There is something awesome about being with family. I love these two more than I can describe. Just being home with them is so restorative. I know that when the world is going crazy, this is most where I want to be.

We are listening to an audiobook while they do a puzzle. I am here at the other end smiling as I watch them move around. This is the good stuff. My wife is as beautiful as I have ever seen her. My son keeps getting taller and making me more and more proud.

I am so thankful to God. I am thankful for my family. For the life he has given us. For…so many things. God is the source of it all.

#thankful #solideogloria

I’m an extrovert. There, I admitted it to the world. Although, I don’t think it was much of a secret. I love people. I love being around people. It gives me energy and a lot of joy.

There are times however, when it is time to get away, and be with only a select few. That time is now begun. The Thanksgiving break is upon us.

I’m excited for the next few days. We will spend time together as a family. My wife, my son, and I hibernating here at home. There will be good food, lots of laughter, and a trip to Middle Earth. Yes, we watch Lord of the Rings every Thanksgiving.

Wherever this finds you, I pray you have a moment to rest and refocus. I pray you are surrounded by those you love. I pray that you feel God’s love.

Happy Thanksgiving Week!

I am excited for Thanksgiving this week. It has always been one of my favorite holidays. It is a time to pause and reflect on the food that is in your life and the One who gave it to you.

Long ago, we would spend every Thanksgiving with my grandma. She loved in a small town in Oklahoma, but it didn’t stop everyone from coming together. There was food and more food and more food. And some family to visit with too I suppose. My grandma made chocolate sheet cake that was out of this world.

I remember more than once being at her house for Thanksgiving and not feeling like I was going to be able to walk after dinner. The meals were home cooking and tasted wonderful. They weren’t the best for your health or waistline, but we were all happy and enjoyed.

My family and I have chosen a different path as the years have gone by when it comes to Thanksgiving food. No offense to southern home cooking, but we don’t really do Turkey for dinner anymore. After a lot of years we figured out we don’t like it that much.

What do we do instead? We pick a meal that we can cook together and enjoy. Something a little out of the ordinary. Last year we had lamb. It was delicious. This year it will be Cornish hens. It will be delicious because we will all be doing it together enjoying.

The food may have changed, but the focus has not. There is so much to enjoy and be thankful for. God has blessed us with so much. We choose to take Thanksgiving day and enjoy it together.

I have made it 71 days and have accomplished all of the daily goals I have set out to accomplish. For the majority of days I have kept my head down and been able to finish everything with relative ease. Today has been harder.

If you read my post yesterday, I have added two items to my list of daily tasks. This has unsettled the rhythm I have been in and I have been struggling with how to get things done. I am getting through them. The big one I have yet to accomplish is the 1000 words I have set out to write daily. There is still several hours before bed though, so I should get there.

This is another reason I am discovering change to be hard. Once you have yourself set in a habit or routine, breaking it can be a challenge. Even if you are adjusting it to add more cool stuff it. It is still a change and it still takes adjustment. I know I can’t be the only one that struggles with this.

I am also struggling today because I gained 3 pounds over the last couple of days. I have stayed in my calories and I still put pounds back on. I know it is not permanent and has happened all throughout this journey, but it is still discouraging. I have gotten to where I want to weigh in every morning to see my progress. It is a real mojo killer to see the scale go up.

All of that said, the goal still remains. I will make it to 100 days and I will accomplish the goals I have set before me. The results I achieve from pursuing these actions have to be the extra. I am doing the tasks because they are worth doing. I know they will eventually take me to where I want to go. But, even when I get there (lose the weight, write the book, etc.) there will still be more goals to pursue.

I am in this for the long haul. I am in this for the process. That is what makes this time different.

I know why change is hard. Or, at least I have an idea. The actual action of change is relatively easy. Identifying the desired change and what the end goal is…that is the hard part.

Unless you identify a specific plan, how are you going to change? It takes time. Wrestling through this is where the bulk of the work takes place. You have to move from general ideas to specific details that can lead you from where you are to where you want to go.

For me, I had been wrestling with the changes I wanted to make for several months. It all came to a head in the evening of September 11th. For the first time I was able to write down exactly what I wanted.

I knew I wanted to lose weight, but until then I hadn’t clearly articulated how I was going to achieve it or when. By identifying what I was going to do and when I was going to achieve it, I started moving forward.

As I mentioned a few days ago, I have started wrestling through the next set of changes and goals I want to achieve. So, I am going to send this list out into the universe and start working the plan to get them achieved.

Along with the original seven goals I have set out, I plan to add the following to my daily/overall list:

1. Write 1000+ words per day on a novel project. I will start this tomorrow, November 21st and continue for the remaining 30 days of my 100 Day Strong journey.

2. Along with my personal goals, I have some work related goals I need to focus this same kind of energy on. On my workdays I will dedicate 30 minutes daily to these trainings. This is my goal to begin with. I will adjust this as I move forward. I will being this tomorrow as well.

This won’t be the last time I make adjustments. The overall goal is to make progress a lifestyle. I plan to iterate on that theme from now on.