Books to Read in 2013 - April Update

I'm not doing to well keeping the blog posts coming...sorry!  But, I have been keeping up with reading, so at least I'm making progress somewhere, right?  :-)

Here's my updated reading list!

1}  Don't Waste Your Life

2}  One Thousand Gifts

3}  The Duties of Parents 

4}  A Gospel Primer (currently reading this one as a devotional)

5}  Multiply: Disciples Making Disciples 

6}  This Momentary Marriage 

7}  Shopping for Time 

8}  Worldliness 

9}  Equipped to Love 

10}  Teach Them Diligently 

11}  Fit To Burst  (switched this parenting book that I borrowed from a friend for my previous #11 - this is my current read)

12}  Christian Living in the Home

13}  Real Marriage

14}  Trusting God

15} Organized Simplicity 

Books to Read in 2013 - March Update

Sooo...want to know how my reading is coming along?  I thought it would be good to post an updated list since I have read several of the books now.  It's kind of funny I seem to read in spurts.  I'll read a lot for one or two weeks, and then for a week or two I can't seem to get anywhere in my book.  But, I'm making good progress so I'm happy with that.

Here's my updated list!

1}  Don't Waste Your Life

2}  One Thousand Gifts

3}  The Duties of Parents 

4}  A Gospel Primer (currently reading this one as a devotional)

5}  Multiply: Disciples Making Disciples 

6}  This Momentary Marriage 

7}  Shopping for Time 

8}  Worldliness 

9}  Equipped to Love 

10}  Teach Them Diligently  (My sweet hubby got me this book, so I'm switching it with my previous #10)

11}  Family Practice 

12}  Christian Living in the Home

13}  Real Marriage (currently reading this one)

14}  Trusting God (still reading through this for our Small Group study)

15} Organized Simplicity 

Books to Read in 2013

I've loved to read for as long as I can remember.  I definitely owe this to my parents, who instilled the love in me when I was young.  I always remember that they fed my appetite for reading too...we were at the library often, and in a bookstore even if I couldn't afford to buy a book, I would grab one and sit down and read as much of it as I could while we were there.  Books were popular gifts in my home growing up, and my siblings and I loved to spend our own money on books also.

Reading has been a fun shared interest for my hubby and I also, as he loves books just as much or more than me!  ;-)  He truly inspires me with his desire to learn and grow constantly.  So, now as a wife and mama, I continue to love to read, though my interests have shifted some over the years.  I used to read more fiction, biographies, and such, but now I lean a lot more towards non-fiction.  I love books that make me think and grow and learn new things.

So...this is my goal book list for 2013 (and maybe beyond if I don't finish them all this year).

1}  Don't Waste Your Life

2}  One Thousand Gifts (currently reading this one)

3}  The Duties of Parents

4}  A Gospel Primer

5}  Multiply: Disciples Making Disciples

6}  This Momentary Marriage

7}  Shopping for Time

8}  Worldliness

9}  Equipped to Love

10}  Now You're Speaking My Language

11}  Family Practice

12}  Christian Living in the Home

13}  Real Marriage

14}  Trusting God (reading through this for our Small Group study)

15} Organized Simplicity

I'd love to read more parenting books this year also, if I can get my hands on some through Paperback Swap.  If I do, I may alter this list to include them.  What are your favorites on parenting?

*This post contains affiliate links.

Life with many toddlers and parenting confessions

I'm a mom of 4.  Wow...it's crazy to say that...makes me feel a little old.

I have 3 toddlers.  And a new baby.  :-)  And guess what?  I'm still not a pro.  In fact, the further along I get on this parenting journey, the less I think I know.

It's really terrible how I used to look at moms with little children and think "My kids will never do that," or "When I'm a mom I'll have things so much more under control."  Wow.  I can't believe that I used to think like that!  I guess it just goes to show how easily ignorance can lead to pride.  :-(

Now as a mom for 3 1/2 years, I think about those moms I used to look at, and I wonder how in the world they did it, and how they always looked so pretty and calm.  {And sane.}  Because honestly, I'm not half the mom I thought I would be, and it doesn't come easy.  I struggle with feeling guilty because I'm not on top of things.  I struggle with finding the balance between keeping a clean, orderly home and dropping things to just spend time playing with, loving, and teaching my children.

So that's kind of what's on my mind today.  Me realizing my weakness of doing, doing, doing, and not taking enough time for my kids.  I know that too many times I get distracted by all the things that need to be done, or I turn to cleaning house as a way to deal with the stress of my children fighting, not napping, etc.  {Yes, I really did just say that...having a clean, organized home is therapeutic to me.  In other words, being in an organizing store is like being in a candy store.}  I actually do start getting rid of stuff when I'm stressed.  But...while a clean, orderly home is a good thing, putting all my focus there and not treasuring precious moments with my children, is not.

