Little things

...like hemming curtains for my classroom -bring rest and enjoyment and a sweet little finished product.

Early to bed... Early to rise...

That's my 1% change...

I must get to bed earlier
(norm: 11-ish; goal: before 10)

so that I can wake earlier
(norm: 6ish; goal: 5ish)

It's a hard discipline for me, buuut, the quiet morning-time before work is worth it!

I could probably elaborate, but I have Yard Sale signs to make for Saturday and this silly driver's manual to read for next week... soooo, that's all for now! ♥ ♥

Food Changes

After watching Food Inc. this past weekend, there are a few baby steps I'm inspired to take....

1. Eat less meat.

2. Buy more organic.

3. Buy more whole foods. Start cutting out processed foods.

4. Reevaluate the bread we buy. [Learn to make my own.]

5. And finally, read (or listen to) this book In Defense of Food by Michael Pollan.

Pretty excited Naptime Diaries' is back with the 1% changes this week too... perfect timing! :)

JK News (and a stolen 1% change)...

Remember that time we had a little Sunsets & Sushi site where we published updates for friends & family??

Yep, that one that doesn't get a whole lot of love all the time -mostly because I'm too busy playing over here in blogland -and with life in general! :)

Well, there's finally a new update over there!!

Some news you may or may not already know about our location and life for the next few years...

Are you curious yet???

Go see what we're up to already! ;)

PS-- I decided I loved Naptime Diaries' 1% change this week so much, that I will just be adopting it as my own... verbatim. So if you're curious about that too, you can head over there and read her challenge to make an extra meal once in a while & bless somebody with it...... a very good challenge indeed!

(Clearly I love that lady and think she has some pretty great ideas!! Hope you're encouraged and spurred-on too!:)

[I do have my own next 1% change welling up in my heart and mind, I just need to carve out some time to write it...]

♥ ♥

baked or fried?

no question.

I always (always) choose fried.

ahh, wrong answer, I know.

But I loooove fried.

For a snack when I got home, I devoured my sweet husband's leftover waffle fries that he saved just for me, because he knows how very much I love them... and then my dad made these for supper!!!

crispy fried goodness... it's a shame that I love them so. really it is.

SO, in the spirit of 1% changes (baby-step-size -that's why I LOVE this game!) --I want to adopt the challenge to replace fried with baked once in a while! 

I've already given up fast food this year, so that's not even my vice right now...

But, come date night or the occasional Sunday lunch out, basically whenever I'm given the opportunity, 100% of the time I choose fried -- potatoes, chicken, whathaveyou..... (sometimes may be acceptable, but 100% is just. too. much.)

So, I called my mom-in-love on the way home today just to ask how she does her delicious baked potato fries... It may be just the same way you do yours, but I'll post the steps anyway... even if for myself so that I'll be ready to DO them next time my french fry craving hits (like tomorrow;)...

Cut up potatoes and put them in a zip lock bag,
add some oil,
cheyenne pepper,
minced garlic (or garlic powder if you have none to mince)

Give it some shake-shakes.

Spread them on an oven pan.

Bake at 425 for 10 minutes.
Then switch to broil for 10 more minutes (instead of stirring them around... brilliant if you ask me... either way though!)

and voila... pure goodness.... and it's not even fried!! :)

[she mentioned too that you could soak the freshly cut potatoes in ice water for a minute before adding them to the seasoning-bag..... her fresh-out-of-the-garden-potatoes didn't need such love, but maybe when using store-bought ones, I'll go ahead and add that step:]

Bloggers, link up with a healthy recipe or 1% change??

Renew the Mind...

A change I've made before (way too many years ago) and I'm working on adopting again is memorizing Scripture...

For the word of God is alive and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart. (Hebrews 4:12)

There's something about getting it on your mind and down in your heart...

Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God's will is- his good, pleasing and perfect will. (Romans 12:2)

It's not about piety or works, but long-term-knowledge, and change. 

By working the truth into my mind, I am nurturing my own spirit and helping it follow God's lead --rather than leaving it to it's own devices!

So my 1% change is to RENEW MY MIND by committing Scripture to memory (1-2 verses every two weeks for now). 


