weekend recap

On Thursday morning, Noah and I left home to go to Murfreesboro to visit our friends, the Dicksons.  They used to live next door to us, and I have told them a thousand times that I much prefer a trek across our grass than a three hour drive down I-40 to go see them.  However, that is better than not seeing them, so I won't complain.

We were only there for the one night, then we left at 2:30 to come back home.  Drew was starving, and he told me to call him when we got off the interstate so we could meet at Taco Bell.  They took forever to get there, though, and I wondered why, but I found out the reason as soon as I got home!

They took down my Christmas tree, packed it all away, and hauled if off to the upstairs hall outside of our attic.  I love surprises like this.  They had even vacuumed!

I am so thankful for their sweet selves.

Saturday was a very low key day for me, and a day full of watching football games.  My family was thrilled that Alabama won against Washington and will be one contender in the BCS Championship game.  They'll be playing Clemson.  (I'll be reading.)

I have this little desk calendar in the living room where our computer is, and I loved the page for Saturday.

I am so thankful to God for the relationship my boys have with Him, but my prayer for them as we start 2017 is that their faith will grow stronger this year.  That is my number one prayer for them~that they will love the Lord with all of their hearts, souls, minds and strength, and that they would love others as themselves.

I love the scripture writing plan for January.  There were two to choose from, a regular one, which is wonderful, and this themed one on Courage.  I don't know about you, but I could definitely use an extra dose of courage.  I love these arrows, too.  The only problem with this was when I went to print this out, my printer wouldn't work.  I improvised, though, and wrote it out and drew the same arrows.    I used washi tape to stick it in my journal yesterday morning.

I loved seeing everyone's best nine from 2016.  I looked for the app on my phone, but there were really bad reviews for it, so I did this instead.  I picked my favorite moments from the year and made my own collage.  The theme was laughter and teenagers.

Saturday night was fun.  The boys had a bunch of friends over to ring in the new year, and my friend Missy and her hubby came over.  We played cards and ate and laughed a bunch, then I went to bed.  I had to be at church at 8:30, so I needed to get to sleep quick!

I am so thankful for God's gift of friendship.

I did make it to church on time, even early, because I rode with Todd.  He had to be there at eight and the boys came in Drew's truck and in my suburban so I could drive myself back home after church.  Our Pastor has been preaching a series called Hope Lives, and he finished it up yesterday.  It was so good!  Next week he's starting a new series called Answers, to coincide with a free Answers in Genesis conference taking place at our church on January 15th and 16th.  If you're local, you should come!

I was exhausted when I got home from church.  I ate a little bit of rotel for lunch, then crawled into bed where I proceeded to take a three hour nap.

Todd ended up working last night, so the younger boys and I went to Mom's and Bill's for dinner.  Graham and Drew went out with some guys from their Bible fellowship class, then ice skating.  The fog was CRAZY bad.

I drove so slow, because the visibility was horrid.

After that, we drove around the town square to look at the Christmas lights one last time, and I took some pictures.

I love our little town, and the pretty square we have.  I also have a thing for churches, and this one is no exception.  It's no longer used as a church, though, but a bakery and catering or event place that can be rented out.  It's called Simply Done, thanks to my friends on Facebook for helping me remember the name.

I'll end this post with my newest favorite gift from Christmas.

This is my new planner!  I got it from Todd and the boys for Christmas, and it's called The Happy Planner by Create 365, Me & My Big Ideas.

I love it because it comes blank.  You can begin on any month, and you get to fill in all the dates.  (Disclaimer: MUST PURCHASE WHITE OUT.)

Mine came in a kit, with a fun little fine tip pen and some stickers.

There is a monthly layout spread for the whole month that takes up two pages, and there is a weekly layout, also, with time slots for morning, afternoon and evening.  I love the blank time slots.  The pages are thick (similar to card stock) and the colors are bright.  There is a pocket for goodies and little tabs that come with the kit, for certain tasks.

If you are AT ALL a creative person, then this is your planner.

Mine came from Michael's, and the kit was under $30, which is an added bonus.  I have had Erin Condren and Emily Ley planners, but $50 is a LOT of money to pay for something like this, especially if you don't love them.  I loved one of those and did not love the other.

So, that was our weekend, in a nutshell.  Today will be spent doing laundry and cleaning and straightening up a bit, and cooking some dinner for my people.  I'm ready for life to resume some sort of normalcy.

Happy Monday!  Love to all.