Goals for 2020

I have been working on this post since the last week in December so I figured that I better get it finished and posted before the year gets away from me completely. Our dear elderly neighbor told me once that life is like a roll of toilet paper, it goes faster the closer it gets to the end. I would have to agree as time seems to fly by faster with each passing year. Every year my husband and I choose a word of the year to help us work on a specific set of goals. These were our previous "Word of the Year" choices: Focus (2019), Change (2018), Healthy (2017), Simple (2016), Relax (2015), and Better (2014). This year our word is... Drum roll, please........

To love their children...

Several weeks back I was reminded of this Facebook post from eight years ago when I had a 2 year old, almost 1 year old, and was 5 months pregnant with our 3rd child. Since tomorrow is Mother's Day, I thought I should share.

To love their children...

April 13, 2009 at 3:44pm

Today has just been "one of those days". You know the ones I'm talking about - your son is being a stereotypical 2 year old boy and has been awake since 6:30am. You are trying to catch up on some much needed rest, but now know that won't happen. Your almost 1 year old is very cranky because she is teething and her 2 year old brother woke her up much earlier than she likes to be awake. You finally get a break to take a VERY quick shower so you can feel ready for the day. Then a minute into your shower, your 2 year old decides to keep turning the sink water on and off and then on again, causing your shower temp to go from warm to freezing to scalding and then back to warm. You try to finish your shower even faster. Then you hear the almost 1 year old start to fuss, so you quick peek around the shower curtain to see the 2 year old "jumping" over the 1 year old who really isn't in a mood to be messed around with. You quickly rinse any remaining soap off and jump out of the shower to deal with the 2 year old who just as quickly runs out of the bathroom toward the big picture window in the living room, knowing that you will not follow until you are wearing something more than just a bath towel.

And on I could go about the reasons for today being "one of those days" but I need to get to my point - "To love their children..." While having "one of those day," I have been reminded of some verses in Titus 2 that I now understand more fully.

Titus 2:1-5:
But speak thou the things which become sound doctrine: That the aged men be sober, grave, temperate, sound in faith, in charity, in patience. The aged women likewise, that they be in behaviour as becometh holiness, not false accusers, not given to much wine, teachers of good things; that they may teach the young women to be sober, to love their husbands, to love their children, to be discreet, chaste, keepers at home, good, obedient to their own husbands, that the word of God be not blasphemed.

When hearing or reading these verses, I never fully understood why the older women were to teach the younger women to love their husbands and their children. I always thought, "Why would anyone need to be taught HOW to this? Doesn't love just come naturally?" After being married for a few years, I understood that loving your husband does not always come naturally, but until today I really hadn't thought about how mothers need to be taught "to love their children." I now realize that I must work at loving my children and seek the Lord's help in this area.

I wanted to share my "Duh" moment with you for a couple of reasons:
1. I wanted to let all of you veterans of motherhood, a.k.a. aged women, know how much I appreciate your examples and words of encouragement, they have been a great blessing to me!
2. I wanted to help any other young moms realize they aren't the only ones who may struggle with loving their children on a daily basis. If you're struggling, seek the counsel of the "aged women" and the strength of the Lord because you just can't do it on your own!

Motherhood is hard.

Motherhood is definitely the hardest and yet most rewarding job in the world, and today is proof of this: one child (while completely not thinking) stabbed the leather couch repeatedly with a newly sharpened pencil while another child (the one who has been super difficult to deal with ever since the first day of school) got right to work this morning and finished her schooling before lunch. 

With having several kids super close together, I often feel like I continually deal with the same issues because as one child overcomes a particular "phase" (hair cutting, coloring on walls, etc.) another tends to move into it. Then you add new problems to work through with the oldest (or sometimes one child does something new that you have never had to face with your older three). Some days it feels like a constant battle. Then you have days where you see progress: the kids make their beds without prompting, the child who has been struggling with a concept in school finally gets it, your child offers to help with something because they thought it would be the right thing to do. The days where you see progress are the days that we must look forward to, must remember, and (from what my parents tell me) will some day treasure as beautiful memories. Hang in there. Find opportunities to encourage some other mom who is most likely struggling. Remember that none of us is perfect or has it ALL together. Happy Monday. Enjoy another cup of coffee.

