If you've followed my blog for a time, you've probably read that Hubs got a new job in December. He's a mail carrier with our local post office. You've probably also read that due to a new contract negotiated between the United States Postal Service and the Union in January, hubs had to reapply and reinterview for his own job, which came with a new title and a $6/hr pay cut. This is nothing new for us. This salary range isn't uncharted territory. It's ocean we hoped not to sail again, but never the less, here we are. And this time we decided the be in control of our situation instead of our situation be in control of us. In November of 2011, Aaron and I went through Financial Peace University. We'd had lots of friends do it all with great success and we loved that it was a biblically based program. We completed the classes and jumped in with about 10% effort, eventually just setting aside all the major principles we learned and going back to debt filled, stress filled, managed by our money living. Money has ALWAYS been a source of conflict in our relationship. Fast forward to current. We were able to pay off all our debt with exception of student loans with our tax return. That has helped considerably, but, we still had TONS of money falling through cracks- mainly fast food, Walmart, and Target cracks. We knew with this big pay change looming we needed to do something. So, we pulled out our trusty Financial Peace stuff and started over. Why yes, that would be my debit card frozen in a block of ice. I figured this was the best and fastest way to stop all that "slipping through the cracks" I was talking about. It's amazing the sense of loss I've experienced knowing my card isn't in my wallet. Am I better for it? Yes. Is our budget better for it? Yes. Do I dislike it? Yes. BUT. God didn't call me to do easy things. He called me to do the right things. And being a good steward of the money he blesses us with is one of those things. This is a little bit of "good stewardship insurance".
On top of going to a cash based budget, Aaron and I have worked out a few things that would create a more faith based open handed lifestyle. We've been so blessed over the years to have people that have given to us, financially and otherwise, without blinking and we want to be able to repay them and also to pass that blessing on. Yeah, sure, I could find a million things to do with that money, but more food or new clothes would never come close to the blessing we could give to someone else with it. Yeah, sure, we need that money so our budget isn't so tight. But God is faithful. Then, if that wasn't enough, we agreed that we were going to be "fast food free" for the month of May. I know for some people this isn't a big deal, but the convenience of fast food is a weakness of mine. And so is planning ahead. So, along with saving some $$$ I'm also exercising my plan ahead and pack some lunches muscle. So, here we are, at the beginning of our cash based, faith filled, open handed lifestyle! I'm excited to see how God grows us through this!
0 Comments
So I've determined that this week I'm going to stay on top of this darn blog! I don't usually create posts ahead of time, so when I do post, usually it's freshly typed. The problem with that is I don't always have time to sit down and type one up! One of my goals this week is to stay organized (yeah, we'll see how that goes) and have good time management. So, here's to the goal of 5 blog posts! The end of April. I really have no idea where the time has gone. It's amazing. Although, I do have to say that I LOVE spring. The leaves are not popping out fast enough. I'm rebellious and planted flowers before Mother's Day. Anyways, on to this week's menu. I planned through Saturday. Sunday will be an on the run day. Lots to do! I'll probably be packing dinner for us to eat on the road. Aaron and I have committed to not eating out at all this month. But more on that tomorrow.... Monday- Breakfast. The girls have been asking for eggs, so we're doing breakfast for dinner- eggs, sausage, hashbrowns, and toast. Tuesday- BBQ Chicken Pita Pizza. This has quickly become one of my favorites. I love how crunchy a piece of pita bread gets when you bake it. This is pretty simple- baked chicken that I slice, bbq sauce, and cheddar cheese. Bake until cheese is melted and pita is crisp. Wednesday- Green Beans, Smoked Sausage, and Potatoes- Yum! Thursday- Pulled Pork Sandwiches. Friday- Homemade Pizza. Saturday- Chicken Nuggets. My trusty Chick-fil-A copy cat recipe. Verse of the Week So when I started thinking about this week's verse, I was having a hard time coming up with a specific verse that I wanted to do. I get an email every morning from KLove radio with their verse of the day and today's verse is John 3:30. This has basically been kind of a theme verse over the last months, my prayer on a daily basis, so I decided that even though it's well known and I've already got it memorized, it needed to be my verse of the week... He must become greater; I must become less.- John 3:30
How simple this verse is. How hard the action behind it is. My prayer and goal above any other this week is that in all this organization, time management, raising children, being a wife- less of me, more of God. I pray the same thing for you! Have a wonderful Monday! Ok, so it's Weigh In Wednesday.
