Loving Life
Intentional Living: Weekly Goals
Last week we celebrated the girls 7th birthday (a wonderful highlight to our week)! The upcoming week it full of extra activities, but hoping to make a lot of progress with my goals as well.
Here is the update on last weeks goals:
Family Goals
Spend 1-on-1 time with each child everyday- Read a book to the girls everyday
Have each girl read 1 book to myself or Jake 5 days this weekGo on our Date Night with JakeCelebrate Valentine’s DayCelebrate Brina & Karlie’s BirthdaySpend time together as a family
Personal Goals
Exercise – walk at least 5 days this week- Go to bed by 10:30 pm or earlier Monday to Thursday – with the extra activities this didn’t get done
- Finish reading When Work and Family Collide by Andy Stanley – haven’t even started it yet….
Read and listen to the next section of Desiring God: Finding Complete Satisfaction and Joy in God by John Piper (our church Community Group is going through this book together).- Packing “To Do” List – working on it
Home Management Goals
All laundry for the week washed, folded, and put away in one dayWeekly Dinner Menu planned and written by MondaySpend 30 minutes every day picking up / cleaning the house- Dinner ready by 5:30 PM (Monday through Thursday) – had a couple later nights with appointments
- Spend time re-organizing and de-cluttering the downstairs Bookshelves / Desk / Dressers – started but not finished
Business Goals
Pay all bills that come in the mail this weekWork on ideas for upcoming blog postsSpend 10 minutes a day cleaning and organizing my deskWrite a Guest Blog Post- Finish 2011 Business Taxes – items at Accountant so waiting for them to wrap up their piece
Ministry Goals
- Email our weekly Community Group update including upcoming events on the calendar, praises, and prayer requests – didn’t get this done with all the other activities this week
Meet a friend or family member for Breakfast or Lunch
Financial Goals
Stay within Budget on Groceries $40 for 4- Emergency Fund – save 3 months worth of living expenses – working on it
- Complete our personal 2011 taxes – almost done, waiting for our business taxes to be completed before finishing
- Put money aside for upcoming trips – was able to do some
- Put cash aside for 1 year of Jake’s College Classes – put some aside
Here are my goals for the upcoming week:
Family Goals
- Spend 1-on-1 time with each child everyday
- Read a book to the girls everyday
- Have each girl read 1 book to myself or Jake 5 days this week
- Go on our Date Night with Jake
- Spend time together as a family
Personal Goals
- Exercise – walk at least 5 days this week
- Go to bed by 10:30 pm or earlier Monday to Thursday
- Finish reading When Work and Family Collide by Andy Stanley
- Read and listen to the next section of Desiring God: Finding Complete Satisfaction and Joy in God by John Piper (our church Community Group is going through this book together).
- Travel “To Do” List
Home Management Goals
- All laundry for the week washed, folded, and put away in one day
- Weekly Dinner Menu planned and written by Monday
- Spend 30 minutes every day picking up / cleaning the house
- Spend 30 hour a day de-cluttering the house
Business Goals
- Pay all bills that come in the mail this week
- Work on ideas for upcoming blog posts
- Spend 10 minutes a day cleaning and organizing my desk
- Finish 2011 Business Taxes
Ministry Goals
- Email our weekly Community Group update including upcoming events on the calendar, praises, and prayer requests
- Meet a friend or family member for Breakfast or Lunch
Financial Goals
- Stay within Budget on Groceries $40 for 4
- Emergency Fund – save 3 months worth of living expenses
- Complete our personal 2011 taxes
- Put money aside for upcoming trips
- Put cash aside for 1 year of Jake’s College Classes
I think it is important to share and encourage each other as we seek to improve our lives and the lives of those around us. I want to live intentionally not just hope all my dreams and goals come true. When I focus on small steps of improvement I am able to see results as I get closer to my goals. Some weeks I get closer to the goals I have in my life and other weeks a take a few steps back (life happens, emergencies occur, people get sick). Once the goals are written down and shared it provides a guideline for what I aim to accomplish this week.
Why Share My Goals?
- To keep me accountable
- To share a piece of my life with you as I strive to be a better Child of God, Wife, Mom, Friend, Homemaker, Entrepreneur and the many other roles I have each week
- To have my goals consistently written down so I can gauge progress more accurately
- Create healthy habits in my life
- To encourage you to share your goals with me as you continue to grown and learn
How did you do this week on your goals? Feel free to share or link to your list of weekly goals.
