DIMPLES DIARY – The First Week of 2023

Happy New Year, my friend! We’ve only just begun, and it’s already flying by. Of course, that could be because it’s been a short week here in the Holloway House, as the Mister was off on Monday, and we ran around a little bit which meant nothing much got done.

Do you do that, too – judge a week by how much you get done?

I don’t know if that’s a good practice because we put so much pressure on ourselves to go, go, go. If dealing with adrenal fatigue has taught me anything, it’s okay and absolutely necessary to rest. Just like we need to honor our hunger, we also need to honor our bodies by recognizing when we need to stop and rest.

However, we have had a busy week, so I’m cutting myself some slack until next week. That’s when my new year will start in earnest. 😉

But here’s how we started out the year, including good food and a super fun activity you can do with your kids, grandkids, or friends.

Oh, and I need your help!

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WHAT I’M OVERTHINKING

Speaking of honoring hunger, did you buy the Losing weight God’s Way book, and are you embarking on the 21-day devotion? I’ve been slow to start it and, of course, have been overthinking the first two days of devotion and the goal-setting exercise.

Do I set a short-term goal, or is it the whole kit and kaboodle?

My long-term goal is a biggie, like 75 or 80 pounds big, and even though I would give myself 18 months or more to lose it, it seems too big to focus on, so I shut down and didn’t do the devotion for a couple of days.

Ugh! Welcome to my overthinker’s mind.

But I’m on day 5 of the devotion and would love to figure out a way to do this alongside you.

WHAT I ATE

Speaking about weight usually leads me to food, and while I’ll share my complete list of what I’m doing to prioritize my health this year in another post, one of those things is to cook cleaner, whole food at home. I already do this, for the most part, but I’ll do it even more.

We started the week with this simple and delicious roast chicken recipe. It turns out picture-perfect, moist, and with the most crispy delicious skin. It’s chicken perfection! Plus, I’ll have shredded chicken for other recipes, and I usually toss the carcass in a freezer bag until I have enough to make bone broth in my Instant Pot.

I cleaned out my pantry and found TONS of canned pumpkin, so I made this Microwave Pumpkin Custard. My custard cups are small so that this single serving will fit into two ramekins. With a little whipped cream on top, we had a decadent, clean dessert two nights in a row.

But before that, we had our six oldest grands overnight on New Year’s Eve. For dinner and as an activity, we let everyone make personal-sized homemade pizzas using homemade pizza dough I made that morning. We let them stretch the dough out and add toppings. It was a challenge for the youngest boys, but they all thought their pizzas were delicious!

GRANDMA WIN

If you’re a grandmother, you know that keeping a pascal of littles occupied is the challenge of any extended stay at grandma’s; hence, turning dinner into an inclusive activity too. 😉

Our oldest grandson brought the game, Do You Really Know Your Family?, and we all played that for a little while.

But then we did an art activity that we first tried on Thanksgiving with our youngest son’s family, and everyone loved it then, and this time was no different. Even the oldest, who is 12 and full of attitude, couldn’t stop talking about how much fun it was and asked to do it again when we got home from church on Sunday.

It’s a bit like a game of “Telephone” except with a drawing. Let’s call it Progressive Art, and it could be played with groups of adults and/or children.

HOW IT WORKS

Your drawing may look nothing like you intended (which was super hard for our one OCD grandson to handle), but the rest thought it was loads of fun. And some even stayed at the table, coloring the pictures afterward.

TRY IT and tell me if your peeps had fun too.

WHAT I WORE

cardigan wearing XL; similar plus size; similar || joggers misses and plus – wearing XL || long sleeve tee wearing XXL || slippers size down || washable kitchen runner

I’ve gone out some this week and wore jeans but didn’t get photos to prove it. 😉 However, comfort is a joy for me and is what I love to wear at home. So I live in joggers or jammies most of the time. I wore this outfit on Thursday, and if I change from slippers to sneakers, I can still wear this out.

WHAT INSPIRED ME

I just finished a YouVersion reading plan called, My Body Image by Pete Briscoe, and it has me thinking of my body more eternally and as a vessel that is mine to steward. Of course, I want to look good, but ultimately it’s a temple of God and one that should reflect the one who inhabits it. Yet, my care of it has been less-than, and it’s beginning to show and feel the effects. In this case, I have to renew my thinking about why making sacrifices and caring for my body better is essential.

Our bodies are incredible, and we need them to function well to help us do the things God has called us to do.

Then God said, “Let us make mankind in our image, in our likeness, so that they may rule over the fish in the sea and the birds in the sky, over the livestock and all the wild animals, and over all the creatures that move along the ground.”

Genesis 1;26

I hope you all have a fantastic week!

Best,