Catching Up

I have about three posts saved as drafts since the last time I posted, but I'm still not ready to finish them. Sorry! Busy, busy, busy! I just had to post today because I was looking at my Mother's Day gifts and I was feeling so thankful. My kids all made heartfelt gifts for me and they just mean so much. How nice that they think so highly of me that they want to create beautiful things by their own hands for me to cherish. I am so blessed. Also, my husband (who I told not to get me anything) got me a beautiful new outfit that I was able to wear to church yesterday and the card he picked out was so sweet. I remember when we were dating and he always seemed to feel a little awkward about giving me cards because he wasn't very good at expressing his emotions so he would get so embarrassed when I would start to well up and want to hug & kiss him. Now, he writes beautiful messages full of emotion and I always know they are straight from his heart.
Even though I had a great Mother's Day, right before I went to bed, I was feeling so low. I was asking God how I could possibly change who I am. How can I go from seeming to always make the wrong choices to making smart choices and having an organized, fulfilled life. I just wanted to go back and rewind my life so I could fix things. I know it is impossible, but I just couldn't see my way past... well, my past. As I was talking with God and asking how I could possibly change, He brought this verse to my mind, "I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me." (Phil 4:13 NKJV) My initial reaction was, "I know, but this is so hard!" Of course I was just whining, so He repeated it, "I can do ALL things through Christ who strengthens me!" I got it that time. All things means ALL THINGS! No matter how big your problems seem, even when you feel like you are drowning, you CAN pick yourself up and try again. You may be behind on your bills, behind in school, behind in work, suffering from a broken heart, estranged from your family - whatever the case may be, you CAN go on. Of course it feels like there's no escaping from your problems, and maybe their isn't, but even if you cannot escape, you CAN find your way through, wade through, muddle through, whatever you have to do, just remember with the Lord on your side, nothing is impossible! NOTHING.
So, I may feel a little lost right now because I am not living my life exactly how I planned it, but I WILL still make it. I'm not going to ask God to let me rewind my life because I need to live with choices I made. What I am doing from now on is taking one step at a time and seeking God first, but even if when I make the next not-so-good choice, I will still hold on to His hand and not let go. I know He will always pull me through the darkest depths.

Finding a Purpose and Accomplishing Goals

I started a post yesterday, but somehow did not finish it. I did however accomplish things today and yesterday that I had set out to do. First of all, today, I have achieved my daily income goal. Due to the fact that I have to rely on multiple streams of income and, unlike at my previous jobs, I do not get paid for downtime, :-( I figured the best way to make sure I am bringing in steady income is to decide on a specific dollar amount I need to make each day. Unfortunately, after deciding on that amount, I realized that I haven't been consistent in making that much money each day since I've been home. The only thing to do now is move forward and reach higher.

This has nothing to do with the blog post, just some flowers my husband got for me one time (just because!) I'm re-gifting them to myself LOL

The other goal I accomplished is that I have consistently working on improving my house - focusing on a certain area and working on it each day until it looks the way I want it. Sometimes it's hard, for instance, when I have done the basics, kitchen, bathroom, floors all look decent, I don't feel like going around and finding something else that needs to be done - I already feel like my entire life is a juggling act! I really am learning, though, because I find the more I accomplish what I set out to do, the easier it is to look toward the next thing, instead of feeling as though a huge scroll is chained to my feet.
I'm tired so this doesn't contain as much substance as I would have liked.
Goals for tomorrow:
Write blog earlier in the day, not right before bed
Be patient with the kids
Figure out what's for dinner
More de-cluttering

Dinner tonight was Baked Spaghetti. My version: I used 1 lb of ground beef; 3/4 jar of Ragu Old World Style Six Cheese sauce + 1/2 jar Kroger mushroom sauce - I should have just used both full jars; I also didn't measure the cheese, I just covered the top with shredded Colby & mozzarella, then sprinkled a nice amount of Parmesan all over it. Rating from the family: **** (out of 5) My husband said pepperoni would have made it better, but he and my daughter are the pickiest ones and both of them really liked it. :-) Weird thing about my youngest - he didn't really like the cheese so I ate his cheese. (He also doesn't like the cream in Oatmeal Cream Pies! :-O He's just different LOL) I also made homemade garlic bread using regular wheat bread, spread with margarine (or butter), garlic powder, a little mozzarella and a sprinkle of parsley :-) I threw it on a cookie sheet & put it in for the last 5-7 minutes of the spaghetti.

Oh, I almost forgot! I think I will have a targeted purpose for this blog. Obviously, I like to give my opinion, mainly because I believe my experiences will help someone else. I was thinking of using this blog to give advice. People can send me questions, or leave them in the comments and I will give my advice. Please comment and let me know what you think. Also, if you enjoy reading, don't forget to follow me.

Recommended Site: The Flylady - I love her! Even though I've found it difficult to follow ALL of her principles, she has still helped me to stick to my goals for my house. You can get anything done if you work on it for just 15 minutes a day!