Is it too late to write New Years resolutions?? Are you sick of reading everyone's posts about them?
Regardless of how you answered the above, today I'm sharing my goals for the new year.
(Read about how I did with my 2013 ones here.)
I'm keeping it concise this year. Just some goals that are top of mind now.
1. Make our house work for us.
After flirting with the idea for a while of trying to sell our house and find one a little larger, we decided to scrap that plan. Assuming we could actually sell without having to bring money to closing (thanks to the lackluster market, foreclosures, etc. dragging our value down), even a marginally bigger mortgage payment for a bigger place would leave us with a little less financial margin than we would like. So, that means we will be staying here for a while, likely a few years. Sure, my dreams of a playroom or a usable backyard are a bit sad, but we really do have a great house that has plenty of space.
However, there are definitely changes we can do to make our house work for us more efficiently, and to make it a happier place to be - a home we can continue loving. Some of these things we've talked about for years, but never wanted to commit to if we would soon be leaving. We plan to spend a little money (more than we would usually spend but still nothing crazy) to make the changes that will make our space livable and lovable. If we are going to be here for a while, we are gonna make it great.
2. Focus on family
We do a really great job on this already, I feel like I can honestly say. We do have a luxury of time that many don't necessarily have, yet I do think we appreciate our time we have together. Yet as our lives get busier, I want to make sure we keep that as the focus. Our family is most important - all outside stuff is second.
Now that Harper is older I want to be more intentional about us doing fun things as a family and making memories. I want Tony and I to be more intentional about our time together too - less couch/device staring and more connection. I want us to go on dates and maybe even take a trip together. So, Family Fun times.
3. Keep fit
Well, keep working towards fitness. Don't want to mislead any of you into thinking I am fit currently. :) I want to keep eating real food whenever possible, as it clearly helped me lose weight before and we felt so good. I also want to keep at walking, with friends, Tony, solo, doesn't matter- just gotta keep at it.
4. Finally (finally!) learn how to use my camera and editing software.
I've had my camera for two years and keep swearing I will learn how to stray from automatic. Yet... I haven't. Tony got me basic photoshop for Christmas, which is equal parts awesome and daunting. I want to learn how to use both, not to impress anyone or to try to make something out of it, but simply to be better able to take good photos of our family, something I love to do.
So there we go. 4 goals - some abstract, some specific. I think these will help us stay focused with our time, energy, and money over the next year. Here's to a great one!
Tuesday, January 7, 2014
Wednesday, January 1, 2014
2013 Goals Revisited - I Did Pretty Good!
Happy New Year! We spent a fun (non-late) evening with our small group, with an ingenious 2013 pictionary game invented by Kim and lots of food. Then Tony and I spent New Years Day with a pilgrimage to the Atlanta Ikea (cinnamon rolls!) and lounging in stretchy pants. Actually, just me in the stretchy pants. Tony is actually out with Harper while I type this, because he is awesome.
I wanted to revisit the Goals I made for 2013 one short year ago.
In the past, I've made all kinds of different goals lists. One year, I had one phrase. Two years, I had a list of 50 things I wanted to do (2010, 2011). Last year I went with 8 things. You can read that full post if you are so inclined, but here's a little breakdown on how I did (hint: not too bad!)
1.
2.
3.
4.
However, I did get a job - two in fact! I tutor, which fills the teaching void and keeps me somewhat current with that world, and my work-from-home, 15 hrs a week job that allows me to bring in some money for extra expenses and feel like a productive human! Neither of these jobs is the perfect teaching job I envisioned getting, but it works for me and where I am now. I have less free time, certainly, but this has actually forced me to be more productive with the time I do have (see above). I like that I can help our bottom line a bit while still being home with Harper. It's an imperfect balance that works for me!
5.
6.
7. Be Creative - Eh, not a lot on this front. I did some creative things, but not as much as I would have liked...
8.
*****
So there you go - I'd say one of my most successful years in terms of goals yet! It was a good year, one that got better and better as it went. Babies are hard, right? I'd say this year stretched us as spouses and parents and individuals - but we are growing into our roles and finding joy there.
Here's to 2014! (and 2014 goals later this week!)
Posted by
claire @ a peachtree city life
at
5:41 PM
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