If we were having coffee together this morning, I’d tell you that taking an extra day off to fully enjoy this long holiday weekend up north was exactly what I needed and the best thing I’ve done for myself in a while. Waking up to beautiful sunrises over the lake, being outside in the fresh air all day, visiting with family, falling asleep while reading in bed and sleeping all through the night… PRICELESS!
If we were having coffee together this morning, I’d share that since I haven’t been able to run these past few weeks due to tendonitis, I’ve been carving out time to go for hikes. Last weekend I went to a local park for a 3 mile hike, and yesterday I went to the Nordhouse Dunes in Manistee National Forest for a 6 mile hike that took me out to Lake Michigan and back. I’ve always loved to hike, but I limited the activity to vacations or long weekends when I had time. But I’ve found this to be an incredibly relaxing and refreshing thing to do for myself – taking in the scenery, getting exercise, and being alone with my thoughts and whatever God speaks to me while I’m out on the trail. I hope to keep this up even after I return to running – I’m considering adding hikes to part of my cross-training to give my legs and feet a little break from the impact between runs.
If we were having coffee together this morning, I’d tell you that as I’ve been studying for my LMSW exam, I’m finding I know more than I thought I did. Thank goodness for that! When I first began my review, I felt a little lost. Since I’ve been out of undergrad for 7 years, and grad for 5 years, and being that my current social work practice is more community/advocacy oriented vs. clinically oriented – I knew I was going to have to study a ton to remind myself of all the terms, definitions, theorists, stages, etc. Fortunately, as I go through this book of practice test questions, I’m getting more right than wrong, and my confidence level is getting stronger. Next weekend I’m taking a 10 hour exam prep class, and I still have over three months to prepare. My hope and prayer is to pass this test come September 14th!
If we were having coffee together this morning, I’d share that I absolutely LOVE my new car, a shiny red Chevy Cruze, delivered by my hubby late Thursday night! It’s AWESOME! I’ve been driving an SUV for the past 7 years and while it is a fabulous vehicle, the lower gas mileage paired with gas prices at almost $4.00/gallon is not serving us well considering I put so many miles on my vehicle in any given week going back and forth to work and between county offices and meetings. So, we decided to go for it and buy a car that would better suit us. My hubby will now drive my SUV and that should cut down costs immensely! Who doesn’t love saving money?
If we were having coffee together this morning, I’d tell you that even in challenging seasons, life is still good and there is much to be grateful for. This is what I’ve been learning this month as various things have come my way. My faith, my marriage, my family, my friends, my home, and my “home away from home” are what keep me going on an everyday basis. The in-between times are not easy, but God is with us through it all and gives us the people we need, as well as other blessings, to keep us pressing on toward Him and the places He’s called us to go next. I’d be like a ship lost at sea without that knowledge. I thought maybe you might need to hear and know that today too.
Cheers to you on this Sunday!