zone.  (Which is a good thing.) 

So, without further ado - let's take a look a the 15 Before 51 List!

1. Reach my goal weight.
2. Get into an exercise routine.  .
3. Attend a crochet group
4. Learn how to make Key Lime pie (one of my favorite desserts) from scratch
5.  Read these 5 classic novels
•  The Heart is a Lonely Hunter
• Watership Down
• The Secret Garden
• The Count of Monte Cristo
• The Picture of Dorian Gray
6. Attend a play
7. Take a class
8. Road trip!
9. Eat meatless meals one day per week
10. Start a sketchbook
11. Go on a spontaneous weekend away with the Man of the House
12. Get a family photo with the kids and grand kid
13. Go to a movie by myself
14. Donate blood at least 3 times this year
15. Crochet something for charity

And there you have it.  I'll be posting updates periodically over the next year.  Are you ready to follow along on my journey?  

Sunday Inspiration: Focus

Currently... November 2019

Today, I have officially been walking the planet for an entire half of a century.  Fifty.  That number has me feeling a little shell-shocked.  I'm not all freaked out about getting older (like I did when I turned thirty).  I'm just finding it hard to believe that meany years have come and gone.  It certainly doesn't feel as if it has been that long. So much of that time has been amazing.  Some of it was pretty good.  And a tiny little bit has been down right rotten.  But every single moment has brought me to where I am today.  And I like this season of life - a LOT!

Reading:  The Testaments by Margaret Atwood and Everybody, Always by Bob Goff.  Just started the first one, so no opinion on that.  Enjoying Everybody, Always immensely!  On the "To Be Read" list for this month are The Lost Girls of Paris by Pam Jenoff and Tidelands by Philippa Gregory.

Celebrating:  My birthday is just the first of our celebrations in November!  The Man of the House and I will celebrate our 27th anniversary on the 21st.  And of course there's Thanksgiving at the end of the month.

Working On:  Purging some of my clothing.  It is a wonderful feeling to have pants that no longer fit because they are too big - instead of too small!  Even my fitted yoga pants are now more of a loose fit.

Wanting:  To continue losing weight throughout the holiday season; or at the very least, maintain the weight loss that I have achieved so far

Needing:  Some cute, comfy, inexpensive leggings.  Rather than having to buy new clothes every couple of months as I lose weight, I have a few dresses and tunics that I can wear with leggings and sweaters to get me through the winter.  I figure it's much less expensive to replace leggings than jeans, etc.

Making:  Big plans for my Etsy shop next year

Feeling:  Pretty darn good!  I'm so happy to finally feel as if I have control over my weight.  I'm now closer to my goal weight than my start weight.  I'm seeing and feeling physical changes.

Enjoying:  Wearing all my somewhat-too-big-jeans before they get so big that I can't wear them anymore.  I haven't tried on my favorite jeans, which were too small before - but that's happening soon!  (fingers crossed)

Anticipating:  The Man of the House and I have planned a trip up to Cleveland.  We're going to the Football Hall of Fame, a Browns football game and the Rock n Roll Hall of fame.  And maybe a few other things that catch our fancy along the drive.

That's what November looks like for me.  What are you up to this month?