On Valentine’s Day, we took a little trip to the city we keep considering moving to.  We drove around, grabbed a coffee from a local coffee shop, stopped in at an open house, checked out some different areas and talked about what we want next. Usually, this would be my jam.  I love this stuff, the potential new home, new friends, new everything.  But I find myself in yet another strange season.  Where I once yearned to move, I now am feeling more than a bit of sadness at the thought of possibly moving next summer. Who even am I?  I used to love the possibility of change!  Honestly, I’ve been asking myself that a lot lately.  Who even am I anymore?  But that’s a blog post for another time.  And we don’t “have” to move but there are a variety of reasons we would like to move.  This was always meant to be a stop along the way for us.

“Our plan” is to most likely move across the river, about 30 minutes away into Wisconsin after our youngest graduates next summer.  Yet lately, I keep thinking about all my favorite places that I will miss.  I know where I like my coffee from, which Target has what, what restaurants we like and ones we still have o n a list waiting to try out.  I can easily find my way around and love all the options available within 20 minutes of my home.   Yes, I am even sad to leave our home, there are projects I still hope to do here and honestly, my living room makes me very happy.  It’s become comfortable, in fact I kind of love staying home.  Again, who am I?  Is this old people life?    I definitely still miss our last home but this one has grown on me.  I’ll miss the trees we planted that are growing into lovely shade for the backyard and the tree out front that was a toddler when we moved in that now is a big tree.  I will really miss my beautiful hydrangeas that I planted that bring me s0 much joy.  And yes I can plant more hydrangeas but it’s taken five years for them to be this big and beautiful!

There are hard things here too.  It still feels like we are largely strangers here, we don’t know many people even though it’s a small community. Our neighborhood is nice but it’s not like our last home.  I don’t need to be best friends with everyone but it’s hard to be on the edge literally and figuratively.  Partly this is my fault but also it’s like being a round peg in a square hole.  As I tell my kids, you aren’t going to be liked by everyone and you won’t always like everyone either.  And that’s ok, it’s just tough after our last neighborhood was so amazing.  The appeal of starting over in a neighborhood is definitely there but also, it sounds exhausting starting over again.  New neighborhood, finding and making new friends in general, a new church, new favorite restaurants, coffee shop, walking trails, etc.  They say it takes two years before a place feels like home.  Maybe because I’ll be 50 by then, that sounds like a lot of time that I don’t want to spend replanting myself.

But as I re-read again words that I have typed out on this laptop when facing a new season in 2020 and reflecting in 2022 and 2025, God is already going ahead of us.  I don’t have to worry because I already know that He has plans and purposes wherever we are living.  What’s the saying, don’t borrow trouble?

May 2020 -So, while we grieve all the wonderful memories, our neighborhood and even our home, I know that God has good things planned for us in our new city, neighborhood and home.

We trust you to provide again, that you have gone before us and our new home and community may be different, but it will still be good.

April 2022 – Today I sit here and reflect on just how true those words have been for us since I first wrote that post almost two years ago. God has good things for us here too. Leaving our home and neighborhood that we loved didn’t mean we were leaving God’s goodness and purposes for us behind and wandering into some unknown. It also didn’t mean we were moving to lesser things either. God has plans and purposes for us, always, no matter where we are. In fact, He prepared those for us before we even knew we were moving. Sometimes being uprooted and replanted is confusing and maybe even painful. But God wastes nothing. Now we enter a new season, with plans and purposes ready and waiting for us.

 So as I type out my feelings on this screen, I will not fret about what’s next.  I will continue to be content right here and right where God has us planted in this season.  The flowers don’t worry about if they are going to be uprooted, they just bloom, right where they are, trusting that the gardener knows where they will thrive the best.  Sometimes that means a change of location after a few seasons but it’s also trusting the gardener knows if and when it’s the right time to uproot and replant.

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The post February musings and thoughts on moving first appeared on THE BLOOMING HYDRANGEA.

