Diligence

DILIGENCE:

Each year Trevor and I pick a word for the year. Usually it is not us picking a word, but the word picks us. Haha. It is usually an area where we are lacking and that needs attention in our walk with Christ. This year my word is diligence. I went through several words...health, energy, serve, commit and I ultimately ended on diligence as I was reading my 31 day devotional of the Proverbs 31 Woman book. (She is diligent in every area of her life and that is when I realized I need a "Whatever it takes" attitude which ultimately led me to diligence as my word) I think you have to look at the opposite of your word to really understand. The opposite of diligent, to me, is without purpose or effort. I don't think I lack purpose or effort, but some of my efforts lacked purpose for the long haul. For example: I want to be more physically active so I can have energy for my boys (my VERY ACTIVE boys), I want to set a healthy example for them regarding food and healthy choices, so I want to cook healthier meals. I think I do good for a short period of time in these areas but then life happens and for some reason it stops. I think my life looks like that in a lot of areas. I don't want life to get in the way this year. I want to be diligent and intentional in what I set my mind to. It’s hard for me to do long term goals, I need short term results. So, diligence is my word for the year, and I will be making small monthly goals regarding the areas that I want to see growth. 

I taught on my word in my moms group, so I wanted to share my lesson:

Diligence: careful and persistent work or effort.
Synonyms: Hard work, effort, care, rigor, persistence, dedication, commitment 

“So let’s not get tired of doing what is good. At just the right time we will reap a harvest of blessing if we don’t give up.”

‭‭Galatians‬ ‭6:9‬ ‭NLT‬‬

“Work willingly at whatever you do, as though you were working for the Lord rather than for people. Remember that the Lord will give you an inheritance as your reward, and that the Master you are serving is Christ.”

‭‭Colossians‬ ‭3:23-24‬ ‭NLT‬‬

In reading and studying this word, I found several ways God calls us to be diligent:

-Seeking God. (Hebrews 11: 6)

-Remember truths God has shown you and teach them to your children. (Deuteronomy 6:5-7)

-Keep all God’s commandments. (Deuteronomy 6:17)

-Guard your heart. (Proverbs 4:23)

-Continue growing. (2 Peter 5-8)

-Being the person God has called you to be. (2 Peter 10)

-Minister to other Christians. (Hebrews 6: 10-12)

I am going to have several focuses this year, but with a diligent attitude. I want every area of my life to be in sync with scripture. If I rid what is not in line with scripture, I can invest my time and energy on being diligent in the areas that matter. 

I will be diligent in: seeking God, giving my husband my best, caring for my family, prioritizing, having a “whatever it takes” attitude, serving others, finances, taking care of myself and my purpose.

My first January goal was to seek God first thing every morning and to be more bold in sharing. I am reading two books that require me to read a chapter a day and I am in a devotional with friends on the YouVersion Bible app. I am either having to write or share what is going on in my life daily with Christ. It's great accountability and something I look forward to every day. I don't always finish everything in the morning, but when I get a free moment or when nap time rolls around, this is my first priority.
Also in January, my goals revolved around health and fitness. I chose to start there because if I am being intentional about being physically active, then I have more confidence and am able to give my husband my best, I have to be prioritizing because workouts don't just happen and being physically active helps in taking care of myself so I can better take care of my family. It touched so many of the areas that I want to see progress. As January is coming to an end, I am so proud of the effort and results that have happened in January and it makes me excited for my February goals.

Here are some questions you might consider answering:

*Think of a person you know who is diligent. Describe what you observe in this person that causes you to call them diligent. 

*What are some of the benefits of being diligent? (Pleases God, thoughtful and considerate of others, meets deadlines, good team player)

*What factor in our lives sometimes make it difficult to be diligent? (Too busy, our culture wants “instant” results, distractions...)

*How has a lack of diligence negatively affected your life in the past month?

*In what area do you want to be more diligent in this week?

What is your word for the year?

January Date Nights 2018

This has been a fantastic month full of fun dates. We started the year of with a bang and I am excited to see what all is in store for date nights. I can honestly say this has been one of the best things for our marriage, especially now having two little ones. It is so important to find ways to connect and be just husband and wife. Only one of our dates this month even cost money. It has been fun to get creative and experience new things together.

January 4th: 18 Goals for 2018 (sorry, I blacked out a couple that involved other people that may not want that information shared. :))

January 11th: Wahoo! We had a game night and one of our favorites is WAHOO! You can probably guess who is ALWAYs orange, so by default, I am always yellow. Fun fact: Trevor has an OLD wahoo game board that was his great grandmas (I think). Well, it has been played sooooo much that it is falling apart. So, two years ago we finally broke down and bought this neat OSU board. Plus, it came with the orange and black marbles and die.

June 18th: We moved to the 19th because we were doing stuff with friends. Trevor and I went to SkyZone and then we met up with some friends for dinner at Rooftop. I was so sore the next day after jumping for an hour. Haha!

June 25th: Hot tub and crossword puzzles. I didn't get any pictures of this one. I actually had to run an errand after we got the boys down and when I got home, my bathing suit and a towel were laid out and Trevor was waiting for me in the hot tub. It was a fun evening!

