Wednesday, February 13, 2013

Sacrifice






I've always given something up for Lent.  I have a lot of vices (ok, well, not terrible ones, but ones like fried foods and chocolate and Diet Coke and apathy), so it was never that difficult to find something.  Yet this year, as I was contemplating what to do, I was thinking about what was really the root of this act, and that is sacrifice.  Sure, I could give up any of the above, but what would be a greater sacrifice for me at this point in life would be to add something.  Something that would make me feel better, mentally and physically, and contribute positively to my life, while also requiring me to sacrifice time, energy, and couch-sitting.

I've never been a regular exerciser.  I have never viewed exercise as a regular, routine part of my life (as much as I wish I did...).  I never played sports growing up, so anything physical was like bonus points tacked on to my life - great if I did it, but not required or expected.  Believe me, I've expended much mental energy regretting this and wishing I had more motivation, but surprisingly, that has gotten me nowhere...


(A taste of my physical prowess...)

This Lent, I want to add in exercise, five times a week.  I know, that's sad - but the reality is, that will be a big sacrifice for me and will require discipline to achieve.  This will mean choosing to use morning nap time to do a video instead of drinking coffee and enjoying a nice shower.  It will mean taking an evening walk with Tony and Harper and the dogs when I would rather get things done at home.  But of course, it will be of such great benefit to me (and all of us).  And naturally, I'm writing it down here so I can't back out.  I'm committing to five days because I want to be realistic.  I hope to spend that exercise time re-centering myself and focusing on what's important.  I was given a healthy body and I don't want to waste it.

So it begins - ugh... ;)


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Also!! Emily over at Imperfect just posted about a challenge she is doing during Lent that hit me at just the right time, and I feel compelled to participate!


7 Weeks to a Clean Home

Choosing one area of your home each week, cleaning and addressing those little projects as a way to feel more content and happy with the things we have.  I need this.  I would say recently I've been pretty good about keeping our house clean (ish), and one of the great things about having a small house is it stays relatively decluttered out of necessity.  But there are definitely things I have been putting off and off, and this will be motivation to deep-clean and address the little things.

Here's how I'm going to tackle it:

Week 1: Our Bedroom
Week 2: Guest Room
Week 3: Harper's Room
Week 4: Bathrooms
Week 5: Assorted Closets/ Laundry Room
Week 6: Outside
Week 7: Kitchen/Living Room (hopefully we will have finished up our big projects in there by then)


7 comments:

  1. Great post! I like the idea of tackling one room a week - makes it seem more manageable.

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  2. Hi Claire. When I decided to make working out a daily thing I found this quote to be helpful, "It takes 4 weeks for you to see your body changing, 8 weeks for friends and family, and 12 weeks for the rest of the world to see it." Just give yourself 12 weeks. I commited to it (and we all know how I don't stick with anything, like ever.) and that was a year and a half ago and it was the best and hardest thing I have ever forced myself to do. I also found that Pinterest really really helped. Whenever I feel like a slump was coming on or when I started comparing myself to other girls who haven't had a baby and looked amazing, I would start pinning away in the Fitness and Health section and get motivated. I'm proud of you and I know you can do it! (I have never seen you NOT be able to do something!) Love you very much!

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  3. Yay! I'm glad you're tackling this with me. Also, I'm the same way about exercise. I've always kind of defined myself as an athlete which is laughable because I exercised...um...rarely. But I've been really good since New Year's and I'm starting to love it again. Good luck!!!

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  4. You are so motivating. I love this and want to copy you.

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  5. i can relate entirely. i've ONCE AGAIN "fallen" off of the exercise wagon. i have thought so incredibly much about this- and how i want to approach healthy-eating and exercise (in a way that works and that i can sustain).

    i'm not going to do anything drastic like boot camp or "extreme" exercise videos... just simple, but effective exercising... hiking, walking primarily... enabling me to get outside more often at the same time {win-win :)}.

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  6. ...and i'm taking the same approach w/ deep cleaning!

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  7. (the same approach as you, that is :))

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Your comments make me happy!

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