I am about two weeks into my social media exit and I feel amazing.  I’m not constantly checking my phone.  I don’t feel like I have to take the perfect photos to post.  I’m not worried what so and so will think about this or that.  I don’t care what anyone thinks about political happenings.  I am not carrying the burdens of the world which were never mine to carry to begin with. I have no idea what’s going in the world right now and it’s glorious.  If there is something happening that I need to know about, my friends or family will let me know.  I would get so worked up and let all these things steal my peace, joy and dopamine. I let it creep in while spending my precious time face to face with friends and family.  What is so important on my phone that I have to constantly be checking it?   Honestly,  I feel so much calmer, peaceful and content. I’m occasionally bored which is awesome!  I’ve read a lot which hasn’t happened for a while.  The struggle to read more than 10 minutes without checking my phone was a real problem.  Now, I can sit and read for hours.  I’m planning on spending a lot of time reading this year, books are so much better than scrolling social media for my mind.  I’ve also hauled out the puzzles again.  Yes, they are the lettered or numbered puzzles because my brain can’t handle when you dump 1000 pieces on the table and say, ok put it together.  That is so overwhelming to me but when it’s broken down into 6 smaller sections that are sorted, I can happily do a puzzle.

My next stop in the analog journey is to get a real watch again.  Not an apple watch but a real watch that only tells me the time.  I’ve noticed that I do check my phone for the time often because clocks have ceased to exist in public places.  Which is so weird.  Also I’ve noticed that most banks don’t have digital signs that tell us the temperature anymore.  Weird I know but I kind of miss that.

A few days ago I had a phone call from a neighbor friend.  It was unexpected and I loved it.  She said, you mentioned in your facebook post you prefer phone calls so I decided to call you instead of a text.  That meant so much to me.  I do enjoy phone calls and I really don’t like texting.  Again, let me hear the sound of your voice and the intonation of your words, your laughter and all the things a text can not communicate.  The one form of social media I did keep was snap chat.  Although I’m not sure that’s considered social media.  Either way, the reason I love it is that not only do I get to hear someone’s voice and see their face, but also they can answer when it’s convenient for them.  I usually talk with a few friends and family members everyday via snap chat and I love it!

There are a few friends I had on social media that I miss seeing and chatting with.  I did enjoy sharing recipes, diy  projects or some occasional purchases that I found on sale because I also enjoyed when people shared those things.  I really miss the early stages of blogging, back in the day it was so fun!  I loved how we formed these online friendships through mutual shared interests, we would all comment on each other’s posts and think of fun things to do together online, sharing each other’s posts and DIY projects.   Social media has had some fun benefits but it’s definitely evolved.   At this point, my blog is basically my online journal and I’m ok if no one reads this but me.  I always enjoy looking back at my blog posts regarding the different seasons of my life and what I’ve captured on virtual paper.  Typing is so much faster for me as my mind goes 1000 miles an hour.

Maybe I’ll change my mind later this year but so far, I’m loving my analog year.  Some people might think I’m avoiding life but I’m actually out here living it.   The amount of time I was spending on my phone was ridiculous and for what?  I would more often than not walk away feeling angry, numb or anxious.  I don’t really recall a time of setting down my phone and thinking, man I am so glad I spent all that time scrolling, I feel so happy, energized, and hopeful. 

For me personally, social media has not provided a benefit in my life lately and has honestly been a drain.  If you’re feeling some of these same things, maybe take a break and remove social media off your phone for a few weeks and see how you feel.  It might not be the cure for everyone but usually, everything works better if you turn it off for a bit.

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The post Everything works better if you turn it off for a bit. first appeared on THE BLOOMING HYDRANGEA.

I’ve been reading a lot lately about how 2026 is the Analog year. Were we bring back all the things we stopped doing and replaced with screens, before everything was so digital.

Basic things like reading books and magazines, doing puzzles, staring into space, hosting dinner parties and whatever hobbies we used to spend more time on. Making phone calls instead of texting, using pen and paper instead of the notes app, journaling, baking and maybe playing an instrument.

Before Christmas I was already feeling this pull to get off the screens. One of my daughters did no scroll November and I decided to join in. I failed. So then, I set some time limits for my screen time and it helped but still I would absentmindedly find myself scrolling. Ugh.

