Highlights of June

My Annual Weekend Women's Retreat

A Roadtrip with My Husband Dan
to Five National Parks in Utah
Bryce Canyon National Park

Zion National Park

Canyonlands National Park

Arches National Park

Capitol Reef National Park

Two Bridal Showers for My Daughter Erin

Hall of Breakfast Art Exhibition

© Alison Walker 2018.

Weeks Six and Seven (June 18-July 1)Eighteen Weeks of Strong

COURAGE

© Alison Walker 2018.

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Week Five (June 11-17)Eighteen Weeks of Strong

INDOMITABLE

© Alison Walker 2018.
(Click to enlarge.)

Weeks Three and Four (May 28-June 10)Eighteen Weeks of Strong

© Alison Walker 2018.

"Stand ... in holy places, and be not moved" (D&C 87:8).
As I think about standing, I'm reminded of two phrases from hymns I frequently sing at church. Attributed to Robert Keen (ca. 1787) is "How Firm a Foundation," the title of a hymn that reminds me that Jesus is the rock on which I should build and that He is always with me and will provide me the succor I need. In "Guide Us, O Thou Great Jehovah," William Williams (1717-1791) wrote, "We are weak, but thou art able." This helps me to remember that, ultimately, my strength comes from Jesus.

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© Jonathan Kaseda 2018.

Slow and steady wins the race.
Digging a little deeper into this moral from one of Aesop's fables, I see I need to add deliberate to the process:

"Slow and steady definitely do not win the race alone. Slow, steady, and deliberate wins the race, when punctuated by occasional sprints. It’s not enough to make daily, measured progress on your work if it’s not deliberate progress.

— Todd Henry

Source: Accidental Creative

Week Two (May 21-27)Eighteen Weeks of Strong

vig·or·ous
ˈviɡ(ə)rəs/

adjective strong, healthy, and full of energy

Week One (May 14-20)Eighteen Weeks of Strong

CERTAIN
(Click to enlarge.)

© Alison Walker 2018.

Highlights of March and April

March Madness

March for Our Lives

Hamilton

Jordan River Temple Open House

Jonathan's 19th Birthday

Erin's College Graduation

Dewey's 24-Hour Read-a-Thon

February in Review

My Focuses for the Month

Continuing to walk or run as many days as possible.

Sleeping at least seven hours each night.

Identifying coping strategies for my upcoming "busy season" at work.

What I Read

In Print —

Strength and Stillness: A Message for Woman by Patricia T. Holland. (Inspiration for my #OneLittleWord2018 STRONG.)

Piecing Me Together by Renée Watson. (Winner of 2018 Newbery Honor and 2018 Coretta Scott King Award.)

At Home in the World: Reflections on Belonging While Wandering the Globe by Tsh Oxenreider. (The subtitle says it all.)

Not Becoming My Mother: And Other Things She Taught Me Along the Way by Ruth Reichl. (First pick for the reading group my sisters and our mom started this year.)

On My Kindle —

The Radium Girls: The Dark Story of America's Shining Women by Kate Moore. (Read for a Facebook book club I joined.)

Dear Martin by Nic Stone. (Absolutely terrific!)

Via Audio —

A Piece of the World by Christina Baker Kline. (Neighborhood book club pick.)

All the Crooked Saints by Maggie Stiefvater. (Strange but beautiful. I love me some Maggie!)

The Contrite Spirit: How the Temple Helps Us Apply Christ's Atonement by Bruce C. Hafen and Marie K. Hafen. (Several insights I'd like to explore further.)

Finishing nine books in February puts me just about on track for my goal of 104 books in the year.


What I Watched

Two episodes of Sherlock via NetFlix.

Four episodes of The Handmaid's Tale on Hulu.

One movie via NetFlix — Still Alice (2014).

One movie in the theater — The Last Jedi (2017).

Where I Traveled

Los Angeles for a three-day weekend (where I basked in the sunshine and enjoyed the sand between my toes)!


What I Saw

A preview of the Los Angeles production of the new musical Allegiance.

Four BYU Women's Basketball games at the Marriott Center.

Some Other Places I Went

The Salt Lake Temple.

The Draper Temple.

The Los Angeles Temple.

I have a goal to worship in twelve different temples during 2018. That makes three!


What I Read and/or Studied in the Bible

Ecclesiastes and part of Job.

Part of Exodus, with She Reads Truth's Lenten Study "See the Lord's Salvation."

What I Celebrated

My husband Dan's birthday. (Twice! With a third celebration planned for March 2.)

Biggest Expenditure of the Month

Hotel charges in Los Angeles.

What I'm Most Looking Forward to in March

March Madness.

Spring Equinox.

January in Review

My Focuses for the Month

Hydrating.

Walking or running as many days as possible. (Walking or running every day is probably an impossible goal, but I did manage to run/walk a total of 35 miles this month.)

Eating out of the pantry and freezer.

What I Read

In Print —

Little Fires Everywhere by Celeste Ng. (Just as good as everyone has said!)

On My Kindle —

Strong, Brave, Loved by Holley Gerth. (Perfect read for me at the beginning of this year when my One Little Word is Strong!)

Via Audio —

New Boy by Tracy Chevalier. (Compelling re-telling of Othello as part of the Hogarth Shakespeare series.)

The Beekeeper's Apprentice by Laurie R. King. (Book club pick I found to be an entertaining take on Sherlock Holmes.)

Another Brooklyn by Jacqueline Woodson. (Like with Brown Girl Dreaming, I found myself inspired to write some of the stories of my life.)

Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone by J.K. Rowling. (The first of series, which I'm going to re-read this year via audiobook.)

Finishing six books in January puts me a little behind schedule for my goal of 104 books in the year.


What I Watched

One episode of Sherlock via NetFlix.

Two episodes of The Handmaid's Tale on Hulu.

One movie via NetFlix — Cinderella (2015).

One movie on DVD — Wonder Women (2017).

What I Saw

The Broadway touring production of Something Rotten.

BYU Vocal Point in concert.

Hillcrest High School's production of The Farnsworth Invention.

Aida at Hale Centre Theatre.

Bright Star at Pioneer Theatre Company.

Four BYU Women's Basketball games at the Marriott Center.

Some Other Places I Went

The office of my eye doctor (twice) (for some glaucoma testing and to order a pair of eyeglasses).

The office of my dentist.

My hairdresser (where I finally got the short cut I've been thinking about for months).

The Draper Temple (three times).

What I Read and/or Studied in the Bible

The Gospel of Matthew, with She Reads Truth's "Matthew: This is Jesus" Study.

The Books of Genesis and Daniel. (I've printed out the first three weeks of Emily Belle Freeman’s Old Testament Study Guide, which is inspiring me to do some Bible journaling again.)

What I Celebrated

My daughter Erin's 22nd birthday.

Biggest Expenditure of the Month

The portion of my son Jonathan's tuition and fees not covered by his scholarship.

What I'm Most Looking Forward to in February

The beginning of Lent (on February 14).

A weekend trip to Los Angeles with my husband.

One Little Word 2018

My One Little Word for 2018 is STRONG. I'm eager to explore what this word means to me and to see where it takes me this year!

#StrongerEveryDay #BeStrongandOfAGoodCourage #ICanDoHardThings