I've picked a word for the year since 2015 and some years I've done better about focusing on it than others. Really, it should be a word for the 1st quarter of the year because by then I've usually forgotten about it and things get busier in the spring. Maybe I'll think about that for next year...
The word I've chosen for 2019 is Discipline. I'm really focusing on this in 3 areas:
1) Nagging To-Dos
Basically, getting myself to do the stuff I know I should be doing, the things that are taking up space on my mental to-do list. (Some of these will pop up on my 19 in 2019 list next week).
2) Transitioning Between Activities
I'm not great at transitioning between activities. I'll finish working on this post and probably need to get Sam up from a nap (maybe, he'll still sleeping right now) but first I'll read some blog posts, probably do a little tidying on my way upstairs, probably check my phone for some unknown and unnecessary reason. The phone is the big distraction and I always seem to pick it up before moving to a new activity. This is probably partially because I use an app to track so much of my time so I "have" to stop the timer when I'm done reading, for instance, and then think I need to refresh Feedly or Goodreads or see if I have library holds in...etc. etc. etc. So, transitioning better.
3) Getting to bed on time/getting up on time
There are always thing I feel like I need to do before going to bed, beyond the necessary teeth brushing and face washing. I make Sam's morning bottle, sometimes have to pack Luke's lunch, put away laundry, lay out diapers to dry, stack the dishwasher, lay out my clothes for the morning, get out the boys' clothes, tuck kids back in, etc. From when we turn off the tv to head to bed until I actually get in bed can be 45 minutes which is a LONG time. Then I always want to read and bedtime gets late. I think our mornings could go much more smoothly if we all got more sleep i.e. went to sleep earlier. So I need discipline to get things done earlier in the evening instead of saving for right before bed and also the discipline of getting up on time so our whole morning isn't thrown off.
I also like to set a few goals for the year, different from the more project based 19 in 2019 list. First, the ones I set for 2018:
1) Read 125 Books
Finished 175, so killed that one.
2) Facetime with out of town sisters once a week-ish
Did really well on this for about the first quarter and then didn't do so well. One of my out of town sisters moved closer so we see her and her family a lot more but I still have 2 sisters living about 2 hours away.
3) Run a 10k and 350 miles
Did the 10k but only ran 209 miles. Getting Sam so early in the year combined with Matt changing jobs and getting stuck working a lot of overtime, I didn't get nearly as much running time as I would have liked.
4) Get rid of 100 things pre-garage sale
We decided not to have a garage sale but I did still get rid of over 100 things that I tracked and much more that I didn't. I should get back in the habit of tracking how many things I've gotten rid of because that is highly motivating for me.
5) Improve my skin-care routine
I did this but it was mostly in December and I entirely forgot it was a goal for 2018 until I was working on this list. I haven't seen real results because it's only been a few weeks but I am using more products so that's something? Spending more ALWAYS, of course, equals better results (major sarcasm but at least I feel like I'm putting in more of an effort now).
I decided to only have a few, easily measured numeric goals here for 2019:
1) Read 150 Books
I am pretty shocked I read so many last year with a new baby, I often don't feel like I get enough reading time but apparently I do (I did read almost 1/3 of the books I read in 2018 in the two months of the year we didn't have a baby, so there is that). So hopefully I can get this many in this year.
2) Run 300 Miles, run a race
More miles than I ran last year and with Sam able to be in the jogger now, it should go better than last year. I'll do a race in the fall but haven't decided how far, at least a 10k, maybe another half marathon with my sister? Maybe, we're considering it.
3) Get Rid of 150 Things
I know I can do this, I am constantly overwhelmed by possessions (a recent, favorite rant of mine with packing away normal decor for Christmas, finding a place for Christmas gifts, and then getting all the normal decor back out...I'm aiming this at myself, I counted my books...that was eye opening...) and having less is always appealing to me. I plan to write about this more later this month.
Hopefully I can write this post for 2020 (YIKES), having met all my goals and be much more disciplined. We weren't expecting a baby in 2018 and it hugely changed our year but a baby is unlikely this year (and definitely won't happen early in the year). While I certainly wouldn't mind getting kid #3 this year, it's also nice being able to look ahead and feel like I have a better idea of how it's going to go. The planner part of me (which is pretty big) likes that.
Are you a goal/resolution setter? I love hearing what others are planning/hoping to do!
2018 resolutions
2017 resolutions
2016 resolutions
2015 resolutions
2014 resolutions
2013 resolutions
2012 resolutions
2011 resolutions
2010 resolutions
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