January Wrap Up

 Yes, I know, a week of February is already gone, but I still have some links and books to share with you from January. I've been asking a lot of questions lately, so I thought I'd let you all relax and do some reading elsewhere. :-)

For Wives:

• Jess at Making Home hits the highlights of Alistair Begg's thought-provoking sermon, How to Avoid Marital Failure
• Cindy Carrier's Stop to Get Gas When You Don't Feel Like It appears At the Well...In Pursuit of Titus 2

For Mothers: 

• Tiffany at Simply Modern Mom shares 6 At-Home Activities for Toddlers and Pre-School Kids
• Steady Mom gives us 5 Reasons Why You Need Steady Routines
• Amy at New Nostalgia gives us some tips for Grocery Shopping with Kids

For Women:

• Sarah Mae @ Like A Warm Cup of Coffee paints a beautiful, poetic portrait of A Woman Who Perseveres
• Melinda at Coming Clean: Confessions of An Imperfect Parent interviewed Courtney from Women Living Well in a post aptly named A Woman Living Well where Courtney shares some of her tips on living well.

Some Recipes:

• Brown Sugar Shortbread and Nutty Peach Crisp @ Taste of Home
• 1 Chicken = 3 Meals and Oatmeal Cream Pies @ Nourshing Heart & Home

Books I Read:

Holy Habits: A Woman's Guide to Intentional Living (Mimi Wilson, Shelly Cook Volkhardt)
This was an excellent book for my spiritual life. I learned things about God that I had never seen before! I was looking for a list of habits to follow but was pleasantly surprised instead to find myself drawn closer to God through the wisdom of Mimi and Shelly.

The Power of Less : The Fine Art of Limiting Yourself to the Essential...in Business and in Life (Leo Babauta)

From Clutter to Clarity : Simplifying Life from the Inside Out (Nancy Twigg)
These two books were interesting in that they both were on simplifying life, but from two different perspectives. While Leo's book had some good tips to follow, he divorces success in life from the help and strength of God and rather points to one's self as supreme. Nancy did a beautiful job of showing how to simplify our lives, homes, and finances through Christ in Whom we can do all things.

Master Your Metabolism (Jillian Michaels)
Never Say Diet (Chantel Hobbs)
These two books on a similar subject, a healthy lifestyle, were also from two different points of view. Jillian counts her success by her own hard work and discipline while Chantel acknowledges God's help in her life of discipline while losing 200 pounds. Jillian's book was helpful from the standpoint of understanding our metabolism and I like her method but not her reason for health (see the rest of  the title if you want to know what I'm talking about!). Chantel's plan is very doable for those who want to lose weight and maintain a healthy lifestyle. I enjoyed reading both of their stories which they candidly share in these books.


And that's about it! I met some of my goals in January and thank the Lord for His help and answered prayers. I'm looking forward to a great "rest-of-February"! Feel free to share your own wrap-ups in the comments or in an e-mail. I love to hear from you!