"She gets up while it is still dark..."

Proverbs 31:15
"She gets up while it is still dark..."
Proverbs 31 is all about a wife of noble character.  It's what I strive to be.  A lot of times I read that chapter and feel so completely overwhelmed at how much I'm NOT like the woman that is being described.  But one way that is very tangible to me is in verse 15.  "She gets up while it is still dark."  Ok so I've NEVER, ever been a morning person.  I remember all the dreaded school mornings when my alarm would go off and I'd hit snooze probably 10+ times and eventually my dad would come in, turn on my light and tell me to get up.  Slowly I would sit up a little and them plop right back down, giving in to the fabulous feeling of "just a couple more minutes."  All the while I'm thinking how great, warm, soft and comfortable my bed all of a sudden feels and the sinking feeling in my stomach that I won't get to be laying back in my bed until 10pm that evening.  Ugh.

One of my biggest fears of having a baby was....I kid you not....the sleep deprivation.  I. Love. Sleep.  I would talk to other moms who had babies at the time and asked how much sleep they got, when their child started sleeping through the night, if they felt like walking zombie all day long.  Most would reply with, "oh my child starting sleeping through the night at 6-8 weeks," or "it's really not that bad, you just take it one day at a time."  So I felt confident that MY child would sleep well and if not, it can't be THAT hard, can it?  I can do this.  Well then, as you all know, I had a preemie.  If you've ever had a preemie, you know how scary it can be bringing them home, without monitors and being so paranoid about them while your sleeping.  Also, I had to wake the little guy up every 3 hours for a long time.  Needless to say, Lincoln was well beyond 8 weeks old when he finally started sleeping through the night and yes I felt like a walking zombie for a very long time.  I would start to feel sick to my stomach when 10pm came around and we were getting ready for bed, know I would only get to sleep for an hour before having to wake up again.  Don't get me wrong, I loved being a mommy and cherished every minute I had with my little miracle but it. was. hard.

All this to say, I am loving that he now sleeps in until at least 8 and I get to sleep in until 8!  It's Uh-amazing!

So you're probably wondering, "where is she going with this?"  Well remember those Goals that I made a couple weeks ago?  Well the first one on there was to exercise more.  So I've been trying to figure out a routine for myself and so far it has consisted of running out the door as soon as Tyler gets home to go run on the treadmill or do the eliptical at the workout room at our complex.  This has been working "ok" but it's horrible timing because Tyler usually doesn't get home until at least 5:30-5:45 so after I'm done doing a 30 minutes workout it's between 6:00 and 6:15 and then I have to get supper going.  So if I'm super organized then I'll plan accordingly and get supper going beforehand but that doesn't always work out.  Plus I'm missing out on valuable time with Tyler and Lincoln in the evenings.  SOOOo......after talking with some friends who already get up in the mornings to workout (I have much respect and admiration for them!), I decided to join them.  I started for the first time today and we're doing 3 days a week.  I have to get up at 5:30 to be there by 5:45 and we do a Jillian workout in Megan's basement.  I think this just might be a good thing for me.  Like I  said, I've never been a morning person so to get up that early on my own and workout here at home is laughable.  I just turn off my alarm and roll back over telling myself that I'll just workout during Lincoln's nap that afternoon.  Do I ever end up working out during his nap? No.

I think there will be enough accountability and people counting on me to show up, that I will actually roll out of bed and get my morning started off the right way.  I feel better and more awake, get my shower in, get ready for the day and get my quiet time done all before Lincoln wakes up!  Perfect plan.  Now let's see how long I stick with it.  :)

I want to get up while it's still dark because so much can be accomplished in the early mornings.  Time to exercise, clean, blog :) and most importantly time with God.  My days go so much better when I start my day with Him. 

Well I'm off to go finish getting ready before my little man wakes up, we've got errands to run and story time at the library to attend!  Happy Monday!

my list of books for this year

So in my post 2011 Goals, I said that one of my goals for the year was to read at least one book a month.  I promised to have a list of the books that I was going to read and so here it is!  I wanted to have my full list done before I posted it, just because.  I'm so excited about my reading list and wish I could read faster and get to each book sooner than only one each month.  I will read more if there is time left over each month but I'm trying to be realistic with my timing and not too overambitious!

January:

:

I'm about 3/4 of the way through this book and am really loving it!  I knew I would because I just love Karen Kingsbury's writing.  I think all together I've probably read at least 20 of her books.  This book is the first of a series of 4 books so of course I had to incorporate them into my year of reading! :)  Looks like I'll probably get to curl up and finish this book tonight since Tyler "HAS" to go to the Cavaliers game tonight.  Man, he sure has it rough! I'm so jealous!

February:

I put two for the month of February (even though it's a short month!) because I'll probably pick up Take 2 next week and get a head start on it!

March:

April:

May:

June:

My friend Julie recommended this book and from what's she's said it sounds like a must read!

July:

Like I said earlier, I LOVE Karen Kingsbury books :)

August:

I've already started reading this one but I want to start over and reread it again, it's so good!

September:

October:

I saw this series of books recommended on a blog and thought I'd check it out and give them a shot. 

November:

December:

So that's my list for 2011.  Hopefully I'll stick to it.  Well I guess I have to now that I've posted it on here....I'm sure you all will have no problem keeping me accountable.  :) If you have any other good book recommendations, leave a comment, I'm willing to take them! 

2011 Goals

So I've never been real big on making New Year's Resolutions because I always have more ambitious goals than I'm able to actually accomplish and then I just give up and feel defeated.  So this year I'm going to start small so that I can actually accomplish these and feel good about myself! :)


1. exercise more!  I know everyone says this and I say this every year but I'm serious this time.  As long as I'm physically able to, I want to try and make the most use out of our workout facilities at our complex.  Either that or I need to by a membership to the Y or some place that has childcare.  Then I can try Zumba!  hmmmm...

2. read one book each month (at least) List of books coming soon.  Including this one, and probably lots of Karen Kingsbury books!  They are such a nice, light read.  Very refreshing.

3. Be more diligent in my quiet times, writing in a prayer journal and praying specifically for Lincoln and Tyler.  Thinking about doing THIS idea from my friend Julie to help me along.

4. Keep getting better at couponing (I want to try and cut our grocery bill down by another $50)

5. do more DIY projects.  First major one being refinishing our kitchen table.  SOOO excited!  I want it to look like this:

6. And last but not least, let my hair keep growing.  I know this one seems silly but I always want to grow my hair out and then about half way through I give up and chop it all off.  This one should be easy as long as I stay away from all hairstylists! :)

Whatcha think? Think I can pull this off? :)

[You all know I'm kidding, right?]

I'll start with those and then see how it's going.  Maybe I'll add more along the way.