2011!!!

OK, so I know we're several weeks into the "new" year already, but this is my first chance to do some reflecting. I don't know how many countless blogs I've written in my mind over the past few weeks, but alas, none of them have ever made here to blog-world and thus have disappeared into oblivion. But not so this one! Aha!

2010...Wow! The turn of the decade turned out to bring about many turnabouts to my life. What could have been a lousy year (thanks to being laid off, enduring unexplained infertility, and sprouting many more grey hairs...among other things) I think ended as one of the best years of my life so far, namely because of the high-maintenance bundle of joy named Jadon who entered our lonely existence. What a kid! Every night as I cradle him to sleep in my arms, I am nearly overwhelmed with all-consuming love for this little guy. A baby truly is a miraculous thing. So I ended last year fatter, more disorganized, less in-shape, more exhausted, and less on top of things than I've ever been before, but I wouldn't trade that for anything.

And now it's a new year! Time for new perspectives and fresh starts on all the resolutions I always seem to have. So here's what I'm thinking:

GOALS:
1. Physical: I want to be 10 pounds lighter by my birthday in May, and make sure that same 10 pounds are off by the end of the year, too. To do this, I also plan to get back into my healthier eating habits, i.e. midweek desserts replaced by salads, less snacking, less pre-packaged meals. I also want to maintain a very do-able 3 x's per week exercise plan.

2. Spiritual: Jim challenged me to take this "Radical Challenge" with him, based on the writing and preaching of pastor David Platt from Brook Hills Church in Birmingham, Alabama. It consists of 4 parts:
*Read through the Bible in a year (Jim does this every 3 years anyway, but I've never done it--in a year--because it always felt so tedious. But having a kid definitely changes quiet times and I realized having this checklist to read everyday makes it much more likely that I'll actually spend more than just 5 minutes with God before starting my never-ending to-do list of household duties and projects. After searching for a plan to follow, I came up with my own--read 5 chapters (more or less) a day, straight through from Genesis through Revelation. I'm a little behind, but so far, so good!
*Pray for the world. Jim got me Operation World for Christmas, which is an excellent resource. We're trying to pray it together at night (but it hasn't become a habit yet, so I need to get on that!).
*Give sacrificially to something. We're working on that on a few fronts.
*Spend a week in a cross-cultural experience. I might tap into last year's Haiti trip for that because I'm not a big fan of spending thousands of dollars for yearly big trips. However, our youth group will spend spring break doing VBS and evangelism on nearby Camp Pendleton, and I'll be part of that.

3. Personal: *Figure out a flexible routine that will enhance Jadon's growth and my sanity (currently, every day subjects Jadon to a new schedule thanks to ministry and all the people and agencies interested in Jadon as a foster child. We definitely have to work on this!)
*Blog at least once a week (My sister who lives in Israel scolded my on my irregularity...Sorry Sawah!)
*Clean out my garage.
*Sort through my teaching boxes and either discard my paper files or turn important ones into digital.
*Try new recipes and organize all the ones I've cut out over the years.
*Complete Jadon's 1st year album (I think I'm going to try digital scrapbooking)
*Be more careful of my negative words to my husband (this one isn't so tangible...I have to figure it out more...)

I'm sure these are more than enough to keep me more than busy, but in addition, I do have a few HOPES for 2011, that beyond doing what I can will require God's intervention:

HOPES:
1. Jadon will sleep through the night (soon!)...This kid is definitely not a sleeper. We're talking maybe 10 hrs. total at night if I'm lucky (interrupted by at least 2 wakings), and 20- 30 minute naps on average. He wakes up happy as a clam, but I, on the other hand, am pooped!
2. We will film movie #2 this summer...We're like 10 drafts into the script and moving forward full steam, but finances are still a major issue. And I have to admit, if God wants us to wait, I am certainly not opposed to having a "selfish" summer. But I HOPE that God will be clear as to His intentions for this project, because other than feeling like He wants us to do it, we are not clear on the when for now.
3. Pending on the results of #2, our non-profit that we started last year will bring in sufficient funds to [start to] change the future of orphans in at least one impoverished area, probably Africa but perhaps Haiti.
4. My to-do list of projects will be significantly accomplished.
5. My parents will find their dream property down here and buy it. :o)
6. My small group of girls will grow radically in their spiritual development.

I can't wait to read this again 12 months from now and see how 2011 went!

(Any of you have similar goals...or different ones?)

New Year's Resolution

Not only is it a new year, but it's also a new decade. Time to try something new: create a blog.
So here I am.
I have no clue what I'm doing.
But here goes.

"What a ride."
Eight years ago, Jim dropped to one knee at a fountain just after we got off the Ghostrider wooden rollercoaster at Knotts' Berry Farm, and said: "In five years, I can't promise you that we'll be rich, or famous, or even that I'll have a full head of hair. But I can promise you that at the end of each day, as we pour our lives into teenagers, we'll be able to look at each other and say, 'What a ride!'"
Boy did he deliver on that one!

God has taken us on a wild and crazy adventure that seems to be only just beginning, and we are constantly repeating that phrase to each other (usually as our heads are dropping onto our pillows before succumbing to sleep!)

This morning, I spent my quiet time reflecting on everything God has done for us this past year/decade. While I have had my share of disappointments, God has been faithful to redeem just about all of them for the better, and the ones that he hasn't yet, I feel excited to see how he will. Then this afternoon, Jim and I spent a long time praying over this next year. It was so cool.

So, here are the twists and turns we're looking forward to breathlessly careening around in 2010:

1. "To Save a Life" movie comes out in 21 days!!!!
Of course, we still need a butt-load of moolah to get it in all the cities that want it, so it's going to be fun to see how God figures out that one! And then it's going to be fun to see how many lives are changed through the message of the film. And I'm sure there are going to be plenty of new adventures related to all this!

2. More writing!
Depending on how well the film does, Jim and I have already started working on a sequel to the novel, as well as another world-changing, teen-empowering movie script. Ha! Who would have ever thunk it?!

3. Kids!!!
We continue our journey down the not-so-fun infertility track, but are meanwhile on the concurrent adoption track and are so thrilled. We had our foster licensing home visit on Wednesday (more on babyproofing later!) and that inspired us to paint the spare bedroom today (pictures later...)...Yea!!! We can't wait to be parents!

4. ???
Inevitably, God is going to throw a few completely unexpected thrills in--just for fun. Can't wait!

So, anyone else out there have some things they're looking forward to God doing in 2010?