The Week Ahead

As we transition from September into October this week, I'm spending time thinking about what I want to accomplish in the month of October.  There's some things I want to do personally, but also some things for work, for our apartment, and just general big idea things I'd like to do.  For this week, while I'm thinking about it all, I'm going to focus on what I'd like for the week ahead.  I happen to have a very odd work schedule this week which amounts to me only working one full 12-hour shift, which I will be leaving for in about two hours!  I'll be at work Tuesday to help with interviews for a new-ish position on our floor and then will spend Wednesday and Thursday working some 4 hour shifts covering lunch breaks on the unit.  I had already scheduled a PTO day off for this week since Scott and I were hoping to head out of town for a bit for his fall break, so it should be a light work week! With all of that in mind, I've decided to make some weekly goals to work through as I continue contemplating the big month-long October ones.

No. 1: Finish reading a book. My September goal of finishing 2 books didn't even come close to happening.  I have 2 or 3 chapters left in the short little e-book I'm reading called Writing to Find Yourself.  It was part of my research process for writing and I have just loved it, but sadly haven't put the time into finishing it.  I plan to do this on my lunch break tonight if all goes well (now that I've said that, I probably won't even have time for a lunch break tonight.  That's how it goes!).  I was talking to Scott about how bummed I was about not reading books much this month, and he responded, "well, you may not have read one but you sure did write one!"  Which is mostly true.  I started writing one.  Which leads me to my next goal

No. 2: Write three more chapters of Small Joys.  I wrote a chapter last week  in the car while we were on our way down for an impromptu trip to Nashville, but since then I've been working and taking lots of classes at work, so writing has been minimal!  If I could do three more chapters this week (I already know the three I want to write, just need to put the words on paper!) I think I would feel much better about book progress.

No. 3: Finish staining our coffee table. We've talked about staining our coffee table for a while, but I thought it was too big of a project to work on until later this fall or winter.  Well, Scott got a new sander recently and I came home to find out coffee table half stripped down a couple of weeks ago, which indicated to me that the coffee table project had begun, whether I was ready or not!  I had practiced staining for our TV mount project (I'll share pictures of this in a later post) and felt comfortable doing it on our coffee table, so the project is on!  The table has two coats of stain on it currently and basically just needs a clear, water-proof coat now before it's a done deal.  The color looks amazing, and some of the details up close look a little bit less than perfect, but I think overall we've enjoyed the project and will surely do more staining in the future.  It's kind of nice to think that this project is basically completed, as it was something I've had on my mind for a while but didn't think we would get to until October or November.  It's finished just in time for my dad's visit from NC to Indiana next month!  

No. 4: Cook/eat meals at home.  We've been on the road a bit lately and also have just generally been quite busy, so we've eaten out more than we usually like to.  This week, I should be home for every dinner and should be able to spend some time crafting a meal in the kitchen.  I get so giddy over cooking and baking, I am excited just thinking about what we've got in our refrigerator and pantry and how I can toss things together for a new, delicious meal.  Updates to come on what we make!  Right now we've got chili going in the crockpot because it's Sunday, there's football on all day, and I had to sleep some for work and couldn't be pouring over the stove all morning.  

No. 5: Spend quiet time with Jesus each morning. This would be my goal for EVERY morning but I often fail.  My days are so much better when I start them with Jesus; it just gives me the right perspective for the day and sets my heart where it needs to be to serve others well.  I'll be spending time with the She Reads Truth studies this week, and if you are looking for some good studies of the Bible and don't currently know of any, I'd start there! They have an iPhone app now and everything.  

I think that'll do for now.  Lots of love and hope you all have a great week! Today is my Monday, technically, but also my Friday, with only working one full shift.  I'm thankful and excited for some respite this week.

XOXO,

C.