A New Beginning

This blog has always been about the journey; It is about the wounded hearts that I do life with; It is about my wounded heart and my journey to wholeness.  

The start of a new school year is the perfect time for a new beginning.  In fact I get way more excited about this New Year, than the one on January 1st.  And it is not because all the kiddos are going back to school! :-) 

With that in mind I have decided to use this blog to hold myself accountable as I take on a journey of 100 days.  Somewhere I've read or heard that it takes 28 days to form a new habit.  I don't know if that is true for everyone.  I'm not sure I have ever stuck with anything for 28 days without cheating or taking a break or whatever... I have discovered about myself: I am not lazy, I have good ideas, I am strong willed, I have enough knowledge, but I am terribly undisciplined.  I have a love hate relationship with routines, schedules, and ruts.  I love the order and predictability they bring into my life, but I kind of hate that it is up to me to maintain them, I must follow them or they simply do not work!!  

Since, I have not stuck with anything for 28 days, I have decided to try to stick to three things for 100 days :-)  I know crazy, crazy, crazy.  But bear with me there is a method to my madness, sort of.  

From the year 2007 - 2013 we added seven family members to our household, these were the forever family people, not the temporary travelers.  These people came with a lot of "stuff."  We have spent the better part of the last five years dealing with the stuff trauma brings.  The wounded hearts, minds, souls, and sometimes bodies.  We will be dealing with all that "stuff" for the rest of our journeys this side of glory.  At times the mental and emotional needs of our family were almost all consuming, like a fire that eats everything in its path.  My time and energy have been swallowed in one all consuming need followed by another.  We have never been without a need to be met for more than a short period of time.  In fact right now we are battling on two different fronts.  Perhaps one of the most intense emotional times of my entire life, but the fact remains, meals must be eaten, laundry must be done, we must maintain a safe amount of clean, and life must go on day by day.

Here's the thing along with all the soulish (mind, will, & emotions) stuff that comes with adding family members there is a lot of tangible "stuff" too.  Clothes, shoes, toys, books, hobbies, pictures, papers a lot of papers!! I have used so much energy on the soulish things I have long neglected the physical things.  I have also neglected my physical well being.  I grab a meal, a snack on the run, collapse at the end of the day in front of the TV and scarf down junk food...to try to fill the emptiness of another difficult day.  All the while neglecting fresh air, exercise, and feeding my body life giving foods.  The result is a house full of clutter, and a body hidden under the clutter of pounds and pounds of fat.

The time has come to do something about the life I'm living and the life I want to live.  The time has come to live our family version of the abundant life Jesus died to give us.  I don't believe Jesus died to give us abundant stuff, or abundant fatty bodies.  I believe it is for freedom we have been set free and part of that freedom for me must be freedom to live!  To live free of stuff that doesn't add value to my life, free to play and laugh and enjoy my family, free to live a long life of health and strength.  

This school year I will have more freedom than I have had in 30+ years.  For the first time since I became a mother,  I will not have a child home during school hours.  I will send my people off to school each morning and greet them warmly at the end of their days.  School starts on Sept. 4th, and I will be embarking on a journey to a life of less is more.  

Over a year ago I invested in Organized 365's 100 Day Home Organization Challenge.  I have dabbled in it seeing some results, but I have never completed all 100 days.  The next 100 days just happens to start on Sept. 3rd.  How convenient is that?  So in my already crazy mind I decided to piggy back that challenge with my challenge to take back my body and get fit for the life I want.  So.....I will be challenging myself to follow the Trim Healthy Mama eating plan and exercise using T Tapp videos and my Snap Fit membership to get my body into the best shape I can at my age for the same 100 days. 

Also, as I already mentioned I am not very good at sticking with anything for very long. This time I have decided to use this blog to keep me accountable ....ouch.  My plan is to post weekly on my efforts, that means pictures of the clutter and mess, menu plans and what I actually eat, a log of exercise successes, before and afters from my home and even of my body.  (ooo, that was hard to type...like really hard...do I really want THAT MUCH accountability?)  No, but I do need it.  Hopefully, this whole experience will help me to develop the discipline I need to follow through on all the other goals I set for myself.  

Look for weekly posts to start on Sept 2nd in the evening/night time.  If you don't want to miss any of my messy journey to more abundant life with less, hit that follow button at the top right side of this page. As an added bonus I will post some of the items I am getting rid of and if you are a local follower and would like the item(s) you can message me and you have 10 days to come get it or it will go to the second hand shop.  I have a hard time giving away items that are still in good shape and usable, because I think someone might need it. So to ease my conscience I'm giving you a chance to take my stuff off my hands :-)  

By His grace I will not grow weary or faint of heart on this journey.