A New Year...Again

I seem to write on this blog a few times every new year and then I stop.  Too many excuses and too little time.  No point wasting time on apologizing.  It's time for the New Year and the New Goals.  I realize that it is an arbitrary line.  Any good goal has a start date and an end date though and this is a convenient time for me to reevaluate.  When I have start and end dates I can continue to reevaluate and adjust my goals throughout the year.  While I have not been good at documenting my progress, I am slowly, oh so slowly, becoming better at my follow-through in real life.  
 My house is consistently cleaner than when I was younger, even though there are more people in the house to mess it up now.
Most days I do a load of dishes.
Most days I do a load of laundry.
Most days the kids papers and the mail are sorted immediately.
Most days lunches are packed and dinners are made. 
The TV is on less. 
My kids are great at entertaining themselves at home.
I have set up most of the rooms in my house the way that I want them.  My house is set up for my kids to easily access books, crafts, and toys.
Electronics are used by permission as rewards for limited amounts of time.

   I continue to make goals throughout the year and some I complete and some lose their importance. This year I want to do a lot of things.  We are in an odd stage where a lot of changes may occur.  To make the things happen that I want to happen, my word for the year is "Structure." While my personality is structure opposed I realize that this is the only way that I will accomplish the goals that I want to accomplish. I have always been a messy organized person, meaning that it looks like a mess to everyone else but I know where everything is.  I'm also naturally lazy.  These are two aspects of my personality that fight against structure and organization. They are two aspects of my personality that aren't working so well for me anymore.  A lot of structure is being imposed on us with school schedules and activities so I need to learn to work with it better.  As I searched websites for tips I came across this quote from Habit Hacker, " help us master the art of habit....so we have more time for the habit of art." I recognize that with more structure or more good habits, I will have more time and energy for what I truly want to do- enjoy my kids and create!

To make my goals I started by using this lovely printable from 30 handmade days.  I like that it made me think abstractedly about my goals before I then narrowed them to more focused goals.  She breaks it down into an overall theme word (which I have described above) and then into these four sections- I want, I need, I will share, I will succeed. 

I want
to make money for our family- specifically by substitute teaching or by selling things I make
to be creative- specifically write a children's book, write a blog, learn to draw
to be with my boys- quality time
I need 
to read my scriptures daily
to get my teaching license
to find my crafty business niche
to blog, network, and sell
to excercise
I will share
My process- learning to create, learning to market and sell, learning to write, learning to structure my structure resistant personality
My projects
My art
I will succeed at
building my craft business
structure/organization
being with my family


I have made quarterly goals in order to achieve my overall yearly goals.  First on the list are these six habits.
Blog everyday
Craft/write everyday
Read scriptures daily
Run/walk a mile everyday (yearly goal of walking/running 300 miles this year)
Maintain a cleaning schedule
Pass the NMTA (scheduled on Jan 11th for the first two parts in order to get my teaching license)

I think one of my first crafts will be new chore charts for my kids. :)  Actually. it will be thank you cards for the neighbors.  We have been truly spoiled by neighbor gifts this year!  There is no better way to start the New Year than giving thanks!

I give myself permission to change my goals as needed.
I give myself permission to fail some days and not feel guilty about it. 
I give myself permission to start over as needed.
I give myself permission to succeed in learning from the journey and not just the end goal.
It is o.k. to change my focus i.e.  I may need to worry more about substitute teaching than crafting as a way to help bring in money for our family.  Or I may need to focus more on the needs of my family.  My journey may give me new perspective on the direction my goals need to take as the year goes on.  That's allowed and encouraged!  Wish me luck on this New Year and please follow along!