Take a Hike!

I haven't written in a while. I'm a slacker. Hasn't the weather been amazing lately? My hubby took Friday off & we've had a wonderful long weekend. Took some hikes, played tennis, ate a lot of ice cream & junky food. I got sunburned pretty badly :( and my forearms a bit sore from playing tennis (badly) 2 days in a row & drumming, but the rest of me feels great! It's so nice to be able to do active stuff & not be totally sore & pooped from being so out of shape. Not that I'm in top form, but I'm a lot better than I was last summer, that's for sure! Hopefully, all the activity will at least balance out the fatty foods I ate. Not doing so hot on the eating side. I am SO excited that my girls both actually enjoyed the hikes we took. I LOVE to hike...love to be out in nature & to see different areas, but it's always been a bit of drudgery with the kids because they would complain, but they actually enjoyed them this time :) My hubby & I are already looking into where to find the next trail. What a cheap/free/healthy/adventurous way to spend a day. I also really want to get into Letter Boxing or Geo caching this year. It looks like so much fun, the whole family can get exercise & quite a few have some cool history tidbits as well. God bless you all. Enjoy this world that God created. Praise Jesus, Dianna

All intertwined

Well, I lost back the 3 pounds I gained. Woohoo!! I am going to have a great day today. I have had a tough week & have been on a non-sleeping jag. My wonderful hubby kicked me out of the house yesterday & told me "don't be a teacher or a mommy or a wife or a leader today, just be Dianna". Isn't he swell? I took almost the whole day & feel very refreshed today. I actually got a few practical things done, but it was my choice & not because I had to. I took a nice walk at Quabbin, which I haven't been to in years. Nice place to walk...water is always soothing to me. I need to let go of the idea that taking time for myself is selfish. It's really kind of essential for my sanity & the atmosphere in this house. I like to joke that if momma ain't happy, ain't nobody happy, but it's really kind of true. Even Jesus took time away from the crowds to refresh. We know He's not selfish. Taking regular times to refresh is so important for me, especially, because I have always needed lots & lots of alone time. If I don't make it a priority, it just doesn't happen naturally. I'm with my kids all the time & I'm with people all the time. I love people, but being with a group, unless I am really comfortable with them (which takes me a long time) exhausts me. I enjoy it, but it wipes me out. Anyway, since I am now on the kick of every thing's intertwined in my life, I need to recognize that if I take the time to refresh every week, it will help everything else. It's so weird, though...all this "wisdom" I am discovering is so counter to what comes naturally. It's like I am having to unlearn just about everything. Have a good day, God bless, Dianna

Gaining is Losing :(

Well, For the first time since I started this journey, I've gained weight. It was only a matter of time because I have been on the wagon/off the wagon for a while now. I gained 3 pounds back. Not the end of the world, but the buck stops here!!! I refuse to go back to anywhere close to where I was. I will lose it back & then some.

Romans 7:21-25 : "So I find this law at work: When I want to do good, evil is right there with me. For in my inner being I delight in God's law; but I see another law at work in the members of my body, waging war against the law of my mind and making me a prisoner of the law of sin at work within my members. What a wretched man I am! Who will rescue me from this body of death? Thanks be to God—through Jesus Christ our Lord! So then, I myself in my mind am a slave to God's law, but in the sinful nature a slave to the law of sin."

This internal struggle is not unique to me. My spirit wants to be obedient, but my flesh wants to do whatever feels good/ tastes good at that moment. Those verses seem entirely hopeless until you read "Thanks be to God-through Jesus Christ our Lord!" I can't win this battle alone & if I'm failing, that only means I haven't been seeking enough help from the only one who can give me victory/ With Him, all things are possible. Without Him...forget about it!!

God bless & have a wonderful day, Dianna