Sharing these with the world wide web to keep me accountable. I am a list girl. I have running to-do lists that I giddily check off on the reg, post-its with shopping lists, weekly work to-do’s, call lists. I have been creating goals for myself each January since I moved out of my parents house in 2008. I cringe when I look back at some of them, but year after year I have seen myself grow. I have seen the goals get deeper, filled with emotional integrity, with the intent to be a better person, not necessarily numbers/title based.
They are organized by the various categories or “pillars” as I fondly refer them to, my spinning plates that I attempt to balance. I read somewhere that in order to actually achieve these, you need to state the how or “by,” otherwise they can seem too daunting.
Here is a great visual of how to implement this plan on a monthly basis.
Relationship / Family
- Continue to be a loving, patience, fun, supportive wife / mother / family member / friend.
- By: not being so uptight! Plan activities, send cards and do a better job of pinging people, letting them know I’m thinking of them.
- Delivery Baby #2! & BF to 6 months
- By: support/cleaning supplies by hubs
- Be a Present Mother
- By: “be here now” – put the phone/email away around Liv; attend a few of her classes.
- Start Liv’s BDay tradition [for readers, she was born on Christmas Eve, when we typically spend with Jon’s side of the family. We want to make this is a special day for her, we love making breakfast together, so thinking of doing a fancy breakfast at The Drake or Signature Room – open to suggestions!]
- Research & register Liv for Preschool
Health
- Lose Baby Weight & feel good about my body [I don’t do measurable goals here, probably the one place I should! I have in the past “run 3 races, etc” however I have felt it is more about feeling and being healthy than getting down to a number on the scale.
- By: attending boot camp 2x/week and finding videos I can stream and work out at home gym
- Enjoy bike rides & city excursions
- Practice healthy habits
- By: cooking 1 meal/week [Jon is the chef du jour in our house, so I’d like to help him out occasionally]
Adventure / Travel
- This year we really want to go to Oktoberfest in Munich, head over to Berlin & Frankfurt. We will bring Liv and baby boy, so any tips on traveling with TWO – throw them my way!
- We also will plan to go to Charleston over Memorial Day and throw New York in the equation as well.
Charitable
- Continue to be a Big Brothers Big Sisters Leadership Board Member
- By: attending fundraising events & status meetings
- Continue the 3rd Annual Site Based Program at GGP
- By: 1) Being a Big 2) fundraise $2k Bowl for Kids Sake
- Donate to Paws, St. Ignatius [ideally I’d love to volunteer with Paws, but the unknown of having 2 kids, I’m hesitant to commit]
Financial
- Document Living Will
- Play around with the change I have in my Roth IRA to better learn about the stock market…in all my free time.
RingHero
- Grow business to $100k in Revenue
Recreation/Misc
- Be selfish with my time – AWESOMEly put by Jada Pinkett Smith in this Video.
- Read 1 parenting book & 1 fun book per month by getting into bed (no TV) at 9pm.
- Continue to write in Liv’s journal each night; start a new journal for baby boy
- Weekly @home facials; monthly massages – ahhh, I can feel the relaxation overtake me now.
- Be a better fur mama; take Rooney to the park on walks with the kids as the weather improves.
Please do not mistake the above as a regimented life ruled by lists and achieving the unattainable – perfectly balanced life. Shit ebbs and flows. Our parenting style allows for plenty of free time, play time, spontaneity. I am just a planner. I find solace in planning things and then having life disrupt them, but at least I mentally feel as prepared to handle the forks as possible.
What am I missing? What am I too heavy on? What are your goals for this upcoming year?
Xoxo
Niki
**As first seen in Rockette Women