EP 185: Life Lately at Our House
Inside: Sharing a life update on Bible reading, homemaking, planning, marriage, and what this season looks like around our home.
As we step into a new year, I’ve found myself with a handful of thoughts I wanted to share. Nothing big or formal — just some parts of life we’re settling back into, a few things I’m enjoying, and some areas we’re slowly working through at home.
This is simply a life update. I don’t do these very often, but I hope it feels like sitting down together for a cup of coffee and catching up.
And I want to say this right from the start — I’m not sharing any of this as a “this is how you should do it.” It’s simply what life looks like around our home in this season.
Listen to the Podcast Below (30 minutes) or read part of the episode below (10 minutes):
Bible Reading
The most important area for me as we head into a new year — and I know many of us think about this — is Bible reading.
Doug and I, in years past, read the same Bible reading plan together. We’ve done the Robert Murray M’Cheyne plan and the five-day reading plan in the past. Last year, though, we were on different plans, and we realized we really didn’t like that very much. So this year, we decided to get back on the same plan again.
We’re working through John MacArthur’s three-year Bible reading plan, where you focus on the New Testament and read through the Old Testament in chronological order alongside it. For my Old Testament reading, I’m using The Narrated Bible, and I may take closer to two years to get through it at the pace I’m reading right now.
What we both love is that we’re in the same New Testament text together. It gives us a natural way to talk about what we’re reading — sometimes over dinner, sometimes in small conversations throughout the week.
The plan itself is very simple. You camp in one New Testament book for a month at a time. For longer books, like the Gospels, you break them into three or four months and read the same chapters repeatedly.
I love this approach because it gives me time to slow down and really become familiar with a book of the Bible. I read a commentary alongside it, journal through the book, work on a few memory verses, and I’ve even started writing out the Scripture passages — the entire book, not just selected verses.
Exercising Together
While I’m talking about Doug and me together, we’ve also been working out together for quite a while now, and it’s made it much easier to stay accountable.
When Doug is in town, he works from home, so after our Bible time and breakfast, we’ll head down to the basement and do a weight workout together two to three times a week.
We also try to get walks in throughout the week, and we do have a treadmill at home. Living in Wisconsin, that treadmill definitely gets more use during the winter months.
Afternoon Tea, Reading, and Prayer
One other area we’ve really enjoyed — and I want to say this with the reminder that we are empty nesters, so no comparisons here — is that these things simply work well for our season of life right now.
A few afternoons each week, we take time to make a cup of tea and sit and read a book together. Usually it’s just one chapter at a time. Our current read is Not Old, Not Young, Not Done: Following Jesus in Your 50s and 60s by Christopher Ash. After we read, we spend some time in prayer together.
We’ve really grown to look forward to this time. It’s simple, unhurried, and such a gift to us in this season.
What I’m Reading This Year
I’ve put together a loose list of books I’d like to read in 2026, and instead of writing a separate post about them, I’ve started using Goodreads again to keep track.
I neglected it for several years, so if you happen to look at my page and see that it says I’ve read over fifty books this year — that’s not accurate. I had quite a few books on there that I never marked with an end date, so when I cleaned it up and marked them as read, they all landed in 2026.
I like Goodreads for my own personal use, just to track what I’ve read. In years past, it was a helpful tool for me, and that’s what I’d love it to be again — simple and low pressure.
My reading focus this year will be more theology-focused books and biblical counseling resources. That said, I do have Dracula on my list too. I’ve seen so many reviews about it lately, I’ve never read it, and I keep hearing there are Christian themes woven throughout — so maybe this will finally be the year I read it.
See my all Amazon Booklists
Simplifying and Organizing Our Home
After reading a book about not being old, young, or done, we’ve found ourselves really working through our home to simplify and organize. We’ve already started thinking about having less for our kids to deal with someday when the Lord calls us home.
We’ve been in our current home for over thirty-two years now, and it may not be our final home.
I also love order and not feeling like I’m living in chaos. I’ve learned over the years that it’s much easier to keep up with our home — from cleaning to everyday upkeep — when everything has a place. Order frees up time, makes daily tasks simpler, and helps us know what we already have on hand so we’re not buying doubles or letting things go unused.
