Celebrating 6 Months of Intentional Living

Can you believe we are already halfway thru 2016? Halfway through my year of living intentionally! I think it is really important to reflect back on how far we've come, how God has been working, and continue to make goals for the remainder of the year.

So far this year, I have...

* written 31 blogs (this is #32!)

* read 23 books (and 5 magazines!)

* taken 21 hikes (and half-a-dozen walks on the beach!)

* attended church almost every week (plus a 6-week Bible study!)

* traveled to Reno, NV; San Felipe, Mexico (including an overnight in San Diego, CA); Ohio and Indiana; and most recently, Lake Tahoe, CA/NV

* AND gone on a date with my husband at least once a week, ranging from breakfast to double dates, a scavenger hunt to an art class, picnics to dinner cruises, movies to pedicures, and Dancing with the Stars LIVE tour. 

I've grown in my faith, my calf muscles, and in my marriage. I've celebrated more and worried less. I've filled my time with things I love and feel called to do, with the person I love and feel called to do life with.

What a year! And we're only halfway thru!

I'm really excited to see what is to come for the rest of 2016. Camping trips, a big move, more travel and books and dates and hikes... lots of changes, challenges and blessings are in store! Already I am beginning to see why it was so important for me to take this year to live with intention.

I hope you will join me in living intentionally for the next 6 months! I promise you it will change your life. Think and pray about the things you feel called to do, and then begin to do those things on purpose. Make daily, weekly, and monthly goals, and reward yourself for achieving those goals! Whether you put a sticker on your calendar like we do, or you go to the spa for a professional massage, make sure you celebrate your victories!

AND give yourself grace for your failures. If you look back at the numbers above, you'll see I didn't quite achieve my goals in taking a hike and reading a book every week. But I didn't let those setbacks stop me from jumping right back in the following week and trying to do better. Don't give up! Even doing the things you love and feel called to do takes discipline. But you can do it!