It’s been two years this week since we’ve made the move from the blacktop to the dirt road. It seems like we just came here yesterday, but it feels like we’ve been here forever, too. One of the things that I have found that pushes me forward is to take a look back; to see His faithfulness, to remember my mistakes and to hone in on what we are doing right as a family. If you have never done something like this yourself, I would highly suggest that you sit down and recap the past year with your family. Here is a recap of year two.
1. What did you do on your birthday and how old were you?
2. What are your strongest memories from this year and why?
And honestly, my strongest memories were in the everyday of our house; cooking meals, playing on the floor, doing laundry, having friends and family over. There is something so beautiful about the everyday and the mundane. I’m continuing to learn that using Biblical Truth to become the mom that God desires me to be is my best way to combat my stressed out self and that having messy floors isn’t as important as shaping tiny hearts.
3. What did you do this year that you’ve never done before?
I did the Advocare 24 Day Challenge in November. I was at a point where I wasn’t pregnant, breastfeeding or trying to get pregnant and I decided it was time to make some healthy changes in my eating habits. It was a great starting point for getting my body healthy, and although I’m not currently taking any of the supplements anymore, it gave me a great springboard to get healthy in a new way. While I have the body I’ve always wanted as a mom, it was time for me to make some great changes!
We also got to dedicate our girls to the Lord this year and that was a huge step for us as parents. We are so fortunate to have so many family and friends who have come alongside of us in parenthood.
4. What did you want and get?
Eric and I hadn’t taken a trip just the two of us since having kids, and this Fall we drove out to Vail, Colorado for a wedding I was in and spent 5 days in the mountains, just the two of us. I can’t even tell you how incredible it was for us to get away alone and enjoy the freedom to do whatever we wanted and just be together. It’s something that I think we want to start doing every year. It was so good for our marriage, and neither of us realized how much we needed it until we were there.
We finally moved into our house in April. It was just about everything I thought it would be to finally have our dream farmhouse. The thing that I wanted the most was to entertain in our house again and we have at least one or two gatherings in our home every week. It has filled my heart with so much joy to have people in our home and has been a wonderful way to love and serve our family and friends.
5. What did you want and not get?
There were a few relationships that I really wanted to flourish and deepen this year, and they didn’t. For one reason or another, they stayed the same or ended. Although it has brought me a lot of heartbreak, I know that God still has a plan for me and those friends, and I will continue to pray that someday they will get to a real, vulnerable place once again.
6. What would you like to have next year that you didn’t have this year?
One thing that Eric and I have really been praying about is a mentor couple; a couple who will walk alongside of us consistently and meet with us to better our walks with the Lord, our marriage and our family. Having someone who is just a little bit older than us who we feel is very intentional with their lives who can give us wisdom and guidance is something we are really desiring right now, so I hope that we can find that sooner rather than later.
7. Did you keep your New Year’s Resolutions and will you make more for next year?
I had some resolutions this year. Once of them was to consistently work out, and that just didn’t happen. Hard working out really drained my milk supply and left me exhausted with still getting up with Andersyn in the middle of the night. I stayed active, but after a few months of early morning classes, I just knew it wasn’t the best thing for me. But I’m hoping to continue to work on that, not just for me but for my family as well.
I have one goal this year, and it’s to strive for more of Christ. New Year’s Resolutions are great, but I have found this year that the more Christ I have in my life and the more I let him strip away the rough of my heart, that the rest of the things, the important things, will follow suit. So staying in the Word, being in community with those who are like minded and pushing me and a new plan of prayer is my goal for this year.
8. What was your biggest achievement of this year?
Eric and I finished our foster care classes this year and we are just waiting for a placement phone call.. It was hard and emotional going through those classes, but it really stretched us as a couple and I’m excited to see what God is going to do through our decision to foster, and eventually adopt.
I was so excited to start my blog’s Facebook page! It became a great place for me give more daily encouragement to a whole new group of people, many who are becoming my friends. It has been so fun and exciting!
I also started writing for Her View From Home this past year and it is something I have been so proud of! Again, a whole other way to reach and encourage other women in the trenches of wife and motherhood, and I’m so blessed to be a part of a great community of other writers. My most recent post, Being That Mom in the Pew, went viral earlier this month!! It was AMAZING to get so many phone calls and messages from so many people saying how they identified with the piece and it made me feel not so alone in the messiness of motherhood on Sunday mornings.
9. What was your biggest failure?
There were many times this past year when there were opportunities to extend grace and I chose to be selfish out of hurt and didn’t. It’s something I know that I need to continue to work on. Being kind and forgiving even when I’m uncomfortable and hurting is something as a Christian that I’m called to, not just something I should do if I feel like it.
