Stuff, change, things, and Carol Burnett

Sometimes there is so much stuff swirling about in my brain that I just don't blog about anything. I get overwhelmed and decide to deal with it in real life instead of putting it down here on my neat and tidy blog page. Then I eventually get to a place that I want to write something... anything because I've missed it so. And the Christmas season can have an entire blog all to itself because life is so busy and there is much to write about. Of course the time passes and all of those unwritten blog posts in my head are now outdated. Be that as it may, if I have a post about Christmas in February so be it. At least I've written about it as a memoir. Right??

 Our family took a couple of hours to find our tree this time around. It was a beaut, but next year we are heading to a small, local business that we know that will appreciate our business, and we will enjoy the fast transaction. :) Win-win!!

I'm sitting here at my computer as I have been at least 10 times today catching up on my SparkPeople page, checking out my FB page to see what my peeps are up to, working on some budget stuff, paying bills on-line, and also pondering all that God is doing in my life. I am really excited!! Change is ahead and I am embracing it!

God is at work.. He always is and has been, but I am stopping long enough to listen, pay attention, and obey. Getting ready for Christmas and 3 birthdays in December and January for the past couple of months has lent itself to a lot of spending, overspending as it were. If I pull that darn credit card out one more time to accumulate points, I'm going to scream! Ok, maybe not, but I really am tired of it. It's time to change my spending habits. Dave Ramsey says that if you spend with a credit card you will overspend 8-12% more than if you were using cash. Psh... I can say without a doubt that we've spent way more than that! Buying things with cash is also painful which makes you spend far less. Yes, that's what one of the major changes in my life will be, to develop a zero balance budget and do my absolute best to stick to it. I know that it is a matter of trial and error to develop a solid budget, really working to crunch the numbers because it's not always an exact science, but it's worth achieving "Financial Peace." I am so ready for this! And I am ever grateful for the Lord's gentle nudging for me to get to this place. It certainly helps that my church stands on these principles and some of my closest, dearest friends live this way.

Baby Steps... have a credit card cutting party; use a cash-in-envelopes system, etc. 

In other news... :) It's time to change the eating habits to some degree. Oh how I like my sweets! Everything in moderation is a great thing, isn't it? Today I was doing so well up until the Dunkin' donuts entered the house. Yes, I had a Boston cream. It was calling my name. Seriously, I hadn't had a single M&M, cookie, or any other such delicacy prior to the "d" word. Blast those donuts! My husband got a gift card and picked some up while he was in Kalamazoo for the girls' volleyball practice. I thought he was bringing home a pound of coffee.

And speaking of coffee, I don't know what is going on, but drinking coffee with cream and sugar does NOT agree with me at all. I've been drinking coffee for years and for the past several months my stomach feels sour and you can figure out the rest. It's not good. Sooooo...

I have decided to not drink coffee for the next 5 days minimum to observe the difference that will make. I picked 5 days because I like to enjoy my morning coffee with Shawn on Saturdays and Sundays. I shall drink tea, both hot and cold, in its place. Wow! Are you keeping up with all of these changes?

*Budget
*Change eating habits
*No coffee

And if that is not enough, I'll be running a Half Marathon again in May which means lots and LOTS of running.

*More excercise

Oh, and I want to lose about 10 pounds by the summer. Not if I keep eating those donuts, though!

*Lose weight

In all seriousness, "I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me." (Phillipians 4:13) There is no possible way I can do any of this without Christ in me, who has brought me to this place of hearing, listening, and obeying. 

And on a little lighter note: My sweet, handsome hubby bought me the Carol Burnett dvd's for Christmas. Several weeks before Christmas I was watching an infomercial about them, got a little teary-eyed as I remembered watching her show with my mom, and really wanted to have them as a keepsake. She really is hilarious!

 

My mom loved the convenience of wearing a turban on occasion, and on this particular day, Braaten wanted to look just like her grandma. Braaten's name is my mom's maiden name.What a precious photo.