Word for 2014

I started seeing "word for the year" posts in mid-January and was instantly intrigued.  Why had I never heard of this tradition before??  It's genius!  Rather than focusing on a bunch of resolutions, why not just one?  A quick Google search brought me to the My One Word website where I was able to read more about the vision behind picking just one word to guide me through the year.

The more I read, the more I liked the idea.  

And yeah, I'm two months late.  But that's okay.  I read that some people don't pick their word until February, trying different ones on for size to see what they're most serious about.  That appealed to me, too.  I know that if I had just picked one word at the beginning of the year it would have been grace.  Even in picking a word at the beginning of March I was tempted.

Not that there's anything wrong with grace!  Obviously.  My whole blog is kind of centered around the concept!  In fact, if I were ever going to get a tattoo (which I probably won't), I'd most likely get that word inscribed somewhere I could see it every day to remind me to have grace, to be grace.

But two months into this year, I've sensed God leading me to a different word.  A bold word.  A hard word.  A word that requires work and sacrifice.  

My word for 2014 is

He's been whispering this word to me for probably four months and it's always been like, "Yeah, I know I need to be more intentional." But then I never take any steps.  That's going to change.  This year, I need to focus on being INTENTIONAL in every area of my life.  Proactive, not reactive.

I'm going to make a list of what being INTENTIONAL means to me and try to work on one item every month.  It's going to be difficult, but if I take it one step at a time, I know I can change.  And I have the whole year to do it.

Wow, why haven't I done this before?!

This year, I made lots of goals.  And I still feel like I should probably make some attempt to complete them.  But they're not going to be my focus.

My focus is on becoming INTENTIONAL.

2014 Goals

Confession time.

I did not finish any of my 2013 Goals.

Not one.

And ya know what?  I'm okay with that.  There's always next year.

Or, as time would have it… this year!

2014 is a brand-spanking-new year.  I intend to fill it with life and love and faith.  As well as hopefully meet some of the goals that I set for myself!  No slacking off this year, love!

This year, I've included some internal goals as well as some external ones.  We all have things we're working on, so I've added mine as goals for this year.

Okay, here we go…

1.  Read at least 5 books on my working reading list, plus others that I happen to pick up
2.  Blog at least once a month
3.  Organize and decorate my house and get rid of junk!
4.  Design more with TAILORMADEdesigns
5.  Start implementing some of the "Love and Logic" principles that I've learned
6.  Learn how to be gracious in compromising with my husband (read: learn how to not be so darn stubborn!)
7.  Learn to listen to my husband, take his advice, and let him help me (even when it's not about the nail)
8.  Learn how to start giving up control -- with my husband, my kids, and God

I'll post my reading list soon.  I know for a fact I'll read more than five books this year, but I want to make sure I read some off of my "classics-I-haven't-read" list. ;)

Also, apologies for the lack of posting from me the past few months.  I've been kind of in a dry season with my writing -- running kind of on empty in the inspiration department.  Hopefully I'll have more stuff coming for you in the next few weeks!

2013 Reading List

Here I am, ready to (finally) share my 2013 Reading List!

Yes, it's taken me this long to finalize it.  Don't judge. ;)

1.  First up is Pride and Prejudice, by Jane Austen.  As my favorite book, I try to read it about once a year.  And, as January 28th was the 200th anniversary of it being published, I've decided to read it first.

Yes.  You are seeing this right.  Little Austenite in the making!
If you're a nerdy mama like me, check out BabyLit.com!

2.  Jane Eyre, by Charlotte Brontë (I will finish it.  I will!)
3.  Les Misérables, by Victor Hugo
4.  Wuthering Heights, by Emily Brontë
5.  Great Expectations, by Charles Dickens
6.  Tess of the D’Urbervilles, by Thomas Hardy
7.  Gone With The Wind, by Margaret Mitchell
8.  The Great Gatsby, by F. Scott Fitzgerald

And now for the re-reads!