Goals for 2015

I haven't done New Year's Resolutions in a long time. Instead, both the hubby and I make a lists with the goals that we plan to work toward throughout the year. You can see last year's goals here. I did fairly well with my goals last year and am hoping to make progress toward this year's as well. So here goes (better late than never), these are my goals for the year. Oh, and please check up on me from time to time to see how I'm progressing. 

A Gift Idea: Hot or Cold, Not Lukewarm

Best travel mug EVER!

Update - this deal is no longer available, however, these are great mugs and worth they're normal $20 price tag.

I had hoped to post this deal for you a couple of weeks but just didn't have time and the sale ended. I'm sure you can relate. :) I was super excited to see that this sale was back for a limited time so I am determined to share it this time around.

KitchenAid Stand Mixer as low as $87.02+tax (ends 11/28)

The Classic - I have this model.

I absolutely LOVE my KitchenAid stand mixer. It is a great multi-tasker for my kitchen. I can use it's bread hook attachment to make bread, I use the whisk for whipped cream, the paddle for pretty much everything else, and then I bought a pasta roller attachment, which is so much fun. I am also looking to get the food grinder and sausage stuffing kit. With all that said, Kohl's has an amazing deal on all of their KitchenAid stand mixers.

Jelly Biscuits

There are days when you're just in a rush. Maybe you woke up late or something took longer than

planned, which isn't a stretch when you've got 4 kids. Trying to figure out what to feed everyone for breakfast when you feel like you're making a mad dash to get out the door is difficult. I don't know about your kids, but mine take forever to eat a bowl of cereal and seem to do better with eggs. Here's one thing that we do when I haven't thought ahead, scrambled eggs and jelly biscuits.

Step 1 - preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Step 2 - pop open a can of Pillsbury Grands! Biscuits, arrange them on a baking sheet, and place them in the oven for 13-17 minutes.

Step 3 - whip up a big batch of cheesy scrambled eggs with some pre-cooked sausage tossed into the pan.

Step 4 - remove biscuits from the oven and let them cool till they are easy to handle.

Step 5 - open biscuits and spread with jelly.

Step 6 - eat.

The kids will say things like "Mom, you made some great biscuits!" Everyone will be feed and happy. :)

His Grace and Presence

I am going to leave my usual topic of food to share something that really ministered to me on Sunday. There are times that I focus on the difficulties in my life and I let myself get discouraged. In that discouragement, I often question God's plan for our family. In my head I KNOW that God's grace is sufficient (2 Corinthians 12:9) but it's harder to apply that knowledge when my emotions get involved and they've been getting involved a lot lately.

Milwaukee Brewers Tickets for $6.20 on 6/2/2014

The hubby and I really enjoy tailgating at a game. It doesn't matter if it's football or baseball, it's just an all around fun activity for us. Last year we were given free tickets for the whole family to go to a game and we had a blast. So, naturally, when my hubby sent me a text at 6:26am that you could get tickets for $6.20 each to the Monday, June 2nd, Brewer game I jumped at the chance!

but I don't want to tell you why

Miss E had quite an emotional flare up today during school. She didn't want to work on writing her letters neatly so she threw a fit. While talking with her about her wrong behavior she informed Daddy (who just happened to be home during the flare up), "Mommy won't let me do my schoolwork, but I don't want to tell you why." We both had a hard time not chuckling at that statement, but it made me stop and think. How often do we want to tell only our side of a disagreement? How many times do we refuse to deal with our part in a problem? We need to learn to take ownership of our wrongdoings and work at correcting them instead of just blaming the other person(s) involved. Just something I was reminded of today while parenting.

