2017 Goals

Happy New Year, friends!

Do you set New Year’s Resolutions? I love having goals to strive toward so I definitely tend to be in the “resolution setter” category. Last year, I set 8 goals, most of which went by the wayside after March. (Just being honest here…)

But even with last year’s failures, I am setting more goals this year. I just feel like it’s a good idea to have a plan of some kind, whether or not we ultimately stick to it. (And for the record, I have smaller objectives for each of these resolutions to help me reach my long-term goals.)

Here are my 5 general goals for 2017:

1. Eat healthier and exercise routinely. This is a goal every. single. year. But it doesn’t seem to get any easier to keep. I get into an exercise routine and then the kids get sick or something unexpected comes up, and suddenly it’s been 6 weeks since I’ve hit the gym. But I’m going to try better this year. Maybe 2017 will be my year!
2. Memorize Scripture. Most of you already know that I participate in a Scripture Memory challenge every couple years with Beth Moore (and about 10,000 of our closest friends). If you want to get in on the action, you can find out all the details here and you can post your first Scripture here. It’s a great way to be held accountable, and then at the end you get to have a fun girls getaway in Houston!
3. Be aware of my reactions to my kids. I recently got some good advice from a friend of mine. She told me that when her kids were small (and even now that they’re grown), she made it a point to make sure her eyes lit up whenever they entered the room. Don’t you just love that? More times than not, my eyes do not light up when I see my children. Sometimes I’m tired and sometimes I’m frustrated. Sometimes I’m just plain distracted. But I want to do a better job of showing my children that they are perfectly and wonderfully created by our Father.
4. Continue writing consistently. I’ll be honest with you. As 2016 ended, I was pretty burned out with writing. Or maybe not “burned out.” It was more like I couldn’t seem to find the time I needed to sit down and write. I think I got overwhelmed with everything that Christmas entails, plus all of our adoption paperwork and the stressors that come with that process, and I stopped writing. But I have lots of writing goals and plans in my head for the next year. If I can only get them down on paper…
5. Say “yes” more than I say “no.” My gut reaction to a lot of requests from my kids is to say no. “No, you can’t play that video game right now.” “No, we don’t have time to go to the park today.” But I recently heard some great advice: We can say “no” without actually saying “no.” Let me explain: Instead of telling the children that they can’t play their favorite video game right now, I can say, “We can play that game tomorrow.” See, I’m technically not saying no because I’m ultimately going to allow them to play the game. I love this so much! It just requires a reframing of my responses. And then I won’t feel like such a bad mom.

What are some of your resolutions or goals for 2017? I would love to hear what you have planned for this new year.