The picture above is one that I created for my own purposes, however, The “SMART” acronym was originally coined 30 years ago by Peter Drucker in his classic work, Management by Results
I Love You Sweet Girls!
I have always enjoyed this book and thought the quote was appropriate with today being the girls birthday. No matter how old the girls get they’ll always be my babies. Thankful for the opportunity to be a Mom to Brina and Karlie!
It is a risk to love…
Book: “Crush It!” by Gary Vaynerchuck
In a recent trip with the family out to the midwest (Nebraska and Kansas) I brought the book Crush It! by Gary Vaynerchuk. My husband had picked up the book for me for Christmas. I enjoyed reading Gary’s book and was able to get through it pretty quickly while we were in flight.
Gary’s passion overflows into his book. The book is short, sweet and to the point. Not only does Gary encourage you to follow your passion he also reminds you that it takes time and a lot of hard work to accomplish your goals. He is honest and straight forward about how to create your own personal brand around your personality and passions. Everyday whether you realize it or not you market your personal brand.
The author gives a variety of ways to start building your brand as well as additional resources to check out. He discusses a variety of Social Media tools. Although he highlights the ways that work well for him he also recommends a variety of other avenues and suggests that you find which ones are most beneficial for you. Gary encourages each person to follow their dreams and “crush it” in their own way!
Happy Birthday Brina & Karlie!
Happy 7th Birthday to Brina & Karlie! We love you sweet girls. It is amazing how quickly these last few years have gone by and we are thankful for the many wonderful memories we have shared. Wishing both of you many more awesome years of great times! 🙂
Family Activities: Celebrating Valentine’s Day
Valentine’s Day Heart “Attack” surprise for the girls
Our family had a blast celebrating Valentine’s Day together! Jake and I went out the Saturday before Valentine’s for a Date Night and to celebrate. On Valentine’s Day I took goodies and helped at the girls class party as well as celebrated with the family that evening. It was a fun relaxing time together. The girls loved having an extra special dinner together in the candlelight as a family. For dinner we a fun conversation as we ate steaks, baked potatoes, fresh vegetables, bread, fresh fruit salad, Cherry Limeade punch, and cheesecake. Here is a little tidbit from our Valentine’s Day celebrations:
Heart shaped cinnamon rolls for breakfast
Valentine’s Day Breakfast
Valentine’s Day “love” notes on the girls bedroom door
Valentine’s Day fun for Brina & Karlie (looking from their room out to the hallway)
Brina’s Goodies’ from Grandpa & Grandma
Karlie’s goodies from Grandpa & Grandma waiting on her barstool at breakfast
Hugs & Kisses Tigers
Karlie’s Valentine goodies from her classmates. (With the word “Bushta” written across the front too, silly girl)
Brina’s Valentine envelope full of goodies from her classmates
Jake’s dinner plate – stick of dynamite with little heart notes….
You’re the bomb!
You’re the extra spark in my life!
You ignite my heart!
My heart explodes with love for you!
You light up my world!
The girls loved Daddy’s sticks of dynamite made out of rolos and love notes, they couldn’t wait for him to see them!
One of the girls plates for Valentine’s Day Dinner with the family
Our Valentine’s Day Dinner table
Be My Valentine decoration hanging from the ceiling fan over the dinner table
Conversational hearts center piece
Valentine’s Day Dinner table
Brina & Karlie worked hard on their Valentine’s Day Cards!
A stack of love notes for Jake to take with him on his next trip……one note for every day we are apart!
“I Love Jacob” written in hot pink lipstick on the mirror (the girls wanted to know if it would clean off the mirror or be permanent)
Heart balloons with love notes attached and flower petals to make the room more romantic
It was a wonderful Valentine’s Day with our family! We had a great time decorating, talking, celebrating, and enjoying our time together as a family. Thankful for days when we can relax and celebrate our love for each other. Although, we spent time this week to focus on our love it is important that this isn’t just a once a year activity. Taking the time to celebrate our love regularly is just as important.
Lunch Box “Love” Notes
Earlier this week I shared about our “Love Bug” Notes and received several emails regarding where to purchase similar notes so I decided to share a little bit more. Here are some fun ones:
Includes 105 colorful cards and over 100 silly stickers for help you brighten your child’s lunch.
The book over 75 includes tear-out notes with Bible Trivia.
