Ever have one of those times when you don’t think you have anything worth blogging about? Ever feel like “Eh” when you think about posting? I have lately, and I’m blaming it all on the weather, which continues to be cold, cold, cold. It’s thirty-two degrees outside right now, and I’m half convinced that it will never warm up again. Ever. It’s hard to be motivated to do much of anything when you’re sitting around freezing, right?

Now that I’ve said that, I have to tell you about Wes’s great idea. We’ve been talking about running again once the weather warms up. (Which it has NOT.) Wes randomly decided this weekend that now was the time to start, and we agreed that we’d ease ourselves into it with just a five minute run/twenty-five minute walk. I was fairly certain that I was going to have a hard time doing even that since we’ve been on such a long hiatus. Surprisingly enough, though, I was able to run a full twenty minutes without feeling too worn out. Wes was also able to go longer than expected, so the next day, when it was TWENTY DEGREES COOLER, we, of course, had to build on our time from the day before. And let me tell you something — it wasn’t as much fun the second time, with the freezing mist hitting me from every angle. I’m encouraged, though, to see that it’s not going to be impossible to build back up to a daily 5K, even in adverse weather conditions. Woo!

We had a GREAT surprise yesterday at church when Emma used the nursery potty. Oh, y’all have no idea what a big accomplishment this is. Her first visit to the church after we began potty training included a series of meltdowns over the “scawwy poddy” and Emmy’s insistence that “I gonna fall IN, Mommy!” Yesterday, Ms. Maggie was able to convince Em to get on (while she clutched her for dear life!), she did her business, and that little victory inspired the confidence it took to do it THREE more times over the course of the day. WOO! She was already having success at home, but this out-and-about success has convinced me that she’s actually getting it. We haven’t had any wet accidents in a week, and today, Emma has been telling me when she needs to go, instead of me constantly suggesting that she go and try. She’s not there yet, but she’s making definite strides towards being potty trained. I’ll probably have to buy another package or two of Pull Ups in the weeks ahead for nightimes, but I AM OFFICIALLY DONE WITH DIAPERS. Can I say that just one more time? I AM OFFICIALLY DONE WITH DIAPERS! And I’m not a bit sad about it like I thought I might be. Woo!

I’m still working on my novel. Not the one I did for NaNoWriMo, but the new and improved, going to be so easy to churn out fabulous fiction, novel that I started in December. Guess what, y’all? Writing a novel is harder than it looks. I keep writing and writing and writing and just stop sometimes and ask myself, “Is this any good at all?” There are days when it seems nearly impossible to write anything of quality, and I’ve been pretty discouraged that my goal of writing something I could be proud of is a loftier goal than I envisioned. But at least I’m still trying. And that’s worth something, right? I’m going to keep at it…

Speaking of goals, I’ve brushed the dog’s teeth three days in a row. Yes, that was one of my New Year’s resolutions — better canine hygiene for BC, thus saving us money on veterinarian dental bills. I haven’t been so good at keeping that resolution, but now that I’m starting to be consistent, I’ve noticed that BC is less opposed to me sticking a toothbrush in her mouth. (Actually, she’s still opposed to it. But she’s losing the will to fight me and growl at me under her breath while I brush, brush, brush that gingivitis away.)

Wes preached a great sermon yesterday at church about the importance of the husband’s spiritual leadership in the home. I’ve heard him preach on this topic before, but it was particularly refreshing yesterday to look at our lives and see the ways that Wes leads our family. I think it’s easy for men to leave spiritual responsibilities up to their wives, especially if they’re the ones who are providing financially and are kept more than busy with work outside of the home. But I appreciate that Wes, even as I’m with the girls all the time and bear most of the responsibility of caring for their daily needs, takes responsibility for what direction we’re all heading spiritually and what the girls are learning about God. It’s one thing to be a man who takes his family to church every time the doors are open, but it makes absolutely no difference in who his children eventually become unless he’s walking with Christ in the home and leading his family to walk with Him as well. It scares me to look at how many young, church raised adults live lives contrary to the Gospel, and I can only conclude that it’s because at some point, the church took spiritual leadership out of the hands of parents by establishing people-pleasing programs that outsourced the work. I love the work we do in our church’s youth ministry, but we are far, far, FAR less effective in teaching Biblical principles and concepts than Christ-honoring parents who live and teach their children how to walk with Christ. I’m challenged to remember this with my own children and am very, VERY thankful for a husband who takes his job as spiritual leader very seriously. I think of how the girls sponge up everything we say and do and feel such a responsibility to live a life that honors God as fully as possible so that my girls will want to do the same.

Well, I didn’t mean to write all of that, but it’s something we’ve been thinking on for quite a while. If I can get a link to Wes’s sermon (I think they record them), I’ll post it. It’s worth hearing, even if you’ve heard it before! Edited to add: Here is the link. It’s the 2-21-10 sermon.)

And with that, it’s lunchtime, and I’ve got a couple of hungry alligators on my hands. Oh, excuse me — a mommy alligator and Princess Belle. Ana tried to convince Emma to be the baby alligator, but she was having none of it. I’m fairly certain that before this day is over, Princess Belle is going to be attacked in some form or fashion by the mommy alligator. When I break that skirmish up, I know I’ll hear, “But that’s what alligators DO, Mommy!” Better think up a good response to that now, before it happens. That will be my goal for the next hour…

How about you? What are some goals you’re working on?