Getting Back into the Swing of Things

So I talked a bit about going to school and whatnot, but life happened and I took a year off. I hope to remedy that soon and get back to it. The the nice thing is that I CAN just jump back in where I left off! I think it has been over a year since my last class, if I'm honest, and I didn't finish the required assignment. My fear that I'd need to completely start over paralyzed me but I called last week and they said all I need to do is finish the paper and mail it in to be graded and I should receive credit for the class. Noooo problem, I said! So now I need to make time to work on that paper...

Planner 2.0

So my purse was stolen out from under my desk at work. The next day I spent 6 hours in the emergency room because of an ulcer. It's been a long week...

Inside my purse was my beloved planner. The one I was so excited about that I photographed and blogged about it. Well I'm happy to report I spent the morning rebuilding it (and those pictures helped me remember what I had in the first one)!

I was able to get larger discs for the spine, and overall I think in happier with 2.0.

Coming up, I hope to blog about a few more positive life events...

Time flies...

So, here it is--we are already half way through the second month of the year. Amazing, isn't it?

Here are some blogging topics I hope to tackle this month. If there's anything I miss and you absolutely MUST know, leave a comment. LOL Somehow, I doubt these are the most exciting things anyone will ever read, but it helps me keep my blog going. Here and there I get tidbits of inspiration, and if that happens, I won't use these. But as you can tell, my spare time and my inspiration have both been wearing thin these last couple of months. (Blame all those projects I'm working on...)

Today's questions is...

How Many Photos Did You Take Today?

Ruth & Naomi

Our church is doing another Ladies Retreat at the end of this month. We have been doing this weekend getaway for 9 years now. This isn't just a vacation, or a grown-up sleepaway camp. This is hopefully a time to reflect...to take a personal inventory on your life and ask the hard questions. Yes, there's time for fun, and yes, we hope you will relax while you are there. But ultimately, it's a time to invite God to make big changes in your life.

(On a side-note, I just spent the last hour looking back through my blog for old posts about past retreats and I'm extremely disappointed in myself for not documenting them properly! Ugh!)

This year, we are going to the mountains. We are going to be taking a look at the lives of Ruth & Naomi throughout the entire weekend. One thing that sticks out is the idea of a Redeemer. You know? I have been hearing that word a lot lately. With the anniversary of Roe vs. Wade, I have been reminded of where I came from...and how close I came to not having existed at all. Ever. Then I thought of what I did with the first half of my life, and how I just basically took everything for granted--I wasted so much time, so much life. But, the good news is eventually I found out the Good News. Jesus redeemed my life--and now I have an obligation to put it to His good use.

I listened to a podcast by Joyce Meyer a few days ago, on living "wholly for God". Honestly, it put a fire under me...I certainly don't want to waste my life on little meaningless things. God redeemed my life--it has value & meaning and I can choose to throw it away or allow God to use me. I choose to be used.

Coupons & Prayer

So, the question for yesterday was "How much did you spend on groceries last time you went?", and since I hadn't gone to the store in a while, I couldn't remember! So, I went shopping last night and the total that I spent at Fresh & Easy was $156.19. This was after I applied 6 coupons, combined with sales, and brought my total down by $24!

But then, I went to Albertsons to buy some frozen lunches for Jason for the next few work-weeks, and spent that savings plus some--$47.18. That includes a $5 off coupon, too.

I would love to be one of those crazy coupon ladies and save tons of money, because the thrill is awesome. I love watching my total go down. But, in all honesty, even if I had 60 hours a day to devote to clipping, organizing & shopping, and even if I had the room to store a stockpile somewhere in my little apartment, I just wouldn't have the patience to do it. It is a lot of work to clip & compare all those sales! And, the stores in my region don't double coupons, so I probably wouldn't save as much as those people on TV anyway!

Today's question is another fill-in-the-blank: "Tomorrow I will _______________." So, the answer to that would be "work". Then Jason & I will probably go to prayer. Every Tuesday night for as long as I can remember, our church has had a prayer meeting. We have never made it a habit to go before because we go to Wednesday night services and volunteer during other times of the week. But since we opened up the year with a week of prayer, Jason has been excited to continue the habit by going to the Tuesday night prayer meetings. It's been nice to go with him.

Recapping

So, in an effort to catch up on my "journal-a-day" questions, here's a recap of my week:

What made today unusual?

On the 23rd, which was Wednesday, nothing really unusual happened, that I can think of...(which is just another example of why it's important to blog these on the appropriate day, I guess). But, the following day, I got to hold a baby snake at work. That's unusual...

What are you looking for from life?

Isaiah 6:8

New International Version 1984 (NIV1984)

⁸ Then I heard the voice of the Lord saying, “Whom shall I send? And who will go for us?” And I said, “Here am I. Send me!”

What is your favorite thing to drink?

If you know me at all, you know the answer to this is coffee...I like Natural Bliss Vanilla Creamer & a packet of Splenda in it.

Today the temperature was ___________________.

It's been a bit rainy the past few days. Today it got up to 63 degrees, though, which I can't complain about compared to the winter weather in other parts of the world!

Fun Friday

So I know I haven't blogged in a couple of days but it was a whirlwind week at work! I fully intend to catch up this weekend, though.

Since I blogged on Tuesday, I worked again Wednesday, and then that night after I picked up the kids we rushed off to church. It was our last discussion night of this Bible study (James: Mercy Triumphs by Beth Moore) that we've been working on since September. Thursday I worked again and stayed to help with our food bank, His Helping Hands. Jason & the kids ate before I got home so I picked up some comfort food at Panera Bread, ate & before the clock struck 9:45, I was full, happy & asleep.

Today we got up early to meet some friends for a day at Disneyland! We spent 10 hours at the park, riding 14 rides, watching a show & seeing Mickey in Toontown. All in the rain! It was a total blast, but again, I am too tired to properly tend to my blog. So here is a picture from today and I will now bid you goodnight!