Deanna Doss Shrodes

Have you given up on making new year's resolutions because you never follow through on them? Recently I blogged abou t how I accomplished all but one of my new year's resolutions for 2013.  And they weren't all easy peasy ones. I promise. If you missed the post and want to learn about how I did it and how you can do it too, go here.  I made a decision to do something else this year that I've never done before. I'm not striving to come up with totally new goals this year. For some reason I've always felt pressed to do that. I always felt like a new year called for brand new goals. No one else made me feel pressure to do that -- it was simply my own internal squeeze that I felt to go that direction. This year, my goal is to go to the next level with my resolutions from  last year.  I met my goals. But meeting them, and exceeding them are two different things. Does this mean I'm going soft on goals, and taking it easy this year? No. I'm r...

Doing things well can feel unreachable at times. Take marriage, for instance -- you can have the goal of being an excellent wife but get overwhelmed when you read things like Proverbs 31. So you think, "This is impossible. I'll never attain this."   I want to be a great wife. A great Mom. A great pastor. A great leader. A great writer. A great speaker. A great coach. Most of all I want to be a great friend of God. Doing any of those things with excellence does seem a daunting prospect. Maybe you feel the same about whatever it is you're setting out to do. How about finding one way every day to make a difference? In my marriage, I can't do it all in a day but it is workable for me to find a way to show my husband love and care in at least one way every day. The way differs depending on the day and season but I can manage one way each day. How about you? Does one way every day seem workable?  I'm getting kind of giddy thinking about the ...

When I sat down to blog tonight I thought, "this is a hodge podge of stuff that doesn't really go together...it's all over the place." But truthfully? That's what my life is like some days. It's a crazy conglomeration -- as I JUGGLE from church to home to job coaching to writing to drinking dark roast coffee and dreaming about changing the world.  There's still a lot to get ready for Easter at the church as well as in our home.  Larry and I still do Easter baskets for ALL of our kids. (Yes even the 22 and 23 year old). I tell him we will do this FOR LIFE and every year he gives me a lecture on the ridiculousness of doing Easter baskets for grown kids. This will be interesting when next year he will give me a lecture on the ridiculousness of doing a basket for a 23, 24 and 16 year old. Ha ha! Shhhhhh! What Larry doesn't know won't hurt him. Every year I can make him think this is the last year we're doing baskets. In other news:

This month I'm doing the "30 Days of Thanksgiving" on Facebook ~ giving thanks for something each day. There are so many things I'm thankful for that are not going to make that list. It's hard to limit to 30!  You can't have too much thanks. I thought I'd feature a few things today that won't make the list of 30 but I'm am crazy about them nonetheless, so here goes...  1) I'm thankful for my Keurig   Nope, the novelty hasn't worn off. Even after a year! Some people said it would, but it didn't. I'm still in mad love with this machine every morning. Simply smitten. My favorites are Caribou and Newman's Own Extra Bold. The Keurig is one of those things that now that I've had one, I don't know how I'd not have one again. Sort of like a microwave. But better.   2) I'm thankful for my Kindle. I love the fact that we can now read books instantly that we hear about and have interest i...

Today is Fun Friday, which means...it's my day off! I love Fridays. Adore them. Crave them. What could be better than a day to do what we want to do? (To have more time to do what you want to do, vs. what you have to do, go here , where I'm helping lots of people.) I am blogging today at Lost Daughters , one of my favorite places to be. I enjoy blogging there on occasion when I get brave enough to do so. :) More than that, I enjoy the sisterhood I've found there, with my adult adoptee friends who understand on a level that is impossible for others. Today at Lost Daughters, I'm sharing specifically about what I'm doing to help orphans. Here's my post, if you're interested in following me there today. Have a most blessed day! Much love,  

Where do you start when the whole house is messy? Mine has been out of sorts the past few weeks with being out of town for three conferences and lots of other stuff in between. I've been juggling the best I can but still have some catching up to do. Yesterday I needed to start somewhere and it was rather overwhelming but the choice was easy. I started on mine and Larry's room and bathroom first.  So often people prioritize the public areas that everyone sees first. (Entry way, living room, etc.) It makes sense. We all want the parts that everyone sees to look great. I have a bit of a different take on things though. I feel like there's nothing more important than the place where Larry and I spend time privately. It's that place that makes all the public things possible for us. Not just today but for the long haul. And make no mistake, we're in it for the long haul.  

Are you stuck doing stuff you hate, and there's no way out right now? Today I want to speak a word of life to you about that. In my book, JUGGLE , I say:  "Some things are not a matter of dreams and goals - they are necessities. Rare to almost non-existent is the person who has the luxury of waking up each day and exclusively doing the things they dream of doing... I've also observed that many people appear to be so overwhelmed by their have-to-do's, they seldom get to their want-to-do's." There have been seasons in my life, ministry and career where I have been forced to do things I didn't want to do. Of course I could have said no. Nobody was holding a gun to my head. But if I said no I probably would have ended up unemployed, homeless, bankrupt, divorced, or well...you get the picture.  During the seasons of bearing heavy loads of things I didn't expect but were required, it has angered me when well meaning people have suggested ...

I love this photo. I believe a little silliness (or sometimes a lot) is good for all of us. Good clean practical jokes are all in fun as long as we don't cause any harm or undue stress. Tonight we had a minister's meeting and went out to eat together and we laughed and laughed and it was just so good. We went to one of my favorite spots, The Gathering Place , in Tampa. Our presbyter put Larry in charge of where our meeting would be tonight and this was the spot he chose. It's right around the corner from our church and has amazing soup, pizza and so much more. They make everything there with ingredients from local farms and produce stands. I needed the conversation.  I'm so grateful for opportunities to put aside the serious issues we face and let our hair down for a while. We did talk shop for a few minutes, and discussed politics for a moment or two, but by and large we just laughed and had fun. Fun is good. Have some! Fun is one of the most important t...

