I can’t even believe that it’s already October. No, really… how did that happen? My mom used to tell me that days would blaze by once I was an adult, but I don’t think I ever fully appreciated that until now. I feel like before I can really get settled into a month, another one is already knocking me over. September was kind of a crazy month. We had so many things packed in — Josh was traveling some, I attended a two-day conference at my church, and I got sick twice. Yep, I conquered both a stomach virus and a reaction to flu shot, but lived to tell about them both. Before I recap September, let’s chat about what the first few days of October held. Ready?
cheers-ing | I can’t decide if I should share victories for this prompt or if you’re asking what’s in my glass. Perhaps both of those are pertinent questions. If you want to talk celebrations, let’s discuss the fact that I managed to blog every single day last month and I’m still thinking about it. I’ve already fleshed out my editorial calendar for most of October, so I’m hoping to keep up the momentum, even if I am glad to have my weekends back. I might have one other reason to celebrate, but I’ll hold off on sharing that for a few more days. As for what’s inside my glass? Nothing very exciting. Whole30 means the wine bottle in my fridge stays unopened and I’m clinking glasses with ice water or unsweetened tea instead.
organizing | I am trying so hard to organize my entire house. With showings picking up over the last month and the prospect of moving actually on the horizon, I’m trying to do some preemptive organizing and packing. I cleaned out my storage building last week, threw away everything that was hiding under my bed, and did a quick purge on everything decorative in nature. We had a big yard sale over the weekend and I feel so much better after getting rid of so much. I’m trying to be so much more intentional about purchases and to eliminate anything that isn’t necessary to life. I’m hoping to be more minimal in the future.
dreaming | I know you’re tired of hearing about my house dreams, so we’ll avoid that topic for today. How about the fact that I’m dreaming of the holidays instead? I can’t wait for crisp air, holiday meals, and glittery lights. One of my goals for September was to get started on Christmas shopping and while I didn’t make that happen, I did at least make a list and start thinking about what to get for the girls. I’m also dreaming about getting out of town. We’re headed to New Orleans next month for a football game, I’m taking a quick road trip with Jennifer in January, and we have TWO Disney trips on the books for next year. It’s kind of ridiculous.
buying | That second Disney trip snuck up out of nowhere and I’m having to curtail all extra spending until it’s paid for. Aside from Christmas gifts and house necessities, the spending category of our budget is completely off limits. As we get further into this house selling thing, projects continue to creep up. Our goal all along was to sell our hundred year old home, as is, but after some inspections and contractor consultations, we’re tackling a few of those projects this month. We’re rebuilding the floor in our laundry room (snore), having some minor electrical updates, and repainting all of the outdoor trim and doors. It’s daunting and expensive to say the least, but at least we love a good project!
listening | I am listening to so many things! I am still loving the playlist that I created for September and I’m thrilled that I’ll have a new album to add to my rotation in a few more days. I’ve been adding tons of audio books to my phone this month and I’m loving running and reading at the same time! You can see everything I “read” in September here and I’ll be sharing a few more good ones for the month of October. I’ve also added a few new favorite podcasts that I’ll be sharing with you on the blog next week. I’m not sure I can fit another thing into my listening schedule, but I’m all ears if you have a fabulous recommendation!
Now who wants to talk about September? It’s time for my favorite post of the month — a numerical recap of everything we enjoyed and accomplished this month!
Whole30 went pretty well. I’m not going to tell you it was perfect, because being sick kind of threw me for a loop. After my bout with the stomach virus, I had a day of eating carbs to keep myself from feeling too light-headed or queasy, but I jumped right back on the wagon the next day. We technically finished up yesterday, but I’m going to try and sustain this momentum for a while longer. We’ve discovered some new recipes and remembered why we started this whole process in the first place. I feel so much better! We showed our house three times. To those of you living in a larger city, that’s going to seem like nothing, but after a year on the market we were excited to get some regular attention again. Sales are up in our area (praise the Lord) and we were hoping for big things in September. We are definitely making progress and I hope to share a little more about what that looks like next week. We’ve watched way too much football. We haven’t been on campus yet, but we’ve got a few big games on our calendar for this month and next. How is your team doing this year? Other notables are the birthday party we survived (with thirteen overnight guests!), a wonderful church retreat with some of my best friends, and lots of new entertainment options. September was a good one.