And lately, social media hasn’t felt very social. Instead it’s like one giant advertisement for protein, red lights and Amazon hauls. Beyond that, everything feels political and divisive. I miss the days of people posting pictures of their pets, dinners and scores on candy crush. I miss reading blog posts instead of five second video snippets of information on instagram or tik tok.

I want real life. Conversations over coffee or the phone, messy and imperfect. I want to have books in my hand instead of my phone. I want to listen to my husband playing the guitar or the piano. I don’t want to know 500 different peoples thoughts on 400 different subjects. I want deep conversations with a few people who I know and care about that also care about me. I want to spend my time doing things that bring me joy, peace and fulfillment.

Sometimes I wish I could bring my kids back to the 90s so they could see what my life was like as a teenager. We had the best time! Yes, we were bored sometimes but we made our own fun.

I’m tired of screens, tired of perfectly curated feeds, lives, opinions, and noise. And yes, the irony is not lost on me that I am posting my life, words and opinion on a screen.

I wonder what would happen if we all turned off our phones? If we talked to faces instead of screens?

I’m about to find out, at least for myself. No more social media after I post this, I’ve already gone offline and it’s been glorious! I feel so free! We used to escape to social media and now, I’m escaping from social media. I know it can be useful and people say they like to keep it for connection, but honestly, I think it’s a lie. It’s disconnecting us from life. I don’t want to look back one day and think, I wasted my precious time watching other people live.

We only get one life friends! Let’s get off our phones and live!

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The post My Attempt at an Analog Year first appeared on THE BLOOMING HYDRANGEA.

January is a great month, even though it’s winter here in Minnesota.  I love New Years Eve, we celebrate four birthdays in our family and I choose my word for the year.  I love this time of wintering for reflection, rest and even occasional winter activities.  Totally irrelevant but I used to dream of moving south.  But I’ve realized I love the change of seasons, I enjoy snow for a few months and I think I’d hate the heat of the south more than the cold of winter.  Anyways, I digress.

While on a little getaway with my hubby at the end of December, I had an idea of what my word might be.  Usually, I like to sit with it for a bit before committing.  After doing that, I couldn’t quite pull the trigger on it.  I wrote these things down when I was processing this past year and looking ahead to 2026, they have been floating around in my heart and mind for a bit.

More beauty – classic, elegant style but still fun.  It feels like elegance, beauty and a classic style are dying in architecture, clothing and design in general.

Authentic – my home, my style, my clothes, my opinions are mine. Own it.  Do what you love!  Too much time spent worrying about other people and what they are thinking of me, chances are, they aren’t.  Be YOU!

More fun and play!  Be curious, stay playful!  Growing old is optional.  Just because I’m aging doesn’t mean the fun stops!

More encouragement less discouragement, grumbling or complaining with my words.  I am blessed!!!  Let my words bring life to myself, to others and above all, honor God.

Contentment – not always needing to be busy or doing something.  It’s ok to just be.

Originally, I thought my word was Savor.  Which I’ve had on my potential words list for years.  But it felt too slow, I wanted more energy behind my word.  I loved the thought of whimsy, it’s such a fun word and I’m looking for more fun.  After a lot of digging, reading definitions, synonyms and more, I even used the dumb ChatGTP or whatever it’s called.  Now, I don’t love the idea of AI but I finally caved when I was trying to find a word that encompassed my list above.  More about this in a minute.

And even after this, I googled, searched, prayed and fought this dang word.  It’s too close to joy. Is that really my word?  But here it is.  It’s my word for this year.  Call me crazy.

Delight – a high degree of pleasure or enjoyment; to give someone great pleasure or satisfaction.

What I love about this word is that there is a give and take.  Honestly, I hope that when I look back on 2026, it’s me giving more delight than taking.  I hope that when people are with me,they leave feeling that it was pleasant or enjoyable to spend their time with me.

