One word for '07.

I have been doing some soul-searching in response to an Ali Edwards challenge to choose a word to guide your life and creative work in 2007. After some thinking and pondering, I have decided to choose a fairly simply word: BE.

BE.

I really don’t see that tiny two-letter word all by itself much. It seems that it is almost always used as a relatively insignificant word that leads up to a more powerful action verb or adjective. Be creative. Be playful. Be aware. Be open. Be still. Be inspired. Be energetic. Be patient…and, surely, these are very powerful and inspirational phrases.

But what about all by itself. Just BE. Where is “be” without another verb or adjective paired with it? This is the sole word and the question I am challenging myself to explore and live out in 2007. What does it mean to just BE. Period. BE.

For me, to just BE seems so basic, foundational and simple, yet very, very far from easy. To just BE means full awareness and presence in one’s existence. For me, the word BE is the essence of the Bible verse that I have chosen for my life. The verse from Isaiah speaks of the promise that God has known each one of us intimately since before we were born and that He has created us uniquely. “And while I was yet in my mother’s womb, you knew me. I will praise you for I am fearfully and wonderfully made.” That is awesome. I, in the essence of me, am fearfully and wonderfully made. I don’t have to do something to deserve it. I don’t have to earn it or achieve it or buy it or prove that I am worthy of it. God’s promise is that when I just BE in Him, I am at my best, my fullest, what I was made to be.

My definition of BE involves living authentically in God’s promises. It is involves intentionality. Awareness. Contentment. Surrender. Stillness. In essence, to BE involves being who I was created by God to be—nothing more and nothing less. It does not mean stagnation and laziness and deadness and resignation; on the contrary, I think some amazing growth and life and insight can be gained when we just BE. But it is hard. So hard. Without always having to strive and achieve and attain. Content. Settled. Living life. BEing.

In our world today, so much goes against a person’s natural God-given drive to just BE. We are pushed to do more and more, fill our calendars, fill and empty and fill and empty our wallets, and to go, go, go. And when we really stop, and are honest, we sometimes realize that we are living somehow disconnected from ourselves. Numb. Empty. Mindless. No intention. No passion or conviction or burn. Going through each day, yes, but with no time to just BE. I have found myself there as of late. This sad place of living without truly BEing. Not really even knowing or remembering who--truly who is this me?--it is that I need to BE. And I know that many are there with me. So this is the year that I explore what it means to BE and to discover ways to just BE in my own life in 2007 and beyond. And maybe, just maybe, I can inspire others to do the same.

Wow, for a lifelong over-achiever, go-getter, and someone who is always very busy, involved, and scheduled personally and professionally, it will be a difficult challenge to infuse this word into my everday life and existence. Just to BE who our awesome God made me to be. To reduce the distractions and fluff and accolades and empty busy-ness and stuff and things, and to just authentically BE. I am anxious to get started, up for the challenge and looking forward to growing and stretching and reflecting and creating by just, simply, BEing.

Loving my Normal.

My life has been a little unusual the past few days. My husband and kids, who are still on their school break, headed off to my in-laws' house, while I stayed back to teach my university course. They left on Wednesday and did not return until late Saturday afternoon, meaning that I had more than 2 full days of time at home by myself. I can't remember the last time that happened. At first, I was savoring the idea and all the possibilities that laid ahead of me. Lots of time to organize. To scrap. To clean. To lounge. To think and write. To just do my own thing. Yes, my life was very different for those few hours. When I cleaned the kitchen, IT STAYED CLEAN! If I picked something up off the floor, IT STAYED PICKED UP! No little bodies climbing into bed with me at 3:30 am. No tripping over Thomas the Train or Little Pets or balls or crayons or......No constant cries for my attention. No laundry piling up. No shoes piled in front of the front door. No dirty socks to pick up. No needs to attend to except for my own. But, soon, very soon, I realized that while the house looked more picked-up than it has in a long time and while the house was very quiet and peaceful, a lot--SO MUCH--was missing. No spontaneous laughter. No hugs or kisses or little voices saying "I wub you, Mommy." No hand-written love notes from my little girl. No remnants of imaginary play set-ups littering every room of the house. No tuck-ins or bed time stories or freshly-bathed bodies or cups of hot cocoa together. No rosy-red cheeks from the outside cold and no begging to play a game or read that book just one more time or play with me. It was quiet. It was boring. It was lonely at times. It was not home. So, tonight, my family is back where they belong--BACK AT HOME--all tucked into bed snug....except for my husband, who is in his favorite spot watching the game on the couch. My living room is scattered with Little Pets and Nerf foam darts, laundry hampers are overflowing once again, shoes are piled in front of my front door, the kitchen is in disarray, and I tripped over a pile of trains coming up the stairway. My daughter has pouted and my son has thrown a fit because "It's not fair." I spy a dirty pair of my husband's socks on the floor. And my son just crawled sleepy-eyed into bed with me and fell back asleep laying on my arm, his favorite place in the whole world. And all is well. All is right. All is normal. I am thanking the Lord in an extra-special way tonight for the everyday blessings that I so often overlook and undervalue. How often, sadly, do we totally and completely miss the richness of the everyday details of our lives because we are looking beyond, taking for granted, wanting something more, something different, and just not taking the time to really SEE and EXPERIENCE and APPRECIATE. Yes, I love, love, LOVE my normal life.

