I'm back after a long hiatus to share my final check-in of my ten turning 30 goals. The time away was needed. I needed time to renew my mind and remember what Full & Simple meant to me and why I started. In order to live out what that means for our family will take a bit of time. In the next couple of months, I'm going to be finishing up some projects and transitioning off of a few committees and things like that, so I will still probably blog a little less than I had been. It is my plan to come back in 2017 full force with a renewed vision for Full & Simple and our life here on the farm. I think you'll be excited about some of the things I'll be able to share with you next year!
In the meantime, on to the check-in!
Goal #1: Read More
Progress: I have surpassed my reading goal for 2016, which was 25 books, by reading 28. Since I set my goal last October, I've read 31 books. Honestly I'm a little surprised by how big that number is! I don't know if I've ever read so many books in a year. I have slowed in my reading these last few months. From the time we start canning until after Christmas usually seems like a blur. I'm ready for snowed in nights of reading with little stress of "busyness."
Some of my favorite books from the past year were:
- Anything by Jennie Allen
- Wild and Free by Jess Connolly and Hayley Morgan
- Me Before You by Jojo Moyes
- Loving My Actual Life by Alexandra Kuykendall
- The Secret Life of Bees by Sue Monk Kidd
- Redeeming Love by Francine Rivers
Goal #2: Continue Going to Yoga
Progress: I've been going to yoga every Monday night when I can. There was a span where I was in Hawaii and then my husband was on travel that I didn't attend, but other than that, I love it too much to not go. I really hope to be able to start attending regular classes and figure out a way to practice at home without kids thinking that plank position is "climb on momma" position. LOL!
Goal #3: Lose the Baby Weight
Progress: This did not happen. Honestly, I've made very little effort. We do eat a lot of vegetables, but we also like our cream and cheese. I'm still a Mountain Dew addict, but I have found some La Croix flavors I like that I've been stocking at home to prevent my urge of making sweet tea since I don't buy Mountain Dew for home.
Goal #4: Learn Italian
Progress: I haven't done anything with my Italian since last month. I've not been very productive honestly. Busyness and just the emotional fatigue from social media and the election had me craving Netflix during my down time instead of anything worthwhile. Hopefully, that will change soon!
Goal #5: Take a Cooking Class
Progress: I didn't finish this for two reasons. One was not having time when they offered classes that interested me. The other was not liking the classes they offered when I did have time. They do have a Christmas in Provence class in December that looks like fun!
Goal #6: Make Time for Play
Progress: This is a constant struggle for me as an introvert. When I have time to do things other than the tasks that need doing, I usually prefer to spend some time alone. I am trying to include the kids in my daily tasks more. I'm also realizing that the kids don't necessarily need hours of play from me. Fifteen to twenty minutes a couple times a day seems to do wonders for their attitudes.
My husband and I went on a date for my birthday. We had sushi and saw Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children, which I didn't love. It was so different from the book! I know that with the holidays coming, that date night probably won't happen much.
However, I am planning on reinstating pizza and game night now that its getting dark earlier and we aren't working outside as much.
Goal #7: Develop a Signature Style
Progress: I'm still working through Hayley Morgan's No Brainer Wardrobe course. I've gotten rid of even more pieces since my initial purge when I was reading The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up.
I've also stopped my regular subscription to StitchFix. Trying to create a capsule wardrobe has caused me to be extremely picky with my wardrobe choices. I'm hoping to only have 35-40 pieces for fall/winter, with some of those pieces being wearable year-round. I just seemed to be keeping nothing from my fixes because of that. I would get pieces that I liked, but I was having a hard time getting things that I loved enough to include them in my 35-40 pieces.
Goal #8: Master the Top Knot
Progress: DONE.
Goal #9: Continue Making our House Our Home
Progress: I have made progress here. Sometimes its hard to feel like it but I can see major differences when I look at pictures from a year ago. I've had our great room painted. We've sold the oak dining set and bought new chairs and are making a reclaimed wood table. I've gotten a "new" TV stand. I created a little office for myself and my crafting and blog projects. And I've purged a lot. I'm starting to be able to breathe with the open spaces. We (meaning my husband) also built our gorgeous chicken coop.
There are definitely times I look around and wish we had more changed or finished. I can easily get discouraged by the blue tile in my kitchen that probably won't get changed any time soon, but there is progress. And sometimes we just have to force ourselves to focus on that instead.
Goal #10: Make Bible Study Part of My Daily Life
Progress: "I blame my lack of staying on track with this on our lack of routine, but really its probably me just being lazy instead of intentional with the downtime that I have. It's so much easier to watch another episode of whatever Netflix show I'm on than to open my heart and use my brain to study the Word. Not pretty and a little embarrassing, but its the truth."
That was my update from last month and it's still sadly pretty true. I did however finish the Seamless study by Angie Smith. I HIGHLY recommend it to anyone that is looking to understand the Who, What, Where, Why and When of the Bible instead of just the meanings of texts. Angie did a wonderful job of helping me learn lineages, authors and other factual information. For so much of my life I listened to the stories, but never paid attention to who wrote them down, when they happened or why they mattered in the broad view of the Bible. I will honestly probably go back to this study again and again, because there is just so much to learn from it.
So there you have it! I didn't accomplish everything, but I'm human. I was talking with a friend about being disappointed that I hadn't met all of my goals and that I was embarrassed to share that with you all. But she told me, "We don't want to read about someone who is perfect. We want to read about someone like us." So, to everyone that hasn't met a goal on time, let's keep trying and know that "Progress over Perfection" really is better than not trying at all!
Disclaimer: Erika Bault is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to Amazon.com
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