1.  A Christmas Carol, by Charles Dickens (I read this when I was probably 13)
2.  Loving Your Kids On Purpose, by Danny Silk (finish, not re-read)
3.  On Becoming Baby Wise, by Gary Ezzo (time for a refresher for Baby Asher!)
4.  Persuasion, by Jane Austen (my other favorite Austen book)

It's sad that there are so many classics that I haven't read, especially considering I'm an English major.
What can I say?  I was home schooled! ;)

Actually, I really can't blame it on being home schooled, as I read P&P and Sense and Sensibility when I was like 12-13.  I was constantly reading when I was in junior high and high school, but for some reason I just never read these books (or I read abridged versions, which do not count).

Ah, well, I am remedying it now.

Life Updates

It's been a busy past few weeks, y'all.  We've been fighting another round of colds (just the kids, no adults this time).  Ugh.  Cold season is the worst.  I think we're past the worst of it, though... especially considering Houston thinks it is now spring.

Lovely. /sarcasm

Taken this week, y'all.  Me thinks the weather is a little confused.

In the mean time, I've been attempting to stay on top of laundry, feed my family, prevent my kids from killing each other (I joke... kind of), and keep my house presentable.

(Note I did not say clean.  Tidy is about as much as I can handle these days.  I mopped my hardwood floors last week -- the whole first floor -- and it completely wiped me out for two days.  Last time that's happening until Baby Boy's arrival.  Whew!)

But basically, I just haven't given much thought to blogging.  Well, let me rephrase:  I've thought a lot about it, but I made a commitment to myself when I started Sufficient Grace that I would never post because I "needed" to.

This blog is an outlet for me to relax and escape.  To reflect.  To allow God to teach me things through my writing and my experiences.  It is not -- and will not be! -- a requirement.

So while I have thought a lot about posting, I just didn't.  Mainly because 1) I didn't have any energy and because 2) I just didn't feel like I had anything to write about.  It's been a boring few weeks, y'all.

On the bright side, I was able to make a list of all my "nesting" projects that need to get done before Asher's arrival, complete with due dates!  I have about one a week from now until April 1st.  And then in April I'm making freezer meals.  Tons and tons of freezer meals.

At least that's the plan...

In any case, last week I finished organizing my closet.  It was a huge project.  When we moved in October, I was right in the middle of transitioning into maternity clothes, so I never bothered unpacking or hanging up the rest of my stuff.  I also threw in all the baby stuff that Hallie wasn't using any more... as well as random odds and ends that just didn't go anywhere yet.

I so wish I had a "before" picture to show y'all!  It was a mess!

Midway point!  Looking better already!

Done!  Not perfect, but I still have to add Asher's things.

And then today, I took everything out of my pantry and reorganized it.  Again, despite my best intentions, I failed to take a "before" picture.  I blame the pregnancy. :|

This poor pantry was pretty disorganized.  Whoever unpacked it, just stacked stuff ev.ry.where.  It's been driving me absolutely crazy, but with morning sickness, two littles, and the holidays, I just hadn't had time to tackle it.

Sheesh!  Who knew I had so much space in there?!

Now everything is grouped together nicely, even if it doesn't look more organized.  Eventually, I want to get everything in uniform containers.  But that is expensive and time consuming and just not something I'm ready to take on right now.

So that's what I've been up to the last few weeks.

What's been going on in y'all's lives, friends?

2013 Goals

Last year, instead of making New Year's Resolutions, I set some goals for myself.  I think I met about half of them. Haha. Part of the problem, I think, was that they weren't time-bound.  Goals should be

So this year, I'm making sure that all my goals follow these guidelines!

Here is a list of what I'd like to accomplish in 2013:

1.  Read all the books on my current reading list (≈ one a month).
2.  Blog thoughts or a review on each one.
3.  Finish organizing/decorating my house (I have this broken down into small projects, but I won't bore y'all with details).
4.  Try 30 days of the paleo diet (May/June).
5.  Handmade birthday gifts for my family (spread throughout the year).

I'm sure I'll have more to add as the year unfolds, but I think this is a good start.  I will try to blog updates on my progress, in order to stay accountable.

I'm also planning to share my reading list (once I finalize it) with y'all, in case anyone is interested in following along. :) Stay tuned for that in the next week or so!

UPDATE:  2013 Reading List!