Biblically delight is also about being soft, pliable and to bend towards a person or object (hebrew word hepes)

For 2026, I’d really love to memorize more scripture and do a deeper dive on some books of the Bible.  I absolutely love doing the Bible Recap but sometimes I wish we had more time to get a deeper dive on scripture.  Who knows, maybe some time I’ll do the challenge where you read the entire Bible in a month!  Along with my word for the year I usually pick a scripture to go with it.  Delight is mentioned in the Bible a lot so there are a lot of verses to choose from.  While chatting with my friend the other day she reminded me that my life verse has the word delight in it.

Now back to the Chat thing. I can never remember if it’s ChatGTP or ChatGPT?  Don’t bother answering, my kids do all the time and I ignore it. I don’t want to know it’s real name.   Anyways.  It gave me all kinds of cool stuff, I hate to admit it.  Then I asked about delight from a biblical aspect and here is where it really knocked my socks off or shall I say, where it really delighted me.

It created a weekly scripture with delight focus and then I was able to download it into my notes app.  So that’s probably my first and last time using Chat.  It was helpful but it also creeps me out.   Anyone else?

One thing that I have become more excited about with my word is that it reminds me of Joie de vivre or Joy of Living.  Delighting in life.  Simple pleasures.  Gratitude.  Contentment. Beauty.  Authenticity.   Here’s to a year of Delight.

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The post My word for 2026 first appeared on THE BLOOMING HYDRANGEA.

GARDEN – my 2025 word of the year.  I was trying to choose from a few different words last year and I felt like Garden summed it all up so well.  This year was maybe a little different than I thought it would be.  We definitely spent more time with our kids than I thought we would.  In fact, one of my goals was to have a family dinner once a month.  I would happily say we definitely did above and beyond that, which is awesome!  Another goal was a family vacation, and we successfully did that as well.

One thing not on my plan was finding a job but I was definitely ready to do something with my time.  I had fun working at a boutique for a couple months this year.  I missed being around people and while this job has come to an end, another opportunity has come about and I’m excited.  And of course I’m still doing mimi daycare one to two days a week which brings me so much joy!

Doing weekly bible study with my neighborhood friends was definitely life giving this year.  Hard to believe that we’ve been doing this for almost 6 years!  Something I am so thankful for!

There are some things I’ve been pruning in my life and that’s always a little painful.

All in all, garden as my word for this year was good but I did feel a little less focused on it but this year was also a lot busier than I anticipated.  As I contemplate my 2026 word, I am still glad to have a word for my year, even if it’s not always as front and center in my life as I would like.

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The post Recap of my 2025 Word of the Year first appeared on THE BLOOMING HYDRANGEA.

Well, time got away from me and I missed posting for week 2. The good news is, no one really missed anything because we didn’t really accomplish much last week. There was a debate about flooring for the mudroom and powder room.

In the end, the vinyl peel and stick won out. It’s easy, cheap and honestly, I really love the visual interest it adds in the mudroom.

The mudroom and powder room flooring aren’t really part of the one room challenge so our focus for the next week or so is going to be building the mudroom bench. After we get the bench done then we will continue the flooring.

I’ve pinned some great mudroom inspiration and here are a few saves.

I’m leaning towards a wood top bench and painting everything else but we will see. So stay tuned for that!

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The post ORC week 3 mudroom first appeared on THE BLOOMING HYDRANGEA.

Well, I’ve been itching to do a project for a while now and the snowstorm last week was apparently all I needed to start one.  We have been in our home for almost 5 years now, which is crazy as it doesn’t feel like it’s been that long.  We have a list of project ideas that we could do but I have a hard time pulling the trigger on any of them.  I feel indecisive and also I keep putting them off because  of waiting to do the flooring which really should be done for most of the projects we talk about like built in bookcases, our bedroom closet and the pantry.

Last Wednesday during the snowstorm, I whipped out some paint I had on hand and painted the mudroom closet to match the back hall.  Nothing earth shattering took place but it was enough of a move forward that I now have a plan for the mudroom closet.  Sometimes you just need to start and let the inspiration flow.  My husband would prefer we have a plan, we’ve talked it through 950 times, mapped it out and have everything we need before we start.  It must be so fun being married to me.  I just randomly paint things when the mood strikes and inadvertently start projects.