Since I'm such an organizer freak type, I know that I need a plan.  A schedule, a goal, a purpose.  I'm purposing to spend more time enjoying my children and doing fun, educational activities with them.  I found this Preschool Planning Form that I'm going to try out.  I think it will work really well.  It gives me space to plan and then will help me not to forget.  And I can just mark it off as we go {like a To-Do list, you know, since my organizer side really likes those.}  :-)

How do you balance life as a mom with toddlers?  I'd love to hear your ideas.  :-)

If you want fun, educational ideas for your toddler(s), stay tuned!  I'll be posting about the creative things that we find to do, and maybe I'll post some of your ideas too!

Resolution Failure: what to do if you're failing your new resolutions

Have you failed any of your New Year's Resolutions yet?  For me the fear of failure sometimes makes me hesitant to set goals in the first place.  In light of the fact that I have many times started many wonderful resolutions only to fail before getting very far at all, I thought I'd share a few things that have helped me get back on track again.  So, if you have already failed to stick with a new goal, don't despair.  You can pick it right back up again.  Here are a few important things to remember:

- You're not alone.  Don't let yourself believe that you are the only one, because it isn't true.

- "Tomorrow is a new day, with no mistakes in it yet."

- Even though January 1st is the "official" start of a new year, each day is also the beginning of a new year (i.e. If the year starts on January 4th, it will end on January 4th of next year).

- "Failure is not about falling down, it's about not getting up again."

- You can pick yourself right back up and start fresh again today.  Go for it!

- All things are possible with God.  "If God be your partner, make your plans large."

I hope your new year is off to a wonderful start!  Be encouraged!

New Year's Resolutions

I'm making some, are you?  It's time to step back, re-evaluate, strategize, plan, and hopefully execute some new goals.  Here are some things I am planning to do/work on next year.

- Read through the entire Bible
I'll be using this really neat plan.  If you click on the link you can print out a copy to use for yourself so that you can mark it off as you go.  I love that this plan has the books of the Bible divided up into four categories (Psalms & Wisdom Literature/Pentateuch & History of Israel/Chronicles & Prophets/Gospels & Epistles) and has you reading something from each category each day.  That way it breaks up the new and old testaments which makes them easier to read through, in my opinion.

- Stick to an exercise routine
You might not think I need it if you look at me, since I'm not overweight or anything, but I am definitely out of shape.  I feel like I have lost most of my muscle tone, so that is really something that I want to work on.  Also I know how important exercise is for overall health, and I really want to be healthy.  So, I'll be starting off using a book called 8 Minutes in the Morning.  I found it at a used book sale some time back and thought it looked good.  What I really love about it is that it is simple, short, and that it is based around two basic moves.  I mean, 8 minutes a day should be pretty easy, right?
 

- Read through 12 books
This was my goal last year and I am sad to admit I fell short.  But...I am going to try again.  I think it is reasonable, I just need to do better at sticking to it.  So we shall see how it goes.  Oh yeah, that's not counting all the books I'm reading for my NANC Counseling Certification.  I'm not going to list all of the books right now, but the first one I'll be tackling is Lessons Learned from Years of Homeschooling.

- Memorize more Scripture
 I am really excited about making Scripture memorization a priority this year.  I so much want to have God's Word hidden in my heart so that I can meditate on it throughout my day.  Also, so that I am able to share it with others when I don't have my Bible nearby.  And I want for my children to be immersed in it...to see me memorizing and meditating on Scripture...so that they will want to memorize too.  I'll be posting more on Scripture memorization soon to share about how we are doing this in our home. 

- Make a Will
We said we were going to do this last year, but we didn't.  I feel terrible about it.  After all, it seems pretty simple and I don't think it will take all that long to complete.  So my goal for this year is to have it done by the end of January.  No more putting it off.

- Finish up some projects around the house
We have a few major projects around the house that need some doing.  The master bathroom needs a ceiling job, and both of the bathrooms need to be painted.  We also need to do a little dryer duct repair under the house (hopefully my hubby won't need my help for this one!).  And the spare bedroom needs to be finished organizing and making a final set-up (for now, at least).  I'm also on the lookout for a cheap sewing table so that I can set up a little sewing workspace for myself in there.

- Gardening
We have some big plans for this year when it comes to Gardening!  Last year we were blessed to reap a bit of fresh produce from our garden.  This year we're picking a new spot and going bigger than before!  Right now we're in the planning stage, mostly picking out our crops and marking on the calendar when they need to be planted.  I'm so excited to start reaping more fresh, pesticide-free produce this year!

- A new photo blog
I'll be starting a new blog.  A photo blog, that is.  It will be specifically for photos and photography related stuff.  I'm planning to do a Project 365 this year on my photo blog, which means I'll be posting a new photo every day.  I know it will help me to learn a lot and to get to know my new camera.  Yep, I got a new Canon Rebel XTiand I am having so much fun with it!  But more on that later.  I'll have a link to my photo blog up by tomorrow, so stay tuned!

- Debt reduction
The title pretty much says it.  Nothing fancy, but we're still plugging away at our debt.  We still have a student loan and our mortgage to pay off.  I'm pretty sure there's no way that we'll knock either one out entirely this year, but we're working hard to make them disappear very soon!


What are some of your goals for the new year?