Questions for 2009

One of my favorite bloggers, Mike Hyatt had these questions to ask yourself for 2009. There were 7 questions.

If the last year were a movie of your life, what would the genre be?
Drama, romance, adventure, comedy, tragedy, or a combination?

Mine would be a combination of all. I had a little of everything hit me this year.

This year my God grandmother passed which was really hard after losing my aunt in September, These two ladies had touched my life in so many ways.

I never dreamed that I’d see a Black President and this year it came true.

The most devastating part of 2009 was losing Michael Jackson. I know for some he was just another celebrity but for me, he was like a cousin. When I think of music that inspired my life, MJ's name popped up. My first concert was the Jackson 5. I still get misty eyed just thinking about him.

Facebook reintroduced me to a lot of old friends and family. I think it was one of the best things I did this year.

What were the two or three major themes that kept recurring? These can be single words or phrases.

Family, living in the now

What did you accomplish this past year that you are the most proud of? These can be in any area of your life—spiritual, relational, vocational physical, etc. Be as specific as possible.

Reconnecting with my younger sister, who I’d been trying to find for years. It has been a blessing being able to talk with her via the internet. I’ve enjoyed our chats and emails. We have a lot in common and I look forward to meeting her in person next year.

Going to a marriage counselor, it really helped me with my marriage and showed me a lot about me as a person, wife, mother and caregiver.

Stepping past fear and letting others read my stories and entering a contest with one.

Reconnecting with God. I was burnt out this year, I’d stop going to church, I resigned from children church. I thought I’d lost myself. However the Lord spoke to me daily and let me know that I wasn’t alone. I wasn’t fellowshipping with a church, but I was growing closer with him. I prayed more and I had deep conversations with him and he let me see that I did need fellowshipping to complete me. Now I’m ready to serve again and I know he will find a place for me.

What was missing from last year as you look back? Again, look at each major area of your life. Don’t focus now on having to do anything about it. For now, just list each item.

*Having more ME time. I’m learning to take time for me. I can’t be superwoman
*Making time to write and write, not just thinking about it
*Reading more for pleasure, I miss reading for me
*Date time with the hubby, I regret letting him say no when he should have said yes to our quality time together.
*Exercising, I’ve let myself go and it’s showing in the tight clothes.
*Quality time with God

What were the major life-lessons you learned this past year?

Life is short, enjoy every moment. Enjoy today.
Live your dream
Stay positive

Never let go of God's hands, even through the burnt out times. That's when you need him the most.

BLOG TOUR: 40 Loaves

Why don’t I have more faith?

Why am I so bored with Jesus?

Why don’t I feel connected at church?

These are the types of questions the religious establishment often makes it uncomfortable, if not impossible, to ask. And by asking them, C. David Baker, author of 40 Loaves: Breaking Bread with Our Father Each Day hopes to start a conversation in people’s hearts, then with others, and ultimately with God. Many circles of Christianity have led us to believe that certainty and confidence are the proof of true spirituality; questions are discouraged.

But Jesus offered his followers an ongoing conversation—a relationship built around a free, open-ended discussion. Questions were encouraged. They were often impertinent, sometimes alarming, and the religious establishment was distinctly uncomfortable with them … just as it is today.

“40 Loaves is something of a collection of the kinds of questions I felt finally free to ask of myself and of my relationship with Christ,” says Baker. “It’s my belief that these questions are shared by many others who long for the freedom to simply ask them out loud. I hope this book becomes a platform that frees others to search their hearts more deeply and be fed with the Bread of life.”

Each “loaf” here is a big question that stimulates discussion, investigation, and contemplation; it will take hours—or days—to digest. Conversational, inviting, disarming, and real, 40 Loaves nourishes self-examination and offers validation for those who feel discouraged, guilty, or even shamed when the realities of their lives don’t match up with the ideals of the Christian establishment.

C. David Baker founded an award-winning business before redirecting his career to write full-time from his small farm in Bucks County , Pennsylvania . He is the author of eight books, including six novels, one of which was nominated for a Christy Award. He has contributed articles to the Christian History Institute’s international publication Glimpses, and to Christian Singles magazine. Baker has a Master’s degree in theological studies from the University of St. Andrews in Scotland .

