Hello, Reader.

Have you ever stopped to think about how much we owe to engineers? The cars we drive, the fuel that powers them, the GPS that directs them, the roads they travel on -- mechanical, chemical, electrical, and civil engineers had a hand in all of that!

And, as the proud mama of a son who is about to graduate with a degree in chemical engineering (and who just landed a great job in that field -- hooray!!), I was delighted to learn this week is National Engineers Week. It's always celebrated the week of George Washington's birthday, since he is considered our country's first engineer due to his work as a surveyor.

Sadly, I don't have a lot of resources devoted specifically to the topic of engineering, but I think the following freebies are at least tangentially related. Enjoy!

Free resources for you this week:

• ​It Couldn't Be Done - since engineers routinely find ways to do what others consider impossible
• ​Famous Inventors Quiz - can you pair each invention with the person who made it?
• ​Amazing Accomplishments Coloring Page - features a wise observation from Harry S. Truman
• ​George Washington Printables - in honor of our savvy surveying president
• ​Plan for Success Coloring Page - to make sure none of us gets too big for our britches

What I'm reading this week:

​Decluttering at the Speed of Life by Dana K. White One of my goals this year is organizing/decluttering my garage. It's not a drive-in garage (really more of a dark, dank storage room), but it's been piled high with boxes ever since we moved in three years ago. So it's time. I've been making steady progress, but haven't yet tackled the portions that will be hardest for me to declutter: mementos and craft supplies. Reading books like Decluttering at the Speed of Life helps buoy my resolve and tackle the challenge head-on. Dana's pragmatic and proven way of clearing out clutter (and finding appropriate homes for items you keep) has already helped me purge my pantry. Now I'm eager to extend the success to other areas of concern.

What we're eating this week:

I made a huge batch of rainbow salad Sunday afternoon and have been eating a heaping serving for lunch every day. I normally mix mine in an oversized punch bowl, but you could also pack individual servings into mason jars -- with chopped raw veggies on bottom and greens on top -- if fridge space is at a premium.

What we're watching this week:

My husband took me to see I Can Only Imagine 2 over the weekend, and those beautiful songs have been playing in my head ever since. The storyline hit close to home: The son of one character was diagnosed with Type 1 diabetes (three of our boys live with the same) and a different character was fighting cancer (though with a bleaker prognosis than mine).

Watching these believers struggle with what it means to trust God through adversity -- to reject fear and anxiety in favor of praying in faith and living with gratitude (admittedly easier said than done) -- makes for a powerful and timely film. I can only imagine there are a lot of movie goers who would find encouragement in this incredible message of hope and faithfulness.

This week's reader request:

Dottie wrote to ask whether there were a printable version of one of the articles I linked last week because she wanted to share it. Well, there wasn't before, but there is now. If you're interested, you can scroll to the bottom of this post to download a copy of Should Christians Celebrate Lent?

On the podcast this week:

Since I haven't yet recorded my podcast this week, I'm sharing another from the archives today...

Loving Life at Home: Episode 84 ​HOW NOT TO DIET & STILL LOSE WEIGHT​ In this episode, I discuss Dr. Michael Greger’s book, How Not to Diet, and the amazing effects implementing his suggestions have had on my health, weight, and energy levels. As somebody who has lost 60 lbs. (and kept it off!) without ever counting a single calorie, I'm still amazed at how well these simple lifestyle changes work -- and at how amazingly healthy and energetic I feel! Listen Now

Progress on last week's goals:

I'm happy to report I finished almost all the items on my to-do list last week: I ✅ sent suggested edits to my author friend, ✅ made slides for my new workshop, ✅ attended another friend's piano recital (a solid hour of Bach, Beethoven, Chopin, Rachmaninoff, and Prokofiev, all from memory -- such talent!), ✅ visited my mom, sister, and brother-in-law in Dallas, and ✅ admired the magnificent spring blooms at the Dallas Arboretum. Gorgeous!

The only thing I didn't do is ❌ paint a hydrangea on my backyard mural, so I'm bumping that task to this week.

Personal goals for this week:

• add hydrangea to mural
• carve ink stamp sample for craft class
• clean out bottom cabinet in butler's pantry
• decant dry beans and grains
• write sales page for my new workshop
• crochet 20 granny squares for a new cardigan
• complete 4 more pages in my Easter Journal​

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Thanks so much for all your help! I'll be back next week with more links, reviews, and resources. If you have any special requests, please let me know. 😊