Sunday, January 06, 2013

Good changes

Hey everyone,

The new year is proving to be a success in terms of resolutions and plans to make things better. Anthony and I listened to a sermon this morning and totally spoke to both of us and we felt really fed and also challenged for changes in our new year/life in general. I spent my day today running errands including grocery shopping and handling things for our baby shower. My awesome friend Carrie is hosting the shower and she has done such a great job preparing for it. I am very excited to celebrate my boy and enjoy a day about him before he gets here!

In the latter part of the evening I went over and had dinner and time with my sister, her boyfriend, and my nieces. It was nice to be around them for a few hours. Now, I am home for the evening and going to make Anthony and I some yummy dinner and tomorrow is date day. I am really looking forward to a day with my husband. I plan to get myself as pretty as I can and just spend the day with him and ignore the rest of the world. I think that is completely healthy.

I have been enjoying my day to day Bible reading in getting through the whole Bible this year. I have loved the trek back through it and learning different things than I have in the past. I am also really enjoying getting my house organized for better stress management and time management. I love the clean smell and organized surroundings that help me enjoy the last few months of my pregnancy.

Anthony and I have also embarked on a "get out of debt" and savings plan for the year and I am excited to be able to report on how much debt we have eliminated and how much savings we have developed each month. Since we do want to pay off debt as much as possible, it means that sometimes the savings won't be as much. Our goal is just to be able to save $1200 by the end of the year and reduce our debt by double that or more. We are hoping for more peace, more joy, more obedience, and more bringing glory to God in 2013.

Tuesday we have two appointments for the baby and Wednesday we have one so we will be updating both the personal blog and Max's blog for family and friends. Hope you'll stop back in to see us. Have a great second week of the new year!

--E--

Wednesday, January 02, 2013

A little bit of pampering

The 2nd day of the New Year and I got a few things done that had to be done. I went and ran some errands for my mom and spent the rest of the day at home working on various projects including making important phone calls, cleaning up, and organizing. This seems to be the story of my life these days. Max's appointments are scheduled for almost the rest of the pregnancy and we are working towards some new financial goals since we are now down to one income.

Scentsy is going to be a big part of our lives this year and we have tons of goals for our Scentsy business. We are really loving the company and find it very fulfilling to sell products we believe in and build relationships with people who are our customers. I will be doing a few of our Scentsy parties in January and February and we will probably take a break from home parties when Max is born and then kick it back into gear after adjusting.

We find it so fun to do a business together and bring income into our house that doesn't require more time apart. It is nice to be able to do that.

Tonight, when Anthony got home, I was very spoiled to have him rub me down with cocoa butter since my skin is super dry and itchy in pregnancy and he painted my toenails for me. It's good to have a husband who is so caring and nurturing. My 2nd day of 2013 was great and tomorrow my goals are the following:

-- Make a few more important phone calls setting up health care for Max and getting our ducks in a row financially

-- Work more on the house and get ready for our new water heater to be installed.

-- Figure out Coupon deals for the week to save as much money as possible on household needs

-- Make some final decisions regarding Max's room and furniture

-- Enjoy my day and read and watch some pleasurable tv to relax. 

I pray that your third day of 2013 goes well and that are you richly blessed!

Tuesday, January 01, 2013

Welcome 2013

Well it's officially the year I will be a mommy! Today was surreal waking up and realizing that. I am so incredibly blessed to have my little family and am really looking forward to seeing what God is going to do in 2013.

My resolutions are of the utmost importance and I woke up with them on my mind today. I watched my nephews this morning for my sister and felt a deep sense of love and compassion for them in knowing that I was building that relationship even more in the New Year.

I will be watching my nieces this afternoon as well and look forward to time with them. I learned this morning that my little sister is going through a bit of a crisis and it went right through my mind to pray for her and be available in what ways I could be. I really am praying that God moves my heart in relationships this year.

I am 30 weeks pregnant as of yesterday and every day closer to due date is making me so excited to see my little dude. The plan for today is to see my nieces, run a few errands, work on the nursery and other household chores and then have New Years Dinner with my sister Hilliary and her family and my mama. I want to invite Britt as well so maybe I will see my whole family today :)

Later on in the evening:

New Year's was absolutely fabulous. I was able to see all 5 of my nieces and nephews. Each one of them is so special to me and adds so much happiness and joy to my life. Living in Indiana the last year has been so great because I get to watch them grow and change daily instead of twice a year. I also ran to CVS and was able to get a pack of diapers (after coupons and Extra Care bucks) for FREE. They actually paid me 70 cents to take those diapers off their hands. I love a great deal! This year will really require me to be creative and frugal in that I am officially not working and we are on Anthony's income and Scentsy income for a while. We are not sure yet if I am going to go back to work in the fall or not but that is also not something we can really decide until meeting Max and seeing what the challenge of being a mom and a Type I diabetic will mean for us.

Later in the evening, I cooked a New Year's Meal for my family of Pulled Pork Sandwiches and Cheesy Potato Casserole. We ate at Hilliary's house and watched a few movies and just enjoyed the boys while they played around us. It is always good to take the time to really enjoy your family and be in the moment. We got home around midnight and Anthony and I cuddled up on the couch and watched "X-Men: Origins." My husband is so into Comic Book movies and Superheroes so part of my supporting his hobbies and interests this year will be exposing myself to all of the movies and characters he loves.

We would have liked to get something done on Max's room but we really didn't take the time to do that. I am hoping to get some other cleaning done tomorrow that will help me really show his room attention and begin to get organized for the big day! Lastly, we got some organization done after all when we upgraded my Iphone and cleaned off unneeded pictures, apps, etc... so that my phone is more streamlined for the job of mommying. It is interesting how clutter in every facet of your life really annoys you when you are about to have a child. I have lost emails, pictures, and contacts by not keeping up on my electronics properly and letting clutter in these areas over take me. I have been careful lately not to spend too much time on the computer or social media in hopes of de-cluttering and making my time more valuable for Anthony, Max, and mainly Jesus.

Well, the first day of 2013 has come to a close and I really was happy with my priorities for the day and spending time with those I love. I did my first day of Bible reading and it is always enlightening to begin studying Creation, Jesus' birth, and wisdom books at the beginning of the year. I am so looking forward to my journey with Jesus this year as a mommy/wife/woman of God.

All of my love in 2013

--E--