Getting Organized...

I don't know about you, but when I'm organized, I feel the air I breathe is fresher, sweeter & cleaner, my heart smiles and my steps have a bounce to them. So today, I sought after that happy feeling of being organized and attempted to clean out my office, organize my schedule for the week and plan out my grocery shopping. Sounds boring, I know, but I feel like a million bucks after the job's been done.

One thing I organized today was a coupon binder (Okay, who saw the recent TLC special on crazy couponing?? My husband and I were glued to it!) - I have a few friends who are coupon crazy and who do it well, freebies are part of their every day life; but I've actually tried it myself a few times in the past, and was disappointed to find processed foods and petroleum filled products to be the primary coupons available. Yet, after seeing the lifetime supply of toilet paper and paper towels one woman had collected through couponing, I decided to give it another shot. So today, I purchased two Sunday papers (a secret to their coupon success), created a few lists on various coupon websites and clipped away. I feel that if I'm saving on staples such as toothpaste, toilet paper, paper towels, and baking supplies, then it's all worth it - anything to shave the grocery bills these days. Maybe one day my coupon binder will look like this :

But until then, mine looks a little more like this...

Refresh, Reboot & Reinvent...

It's a rainy day here in the sunshine state, and I LOVE it! My husband disagrees, but I could totally live in Seattle or somewhere gloomy and rainy - it's so cozy (when you're indoors at least). Don't get me wrong, sunshine is great - but we get a LOT of that around here, so the change of scenery is nice from time to time.

I know 2011 is probably the hot topic for most bloggers, facebookers, tweeters, myspacers (does that still exist?), etc. these days, but what's the start of a new year without a blog about it? There's something so refreshing and exhilarating about January 1st - it's an opportunity to reboot, refresh and reinvent. We've all over-indulged and probably over-spent during the holiday season and now we face 365 unblemished days to hit the gym, give our daily diets and weekly meal plans a healthy overhaul, and reconnect with our bank accounts and credit card statements. But for a girl who loves Jesus, this week is an all important opportunity for a spiritual makeover.

I don't know about you, but I feel the first week of the new year sets the tone for the 52 weeks ahead, and each day counts. I've done something different this year - instead of making my mile-long list of resolutions that never seem to materialize beyond January 31st, I've decided to create 12 simple (and achievable) goals, and have paired each goal up with a month in which I hope to see it conquered by. I won't bore you with my list of self, spiritual and financial improvement goals - but I will say that I strongly believe that week 1 could make or break my year of change. So goal #1 is to begin each day with Jesus - no matter how great or how small my window of time may be, I refuse to let another day slip away without connecting with the One who gives me life. And as a firm believer in the power of Christ, I'm excited to see how this small commitment of time and effort (& probably a greater commitment of discipline than I realize) will change my life over the next 360 days. I'm excited about the adventure these days hold and I'm excited to, one year from now, look back and see the growth and strength that came from my daily commitment. Like the rain that's cleaning my roof and watering my yard, I hope that my Jesus will be the water that washes over my heart daily and nourishes the seeds that have been planted in my life.

May 2011 be a year full of adventure, and growth for you as well! Here's to a fresh start!

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