I have been thinking about blogging a lot lately, but just haven't made the time to do so. I truly enjoy "journaling" the happenings of our family. It is refreshing to reflect on what God has done in our family's life. This is another reason why I love keeping a prayer journal. If you don't have one, start one. You will love reading back over your prayers and seeing God's providence over your life.
On to the update....
We have had more showings on our house recently, so I have been using my free time (ha!) to clean. I got to do a couple of deep cleaning things that have been on my mental list:
1. Do a self-clean cycle on my oven. It gets used a lot (you know how I love baking!), so it was pretty scary, but it is shiny and pretty inside!
2. Shampoo the carpet in the kids' rooms. So much spit up and throw-up happens in those two rooms... enough said.
I also accomplished the dreaded changing of the season closet swap right before we had a cold spell! Life is so funny sometimes!
The kids are sick right now; one with an ear infection and one with something viral. I am coming down with something as I type... so I guess you could call us the Sickly Family Mills. :(
This is not good because for some reason I let my running buddy talk me into training for another half marathon that I only have five weeks left to train for! I need to stay healthy!
Speaking of staying healthy, I want to brag on Ben. If you know Ben, you know that he is a naturally athletic guy; strength and endurance come easily to him. But he is human, and humans need consistent exercise to maintain a state of physical health. Ben works a long day, and most days comes home right after work and immediately helps me get the kids to the table, fed, bathed, p.j.'ed, read to and tucked-in, all (usually) by 8:00. At this point, you parents know you're next to exhausted, not just physically, but mentally too. We usually spend the rest our our evening cleaning the kitchen, taking care of miscellaneous household chores and unwinding by reading together and/or going through our memory verses, or playing guitar and singing. But if you try to call Ben around 12:00 in the afternoon the next day, he probably won't answer. He will most likely be out running around doing pull-up's on tree limbs, push-ups on sidewalks and whatever else he and his work friends can come up with to challenge each other! I really admire their commitment to exercising. And I am thankful that Ben works in an environment that encourages that lifestyle. If you care about something enough, you will make time for it.
Segue alert!
With that last sentence in mind, I want to update you on my New Year post. I had challenged myself to start getting up earlier in order to make time for being in God's Word every day. Not tooting my own horn here, but I do want to encourage you and say, it can be done, and if you truly care, you will make time. I have been getting up between 6:00 & 6:30 most mornings to have some quiet time with The Lord. It has not been easy, and I have had to forgo some exercise time, but I know that God will bless through the sacrifice. I have no secret for success, but my two personal "biggie" motivators that get me out of bed are 1. I set my coffee maker to brew automatically at 6:00 a.m. And 2. I do not ever calculate how much/how little sleep I will/won't be getting. I truly look forward to this time each day.
Make time for exercise... it's good for you!
Make time for The Lord. You and your family will be blessed by it!
