Patience

Okay, so I know that January is almost half way over, but it's finally time to document my New Year's Resolution. I've been thinking about this for awhile and then last night looked at a friend's blog and it totally changed the way I decided to approach my resolution.

Typically I don't really make resolutions. Let's face it, who really makes them and then works on them. I mean, every one of of us has a resolution to get in shape or become more organized, but who really makes an effort after January?! (Those of you who do need not respond!) I definitely am trying to get back in shape (last year really took it out of me) and I have been working on that since Nov (without much progress it seems, but we'll save that for another time). And of course organization would be great (but I'm hoping that we can improve some of that when we move, yes we are thinking about putting our house on the market soon). But, what would make the most significant impact on my life and the lives of the ones I love most?

So, my friend posed a challenge (she had seen this on another website, I don't remember the source, but you can link to her blog for an excerpt) . . . to come up with a one word resolution. Upon reading this, I immediately knew what mine was. It came to me instantly and without question, so my response to this challenge is:

PATIENCE

Patience with myself when I feel like I'm not keeping up (whether it be with the house, getting to the gym, spending time with my kids, spending time with Clint, etc)

Patience with those around me: my kids, my husband, people I deal with on the phone when trying to work through questions about insurance, bills, accounts, etc (afterall, it's not their fault that my life is a little busy right now)

Patience with my growth as a Christian and my relationship with the Lord, because sometimes it is easier to work on this growth than others.

Patience with my body: it is still trying to recover from performing a tremendous task this last year and sometimes I get frustrated that I am still weak and not "back to normal"

Patience with life in general. To remind myself to take it slow, don't wish away any moment no matter how difficult or frustrating because you can't get it back ever!!

I look forward to the next year and I hope that a year from now I can report that I learned improved patience. I think given the beautiful chaos that is now our lives around here, patience is a top priority. Somedays it will be the only thing that allows us to make it to the next day. Without patience I think a person could go crazy with 5 kiddos (no matter their age spread). So pray for me to to improve my overall patience with life.

So, now I will pose the same challenge that Brandie did. What is your one word? Leave a comment and let me know. I think sometimes saying it out loud (or typing it I guess in this instance) helps you achieve it!