Complicated Simplicity

delight in 2013 // february resolutions

this month's goals. for some reason, i got really overwhelmed with my goals this year. i found it very hard to see how i could get from point a to point b on some things and it kind of paralyzed me. this list is a reflection of that.

i limited myself to only two goals from each category (routine, spiritual, relationship, health/wellness, creative, and church/home). i kept them minimal and a little less specific (plan a few date nights vs plan four date nights) so as to keep a bit of the pressure off (and the guilt that comes with not hitting that mark). 

i did well with a few of my goals from last month, however, and am super proud of them. i have worked on memorizing my verse every day and have added a new verse each week. yay!

i didn't walk a mile each day, however, i enlisted help from my brothers to make my health and fitness dreams come true. we've been working very closely together and have a plan that began last friday (feb 1!). so far, so good. two workouts every day to work on strength and a walking assignment. this week, i start the diet portion of it all and am excited and a little nervous. i know i can do it and will do it, though. it's been going better than i ever expected and i am super confident that this is my year to make it happen. i know that i'll have low days and hard days and bad days, but i'm determined and i have the perfect support that i needed. it's awesome!

i've also been reading lots, cooked a bunch of new meals, made progress on my nursery schedule, have cut out pop and increased my water intake, read with paul and did a couple of projects.

overall, i'm good with it. january was a great month. february is going to be even better.

lovely words // leviticus 19:2

memory verse for week 4 (jan 20-26, 2013)

2013 family Bible reading // the plan

this year paul and i are once again planning to read the Bible together daily. through trial and error (and a bit of contention and stress) we found what works for us.

we read four chapters a day. we decided to read canonically this year. we started, however in 1 Samuel. we will continue until we loop back around through Ruth. if we keep up every single day, we will get back to where we started in november.

we miss days sometimes. and that's okay. it's not about perfection, but about simply reading the Bible together. often.

reading this way gives us a great overview of the Story the Bible tells. it's a great way to get a feel for what it's saying and how things fit together. we each go deeper in our personal studies (read more about my personal Bible study process here).

reading the Bible together is one of my favorite parts of the day. when one of us says, "should we read our passage now?" and i pull out the Bible and open to the place marked by that satiny ribbon. and i read aloud of kings and servants and battles and sin and praise and a faithful God working His plan for redemption from the very first.

i have always loved stories. but none more than this one. the one sung to me before i was born. the one whispered to me in my cradle. the one i learned to love for myself as a little girl. the one that still holds my heart fast.

reading it as a family is just the icing on the cake. an amazing gift and one of the most important things we do together.

four chapters at a time.

lovely words // exodus 3:7-8

memory verse for week 3 (jan 13-19, 2013)

2013 memorization project // the plan + resources (FREE download)

this year, i really wanted to expand the Bible verses in my memory bank. :-) the first step was to choose a set of verses. i am a girl who likes to have a plan (and a list), so knowing what verses i would focus on for the year was important to me.

there are tons of plans out there. there are tons of ways to approch Scripture memorization. i knew that i wanted single verses this year vs. a chapter or book. after a bit of thought, i decided that concentrating on the key verse from each book would be great for me.

i used my Life Application Study Bible to get most of the verses. in the book introductions, it lists what they deem the "key verse" for each. i went with their choice 99.9% of the time, but changed a couple to better fit my purposes. i ended up with a list of 67 verses (one for each book and two from Genesis).

i decided to use the ESV for my memorization. for no particular reason. i use numerous translations for various purposes (NASB for my personal Bible study, NKJV for general reading, etc).

i loved elise blaha cripe's quote cards she used in her project life last year, so decided to do something similar with my verses. i typed up each verse on a 3x4 card and left out a few key words to write in by hand for emphasis. i printed them, cut them out and have a handy little card to carry with me (you can download a copy of them for free below).

the plan is that i memorize one verse per week. i review my verse every day (and set a reminder on my iPod touch) and look at the past week's a few times as well. i'm only two weeks in, but so far it's going well.

i'd love it if you'd join me in a memorization project this year. feel free to do what i'm doing or find another plan (or make your own).

a couple plans you might want to check out: ann voskamp's 2013 romans memorization project, fighter verses has a great plan, an extended plan, and a plan especially for children (and even has the verses in spanish).

fighter verses is an awesome resource overall. they have tips for memorization, free downloads to help, and they have the verses put to song. i am using the app and i love that i can put all of my chosen verses in (vs. using their plan) and it will quiz me. so cool.

memverse is another site that i have used and liked.

whatever you decide to do, just get in there and memorize! :-)

FREE download of verse cards:

Download ESV key verse cards 

project life 2013 // title page

this is my title page for project life 2013. i started with the title card from the clementine core kit, put our initials on it, and used some smash tape. i cut the pink swirly paper down and put the year on it. i wrote a few facts about each of us on paper from one of jamaica's paper packs and used a sheet from a smash journaling pad to write a bit about where i see us in ten years. my favorite part is the series of b & w photos of us. i plan to add a quote or lyric to the top right pocket, but haven't decided on the perfect one yet. :-)

 supplies used:

project life clementine core kit

design a photo pocket pages

paper from jamaica

smash tape: black dots

smash pad: favorite person

sharpie marker fine

sharpie pen fine

diy // perpetual event calendar

i needed a way to keep track of all of those annual events-birthdays and anniversaries and such. so, i decided to make a little perpetual calendar to keep track of it all. :-)

i used some plain white cardstock that i had on hand and trimmed each page into 4x11 strips.

i then used a ruler to mark off an area at the top of each (you could also just eyeball it). this is for your month header, so just make sure you have enough room for what you want to do!

i then used colored pencils to do a simple drawing on each. mine are themed, but it would be fun with splotches or watercolors or shapes or something abstract. you could also trim some pretty scrapbook paper and stick it to the top as well. lots of customization options!

i used a Sharpie ultra fine point marker to write the month on each (and thickened some of the lines/areas as i wanted).

i decided to freehand my lines because the thought of measuring them all out did not appeal to me at all (it may for you though-go for it!). i wrote out the numbers and was done with it.

it's not perfect, by any stretch of the imagination, but it works. it's functional which is what i need at this moment in time. i may make another one later on just to play around with some different shapes and to make it a bit more "perfect" looking. ha!

lovely words // genesis 1:27

we have a Scripture memorization project we started for 2013 (more on that in a couple of weeks). this was our first verse.

oh the adventure // walk there! laurelhurst

there's an awesome book called walk there!: 50 treks in and around portland and vancouver. i've checked it out of the library before and loved the different walks. today, we decided to finally tackle one of them. we were somewhat familiar with the laurelhurst neighborhood because we park there for the peacock lane lights every december. that said, we'd never really explored the neighborhoods or the park. i found out that you can download each of the 50 treks for free from metro's site, so we downloaded the map and description of the laurelhurst trek and printed it out. paul had to be at work by five, so we were a tad crunched for time and only made it through half the walk. but we both loved the neighborhoods and can't wait to get back and finish it sometime very soon.

laurelhurst is full of tree-lined streets and beautiful homes. we were constantly saying "i love this one!" back and forth as we walked up the streets. if you love beautiful neighborhoods, heritage trees, and the architecture of historic homes, this walk is definitely right up your alley.

jan 05 2013

back to the grey. honestly, i am enjoying the way it makes the color seem more vibrant. there truly is beauty in everything.