March updates

So, as usual, it's been a while since I've updated. I feel like this semester is flying by way too quickly! This was a good month, but I'll just touch on the highlights....

1) I lost 10 pounds this month! And not by doing any "fad diets!" Our family started doing the biggest loser on March 6 (mostly for me), so Hal and I have been eating better and taking walks every night (4 miles around the neighborhood!). This month, we walked 52 miles!! Since January, I've lost 15 pounds. It's still my goal to lose another 10 - 15 pounds over the next few months. I re-visit my doctor in May--the doctor who told me last fall that I needed to lose weight for my arthritis. I'm excited that I'll actually have some good news for him this time! lol! (P.S. I'm in first place for our competition! :))

2) This month I finally got my reading list approved for quals! Yippee!!! If you don't know, my next step for the PhD program is to take a qualifying exam. To take the exam, I have to read 100 books and articles (created by my committee and me), and then take the test. I started reading the first week of March. So far, I've read 12 books and 12 articles. I'm finding that I really need to balance reading and teaching. Sometimes I'm really good at doing one and really crappy at doing the other. I think this week was a little more balanced.....finally. The picture on the right is from last week.... I had to read 5 books to get caught up (from only reading 1 book over spring break). I told God, "Okay, your grace alone is going to empower me to do this!" I almost cried when I finished the last book by Saturday!! :)

3) This month has also been the month of baseball games. So far, we've been to a few games, but haven't seen Tech win... Somehow, we pick the wrong games to go to, or we're just bad luck! ha! But, we've had lots of fun hanging out with my sister and Shawny. Eating sunflower seeds. Watching the boys eat their nasty foot-long hot dogs with nacho cheese on it! And having a blast! :)

4) At the end of the month, we went to Fredericksburg. Mostly, we went to celebrate Hal's birthday, but I think we also both just wanted a break and some time alone. We had a great weekend. We stayed at a cute little cabin B&B. We had the whole place to ourselves, so it wasn't one of those awkward B&B things. It was so nice to spend a weekend just relaxing and enjoying some quality time! :) When we got back, Tomi made Hal a strawberry cake for his
birthday, so he got to celebrate again! ;)



















Overall, I'd say it's been a good month! God is teaching me so much about self-control and restraint. I've never been a disciplined eater. I've never had to be. In high school and college, I was always thin. I ate whatever I wanted to, and it didn't matter. I could still fit into my size 4 jeans. But in the last few years, that privilege has disappeared--and I've gained almost 30 pounds since 2007. And so God is teaching me how to be smarter with my eating habits. I used to hate when people would say that-- I would always think, "Yeah right, you just want to be thin, and you're playing the God card." But I have actually come to realize how much lack of self-control I have when it comes to food and eating what I want. So, even though it's a physical lesson, it's a good practical lesson in terms of resisting temptation and trusting God in all things.

The other thing God is teaching me is the practical lessons of trusting Him. I've been reading Brennan Manning's Ruthless Trust. One of the things I realized this month was that Hal and I are pretty good at trusting God with the huge things that happen--like when our finances are not what we expected (i.e. $3,000 ER bill last year) or when God doesn't answer prayers like we think He will. But (at least for me) when it comes to trusting God with the day to day stuff, I really depend more on myself than Him. I didn't see stuff like a reading list or losing weight as things He really concerned Himself with. But the more personal God becomes to me, the more I see how much He wants control of every aspect of my life. I know that sounds elementary. Believe me, I've heard it my whole life. But I feel like now it's really beginning to click. That day-to-day surrender is a challenge, but so worth it. I see how much God's grace covers me for every part of my day.

Well, this longer than I thought my "quick update" would be. Thanks for reading. :)