I Give You Permission to Throw Away Your Yearbook
I recently read Marie Kondo’s best-selling book, The Life- Changing Magic of Tidying Up. In the book she goes step by step through the process of tidying, starting with clothes and then moving onto books, paper, komono (miscellany), and finally things with sentimental value. She recommends waiting until the end of the process to decide upon […]
What 30 Days of Meditation Taught Me
I recently read an article by one of my favorite authors on the subject of habits, James Clear. It was about using the Seinfeld Strategy to not “break the chain” of an action. If there’s a goal that you have, or a healthy habit you want to establish, do it every day (if even for one […]
Change One Word to Increase Your Gratitude
What if I told you that changing one word consistently in your thoughts and speech could increase your levels of gratitude and happiness? Seem too good to be true? Give it a try. Replace “have to” with “get to.” Every time you are thinking about all the things you “have to” do, consciously change it […]
The Sacredness of the Mundane
Lately I’ve been thinking a lot about the “sacredness of the mundane.” It was the topic of a recent message at my church that focused on how God’s restorative and transformational power is often experienced in mundane moments. We think that an explosive, life-changing event will cause us to see God in our lives, or […]
My Top 5 Time-Saving Meal Prep Kitchen Gadgets
I have been blessed with a husband who selected over 90% of the kitchen items on our wedding registry, and continues to find gadgets that improve efficiency and minimize our time prepping and hovering over a stove burner. We have purchased items in the past that sounded good but we rarely ever used (yogurt maker, […]
Do Goals Make Sense?
When you hear the word goals, what pops into your head? New Year’s resolutions never kept? The acronym SMART (specific, measurable, achievable, results-focused, and time- bound)? Do you think about all the things that you’ve been wanting to do but seem impossible to do with limited time and energy? Do goals energize you or depress […]
My Top Five Baby Registry Items for New Parents
I am the gift-giver that kids hate and parents love. I typically give clothes, books, and other “practical” gifts rather than the super fun (and less durable) toys that light up the faces of children. It’s not that I never give toys, but typically when I ask parents, “What do your kids need?” I rarely […]
The Dangers of “Should” and “Someday”
Aspiring to be a “better” person in areas of our lives such as finances, health, and relationships is admirable. Oftentimes, however, we purchase items in the name of improving in these areas and don’t follow through. A common example of this is the treadmill purchased with the intent of walking or running on it every […]
My Top 5 Most Valuable Apps
If you are like me, every few days you are greeted with a phone notification informing you that you are running out of storage. Every time I see it, I curse not choosing the iPhone with larger storage capacity when I had the chance. I have done a lot to manage my storage, including deleting all my photos off […]
My Top 5 Podcast Picks
My commute has been transformed by something simple – podcasts! I find that I can deal with traffic much better when I am listening to a podcast interview that is thought-provoking and makes me reevaluate how I’m doing something or helps me focus on what is truly important in my life. With that in mind, […]