Erin Akin Carroll

For a few years, I sang the praises of a planner that I loved. As life got a little bit more hectic and as I starting exercising my creativity more and more, I started looking for something different in a planner.

At the Influence Conference last year, I met Whitney English. On the first morning of the conference, I ran into her. We knew of each other through blogging and social media, but this was the first time we’d ever met. It was such a great conversation and I learned so much about her in those quick ten minutes, which speaks to who she is and her authenticity.

I started looking on Etsy at her Day Designer and thought a little about making the switch. When I got home from the Influence Conference, I ordered my Day Designer. A bright, shiny gold one!

I had a few months to make the transition before it started with January 1. After just a couple of weeks of using it, I am a true believer.

There are some fantastic goal-setting worksheets in the front of the Day Designer that help you get to the core of who you are and what your passions are, and those are supposed to help guide you in designing your day throughout the year. #rememberthewhitespace

My favorite thing about the Day Designer is the simplicity. The pages are black and white. There is a monthly view, a page for each day of the work week and Saturdays and Sundays share a page. The week days have space to design your day hour by hour, which really helps me with time management. And there is a full column to create a to-do list. I love having my to-do list and my daily schedule in the same place!

I also got Whitney English’s new Year Designer. The Year Designer is not a daily planner. It’s a tool used to take planning and goal-setting to the next level. It is not a tool for scheduling appointments, but helps to discern what to schedule and what to let go.

It  comes in a sturdy white, vinyl binder and holds 200+ pages of luxe, white paper full of worksheets to help you map out your vision and get to the heart of who you are.

So I love it and wanted to tell you all about it. Whitney English has inspired me with her authenticity and her commitment to encouraging others.

And today, Whitney is giving away a Day Designer and a Year Designer to one lucky winner! Yes! It’s true!

Just complete the Rafflecopter below!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

*I was not compensated for this post in any way. 

*I posted about kids, responsibilities and the new year over on Every Day Cheer today.

I heard something on the Today Show last week that mentioned some of the popular songs that were turning 20 years old in 2014. Songs that I still happen to love.

The songs of 1994 were Ace of Base’s “The Sign” and Lisa Loeb’s “Stay (I Missed You)” and Mariah Carey’s “Hero.” (And then that song was sung at every junior pageant or talent show for the next five years.)  I don’t have strong emotional connections to the songs of 1994, though I do really like them. But it’s the songs of 1995 that tug at me.

In 1995, I turned 13 years old. We started the year living in Louisiana, and by the beginning of the summer we had picked up and moved to Indiana. I felt like Indiana was in the middle of no where. I was surrounded by corn fields. There were basketball goals in every driveway. And I didn’t know a soul.

I was a rising 8th grader and almost a teenager that summer. I was an awkward-looking 12 year old. I had a weird bob haircut and I hadn’t really settled into my body yet. I had just said goodbye to all of my friends in the world and rode in our minivan to our new home.

We spent a good 12 hours in the car and listened to a lot of songs on the radio. The music of 1995.

Sitting in my new room in my new house, spending a summer hanging out with my little brother because neither of us had any friends yet, I listened to a lot of radio. And we watched a lot of MTV and VH1.

And I’ll never forget those songs.

Songs like Kiss From a Rose by Seal. And Hook by Blues Traveler.

Waterfalls by TLC and Hold My Hand by Hootie and the Blowfish.

Songs that turned bands into one hit wonders like Roll to Me by Del Amitri. Or As I Lay Me Down by Sophie B. Hawkins. Of course there was You Are Not Alone by Michael Jackson. And Strong Enough by Sheryl Crowe.

Still, to this day, when I hear any of the songs from that year, I am flooded with the memory of emotions. The feelings of loneliness and fear. I felt excitement and incredible anticipation. And dread. And the fear and nerves of starting a new school and trying to make friends.

I can almost smell the way my new school smelled on that first day when I hear any of these songs. I remember what it was like to ride a school bus for the first time and hear those songs on the radio.

It’s unclear whether or not I could name the songs of 1996 or 1997. I don’t even really know what songs were really popular when I finished high school. But the pop culture of 1995 is still so fresh in my memory.

I took a couple of trips back to Louisiana that summer for youth choir tour and church camp. I wrote a lot of letters to my friends and I eagerly checked my mailbox every single day for letters. And I saved every one I received. (This was a couple of years before email was a mainstream thing.)

