January Goals Progress Report

If you caught my first post of the year, I cried out for help in setting and reaching goals. I thought it might be a good idea to check in on my goals every month, not only to measure my progress but also to get some accountability. I've read that making lists is a great way to help accomplish goals. I also read that rewarding yourself when goals are complete is a good motivation, along with finding people to hold you accountable. I think I am going to try to work on all of those areas. Lists are easy. I love the idea of rewards, I just need to figure out the best way to use them. And I would love for anyone reading this to help hold me accountable. I appreciate those of you who shared tips and expressed willingness to join me on this! Thanks guys! :)

This is my original  goal list. I think it was a good starting point.

• Finish sewing the girls' quilts and sew a quilt for my friend's baby before he outgrows it
• Complete the reading for my Bible study every day
• Find a new Bible study to participate in when mine ends in June
• Read at least 24 books this year
• Exercise 2-3 times per week all year long
• Find someone to be my exercise partner and hold me accountable
• Publish a blog post at least two times per month
• Finish my 2014 photo book

Here's the progress I've made this month:

• One of the quilts has most of its top stitching. The other one is still in strips. Oops.
• I missed one day of reading last week and got a little behind this week, but I'm caught up on my Bible study now.
• I don't need to find a new Bible study yet ;)
• I have finished one book completely, 40% of one that then auto-returned itself to the library, and I am just beginning another that has promise. Not too shabby.
• This is big news! I have a walking/running buddy and she and I have been going to the gym 2-3 days per week! YAY! Thanks Jacqueline!
• This will be my second blog post this month. Is that a cop out?
• My 2014 photo book has 10 pages. But until I read this I had completely forgotten about it. Oops.

 After doing a bit of research on setting and meeting goals, I am thinking it might be helpful to add some new goals, and maybe categorize them too. Lists are fun and I think organizing the goals to focus on developing different parts of who I am will help me to be more balanced in my life.  I can see myself continuing to add more goals as times goes on. 

Creative Goals:

• Finish the girls' quilts
• Sew a quilt for baby Isaac before he turns 1. 
• Complete 2014 photo book
• Publish a minimum of 2 blog posts per month

Healthy Goals:

• Walk or run 3 days per week minimum
• Find an exercise partner to hold me accountable (DONE! Thanks Jacqueline!)
• Complete a spring/summer 5k and a fall 5k
• Eat a fruit and a vegetable every day (embarrassing but it doesn't always happen)

Reading Goals:

• Read about 2 books per months but at least 24 per year
• Read the Bible every day
• Find a new Bible study to participate in after current one is over
• Find or start a book club and attend regularly

Parenting Goals:

• Have a one-on-one date with each child once per month
• Spend one-on-one time with Lydia every day 
• Develop some kind of routine that involves the kids cleaning 

Marriage Goals:

• Go on at least one date per month
• Fill in the couples journal together every week
• Cook Tim a special birthday meal

Home Goals - So we are thinking about moving! We are looking for a bit more living space now that the kids are older. It's exciting to look, but the house needs to be in tip top shape in order for it to sell. 

• Organize the basement
• Paint the kitchen
• Donate the girls' old clothes
• Go room to room with a trash bag and purge as much as possible, selling anything decent on Craigslist
• Get the house ready to put on the market this spring!

I think I've started strong. Hopefully I can keep the momentum going. In case you were curious, yes, I have continued to watch TV. I've watched all 3 seasons of New Girl (love it, thanks for recommending!) as well as 2 seasons of Orange is the New Black, which is also awesome. I'm staying caught up on Downton Abbey and Big Bang Theory as new episodes become available. I think this is fine, because I've been keeping myself busy with other more worthy tasks as well :)

I'd like to add a goal about cooking more and trying new recipes. I've already tried several so far, so I probably need to somehow add that to the list so I can get credit for doing it.