Our Life in Lists {Living Intentionally}

After reading this post on Stuff and Nonsense, I started thinking about coming up with a word for the year. It wasn't until a few days later that it hit me - I have a tendency to let life happen. I don't do too many things on purpose. As that thought crossed my mind, I decided that my word for 2013 would be intentional. 

I looked up the definition online and found this: intended; designed; done with design or purpose. The act was intentional, not accidental. There are so many things in life that need to be done that way. I don't mean that everything in life requires careful orchestration, and it certainly doesn't mean that I'll never be spontaneous. It simply means this - I'm going to try to do some important things on purpose. 

Areas where I could be more intentional:

• My walk with the Lord: I need to be more intentional about praying for certain things, sharing my faith, etc. 
• Parenting: I need to plan my responses more carefully rather than reacting impatiently. I followed along with 10 Days of Intentional Parenting a while back and that really helped. I need to look back over my notes.
• Marriage: David and I have a great marriage - I'm happy; he's happy; the kids are happy. Life is great. But that doesn't just happen. We work on our marriage and try to make it better. I want to purposefully work on our marriage on a regular basis rather than when we feel like it needs it. 
• My Tongue: I need to think carefully and consciously about holding my tongue. I should be certain that the things coming from my lips are kind and build people up. I need to follow the advice I've gotten all my life: think before you speak. I need to talk intentionally. 

I used photos of my kids in this post because that's the area I want to focus on the most (and who wants to read a blog post without photos?). What I do with these girls matters for a lifetime. Their lifetimes. May I allow the Lord to help me to be an intentional parent. In every decision I make as a mom, I try to consider how it will impact my kids at 5, 10, and so on. I know that the choices I make now and the habits I help them create - good or bad - will have an effect on them in the future. I realize a couple bad mommy moments aren't going to cause them to flunk high school and rob banks, but I do know that my decisions now matter.