gratefulness and goals...

today's sermon was on being grateful, which reiterated a lot of what i have been reading and studying lately when trying to achieve your goals and changing your way of thinking.

i am grateful for my husband, we have known each other for more than 1/2 of my life. (my goal is to be more patient, loving, and grateful toward him.)

i am grateful for my 16 year-old son, he amazes me at some of the most unexpected times. (my goal is to help him realize how amazing he truly is and help him to become an amazing man.)

i am grateful for my (soon-to-be--tomorrow) 11 year-old daughter, whose passion and compassion are wild and unruly at times, just like her mama. (my goal is to help her realize that i love her and accept her for who she is, and how amazing her personality truly is.)

i am grateful for my 2 year-old son, he is turning into such an amazing little guy, loving, funny and smart, and never ceases to bring "delightful"-ness into our lives. (my short-term goal with this little guy is to help him learn to use the potty and live without his "bopi" during our upcoming spring break.)

i am grateful for my home. yes, it is a 3 bedroom apartment, and most of the time it seems to be too small for our family, but it is "home" because it's where all of my most treasured items (see above) are kept. (my short-term goal is to get things in order and ready to move into a 4 bedroom home by june 1. my long-term goal is to begin planning for building our own home within the next 2 years.)

i am grateful for my health. i know i need to lose weight and get into better shape, but i am healthy despite that fact, and can do almost anything i want because i don't have any physical limitations. (my goal is to lose 60 pounds by june 1 and begin training for a sprint distance triathlon.)

i am grateful for my job. i love working with children, and teaching in a title 1 school is definitely different and challenging at times. i would love to have my own classroom and not be a floating teacher, but i love my kids, all 120+ of them, and am so glad i have the chance of getting so many hugs and smiles every day. (my goal is to get hired in a position where i have my own classroom for next school year.)

i have other things for which i am grateful, and definitely have more goals that i would like to meet in the areas of finances and business. as my husband and i begin to really build our own business, those goals will be realized and we will have many more opportunities to help others and do ministry than we've had the privilege to do in the past.

i am grateful for my goals, to better myself, my family, and to help others. this is going to be the best year yet!

fear, fulfillment and destiny...

"if fear is keeping you from being who God wants you to be, the most important question you have to ask yourself is this: am i fulfilling the life that I know I am called to live? am i living my destiny?" --jeff greathouse

no, i haven't posted on here in awhile. i decided to absolutely, 100% focus on my family and having the best christmas season possible! and let me tell you, it was amazing! we didn't have tons of cash for gifts, but the kids did get things they wanted and liked, we ate well, and we did TONS of baking! i think my favorite baked item this year were the earl grey cookies, but i really enjoyed attempting springerle, making sirupsnippers, and lots of other delectable goodies! the norwegian lefse for christmas eve turned out to be the best batch ever too. my kids enjoyed jumping in and helping make the goodies, but i think they enjoyed eating them much more. funny thing is, i think they're baked out...they have been avoiding sweets for the past week, which is not a bad idea since i am transitioning our eating as a family back to much healthier options like we were doing before the hectic school year and holidays hit.

so on to the main reason for my post...fear, fulfillment, and destiny...

i have been doing a great deal of reading over the past year or so on, simply put, positive and intentional thinking. it's been a process, difficult at times, and i'm still working on it. but i have finally had a mental transformation from being fearful and worrisome pretty much constantly, to being optimistic, hopeful and at peace. i am enjoying life, in spite of and sometimes because of the crazy twists and turns we've taken unexpectedly. teaching kindergarten is fulfilling in many ways, but there is so much more i want to do and be. so this break from blogger and especially during my vacation from school during the post-christmas lull has brought about some clarity of thought, an idea of goals to write, and just a glimpse of my destiny. (btw...my biopsy came back as nothing, woohoo!)

as for goals, i have always had a hard time writing them out, and still haven't, but now i have some concrete ideas in mind and have done a lot of thinking about "where i am, where i want to be, and what i am grateful for" which are the most important aspects to keep in mind when setting out on a new journey in fulfilling our calling, our purpose, and our destiny.

those goals are still a little jumble-y in my head, but tomorrow i have a date with my notebook to continue writing them out, as well as working on my dream board, coming up with a realistic schedule for myself and our family, and adding in my new workout routine (kinect is going to help me out a lot!). i am also looking forward to a phone appointment with my business partner to discuss business strategies and excitement coming up for our company this year...it's going to be amazing!

looking forward to an amazing year ahead...are you fulfilling the life you are called to live? are you living your destiny?