10. What did you rely on when you got overwhelmed?
This was the biggest thing for me this year, and there will probably be a long post in the near future about it, but I will give you the short version 🙂 Last year, my answer to this question was my husband. But this past year I realized that I rely on my husband way too much for my comfort and stability. When things got hard or stressful, I would often say a quick prayer and run right to him for help. And while God designed our marriages for this, He didn’t design our marriages to REPLACE Him. So this year, I really tried running hard to God first and relying on my relationship with Him to meet me where I was, and then went to my husband second.
11. What are your strongest recommendations for entertainment from this year?
I’m not sure whether you would call this “entertainment” or not, but I have REALLY been loving the Elevation Worship station on Pandora to help get me through my days at home. It has a great selection of older and new worship that just seeps into my soul.
And how much more entertainment could you get out of those Kansas City Royals this year?!? It was unbelievable to watch them take the World Series this season and it’s something I will never forget.
12. What song will remind you of this year?
Chris Tomlin’s “Lay me Down” and “Good Good Father.”
13. Quote a song lyric that sums up your year.
There has been some really hard stuff that has happened in our lives this year; hard stuff that I have never shared or gone into. And in the middle of it all, I have wondered how in God’s perfect plan any of it could be good, or even where the glory could come from it. But this… this song has captured what I’ve felt so perfectly. Even in the good and the bad, He is Good. And He is perfect in all he does.
“Good Good Father”
But I’ve heard the tender whisper of love in the dead of night
And you tell me that you’re pleased
And that I’m never alone
You’re a Good, Good Father
It’s who you are, it’s who you are, it’s who you are
And I’m loved by you
It’s who I am, it’s who I am, it’s who I am
Oh, and I’ve seen many searching for answers far and wide
But I know we’re all searching
For answers only you provide
Cause you know just what we need
Before we say a word
You’re a Good, Good Father
It’s who you are, it’s who you are, it’s who you are
And I’m loved by you
It’s who I am, it’s who I am, it’s who I am
Cause you are perfect in all of your ways
You are perfect in all of your ways
You are perfect in all of your ways to us
I, I can hardly speak
Peace so unexplainable
I, I can hardly think
As you call me deeper still
Into love, love, love
14. What was your most enjoyable purchase?
Last year our most enjoyable purchase was building the farmhouse. This year it’s what has gone INTO the house. I loved buying new sprays and garland for Christmas, I’ve been thinking about them for so long! My favorite appliance we bought this year was our stove/range combo and my favorite year round piece we bought was Bernice, my cow bust that hangs on our hood in the kitchen.
15. Did you travel? If so, where?
We took our annual family trip to Branson this year with my family and it was so much fun! We hit the lake for one day and went to Silver Dollar City another day. One of the best things about that trip was watching Nora conquer her fears and ride all the big kid rides. It was truly one of the proudest days of my life watching her experience that.
We also went to Vail, Colorado early in the Fall for one of my best friend’s weddings. It was one of the greatest trips I’ve ever been on.
We also went back to Colorado, this time to Colorado Springs for Eric’s cousin’s wedding in November. This time the girls came along. We had a blast swimming in the hotel pool, visiting with family and enjoying the beautiful Colorado weather.
16. What do you wish you’d done more of?
Knowing what I have learned the latter part of this year, I wish I would have spent more time in prayer and fighting for my heart and bringing other’s before God. Prayer is so transforming and powerful, and I know that it is making a huge difference in my heart.
17. What do you wish you’d done less of?
I wish I had been on my phone less this past year. It’s so easy just to pick it up and scroll through Facebook, read blogs, check the weather, etc. Those things are all good, but in moderation. It’s something I’ve been working on doing better the past couple of months and it has really made a huge difference in how I parent and relate to others when I’m around them.
I also wish I had done less eating of all the baking I did 🙂
18. Compared to this time last year, how are you different?
I had ONE moment this Fall… I was reading the book Anything and had a huge realization of where I was with the Lord and how comfortable I was in life. Reading that book changed me drastically and I truly believe that I am a different person because I read it and allowed it to shape my heart.
19. Compared to this time last year, how are you the same?
I still love to write. Writing has been one of my biggest, greatest outlets. Whether it’s something I publish or something I write just to get my thoughts out and reflect, it’s something that I think will always be a part of me and what I love.
I am still crazy in love with my husband. With what we have walked through this past year and how we have grown, my heart for him is just bursting. The same goes for our girls. They are one of the biggest joys of our lives and being their mom has been the best, hardest, most wonderful blessing!
And I still LOVE Pumpkin Spiced Lattes.
20. What’s a life lesson you learned this year?
The biggest lesson I’ve learned this year is that it’s not about me. And that’s been a tough one for me. I’m human by nature and what our culture throws at us, it tells me the opposite. But my life is meant to be one of love and serving others, even if it makes me tired or uncomfortable. But when it’s hard like that, I know that God’s grace will meet me where I’m at and His peace is something that I have 24/7 access to when I’m in need. Less of me and more of Him is what I’m striving for.
So here’s to year two. I can’t wait to see what year three holds for us here at the farm.