This project feels easy enough to tackle over the next few weeks, I can say that because I’m not the one doing it.  Ha.  So, we’re signing up for the One Room Challenge Spring 2025!   It’s been a while since we hopped in on one, in fact it was in our last house so definitely before 2020.

Our plan is to remove the ugly wire shelving, add bench seating with shoe storage underneath, a shelf above, some hooks and some vertical shiplap to match the back hall.  We will also be replacing the boob light and flooring.  My only thing I am still debating is painting the doors.

I mean doesn’t this feel so cozy?  Ugh.  We’ve got too much crap in here and honestly walking in here gives me anxiety.  I’ve been busy pinning some inspo, here’s a few faves but you can find more here.

Definitely going to continue with the Evergreen Fog that we used in the back hall

So stay tuned, here’s hopping on the project train again and bringing some functionality to our space!

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The post Spring ORC – Let’s Do It! first appeared on THE BLOOMING HYDRANGEA.

It’s time to look back over 2024 and see what we actually accomplished that was on our list for our project goals from the past year.

The front entry walls. Whomp whomp. Did not do. I have commitment issues.

Paint the headboard in the laundry room. This I did do! I can’t photograph this room but trust me it’s painted and you can tell in person.

Paint the mud room and closet. Yes partially. I did paint the back entry but not the closet.

Redoing the pantry shelving. Fail. Adding to our 2025 list.

New flooring on the main floor and our bedroom. Big fail thanks to my dog and six tampons.

We did build a table. And by me I mean my husband built it. But I did choose the boards, order the legs and seal it. So I played a small part in building the table. That was not on the list.

Also painting the fireplace was not on the list. Some days I still think about painting it white again.

Also on our list was our bedroom. Part of that was flooring which we didn’t do. I did paint over the blue color though and I’m so glad I did.

Finally our biggest project of 2024 was completing the patio and backyard landscaping .

Well, we accomplished more than I thought this past year. Honestly, all of these things are icing on the cake. None of these projects have to be done. But it is nice to make our house our own, through paint and projects we add what we think will serve us better in our home. Now to dream of the 2025 house goals list!

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The post 2024 House Goals Review first appeared on THE BLOOMING HYDRANGEA.

Well friends, if you remember, I posted last week about my word for 2025.  It was good but I just wasn’t 100% sure it was my word.  I was trying to force it, but it never felt settled, I never felt excited about it, and I kept thinking that there was another word, but I couldn’t figure it out.  I had a list of words on my phone and many of them were connected but nothing was jumping out at me.

Abide, Nourish, Becoming, Rooted, Fruitful, Found, Enrich, Expand, Seek, Sow, Grow, Faithful, Cultivate, Authentic.  I also kept coming across John 15 – Jesus is the true vine.

Last week while reading my bible I did some journaling and listed two areas that I was looking to grow in this year.  One of the questions I asked was what is my purpose for 2025?  Since moving in 2020, life feels like it has been one transition after another.  If you’ve been around the blog long, you know that I’ve had a hard time loving this home we are in, and I often miss our old home. When we first moved in, we told our neighbors we will be here for 2-7 years.  So even when we moved in, I was hoping we wouldn’t be here long. In May of 2022, I blogged about roots and hanging photos in our home yet in August of 2022 I wrote a blog post about looking at real estate and wanting to move but we decided we needed to stay in our current home.  All over these blog posts I see reminders of planting, roots, abiding, joy, embracing and all these words that the Lord has planted in my heart the past few years.  Tears are flowing as I am so thankful for the faithfulness of God.  That he used this blog as a place for me to journal this journey the past few years.  The struggle I have with putting down those roots.  In his kindness, he keeps showing me that the planting, growing and gardening is where joy is found.  To embrace where He has our family for this season and that sometimes you just need to get  your hands dirty and see what grows.

