A New Year, A Fresh Start

Well, Nate and I had our annual pow-wow last night where we write out the goals for the upcoming year. I love the New Year and I love having an anniversary on New Year's Eve. It just feels like a complete fresh start all the way around.

We have determined that this is our year to focus inward. Focus on building our family, ourselves, and our home. There will be other years where we can be involved in every Bible Study, every social outing, and minister to a ton of people outside our family, but this year our main focus is going to be on growing in our faith, our family, our health, our vision, and our needs.

So here are some of our goals for 2009, broken up in sections, of course. :) We have a lot more under each category, but these are the ones that we will make public.

Spiritual

1) Read the entire Bible as a family. To be completley honost, we try to do this every year and just fall off the wagon somewhere in March. We've read Genesis and Matthew several times and never quite make it to Malacai or Revelation. We are gonna start in the middle this year though.

2) Work with the boys on the catechism during breakfast time.

3) Continue with family singing time at bed-time, but repeating songs each night so Corban can learn the words and sing along.

4) Have personal quiet time in the mornings before the boys wake up.

Educational

1) Nate to start his Master's this year

2) For me to work with Corban for three hours a week, one-on-one on "school". (My plan is to do this the mornings he doesn't have Mother's Day Out during Caleb's morning nap.)

3) To potty-train Corban

Physical/Dietary

1) To focus on eating right with moderate activity during this pregnancy with healthy weight gain.

2) For Nate and I to meet two times a week during lunch to workout on base, and to loose the baby weight from all three boys one day at a time.

3) To eat out only one time per week.

4) Due to recent health problems, continue to cut out almost all sugar intake, processed foods, and make things from scratch instead of purchasing shortcuts from the store.

5)Plan meals to avoid eating out and wasting food.

6) To take the time to look nice and take care of our "temple".

7) To broaden our recipe horizons...especially in the area of vegetables and whole grains.

8) Spend more time outside, no matter what the weather is like.

Entertainment

1) To limit our TV watching and choose to read more.

2) If the T.V. is on, than be productive while watching it (i.e. fold clothes, plan menu, etc.)

3) To have at least one date per month.

4) To laugh every day (not a hard goal with little kids in the house)

Financial

1) To remain out of debt (except for our house), tithe faithfully, and give sacrificially

2) To start funds for each of the boys.

3) Continue to max out our retirement funds and explore other investment options.

Home

1) To have our home 15 minutes from "company ready" at all times. We don't have to live spotlessly, I just don't like having heart attacks when the doorbell rings.

2) To follow simple, but flexible, routines for the boys and for cleaning that make life easier, not more stressful.

3) To find a cheap, used piano and relearn how to play.

4) Declutter every inch of our home of things we don't use, don't love, and/or don't need.

5) Do SOMETHING to decorate our Master bedroom.

6) Be consistent about disciplining the boys.

Personal

1) To be an encouragment and helpmeet to Nate, not a "constant dripping."

2) To take time to scrapbook, journal, read, etc.

3) To keep in touch better with family and old friends...especially those without Facebook and the Internet.

Well, those are some of our goals. We plan to review them each month on our hour drive to church. We know that we can't change in our own strength and ask the Lord to give us strength to do His will and to bless our endeavors as we seek to glorify Him.

What are some of your goals for the New Year?