Hello Friends, 

February may have been a shorter month but boy, a lot happened in our lives! Besides Valentine’s Day and all the special events that came along with it, February was the month for lots of appointments! Hair cuts, the dentist, an ER visit with Daniel (he fractured his leg!), and an overnight hospital stay (Daniel had a hearth cath procedure done this month).

I’m relieved that March is here, and  SO happy to be home with very little on the calendar for the next two weeks. Thank you, Lord! 

The Lord hasn’t certainly blessed us with an eventful life! Besides all the medical stuff, here are some highlights from the month of February.

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February Highlights

Some highlight’s from our month:

• Visiting with Friends – The Lord has blessed me with some wonderful friends (new and old!) and this month I got to visit with several of them. From visiting a couple friends in their home, to hosting some friends at my house… I am so thankful for the relationships the Lord has blessed me with since we started the church plant. The Lord knew I needed Christian friends and he has blessed!
• Valentine’s Day – My husband and I were able to enjoy a special morning together which included brunch at a local diner.
• Valentine’s Day Banquet – Our sending church hosted a catered Valentine’s Banquet and we were able to attend this year! It was a special evening catching up with church family and seeing friends… not to mention the delicious dinner!
• A Successful Heart Cath – Our son, Daniel, had a heart cath procedure done last month (as I already mentioned). Overall, it was a quick and successful visit to the hospital. I always get nervous when we need to go in for procedures… Hospital visits with a little one are taxing. Our son was born with a congenital heart defect and has already had two heart surgeries. We have one more surgery in our future and then (Lord willing) we will be done with heart surgeries for a very long time!

February Reads

These are the books I read this month:

Things We Didn’t Say by Amy Lynn Green

 This was a light and enjoyable World War II novel – definitely not the most “gripping” tale I’ve ever read, but it was interesting enough for me to keep turning the pages to learn of Johanna’s fate… even my husband was asking me for updates. This was an epistolary novel (written in letters) which was a very different format for me but it was very well done. I gave this book 4 stars on Goodreads. 

The Journal of Ben Uchida by Barry Denenburg

After reading, Things We Didn’t Say, I was very curious about Japanese Americans and their fate during the war. This book gave the inside perspective of a young boy in a Japanese American Internment Camp. It was rather shocking to read what the US did to Japanese Americans… although I can understand why it was done, it was still a very tragic and unfortunate situation and I do believe the Japanese were treated unfairly. For a children’s book, I was a little disappointed by some of the content which was a bit inappropriate for young readers. In the end, I gave this book 3 stars on Goodreads.

The Busy Homeschool Mom’s Guide to Daylight by Heidi St. John

 This was such an encouraging book for moms! I am not even homeschooling yet (my little guy is just a toddler) but I still found some great takeaways from this book. This book is not a “how-to” homeschool book, but rather a book full of encouragement and practical tips to help your day (and your homeschool) go more smoothly. I would definitely recommend this book to other homeschool moms and plan to reference this in the future once I begin homeschooling my own children. I gave this book 5 stars on Goodreads. 

Outer Order: Inner Calm: Declutter & Organize to Make More Room for Happiness by Gretchen Rubin

 If you need an easy read that will motivate you to declutter and clean up your house, this is it! I’ve enjoyed several of Gretchen Rubin’s previous books, so I was excited to find this one discounted at my local Ollies (I honestly didn’t even know this books existed!). I’m pretty neat, but books like this always motivate me to do better – especially when it comes to our home. I want to live in a relaxing and welcoming home and part of that means keeping things neat and decluttered so that our space is calming, not overwhelming! I have this book 4 stars on Goodreads.

Loving the Little Years: Motherhood in the Trenches by Rachel Jankovic

 A friend gave me this book (and the next one, below) to borrow. I’ve had this book on my list to read for quite some time! It took me a few chapters to adjust to Rachel’s writing style as well as her analogies, but once I caught on, the book was incredible. I may not agree with all of her theology, but she has some great tips and encouragement for moms among these pages. It was also a nice and quick little book with short chapters. I gave this book 5 stars on Goodreads.

Fit to Burst: Abundance, Mayhem, and the Joys of Motherhood by Rachel Jankovic

I may have enjoyed this one even better than the first – but they were both excellent. Once  again, her writing style is unique, but once you catch on her illustrations and analogies are excellent and really hit home some great points and spiritual lesson. I definitely felt convicted reading through this one. The chapters on stress and consistent child training were my favorite. There were quite a few typos in this book (which was distracting at times) but it really didn’t take away from the heart or message behind each chapter.  I will definitely keep my out for both these books so I can add them to my collection. I gave this book 5 stars on Goodreads.

(Unlike her first book, this one was KJV only! It’s always nice to find books that stick to the traditional King James Version!) 

Please remember that just because I read a book does not mean I recommend it wholeheartedly. Always read a book using discernment. Chew the meat but spit out the bones, and always compare what you read to the perfect standard of God’s Holy Word!

February Goals

I use the Powersheets Intentional Goal Planner to plan and keep track of my monthly and yearly goals. 

My goals for this past month included a lot of appointments (finally getting my hair trimmed, visiting the dentist etc.). One goal I did NOT expect to complete this month was updating the backsplash in our kitchen! When my husband and I moved into this house, the kitchen needed the most work. We have slowly done one thing at a time: replacing the floors, painting walls, and painting the countertops. The last thing we’ve been waiting on is the backsplash (our counters and the backsplash were yellow when we moved in). Right around Christmas, my husband and I purchased the backsplash and we’ve just been waiting for the right opportunity to get it done. Well, my husband had a free morning/afternoon last month and he got it done! Little by little, we’ve made a lot of progress in our little home. This was one of the biggest home improvement projects I had on my list for this year and I am excited to cross it off!

>>> Because this is not our “forever home” we are trying to keep our home updates as inexpensive as possible. We purchased this peel and stick backsplash from Amazon and it was fairly easy (just time-consuming). We are really happy with the final result!

A few other goals I completed this month:

• Purchasing gifts for family birthdays in February and March
• Preparing my notes for an upcoming ladies conference
• Making a little bit of progress on our family photo books!

January Favorites

Here are a few of our favorite things from this month: 

Modest “Every-Day” Dresses from Amazon – I’ve been on the lookout for modest and comfortable dresses that are appropriate for every-day wear, but nice enough to be worn “out and about”. I found these dresses on sale and used my gift cards to grab two of them. Talk about comfortable! They were just what I was looking for in a modest, everyday dress. I purchased the navy and dusty orange and am super happy with both! If you’re looking for some modest, everyday dresses as well, I would certainly recommend these! (These dresses are still on sale + there’s a coupon you can “clip” on top of that!).

Bone Broth Hot Chocolate – Have you heard about this yet?!? This is such a delicious and nourishing recipe from Fallon Denae. You can find the recipe here. I like to make this in the evenings before bed for a warm and tasty treat.

I Would Love to Know

• Do you have a favorite memory from January?
• Did you read any good books?
• Did you accomplish any goals?
• Are there any favorite things you’ve been loving?

Until Next Time,