A Wrap Up Post on my One Word DWELL... aka How It Bossed Me Around (PLUS A GIVEAWAY!)

Ahh - it's almost the New Year! 

There is something about a brand new calendar and a clean slate... a fresh start and blank page that just stirs up all the feels for me!  Also - who doesn't love a calendar or day planner to fill up with possibilities and dreams for what's to come? (Stay Tuned for more on that below...)

I joined this movement way back in 2012.  I've played along with the growing community ever since!

We pray and wait... lean in and listen, and we pick one little word... --actually, we allow one little word come and pick us! It seems to be more long-lasting than the resolutions I used to make and forget about in less than a week or two. 

This year, my OneWord365 was "Dwell" and in the beginning it felt Oh So Romantic and Swoon-worthy! I couldn't WAIT to invite Dwell into my life for 2017!

I wrote a bit about Dwell here and here and here and here and here--but really, a lot of what Dwell did was boss me around... from creating space for me to slow and rest and dwell with Him, to coarse correcting when I began to dwell NOT on Him --but other distractions that were stealing my peace and my joy, to causing me to Dwell when all I wanted (or thought I wanted) to do was cut and run!

In reflecting over 2017, I realized that Dwell was super bossy in both the good ways and the not so great ways, too. 

Ermagherd... Berks!!! An annual post about the Books I Read in 2017

Hey Sweet Readers! 

Here we are near the end of 2017 and even though this year was hard and threw some serious curve balls and knocked me off my reading game, you know how I love me some books... (or 'berks!' as in, "Ermagherd! Berks!")

So this is the post where I take time to reflect back over the year and revisit some of my favorite reads! 

Here is a random list of books I read and loved this year! I feel like I slowed down a bit in all the reading this year... growing a (church) family took priority over both blogging and reading a bit more again this year, and then there was all the days and weeks in hospitals and with family and friends both in recovering and in grieving.

Still... 2017 offered up a FEAST in words...
Here are a handful that stayed with me!

***

Different... A Five Minute Friday Post

I didn't really INTEND to take a little holiday hiatus but it seems as if that is what is happening! Life has been full (read:busy!) lately and I've been fighting to (re)find some margins! This truth, plus the fact that it's Christmas time and things have been a bit heavy and hard all year long, and the fact that I am an internal processor, and the fact that I am just plain old tired, y'all... well - all of that adds up to not much blogging as of late!  I have intentions in writing book review posts and end of the year fun and other things, too --but let's just keep this real! I'll pop in when I can for the remainder of the year and will find a normal routine in writing hopefully come January yet again!

Until then, I'll just play along with this -our final Five Minute Friday link up of the year! The One Word Prompt today is DIFFERENT. (This is a Five Minute Friday post, which simply means I set a timer and free write for five minutes flat, add a few photos, and hit Publish!)

{GO}

Hmph... I was talking complaining to God about this just yesterday!  

About how this Christmas season feels different.  
I know we have experienced lows (goodbye Dave!) and highs (hello Lil Miss!) this year and yet the holidays came quickly and I didn't feel ready for them... I wasn't in the mood, yet! 
(Anybody?  Anybody?  Bueller?)

I kept thinking the Christmas Spirit would come... 
but even by mid-December, I was still waiting for it to arrive.

Christmas this year feels different... void... 
Traditions are still shifting and changing 
and we are making necessary adjustments 
but it feels not the same... 
somehow not as good. 

At least that is what the enemy whispers loud to me
in the corners of my spinning mind...

I've been preparing Him room in my heart, 
but it's my MIND that is overworked and overcrowded
and lately it seems I just can't get it to take a break, already!