I also have to share that Doug is so good at organizing. He really has a better eye for it than I do, and I was grateful to work alongside him in certain rooms when I felt overwhelmed and wasn’t sure how to organize them in a way that was both functional and still looked nice.
One example is our walk-in pantry, which I now just love. Sometimes I’ll walk in, look around, smile… and walk right back out. If you come over, I’ll probably make you take a peek at it.
Weekly Planning That Works for Me
Along with simplifying our home, I’ve also been settling back into some planning routines that have always served me well.
At the start of each week, I do a bit of a brain dump in my reMarkable tablet. It’s basically a digital notebook that feels like writing on paper, and it’s where everything goes first for me — thoughts, tasks, notes.
EP 165: Bringing Order to Your Day: The Benefits of a Brain Dump and a Daily Plan for Homemakers
From there, I look back at my Things 3 list from the week before. Things 3 is a task manager I use to keep track of everything I need to do, and I love how flexible it is. I can move tasks, reschedule them, and see where they realistically fit into my week. Anything that didn’t get done gets carried over and rethought.
Next, I look at our Google Calendar and start putting together what the week actually looks like. Doug and I share a calendar, and we also have a shared family calendar with my father-in-law and our daughter’s family. Once I can see what’s already scheduled, I decide which tasks make the most sense on which days and update those in Things 3.
After that, I finalize everything in my paper planner. I use the Homemaker’s Friend planner — it’s beautiful, simple, affordable, and meets my needs. I keep it on my kitchen desk so I can see my week at a glance without having to open an app all day long.
Each morning, I pull my to-do list for the day from Things 3 and write it out on vertical ruled index cards with checkboxes. That’s a small thing I’ve really enjoyed.
Doug and I also take some time on Sunday afternoons to go over the week together. It’s been very helpful for both of us to know what the week holds and to talk through expectations ahead of time.
EP 136: 10 Things Helping Me to Manage My Days as a Homemaker
Meal Planning Made Simpler
After scheduling, I move right into meal planning. I’m working off an older master meal list, but since it’s just Doug and me now, our meals are much simpler than they used to be.
What I’m really working toward is having a go-to list of quick, easy meals I can pull from without having to think so hard each week. So I’m reworking my master meal list and master grocery list to simplify the whole process.
I also try to shop my pantry, fridge, and freezer first. Keeping those areas organized helps me see what we already have and use it well.
I do use grocery delivery sometimes — especially on busy weeks or when we’re coming home from a trip. I appreciate the convenience, and I’ve noticed I tend to buy only what we actually need since I’m not browsing the store aisles.
Free Weekly Meal Planning PDF
Menu Planning Made Easy Course
A Few Favorite Podcasts
While most of my listening lately has been audiobooks, there are still a handful of podcasts I enjoy on a regular basis.
Many of my favorites come from Fortis Institute. Wretched Radio with Todd Friel is one I’ve listened to for more years than I can count. It’s solidly biblical, thoughtful, and helpful when thinking through current issues, and I love Todd’s humor. His interaction with Jimmy is always fun, and I still miss Tony sometimes.
Another one I often recommend is Transformed with Greg Gifford. It’s rooted in biblical counseling and practical theology and offers encouragement for thinking through real-life struggles with Scripture.
I also enjoy Thrive with Brad Bigney and The Better Way with Libby Glosson.
I’m also grateful for Reagan Rose and his work at Redeeming Productivity. His writing and teaching help Christians think about stewarding time and habits for God’s glory — not just getting more done, but living purposefully.
A Book Update
I’m currently reviewing the final edits of my book, Homemaking Matters: Living for God’s Glory in the Ordinary, and once that’s done, it will move on to galley design. That’s such a sweet and humbling stage of the process.
There are still a few finishing touches ahead — endorsements and the back cover — but the book is now available for pre-order. I’m especially grateful that Susan Heck-Daniel graciously wrote the foreword. That has been such a gift and encouragement to me.
It does feel a little strange to talk about pre-orders when everything isn’t fully finished yet, but that’s part of the publishing journey, and I’m trusting the Lord in it. Thank you so much for praying for me and cheering me on through this process.
Closing Thoughts
As we step into this year, my prayer is that we would hold our plans with open hands and walk faithfully in the small, ordinary places the Lord has given us.
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