I can't say I actually expected that to have such good timing. Granted, I wasn't studying from Genesis every day (I have to share that study time to plan for weekly FHE's or my CTR7 class, and I also try to get in some study from the monthly study guides at TSS), but I did start back at the end of November, and it being one of the few books of the Old Testament I have ever read (Ruth being another one, obviously!), I am blown away by how much I have been able to learn with the assistance of the student and teacher's manual for institute. Yes, it took a lot longer than I expected it to (reading all those ensign articles from the 70's was really a trip! Fascinating but definitely made the study more intensive but at least for me, more enjoyable). It was the first time I have ever started reading something without a specific end time in mind.... this year-long study of the Old Testament for me is about the JOURNEY, not about getting it completed by December 31. So I may only get through half of the OT, and I am okay with that. The things I am learning in the OT has gone hand in hand with what I have to teach my 8 year olds, my children, and what I am learning as I study other gospel subject matter. Everything is connected and that connection is Christ and this gospel plan we have set up for us. It is incredibly well designed and I cannot wait to see what I learn from Exodus in the next couple of weeks. And because I have no visual to show you all those hours spent reading, enjoy this little work of art little a made at the library today (and requested I take a pic of course):
From TSS, I have really had the chance to dig deep on a few topics since November: Obedience, Gratitude, Charity, and now Discipleship. I cannot thank Breanna enough for introducing me to this site and opening my eyes to a new way of study (which has probably been introduced to me before, but this made it much easier in my opinion!).
I started out this OT study mostly in the mornings, before I knew the kids would be awake (and back when I was working out mid-morning at the gym, you know a whopping two weeks ago!), I have since made the official shift to working out at 6am for crossfit (second day, and I love it even more!), I am still figuring out how to get my study in, currently it is during naptime but for the sake of getting more stuff done during naptime, I may have to shift towards before the gym... I'll start tomorrow and see how that goes. Regardless of when I study, I have found that putting it first has blessed my life in ways I never thought possible. I was still running on too little sleep but I was less tired (Still tired!) and my thoughts were pointed in a better direction throughout the day. I still struggled this month with that post-home-from-school-till bedtime routine... it is HARD. My diet (or lack thereof), my temperament, my willpower, everything suffers during those hours (because we spent about 99% of the 6 or so months preceeding it, going outside and playing as soon as school was out! and we would do that till dinnertime!! It was amazing!!) because nothing I offer as activity is ever good enough to quell the whining and the crying and the general cooped-up-edness mood of myself and my kids so we end up watching movies to survive. But I want to do more than survive the winter. I want to enjoy my kids as much as I do the first half of the day for the second half. But it will definitely take a lot of work on my part and I am just barely feeling up to the task. Time will tell. And thankfully, past February, while it is still cold in March we have rain and puddle jumping and not as many freezing temp days that we can get outside and it's all uphill from there.
Where was I going with this?
2017 I definitely have a handle on a few things (depending on the day). I am enjoying my time more with my kids and am working to be better at meal planning and grocery budgeting (not the couponing, just the actual "spend less than I plan on spending, only shop once a week, planning out meals that use up what we have") which in my mind goes hand in hand with eating more healthy (if I only have $$$$, I am not going to spend $ on junk food when I need to spend the $ on good quality foods that will actually fit into our meals or snacks, fill us up and keep us healthy! Because that's what our family NEEDS these winter months, to stay healthy!!). Added incentive to "make those abs in the kitchen" is that what I pay for crossfit exceeds more than I have ever spent at a gym including childcare, so I don't want that money to go to waste!I still have 13 pounds to go to get to the place I was before I had kids (which some days feels like nothing, other days feels insurmountable), but I am determined to take care of it in the next 3 months so that I can get on in my life to worrying about something else for a change. "Losing the baby weight" has literally been on my "to do" list for the last SIX YEARS. I'm over it. My diastasis gap is "only" at a "2" (!!!!), which is totally normal!! It is a welcome relief and also a nice show that what I am doing is working and my core is getting stronger. I have less fears when it comes to doing something to cause injury because I know that my back is better supported by my core than it has been in over two years.
I had a "vision board", inspired by Jenn, that I made at the start of last year. It hung by my bed and it was the first thing I saw in the morning and the last thing I saw before I went to bed. I loved and hated it depending on how I was doing that day. But overall it helped me and so I hope that this year's board will do the same. 2017's is currently a blank slate, but I am sure it will start filling up over the course of the next few weeks (since I just cleared it off today!). Definitely deciding on simple resolutions and putting them up all over my house, on this blog and where I can see it regularly and be reminded of my goals has been helpful. And I am seeing the increased capacity I've been desperately searching for for years. I am not perfect, but I feel more confident in my ability to make better choices and of course, I am trying, which is the most important part.
"Start Where You Are."
