Spiritual goals: {this is the most important area for me!}
Draw closer to and be more like my Saviour. I know this sounds vague and non-specific, but at the end of 2013, I want to be able to say that my relationship with Christ has deepened over the year. If I accomplish nothing else all year but this, 2013 will be worth it!
**Ongoing goal
Finish memorizing Philippians. I have the first chapter completely down, and half of the second. I need to be more intentional about plugging away at this!
**I’ve made it all the way through chapter 2! Yipee! Chapters 3 + 4 are shorter than 1 + 2, so hopefully those won’t take me as long. {crosses fingers} Any tips for a good way to keep reviewing chapters 1 + 2?
Memorize one other book {or a section of 6 other chapters} from the Bible. After I finish Philippians. :)
Continue to record my 1,000 gifts.
**Continued this throughout March, and also started reading the book!! Woot!
Read through the Bible twice. This takes a bit of explanation. I have read through the Bible once in a year before. This year I decided to try it twice. I heard recently that reading through the Bible in one year only takes 11 minutes a day. So in less than a half an hour a day I should be able to read through it twice! All I am doing is reading 6 chapters of the Old Testament and 2 of the New Testament each day, in addition to a more in-depth Bible study. I think doing this will deepen my knowledge and understanding of the Bible, and make me even more familiar with it as a whole!
**Doing well on this, and enjoying it! I'm currently in I Chronicles in the Old Testament and Acts in the New Testament.
Personal goals:
Purge and consolidate things in storage. Seems like I do this each year, but I am continually dissatisfied with how much stuff I have sitting in the attic untouched. If I don’t use it year after year, why do I hang on to it? I’d like to set aside a small amount of keepsake items and toss/donate the rest.
**Worked on this some in March
Read 36 books. I easily read 2 books a month last year, so how about 3 this year? I also kind of dropped off the Booksneeze bandwagon, so I’m going to start doing those more as well.
**Finishing up my last book for March. I read Grace for the Good Girl, The Secret Symbols of the Dollar Bill and am finishing 1,000 Gifts. Reviews coming soon - you can watch for them here!
Work on being a better correspondent. I think I improved in this area last year, but I still could do so much better. I’ve enjoyed hearing from some of my readers over the last few months as well, thanks guys! I’m also thinking about going back to some pen-and-ink corresponding - living life on the edge, I know - so we’ll see what I actually accomplish there.
**Did some emailing this month.
Make daily exercise a habit. I had a good thing going for a while, but didn’t keep it up. Still trying to figure out the best way to make this work for me - you know I’ll keep you posted!
**I went for a walk one time this month. Once. Hey, we’re still getting snow storms. So I’m cutting myself some slack. :)
Make music practice a habit and priority. Confession: I never practice piano. Right now in this season of life there is nothing I need to practice for - which is truthfully kind of nice - but I still could stand to improve and be stretching myself further. I also have a violin and guitar that sit untouched, that I would really love to pick back up. Vocal practice wouldn’t hurt me either. So there is plenty I could be doing - I just have to figure out a system that fits in with our noisy schedule. :) {With 3 others practicing piano, plus practicing for church specials and a baby that takes naps, I’m not sure how this is going to work, but we’ll see!}
**Started working on this for a few minutes several days a week. So far so good!
Continue to work on rising early. The Christmas season threw me for a loop...need to get back on track with this! I’d love to be able to call myself an “early riser” by the end of 2013!
**Didn’t do so well in March. :( Every time I get a cold it seems to set me back.
Start a journal and write regularly. I’d love to do better about recording life happenings, plus I think this would improve my general writing approach as well.
**Ahhh, started this and am loving it. It has turned into a daily life/spiritual journal, and I am finding tidbits to record on a regular basis. You can read some of my thoughts on journaling here.
Blog and Shop goals:
Continue to blog 5 days a week. Some weeks it is more or less, depending on what is going on, but on a consistent basis 5 posts a week seems to work well for me and this blog’s community.
**Continuing to reach this goal.
Have monthly planning sessions with myself to think and plan ahead. I continually find myself not adequately prepared to blog about a certain holiday or event...I need to take the time to sit down and see what is coming up in the near future. {hello valentines day}
**Did this in March...love this time spent intentionally planning!
List new shop items once a month. I have some fun, new things planned for the shop, so stay tuned!
**Listed a brand new shop item this month: Tablet/eReader sleeves! Did you know I have them available to fit any size?
Post some new blog features and grow this online community...I have specific goals set in these areas, but don’t want to be a total spoil-sport. :)
**So exciting...this month I started sending a weekly newsletter that shares upcoming events, blog news, and lets you in on shop updates and sales. You can sign up by entering your email addy in the form at the top of my right sidebar! So far this newsletter has been a great way for me to further connect with you lovely readers!
Write out {and share} my blog purpose statement. I’ve been pondering, “why do I blog” for some time now...and feel ready to actually map out my purpose behind blogging and where I hope this blog will {and won’t} go. In the meantime, I’d love to hear why you read this blog...what do you enjoy most...what would you like to see more of? Thanks, your feedback would be much appreciated!
**Haven't started this yet
Have you set any goals - big or small - for 2013? I'd love to hear about them! Thanks for helping me out on this journey!
It looks like you've made some real progress on your goals. Maybe blogging about purging and donations could be your blog focus this year. I find that while I don't have an overarching purpose, accountability was my heart's desire when I started blogging, and it's easier to spend time blogging about what I'm doing and what matters to me during different seasons than just focusing too narrowly on 1 topic. best of luck!
ReplyDeleteThanks Jenny! Blogging does give great accountability...it has pushed me to do much more than I would have otherwise! Thanks for commenting! =)
Delete