Extra 5%

I. Am. Not. a morning person!  I naturally want to stay up until 2:00am and until 10:00am.  And by the grace of God I have a baby who sleeps from 9:30pm until 10:00am almost every day. I am so grateful I am able to stay home with her and she is naturally on my preferred schedule.

For the past four weeks I have been purposefully waking up at 7:27 on week  most days. For most I know that doesn't sound early but subtract two and a half hours from when you usually get up and 4:00am something puts it into prospective. It was really hard to do at first and I still dread my alarm, but I have to say it's been a great four weeks. 

Stephen and I went to a Couples Retreat on Valentines Weekend.  In general we do not fight and I would classify us as avoiders when it does come to things that are "issues".  What we walked away with was there is always that extra 5% of happiness we can and should be working to tap into with our marriage.  I had already planned to give Stephen a 30 day challenge of my getting up with him for Valentines Day and after the weekend I know God put that on my heart specifically for this.

I still don't particularly like getting up, but after about an hour of being up, when we sit together in the formal living room doing a devotional together it is so worth it.  The time sitting and talking and praying together is amazing.  These past two days I have been super sleepy and so we didn't get up early and Stephen got up just in time to head to work.  I actually missed it these last two days and once my day got going it wasn't worth the extra sleep.

Now that I know that extra 5% is out there, I want it!!!!  How do you and yours tap into your extra 5%?