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My 2019 Life-Changers

12.30.2019 • 1 Comment

goals, 2019, 2020, tools, favorites, planner, prayer journal, new year's, resolutionsThis year, I wanted to add a new post to the goal series and share the things that I feel like have had the biggest impact on change in me this year. Some are a little more fun than serious, but have made my life better this year! In no particular order, here are the books, lessons, and tools that have helped me grow the most in 2019!

1. THE RUTHLESS ELIMINATION OF HURRY 

I should not be surprised really. John Mark Comer’s book My Name is Hope encouraged the season I faced an intense panic attack and depression. This book covers how to slow down in really practical ways. I enjoyed reading it so much and will reference it many more times! Grab it here.

2. GIVING 

This is kind of a weird one but God’s been stretching me and taking me further out of my comfort zone and the more I taste it, the more I ENJOY it and want to do it more. I’ve been giving more time to people (which if you know me this is harder than it should have been) and giving more resources. This year I’ve been overwhelmed with the reality of how much I’ve been given and I’m not supposed to keep it all to myself. 

3. COACHING WITH DIANA KERR

I feel fancy saying I have a life coach but the truth is, every time it’s time to sign up to keep going or stop, I know the investment is ALWAYS worth what I’ve gained from our conversations! If you need an outside voice of a believer that asks the right questions and gives you space to figure things out, check her out!

4. DAILY SALADS FOR LUNCH

The majority of days, my lunch is fueled by a BIG salad chocked full of veggies, some chicken and a dressing of olive and balsamic vinegar. I’ve been able to get off my iron pills and still feel energetic (for the most part 😉 ) and maintain my weight as I get older and feel the metabolism slowing down. I CRAVE my big salads and if I know I’m not going to get them for lunch, I’ll eat one for breakfast sans chicken. Finding Hello Nutritarian inspired me to prep more veggies which expanded my simple salad of spinach, bell peppers and red onions to many more!

goals, 2019, 2020, tools, favorites, planner, prayer journal, new year's, resolutions

5. FULL FOCUS PLANNER 

I shared all about how I used my planner in Insta stories recently but this planner fits me like a glove. Knowing it was an investment, Diana and I talked about how to maximize it and I’ve been able to use it well! Here is the link to the planner and a blog post about how I’m making it work for me.

6. GRUMPY MOM TAKES A HOLIDAY 

This has not only changed me because I got to launch it into the world this year. It changed me because I’m a different mom than I was 6 years ago. I always had the desire to do motherhood differently but I feel like it’s really happening and it’s changing our home! If you’ve read the book, you know the girls being sick is a hard one for me because I’m a compassionate person who doesn’t like to see her kids sick, and unfortunately equally as someone who likes to not have her workdays interrupted. ;). Well we recently finished up 10 days of fevers and round the clock neediness, a full Thanksgiving break down and a few missed days of school and cheer camp. I hated that they were sick, but honestly, it was not made worse by my bad attitude. I got to be the compassionate momma I wish I was in those normally grumpy moments and it changed the whole tone of a rough week. 

VMP Shop | Amazon 

7. DYSON 

This sounds so silly but I’ve been wanting a Dyson for a while and finally got one during Black Friday sales. And people, when I tell you, it’s changing my life, it so is. I am ENJOYING cleaning floors. No more sweeping up piles and leaving them for Tyler to step in (his pet peeve) and if I see dust, I’m excited because it means I get to pull out my tiny little dust sucker and watch little tiny particles disappear. Literally, I can clean hardwoods, rugs, baseboards, crevices all with a few attachments. They are actually on sale till Dec. 31 here. (No I don’t receive commission. Just a super fan. 🙂

8. SEVEN WORDS THAT CHANGE EVERYTHING  

We’ve spent the last two Junes in a little town right outside of Atlanta. It’s a refreshing time but it’s also a time we get to attend Passion City Church. Louie Giglio preached a Father’s Day sermon that I’ve reflected on for months since. In it, he talked about how God sees us and for someone with a loud inner critic, it’s been really empowering to know what God sees when He sees me. Listen to it here.

9. ORGANIZATION EXPERTS

Between Mika Perry’s Instagram tips (and now course!!) and The Home Edit book, I have been so pumped up and motivated to organize that I’ve genuinely loved getting our house in order. I know I talk plenty about margin and y’all probably think my home is pretty organized already. I will say it’s tidy but there were so many places in our home that were sources of frustration and weren’t really “working” for our family that ARE NOW!! I feel equipped now when I see a space that’s a mess and not paralyzed to organize something and have been taking things one closet/cabinet at a time and enjoying the process! 

10. HUMILITY 

I’m late in learning this virtue. Seriously, as a doer, sooooo many other disciplines and virtues seemed more important. The truth is, humility is the start of surrender to God and the only way we can grow. Reading Andrew Murray’s book, Humility, jumpstarted this conversation in my heart and since then I’ve also listened to Tim Keller’s sermon, The Freedom of Self-Forgetfulness, often and even added a repeating task in Asana to listen once a month to it, it’s that powerful. 

Book | Sermon 

11. CHARGING STATION

We got a charging station for our phones and have it in our laundry room which is in the way back of our house. My goal is to put it on the charger by 6 PM and stays until after my quiet time. I’m by no means perfect but even the changes I’ve made from the days of doing this or just not having it in the kitchen or our room has been so good.

12. GOD  

We’ll round this list out with the ultimate life-changer. Literally, nothing would be possible without Him. The thing is, if we aren’t looking for Him to work, we may miss out on what He’s doing. It’s one reason I think praying specifically is so important. When we pray for something and something happens we can’t chalk it up to coincidence quite so easy. We’re faced with the reality that God actually hears us and responds. If you are not seeing God’s work in your life, can I suggest our prayer journals? I know, I know. I’m sure there are tons of ways to connect deeper with the Lord. Our journals just happen to help clear the distractions that block us from the one who changes everything. Grab one for a life-changing 2020.

Today, I’m doing a LIVE Journal Prep at 8 pm CST over on our social media channels. Part of this will be looking back at all God has done this year. Have a cool story of how God answered a prayer from 2019? Email Kara at info@valmariepaper.com so we can share it during the LIVE! Need to be encouraged and remember God is alive? Join us! 

If you loved this little list of favorites, there’s more where that came from. 😉 Once a month, I send out a similar list to my Monthly Peptalk subscribers! You can sign up for it here.

CHECK BACK TOMORROW FOR: What I Read in 2019

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2019 Goals Recap

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