A nice even number. No foreshadowing of bad things that we have to face.
It’s a blank slate this year.
2011 was a bit of a rough year… although not as rough as the year before…. which was not as rough as the year before that… so I hold high hopes that THIS will be a stellar year.
While I’m not a fan of New Year Resolutions, I have been feeling a need to become much more intentional with my time. I have horrible time management skills and am way to easily distracted. So, while I am still opposed to making sweeping changes simply because a new year has begun, I do want to set some attainable goals regarding the things that are really important to me.
1. After school Bible studies. I started last year…then got distracted and it fell by the wayside. I’m committing myself to doing this on a consistent basis. If I don’t have anything prepared (that was my downfall) then we simply read.
2. Taking ½ hour to an hour a week and doing something with each of the older children that THEY want to do. I fear that since they’re more self sufficient then the little ones, they sometimes may get lost in the shuffle. We really need to work on giving each personal time with us.
3. To do at least one thing a month to improve the home … I see James using a chainsaw in the very near future. J
4. Become reacquainted with my sewing machine now that I found all the parts…and have a Daphne free kid free area…and the kids are more on a schedule for bedtime (sort of).
5. Get kids to bed at scheduled time every night.
6. Create our own” If /Then ” chart and implement it.
7. Post to our blog. It actually IS something I want to do. It pains me to think of all the things that have happened over the past year that would remain in our memory had I just taken a moment to jot them down here. Besides, it’s a wonderful way to embarrass the kids give the kids their little moments in the limelight.
8. Be nicer to my wonderful husband. Be less persnickety and opinionated. Work on biting my tongue keeping an even tone of voice when I become frustrated. A soft answer turns away wrath, but a harsh word stirs up anger. (Proverbs 15:1 ) Oiy.
9. Make the household budget go farther. I did pretty well this past year but this year I want to do even better. The only way to do that is to take the time to make a COMPLETE menu plan for the month before I do my monthly shopping trip.
10. Each week try a new schedule …. Tweak it until I come up with one that has me getting everything done in a timely manner. Actually doable? Probably not. Worth working on though.
Bottom line is that each of these, except for maybe #8, is entirely a time management issue.
Must. Stay. Focused.