2014 Goals

Almost completed the first month of the new year and I realized that I haven't shared my new goals for the year. I am a tad behind!!

I am changing things up a bit and doing things a little differently. I chose a few different areas I wanted to work on and then devised a plan in order to help facilitate my goal. Really, this is a must! You cannot just make a lofty goal of exercising, or completing something, or stopping something major without devising a proper plan of HOW you will accomplish that goal... regardless of how simple or complex!

Goal #1 Run a Half Marathon. Just typing that makes me a little nervous. I've ran in a dozen 5K's over the years and even a couple of triathlons, but nothing as lofty as this. Actually, I've never run longer than 4 miles at one time. So there's my goal. It's HUGE. Now here are all my mini goals to help accomplish that big goal. 
1. I signed up for a marathon with several friends. 
2. I added an app called Gipis (which I will blog about later. It's AWESOME!!!!) 
3. I run, according to my plan on Gipis, 3-4 times a week. 
4. Scott bought me a Fitbit for Christmas that I wear religiously. It helps track water, food intake, weight, steps a day and my sleep habits. 
5. I'm trying to eat LESS carbs. It'll help make running easier if I lose a little weight. 
6. I have signed up for a running series that happens at the Great Saltair. Last Saturday was a 5k, in 2 weeks is a 10k and 2 weeks after that is a 15k. 

Goal #2 A sentence a day. I made these cute index cards with the date on each of them (365). Every day, I write a single sentence about that day on the note card. Some of the past few weeks have been, "Snowmobiling, sledding and tubing in Star Valley with cousin!", "Great video in R.S. today, 'Earthly Father, Heavenly Father' LDS.ORG", "Went for a deep tissue massage today, felt great." You get the point. I keep these cards close to my computer so I can be reminded of them each and every day. I plan on doing this goal for several years to come. It's like a daily journal for yourself, short and simple. So simply to write down a quick memory on the date and move the card to the back. Could take years to fill and takes very little time. Several different ideas on how to make one on Pinterest. Search : Index card journal

Goal #3 Read the Book of Mormon every day and have it completed by the end of the year. This is pretty easy. It comes out to reading about 10-15 verses a day, which means it only takes a few minutes. It's remembering that is the hard part! I added @BofM365 to my Instagram account. I look at Instragram 4-5 times a day. Every morning they have already posted what verses I need to read and what I should either be pondering, looking for and asking myself as I read. I love it. It helps tremendously. I also will "like" it after I've completed my reading. I also will read comments and usually add one of my own. A little mini lesson. Scott, Will and I are all doing this together. We remind each other to read. I also have several friends reading the Book of Mormon as well. 

Goal #4 Buying/Selling a house. This may seem a little strange as a goal, but it's A LOT of work. Scheduling times to visit other homes, searching the web and driving neighborhoods takes a lot of time. We DID buy a house, in a neighborhood that we love. We are thrilled!!! Now is the paperwork... lots and lots of paperwork. In order to sell our home, there is a lot of deep cleaning, organizing and packing that needs to take place. We rented a storage unit and packed up most unused items in the kids bedrooms and other rooms around the house. Daily there is something I am deep cleaning or rearranging. We already have had people come to look at the house. Managing 7 sons AND keeping a clean house is a huge chore in itself. They help out a ton, which is nice. 

Goal #5 Saving Money.  Scott and both try to be thrifty but there is just nothing I can do when 7 kids "need stuff". I use coupons while shopping at the grocery store. I'm not one of those crazy couponers, but I do order two Sunday newspapers and I have a binder I put all my coupons into, by category. Okay, maybe I'm a little crazy. I have purchased 6, 8, or 10 of the same sale items with coupons, BUT I actually use those items. I'll either move them directly into the cold storage (food storage area) or into my pantry. I love sales and will only buy food/clothing/whatever if it is on sale. And, I usually have a coupon. 

I've been doing that for a while, so to add to that, I write down EVERYTHING I spend my money on. It doesn't matter if it's for a $0.99 cent refill of coke, or a $89.00 gas bill. I have it all written down on a piece of paper in my wallet. At the end of the month, I will look over it and see where I can make the necessary changes.

Also, I made 6 small sticky notes for my calendar. 3 are for lunches out with the kids and 3 are for dinners out. When we use one I'll move the small decorated sticky to that date on the calendar showing that it's been "used". Hopefully going out to lunch only 3x a month and dinner out 3x a month, it will help cut down on expenses. (This does not count date night with the hub's!)  


After we move and after the half marathon I will add some other goals for the remainder of the year. I also add mini (weekly) goals here and there to keep me on my toes. I enjoy trying new things. Challenging myself. Making improvements... wherever and whenever possible.  

What are YOUR goals? What have you  been working on these past few weeks? Successes?