21 Days to a More Disciplined Life: Day 21

I am reading 21 Days to a More Disciplined Life as part of my goals for 2014 and I'm sharing insights from each day's readings. If you want to catch up on my progress, read previous days: Day 1, Day 2, Day 3, Day 4, Day 5, Day 6, Day 7, Day 8, Day 9, Day 10, Day 11, Day 12, Day 13, Day 14, Day 15, Day 16, Day 17, Day 18, Day 19, Day 20.

Day 21: This chapter is all about looking at your progress instead of looking at the areas that still need improvement. Your progress toward discipline in one area will undoubtedly affect other areas in your life. "Success builds on success." So keep working at developing your one habit, don't give up even when you don't feel like you're making progress. "One day soon, you may wake up and realize you've changed your whole life...beginning with one simple habit."

21 Days to a More Disciplined Life: Day 20

I am reading 21 Days to a More Disciplined Life as part of my goals for 2014 and I'm sharing insights from each day's readings. If you want to catch up on my progress, read previous days: Day 1, Day 2, Day 3, Day 4, Day 5, Day 6, Day 7, Day 8, Day 9, Day 10, Day 11, Day 12, Day 13, Day 14, Day 15, Day 16, Day 17, Day 18, Day 19.

Day 20: Crystal talks about little jobs (things that can be done in 2 minutes or less) and how we need to just do them instead of writing them down or procrastinating. We could save a lot of time (and mind power) if we would just do these little things instead of repeatedly thinking about and trying to remember to do them. "Each time you clear brain space by getting a trivial task completed and off the list, you're making room for heavy-duty thought processes. Think about all of the problems you could solve, or all the ways you could let your creativity flow if you didn't have a dozen nibbling tasks torturing your brain."
Crystal suggests that you make a list of these tiny tasks each morning when you get up and then do them as quickly as possible. It will help give you some extra motivation and sense of accomplishment.

21 Days to a More Disciplined Life: Day 19

I am reading 21 Days to a More Disciplined Life as part of my goals for 2014 and I'm sharing insights from each day's readings. If you want to catch up on my progress, read previous days: Day 1, Day 2, Day 3, Day 4, Day 5, Day 6, Day 7, Day 8, Day 9, Day 10, Day 11, Day 12, Day 13, Day 14, Day 15, Day 16, Day 17, Day 18.

Day 19:
Get it done early. "This principle applies to your home and family life as well as your business. Whenever possible, get it - whatever it may be - done early and eliminate the stress and frustration of being pulled in a million directions." Crystal talks about how she had a problem with always being late. I can totally relate to this as I have struggled with it as well. "Why complete a task now, when I can wait 30 more minutes and do it in a mad rush?" Pretty silly thinking, but many times I find myself doing it. Procrastination brings extra stress so why do we do it? It's a wrong mentality that we need to change. Well, at least, I need to change. Don't overwhelm yourself by trying to be on time for everything at once. Start slowly by focusing on one event at a time.

21 Days to a More Disciplined Life: Day 18

I am reading 21 Days to a More Disciplined Life as part of my goals for 2014 and I'm sharing insights from each day's readings. If you want to catch up on my progress, read previous days: Day 1, Day 2, Day 3, Day 4, Day 5, Day 6, Day 7, Day 8, Day 9, Day 10, Day 11, Day 12, Day 13, Day 14, Day 15, Day 16, Day 17.

Day 18:
Embrace your own uniqueness. You are you so don't focus on trying to measure up to someone else. It just wastes time and energy. Be a wise steward of the talents, gifts, and abilities that God has given you. You can think about ways to improve upon these, but you cannot change who He has created you to be. It's tempting to look at people we admire and consider our differences from them to be shortcomings. But don't think for one minute that you're inferior because you don't measure up to them. You are a unique person, created in the image of God with your own unique set of skills, weaknesses, joys, tears, homes, and bodies. Crystal recommends reading Now, Discover Your Strengths by Marcus Buckingham and Donald O. Clifton. One of the big things that Marcus pushes for is playing to your strengths, not your weaknesses. Learn to build on what you already do well and bring your weaknesses up to average. "You were born an original, don't die a copy!"