Just tear out a silly riddle to make lunch enjoyable for your kids.
Example – “What’s the funniest place to eat lunch? In the laugh-eteria!
Remind your child of God’s faithfulness with over 75 tear-out notes that you can put in their lunch box. Each note includes a verse.
Hugs in a Lunch Box for Ages 5-7
Age specific lunch box notes to send with your child.
If you have some Amazon Gift Certificates from Swagbucks these would be great to add to your basket! Do you send lunch box notes to your kids? How often and do you usually write your own notes or send pre-made ones? If you have a great “lunch note” book that you have used please feel free to share a link below!
Save A Lot: Deals for the week of February 15 – 21, 2012
The Save A Lot weekly ad deals are listed below for your convenience. It is a great time to stock up on some Save A Lot deals. Sign up for the Smart Shopper Club, by doing so you will get a $5.00 off of $25.00 coupon!
Meats and Seafood
Family Pack Rib Eye Steaks – $6.99 lbs
Assorted Pork Chops – $1. 79 lbs
Family Pack Cube Pork – $1.89 lbs
Port Side Tilapia (16 oz) – $3.99
Cooked Cocktail Shrimp (40 to 60 oz) – $4.99
Butterball Turkey Bacon (6 oz) – $1.00
Use $0.55/1 coupon insert from 1/15 Smart Source (Expires 2/16/12)
$0.45 each after couponCarolina Ground Turkey (12 oz) – $1.00
Pick 5 for $19.99 promo on going: Pick any 5 specially marked packages of your favorite cuts of fresh, frozen or smoked meats and pay just $19.99 (about $2 per pound).
Fridge and Freezer
Banquet Breaded Chicken, Patties, Tenders, or Nuggets (25 to 26 oz) – $2.99
Hot Pocket Singles, Pepperoni, Ham & Cheese, Breakfast (3 oz) – $0.88
Marie Calendar’s Chicken Pot Pie – $2.29
Oscar Mayer Wieners (16 oz) – $1.00
Oscar Mayer Bolagna (12 oz) – $1.00
Oscar Mayer Lunchables – $1.00
Save A Lot Today Chicken Strips or Meatballs (7 – 8 oz) – $1.00
Banquet Brown ‘n Serve Sausage Links, Maple or Original (6.4 oz) – $1.00
Gwaltney Pork Sausage (12 oz) – $1.00
Budding Deli Cuts, Ham, Turkey, Chicken, and Roast Beef (3 – 4 oz) – $1.00
Hormel Sliced Pepperoni or Hard Salami (3.5 oz) – $1.00
Use $1.00/2 coupon insert from 1/15 Smart Source (Expires 3/15/12)
$0.50 each after couponHinsdale Corn Dogs (3 count) – $1.00
Fisher Boy Fish Sticks (6 oz) – $1.00
Fisher Boy Shrimp Poppers (4 oz) – $1.00
Tortino Pizza Roll, Pepperoni or Cheese (15 count) – $1.00
Tony’s Crispy Crust Pizza, Pepperoni or Supreme (9 – 10 oz) – $1.00
Banquet Dinners (4 – 9 oz) – $1.00
Buyers Best Crinkle Cut French Fries (32 oz) – $1.00
Pillsbury Grand Biscuits (16 oz) – $1.00
Use $0.30/2 coupon insert from 12/4 Smart Source (Expires 2/25/12)
Use $0.30/2 coupon insert from 12/11 Smart Source (Expires 3/3/12)
Use $0.30/2 coupon insert from 1/8 General Mills (Expires 3/31/12)
Use $0.30/2 coupon insert from 2/5 Smart Source (Expires 4/28/12)
Use $0.35/3 coupon insert from 1/8 General Mills (Expires 3/31/12)
As low as $0.85 each after couponSunny D Orange Mango or Orange Strawberry (48 oz) – $1.00
Produce
Roma Tomatoes – $0.99 lb
Seedless Grapes, Red or White – $1.49 lb
Mini Carrots – $1.00
Dole Salad Mix (12 oz) – $1.00
Celery – $1.00
Yellow or Red Peppers – $1.00
Jumbo Navel Oranges or Red Grapefruit – $1.00
Klondike Rose Potatoes – $1.00
Household
Angel Soft Bath Tissue (4 pack) – $0.99
Sparkle Paper Towels – $0.99
Grocery
Crystal Bottled Water (24 pack) – $2.99
Hargis House Chili with Beans (15 oz) – $1.39
Kaskey’s Chicken or Beef Bouillon Cubes (3.25 oz) – $1.89
Marcum Gravy Mixes – $0.57
Mantia’s Wide Egg Noodles (12 oz) – $1.39
Shelby”s Grove Sliced Peaches or Fruit – $0.99