All this to say, my word for 2025 is

It perfectly encapsulates all the words I had written down for this year.  Definitely one of my more unconventional words I’ve had but I absolutely love it!   One night while I was having a therapy/cry session with my husband, he spoke all these beautiful words to me but the one line I remember the most was that I was a flower planted in a garden.  My purpose for 2025 is the same as the past few years, to keep abiding right where I am, right where God planted me for this season and be fruitful.

I wrote this last week in my original blog post for my word and it still applies.

It feels like I have spent the past few years figuring out my health and how to parent adult kids.  Then I became a mother-in-law, and a Mimi in a short amount of time. There has been a definite shift in who I was 5 years ago to now.  Some of that is natural growth and some of it is mid-life.  My kids are mostly grown up and it won’t be too long before the last baby leaves the nest.  I am coming out of my life revolves around my kids and their schedules phase and into the I don’t know what to call it stage.  No, I am not having a mid-life crisis.  But I am experiencing what is a completely normal phase of life, shifting the focus more and more towards the new season approaching.  In ways, I view this time as the preparation before you plant your garden.  You know spring is coming so you are preparing the soil, making sure you have fertilizer and the right tools so your garden can be a success.  I feel like I’ve been gardening for a while now, I’ve had some awesome crops and some things that didn’t grow like I expected. Along the way, I’ve done things to help my garden grow but my soil is feeling a little drained of nutrients.  It’s time to find more things that I enjoy doing and being creative again.  My husband and I are looking forward to what life will be like not revolving around a school or sports schedule.  A definite focus for us is finding more community and things to do together this year as we find ourselves with more time on our hands.  We have two years before our last baby graduate’s high school.  I am definitely embracing these last two years while still looking ahead at the next season.

And honestly, I just probably need to go back and re-read my blog posts.  I originally wrote this in May 2020 and reflected on it in April 2022.

May 2020 -So, while we grieve all the wonderful memories, our neighborhood and even our home, I know that God has good things planned for us in our new city, neighborhood and home.

We trust you to provide again, that you have gone before us and our new home and community may be different, but it will still be good.

April 2022 – Today I sit here and reflect on just how true those words have been for us since I first wrote that post almost two years ago. God has good things for us here too. Leaving our home and neighborhood that we loved didn’t mean we were leaving God’s goodness and purposes for us behind and wandering into some unknown. It also didn’t mean we were moving to lesser things either. God has plans and purposes for us, always, no matter where we are. In fact, He prepared those for us before we even knew we were moving. Sometimes being uprooted and replanted is confusing and maybe even painful. But God wastes nothing. Now we enter a new season, with plans and purposes ready and waiting for us.

Today I reflect on my own words again, five years later.  God is in this season with plans and purposes ready for us.  Always.

So here’s to another year in the garden.  Planting, watering, weeding, nourishing, enriching, cultivating, harvesting and enjoying the fruits of our labor and whatever grows this year.  We might have a failure or two but I’m excited to see what the Gardener does with my (word for 2025) garden.

John 15 “I am the true vine, and my Father is the gardener. ² Every branch in me that does not produce fruit he removes, and he prunes every branch that produces fruit so that it will produce more fruit. ³ You are already clean because of the word I have spoken to you. ⁴ Remain in me, and I in you. Just as a branch is unable to produce fruit by itself unless it remains on the vine, neither can you unless you remain in me. ⁵ I am the vine; you are the branches. The one who remains in me and I in him produces much fruit, because you can do nothing without me. ⁶ If anyone does not remain in me, he is thrown aside like a branch and he withers. They gather them, throw them into the fire, and they are burned. ⁷ If you remain in me and my words remain in you, ask whatever you want and it will be done for you. ⁸ My Father is glorified by this: that you produce much fruit and prove to be^[a] my disciples.⁹ “As the Father has loved me, I have also loved you. Remain in my love. ¹⁰ If you keep my commands you will remain in my love, just as I have kept my Father’s commands and remain in his love.¹¹ “I have told you these things so that my joy may be in you and your joy may be complete.

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The post 2025 Word of the year (take two) first appeared on THE BLOOMING HYDRANGEA.

