Closing down 2016 & Opening up 2017

Wow! It’s completely surreal to be where I am right now. January 1, 2016 I spent at the beach celebrating the survival of Christmas music. Obviously, I’m not a huge fan. K-love, you were so good to me this year. Christmas music was kept very minimalistic, and it was MIRACULOUS! A little can go a long way and mean oh so much more. Here I am sitting back in Indiana just a few days after Christmas, and I’m still enjoying looking at my Christmas decorations. 🙌🏾

It really is unbelievable what all can transpire in one, short, little year, even if it seems to be filled with 365 long days. Nobody fully understands the saying, “the days are long, but the years are short” until you become a mother. Some days I’m convinced there are far more awake hours in a day than I can handle. Dang though, the years truly do seem to go by like a freight train. The kids are no longer babies 😢, my husband and I will celebrate our first anniversary in the double digits this year 😳, and quite honestly, time just seems to be slipping away…

I refuse to just watch it go by. While I’ve done my best to live life to the fullest, I want to do it even more in 2017. While I’ve tried to be patient, I want to be far more in 2017. While I’ve made an effort to love and care for others, I want to do it even more in 2017. I’m not always the best version of my myself, and I’m well aware that God covers me daily in his grace, mercy and forgiveness. However, I don’t want to live there. It’s time to live with Him continuously and allow Him to be a part of my everything, so patience and love can flow out as quickly as they pour in.

The end of 2016 brings a peace that I’ve been so desperately longing for. So, I’m determined to carry that peace well into 2017. My major goal is to remain calm despite chaos. I don’t imagine the chaos that is my children will calm anytime soon. However, I’m confident that the best chance of that happening is me remaining calm. I’m going to need a whole lot of Jesus but needing Him is just what I want. 
Rewinding through 2016…

Feeling oh so blessed and thankful. “I will give thanks to you, Lord, with all my heart; I will tell of all your wonderful deeds.” Psalms 9:1

May we all find peace despite our circumstances in 2017 as we allow our Heavenly Father to pave the way. 

😘 Courtney