Intentionality: My 2017 Plan

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Goal Setting. I've always been someone who loves taking time sit down, dream, write, and make a plan to get things done. But there's always been one problem with all that, actually doing it. 

While it looks pretty on paper and I might stick with it for a month maybe even two, it eventually trails off. So this year, I wanted to try something different with goals. And by definition of "goals" these probably won't even qualify, so let's call them something else—my plan for living on purpose.

First off, I highly recommend Lara Casey's blog on goal setting. You may have seen her powersheets on Instagram or book, Making it Happen. I have wanted to do her powersheets for a couple years now, but they are always sold out once I get around to spending my Christmas money. But this year she did a 4 part blog series that helps you work through some of the things she discusses in her book and powersheets. 

So after working through her blog series there were a few things that stood out. The first is that I have one word that came to mind for 2017. I've heard of people choosing a word for the year before, but I never understood how that word actually changed anything. I think this is where Casey's blog series really puts it all together. Instead of just claiming a word I now see how that word needs to play out in certain areas of my life. And I'm laying it all out on the blog so that through my vulnerability I might have some accountability—even if it's only with myself!

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So what's my word?

INTENTIONALITY.

And I want to be intentional in these four areas:

1. Community

2. Health

3. Spirituality

4. Creativity

So what does that mean exactly? Yes, Jess, it looks great when you write out with numbers and have a pretty graphic, but how do you really go about making change? Glad you asked. :)

Let's look at each one of the areas and I'll break down my plan for you. 

1. Community - Since we live in Africa it's imperative that we form community among our team, nationals, and find ways to keep up with friendships back home. I have never been really good at keeping up with people who I don't see on a daily basis, and I hate this. Because I mean, these people have been with my as I stood at the altar promising to love my husband through it all. These are the friends who have witnessed good times and bad times, and when more good times and bad times come, I want to have them standing with again. But I also need a community of people to love in person, here in Africa. So that means being intentional about inviting people over, asking how they are doing, and getting out of my comfort zone and meeting new people with the intention to love. 

2. Health - After having a baby, I'm officially in the worst health of my life. Understand me, I don't just mean weight, though that plays a big part. I have no muscle tone, food allergies, thyroid problems, and too many cravings. I want to get back to the person who use to crave work-outs, eat healthy, and fit into something other than maternity pants. :) But for real, as I was working through this plan on paper, something occurred to me. And while this may seem like a no-brainer to others, it really hit home for me the first time. "I have to be intentional about my health, it's not something that will just happen."

I mean duh, right? But for some reason I have been living as if getting healthy will just happen! But it's more than just eating right and exercising, it's getting to the heart of the matter. So that's why I'm reading Made To Crave. I want to get to the heart of cravings, and not be defined by a number on the scale, but instead by how my heart reacts. Guys, if this is something that you struggle with or something you have down as a goal for 2017, please, please read this book! That's all.

So as part of my intention for health, I plan to work on my heart, eat less sugars and bread and eat more veggies and water, and exercise 5 times a week. While I'm still working on the right eating plan for my family and for living in Africa, we have already made some changes in our daily diets. And since I use to blog about my allergy-free diet I'm restarting the blog series, but tailoring it to life in Africa. I plan to share easy to make recipes that are both healthy and quick, because when you have a newborn and are cooking in a kitchen without a/c in one of the hottest places on earth, you better believe it's not going to take more than 30 minutes!

3. Spirituality - In short, I want to be intentional with my own daily devotional time, and I want to be intentional about teaching our baby boy to love Jesus well. On that note, if anyone has some good book recommendations for teaching your kids, please send them my way! As for what my daily quiet time looks like, I have found that 40 minutes of pumping breast milk in the morning is a great time to pull out my Jesus Calling Journal Book and Journaling Bible. I love working through one days' devotion by reading it and then answering the questions and writing out a prayer in the space provided. Afterwards, I look up the 2-3 verses provided and read them in the journal Bible and pick out a part of the passage that stands out to me and doodle it. Because I'm a kinetic learning, this has been one of the most successful ways for me to really hear and understand God's word. I just wish I had discovered 2o+ years ago!

4. Creativity - As most people know I am a photographer. I love photographing people, whether it's a newly engaged couple or a mom in Africa loving on her children. But these things don't happen every day, and I've come to learn that if I'm not picking up my camera more than when I just have the opportunity that I'm not really pushing myself creatively. So I'm doing something that I've done before, a 365 challenge. I'll be posting a photo everyday following along with the prompts from #thebethadillychallenge. When I did this in 2015 I could see a huge difference in my posts from January to December and how much I had grown in trying to capture a specific shot. I hope that it will also challenge me in thinking outside the box. 

My other way to intentionally nurture my creativity is by blogging. I mean, it may just be my fam reading these things (hi, mom) but I don't care. I've decided that blogging isn't really about who reads it, but that I get my thoughts down on paper. It allows me to "feel" like I have an audience for my writings and photography, therefore I put thought and effort into what I say. It's an accountability of sorts. So if you do happen to read the blog, you can look forward to see a few things habitually showing up on the blog this year: a monthly health post, a monthly refresh my soul post (like this one), updates on baby boy Ezra and life in Africa, and my most passionate blogs: stories of lives changed here in Africa. 

So there you have it, my plan of intent for 2017. I would LOVE to hear from each of you on what your goals, word, or hopes and dreams are for 2017. I think the best way we can actually try to work on these things is by telling others and not keeping it to ourselves. 

