2017 was full of lessons. The best kind. The kind that make have pushed me, stretched me, and grown me. Lessons that have made me a better follower of Christ, a better wife, and a better mama. (ps. Above image is by Smith House Photography, Hi Becki!)

Because I invested in Powersheets at the end of 2016, I was able to set intentional and grace filled goals that were inline with what mattered most to me. And because I learned how to use them correctly, I saw real progress with them. I admit that I attempted to use them years ago, but either my heart wasn’t really in it or I just wasn’t digging deep enough to uncover the goals that would spur me on to make progress.

I did an update back in October, and you can read that HERE. Since that update, Kason and I actually started using my Powersheets together! I also shared a post about that over on Light Filled Home (our new Christian living blog!)

So one final update on my goals for 2017!

  1. The biggest progress was student loan payments! My goal was $12,000 for the year, and I came in at $9,934. Most people would call this a failed goal, and while I am a little disappointed I didn’t get all the way there, I’m SO excited and grateful with how close I came to meeting the goal. Back in January next to the $12,000 amount I wrote, “how?!! Only God!” And sure enough He provided and provided. And now He has provided a weekly floral account at a local country club which will make HUGE strides in the remaining balance!
  2. Second best progress is intentional time with K through date nights! If you read my update in October you read that at that point we still were struggling with figuring out how to do them. With our new home being so far from “town” traditional day nights just don’t work for us right now. We have been able to utilize a few of Kerrington’s “school days” for day dates, but the best by far has been the discovery of DateBox. They are specially curated dates that you can have at home. We have done two so far and have been SO impressed! The first (November) was inspired by the “escape room” concept and we had to work together to figure out clues to figure out who murdered a cruise ship captain. December’s date included a game where we each took turns drawing out different Christmas songs while the other one guessed what the heck the other was drawing, and made homemade Christmas ornaments where we wrote notes to each other that we will open and read next Christmas! They even included glitter, ribbon and paint pens for us to decorate our ornaments with! These DateBoxes have seriously been such a blessing for us to focus on each other and our marriage.
  3. In October, the very last product in our home to clean up was deodorant! Well friends, I believe I have officially crossed over from “borderline crunchy” to full on “crunchy.” After a rough (read stinky!) detox period, and painful rashes from new “natural” deodorants, I found a recipe for homemade deodorant that is not only super easy, but pretty effective! It’s literally just coconut oil, baking soda, arrow root powder, and lemon essential oil. Here’s hoping I still love it come summertime in Texas. Yes, I made my own deodorant. I’m “that” girl.
  4. Lastly, thanks to checking in together on our budget, Everydollar app from Dave Ramsey, and budgeting realistically, K and I have finally reached a threshold where we finally “get” budgeting. And we finally had 2 months in a row where we hit our budget! Praise Him!

We also had some beautiful weddings we were blessed to be part of as well!

Here’s a few favorite images! Photographers are credited!

I am so excited to see what God has in store for 2018! Here’s a peek at my 2018 Vision Board. The word that will guide my goals for 2018 is DELIGHT.

I shared my goals over on Light Filled Home’s blog: Delighting in 2018.

ps. While my PowerSheets link is an affiliate link, (which means I make a small commission if you make a purchase) all praises are my own! I really use them, and when used well and intentionally they really do work!

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year friends! Thanks for joining me on the journey!

xoxo, Tamara