Category Archives: lent

Lent 2014 has begun…

Ash Wednesday

 The season of Lent has begun! And call me crazy, but I’m actually excited for it.

Usually this season gets quite lost for me. Between helping my parents with tax season, planning our Aggie Muster, and then other every-day responsibilities… Lent just becomes one thing too many. A couple years ago, I just flat out said I wasn’t giving anything up for Lent. And I’ve often said I’ll do something, and then I don’t even do it on day one.

But this year… this year is different. This year, I’ve made myself a really easy but difficult Lenten promise.

To just do better in general.

Stop finding justification for things that I SHOULD do or not do. As a result my goal is to be healthier. To be more productive. To be kinder. To be more patient.  To be closer to GOD. In a round about way, I really will do everything on my ideas for Lent list… just not to a super strict going to do just one thing perfectly… but try harder on all things.

I know I’ll make my mistakes. I know I’ll fail. But failure doesn’t mean giving up. Failure means you just have to try even harder.

I can do this. I WILL do this. No excuses. No justifications. Just do better.

Oh and do a Lent-long Photo-A-Day. I’m definitely doing that, too.

What have you decided to do?

Gearing up for Lent

Lent ideasI’ve spent a lot of time the last week, contemplating Lent and what to “give up” for it.

Did you know that today is considered “Fat Thursday?” I didn’t until I searched “lent” on Twitter. Which of course sent me to Google. And the only real information I could find on it was from Wikipedia.  According to that page, it is a Polish and German tradition. It’s not to be confused with “Fat Tuesday” but its not all THAT different, as best I could tell. Apparently you’re supposed to eat a lot of donuts today. Which isn’t going to happen for me, despite having a German heritage. But if you partake, rock on and enjoy. Have a cinnamon and sugar covered one for me.

But like I said, I am thinking a lot about Lent and I had a few ideas. Feel free to throw ideas out at me, or take some of these for yourself…

  • Stop eating when I’m full… not when the plate is empty. I used to be GREAT at this back in the day. I need that habit back, and I think a LOT of things would straighten up behind that. I can make a conscious effort to do this through Lent, and hopefully in doing so, turn it into a habit.
  • Give up alcohol. Or at the very least, cut it back dramatically. (I don’t mind a glass of wine here and there, or a beer now and then. But save them for “special occasions” within Lent.)

    116: Maker's

  • Pretend I never found Lactose Intolerance pills. I think some of my sinus issues could be curbed if I cut out milk products for awhile. And I am sure I’d lose at least a few pounds doing so as well. So I am seriously considering cutting out/back my milk product consumption through Lent and see what happens.
  • Photo-A-Day. I’ve skipped doing a Project 365 for this year, but I do miss that challenge of a photo a day. I thought maybe I could up the ante a bit. Four photos every day for Lent. A selfie, the sky/weather, something I am grateful for, and then photographer’s choice. How’s THAT for a challenge to improve some of my skills?  Of course, I can take more than that, but definitely do those four every day.
    Oregon - July 2012
  • No soda.
  • No chocolate.
  • Spend money only on necessities and not on “wants.” (Good thing the new Eli Young Band CD comes out on Fat Tuesday! Oh wait, I could possibly justify that as a necessity. Right? Ha!)
  • Eat out less. Cook at home more.

    120: Fish for dinner

  • Say a rosary at LEAST once a week.
  • Say my prayers every single night of the week… even if it means forcing myself to stay awake to do so.
  • Cut back Facebook time.
  • Take a deep breath and curb the road rage.
  • No procrastinating. (Maybe I can do this one next year…) (Oh I know that’s an old joke, but admit it… you laughed.)
  • Get up earlier.
  • Go to bed earlier.
    261: Wall Lettering
  • Put the cell phone in my purse when at a restaurant instead of on the table.
  • Blog every day. Even if its just the prior day’s photos. (See what I did there? Multitasking.)
  • No cursing. Or at least curse less. Ask myself if the statement REALLY need that extra oomph of point?
  • Exercise more. Don’t just ride the couch all evening. Get up and move around! Even if its just straightening up the room. MOVE.
  • Try new recipes. Healthy recipes.
  • Drink more water.
    Bokeh Fun
  • Cut back on the caffeine.
  • No gossiping.

No, I’m not doing ALL of these. But maybe I can take a bit from here and there on this list. Maybe I should just resolve to “do better” and “make fewer excuses.” No matter what, I want to better myself.

What ideas do you have? What are you planning to do for Lent this year?