I weighed in this morning at my class- I lost a whole 8 oz. I'm kind bummin' about that but oh well. I know why it wasn't more. I haven't been making the best food choices. I'm going to tweak my calories a little bit so that I can't fill the extra calories with not good food. Hopefully that will make a difference. So, I went to class again this morning. I had a harder time getting up for this one. Emmy has had a fever and woke up around 11 last night crying. After we got her back to sleep I woke up almost every hour. So my 4:40 alarm didn't feel like it was coming so early. I got to class, weighed in, and then got our workout sheet. Um... yeah. The trainer wasn't playin!! It was hard, but I love feeling like I pushed myself and my body feels worked. I'm glad today used a lot of weights. It's something I've been wanting to add to my routine. Now if I could just mix that with weight loss, I'd be in good shape! (No pun intended) Ok, so I'm going to include the workout from today. It might be a bit complicated as we had her to explain a lot of it. It was mostly stuff I was familiar with, she was just using technical names. Phase 1- 1 set of 20 reps Goblet Squat- A normal squat where your elbows touch your knees. Hold a 10 lb dumbbell with both hands. Hammer Curl to Press- Hold dumbbells vertically in each hands at waist level. Lift forward to shoulder height and extend arms upward. Do not lock elbow. Dumbbell Dead Lifts- Hold dumbbells in each hand and bend forward at the waist. Dumbbell Pullover- Hold one dumbbell behind head and pull upward until arms are extended above head. Single Arm Dumbbell Row- Hold dumbbell in one hand. Spread legs into starting lunge position. Bend forward. Support yourself with opposite hand on leg and pull the dumbbell backwards bending elbow. 3 minutes Cardio of Choice- I did 3 mins walking at 3.8 with an 8% incline for each cardio. It was a bit of a break bit still had my heart right in a good zone. Phase 2- 2 sets of 15 reps Dumbbell Squats- Use 20 lb kettle ball. Place feel slightly wider than shoulder width apart and squat pushing your butt backwards. Do not extend knees past toes. Mountain Climbers- Place hands on the floor and get into a push up position. Push off with your toes and alternate bending your knees. Do as quickly as possible. Dumbbell Squats- same as above. Medicine Ball Slam- Use the biggest medicine ball you can find. Lift above head and throw downward to the ground with force. Catch the ball. (This was actually kind of fun! Didn't feel like exercise until #14 and 15 of the 2nd set!) 3 minutes Cardio of Choice Phase 3- 1 set of 20 reps Plank- Lay on ground in extended push up position. Hold for 30 seconds. Bent Over Dumbbell Row- Hold dumbbell in one hand. Place opposite knee and hand on weight bench. Keep back parallel to the floor. Pull dumbbell backwards until your elbow is bent but not locked. Finish set, switch arms. Keep arm as close to body as possible and don't round your back or shoulders. Leg Raises- Lay on the floor, hands to your side. Raise legs off the floor. Lift 3-5 inches then lower. Do not touch feet to the floor. Incline Bench Press- Use a weight bench with a back. Set it to mid recline and do basic bench press with dumbbells. (This was honestly the easiest thing we did the whole workout!) Plank- same as above. 3 minutes Cardio of Choice Phase 4- 3 sets of 10 reps Push Ups- basic push ups Russian Twists- Use medicine ball. Sit on the floor with knees bent. Lift feet off the floor. Lift medicine ball and twist from side to side while holding the medicine ball. Do not move hips. Medicine Ball Squats- basic squats while holding a medicine ball. 3 minutes Cardio of Choice Phase 5- 1 set of 15 reps Mountain Climbers- See above Push Ups Squat Thrust- Hold dumbbells at shoulder height. Squat. Once standing, push dumbbells above head. Do not lock elbows. High Knee with Arm Drive-Place hands behind head. Lift knee. Twist until opposite elbow touches knee. Be careful not to pull on your neck. Twist at the waist. 3 minutes Cardio of Choice Phase 6- 1 set of 10 reps Overhead Dumbbell Press- Hold dumbbells at shoulder level. Press upward until arms are extended. Do not lock elbows. Squat- basic squat. Do not extend knees beyond toes. Weighted Crunches- Hold a dumbbell or small barbell weight on chest while doing basic crunches. 