The race is ON as our family wraps up two more (intense) weeks of finalizing details before our summer sabbatical.

Definitely, we are looking forward to time off.  We cannot wait!

I understand that not every profession grants a full three months of paid leave, mainly for the purpose of rest and renewal (the definition of sabbatical).  My husband and I treasure this gift from our church family.

Our time away is much more than a vacation, which we take annually.  Sabbatical for us will mean more intentionality in various areas of life…

…more time as a family, extra focus on physical rest and caring for our bodies, spiritual renewal and caring deeply for our marriage.

We have been planning for months about what this time would actually look like, and have received plenty of good counsel on the topic as well.  Our Sabbatical officially begins June 15.

Part of the counsel received has been for my husband and I to each take a personal retreat, and then to also take one together BEFORE the June 15 start date.  I know!

At first, I could not imagine carving out time for this luxury when I knew three months off was just around the corner.  But, I am so, so glad to have listened to my husband and our mentors.

In the last 2 months, we did just this.

A few days for me, for him and then last week we took a few days together — all to the same location.  We visited dear friends, received more counsel on life and ministry life, and we are much stronger mentally, emotionally and spiritually.  Thank you to my in-laws for staying with our children!

What a gift these trips have been.

This intentional time spurred me to consider my physical health as well.

I had been carefully working against the effects of stress, but I wanted (and needed) to take more charge of my health.  After weeks of consideration, I decided to plunge into Whole30 — beginning this week!

making whole 30 approved sausage!

packing whole 30 snacks for “emergencies” – yes, I like sardines!

I only have ONE day out of 30 under my belt, but basically, Whole 30 is very close to a Paleo eating lifestyle.

The purpose is to eliminate and cleanse certain foods from your system, then slowly reintroduce to see which may (or may not) cause issues.  Also, it is to train your brain around food and personal eating habits.

For 30 days….

No grains of any kind.  No sugar at all.

No dairy.  No beans or legumes (except green beans, snow peas and sugar snap peas).

No MSG, sulfites, and other additives.  Bottom line — eat WHOLE FOOD. 🙂

Honestly, I am a bit intimidated by the process.  But, I was also so very ready to make changes and detox some to see how how my body responds.  We’ll see, right?

If you’re on Instagram, follow along for more pictures and updates of how this is all going.

And you… any changes or new adventures?