New Year Organizing.

The past few evenings have been all about organizing for me. First, I got all of the Christmas decorations--with the exception of the few stranglers that I will still be finding in March!--organized, packed into their respective containers, and packed back into the Christmas closet. It is pretty packed to the brim, meaning that we must have acquired a few new things this year! While I truly love to have my house decorated for the holidays, it is also refreshing to have things "back to normal"--seems clean and fresh and symbolic of the start of the new year. I can already feel January slipping away--YIKES! I am responsible for my daughter's kindergarten Valentine's party, so I had better get planning! Most of my other organizational projects this weekend have involved my scrap room. I finally have all of my stamps in place--much-used wooden ones organized on open shelves with others in the closet, while acrylic stamps are ordered in baskets under my work table--and it is so wonderful to know right where things are. I also tagged all of my vertical paper organizers with metal-rimmed circle tags and colorful ribbon--isn't it darling? It just makes me want to keep tagging! Actually--and my sisters will laugh at this one--it reminds me of the time that my mom went crazy with the labeler and actually labeled each and every shelf in the pantry cupboard.....each and every canned good had its place, and you had better not get it confused. We all thought that she had seriously gone off the deep end! Barring this crazy extreme, organization feels good. My husband also built me some shelves for our front library room--soon to become a type of family library/music room--so I am in for some more organizing after he gets those shelves in place. They cover a full wall in the room, and I am so ready to get my books and pottery collection out of the packing boxes. Happy organizing!

Half-Baked in a Freeezer Carton!

Browsing through the local grocery, looking for a bit of sweet treat for dessert, and look what I came across! An ice cream by Ben and Jerry called "Half-Baked"!! So, of course, I had to buy it, if nothing else for the photos and posting here on the blog. But, it ended up being very, very yummy.....chocolate with chunks of brownie and cookie dough....Unbaked! This is definitely my new favorite ice cream though ice cream is something that I like only occasionally. So, it appears that "Half-Baked and Firefly Free" has its very own treat....now, I wonder if they have a firefly-flavored variety? :)

Studio N, a work in process.

You might recall the picture on the bottom from one of my very first posts......I was talking about how because of our frequent moves in the past 4 years, it never seems that my scrap room is organized and functional. This obviously makes creative work very difficult, as I could never find what I needed, let alone have a clean workspace in which to create. Well... VOILA! I have worked long and hard to try to create my dream studio within the confines of our current available space, and this is my work in progress in the middle photo. Yes, the room still doubles as our guest rooms, but it is becoming a studio that is very functional. The star of the room is my new Project Desk and Stools from Pier One... as you can see from the top photo, it is a large workspace with shelves on each end to house so many tools, jars of embellishments, and baskets of goodies. I still am working on organizing all of the tiny little treasures that come along with this awesome art, so I will be sure to post as I work. I also have some really cool black transfer letters from Making Memories that I am going to use to put a quote on the wall about the closets.....I'm thinking about "Scrap. Play. Live. {Be Your Art.}. What do you think? And the color on the wallls......a sunny apricot-ish color that just reminds me of sun, and fresh fruit, and the beach, and Mexico, and smiling, and just being nurtured. The color makes me so happy, especially when paired with the bright jewel tones in my quilt, throw, and wall hangings. The color scheme even makes the yucky green-ish carpet look like it was meant to be! It is a space that I want to be in, one that makes me want to create.

