share 4 somethings

 

Happy Tuesday, friends! I'm linking up with Heather for this monthly post, where we all share what we loved, gleaned, braved or saved and achieved on the last Tuesday of each month. I'll jump right in!

Loved. 

I have loved a new routine that I have. If you're not a regular reader, then scroll on past, because I sound like a broken record. I have always dreamed of being a stay at home wife and mom, so imagine my joy when I discovered that I got to live out that dream. It was AMAZING for all the years I (mostly) stayed home with the boys when they were little. I said "mostly" because I almost always did something, even while staying home. I've worked at mom's day out programs, I have provided early morning care in our home before school each morning, I worked part time at their school while they were in the local elementary school...but when I started homeschooling them, I stopped all of that to do just that. Fast forward ten years, and they're all grown, so I had been entertaining the thought of getting a part time job. I applied to our local library twice and was never given a return call or email, and then our oldest son got a puppy. I committed to staying home with her to help train her and so that she wouldn't have to live in her kennel for too long during the daytime. Now that she's older, I decided it was time to try again, so I applied at a local florist and again, never heard from them.

Then one night after church I was talking to my best friend at dinner and when I told her this story and was saying how strange it was that I kept not hearing from them even though I'd basically been promised the job, she started laughing. She told me her boss had been trying to get her to get me to come to work with them for months, but she never did because she was afraid it would mess up our friendship. Spoiler alert: it hasn't! I'm starting my fourth week there this week and I am still loving it as much as I did when I started. I now work part time at an attorney's office on our town square, and I do receptionist work. I work at my own pace and can work any amount of time that I want, along with whatever days and hours that I want. I love the flexibility the most. I decided to work on Mondays, Tuesdays and Thursdays. (I also love the cool office that I work in.)

I am continually amazed at how God works and how He turns our hearts from one thing to something different. I am so thankful for His provision for me to have something fun to do that fills my time. Needless to say, I've had to develop some new routines and am still kind of figuring it out from week to week, but it's causing me to be super organized and to plan for a week at a time. I use my calendar daily and I schedule grocery shopping or pick-up around when I work and I even do lots of blog writing in advance, which is something else I've loved for a year. I already did the writing for this blog that way for the past year, ever since I started planning it out months at a time. I have a notebook that I use for this and it helps me stay on track.

This is how I do that. I just use a regular composition notebook for this, mark out the five days of the week and their dates and schedule in advance. I often have blank days, so I fill them in as the month goes on and I make notes on each month's page for favorites posts, thankful posts and the topics for each currently post and this post, where we share 4 somethings. It's been life changing to do this and it makes writing so much more fun for me, because I don't have to think about it each day. I always do the writing at night and schedule it to post the next day at midnight. I also schedule times at home when I need or want to do something, like this weekend when I decorated our house for fall. I had planned in advance to do that on Saturday, and because I'd had it on my mind to do that, it was no problem to get it all done in a few hours that afternoon and evening. I never mind being a planner like this. 

Gleaned.

I have gleaned a wealth of information this month, needless to say, with my new job. I have a better understanding as to what Clay (the attorney I work for) does and the why behind it and I'm learning more and more to ask the right kinds of questions when I'm on the phone with clients. I talk to a lot of older people each week and I have honestly loved that part of the job. They've all been so sweet to me and one precious older gentleman called me "baby" last week when I asked him a question about his job before he retired. It feels good to learn new things and to have a job that is totally unrelated to kids. That's all I've ever known! I feel like such an adult. 🤣

Saved.

I have saved my sanity and my time by being organized. I have learned to meal plan, to order my groceries around my work schedule, and I've better learned to use my time wisely. The one thing I've not quite figured out is Bible study and how I can fit that into each day. Because I'm a small group leader, I usually like to do all the days at one time, or break it into two days. Doing that helps me to stay fresh on what we studied throughout the week and I feel like our discussions flow better when I'm fresh with the topic. Does that make sense? It does in my mind. I've saved time by doing laundry at a different time each day as well, which is when I come home from work. I start it in the wash each morning and throw it in the dryer, then fold it in the afternoon. I put ours up when I go upstairs each night to change into pajamas. 

And as foolish as it may sound, I've saved my time by having a plan for when I get my nails done each month. The place I go to has so many colors to choose from that it's hard for me to decide, so I always look on Pinterest and have a few color options picked out and my girl helps me to decide. Also, by doing all of this, I have saved myself from decision fatigue. Do you ever get that? 

Achieved.

I've achieved several projects around my house in August. I managed to clear off an entire book shelf and I then I sold it on Facebook marketplace. I got rid of most of my books, only saving the ones that are nostalgic or favorites for me and the boys. I cleaned our bedroom really well and went through several piles that had built up. Does anyone else put their own bedrooms off for as long as possible? I achieved goals I set for myself to maintain things a little better around the house and I met my goal for putting away all of the summer décor and pulling out all of the fall stuff that I love. 

These journals took up two shelves on the bookshelf. I was going to get rid of them, but two of my sons told me to keep them, so I will put them into a Rubbermaid container and save them. 

It's hard to believe it, I know, but this lawyer's cabinet is so much better than it was. I spent a good two hours purging what was in there and hauling it all downstairs one day. I also cleaned the shelves off and gave it a good dusting, though it always looks dirty because of its age. 

Thanks for reading my blog, friends! Love to all.