What I focused on in December:
- Family, friends, celebrating Jesus’ birth, making memories, and being thankful for a year well-lived
- Work – all three jobs
- Making a couple of short surprise trips
Reading Update
Fiction: 7
Nonfiction: 4
Book Reviews: I’m not sure (but I got all the way caught up)
Audio Books: 2
Traveling
Nights Gone: 6
New States or Countries: None
Goals
- Read 4 non-fiction books – YES
- Catch up on all reviews – YES
- Vlog 4 times – No: Only 3 times
- Edit 5,000 Echoes words – YES (I changed it to WLHYL words)
- Work on setting goals for 2018 – YES
- Write weekly goals – YES
- Go to bed by 10:30 15 times – YES (I think….)
- Eat paleo 20 days – YES
- (This one is a goal about some of the Christmas gifts I’m working on, so I’ll not specify) – YES
- End the year with a clean room, clean bathroom, and laundry basically caught up – YES
What I’ve Been Learning
As it turns out sometimes traditions have to move along when life changes, and that’s not always a sad thing. There were several things different this year in my holiday celebrations, and even though in years past that would have made me sad, this year it just felt like part of the flow and I went along languidly.
Praying out loud is important. I knew that. I know that words are extremely important and that we need to be careful not only what we think, but also really careful with what we say. A book I read this month about prayer helped bring this truth to the forefront of my mind, and I’ve been working at praying out loud more often.
I love my family. I know this, but I’m learning more and more just how much I love them and how crazy special they are. (And just plain crazy.) We had some fun adventures and family time this month, and that was delightful and filled my little soul with happiness. I’m so very, very, very thankful for this era in my life.
Twenty-Seventeen wasn’t at all what I had expected or imagined twelve months ago, life didn’t take the curves I’d expected, instead, it kept yelling Plot Twist! and it was wonderful. I am incredibly thankful for all I learned, the opportunities, opened doors, changes in expectations, and the hardships I was able to work through. I’m learning to embrace the unexpected and really (despite what it may look or feel like) be flexible.
Other
People. This month. It was like a firehose of life aimed straight at me. After recovering from the blast of water, I jumped into the puddle with both feet and didn’t look back.
- I randomly joined in the Christmas play for the last couple of weeks of rehearsals
- I won second place at a tacky sweater party (Y’all. I have tacky down.)
- I rode around on a hay wagon with about 50 other people from our church for three and a half hours Christmas caroling (and I might have howled like a wolf once or twice)
- I got my first flat tire
- I surprised one of my bestest friends in PA by randomly showing up at her house
- I also surprised my adopted parents right before Christmas Eve by being at their house when they got home from work
- I sighed in delight at the beautiful snow we have
- I worked a bunch of evening shifts at work (before this month I only worked one evening shift)
- I attended a life-long friend’s wedding
- December also meant epic amounts of guests
- I went to our church’s delightful Christmas Eve Service
- I played lots of games and made lots of memories and felt incredibly busy the entire month, but the best kind of busy.
- I read a lot during the first week of the month and then hardly touched another book until near the end of the month, and therefore thought I didn’t read a lot. Apparently, I have a skewed view of what “a lot of reading” entails.
- I also listened to a couple of audio books that in reality were nearly life changing – not because they had amazing info, but because of the writing style and what it did to artistic me
December was a wonderful month, and the best way to bid farewell to 2017. I’m thankful. Very thankful.
What were some of your highlights of December?
Noveltea 
Awesome post, friend! I’m excited to see what God has in store for you in the new year of 2018! God bless!
-Bekah
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