Check-Up Time

Another week finished...another check-up of my progress on my 2012 goals....

1. Finances - good news/bad news week. As I mentioned last week, March was going to be a challenging month in trying to keep our discretionary spending within our budget due to the three family birthdays during the month. On Saturday, my husband and I went birthday present shopping for our twin grandbabies (who are turning ONE on Thursday). I knew after the birthday presents were purchased that we were coming close to the end of our allotted budget. I also knew that we needed to go grocery shopping. Prior to our shopping trip, I had planned menus for meals for the rest of the month of March and had written out our grocery list. Knowing that we would exceed our budget by purchasing the items on the list, I decided to stock up on quite a few items that the store had on sale and that we would need later in the month. Bottom line (bad news)....we didn't make our goal and can't hang our budget sheet on the study wall. Yet, these purchases will help us keep within the budget in the upcoming weeks.

In the good news department, I was able to pay an extra $332 in debt reduction this week!!! That was pretty exciting!!!

2. Spiritual - There is SO MUCH good stuff in Ephesians 2! I could have easily written several more blog posts on this chapter -- Christ is our peace; He "destroyed the barrier, the dividing wall of hostility" between Jews and Gentiles; we are together a "holy temple in the Lord" which is God's dwelling place. Great stuff!!! But, the week is past, and it's time to move onto Ephesians 3.

I did learn my February memory passage before the calendar turned to March! And now, we have a new passage in March to learn. I've just added the passage to the frame of my computer monitor so that I can start to learn it.

I may be taking on a new ministry. I found out Sunday that the person who had committed to update our church's website has decided that the work is more consuming than his schedule allows. This news wasn't a surprise. His progress on the website had come to a standstill several months ago. I had hinted to a few people that I would be willing to help with this ministry if he requested assistance or decided to step aside.

I took a website design class several years ago. I remember the basics but will need to brush away the cobwebs and, since technology has changed a lot since then, learn some new skills if I do take on this ministry. I'm pretty excited and a little nervous/apprehensive about the task of updating the website. I'll keep you informed on whether this is a new ministry for me.

3. Personal - How to make me panic in my college course? Have the professor tell us that she hasn't decided whether or not to give everyone the same grade for our next news story. The news story is a class collaboration -- we were each given a particular piece of the story as our assignment. In class tomorrow, we are supposed to write the story together. I don't want us to be graded the same. What happens if someone doesn't complete his/her portion of the story? I don't want to be held accountable for that student's failure in completing the assignment! YIKES!!! Please grade us individually!!!

We had a test on Chapters 3 & 4 in our last class period. I'm confident that I will be pleased with the grade on the test. I'm not confident that a group grade on our news story will make me as pleased.

Six blogs last week! I suspect that my posts will not be as plentiful this week. We're having LOTS OF FAMILY visiting!!! WHOO!!!HOO!!! Babies and babies and kids and kids!!! Love it!!! :)