I'm currently reading this devotion and it is hitting the spot. Asking the hard questions that are on your mind. Mr. Baker answers the question and uses scriptures to show you why. This is a different type of devotional but one I believe would make a perfect gift for the believer or nonbeliever. I'm looking forward to finishing the book and will post an update.

15 Minutes

When I took up Patricia’s challenge, I just knew I would have time to write. I usually do a lot of my writing when the kids are asleep. However this past week I was so exhausted from the day, that I didn’t get any writing done. I was able to type about 500 words for last week and that was it.

I decided yesterday that I would try writing in chunks, 15 minute chunks. At work I get two 15 minute breaks so I’m using that time to write. I know I won't get a lot done but I’m trying to finish up, not stop writing.

December is a hard time to write because there are so many things happening during this time. Parties, shopping, gift wrapping, visiting with friends. Since I’m not on deadline, I have the luxury of writing when I want, but if I were on deadline, I would have to find time to squeeze in my writing.

I’ll let you know how my 15 minutes is working.

What about you, how do you find time to write during the holiday season?

Hickory Farms Blog Tour

When I think of Hickory Farms at this time of year, I think about cheese and summer sausage. When I was asked to review one of their gift packages, I was happy to do so, because I’ve always enjoyed their treats.

The package arrived and my two year old brought it in to me. He was excited because it was a box and he wanted to know what was inside. I told him we’d have a picnic with what was inside.

I spread a blanket on the floor and together we opened the package.

Beef Hickory Sampler Gift - $15.00

Includes:

- 5 oz. Beef Summer Sausage
- 4 oz. Hickory Cheddar Blend
- 2 oz. Italian Herb & Cheese Spread
- 2.25 oz. Sweet Hot Mustard
- .5 oz. Cracked Wheat Crackers
- Wt. .8 lbs


I covered the crackers with cheese and top them off with a slice of summer sausage and we had a little feast.

I always enjoy Hickory Farm summer sausage and I wasn't disappointed this time. The cheese spreads were good to. My son liked the sausage but didn't care too much for the cheese. I think I will be adding one of these gift packages to my Christmas Wish list.

These gift samplers make wonderful gifts for friends and family. If you like hot and spicy mustard this one is the one to pick up.

Enjoy


Check them out http://www.hickoryfarms.com/

I wrote this review while participating in a blog tour campaign by Mom Central on behalf of Hickory Farms and received a Hickory Farms gift basket to facilitate my review." http://www.momcentral.com/

BOOK IN A MONTH - Final

I decided to try to do the book in a month for November only I crafted it for me instead of following the rules.

I only wrote during the week and left the weekends off for the family, which cut down on my thirty days. I didn’t beat myself up if I didn’t feel like writing. I decided to just write and let the muse flow.

I set a goal of writing seven pages of day. I had 15 days to work, because I knew nothing was going to get done the week of Thanksgiving. Some days were a breeze, some days I didn’t want to write at all. I think I had a whole week I didn’t do anything. However I didn’t stress about it. I was writing again and that was most important.

I didn’t reach my goal of 105 pages. I ended up writing 60 pages – 10, 704 words.

Which means to me I’m about two months away from finishing this book. WOO HOO!

I learned a lot with this experience. I can reach my daily writing goals when I have to.
I wanted to know how long it would take me to write a book and this page goal helped me to see how to break the book down into a monthly figure. So I could write a book in about 8 mths if I worked hard at it. That’s not too bad. One book a year. My ultimate goal is to write two books a year. I think that’s possible if I wrote two genres, which I’ve been doing for years. (I’m working on a middle grade book too. I’ll tell you about that one later.)

I learned more about my characters and what their motivations are.

The most important lesson, that it’s best to write and edit later. In my writing stage, I just let the words flow, I didn’t try to figure out what I did or why. When I’m in editing mode sometimes I lose my muse because I’m trying to figure things out. You can’t worry about figuring things out when you’re in the writing mode.

Now I’m in editing stage and I’m hoping to take those 60 pages and change them into 120 pages.

How did you do with your book?