Hello friends! Please forgive my neglect of this little home on the giant web. 2025 has ridden off into the sunset and 2026 has come roaring into the picture. I’ve been a little timid in meeting this new year, 2025 wasn’t exactly nice to me. It was actually a bully – pushing and pulling me this way and that. I didn’t like it. I allowed situations to rule my life and my needs and passions were set aside. I have tried to step softly into 2026, but January has got me chasing my tail and getting nowhere fast! Let’s take a look at this first month of the year.
First, the weather! Oh my! She has been spicy! Storm after storm has hit the Upper Peninsula of Michigan. And of course, it always comes during the weekend. Ice and snow has been my nemesis this year after breaking my leg in October. I’m healing steadily, but the cold is hard on my knitting bone. And boy are we having a cold snap. It seems like the whole region has shut down because of it. I’m hoping that winter will soon wear itself out and maybe we will be blessed with an early spring. A girl can hope.
Ok, let’s not dwell on the negative too much. January has given me some quality time with my granddaughters. We got to keep them for the weekend as mom and dad went downstate to visit siblings. We spent the weekend eating food that was fit for kids. We had waffles, spaghetti and even made our own pizza. Crafts and movies were indulged in, even if grandpa chose some questionable movies. Each of the girls got a big empty box and were invited to totally enjoy them.
I have spent a couple of hours with my counselor looking at past traumas and how they affect the life that I am living today. It is exhausting and scary work but so worth it. I am learning that truth is something that is real and that it comes from God. I am learning that the voices I hear in my head, don’t always tell the truth and I can change those voices to reflect what the Savior says about me.
I set a few loose goals for myself this month. I’m taking it easy with the goals this year and walking with tiny little baby steps into the new year. To go along with my counseling sessions I have been trying to journal, to get to know myself, to learn who I am and who God wants me to be. This is slow going. My thoughts seem very shallow, lacking in depth and insight. I often skip this step of my daily routine. I need to find a way to dig in and really start some hard work. I balk at this, not wanting to do the hard work and to face the sloppy emotions. It is much easier to hide in social media and Youtube videos. However, if I really want to grow and become more Christlike in 2026, I’m going to need to get messy… I’ll keep you posted on this.
Next, I wanted to get back to my daily quiet time. I had slacked in this area through the end of 2025. After breaking my leg, my routine was disrupted. I wanted to get it back. My new routine is a bit ambitious, but so far so good. I joined a challenge of reading one chapter of Proverbs each day in January and am so far on track. I was able to finish this. It was a great read through the Proverbs. I’m going to read through them again in March with an emphasis on the financial wisdom written there. I am reading the Bible in a year using the plan that I found in the back of my new She Reads Truth Bible. It’s approximately 4 chapters a day. I’m finishing up reading the book, “The Wellness Revelation” by Alisa Keeton. It is challenging me to see myself as Jesus sees me and to trust in His love. I also have a couple of kids devotional readers that I am working through. I see God speaking to me through these various resources and while I often feel this is very shallow, it is working for me right now and I will continue on until God shows me something different.
My next goal is my fitness. I am trying to walk on my days off on the treadmill. It is slow going as my ankle/leg is sore and swollen. I started out slowly, increasing 5 minutes at a time. I have been able to be consistent with this task and it feels good to be able to follow through on something.
Well, since this is already almost a month late, I will wrap it up here. Let me know what you have been working on! I would love to hear where you are in your journey.
Adventures in Abundance 
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