A Year of Growth

My birthday fell on a Saturday last year, and I remember it vividly. I had saved some gifts that came in the mail and opened them on our back porch while Ryan took pictures and Lexi examined everything as it came out of wrapping. A friend dropped by with balloons and birthday wishes, and Ryan baked me a Texas sheet cake for our small group that met that night. They sang, and it was a perfect sort of day.

            The year that has followed has been full of growth and change – some of it sought after and some of it unexpected.

            As I sit on the edge of a new year for me, I look back over this past one with such gratitude in my soul. I have done hard things this year – some that I didn’t think I could push through, but I did. I have learned new things about myself, and I hope that never stops. I have faced great joys and some deep disappointments. I’ve taken risks that were so far out of my comfort zone, but I’m proud of myself for trying. I think I’ve packed more (personally speaking) into this single year than any I’ve lived before.

          I’m grateful God has been so patient with me, teaching me more of Who He is and who He wants me to be. I’m grateful for a husband who loves and champions me every single day. I’m grateful for fur-babies who jump with joy when I walk through the door. I’m grateful for friends and family who invest in me and pray for me.

            I’m grateful for the things that have stretched and grown me over this past year. I haven’t liked all of them in the moment, but I am glad for them, because I know they served a meaningful purpose.

            And of course, it’s easy to be grateful for all the good and fun things that have rolled around in the past year. I’ve appreciated each of those things, too.

            We are never guaranteed to get to live another day, so I am profoundly grateful for the last year of days God allowed me to live. I hope I pointed to Him with each of them! I’m excited for a weekend of celebrations and good things to come in the days ahead. 

Bekah's Bookshelf: 2023 Reads So Far

 

As you might remember, I’m doing a reading challenge throughout this year. The proposed challenge calls for me to read 52 books, but I won’t have time to get through that many. Prior to this post, I had read nine books in 2023. Six were from the challenge and three were for work. Today I have two more to share with you.

            My next chosen book was a tough one for me and took longer to read than normal, but I powered through and finished it!

            Truthfully, I feel a little sheepish about sharing this one, because it feels almost mean, and I don’t want it to come across unkindly. The prompt was “Bottom of Your To-Read List.” Since I don’t have a literal TBR pile (like many readers do), I interpreted this one to mean a book I owned that I really didn’t feel like reading. At first, I didn’t feel like I had a book that fit that category, because if I own it, I want to read it! Then I remembered, I did have a book that fit this one.

            Years and years ago – when I was in my early 20s, our Sunday School class studied Anne Graham Lotz’s book Just Give Me Jesus. I loved it. It shaped my relationship with God so profoundly and shaped me as a writer, too. I underlined and wrote in the margins and loved everything about that book.

            I thought Anne would be my new favorite author, but along the way, she started to make me uneasy. It wasn’t that I felt she was teaching falsely. It was just her approach to teaching that started to feel abrasive to me. I desperately wanted her to be softer in her delivery, and I felt a bit overrun by her presentation.

            By that point, I’d purchased her book The Magnificent Obsession, but I couldn’t bring myself to read it, because I felt out of touch with her as an author. Still, I couldn’t bring myself to get rid of the book because I wanted to give it a try – someday.

            The reading challenge provided my “someday.”

            I didn’t realize the book is an in-depth study of the life of Abraham, so once I got into it, I wished I would have read it in conjunction with my study of his life last year. I’m knee-deep in Moses’ life now, so it wasn’t the best timing fit.

            She explores how Abraham’s magnificent obsession was his relationship with the God that (to that point) most people on earth didn’t know intimately. The book was well-written and contained great stories from her own life as well as truths from Scripture. She also has a very poetic nature to her writing, which I also enjoy.

            I’m glad I finally read the book, but it wasn’t my favorite. I still don’t think I feel connected to Anne as an author anymore, and that prohibited me from fully loving the book like I wanted to – and like I might have at one point. But I don’t want to discourage you from reading it if it intrigues you. It’s a great study and contains powerful lessons. And if you’re studying Genesis or Abraham’s life, this would make a good companion to your study.

            In full disclosure, the next book is one I’m still in the middle of reading as far as the challenge is concerned, but it’s a book I’ve read before, so I’m able to comment on it. I felt like, after the tough read I just told you about, I wanted to read something cozy that would embrace my heart. So I picked the category Reread a favorite. It was an easy choice for me: Love Comes Softly by Janette Oke.

            I’ve blogged about this book before – many years ago – but I’ll tell you again why I chose this one. This book was published in 1979 and I read it for the first time in the 6^th grade. It was the first time I had read a book that wasn’t aimed at children or young adults, and it was the moment I fell in love with Christian fiction. I’ve lost track of the number of times I’ve read this book over the years, and now I’ve added one more.