Today I'm blogging at the Pastoring Partners Network on the subject, "Where Can A Lonely Pastor's Wife Go?"  It's no secret, I'm a lih-tle crazzzzzy about pastors' wives, cause I am one, and I know the road they walk. It's my desire to be an encouragement and a blessing to those who serve. If you're among this fantastic group of human beings on the planet, check out my post there today. Today is my day off and I'm taking it. There are so many projects on the burner right now, but I need this time to rest. Tomorrow's another day to JUGGLE! Speaking of JUGGLE ... (did you think you were going to get away with a post without me referencing JUGGLE ?) remember that I'm giving a coaching package away. All you have to do is spread the word about JUGGLE -- a great resource to help you manage your time and change your life! I'm humbled and amazed at how God is using JUGGLE to help others. It all happens by word of mouth. When I...

I've always been a worker. I'll attack any job with the tenacity of a bulldog. Here I am pictured above, holding a pig's head. What in tarnation am I doing with a pigs head? As you can see in the photo I'm wearing gloves. I was picking an entire roasted pig that was cooked for a church event, and then deboning it so people could eat it for our latin festival. I didn't mind this job at all. I've never been afraid of any kind of work. I'm as comfortable picking a pig as I am preaching and praying. Some friends of mine used to tease that they think I came out of the womb with a briefcase in one hand and a microphone in the other. I'd say, add a dishrag or a mop to that and it might be about right. I work on cleaning my house or doing odd jobs at the church as much as anything else. Being a worker bee to the 'nth degree, it's sometimes hard for me to not place all my trust in my ability to work, instead of looking to God. I'll be honest...

Right now we're waiting on hurricane Isaac to get to Tampa. Reports keep conflicting one another and I'm not sure whether he's going to arrive tonight or tomorrow. Either way, I'm not worried. I've been through this before, and I have trust in the Lord. Even if the worst would happen, I still have trust in the Lord. We have enough food to make it through the storm, and we've got the sandbags laid out, and we're prepared to be shut in for a while. Ultimately even with all that ~ I trust.  I've been through so many storms in life. Bad storms. I've been through way worse emotional storms than tropical ones. I am thinking compared to everything else I've weathered, Isaac should be a piece of cake. And, we do appreciate your prayers. By the way, JUGGLE is at #11 today in it's category on Amazon! This weekend it's fluctuated between 8 to 14. Thanks to my friends who are spreading the word and keeping it up there. I am still pinch...

How exactly do books become popular and make the best sellers list?  It's so easy -- much easier than you might think. I want to show you the perfect example of how this works. The following is an example of someone who did this just this morning and is now entered into the JUGGLE job coaching drawing.  Friends read books because friends recommend them. And then, they pass the recommendation on to others. This is how it works!  I need your help to make it possible for JUGGLE to help a lot of people, and in the process you might just win a coaching package!  Thanks for your continued support, helping me to get the word out about 10 principles that, when followed, can greatly change people's lives. Much love,  

Okay my friends, this is big! I'm personally offering a prize of a coaching package which will include the following: 1 Hour Career Direction Consultation 1 Hour Resume Consultation/Rewrite  This package is valued at $300.  The winner can also choose to modify the package, making it a 2 hour career direction package, or a 2 hour resume package. It can be used for you, or any friend/family member you choose.  It is virtual, meaning I will be doing the consultation by phone and computer -- and this means ANYONE ANYWHERE CAN WIN!! How do you enter? Starting today, your name goes in the drawing EACH AND EVERY TIME   you announce JUGGLE (Manage Your Time, Change Your Life!) on Facebook, Twitter or your personal blog and encourage people to get the book. Along with each announcement/advertisement, you must include the address of the Juggle website , or the Juggle page on Amazon. Each time you talk about JUGGLE in any one of these places, send me ...

We all have our dream... our version of the perfect life. The perfect situation. The perfect time. Actually the place I ate lunch at today was pretty well close to perfection. It's pictured above in this photo I took with my phone. I was at a district women's leadership meeting all day and we were treated to lunch at this place called Lavender & Lace. It was perfection but most things in life are not. And if I looked closely enough I'd probably find something out of place at Lavender and Lace. (Yeah, that sounded kind of Dr. Suess-ish) Are you always waiting for the perfect time to do something? Do you wait because things aren't "just so"?  That's a shame because they never will be, until heaven. If you struggle with perfectionist tendencies, it's hard for you to let go and just do whatever it is you're supposed to do. But we need you to do what you're supposed to do! When I'm writing something, it's never good...

We have a book! And a website! JUGGLE (Manage Your Time...Change Your Life!) is available NOW.  To find out everything you could ever want to know about it, go here.   And to cut to the chase and buy it this second if you just can't wait any longer, go here. This is the next best thing to having me live in front of you giving you life coaching on time management.  Don't just take my word for it. A lot of people think you need to read this.  Many people have already experienced fantastic changes in their lives through reading it. I'm super excited about that!!  Look at the reviews already on Amazon (Fourteen 5 star reviews as of last night!) and read the endorsements that have already come in. I believe JUGGLE will be a great blessing to you. That's why I wrote it.  More than anything, I want to help people, and JUGGLE is just one more opportunity to do that. The book is available on Kindle, but you don't need a Kindle to read it. You can ...