3 mins Cardio of Choice See what I mean?! Today was no joke! I'll be impressed if I can get out of bed tomorrow or even up the stairs this afternoon! This was a great workout and can be done at home as long as your have dumbbells and a medicine ball. If you're a member of a gym, it will be fairly easy as the equipment is provided. It's intended to be an hour workout- 10 mins for each phase. I left today feeling pretty proud of myself. I pushed myself AND I ventured into the big boys room (the free weights area). I don't know that I'll be doing this workout on a regular basis. I did Class #1 workout twice this last week and felt really good after. It's fairly straight forward but you still get a great workout. If you brave workout #2 let me know! Good luck and Happy Weigh In Wednesday! Ok, so technically this should be a Weigh In Wednesday post, but we'll just call it Weigh In Thursday just because. So, last week at counseling, the marriage expert guy suggested that I find a class to join at the Y. He said that it would be good for me to connect with other people and get exercise at the same time. I was sharing this with Trainer Guy and he told me that he knew of the perfect class. He got all pumped up about me joining and practically forced me to the information desk to sign up for it. I was kind of excited (excited = scared out of my mind) too.... until I found out the only class they were doing is at 5:30 AM. That's right- pre sunrise. There is 2 things I do pre sunrise- sleep and snooze my alarm. I've had almost a week to let the idea of #1) doing a class with other people and a trainer and #2) in the middle of the night marinate in my mind. Of course, if you know me, you know that turned into images of me hyperventilating and being carried off on a stretcher out of the wellness center because I couldn't hack the workout. All the while a monster like trainer yelling at me with people all around on treadmills laughing at pointing at me for months to come because I'm "that girl". I went to bed early so I could be rested for the early morning. I woke almost an hour before my alarm went off and hardly slept for the next hour. I was ready to leave by 4:50 am. I knew that if I got there early, I'd be the wierdo standing around waiting for my impending doom, but I went anyways. I got to the Y and found that the trainer was waiting and there were already a few people from the class there ready to get started. She weighed me (that makes 3 people on earth that know my weight), took my measurements (Eek! I was chanting to myself... She's not judging me! She's not judging me! over and over again in my head). She actually turned out to be totally opposite of what all that over thinking had made her out to be. She hooked me up with a partner, and handed us our workout sheets. I looked over it and realized 90% of it I could live through. My next thought was... ok, fat girl, get moving! (Is that politically correct to say about myself? I'm not sure!) And I did it. Not all of it. There are things I can't do yet (my goal is to be able to at the end of this class) and things I had to modify because of my back. But I left feeling proud of myself. I would have liked to work a little faster, but working with a partner made it slower. The awesome trainer girl let me keep my workout card from the class and also gave me an additional cardio workout to do on off the days. Can I actually say I enjoyed it? Yes, I think I can. :-) And the best news- there was no hyperventilation, nobody pointing and laughing, and no moster like trainers biting my head off. So, what's the lesson in this? #1- have a little more faith in myself, and #2- have a little more faith in others. Today's workout may not go as planned because I'm super sore, but that's all good right? I wanted to share the workouts with you in case you wanted to use them too! Right now I'm working out 5 times a week, and I may throw in an extra workout that's just swimming. That will give me an opportunity to give my back a bit of a rest and still burn mega calories.
Oh man, it's on! I left the Y yesterday morning feeling encouraged that there are finally a team of people behind me that can help me make this happen. I know that it's on me to get it done, but I'm thankful for the support! If you use one of these workouts, let me know! We can compare battle stories! Have a great Thursday!
I'm still here. I haven't gone anywhere.
