February!

It is hard to believe, but February is tomorrow! I have enjoyed, for the most part, working on my goals this month. I really think that this is something that I am going to stick with, monthly goals. My life is always changing; we are always growing, doing different things, succeeding in different things and struggling with different things. A year is a long time, a month is more reasonable … weekly and daily as well!

I had three goals for January. My personal goal was to get curtains done and …. I did! I was able to finish the living room curtains in one night at our church’s ladies craft night. The kitchen and dining room were another story. There are four windows, meaning four curtains, and multiples are boring. I get tired of doing the same thing several times! I already had one of them started, and was able to slowly do the others. I was not so sure with how I wanted them to look, but got them done and hung last week!

My spiritual goal for the month that will also continue into this month was to read the whole Bible in two months. Not easy! I would have good days in which I would read a lot and others when I would only read a few verses. It took me until this past week to figure out what worked for me. I found I do the best at night, when Joanna crashes at 8pm and we just relax and watch TV. To get to the point, I am currently (although January is not done!) finishing up the book of Joshua. I know that does not sound like much, but that is ¼ of the Bible, and some of the hardest books! Leviticus was amazingly interesting and I got through it in two days, Exodus and Deuteronomy were another story. I am hoping that with a more set schedule with reading and the hard books behind, I will be able to finish it this month!

My last goal for this month was a family goal, and that was helping Brad with his 30 day weight loss program. We started the program a week late because he was out of town, so we are not done with it yet. But he has done a great job eating well and exercising as well! My main part of this goal was the food and menu planning. It was hard going from just figuring things out on a daily basis to planning out and measuring out not just dinner, but breakfast, lunch and two snacks. It was hard, and I had a few days I did not do a very good job, but we are working on it! This month I also got the chance to learn how to menu plan, so I now have a binder with five weeks of recipes and the shopping lists to go with them. This is the first week I am using my binder and so far, it is really helping! I am hoping I can keep menu planning this month without all the weekly work, because it is already done!

My family goal this month is similar to January’s goal. I am going to stick with the menu planning, but also to try a few new recipes, and to get all of my recipes put into my binder. I am much more likely to use a recipe if I can find it! I also am going to make a week’s worth of freezer meals for those crazy days, guests, and when we are just lacking time! I have a few recipes for freezer meals and I am looking for more as I want to do seven new freezer kits! We will see how it goes!

My spiritual goal for the month is to finish reading my Bible and my personal goal this month is to get organized! My house is clean most of the time, and things have a place, but not completely organized. Goals like this one though can cause problems as it is a huge goal! So I sat down a few days ago and listed every part of the house that needed to be organized. I then got a calendar and filled in each spot with a goal. Some days, like Sundays, I did not want to have a huge project … there is not enough time! I knew which days I could spend more time on organizing, so I put things like closets on those days. Packed days I put things like coupons, pantry, or a junk drawer in the slot. Below is my list of what I am planning on doing and when.

February
1st – Kitchen Cabinets
2nd – Pantry
3rd – Junk Drawer
4th – Guest Bathroom
5th – Stock Pile
6th – Garage
7th – Craft Closet
8th – Sewing Cabinets
9th – Computer Files
10th – Photos
11th – Joanna’s Closet
12th – Joanna’s Room
13th – Taxes/Budget
14th – Living Room
15th – Linen Closet
16th – Coat Closet
17th – File Cabinet
18th – Junk Basket
19th – Bookshelf/Bed
20th – Closet
21st – Bathroom
22nd – Freezer
23rd – Refrigerator
24th – Emergency Book
25th – Recipes
26th – Coupons
27th – Laundry Room
28th – Car
29th – Backyard

I hope as you read this you are also thinking of a goal or a project to do this month! Does not have to be big, or three, just find something that you want to work on. With Valentine’s Day being this month, find a way to bless your family and to show them that you love them!