How to Stay Healthy When Traveling Overseas

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If you've ever taken an international trip outside of western culture then you've probably experienced the fun of the little critters that rumble in the belly. And when you are only in said country for so long there's nothing worse than having to miss out on a few days by spending them near a bathroom. Sadly, I've been there way to many times. If Sarah, Steve, Andrew, and Roberto are reading this all I have to say is . . . remember Guatemala? There's nothing worse than sticking your head out of a car window and letting it go... #classy 

That said, I've learned quite a few tricks over the years on how to keep yourself healthy and thriving when in a new food culture. Not only that I've also learned the hard way things NOT to do that will keep you healthy when you return. So let's get started!

1. DRINK LOTS OF FILTERED WATER - I'm going to assume that most of you aren't first-timers to traveling overseas and so it goes without saying that you never drink the tap water, including when you brush your teeth. But what I constantly see is when people finally take a break and eat at a restaurant, it seems everyone always orders Coke. Now I totally get it. It's made with real cane sugar and is void of that nasty high fructose corn syrup, but that doesn't mean it's all good. And while you've had a long day and totally deserve that Coke, I encourage you to drink two waters for every soda. There's nothing worse to your gut than tons of sugar. Not only that but if your system is fighting off bugs then sugar only weakens your immune system. So if you feel yourself starting to rumble, go against all instincts in reaching for that Sprite, and instead opt for sparkling water with a lime or lemon quarter or plain 'ol bottled water. Speaking of lemon, that brings me to my next point.

2. ADD LEMON TO YOUR WATER. In fact, don't just add lemon, but carry with you a 100% pure-grade essential oil (Young Living) and put in one drop of lemon oil in your water. Take note that lemon oil will eat through plastic so be sure to invest in a glass bottle before leaving. I love this one! Plus it comes in several different sizes and tops. I'm a straw gal myself. Why lemon you ask, well, it not only has antioxidant properties but it aids in cleaning out the nasty stuff, keeping your ph balanced, and making sure you rid your colon and liver of all the crap we put in it. Plus if you get a sore throat just add a drop to hot water along with local honey, it works wonders!

3. TAKE A DAILY PROBIOTIC. All day, every day I will preach against antibiotics, but if you have to take them then make sure you are also consuming a probiotic. And it's probably a good idea to just go ahead and take that little guy whether you have antibiotic or not. It's amazing at regulating gut health and will help keep you strong. If you are looking for a good probiotic that you don't have to refrigerate then I suggest Young Living's PB Assist.

4. ANTIBIOTIC ALTERNATIVES. Anytime I had a stomach ache I use to down an antibiotic. I knew it was a little critter and it had to die. I've had my fair share of parasites and giardia, so I got pretty good at recognizing the symptoms. The problem was I didn't replenish my gut flora with probiotics and I took way too many antibiotics. If you are in a place that has malaria and are prescribed medication, make sure you understand what it is. I was taking Doxycycline for malaria prevention as well as cippro when I felt icky and then a stronger antibiotic when I would show positive signs of parasites. But no one ever told me to be careful and use probiotics or that I had an alternative. And now I'm paying for it. I took so many antibiotics that I soon developed candida in the gut. This led to IBS, weight gain, food allergies, unbelievable sugar cravings, thyroid imbalance, tiredness, and more. Now I'm not saying that you will get this from one dose of antibiotics, but if you are a frequent traveler and find yourself taking them more than once in a year then you might want to be careful. Okay so what can you do instead.

I am a HUGE fan of essential oils. Here are a few of my favorites for traveling abroad:

- For tummy troubles like pain, loose bowels, vomiting, etc use Di-Gize oil. If you can't do pills then invest in the oil. While the oil is great, I've found more relief with the pill as it's going straight to the problem area. Another good option to help with pain is Peppermint Essential Oil. This stuff is also good for headaches, adding to tea or hot water, and a ton of other things.

- To kill parasites and other bugaboos use the ParaFree Softgels. This stuff is gold. Seriously. I used it for helping me get over my Candida and it worked better than the anti-fungals my doctor subscribed. (shhh, don't tell) That said, it's packed with essential oils like Oregano, Peppermint, Melaleuca (Tee Tree), Thyme, Lemongrass, and Lemon. And it's that Oregano that will kill all things! You take one to three pill for ten days. If you start out taking three pills you will notice some cramping, that's your body detoxing what's inside it. So I recommend building up. Start with one and see if you can handle more. 

- Now some of you may just be blessed with the opposite of loose bowels. I say blessed because I've never been on this end and things are always greener on the other side. ;) But if you are looking for something to help balance you out as well as detox some of the crap living inside you (crap as in not quite parasites, but still needs to go) then I highly recommend Detoxzyme. 

Okay those are my tips for keeping your gut in check while abroad. I'd love to hear what things you guys use to keep healthy? 

To purchase any of the Young Living items shop here & enter this number: 2301525

EDIT: So Lily from Balance Me Beautiful reached out to me to tell me about her great website full of amazing information on essential oils. If you are interested in oils I highly recommend reading her post: http://www.balancemebeautiful.com/types-of-essential-oils-benefits/

It's a great intro into 9 popular oils. If you check it out, be sure and leave her some love! 

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Gettin' Healthy: The Color Run

If you haven't been around us lately then you might know that we are on a mission to get healthy. After lots of research and a little experimenting we've decided that it's time to get rid of refined flours and sugars. But we've also made a commitment to increase our exercise regimen. We were both athletes in high school and college so this is something that should be that hard...ha. Anyways, I decided to sign up for The Color Run with a few friends from work. And thanks to the LifeProof case for iPhone I was able to document the fun!