November review

Wow, totally missed all of October.


1. Run 15 miles in one running session at least once.
I don't believe that this is going to happen at all. I'm injured and have not run for over 6 weeks. Its killing me and I hate it (my lower back is killing me since I've stopped running). I think I have tendinitis in my ankle and I think the only solution is rest. So I took a full week completely off - no working out at all. Then I spent the rest of September and all of October walking in the morning and sometimes also in the evening. Due to time, I was unable to log the same number of miles that I did with running, which is why I was trying to do it twice each day. It was fine. I enjoyed it, however, I just didn't feel like I was actually working out.

Last week Dave signed me up for Cardinal Fitness. He's been going for a few months and he decided that it would be a good thing for me to be able to do the eliptical and add some real weight machines in to my routine. I actually really, really enjoy it.

However, since starting the eliptical my ankle has begun to hurt more than it had been (it wasn't completely healed, but was hurting less). I think it is because the eliptical, while easier on the joints, is still a weight-bearing workout. I'm coming to the realization that I will probably need to do the bike until the end of the year, which doesn't excite me - I HATE the bike! BUT, I'm really happy to be sweating again.

I guess it is possible that I could start running again after the holidaysand could work up to 15 miles by April 1st (although I would definitely need to get new running shoes, since I think my newest pair - purchased in August - are what caused the tendinitis... I am an over-supinator (ankles roll out), which is more rare than over-pronatation (ankles roll in). I bought shoes off of the shelf rather than figuring out what kind I really should have. I had not been injured until after wearing these new shoes for a month - I suspect that my new shoes are made for over-pronators, which means that my ankle is turning out more than it naturally does and caused the tendinitis).

2. Write one handwritten note each month.
Not sure I wrote any last month.

3. Spend the afternoon school time reading a non-fiction book.
My current non-fiction book is God Is Closer Than You Think, by John Ortberg. I have not been able to consistently read it, but I really like it when I'm reading. One thing that I read last week that was very helpful to me is that he believes there are 7 spiritual paths and each person has a primary one in addition to having multiple secondary paths... meaning that each person meets God primarily through one of these paths. My primary path is definitely Contemplation and one of the most important things for a Contemplative is to have PROTECTED, quiet time to read and learn about and meet God. This is so true for me.

4. Start the whole flylady thing.I'm going to restart next week.
I haven't done anything with flylady this month, however, I do have a one-a-day laundry schedule that is enormously helpful to me.
Monday: girls clothes.
Tuesday: Mine and Dave's darks.
Wednesday: Whites
Thursday: Towels and iron
Friday: Girls sheets
Saturday OR Sunday: Mine and Dave's sheets

I also wash everyone's pillowcases almost everyday in an effort to keep us healthy this season.

This schedule has been hugely helpful in keeping laundry manageable.

As for the rest of flylady... I haven't looked at it. Mostly because I've been overwhelmed with home improvement stuff.

5. Repaint the foyer, front room/dining room, kitchen and family room.
Foyer - done. Kitchen - all painting is finally done! I put the last of the cabinet doors on last weekend and they all have knobs. I am going to ask for new smaller knobs for Christmas, but they all have knobs and look awesome! I'm waiting for Anita to help me accesorize, but I also need to have some extra cash to do it, so that may not happen for a while.

Last month we had a huge toilet overflow issue that resulted in half of the family room ceiling being water-stained and a portion of the it needing to be cut out and replaced (1 1/2 sheets of drywall). We finally have that completed and now I need to prime and repaint the ceiling (I had already primed and repainted the ceiling at the beginning of the summer).

Not sure if the front room/dining room and family room will get repainted this year. Perhaps.

6. Go on at least three city adventures with the girls over the summer.
No progress on this in the last 2 months.

7. Take a yoga class.
I'm hoping this will happen this month, but I have to get on the stick and register for it.

8. Write in each of the girls' journals at least once a month.
I wrote in Nora's journal yesterday, which I also posted here yesterday. Need to continue to keep this in mind and do it at least once a month.

9. Do a personal Bible study in the morning before all the morning routines begin.
I've continued to do this. I've had a hard time with it, though, because I NEED the quiet and alone time, but I'm not getting to it before the girls get up and even if they're not talking TO me, if they're talking AROUND me it is distracting for me. Since I started going to the gym, it has gotten better. I have to get used to the idea that if I want to spend time alone reading the Bible and praying I simply have to get up at 5am - its really the only way I get it in and I'm fine with it.

10. Do not add any new television shows to my regular watch list.
We no longer have cable channels (no more Disney!), so this isn't a huge problem. We allow the girls to watch either Dancing with The Stars or So You Think You Can Dance once a week as a treat for them, but other than Thursday nights we don't really have any shows that we watch. I'm pretty happy with our tv watching.

11. Be consistent with not getting on the computer until my stuff is done.
My friend, Carissa, actually deactivated her facebook account because she was spending too much time on it. It inspired me to delete all facebook games from my account and to spend much less time on the computer. Last week was good. I am working on getting better at this.

12. Drink 100 ounces of water on the weekends (total of Saturday and Sunday).
Haven't done well with this, but need to remember to work on it.

13. Memorize Bible verses.
I have not been actively memorizing specific verses each week, but I have been writing out verses that I'd like to meditate on throughout the day and trying to really internalize them, which in turn results in near memorization. I am happy with this situation right now, although I would also like to memorize verses.