Well it’s officially 2025 and I am still figuring out my word for the year.  But it’s hard to look forward until you’ve looked back so let’s finish out 2024.  My word for the year was Embrace.  It was another big year for our family as we all entered a new stage of life.  My children became aunts and an uncle, we became grandparents, our parents became great grandparents and our daughter and son in law became parents.  Obviously, it’s the best thing ever becoming a grandparent! I know people tell you that but until you experience it yourself, there’s just no explaining it.  Besides being a mimi, I also get to do mimi daycare a few days a week.  I love it!  We have a great time and the best part is, she’s as extroverted as I am.  We are gonna have some great adventures this next year and I can’t wait!   Embracing this new role really was the biggest highlight of 2024!  Thank you Lord for the blessing of grandchildren.

Something that I didn’t share much on my blog but needed to happen was embracing change with my mental and physical health.  Maybe it was stress, maybe some hormone issues, my thyroid, getting older, a combo of all of it?  But somehow, I gained quite a bit of weight the past two years despite eating relatively healthy and walking with some strength training mixed in.  I started 2024 weighing the most I have ever weighed even with four pregnancies.  Now I know, weight is just a number on the scale but it was much more than that.  I went to the doctor in January because I did not feel good.  I was tired, I was probably a little depressed, I didn’t feel like myself, I wasn’t sleeping great, I had a host of different issues.  We tried some supplements and it did help a bit, magnesium being the biggest game changer.  By May I was over it and so I told my hubby we were going to do Whole 30 to see if it would change some of our habits and maybe help me figure out if I needed to cut out some foods.  June 1st was game on and by the end of the month, I knew it was exactly what I needed.  I embraced some changes in my diet, including limiting and trying to avoid dairy as much as possible. I still don’t eat much in the way of grains, even gluten free grains, rice and oatmeal.  My body just doesn’t love it.  But I do know my body LOVES salad and steak.  My lunch most days is a salad and it makes me happy.  The changes in my mental and physical health over the past 6 months have been so refreshing.  I feel SO much better!  Honestly, I didn’t realize how crappy I felt until I realized how good I feel now.  I’ve embraced a more whole foods diet and I’m so thankful!

Something I really wanted to do living in Minnesota was embrace winter.  Well, jokes on me, we had the mildest winter ever this year.  I think it snowed less than 10 inches total all winter, it was actually pretty pleasant as far as the temperatures and I walked almost everyday.  A few times I even sat outside and enjoyed the warm winter weather.  Somedays I had to put on another layer but I barely wore my winter jacket.  If you geek out over weather, you may like reading about what the DNR called The Lost Winter of 2024.  So far, this winter isn’t quite as lovely although we’ve not had a ton of snow so far.  I have still been trying to get outside to walk and  I find the fresh air to be refreshing.  Again, embracing winter was pretty easy, especially when you have friends and puppies to walk with.

While I was working on embracing the truth of who I am in Christ and who He is, I completed the New Testament Bible Recap Plan and did Practicing the Way study by Jon Mark Comer with some friends.  Such a great book and study, I highly recommend it.  Our faith journeys will always be a work in progress so I will continue to embrace the process.  Somedays and maybe some years are much harder than others but God’s faithful even when.

I definitely think this year of embracing was quite lovely all in all.  There were a few things I had on my list that I didn’t share here that I am going to carry into 2025.  I won’t be leaving embrace behind but it will be more of a partner with my next word.  I find that I still remind myself of past words from time to time, the lessons I learned or maybe things I’m still learning.  Having a word for my year has been one of my favorite things I have done for myself.  Even better, blogging and journaling about my word has been so rewarding as I read back on posts and am reminded of different things along this journey.  Honestly, I am so thankful God gives me these words to focus on each year.

Honestly, I also look forward to the process of choosing my word every year, along with reflecting on the past year and thinking ahead to the new year.   So here we go, my next blog post will be about year 11 of choosing my word and I can’t wait to see what God tells me it is!

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The post 2024 Word in Review first appeared on THE BLOOMING HYDRANGEA.