Time is fleeting....

Time is fleeting….

The saying is so true “there just isn’t ever enough time in the day….” We are all given a 24 hour period each and every day; it’s what we do in those 24 hours that helps us see what is most important to us. Do we neglect our time with God for sleep….unfortunately, yes I do. Do we neglect time with God or our families to sit down and watch pointless TV….again, yes unfortunately we do. Do we neglect our housework and chores to sit around and relax; yes I can say that one too. There just doesn’t seem to be enough hours in the day to get it all done. I wake up and an hour later am heading out the door with both kids, dressed and ready for the day. I spend 9 hours at work (includes my one hour lunch period) and then drive to get the kids and to our house we go. Then comes the time to cook/prepare dinner for the family, get us all down and fed, bath time, play time and whew….it’s time for bed already!

A typical day in the life of the Edens family is enough to wear anyone out, there is no doubt about that but this is just one more area of our lives that we are hoping to find balance in. I need to work out, read my Bible, take time in prayer and still give my home, my children, my husband and my job my attention and time where it’s needed. I need to find “BALANCE” – that puts it best. I have neglected this blog which was intended to help keep me accountable to spend time in the word, which isn’t a bad thing, but it also doesn’t help me stick to my goal of being accountable if I’m not here. So here are just a few updates:

My goal of reading the Bible through in a year: On target! I am now 370 chapters into my Bible!! This is definitely the farthest I’ve ever gone and I’m very excited that I’m on track for the year. Keeping in mind my year started December 1, not January 1. This includes 23 full books and I’m currently reading in Matthew. I last read Ezra and it was quite difficult to digest and get through so I decided it was time for a pick-me-up New Testament book.

My weight loss goal: suffering tremendously. The diet has long gone out the window, mainly due to not having the finances on a weekly basis to buy the foods I need: fresh fruits and vegetables, etc. And while I haven’t weighed myself in weeks I’m sure that every pound I lost, I have since gained back L I have been trying to exercise once a week at church with my mom and one time a week at home. Hopefully the nicer weather will motivate me to keep moving and keep busy.

Our financial goal: is maybe slightly improving….if I had to give it a score right now anyway. We are actually, for the first time this year, on point to have all of our monthly debt paid in the month it’s due. This is due in large part to our tax return and having the ability to pay some bills for two months (February and March). Let’s hope it’s just the push we need to get back on track. We have two of our four student loan payments on deferment; however, one will come back on the books in May. Yikes!

Potty Training the kids: is a work in progress. We took a few weeks off of trying to train Ethan for the mere fact that it was being more of a hassle and fight to get him to go then it’s worth, kind of counterproductive to what you are trying to do when they are crying and screaming and afraid of going to the bathroom. However, we are back on point and seem to be doing well as long as we stick to the limited drinks and frequent trips to the bathroom. Abby is still doing well on her own, just going when asked or when she takes us in. We are hopeful that with the steps she’s already taking in this journey that we will indeed be completely diaper free (ok maybe not night time) by the end of 2011!

Blessings All Around

Spring is coming, I can feel it in the air, I can hear it with the birds singing in the morning and I can see it with the bright sun shining. Thank you Lord for changes. This being our year of change, Spring is just what I need to be renewed and rejuvenated.

We've been blessed this week already and it's only Tuesday. Sunday night I broke out part of a filling in my tooth and was in some pain because of it. My dentist was able to get me in right away and two hours and a new filling later I was praising God for holding me strong. And not just that but my insurance along should cover half the cost. Half is good in my book. That doesn't include Josh's dental insurance, so praying for His mercies there.

On another note I have to brag on my sweet boy a minute. Ethan started speech therapy on December 20th. We knew we had to act fast with the First Steps program because he only qualifies for services until he turns 3. Well with today being March 1 we are 16 days away from the big 3 (as I sniff). Anyway, since then he's met with his speech therapist (Monica) once a week for an hour. After First Steps is no longer an option it goes to the school system. Ethan and I have spent the past two Monday mornings at Clinton Prairie for his extensive speech evaluation. This is a much bigger test then what First Steps does. At first I was nervous but he really surprised me, even the first day. Fast forward to the phone call today and here are his results. Keeping in mind the average range for his age group is 85-100. Ethan's scores are: vocabulary = 105 (she said he has terrific language), auditory = 98, expressive = 102.......total score 100! So proud of my boy. Thank you God for working through Monica and through his teachers and through us to see him succeed.

And lastly....at least for this post....we accomplished our week long fast from TV and the recreational use of the Internet last week. What a blessing that was. Josh was able to memorize Hebrews 4:12 and recite it to become a member of Lighthouse Baptist Church's Sword Club. So proud of him! I decided we both needed to be challenging each other spiritually from time to time so that was my challenge to him. I knew he could do it. My challenge from Josh was to finish the book of Psalms and start something new. Check, done - I did it! I finished Psalms by Friday night and started Job on the way to church on Saturday morning. I just love where God is taking us.