Goals for 2014

I have never been one to make resolutions for the new year. I have always thought that if you want to make a change, you should just do it! But as my family grows and my hopes and goals change, I decided I wanted to make a few changes in 2014. So here is a list of the goals I am setting for myself this year:

• I want to walk 100 miles. 

This equals out to be around 2 miles a week. Totally doable. Since I'm pregnant I want to walk more and stay active this year. Steve likes to walk too, so I hope this is something we can do together, with babies in a stroller. 

• I want to read the Bible in a year. 

I've joined a group of moms on Facebook (The Bold Year Challenge) who are doing a 5-day a week visual Bible study. I actually need to check because I think this study may only be the New Testament, but I'm ok with that. ANY amount of Bible reading would really be an improvement at this point, so if I can read the NT this year, maybe next year I can tackle the whole Bible. I'm just excited to start a long-term study with other women and to discover more about visual studies. 

• I want to read 12 books. 

When I think about a lot of my friends and the amount they read (I have at least one friend who could easily read 12 books in a month!) this goal seems almost lame. But I have totally gotten away from reading and I want to get back to it. 12 books in a year means just one book a month. Doable!

• I want to blog 25 times. 

This means a blog post every 2 weeks. My last post was something like 9 months ago and that's just pathetic! I'm hoping to write about mothering topics, homeschooling and family life, as well as some new-to-me things like essays and poetry. 

• I want to have a natural childbirth. 

Baby #3 is due in August and I desperately want to have a natural birth. I would like to have a home (water) birth but I'm not sure that Steve will jump on board with that. If not, we will have a hospital birth and I want to deliver without drugs!

• I would like to get better at meal planning and cooking healthy meals for my family. On this same topic, I would like to get Jordan eating more foods that are good for him. 

• I want to start a Blessings Jar.

This is something I started in 2013 and didn't follow through well with. I have a huge pickle jar that I want to fill with slips of paper containing blessings, achievements, milestones, etc. A very fun thing to look back on at the end of the year. 

• I want to start writing more letters to my husband and kids. 

I feel that I express myself well on paper and I think I want to start notebooks (I already have one with Steve) to write letters to each member of my family once a week. 

• I want to complete a 365 photo project. 

One photo every day for a year. I will post the album on Facebook. 

• I want to waste less time.

All of these goals are awesome in my eyes and they will take time and effort. There is a lot of writing involved and I hope that implementing these changes means I will waste less time on Facebook, time sucking apps and the like. 

I hope to check in on my goals every quarter to see how I'm doing on them!