Steadfast: February Reflection

Photo Credit: Bree Souza Photography

February really seemed to fly by. I know it’s a short month, but it felt really short. I’m sure that probably had something to do with the fact that I went to Disney World at the beginning of the month, but still!

Now that it’s suddenly March, I realized I need to do my Steadfast reflection for the month of February! If you missed it, I chose “Steadfast” as my word of the year.

Steadfast: Not changing or losing purpose, unwavering; firm in belief and determination.

In recent years (and my whole life, to be honest) I have struggled with being consistent. I like to do what feels good in the moment, rather than sticking to plans or goals. It’s kind of funny because I absolutely love making plans, I just don’t like sticking to them nearly as much.

This year, I am challenging myself to be more steadfast. In order to stick to that, I am reflecting on both the failures and successes of my steadfast journey each month. My hope is that by being vulnerable with my failures, you will realize that it’s possible to fail and get back up and keep going….and that by sharing my success you will realize that it’s totally possible to grow!

Steadfast---February

This month was a little different than January because my schedule was thrown way off kilter by our Disney trip. (In a good way, of course!)

However, whenever my schedule is interrupted like that, it usually takes me a while to get back on track, per se. This month was no exception. However, I still had several successes that are worth noting (as well as a few areas where I still need growth).

Success!

--Spiritual Disciplines--

One thing I’m really thankful for this month is the fact that I have been way more consistent with reading my bible and praying! It has been really refreshing for my spiritual life. Don’t read this wrong and think I’m saying it’s been perfect and I haven’t missed a day. That’s not the case at all. Actually, I’m still pretty far away from how consistent I would like to be in this area, but I have been way more consistent in February than I have been in a while.

I found myself praying a lot more on the way to work and that translated into my remembering to read my bible and actually wanting to read it more. It also helps that the women in my house church are all going through the gospels together using the Youversion app. We can comment on what we read and interact with one another through the app on a daily basis, which really helps me stay more consistent.

I’m definitely behind on the plan, but instead of trying to make up for the days I missed, I decided I would just pick up where we are supposed to be. That way I can interact with the other women in my group and not feel the weight of how behind I got in January.

--Creative Endeavors--

Another area that I have stayed really consistent is with my blog! Even though things have gotten busy, I have still maintained my posting schedule. I just really enjoy writing as a way of expressing myself, and I know it is something I need to make time for. I’m not going to pretend that I haven’t written some last minute posts (ahem...this one...ahem), but the point is that I’m still showing up for myself by posting each week. One of my biggest fears with starting my blog this past September was that I’d just give up and quit posting, but I have proven myself wrong! I’m happy to be wrong in this case :)

--BONUS: Work--

To be honest, I was in a little bit of a rut at work for a while. I’m an ESL teacher, which is honestly an amazing job. I get to work with students from all over the world and teach them English in fun, engaging ways. At the start of January, however, I felt like I had no fun or creative lessons for my students, and I was coasting through the semester a bit. I decided that I needed to be consistent in that as well, so I started planning further in advance so that I had more time to create some fun lessons. It has really helped me not only have more fun with my students, but enjoy my job more!

Still Growing...

--Exercise & Eating Healthy--

Last month, I did really well in this category, but February was rough. When we went to Disney, we walked so much that my body was actually sore when we got back. I felt like I needed a few days to recover before I started back to my exercise routine. Those few days turned into a week, and then that week turned into, well, a month. It’s not that I’m not doing anything physical, but I haven’t set aside time purely for exercise.

I also felt like all I did this month was clean my house. You know how when you go on a trip it feels like you are unpacking for a month? Oh, no? Just me? Well, that’s how it goes in our house. Not only do you have to unpack, but you usually have a bunch of laundry to do and a list of chores that didn’t get done before you left.

Because of this, exercise was definitely not a priority. I need to get back in the swing of things because I was so consistent in the months before our trip. It definitely felt good to be consistent and it really wasn’t that hard to set aside 20 minutes 5 times a week to workout. However, I think for March I’m going to aim for 30 minutes 3x a week just to ease myself back in.

Nick & I also struggled with sticking to a meal plan this month. We kept just saying “treat yourself” for basically no reason whatsoever. (Any Parks & Rec fans out there?) We haven’t been planning very much, so we are left just choosing what to eat very last minute. That’s never good for us! We can talk ourselves into ordering a pizza very easily in the Clark household.

I think a lot of these choices go back to how much sleep I'm getting. I really need to get to bed earlier. When I’m tired, I’m more likely to eat junk food and way less likely to exercise. I find it SO hard to go to bed early though. I am just naturally a night owl, but this night owl has to leave for work no later than 6:45 a.m. This month I want to focus on getting at least 7 hours of sleep each night so that I can make better choices during the day!

To be honest, I’m not feeling very excited about pushing forward in this area, but that’s the whole point...I need to keep going even when I don’t feel like it. Can I be honest? I really don’t feel like it, but I hope that when I complete my reflection at the end of March that I can show some growth in this category!

-Katie

PS: How are you doing with your goals for 2020? Tell me in the comments!