Hi, friends! Welcome back to the all new The Prayerful Mama website and blog. We're kicking off our first "real" content post (besides just the welcome) with my favorite things this month! As working mamas, we have so many things to juggle: carpool, dinner plans, extracurricular activities, prayer, Bible study, healthy choices, housework, homework, work work... the list goes on and on! But having just the right podcast, playlist, book or tool to make the job quicker, more efficient, or more enjoyable can make the biggest difference in our mindset and heartset as we navigate the daily mama to-do list. Here are my Top 6 Favorite Things from January.

Up first is my number one, go-to when I need a pick me up, when I'm driving for work, or after I drop off morning carpool: The Crappy Christian Podcast. Blake does such an amazing job embracing hard topics and talking about them in a real and vulnerable way. Her guests are down-to-earth and so completely inspiring. Plus, Blake's witty rhetoric and love of the Enneagram inspired me to look into the personality typing, which has revolutionized my communication skills and several of my relationships.

Even though the podcast recently celebrated its first birthday in December, I've been listening to it for about the last five months. I spent the first month binge listening to catch up to the live releases. If you're not already subscribed, be sure you go check her out! As a bonus, you can follow the podcast on Instagram @confessionsofacrappychristian and you can get a daily truth bomb dropped into your life if you follow Blake on Instagram @thegirlnamedblake.

Second on the list is my CSB Legacy Notetaking Bible. You can follow the CSB on Instagram @christianstandardbible I buy a new journaling Bible every year to document my readings, study, and lessons learned throughout the year. I have quite the collection that allows me to return to how I read through scripture during different seasons of my life and it's amazing to see how God has been working through all of the ups and downs of life. For the last three years I've used the ESV Single Column Wide Margin Journaling Bible, but this year I made the switch to the CSB Legacy. I liked that this Bible comes with a concordance in the back, that still maintains the wide notetaking margins so I can add word study notes or additional cross references. This year I am using Jason Mayfield's "Tear Up Your Bible in a Year" reading plan. I love that the CSB Legacy has paper durable enough for all of my writing, highlighting, and sticky notes and enough space in the margin for my big handwriting. So far I'm really pleased with the sustainability of the CSB Legacy.

Third in the Favorite Things line-up goes right along with my Bible and that's the Scribe Bible Journal by lyfebooks (@scribebiblejournal). I've always used some sort of journal or notebook during my quiet time, but I had gotten really laissez-faire with my quiet time and decided I needed a bit more structure. I love the Scribe Bible Journal because it gives distinct prompts using the SOAP method for writing scripture, jotting my own observation and interpretation, noting how I can apply the reading to my life, and a space for prayer. Additionally, it has a section of the page devoted to return to the journal in the evening for memory verse practice and gratitude.

The real winning element of this journal, and what makes it unique, is the daily SMART action and the scientific habit-building notes. Before ending each day, there is space to identify what you plan on reading the next day and when, a cue or trigger that is supposed to remind you of the new Bible study habit, and a reward. My reward is usually a cup of coffee, but I like this habit-building strategy because I have a cue (starting the morning load of laundry) and a reward (drinking a cup of coffee). This means that to get to my coffee, I have to complete my Bible study. I don't want it to sound like my Bible study has become legalistic - I'm just trying to find ways to make the desire for Bible study more automatic. It is a spiritual discipline, but one that I always seem to push to the side when I get too busy. With this new habit-forming strategy, I'm finding it easier and easier to get into the word.

Fourth up is another journal but I just couldn't resist! I've had the Cultivate What Matters Write the Word Journals for over a year now and I've been using them sporadically. But I wanted to really hone in on the spiritual discipline of scripture writing. I intentionally chose the journal devoted to prayer and joined the Fresh Faith Challenge to challenge myself to write the word every day in the month of January. Prayer is a big focus of my spiritual goals for 2020, so starting with this particular journal has helped me to find specific verses to record in my prayer binder and to pray over during my prayer time. It's become something so special to my bedtime routine. I put on my pajamas, pour myself a cup of sleepy time tea and then write the word. It has really helped to ground me in my evening prayer and helped me to slow down my day and get into a better rhythm of rest.

The fifth item on my January Favorite Things list is my new mini Keurig (@keurig) and the Dunkin' decaf k-cups (@dunkin). I LOVE coffee - but now that I work from home I feel bad making a whole pot and drinking some of it just to pour out the rest once it's old and stale. Plus, it feels like it takes for - ev - er to brew a fresh pot. So, my mother-in-law gifted me a new Keurig mini for Christmas and I have been in love ever since! I switched to decaf throughout the day to help me sleep easier at night, but I can have fresh coffee (or tea!) ALL DAY! This has completely revolutionized my world, except that I may have developed quite an addiction in the last month. At least it's decaf!

And finally, number six on the list for January is the book Atomic Habits by James Clear. This book was recommended in several areas just as the new year rolled in, so I downloaded it and read it while we were on a work break for the holidays. REVOLUTIONARY! I cannot recommend this book enough! It has given me a fresh look at how we create new habits and how to define success when developing new habits. I already use the Cultivate What Matters Powersheets, so reading this book really helped me to refine my 2020 goals and develop my monthly, weekly, and daily tending lists to reach those goals. James discusses the "aggregation of marginal gains" and the neuroscience behind creating better habits in a tangible, easy to understand way. I have been so inspired to really pay attention to what little things I can do each and every day to work toward my goals.

That's it for January! Do you use any of these things? Are they your favorites too? Be sure to head over to Instagram @theprayerfulmama to continue the conversation about my Top 6 Favorite Things in January.

Joyfully in prayer,

Addie