I cried a lot that summer. There was actually a Tropical Storm Erin that summer, and my parents joked with me that it was really me and I was just crying enough to create a tropical storm.

1995 is a huge mark on the map outline of my life. I learned how to start over. I learned that I can be brave and that my home is where my family is. Because of this, I’m not afraid of the possibility of following my husband where ever God wants to take us. And I’m just as open to the idea of living in this great town for the rest of my life because that’s where my family is.

And that summer, I really, for the first time in my life, remember what it feels like to trust in God that He knows the plans for us and that He is going to take care of us.

My brother and I have talked about the songs of 1995 before and the strong memories we have just from hearing the songs on the radio.

Is there a year of music that brings back strong memories like that for you?

For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.

Jeremiah 29:11

Oh y’all.

I’m not really sure how to write about all of this, so I’m just going to let my fingers fly and see what happens.

I was talking to Todd last night about peace and fear and worry, and doing a little bit of soul-searching. I’m an over-thinker and an over-sharer. I look for meaning in things and try to pick things apart so that I can understand them.

The unknown is really tough for me, and all of the unknowns of the last year sent me into this funk of anxiety and worry. I still struggle with the decision of whether or not we want to try for another baby and when we should do that. Because that loss just knocked me off my feet and left me stunned.

And despite all of the beautiful, God-given blessings around me, I was so stifled last year because I wanted our own space.

The fear of my mom’s cancer and what news each day will bring suffocates me at times, though she is at complete peace with her diagnosis.

The constant need to please others and say yes was overtaking my life.

I couldn’t focus on the blessings I had because I had filled every spare thought in my mind and space in my heart with doing things that just weren’t important to me.

I’ve worked through all of that, mostly. Why I was filling those fears with distractions. I still have those fears, but now they’re just exposed. I can see them and focus on them and deal with them.

And now we’ve returned to our own space. While I was lying on the couch last night in a place between sleep and awake, I told Todd that I was just really comfortable. And I felt so safe. I sleep better at night.

Not because of the new house. It didn’t “solve our problems.” But because of His faithfulness. There’s still pain and there’s still fear, but He hasn’t failed us. And by uncovering the fear and the pain, and allowing myself to cry and face it, I can see His goodness.

I’ve become a bit of a quitter in 2014, and that’s okay for right now. It completely goes against my personality to quit anything. But the space to seek Him first and thank Him for the blessings, and ask Him to calm my fearful heart is what I need most.

Why should I feel discouraged, why should the shadows come,
Why should my heart be lonely, and long for heaven and home,
When Jesus is my portion? My constant friend is He:
His eye is on the sparrow, and I know He watches me;
His eye is on the sparrow, and I know He watches me.

I sing because I’m happy,
I sing because I’m free,
For His eye is on the sparrow,
And I know He watches me.

I have been so inspired by all of the 2014 goal-setting posts I’ve seen. My goals are a little simplified this year. They focus on the relationships in my life and on helping me streamline what is important to me. And creating white space where things aren’t as important to me.

In many of the goals, I’ve noticed a lot of women who are inspired to encourage this year. And I just love this.

I’ve spent a lot of time in the last few years swatting away the doubt.

“Someone else has already written that, so no one wants to read what I have to say.”

“Someone else already has that dream and they’re more creative/ambitious/talented than I am, so they should just do it and I’ll find another dream.”

“My time and resources are too limited, and I can’t change that.”

But I’ve noticed a shift. In myself and in the voices of others. Everyone seems to be shouting, “Go do it! You have a voice. You have talent. You have gifts. Do it!” And seeing that message really does make me want to just go do it!

There is no competition. Comparison can take a hike. Seeing women supporting the dreams of other women without feeling threatened is a major motivator.

I am so thankful that God knows the plans. He knows what He has planned for me and for you. It may be that my dreams actually aren’t part of His plan, but there is also extreme comfort in that. There will be disappointment. And there will be heartache. But there is so much freedom in knowing that my victory comes from Him alone.

So in 2014, I’m seeking Him first. The first thing on my to-do list for each day in 2014 is to seek Him. And then I will be cheering you on as you reach for your dreams, and also watching to see where He takes me with mine. Trying harder and striving will not set me free or make me victorious, but seeking Him will!

Cheers to 2014 and God’s perfect plan for each of us!