Happy New Year! New Year’s Day always gives me a feeling of hope and excitement about the future. It is a great time to evaluate the previous year and contemplate what the next year will bring. In the spirit of new beginnings, I thought today would be the perfect day to begin my new blog (Lovely Things will still be there, but I’m not updating it anymore). Let’s jump right in, shall we?
Seven Reflections on 2007
Looking back on 2007, here are seven things I have been reflecting on…
1. My Life as a Christian. I have been a Christian for many many years, but I am happy to say that in 2007 my relationship with Jesus has grown stronger than ever before. I have learned so much, and the more I have learned, the more I see that I still know so little!!!
2. My Life as a Mom. I can honestly say that being a mom has changed pretty much every aspect of my life, and I LOVE that! I have soooo many happy memories of Gabe from 2007, he has grown and changed so much, it’s crazy to think about. I love each new step along this wonderful adventure called motherhood!
3. Family. The big trip (plus two smaller trips) we took in the summer to visit friends and family and attend weddings and other parties… wow, what can I say? It was a huge ordeal that included lots of unexpected trials AND joys - and it was worth every minute!! If we had the time and money, I think we would be doing this a LOT more often, we really miss all of our loved ones. There have been SOOOOOO many exciting changes on my side of the family this year. I can say without hesitation that it is the best year we’ve had as a family in as long as I can remember!!!! I only wish I could be right there with my family as everything is happening. But that does not take away from the joy I feel about all of these awesome changes!!
4. Scrapbooking. When I think about all the wonderful things that have happened in my scrapbooking “career” in 2007, I am just overwhelmed!!! I never imagined that what started out as a fun hobby would have such a big impact on my life and on the lives of others, plus provide all kinds of new exciting opportunities!
5. Communication. I have to admit that being involved in so many scrapbooking teams and projects has impacted my ability to communicate with friends and family as well as I used to. I have over 350 emails in my inbox waiting to be dealt with (and that does not even include my scrapbooking related email), and I am waaaaay behind on all the cards and gifts I intended to mail this year (especially wedding gifts - yikes!) and my Lovely Things blog ended up being pretty neglected.
6. My Health. For some reason, I think 2007 was one of my healthiest years as far as colds/flus/headaches go. I did have one major sickness during our big trip, but that was obviously due to stress. On the other hand, as far as fitness goes, 2007 was pretty bad…I will not get into the exact details, but let’s just say there is plenty of room for improvement!
7. Love. I used to worry that having a kid would hurt my relationship with Chris in some way, by taking our time away or making us too stressed out or something. Fortunately, in 2007 I learned quite the opposite!! Because free time is limited, we cherish our times together more than ever before. I have learned so much about Chris, he is an amazing dad, and I admire him so much!!!
Eight Goals for 2008
Goals, hopes, wishes, dreams… whatever you call them I have lots of them! Here are eight specific ones that I would like to focus on this year. If they are all realized I will be amazed, but hey, 2007 was pretty amazing, so why can’t 2008 be even better?
1. Bible Study. I participated in a Beth Moore Bible study in 2007, and it was fantastic. I would love to do at least one more in 2008! Plus I want to improve my own daily Bible reading and prayer life.
2. Being and Excellent Wife. I read a great book a while back called The Excellent Wife. I want to re-read that one and be the best wife I can be for Chris!
3. Teaching Gabe. Up until recently I have been having lots of fun playing with and taking care of Gabe, but I haven’t really focused on teaching him. Lately he seems really eager to learn, and he picks up on things so quickly! So I want to take advantage of that this year and focus more on teaching him all about LIFE!
4. Communication. Little by little, I will try to get back on track staying in touch. This shiny new blog is my first step… And I want to do a better job of calling my family members!
5. Health. Sleeping habits, eating habits, exercise. I want to improve them all!
6. Scrapbooking. I have tons of goals for my scrap life, but basically, I want to be more organized/purposeful with what I do and use everything I do to honor God!
7. Trip to Europe. I know this is a big one, but I just have to throw it in there. Chris and I have been talking about how Gabe and I have never met his grandparents, uncle, aunt and cousins in England. Plus some of our friends are living in England right now, and Chris has another cousin who lives in Germany with his new family too. And it would be way less expensive to go before Gabe turns two, so……
8. Photos. I already take a LOT of photos, but I want to be more purposeful about it. That’s why I’m going to try this (we’ll see how long I last)! And here’s number 1:
One of the recommendations when doing p365 is to take at least one photo of yourself each month so you can see how you change over time. I realized that for someone who takes thousands of photos yearly, I have very few photos of myself. Here’s one of me on a windy winter afternoon :).
“Commit to the LORD whatever you do, and your plans will succeed” Proverbs 16:3