21 Days to a More Disciplined Life: Day 17

I am reading 21 Days to a More Disciplined Life as part of my goals for 2014 and I'm sharing insights from each day's readings. If you want to catch up on my progress, read previous days: Day 1, Day 2, Day 3, Day 4, Day 5, Day 6, Day 7, Day 8, Day 9, Day 10, Day 11, Day 12, Day 13, Day 14, Day 15, Day 16.

Day 17:
Stop comparing yourself to others! Crystal encourages everyone to not feel guilty if you aren't able to do exactly what she is doing, which is getting up early in this case. You have to look at where you are in life and determine what is best for you and your family. Consider your needs, the needs of your family, your strengths, and your weaknesses. Choose goals that work for you and your family, even if it's completely opposite of what works for someone else. Don't pine after someone else's life. Learn to be content with and make the most of YOUR LIFE. Develop your own style, develop your own habits, develop strong discipline, and be a person that others can look up to.

I am in the same boat as Crystal. I am not pregnant or nursing. My kids sleep through the night most of the time. At 7, 5, 4, and 2, my kids are starting to be able to do more things without assistance. I homeschool my kids, which provides for a more flexible schedule. We are debt free (minus the mortgage) so it is easier financially for my to work part-time from home. My hubby is totally on my side, encouraging and challenging me when I need it. Every mom has to learn what works and is best for her family. Now, neither Crystal or myself, for that matter, are telling you that you have excuse to be lazy. We are merely saying that everyone is different, has different circumstances, and lives at different stages of life. I remember when I was pregnant with Miss S. and had all-day sickness if I didn't get 7 hours or more of sleep. There was no way then that I would have been able to do what I am attempting now. It wouldn't have been wise or healthy. Life would be pretty boring if everyone was the same. Be a better version of yourself instead of trying to be someone else.

21 Days to a More Disciplined Life: Day 16

I am reading 21 Days to a More Disciplined Life as part of my goals for 2014 and I'm sharing insights from each day's readings. If you want to catch up on my progress, read previous days: Day 1, Day 2, Day 3, Day 4, Day 5, Day 6, Day 7, Day 8, Day 9, Day 10, Day 11, Day 12, Day 13, Day 14, Day 15.

Day 16:
Eat your frog. My mom always talked about this when she was teaching. She'd tell us to get the subject done first that we struggled with or didn't like so we wouldn't procrastinate on it. Today Crystal talks about the same thing with our daily tasks. This chapter is a challenge to stop procrastinating on that one thing you don't want to do. I have to make sure I get my workout done first thing in the morning because if I don't do it then, I will most likely not do it at all. It's not that I don't like working out, I actually enjoy the exercise and especially the way I feel after it. The reason I have to do it first is that I don't want to get out of bed. If you haven't noticed it yet, I do not like mornings so it takes a lot of discipline to make myself get out of bed earlier than usual to workout. When you start the day with the thing you like least, the rest of the day is more enjoyable and it gives you some extra momentum for the rest of the day. Crystal then goes one step further and tells us to not only do the thing we like least first, she also says to do the thing we enjoy the most last. Then we have an extra incentive to finish our other tasks.

21 Days to a More Disciplined Life: Day 15

I am reading 21 Days to a More Disciplined Life as part of my goals for 2014 and I'm sharing insights from each day's readings. If you want to catch up on my progress, read previous days: Day 1, Day 2, Day 3, Day 4, Day 5, Day 6, Day 7, Day 8, Day 9, Day 10, Day 11, Day 12, Day 13, Day 14.

