If it’s not happening, make it smaller. This is my paraphrase of one of the techniques in Jon Acuff’s book Finish, and of course it’s something we talk about constantly at Cultivate (little by little!). Sometimes there’s another reason, but more often than not, if a goal hasn’t happened for more than a month, it’s because it feels too big to get my arms around.

These unfinished goals still matter, though, so as I move into a new month, I’ve bringing them with me – but cutting them in half (or more). Maybe completing a bite-size chunk will motivate me to keep going, or maybe I’ll just complete the one bite. Either way, it’s better than nothing :)

On my calendar this month:
— I am finally making good on June’s Christmas present of an American Girl doll! We’re heading to Charlotte overnight to pick her out and I can’t wait. (Sleeping in the hotel bed with mama and swimming in the hotel pool might end up overshadowing the doll, though, ha!) Which one will she choose?!
— Picking all the strawberries. We’ve already been twice and made this famous strawberry cake last night. Delicious!
— A Bulls game with John’s work!

What I’m loving right now:
— As a lover of the “government action/thriller” genre of movies/television (Enemy of the State, Air Force One, Homeland, 24, you get the drill), season one of Reacher was sufficiently adjacent to be right up my alley. I really didn’t enjoy the Jack Ryan series, but I loved this one.
— We put this coloring book in Shep’s Easter basket and I think it might be magic?! He basically colored it for six hours straight on the drive to Jekyll Island with nary a peep of complaint. (This is not normal.) Highly recommend for any 3-4 year olds in your company!
— As a patriot who loves her country, it’s refreshing to see someone take a nuanced look at what patriotism can be and why it’s important, and that’s what this article (WSJ) did. Still turning it over in my mind several weeks later.

As a reminder, you can find alllll the things I’ve loved over the last few years neatly organized right here!

What I read in April:
— The Power of Fun | I was absolutely primed to love this book (recommended by someone I trust, just seems like my jam), but I found it a bit torturous to get through, and I’m not really sure why. I agree with her thesis, her writing is good, the research is interesting, and the suggestions are solid, but maybe it just felt exhausting to dissect fun in such detail? It felt like it could have been half as long…
— The Midnight Line | After we finished the Reacher TV season, I was curious to read one of the plethora of Reacher books. It’s been a long time since I read something like this – mass market, thriller, not particularly geared toward women? – and it was fun! The writing took a beat to get into, but I read it on vacation and enjoyed it.

My reading list for 2022, if you’d like to follow along!

Revisiting my April goals:
Cull and sort the first six months of 2021 photos
Design and print camping tees for our tenth-anniversary trip
Choose format for EFM book and complete years 2008, 2009, 2010, and 2011 (Absolutely not, ha. I decided to use Blurb but haven’t gotten farther than that.)
Write down 2-3 weeks of “brainless” meal plans
Choose a way to serve at church on Sunday mornings
Make a final kitchen contractor decision and get a start date on the books (Made decision and waiting to hear on start date! Thinking it is going to be July or August based on what they told me when we first met.)
Clean out kitchen cabinets in advance of our kitchen project (Made progress! Still some to go.)
Take our first bike ride as a family of five!

May goals:
— Download Blurb software, get familiar with it, and complete 2008 in book
— Start to memorize 1 Corinthians 13 with June
— Edit Annie in April, Volume 1
— Go on a family bike ride once a week
— Add bookshelves to our loft and Shep’s room
— Add artwork bulletin boards to the loft
— Write out one spring/summer “brainless” meal plan
— Cull and sort January 2021 photos

As a reminder, many of these are drawn from my 2022 goals!

Favorite strawberry recipe? I would love to hear! So far this year we’ve scooped chopped berries on pancakes and brownies in addition to the cake, and next I want to try the shortcake recipe on the back of the Bisquick box :)

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