Having a friend in it with you can make allll the difference. A few weeks ago I emailed a girl from my last book-study and mentioned that I was wanting to work on memorizing but was having trouble getting off the ground.... She immediately accepted the challenge with me and now we have a quick phone/recital date every other week.... Sweet, huh!? :)

We're working through this Armor of God passage from Ephesians 6.

Looking forward to reading all your changes this week.... {Naptime Diaries' link up}

♥ ♥

Eat Right for Your Type...

A few years back, I came across this book... Eat Right for Your Type by Peter J. D'Adamo ...I kinda love it! Not everyone agrees with the guy's research & philosophy, but I found it helpful for getting me on the right track with food choices.

Being that I have type A blood, D'Adamo encourages me to get my proteins from beans rather than meats.... this bean dip recipe has been one of my favorites...

[I'd like to say it's better with black beans (b/c they're my favorite), but personally I think it's way better with pinto beans]....

Happy changing, friends! ...Hope you too have been encouraged by all this to keep making those small, consistent, baby-step-ish changes for the greater good...... I certainly have appreciated the challenge!!

{link up with Naptime Diaries!}

Prayer closet

But when you pray, go into your room and shut the door and pray to your Father who is in secret... (Matthew 6:6)





My 1% change this week is simply this....going into my room or closet, closing the door, and spending some quality time with God in prayer each day.

Tenderly inspired by Matthew 6 & Bill Hybel's Too Busy Not to Pray.

Beth Moore's Praying God's Word

Another great resource... It's a topical prayer guide, and it's seriously great stuff!

{Link back to Naptime Diaries' 1% change this week}

1% change #5: vitamin regimen...

Background: I started taking a generic multivitamin about six years ago... in 2005.

(image source)

I used to buy these at Walmart... for cheap!

Best choice ever.

Immediate benefits:

1. This daily dose seemed to regulate my appetite immediately. (I went from massive portions [+ dessert!] to being content with a  'normal' amount... I attributed that to the suppliments & the fact that my body was not having to take in as much food to get the nutrients it needed.)

2. It also improved my digestion. (aka: The bowels were on the move -regularly. Gross, I know. But a very good thing!)

3. I even think this simple daily vitamin regimen helped me shed a few pounds...

me then... with JILL & Meg :)

Since then I've changed brands and added a few specific vitamins to the list.... and unfortunately gotten away from the regular - daily part.

I just want to get back on track with my regular doses. Once in the morning (with breakfast) and once in the afternoon (between lunch & supper). More complex than before, but not too hard to handle.

(clearly all of these aren't mine, but this is part of our stash:)

The point here is health... and consistency. These 1% changes are really helping me tackle some areas I've been neglecting. Bad habits come easy for some reason. This has been great motivation for me to fight against that.


....Just in case you're wondering, the other changes I've made have been going great...

-walk-time: still loving it. (also nice that I usually walk during my lunch break for work, so the 30 minutes is already there, carved out for me)

-Bible reading: One of the best priority-shifts I've ever made! (I've read three 'books' in 4 weeks... (finished 2 Corinthians this morning!!))

-Being Early (1 & 2): stiiiiiiiilll working on it.... I've made it to on time but early still alludes me! ...for some reason it seems as if it goes against everything in my being!!

Hope to have a happy vitamin-report next week...... Maybe I'll do what my husband does and set an alarm on my phone... good thinking, Love!

Happy changing, friends. ♥
(and... the linking up link :)

1% change #4: Keep keepin' on...

Is it already Wednesday again??

First, if you haven't already, you should totally check out the new Naptime Diaries' post & time-sensitive challenge here. You'll be glad you did.

I've been loving this... Since Jessi started this 1% changes just four weeks ago, I've instituted walk-time, started reading the Bible first-thing in the morning, and even started working on my tardiness...

I'll have to be honest, the first two I thought about, decided on, started, and continued... nice and easy like the name '1% changes' sounds like it should be ... baby steps, right?

Well, this week, that was not the case... I hit a wall with the tardiness issue... I have shown some improvement, but nothing to write home about! ..... So, this week, I'm just going to keep chipping away at my most recent goal of being EARLY. (Like more than two minutes... the goal is at least five.)

No ideas yet for my own time-sensitive challenge..... I'm thinking I might do 'go to bed early for one week'.... sounds simple enough, but I'm kind of afraid of the proverbial wall right now... I think I better just stick to being early for another week and see what happens.

hey, maybe that's it...