            This book was the gate to my love of Christian fiction, and the characters within became actual friends to my tweenage mind. I told Ryan, the day I started this most recent trek through the book, “I know you won’t understand this, but this book is like coming home. These people are my friends, and I love them.”

            The book is set in the days of pioneers in the west and begins the legacy of a family that continued through a whole series of books that followed. (There are also movies for most of the books, but I remain partial to the books themselves.)

            Love Comes Softly tells the story of Marty Claridge, a young bride who has traveled west with her enthusiastic new husband. They are newly expecting their first baby, and as they arrive at the land that will be theirs, an accident claims her husband’s life. She’s left with nothing but a broken wagon and winter looms. The same day the local neighbors bury her husband on borrowed land, a man named Clark Davis approaches her with a marriage proposal. He’s a widower with a toddler, and his daughter needs a mother’s touch in her life. Clark offers Marty a place to live in exchange for help with his daughter – and he promises to pay her way back east in the spring if she wants to go back home.

            I love Clark and Marty. I love their personalities, their honesty, and their tenacity. I love all the neighbors that live around them and the land they tend with every part of their lives. I will plow through this book in about a day, because I know it by heart and love it so much. And even though I’ll move on to other books and authors for the challenge, I may just sail through the whole series of Love Comes Softly books just so I can revisit this sweet family I love so much.

            If you’ve never read it, give it a try!

Transformation Tales: The Master Bedroom

 

In most homes, a master bedroom is defined by its size. The biggest room – or the one with a bathroom attached – is the master room by default. In this house, neither bedroom has an attached bathroom, and both rooms are the same size. So we just delegated the master to become the master – and it did!

            We know that in some family layouts, having a master bedroom without an attached bathroom would be a deal breaker. But because it’s just the two of us here most of the time, it’s not a big deal for us. It’s also not a big deal that the room isn’t huge, because we don’t need it to serve any purpose other than storing clothing and giving us a place to sleep!

            This room had all the same challenges the other bedroom had: paneled walls (though a much darker paneling than the other bedroom), damaged wood floors, lace curtains, heavy sliding doors on the closet…all sounds familiar, doesn’t it?

            We started the makeover by removing the curtains and blinds, and we took out a little corner shelf that had been nailed into the wall. We removed the closet doors and switched out the overhead light for the same updated light we put in the other bedroom.

            We painted this room as well, which brightened it significantly! We chose Repose Gray, which is the same paint we used in the kitchen. It sometimes looks gray and sometimes almost green in this room. We put down the same flooring as the other bedroom (and dining nook) to keep a cohesive look throughout the house. And just like in the other bedroom, we painted the trim and main door (both sides) Snowbound.

            We brought our trusty curtains and curtain rods from our previous house and put them in here, and the sheer white curtains against the light gray walls feel very beachy!

            Since this is our bedroom and floors can feel cold in Indiana in the winter, we chose to put the area rug that has been in our living room in the last two houses in this room instead. The color scheme worked beautifully and it added a good punch of texture and color in this room.

            We kept our same bed and bedding, and we were able to squeeze in the same side tables we’ve had since we first got married. We had just enough room to add a dresser and little accent table – both of which are family pieces from my side of the family. I’ve owned them since I first launched out on my own!

            Our biggest challenge in this space was downsizing a shared walk-in closet to a shared reach-in closet. Could you have done it?? Here’s how we made it work.

·         *    Our bed has two drawers in the footboard, so we designated those our t-shirt drawers. We each have one and if it’s a t-shirt we own, it must fit in our drawer.

·         *    The bedside tables have abundant basket storage in them, but they had sort of become junk drawers over the years. We cleared out all the junk and made them dresser drawers instead. The little baskets are the perfect size for holding things like socks and underwear – and other smaller clothing items.

·         *    We found a super affordable closet organizer, so we did add that to the closet space, giving us a mix of hanging space and shelves/drawers. We used organizing baskets we already owned to hold some clothing and hung up the rest. This closet holds our coats, too, since we don’t have a specific coat closet.

·         *    We keep our shoes in a closet on the lower level, so they did not have to cram into this space.

·         *    And to be fair, we did get rid of quite a bit of clothing we never wore. No need to hang onto things we don’t wear, right?

·         I was so proud of us for accomplishing this downsizing event! We have everything we need and room to get more in the years to come if we want to add new pieces now and then. It works great for us!

Throughout our marriage, we’ve made a point of being very intentional in our wall art in our bedroom. We try to choose things that represent our love and commitment to one another. We choose a lot of wedding memorabilia and photos that are significant to our relationship in some way. We used those sorts of pieces in decorating our room, and I love all the memories they represent.

