Hello and Happy July! Happy Independence Day! Do you have big plans or will you be staying close to home given that COVID numbers are rising again? Our neighborhood will be doing fireworks but we will be inside trying to keep the dog off the ceiling.
I’m not usually excited about a new month (it just happens) but this time I was happy to see July come. I have plans to start new things and it feels good to have something to look forward to. It’s also my birthday month!
I have been using a Vera Bradley daily planner that was given to me for Christmas for the first half of this year. I was never a big planner person before, but I do like to make “to do” lists so I kept my lists in there. I modified the planner to make it work for me and knew I would almost be out of pages by the end of June. After researching and shopping for planners for six months, I decided to get a Happy Planner vertical layout planner. It’s an 18 month planner beginning with this month.
Starting my new planner was one of the things I ‘m looking forward to. Since the Fourth of July came in the first week, I did my first “before the pen” layout in red, white and blue. I used some Happy Planner stickers, other stickers and washi tape. Washi tape is one of my favorite craft supplies.
My old planner had enough room for me to write a daily bible verse but I don’t have that option here. That’s okay. I have a separate journal to write my Bible verses in.
I like to follow “Write the Word” Plans and I picked “truth” for this month’s theme. There are so many opinions and emotions flying around in the world today, but I strive to take action and make decisions based on truth. (What the media and social media tells you is not always the truth.) The one thing I can know to be true is God’s word so it seemed like an appropriate time to study “truth”. I’ve also picked out some devotions on truth in the Bible app.
Starting a new bible study series is exciting to me and I think I’m going to like having a separate journal for this so I have room to expand and write a few more thoughts. So far, I’m just writing, but learning to do Bible journaling and adding some stickers, washi tape and stamps to my pages might be fun. This book looks like a fun way to learn.
I also decided to start a self discovery journal. I’m not sure how long this will last. I used to hate journaling in school when I was made to do it. I wasn’t much of a diary keeper as a kid and I eventually destroyed the ones I started. When confronted with journal prompts or discussion questions of any kind, my usual response is “I don’t know.” or “That’s not important to me”. However, I can see some benefit to journaling and this will really stretch me if I keep it up.
A new month also means switching things up in the Faster Way to Fat Loss. I finished my six week program with a loss of three pounds and 1/2 inch lost from my hips. I am so in love with this program and the workouts that I joined the VIP program. A new month means a new workout focus and challenge with VIP. This month is a booty challenge. It also means we switch up our macros some- we actually get to eat more this month! Another round starts on July 20 if you want to join and see for yourself what I’m so excited about.
I’m adding a new series/ type of post to the blog going forward as well. You can read about the new series here. I haven’t decided how often I will publish these, but at least once a month.
What are you looking forward to this month?
I hope you have a great weekend! Linking up with