My resolve: I will get to work by 7:40 and spend a few minutes reading/journaling until 5 'till. hmmm. sounds like a plan!

Happy 1% changing! ♥

1% change #3: Be Early...

Love this 1% changes Naptime Diaries has come up with...


My recap from weeks 1 & 2:

#1: Walk-time is still going quite well... in fact I'm to the point where if I miss my midday walk, I really miss it! It's been a sweet place for me these past two weeks... This has been much more than a 1% change and I am thankful for that!! (I even got to join my friend-cousins Tuller & Ada -and their mommy Angela- during their walk-time one day this week!!)

#2: Bible Before Blogging (or First & Most) has also been GOOD!!! Most mornings I've been able to read before touching my feet to the floor and that has been awesome! (As you can tell by the strange diptic-ified screen captures, I made it through Romans just this week!! This kind of progress totally fuels me!) <3 So... Week #3 is here and this week my 1% change is to Be Early.

I'm one of those that tends to be late... just like a 5-10-minutes-every-single-time kind of late... To the point of annoying myself.

So, I would like to start thinking and being early --even if just by a minute or two-- however I'll aim for five whole minutes! :)

Happy 1% changing... Definitely check out Naptime Diaries' 1% food changes this week.. such good stuff! Definitely time for me to try some Quinoa!

1% change #2: Bible before blogging...

First of all, in case you were wondering.. 1% change #1 [Walk-time] is going very, very well.. :)

Here's a recap of my 4/5 days worth of walks:

Day 1: cold & rainy- but I was ready...

...and the walk-prayer-time was sweet!

Day 2: Sunny & tender as I rested in the fact that I could keep coming to Him & pouring out my heart to Him! (Seriously refreshing!!)

Day 3: short & sweet.. I seriously had like 8 minutes this day, but I seized them!! And what a reprieve it was from the busyness of the workday!

Day 4: Although the sky threatened a rain-storm, I went for it.. My cry this day had to do with asking the right questions.. (Jill, didn't we just have a conversation about that?! -I think we did because as I walked and thought & prayed, my spirit wrestled to hear what pleased His heart most and what questions would bring about the right/best fruits in my life!!)

Sooo, onto my 1% change #2... Bible Before Blogging!

Clearly, I don't actually blog that often (but I do like to read them often --esp first thing in the morning!)

So this is my metaphor where 'blogging' represents every distracting whim I could pursue (i.e. Blog-reading, Instagram, iPhonography, email, Twitter, cleaning up [as a form of procrastination], reading other books, & even my incessant journaling...)

Essentially the goal here is: Bible First (& Most).

I don't need/want to be able to say I read it all in a year, but I would like to say I read it consistently & more than other material...

This book is just too important to be neglecting or reading flippantly throughout the week.

So now you know.. And I surely wouldn't despise your accountability should you offer it!! :)

What's your 1% change gonna be!?
If you blog it, do link back w/ Naptime Diaries' week 2! ♥ ♥

PS- I have finished Acts and jumped into Romans this morning.. Maybe I should be asking you to pray vs. hold me acctable!;)

1% change #1: walk-time...

Naptime Diaries strikes again...  :)

this time she's talking about making some 1% changes! 
(and blogging about them weekly)

Here's the jist of it:

...one percent changes is a new blog project to encourage and connect other women as they make one percent, baby changes, to slowly and surely walk towards a life of healthiness and walk away from unreasonable expectations of ourselves. The idea is, if we're making tiny and yet still costly changes daily (or weekly! or monthly!) that stick, sooner or later we'll find ourselves healthier women - able to live our lives a bit fuller and a lot less focused on how unhealthy we feel. 

Read more from her first week! 

And, if you're up for it, write your own post(s) and link up!


So here's my itty bitty teeny weeny 1% [physical] change:

Take some walk-time at least three times per week.

that's all.

15-30 minutes 3xs per week (or more)...

I couldn't have better motivation...

from the absolutely gorgeous weather

to the nice environment at work

and the heart-health it promotes

and the prayer or conversation it encourages when I get going.....


so, there you have it. that's my goal.

hope to add another baby-step next week.... ♥