February Challenge :: Week One

 

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I am officially one week in to my little February Challenge! I thought I would try to do a little check-in here once a week. So here is how Week One went...

01. Be more faithful in reading my Bible.

Really really wishing I could say I was more successful in this area, but I really struggled with reading my Bible every day. I am still plugging away at my memorization plan, so I get that bit of the Word every day, but I am realizing more + more how desperately I need to be faithful in this area of opening my Bible up and just reading it. And I am not saying that in a "check-in-the-box" kind of a way. It is not about my works to the Lord. No, it is simply about how much I just need His words in my heart all day every day. 

 

At the very least this week I am going to try to read a little bit every night before I go to bed. It is not my ideal time, but at least it is something!

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02. Go to bed earlier.

Okay. So I really did try to get to bed earlier! Especially earlier in the week. But my little ones had bad colds last week, so consequently I was up a lot with them during the night. Bummer. I really was so much more conscious of what time I was turning out the light this week though, which is a big improvement for me! 

This week I am going to try again (!) to turn out the lights by 11:00pm. We'll see how it goes... 

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03.  Get up earlier. 

Oh, dear. Big huge failure on this one too! Getting up multiple times during the night to help sick kids definitely didn't help, but then again, I really didn't need to sleep in until almost 10:00am on Sunday, now did I? (thank you thank you, sweet husband!).

Tomorrow is a new day. Going to keep trying on this one! 7:00am is the goal.   

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04. Cut back on sugar. 

Oh, friends! I am seriously so proud of myself! I am a total sugar addict, but I literally only had sugar THREE times last week! And the three times I did give in were for really good reasons: A friend who didn't know about my February Challenge showed up at my house with my favorite drink from Starbucks. Couldn't turn that one down, she paid for it after all! Then, last night, Erik's parents took us out for dinner and there was the yummiest creme brulee, maybe ever. It would have been so so wrong to turn it down! Then there was that little sneak of chocolate... In all seriousness though, this is such a huge accomplishment for me. 

In addition to eliminating sugar, I also decided to try cutting gluten out of my diet for this month. I was/am just curious to see if eliminating it could affect my energy levels, as well as, help me get to the bottom of the random stomach aches I get at least once a week. I only had gluten one time this whole week and it DID give me a stomach ache, which I thought was so interesting!

I definitely noticed a huge increase in my energy when I don't eat sugar or gluten, especially in the afternoon. Usually I get really tired around 2pm and just struggle the rest of the day. This week I didn't notice major tiredness in the afternoon, except one day when I ate potatoes for lunch.

So, I obviously did the best on this part of the challenge. I am going to continue another week of no sugar or gluten, then next week I am thinking about eliminating another thing, like dairy.

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05. Move more.

I was 2/7 on this one. Better than nothing at all, but definitely not where I want to be. I have a copy of this dvd, so I am planning on implementing that starting tonight. Hopefully that will help, especially on the days that I can't get to the gym!

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06. Take note + be thankful for God in all the small things. 

I bought a sweet little notebook that makes me super happy to write all my blessings in. I am currently on #17. I am going to try to make it a practice to write a few every night. I can't decide if I want to post them here every week or once a month...

If you are participating in my February Challenge, how has your week been? I would love to hear! 

Also, if you are interested in taking on a smaller challenge, my sweet friend Annalea has an ongoing challenge on her blog called One Little Change. Basically the premise of it is to choose one little thing a month to focus on changing in your life. I think it is a great idea, and I will probably join up next month when my big February Challenge is over. 

P.S. All of the lovely photos were found via my tumblr, Sweet + Lovely Things in the past week or so. Do you have a tumblr? It is one of my very favorite places online!