I'm Loving My Guest Bathroom

We have finally finished our guest bathroom/the boys' bathroom in our house. Getting projects done around the house with a toddler and a newborn (especially when you are doing it all yourself) is sometimes impossible, so I like to celebrate when we have finished something. We thought this bathroom would be a weekend project and it turned into a few weekends plus a few weeknight evenings. Haha! I need to start preparing myself for things to take 3x longer than anticipated. I should have actually learned that by now in the whole process of building our house! Haha!

But, the bathroom is done. I wanted this bathroom to be kind of kiddish, because it's the bathroom that Brooks and Rhett will use, but it also functions as our guest bathroom, so I wanted it to look adult too. I'm really happy with how it turned out. The only thing left is finding a neat toilet paper holder (crucial for a bathroom, right?). I have one in mind, it's just a matter of finding the right person to make it for me. :)

This was the final project we were working on. Our barn tin wall and horseshoe towel hooks.

Everything looks cuter with animal towels!

I love our wood tile shower with the glass accent.

I know I brag on him a lot...but seriously, Trevor did SOOOO good on these vanities!  

These light fixtures are my favorite!

My photography helper. He's such a cutie!

Now, onto the next project....

Morris Brothers 18 & 3

All about my boys being 18 months and 3 months. This was such a fun month because of Christmas celebrations and lots of family time!

Brooks turned 18 Months on January 1st. 

Rhett will turn 3 Months on January 9th. 

He is a wild child! It gets harder and harder to take these photos because he wants to throw the dog or grab the blocks. This is such a fun age, but he keeps me on my toes. At his 18 month appointment he was 27 lbs (87 percentile) and 2’10” (93 percentile). 

Goodness, he is so cute! He is looking so big; however, we had our 2 month checkup (which was more like 2 and 1/2 months) and he is definitely on the small side. He was 11 lbs 8 oz which is in the 18th percentile and 1’10” which is in the 4th percentile. Just a little guy!

Here is what Brooks is up to:

*Not a whole lot has changed this month, but his vocabulary has blown up. He repeats almost everything and is good at repeating back up to 3 syllables. 

*Brooks still only has 7 teeth! I really thought 2 more would be here by now, but nope!

*He is a jokester! He likes to do things just to get a reaction out of people. It definitely makes me laugh, but I think I’m going to have my hands full! 

*He absolutely LOVES his brother. He gets concerned when Rhett cries and he hates when “bubby” takes a nap because he can’t hang out with him. It’s so sweet! 

*He is getting good at knowing the order of numbers 1-10 and can repeat the alphabet other than the letters “m” and “w”. 

*He LOVED opening presents at Christmas. 

*He has also taken up dancing as a hobby. Any time music is on, he is groovin’!

What Rhett has been up to:

*He loves sitting in the bumbo seat. If Brooks and I are eating breakfast or lunch, Rhett wants to be in on the action sitting with us. 

*He likes the playmat, but seems to prefer the bumbo seat. 

*Most naps are really good during the day, sleeping 40 minutes to an hour. 

*He is a rockstar sleeper at night. He sleeps 11-12 hours. 

*He smiles and laughs a LOT! 

*He talks a lot.

*He is still in the houseplant stage, but I am loving watching his personality bloom!

Here is our month in pictures:

Cheesin’!

The first Tuesday of each month we do family night with our lifegroup, so all the babies got to hang out together.

Oh my goodness...that hat! ;)

Gotta love comparisons. Brooks is on the left and Rhett is on the right. There are some definite similarities, but some major differences. 

Is anything cuter than a smiling baby!!! ;)

Brooks loves to makes this face. The ice maker will make a noise and he turns to me and does this. Something funny will happen on tv and he makes this face. It cracks me up!

He still loves to hang out in his teepee and read...so precious!

This was the best moment! Both boys were just hanging out in my lap talking and being so sweet! BEST.MOM.MOMENT!

Cutest little raccoon. 

We went and looked at Rhema lights one evening. Rhett slept through it all and Brooks was mesmerized.

Helping Dad and Papa build his own Christmas present. 

Melt my heart! 

Snoozin’

We had a play date with the best of friends!

This is the last picture of my little bucket head. I accidentally broke the bucket and had to throw it away! :( Thankfully for Christmas he got a construction worker hat!  

Smiles for our Christmas celebration!

Helping Mom make cookies. 

We finally started doing baths together. I think they enjoy it and it makes our nighttime routine so much easier.

You can read about our Christmas celebrations here!

My brother Wes meeting Rhett for the first time. 

The best Aunt and Uncle!

Loving his new Christmas presents. 

;)

Touchdown!!!!

Ready to watch some OSU football!

New frog PJ’s

Chillin’ with Dad. 

Here are a couple more comparisons...

Do you think they look alike???

Brooks has started taking his socks off during nap time. Little stinker! He’s holding one sock in his hand. 

We had such a great New Years! Here are a couple pictures, but you can also go and read about it here.

Rockin’ his new coat. 

So sweet! Brooks wanted to read to bubby.

Here are a couple bloopers...

Yes, he has only one boot on. Hahahaha!

New construction worker hat!

He’s getting so big! 

This outfit makes him look so big! 

These boys are the best! I absolutely LOVE getting to play at home with them every day. I know they are going to have a special bond that I can already see. Being their mom is a dream come true!!!