Mantia’s Garlic Toast – $2.29
Save A Lot Today Sandwich Cremes (12 oz) – $1.19
Libby’s Tropical Fruit Salad (15 oz) – $1.29
Sundia Fruit Cup – $1.00
Chef Boyardee Canned Pasta – (14.5 – 15 oz) $1.00
Betty Crocker Hamburger Helper or Chicken Helper – $1.00
Progresso Vegetable Classic Soup (19 oz) – $1.00
Nissan Souper Meals (4.3 oz) – $1.00
Hormet Micro Cups (7.5 oz) – $1.00
Chicken of the Sea Chunk White Tuna (5 oz) – $1.00
Knorr Sides (4 – 7 oz) – $1.00
Use $1.00/3 coupon insert from 1/29 Red Plum (Expires 2/26/12)
Use $0.50/2 coupon insert from 1/29 Red Plum (Expires 2/26/12)
$0.77 each after couponBetty Crocker Flavored Mashed Potatoes (4 – 6 oz) – $1.00
Kraft Mac & Cheese Cups or Boxes (2 – 7 oz) – $1.00
Malt O Meal Cereal (10 – 12 oz) – $1.00
Use $1.00/3 printable coupon from Malt ‘O Meal
$0.77 each after couponKool-Aid Bursts (40 oz) – $1.00
Hawaiian Punch, Assorted Varieties (32 oz) – $1.00
Mrs Freshley’s Buddy Bars, Oatmeal Cream Cookies, Swiss Rolls & Honey Buns – $1.00
Nestle Candy Bars (2 – 3 oz) – $1.00
Wylwood Cut Green Beans or Whole Kernel Corn (28 – 29 oz) – $1.00
Diane’s Garden Tomatoes (28 oz) – $1.00
Red Gold Ketchup (36 oz) – $1.00
Remember you can use the $5/$25 printable coupon to sweeten these deals! Plus you can earn up to 5 additional $5 off $25 coupons for sharing the coupon with your friends.
For more information about Save A Lot’s coupon policies go here. If you find additional deals or savings please let me know and I will add them to the list.
Be My Valentine: “Love Bug” Notes
Little ladybug “love” notes in the girls school lunches
The girls love getting surprises in their lunch boxes. I found these adorable ladybug notes (aka “love bug” notes in our house) and waited until I had a coupon to buy them at our local Hallmark store. It is my intention to send a special note or treat with the girls lunches at least once a week (on a good week I do it 2 or 3 times). In a time pinch I put these fun bugs on their sandwich containers or random places in their lunch.
Fun note to remind the girls we love them
Not only do these notes brighten the girls days it also encourages them to read. The notes are cute and it only takes a minute to add them to their lunch box.
Karlie’s Note – Buzzing by to say….. Consider yourself HUGGED! Squeeeeeeeeze
Karlie has been known to keep her “love” notes in her lunch box for weeks. She gets so excited about the little notes that sometimes when I ask her how her day went the first thing she tells me about is the “love bug” she found in her lunch.
Brina’s Note – A little buggy told me you’ve been working really hard. You should feel so proud!
Brina loves getting these notes in her lunch so much that she has a baggie full of them in her “special” drawer at home. I know the girls appreciate these small reminders of our love.
I love having these on hand to add a little bit of variety to the special surprises.You could pick up these or something similar at your local Hallmark store or find some online to print off or make up some of your own to print off. What type of goodies do you put in your kids lunch boxes?
Fresh & Healthy: Lunch Box Meals
School Lunch!
The girls are good at helping put together their lunches. They know that we get a protein, fruit, vegetable, dairy, drink and snack. Here’s what they had today:
- Peanut Butter & Homemade Strawberry Jam
- Fresh Tomatoes
- Pita Chips
- Yogurt
- Applesauce or Yogurt Raisin
- Cheesestick
- Bottled Water and Reduced Sugar Juice
- Sugar Free Cherry Jello
- Protein Bar or SoyJoy Apple Granola Bar
Lunch Box Goodies
