What's Up Wednesday: How is everyone?

Hello and how are you? It has been awhile, since September 14th, to be exact. I didn't not realize it ha been this long until yesterday. I'm thankful for all of you, my readers.

As I walked into school yesterday a couple sweet ladies stopped me after their walk, and before I went into school. They introduced themselves and we had a short and uplifting conversation. This is when I realized, or should say, "learned", I hadn't posted since September 14. ugh...I'm so sorry everyone. I could bore you with a list of why I haven't posted but instead, I'll apologize and try to do better about posting at least once a week.

Here's the deal, do you remember back in January when I chose my word and focus for year in 2021? After the burn out of trying to do it all last year, I have spent this year focusing on "Healthy Habits and Balance" in my life. In order to do this, not everything I used to do is getting done yet other thigs have blessed our lives and are filling in some of the gaps. Life is constantly changing and as my buddy Patrick reminds his listeners on his podcast often, "The only constant in life is change."

Rewind to December 2020, I spent time reflecting on my habits, routines, and mindset. Then, I looked forward to where I wanted to be in December 2021.

A few things came to the forefront:
1) I needed to prioritize my sleep
2) I needed to incorporate exercise at least 3 times a week
3) I wanted to grow my Epicure business

Looking back to January, then June when the 2020-21 school year ended, I'm doing better about balancing my schedule, sleep, and quiet time. I had a great realization, I can't do it all. Of course I still want to be able to do everything on my list but we are not designed to do everything, all of the time, for everyone. This is obvious to most people yet to some of us, it's difficult to accept BUT now that I realize this, it is easier to say "no" and "not right now" to the requests that take away from my focus. Am I still busy? Of course, but I enjoy busy and think in a way, thrive on it. I believe this is a family trait too, so it's in my genes.

The reason my blog and podcast have been sporadic, to say the least, is because these are the things I usually did early in the morning or exhausted before going to bed. This year, I make sure to get at least 7 - 7 1/2 hours sleep each night and to have at least 3 days of exercise. I'm getting in the groove and the routine is working itself out. I thought I had it figured out this summer and it was working great, but then it came time to return to work. Go figure.

Seriously, thank you for reaching out, for your grace, and most importantly for your encouragement. One reader's inquiry of "Where have you been?" and knowing the last time I'd posted were a nudge from God to pause and look at my schedule. I've felt the Holy Spirit nudging me to get back to my blog, and my podcast, at least once a week. As I turned and started to walk across the parking lot, I whispered, "Okay God, I'm sorry. I'm listening. I'm sorry. Thank you for this reminder."

And with that, I woke up this morning with anticipation to write this blog. As we move forward into the final months of 2021, I promise to do my best to be present at least once a week. Thank you for caring enough to inquire. 

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How are you doing with your 2021 goals and focus?