Rather than bringing back the closet doors, we put a curtain over the closet opening here, too, and it feels cozy and warm. We put a set of hooks behind the door to hold our bath towels and robes – and I leaned my full length mirror against that wall, too. When I need to use it, I pull it out and place it wherever I want for viewing. It works so much better than having it tied to one wall.

Though Braeya goes throughout the house at her leisure all day, she has always preferred our bedroom for her true rest – day and night. So she shares this space with us. She has favorite spots on the bed, beside it, and under it, too. She just moves around at her own pace! Lexi joins her now and then, but this is primarily Braeya’s room in addition to being ours. We all sleep very well here.

We don’t have many more plans for this room, other than to add some more wall art, eventually. We intentionally left some spaces blank so there would be room to grow!

Mini-Autobiographies

             I’m just over half a month away from diving into my 2023-2024 planner. (For the last several years, I’ve used more of an academic year calendar over a calendar year version, so all my new planner joy comes in June each year.) I’ve worked hard to set up the new book, transferring information, copying in obligations we already have, and thinking ahead to what the future might bring.

            But while I do that, I’m also looking back over the book I’ve used for the last twelve months. It really is a combination of a journal and a planner, and the memories it holds are sweet to me as I wrap up the time frame it represents.

            It holds my words of the year from both 2022 and 2023 (“foster” and “presence,” respectively). I wrote in the front my verses for each year – one from 1 Peter and one from the Psalms.

            I found scribblings of goals and dreams. Some happened as I Hoped they would Others didn’t. And sometimes the goals and dreams changed along the way. Each of those results represent a journey unique to us and the year we lived.

            Hundreds of colored circles represent days of Bible study complete, and that makes my heart so happy.

            I have notes scribbled from meetings I attended for work, webinars I took for fun, brainstorms for the future, observations about myself, lists I needed to accomplish, measurements for our furniture, gift ideas, essential oils I wanted to get, quotes I found, and interviews I conducted. They flow in one giant stream of consciousness, separated only by the use of a different color for each moment.

            Each month holds a verse I worked on clinging to throughout those days, prayers, gratefulness, and goals.

            I see notes about the books I’ve read, the places we were scheduled to visit, and the monthiversaries we celebrated.

            The daily pages hold to-do lists, prayer requests, quotes I found, notes about my water consumption and our workouts, praises, and more.

            It’s the story of our year, told in colorful formats and full of history and meaning. I see why people like keeping planners from years gone by. They’re mini autobiographies that chronicle the ordinary and make it feel extraordinary on the other side.

            The Lord has brought us through so much in the last year. It hasn’t all been bad. Much of it has been very good. But much of it has also been weighty and significant to our now and our future. That won’t stop simply because I’m switching to a new book. I know that a year down the road, I’ll be in awe once again of God’s work and slow, purposeful guidance of our days.

            Oh my friends…if you haven’t tried documenting life in planner form, you should give it a try. It is a boost to the soul when planner-graduation day arrives.

A Call to Celebrate the Ordinary

 

Saturday, after we worked on our yard and after Ryan helped with an event at church, we decided to press pause on the pressing things in front of us to sit on the back porch and watch the sunset while we drank our coffee. Our neighbors had the same idea, and we found them already sitting at their fire pit when we made our way out to our own spot. We sat in our respective spots, telling stories, laughing, and soaking up the first of what we hope will be many beautiful evenings this summer.

            It wasn’t lost to me, as we sat there, that this very sort of moment was part of the draw of moving here. It also wasn’t lost to me that such moments require intentional decisions to sit and enjoy instead of plodding through lists.

            The ordinary is in front of each of us, but it’s so easy to miss it, because our focus remains on duty instead.

            If you need permission to celebrate the ordinary, perhaps I can offer it to you today.

            Celebrate ordinary meals. We celebrate them by eating together every single time we are  home together. We sit at the table and eat from real plates. That doesn’t mean you have to do the same thing. Maybe for you, it means using cloth napkins or lighting a candle or playing some soft music. Personalize it to fit you, but celebrate the ordinary (even if you’re eating alone!) by making the meal a special time.

          Celebrate ordinary sunsets. Maybe sunrises are more your thing, and if so, that’s fine. Either way, take time to sit and watch them. I take a picture of every sunset we pause to enjoy. Ryan asked me how many of those pictures I have, and I told him I’ve already lost count, and I don’t apologize. Pausing to appreciate God’s beautiful artwork is always time well-spent.

