Goals for the New Year

A New Year is just the perfect time to set goals. I've heard of people that set goals each year, and review their progress each month. Real life goals, not just New Year's resolutions. I'm very impressed by people like that. I'd love to be that thoughtful. Perhaps my goal should be to behave more meaningfully.

In the spirit of all things new, here are 12 things I'd like to do in the New Year. Twelve seems like a good number, right? It's even. It's divisible by 2. It's divisible by 1. It's divisible by 12. Seems good to me.

1. Read the bible through this year. The church I go to is putting out a new reading plan. Pete and I both looked at each other and said, "Let's do this. No, really. Let's actually do it this time." It's always good to have someone who's helping you reach your goals.
2. I hate to do it. You know what's coming. You might be like millions of American's and have this goal too. I want to lose weight. I'm carrying around an extra 30 that I would gladly say goodbye to. There are several reasons for wanting to do this and they aren't all related to vanity. Some are health reasons, some are relational reasons. Enough said.
3. Be a better letter writer. In 2011 I received many cards. Sometimes for an "occassion" and sometimes out of the blue. It is so lovely to receive a card out of the blue and such a great way to show someone you care and are thinking about them. Not to mention it's super cheap. Stamps might be going up in price, but who doesn't have $.50 for a friend.
4. Meal plan. I've already got a headstart on this during the month of December. Two motivations - eat better and save money.
5. Manage our money well. I have always taken care of our finances. Not that Pete doesn't have a say or that he couldn't, but let's face it, that guy isn't coming home from a 16 hour shift and paying bills online. We are working really hard to pay off our debt while he's in residency. I'm super pleased to say we already paid off the smallest of our debts (we only have student loans and a mortgage, so they're all big debt, unfortunately). We were able to make a $3,000 payment on a loan before the grace period was up and it started accruing interest. Man does that feel good! Should things go according to plan (does that ever happen?), we will be able to pay off my student loans in 3 1/2 years. I am super happy about that!
6. Make fun a priority. Best goal EVER. I am pretty anxious about making sure I do the exact right things when staying home with Addy. I want to give her the appropriate amount of attention without coddling her. I want to teach her so many things, but in the end, I want her to have fun more than I want her to write cursive before she's in Kindergarten. Not to mention, Pete and I don't spend that much time together these days so fun should be top priority when we are together.
7. Re-start a journal for Addy. I started one when I was pregnant with her. Like, barely started one. I want to pick it up, even if just to record little nuggets from a day or major milestones for her.
8. Pray more. I went to a workshop on praying for your child, and felt a lot of disappointment in myself. I have wanted to be better about praying in general, and have been failing at that. I have a lot of room for improvement here.
9. Serve more. I believe we are called to serve others, and I also want to show Addy what it looks like to have a servant's heart. I'm not sure what this looks like exactly, but I know I want to make it happen.
10. Read more. I love reading, always have, but sometimes it's easier to spend time in front of the tv. I want to challenge myself to read for instruction as well as pleasure. Reading more includes - my bible, books on parenting, books on theology, and dramatic new teen series.
11. Educate myself. Specifically on politics. It's about time I put my big girl pants on and have a well-informed opinion instead of just a weakly formed one. There is an election next year and right now I can't see a single candidate I want to vote for. Maybe if I educate myself a bit, I'll find myself surprised by who I chose to support.
12. Finish what I start. I've got about 105 crafts/projects/ideas started and about 2 finished. I have a sewing closet full of fabric, a box of glass to make light fixtures, molding to create a board and batten look in the laundry room, and a 1 coat of plain white paint bathroom. Let's cross some things off the list in 2012.

Ambituous? Quite. Possible? I think so. Already showing signs of weakness. Oh dear. We'll take it one step at a time. Perhaps I'll chronicle some of as the year goes by. Maybe I should make one goal a focus for a month? That sounds like a swell idea. Now where to start...