I'm taking a bit of a mini break from blogging. It's not that I don't have anything to write about or anything to share, it's just all so super personal right now. God doing great things in my life and in the life of my family. It's kind of hard to explain, but I feel like I'm a butterfly getting ready to bust out of this confining cocoon I've been in. I know that maybe that's a little corny, but I know that I'm right on the edge of something. Right now though, it's the uncomfortableness of being the immature caterpillar trapped in a tight cocoon. God is growing me, creating me into something new. Stay tuned. I'm excited to share it with you. :-) It's the week!!! It's the week!!! My folks will be here tomorrow and I'm beyond excited! It's been 4 months since I've seen them! I know for a lot of people, that's pretty normal, but not for this girl! And my little girls are pretty excited about seeing Mema and Pepa too! I planned this weeks menu at the same time as I did last week, and I made a quick trip to the store on Saturday to pick up what we would need to get a through the week. I planned through Thursday because Friday is pay day and I will probably go grocery shopping then. So, here it is... Monday- Grilled Cheese. Because this is how I roll the night before company comes. Easy, little mess, and everyone is happy. Tuesday- Ranch Pork. This is one of the most delicious easiest recipes I fix. You can use pork chops. I use think cut chops. Then you add 2 cans of cream of mushroom soup, half a packet of dry ranch mix, and pork in the crock pot. Cook until the pork is tender. I serve with mashed potatoes. Yum! Wednesday- Grilled Chicken Kabobs. The weather is supposed to be pretty nice this week so why not bust out the grill? Love grilled chicken and veggies! Thursday- Parmesan Garlic Chicken. I made this last week for dinner for friends and they said it was excellent. Last week I dipped the chicken in butter as a small tweak to the original recipe. I will not be doing that this week. It made the parm and italian seasons gooey and not crispy like it is supposed to be. Well, there ya have it. Pretty simple this week! Ok, so the verse of the week is a selfish one for me. It's again, a reminder for me that what I'm doing isn't about me or anyone else, it's about God. Colossians 3:23- Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart as working for the Lord, not for men.
Happy Monday! Bonus Post!
Last week I was meeting with the trainer guy at the Y for my bi weekly wellness appointment. After a little bit of conversation, he said, "Please don't be upset with me for saying this, but you make a lot of excuses." I thought back over the 15 mins of conversation we'd just had and I realized the few topics we'd talked about (not all of them health/fitness related) were things that I want to do but didn't/haven't/won't for whatever reasons. Reasons = excuses. (P.S. I was not offended at all. Infact, my reaction was exactly opposite. I reacted out of fear, but we'll get to that in a min. Props to him for being willing to put that out there!) Are excuses ever legit? I'm not sure. I think that some of my reasons were valid. BUT. It did help me realize that I excuse my way out of a lot of things- most things- if they seem remotely threatening to my emotional/physical/mental stability. Stability being comfort. As I've had some time to think about all of this and even pinpoint areas in my life where I can say I truely have missed out, I've come to another realization- I live in fear. Lots of fear. I mean, there are general fears- things happening to my kids, someone in my family dying, things like that. But then there are real deep personal fears: If I fail will people still love me? If I don't do it, people won't have a reason to not love me. What if someone makes fun of me? Don't do it so no one can make fun of me. What if I try and run that 5k and can't finish or don't finish in the allowed time? Don't do it so no one sees me as a failure. What will people think if I don't measure up? They'll think so much less of me. Don't do things I'll fail at so they can't think less of me. (This was my reaction to trainer guys observation. . He blew my cover and called my bluff. He obviously thinks I'm a failure.) If I opened that business I always wanted to open and it fails, will the rest of my life be ruined? Well, it costs too much money to do it anyways. It's a silly dream anyway. I don't know how to do that, so I just can't right? What If I'm not a good parent and my kids choose the wrong path in life? Well, I'll never do it as good as such and such, so I'm just not going to try. You get the point. Have you noticed that I HATE the idea of failure, so I avoid things that I could fail at? Which is pretty sad, because I've limited myself so much in life. How much has God called me to do and given me the opportunity to do and I excused myself out of doing it because I was afraid of failing. How much more fulfilling and joy filled could my life be if I stepped out on faith and just tried it. The truth is that this is a deep rooted pattern in my life. I don't know that this is something that I'm going to be able to bust out of tomorrow and never deal with again. But, I've been so much more aware of it the last few days. And the funny part is that since I had that conversation on Tuesday, God has placed small reminders in my path that through Him, all things are possible. There are a lot of these things that I would love to do that probably would fail if I did them. On my own. Or without God's direction. So, it's my 30th year of life. Well, almost. I'll be 30 later in the year and sometimes I feel like such a child. It's true that you learn something new every day. In my case it just happens to be about myself. It's draining. It's exciting. It's discouraging. But, it's promising. 2 Corinthians 5:17- Therefore if anyone is in Christ, the new creation has come: The old has gone and the new is here. I know that I will not and can not be totally new until that day that I see Jesus face to face. But I am thankful that he's making me a better person, even if it's slower than what I want it to be! My theme verses for this year are Ephesians 3:20-21-
Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us, to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, for ever and ever! Amen. Heading into this year, I knew that God was going to do amazing things. And he has. He's been faithful to Aaron and I on our road towards healing our marriage. He's been faithful in redeeming my life when I had turned from him. He's been faithful to provide for our family. I can't believe it's already April, it's gone by so quickly, and it has seemed like one blessing after another for us. But... I've struggled. As I've shared before, Aaron and I decided to step back from ministry when we knew healing our marriage needed to be our top priority. Stepping back and gaining some perspective has been so good for us. But hard. Right now we're praying that we'd be aware of God's leading in our lives. God has placed a calling on our life, of that we're sure. But right now everything just feels like different puzzle pieces that aren't fitting together to create a bigger picture. There is a song that has really been speaking to my heart recently. It's called Pieces and it's by Meredith Andrews. The chorus rings true and it's been an encouraging reminder that I'm not in control and it's not my job to make everything work. "...Give Him your wounds, your bruised and broken pieces, All your questions, all your secrets You don't have to hide who you are. You belong to someone greater Than all your past mistakes and failures. Rest in who He is- He knows how to make your pieces fit..." I've decided that right now, instead of seeking answers from God, I need to seek God and the answers will come. And in truth, this in between place is a little exciting. I know that right now everything seems a little scattered and we can't see how things are coming together, but how great it will be when we see God putting random pieces together to create something beautiful with our lives and our ministry! Is there something in your life right now that feels like a random puzzle piece? Maybe everything does. Nothing seems to be coming together. Rest in who God is and the promises he's made to you. In Jeremiah 29:11, God promises to give us hope and a future, and to prosper us. It's a rather well known verse, but a lot of people don't read verse 12 and 13- Then you will call on me and come and pray to me, and I will listen to you. You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart. Let's stop seeking answers and seek to have God's heart instead. I know I get caught up in "God, show me this" or "show me that" instead of asking to show me who he is. The more we become like God, and what he wants becomes what we want, I think we'll start seeing the pieces come together. Our eyes will start to see what God sees and we'll see a beautiful puzzle laid out in front of us. May not though. But, if our hearts are seeking God instead of answers, we will find him and we'll be ok with that, because He's enough. Have a great Thursday! What a great Easter we had! I feel like this year, more than any other, the truth behind the Easter season was revealed in my heart. I'm so thankful for things that I see God doing in my life and the lives of those around me. He sure is good! This week's verse of the week I chose because it's been my prayer over the last few months- that God would continue his work in me. That I could mature spiritually and become a new creation. Much less of me and more of him. Plus, it's Spring cleaning week in my house, and to be honest, I'm going to need this bible verse as a reminder to keep going as I'm sitting knee deep in piles of "organization". James 1:4-Let perseverance finish it's work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything. I know a lot of people are heading back to work and school this week after spring break, so keep this verse in mind as you head back to the grind! The first week of April. WHAT?! Where has the time gone! It's FINALLY starting to look like Spring here in Indiana. My girls spent most of the weekend outside playing while hubs and I did a little bit of yard work. I'm the type of person that has a hard time waiting until May to plant flowers! Anyways, this week's menu is pretty simple...
Monday- Baked Parmesan Garlic Chicken. This sounds really good. I'm going to be making it next week when my parents are here, but because I've never fixed it, I figured I'd do a test run of it tonight and see how good it is. Tuesday- Chili Cheese Dogs. We don't have this often in our house, but this is one of Aaron's favorites. Plus, it's pretty easy! Wednesday- Pancakes. Pancakes always get gobbled up in our house! Thursday- Cowboy Meatloaf. My take on Shepherds Pie. When I get some time this week, I'll add it into my menu page. Friday- Chicken Nuggets. This is a Chick fil A copycat recipe. It's my go to for chicken nuggets. It's relatively easy and my kids (and husband) love them! Saturday- Biscuit Pizza. These got bumped from our menu last week, and if we don't have them at least once a week, my kids start asking for them at every meal. I figured on Saturday we'll fix them and watch a movie for family night. Sunday- Green Beans, Sausage, and Potatoes- Another one of Aaron's favorites, plus, it's easy and it's a crock pot meal! I enjoy doing this one on Sunday because it cooks while we're at church and it's ready to go as soon as we walk in the door! Next week my folks will be here and I'm so excited! They left for Florida the 2nd week of December. I'm glad the weather is finally turning so they don't have to suffer too much! I don't want to wish time away, but I hope this week goes quickly because I'm so excited to see them! I hope everyone has a great Monday! |
HEY, I'M JESSICA!
Christian. Wife. Mommy. Daughter. Pastor. Friend. Saved.Redeemed. Beloved.
Archives
August 2021
Categories
All
|