Rebecca's Joy

2026 is already one month in! I started the month in Detroit, spending time with family. I finished all eight books of the series, The Unsolicited Journals of Emma M. Lion. I also walked my brother and sister-in-laws dog, who is intrigued by squirrels. Before I returned home, I walked the mall with one of my longest friends, Sarah.

On January 6, I celebrated Three Kings Day with our dear friends (more like family), Marta and Pepe. We had a lovely taco dinner followed by stockings. My favorite gift is a Jo Malone body butter. The joy of simple celebrations and people gives me so much comfort and joy. One small joy was consumming a King’s cake, and looking for the plastic baby! Ha! No one found it, so we searched for it and found it.

We started decluttering our house majorly. If you know us, you know we are creatures of comfort: planning for just in case, holding onto things that no longer serve us, and generally being cost effective. It was a hard choice to get rid of some items, but ultimately, we knew it was best for us to do so. The freedom it has brought us has been incredible. I feel lighter and can identify what serves me and what can be let go of. Sure, it hurts sometimes, but it ultimately is giving us a more balanced approach to consumming. I am learning to hold onto things that are beautiful, functional, and of high quality, while choose to let go of the things that are wasteful or just not needed.

If I can admit it, I love to imagine shopping experiences. It is how I waste my time. I can walk into a store and not buy a single thing, yet I am drawn to the allure of buying something because it is beautiful. I fill up my Amazon wish list, peruse Poshmark, and scroll deal apps and websites for things I have missed. Instead, I started to follow social media people who promote living a normal life with frugal means. It has helped me to identify my need for something. It also makes for a fun date night. We challenge ourselves to get rid of things and it is thrilling.

We started to buckle down on our credit card, choosing not to spend money on items we “may or may not” need. This has put much into perspective for me.

I spent the first two weeks of school doing report cards. It was quite exhausting. I have never worked this ahrd to fill out report cards, and was very grateful when it was over. I tried to put myself in the parents shoes and asked myself, would this surprise or shock them? Doing report cards always feels vulnerable and scary. What if they don’t agree with my assessment? What if I choose the wrong comment or grade? Over the years, I have found myself more confident and less of a people pleaser. After all, one can only control their own attitude and actions. I am an optimist, so I choose to believe the best in others, until proven otherwise. That is a whole other side of my struggle. Once I am proven otherwise, it takes a lot for me to accept and move on from that, but I am learning love covers and unforgiveness is a cage that I put myself in, with the door fully open to the freedom of forgiveness.

I went to a focaccia decorating class at Kneader’s. It was a beautiful evening. I got a salad, drink, and decorated a beautiful loaf of focaccia. I called Frank afterwards, and he encouraged me to bring it to his workplace. I barely got in the door, and it was halfway gone. It was a delicious loaf of bread and inspired me to dream of doing some foccacia with my sourdough. I bought bread flour for this very reason.

I switched up my morning routine this month. I was struggling with working out during the first semester. I would wake up, read my Bible, run out of time to work out, get ready for school, and eat breakfast. Now, I wake up, make coffee, work out, get ready, and read my Bible while consumming breakfast. I enjoy this new routine and have been consistent with working out. I am often tired, but tell myself, to just try 10 minutes, and usually can squeeze in 20-30 minutes. I focus on strength training most days and enjoy a YouTube channel, Nourish, Move, Love, sometimes I use Slow with Jo. I am also working on better sleep hygiene and healthy substantial breakfasts. I notice when I eat a hearty breakfast, I have less cravings for snacks and other things throughout the day.

We still have no adoption news for you. We are praying for God’s will to be done, and ultimately desire what He wants from us. Pray that we are found faithful in this season. I am weary of the paperwork and process of waiting. I still hold onto hope.

Love,

Rebecca and Frank