New Year Thoughts

Hey friends!!

Happy Wednesday!!

How is your week going so far??

We're doing pretty good...just trucking along...kind of painfully adjusting to earlier bedtimes and earlier wake up calls in the morning..but definitely more on the thriving end versus just surviving ;)

I am LOVING reading about everyone's goals, aspirations, dreams and "words" for the year as we usher in this New Year. Isn't there just something amazing about a WHOLE year ahead...we don't have a lot of control over much of our lives...but it sure does feel amazing to create change and bring more positivity to areas of our lives to make for a more meaningful life!!

I wanted to share with you my thoughts for the New Year. Instead of making goals for the entire year...I am doing something different and making quarterly goals. This feels good to me and I am excited to see what happens in the next couple of months!

HEALTH and WELLNESS

I feel like I shared about this sporadically last year- but I gained 10 pounds in the first couple of months of 2019 and have literally bounced back and forth between losing that 10 pounds and gaining it right back. I am a MAJOR emotional eater and last year was not only emotional for me- but incredibly stressful- for many reasons. 
After having maintained a very "happy" weight for my body for nearly 2 years...this past year has wrecked me. I know that might sound dramatic...but physically I haven't felt great and that plays a huge roll in how I feel mentally. 

ANYWAY. I got my starting weight yesterday and I have 7.5 pounds to lose to get back to where I am happy, healthy and comfortable. I tell you what- less than 8 pounds doesn't sound like a lot- but I know I will have to REALLY change some bad habits I have formed and fight hard to get back to where I want to be. In an effort to keep me accountable- I am going to share with ya'll how I am doing. I hope you don't mind! I won't make it a big deal...but knowing I have to check in with all of you, definitely makes me feel extra motivated! :)

I am a lifetime WW member...so that's the lifestyle "program" I am using to lose the weight. 

I LOVE WW. It works for me! 
(if anyone of you are new to WW- please email me or reach out on Instagram! I would love to help you if you have any questions about the program!!)

FITNESS

Run a 1/2 Marathon!

I am set to run 13.1 miles on March 14! Running a 1/2 marathon is something I have wanted to do for awhile...I have run 4 other 1/2 marathons...but it's been THIRTEEN years since my last race. I hadn't planned on doing a half marathon so early in the year...but when I was searching for a race to sign up for- there was one that is happening in my town- and it's on March 14. Logistically it's SO much easier if I run a race here locally- it allows Aaron and the kids to come and cheer me on easily- so here we go! I have already started training and I am really excited. I am NOT excited about the time commitment it takes to run the long runs- but- it's such a short period of time that I will be training...I know I can do it.

I am running every single mile in honor of my father and I know he will be with me every step of the way when I run my race!

FAMILY

Aaron and I have both agreed that something we want to work on/change/do more of this year is say YES. With 5 young kiddos and just a lot going on with Aaron's job and all of the things the kids participate in- it's easy to want to not do anything EXTRA. 

But life is too short to avoid doing something because it might create a little more "work" or push us out of our comfort zones. We are major creatures of habit and we love a good schedule :) HA!

For the first "quarter" of this year- we are saying "YES" to me bringing the kids to a conference Aaron will be attending. He has to go earlier in the week..but he reserved a bigger hotel for the weekend- so the kids and I will go hangout with him once their done with school. Packing up 5 kids to go stay in a hotel- all while Aaron is going to be pretty tied up with his conference doesn't necessarily scream FUN to me- but I know they will have a blast and it's always SO good to get out and do something different!
We are also taking a trip to Texas in April which will be SO fun and definitely an adventure. This will be the 2nd time we have flown as a family of 7 and I am totally looking forward to it!
It's going to take a lot of effort to get us ready for our trip, a lot of flexibility, energy and patience while we're on our trip and then of course, coming home is always a little harder- right?!? But I am way more focused on all the fun we're going to have and the amazing memories we're going to create in one of our favorites places! :)

We're also going to start playing tennis more with the kids. We did this a couple times over Christmas break and they loved it. It's a little chaotic with 5 kiddos wanting to hit a tennis ball...but it's also SUPER fun to see them so interested in such a great sport!

And finally- not a new goal- but definitely something we will continue is our monthly date nights with each of the kids. We have been doing this for several years now and it is SO good for them and us! On their birthdate- for instance- my birthday is December 3- so my date night would be the 3rd of every month- we put all of the other kids to bed and the one child gets to spend 20 minutes with us- doing their choice of an activity (no TV). We play card games, charades, dance, whatever they want. We end the date with Aaron and I sharing one thing we love about the specific child and then ask them if they have anything they want to talk about. So simple and it's something they LOVE and look forward to every month. It's a great way for us to stay connected with each kiddo and even though some evenings we are SO spent and tired and really don't want to do a date night- we are always so glad we did :)

FAITH
Pray for my kiddos EVERYDAY. This is one of my only year long goals.
I do a lot of praying...but I have not gotten into a good rhythm of specifically for my kids and their hearts and their futures. I got this prayer journal off of Amazon and it has 52 special intentions, one for each week of the year. For instance, this week we are praying specifically for our children's purity. I am only a couple days into starting this practice and using the journal but I am already loving it. I am very expectant to see where this prayer journey leads me and what God teaches me throughout the year!

Aaron and I read several digital (sent to our email) devotions every day- but one daily devotional (in book form) we keep reading again and again, is "Focus Your Day." I cannot say enough good things about this devotional and if you follow me on Instagram- I will occasionally share a specific daily devotion! I think I have read this devotional daily, for at least 4 years. And we will continue to do it again this year. It's just that good and the messages and prayers in it are Truth filled and timeless. 

FRIENDSHIP

We have been living in Greenville for 2 1/2 years and I am slowly but surely cultivating meaningful friendships. As you know- it takes TIME and concerted EFFORT to be a good friend and to have good friends. During this first quarter of the year, I want to continue to make the effort to have coffee and playdates with a couple of friends that I have started to become close with. This will be challenging as a lot of my "free" time (aka- when Marshall is in school) will be spent training for my 1/2 marathon. I am committed to making the time- it is SO good for me to have a good chat with a friend. Also- I definitely want to continue to increase my circle of friends- so I need to prioritize time for that!

On a family level- we want to continue to be better about having people over to hang out and have dinner. Again- with not a lot of free time due to Aaron's work schedule and the kiddos' activities- I tend to get a bit protective of our family time. BUT- we love having people over- and our kids especially enjoy it! We have plans to host some friends for dinner this Saturday and I plan to get another invitation out for February! 

MARRIAGE

I feel like Aaron and I have gotten into a good rhythm of monthly date nights. We have several really good babysitters and as long as I plan ahead and get one of them booked- having our monthly date has been really easy and something we enjoy immensely.
Something we would love to do MORE of is have a couple 24 hour getaways every year. This is pretty hard as the only people who we feel comfortable watching our kiddos is my brother and sister in law. They are ALWAYS so gracious and willing to watch the kiddos- I just don't want to out wear our welcome...you know I mean?!? HA!
Anyway- the good news is- at the end of the month- I have a surprise overnight planned for Aaron. We haven't had a little getaway since this time last January- so I am SO excited and I know he will be too! 

And there you have. I feel SO good about my focus for the first 4 months of the year and it feels really exciting to check back in with myself at the end of April to see the kind of growth I've had in the areas I am making a priority!

I'd love to know if you have certain things you are working on this year? Are you dreaming about something big? Do you have a specific goal you want to achieve??
Tell me all about them in the comments!!

Hope you have the BEST day!

Linking up with Stefanie, Keri, Mauri, Sarah, and Lindsay today!