          Celebrate ordinary days. Whether it’s an accomplishment attained, a monthiversary reached, or any other reason, celebrate a day because it’s meaningful to you. It doesn’t have to be a greeting card holiday or recognized by anyone else. It can be your special day because you’ve declared it to be so.

            Celebrate ordinary stretches of time. Are you tired? Take a nap! Do you need to escape? Read a book! Do you need to de-stress? Play a game or put together a puzzle. I’m all for fulfilling goals, but I’m also a huge advocate for setting aside time to recharge – guilt-free! Sunday afternoons are my absolute favorite for this very reason. I give myself permission to do whatever my heart and mind need to recharge, and I don’t feel guilty about it!

          Celebrate your growth in the Lord. I am learning that I always need to be learning. (Did you follow that?) I am not too old to learn new things, and in fact, I need to always learn new things. And when I recognize that my faith is stretching and growing, I want to pause to celebrate the goodness of God at work in me.

            See, my friends? Celebrating the ordinary is a remarkable gift. It is the reminder that the ordinary is actually extraordinary, and it is our privilege to get to experience it. I urge you to try it today!

Sunday Sentiments: Beauty and Potential

 

The spring of 2020 was the last time I planted flowers at our home…until yesterday.

            Oh how I missed them.

            Yesterday morning I set the alarm for five a.m. so I could watch the coronation. (Dozed off a few times but caught most of it!) And as soon as the main event was over, I hopped in the car to pick up the remainder of the plants we needed for this year’s flower event.

            Ryan was trying to do some yard chores before he went to volunteer at an event, so I was on my own for flower shopping. I punched the address to a local spot into my GPS and headed out. I was unprepared for the size of the flower shop and spent the first few moments wandering with my mouth gaping at all the beauty around me.

            I wanted to take pictures of everything, but I refrained. And every time I thought I had found the end of it, there was more to see.

            After appreciating the beauty for a while, I had to narrow down the choices to the few things I wanted to buy for our home. It was a hard choice!

            Ryan and I worked for several hours to spruce up the outside of the house, and I took my time filling the flower pots we’ve owned for years. They live in a new spot now, but the familiar beauty of each planter made me smile as I worked the dirt and placed the plants inside.

            My favorite part of planting flowers each year is seeing the way they fill out and grow. I surveyed my work today and wondered if a few of the planters should have had more inside. Then I remembered that with time, what I added will grow, spread, and bloom, and it will look fuller and richer in just a few weeks than it looks right now.

            Between the beauty in front of me and the reminders of potential, my day was rich in lessons of the heart.

            I’m looking forward to watching the beauty unfold in our planters this summer, but I’m also looking forward to the heart-lesson of seeing potential in others as it grows and unfolds!

Saturday Suggestions

 

ONE. 

WOW. That’s all I have to say about this story I stumbled upon this week. This Indiana nurse with five children of her own adopted a teenage mom of triplets so the mom could keep her children. This is an amazing picture of love, and it challenged and inspired me!

TWO. 

Mother’s Day is coming up in just a week, and while you may be thinking of gifts to get for your own mother or other moms in your life, don’t forget about those for whom Mother’s Day might be challenging this year. If you have a friend who is waiting to be a mom, but the process is going so slowly, or you know someone who lost a child this year, perhaps one of these gifts could be meaningful for them. More than anything else, just remembering a hurting mama or mama-in-waiting can be the greatest gift.

THREE. 

Ryan and I had been doing workouts that were about an hour long every day, and we decided to switch to something a little shorter, just to make our daily schedule more doable. Here is the plan we’ve been using, and it’s surprisingly effective, even though each session isn’t super long. I’ve shared this trainer’s workouts before, but this particular one is fairly new.

FOUR. 

When we moved this last time, we did have a broken dish casualty, and I asked Ryan to save the pieces so I could make a stepping stone for the garden area. (I intend mine to be for decorative purposes only – not for actual stepping.) I found this tutorial to walk me through the steps  of making one. Maybe I’ll get that done yet this month! And if you have some meaningful, yet broken pieces, perhaps this would be a good way to repurpose them!

FIVE. 

I know we’re in the middle of the year, but you could start this anytime…or tuck away the idea for next year! This is an inexpensive downloadyou can purchase that guides you through writing a few verses from Proverbs each day, and by the end of the year, you’ll have written out the entire book. I love the idea of marinating on just a couple of the verses each day to let them settle in the mind!

SIX. 

If you love the song Goodness of God, check out thispiano version. I really love Stan Whitmire’s playing talent, and this one didn’t disappoint. It starts with that song and then goes on to many others. In all, there is about an hour of music, but it starts with Goodness of God. Just so you know, the video portion is scenic and not actually of Stan playing. But the music is gorgeous.