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. Be Happy - January of last year hit me at a time when Harper was 6 months old and I had come out of the newborn cave, blinked into the sunlight, and was left stumped as to who I was and what my life was now all about. I had lots of "groundhog days." I wasn't very happy. I just hadn't found my stride, my groove. Happy to say that I added things to my plate, mentally rectified where I stood as a person and a wife and a mother, and made peace with it. I figured myself out and got out of my slump. I got happier, for sure!
2. Try Harder - I think I can cross this one off too! Um, I pretty much got nothing accomplished at home in terms of cleaning or fun stuff when Harper was a baby. What was I thinking??? I had so much time then!!! She napped for like, 5 hours a day! And I didn't work! And she didn't move! Hindsight, amirite?? Again, adding things to my plate and making the most out of my time helped me check this baby off! Our house is still a mess, let's be honest, but at least I'm making a genuine effort!
3. Read Read - eh, I'm going to half check this off. I did read a lot of books, however, they were mostly elementary level ones I was reading with my tutoring students. I read some of my own books for pleasure, but not as much as I would have liked to. At the end of the day when I do have time, I'm more likely to zombie-stare at the tv then go right to bed. Maybe I'll work on that.... maybe not...
4. Get Hired - Ha! Well, this one gets checked off, but certainly not in the way I thought it would! When I wrote these goals, I still planned on getting a teaching job in the fall. Turns out, that didn't happen - read here as to why. I did get all my stuff in order, applied, got calls for interviews, all that fun stuff. But I am meant to be home with my family right now.
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. Be Honest - I tried to do this. I think I somewhat succeeded. I probably did better at this on the blog than in real life (this post and this post). I liked it. More to come.
6. Get Fitter - Well, I'm going to cross this one off, even if the month of December is a bad example of this... I started walking more and more throughout the year, with Kacy and Kim before they got super pregnant, then alone while they recovered. After we did the Whole30, I lost nearly 20 pounds and felt great! We continued to eat really clean - until the "holidays" hit and we nose-dived. This is probably a good place to start with my 2014 goals....
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. Show Love - This was tied in with #1, as I wasn't happy and I was taking it out on Tony. I'd certainly say I got better at being a nice partner as the year went on - hopefully he'd agree! This is always an area I can improve in, though - being intentional with gratitude and love and thanks and appreciation.
*****
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!)
I'd say you did awesome. Can you believe it's been a year? You rocked it.
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