This room relates to my third 2007 goal, which is related to my love and passion for scrapbook art. This year, I want to get "Studio N" organized and fully functional. I am also setting the goal of completing at least one 2-page spread per week. and to use at least one product on my pages from my existing stash of goods.....I have so many cool embellishments that I had forgotten about, and while it is always fun to head to the scrapbook store and stock up on all the newest embellishments and gadgets, I also really want to put the awesome stuff that I have to good use. Finally, I want to seek to be published this year. I have been encouraged by so many to submit for publication, but I have never prioritized it. This year, I will be entering the Hall of Fame contest for the first time, and also plan to seek other publication through the year. So, I guess we shall see what the response is......who knows, maybe this year could be the start of a new dream career for me??

A Glimpse of History.

These pictures might suggest that I was stuck in the city's worst traffic jam today.....which I was, but this time, it was completely on purpose. Today, I had the distinct honor and opportunity to be a part of history in the making. President Gerald R. Ford "came home" to Grand Rapids today, where his funeral and burial will take place tomorrow. Many gathered along the route from the airport to his presidential museum to pay final respects to he and his family. Myself and a colleague waited outside near the highway for nearly 2 hours, only to learn that the presidential plan and motorcade were significantly delayed; so, we left that area. But, I was not to be deterred and really wanted to experience this historical event in the making. I drove toward the airport and was fortunate to drive up just in time to be stopped by the police blockade.....only 5 cars back from where the motorcade passed. So, I was able to see the events and to honor President Ford for his years of service to our country and our city. Truthfully, I was flooded with emotion, and unexpectedly so.

The 2nd day of January. It definitely feels very strange to be writing "07" but the new year is here to stay. My second "goal" of the year (I have sworn off the word "resolution" as it seems to suggest static as opposed to dynamic and "in process", which I definitely am!) relates to my first (exercise). My second goal for improving my health in 2007 is to revamp my eating habits......eating more fresh veggies, eliminating fried foods, and increasing my water intake are three biggies. I would definitely like to welcome 2008 in much better physical shape than I am in now (no, I am not setting a "pounds lost" goal, but rather focusing on what I will GAIN by making these changes.), and these two goals will put me on the road to reaching that goal. I am currently in the process of collecting some yummy yet healthy recipes, so am looking forward to re-stocking our kitchen and helping my whole family get on-board to healthier eating.

Welcome 2007.

We are getting back from a couple days out of town to celebrate the New Year with our family. It was a new year's welcoming of the best kind--very low-key and relaxed, with lots of good food, laughs, and games. We enjoyed a rousing game of SPOONS resulting in only a few minor injuries (!) as well as multiple games of RACKO, 99, and Quiddler. Fun and relaxing (with the exception of Spoons!). As midnight neared, Kennedy and I realized that we left our party hats and noisemakers--which we use every single year--at home. So, we decided to get creative and use some pots, pans and kitchen utensils to ring in the New Year. Kennedy was all about that! Hayden, well, he didn't quite make it into 2007 awake, but it is amazing that he slept through all the racket! Midnight at our party was filled with the banging of pots and pans, sips of sparkling juice and champagne, the annual New Year's kisses, and, for some, sighs of relief that they could now go off to bed! While some family members retired to bed soon after midnight, I stayed up with my husband, dad and brother-in-law until 2 AM playing Rack-O. So, I was a bit droopy this morning, but it was a very enjoyable time with family. Every now and then, I think that it would be fun to dress up and attend a fancier new year's eve bash......but, really, when I get right down to it, this family gathering is the New Year's Eve of the most significant kind. Note to self: Skip the big parties and go with the simple family gatherings every time!

So, with the new year here, it is time to start thinking about what I would like to make happen in 2007. Each of the first 10 days of this month, I plan to share one goal/change that I am striving for in 2007. Some of them are small and won't take a lot of effort, while others are major and will require lots of blood, sweat and tears. Yes, I will start with the biggy: GET HEALTHIER by reestablishing a regular exercise routine. I was very disciplined about working out prior to having my kids, but it has really been 5 years since I have excercised seriously and daily for an extended period of time, and the time has come to make this a priority. I am going to be doing a combination of pilates-type stretching, walking, and Urban rebounding to start, and I would eventually like to work up to running by the end of 2007. As a working mom of two young kids, I need to make this time for myself, as it will make me more energetic and a better role model for my children as they grow. So, pray for me as I work to establish this exercise routine in the upcoming days and weeks!