Day 15:
Say, "Yes," to the best. Every mom must realize that "supermom" is a myth. If you want to live a productive, efficient, happy, peaceful, and disciplined life, you MUST learn to say "no." When I make getting up a priority, I must say "no" to habitually staying up late. I also have to say "no" to most activities and events that would keep me up late. I need to learn to count the cost of each commitment before I make the final decision. I can't say "yes" to everything so I must pick and choose wisely by starting with the best stuff first. If I have leftover time and energy I can say "yes" to some of the good things, too.

21 Days to a More Disciplined Life: Day 14

I am reading 21 Days to a More Disciplined Life as part of my goals for 2014 and I'm sharing insights from each day's readings. If you want to catch up on my progress, read previous days: Day 1, Day 2, Day 3, Day 4, Day 5, Day 6, Day 7, Day 8, Day 9, Day 10, Day 11, Day 12, Day 13.

Day 14:
Set yourself up for success. In this chapter, Crystal discussing the crippling problem of making excuses for why you can't do something. "Instead, choose to invest the time you usually would devote to formulating an excuse to considering what you can do to set yourself up for success in achieving your goals." If you goal is to get up early, you have to make going to bed earlier a priority. You may need to buy an alarm without a snooze, set multiple alarms, have a friend call you, etc. I had an alarm on my phone that wouldn't turn off or snooze till I had solved a couple of math problems successfully. I've also had alarms that slowly get louder and louder. If you're trying to exercise first thing in the morning, make sure you have everything ready the night before. Plan out your calories the night before if you're trying to get in the habit of eating fewer/better calories. Basically, do as much of the prep work ahead of time so that you have a better chance at success.

21 Days to a More Disciplined Life: Day 13

I am reading 21 Days to a More Disciplined Life as part of my goals for 2014 and I'm sharing insights from each day's readings. If you want to catch up on my progress, read previous days: Day 1, Day 2, Day 3, Day 4, Day 5, Day 6, Day 7, Day 8, Day 9, Day 10, Day 11, Day 12.

Day 13:
Read motivating books. I loved this chapter because I have made this one of my goals for 2014. "Good books will challenge you to improve as an individual." Crystal talks about reading before bed and how it can help you unwind while sharpening your mind. She also suggests listening to audio books if you struggle finding time to reading. She offers 3 book suggestions to give a boost in the discipline department. 1. Eat That Frog!: 21 Great Ways to Stop Procrastinating and Get More Done in Less Time, 2. 168 Hours: You Have More Time Than You Think, and 3.Today Matters: 12 Daily Practices to Guarantee Tomorrows Success. I plan to put all three on my reading list. :) Biographies are also a good read.

21 Days to a More Disciplined Life: Day 12

I am reading 21 Days to a More Disciplined Life as part of my goals for 2014 and I'm sharing insights from each day's readings. If you want to catch up on my progress, read previous days: Day 1, Day 2, Day 3, Day 4, Day 5, Day 6, Day 7, Day 8, Day 9, Day 10, Day 11.

Day 12:
I didn't like today's reading. However, it was what I needed to hear - discipline demands FOCUS. "You'll never hit the bull's-eye if you're aiming at multiple targets." That statement hurt a little hearing it, but it's very true. I don't get very far on anything when I'm trying to work on several things at a time. I have really hard time staying focused (and I think a lot of moms feel this way, too). Crystal gives some really good common sense advice. 1. Remove distractions, i.e. if you're trying to lose weight don't keep baking brownies (yes, I do this and know that I shouldn't), if you're trying to accomplish a task evaluate where you're using your time (Facebook, twitter, reading instead of doing your task, etc.). 2. Focus in on the task at hand. She suggests using a timer and practicing stay focused (start with 5 minute increments). I will interject that every time I have tried doing this I get interrupted about 10 seconds into it by a small child in need of immediate attention. I think they can sense that I've started the timer. Now, I have decided to give it a try and see if I will do better this time around.