Bucket List: In Progress

BUCKET LIST: In Progress

These are things I'm currently working on...



• Taking swing dance lessons. I can't even explain how much I am enjoying doing this. I would seriously dance every day if I could...it makes me so happy! And the group that I am learning with are such great people. The leaders are Christians and so extremely warm and encouraging.
• Journaling. I kept a gratitude journal every day for about five years and then got out of the habit when I got sick a couple of years ago. I'm back in business now and disciplining myself to write down 5 things that help me have a grateful heart. Finding five things a day is sometimes more difficult than one might think, but it really helps keep my perspective on the positive.
• Writing. My friend Jeff Reedy inspired me to start writing every day. He is an amazingly talented writer and said that disciplining himself to write something every day has helped him. Check out his inspirational blog at http://jefe888.blogspot.com
• Reading the Word. I need it, so I gotta read it.
• Prayer.  I need Him, so I gotta pray. I'm finding that my prayer life is changing. It is so much more relational than regimented. He's with me all the time, so when something comes up, we chat. My kids got tickled at me as I drove through Dallas recently because I would say, "Lord, I'm merging, please make a place for me" every time I entered the freeway. And, sure enough, there was always a space. He cares very much about my precious cargo.
• Rest. My tendency is to burn the candle at both ends and I've had to learn the hard way to slow down. When I'm tired, I rest if I am able. Today was a big day. I woke up at 5:30 on a Saturday to take my daughter Esther to a dance competition. We were there from 7:30 until 6:30. I do not consume caffeine for health reasons, but around 2:00, I started to feel REALLY flaky. Esther's team met at a BBQ joint to eat and instead of grabbing a coffee, I stayed in the car and took a nap! Seriously. I'm learning when to say when.  
• My Music. Music is a huge part of my life being a classroom music teacher and piano teacher. I pour a lot of myself into encouraging and fine-tuning (see what I did there?) my students' musical abilities, but I often (always) neglect my own. I've started taking time to practice piano and to pay attention to my voice and care for it as I sing.
• My Home. Cleaning out, simplifying, creating a place of joy, remove that which hinders and embracing the new.
• My Health.  I have every excuse to lay up in the bed and eat an entire box of Girl Scout Cookies, but I'm choosing not to. I've been in survival mode for a while, eating only when I felt like it and then at that point eating whatever I wanted, but that's not healthy and I know it. If I'm going to be on an adventure, my body better be up to the task and in the best shape it can be. I really hate to exercise, but I'm trying.
• Bravery. I'm working on trying new things that are a little outside my comfort zone. Sometimes its little things like getting my first facial (a gift from a friend) tomorrow or figuring out how to do my taxes on my own. Sometimes its scary like driving to San Antonio by myself or speaking the truth. Breathe deep.

I'm a work in progress and God isn't finished with me yet!