Category Archives: Goals

Under the Wire

KathyOkay, so you know how introverts need time to think things through, reflect, not make snap judgments? Let’s say that’s why it’s almost the end of January and I still haven’t talked about my yearly goals. That’s my story, anyway, and I’m sticking to it!

Before I started writing this post, I read back over everything Tiffany and I had published in 2014. I’m going to count keeping up with this blog as one of my major successes from last year. I didn’t post as often as I wanted to (see above!), but I’m so glad I have this space to reflect on my parenting journey. Also, I’m thankful for each and every comment we’ve received from our readers. Even if you’re just reading along, it’s good to know that you’re out there and that you get us. Mwah!

Other successes:

  • I found a much better work/life balance this summer than in years past, and the rest of the family didn’t seem to suffer – having some extra structure was not a bad thing at all. The two hour block of writing time each day was the key, and it helped me see that I really can accomplish a lot with limited time. I’m going to keep that in mind for other parts of the year — sick days, teacher workdays, snow days. (Oh, snow days. How I love and hate you.)
  • Doing things as a family – and not. In my goals for 2014 post, I talked about scheduling trips like Museum Mondays, which only lasted until the summer. But we’ve found other things that keep us connected, like the movie nights we’ve started doing once a week(ish). Still, our experience with Screen Free Week reminded me that sometimes we don’t want to do things together, and that’s okay too.

Things I am still working on: getting enough sleep, the jam-packed afternoons and evenings, and the ever-present choice between time to myself and keeping the house running. I must admit the house keeps losing. I tackled several bigger organizing projects during Doodlebug’s winter break and her first week back at school — I’d hoped to get more done, of course, and now I’m toying with the idea of folding some of that organizing time into December this year. I’ve already seen that I’m not very successful at getting writing time during the holidays, so maybe I should try to get a jump start on the January decluttering spirit instead. Or maybe that’s a crazy idea that will only make December more stressful. We’ll see . . .

The other thing I want to keep in mind for 2015 is something we touched on in Tiffany’s post about her new job – parenting is one of my “core personal projects,” something that takes me out of my introvert comfort zone for a very good reason. This year I want to focus more on the positives of parenting and stress less about the challenges. One good development in that department: iDad and I have started reading the Harry Potter books to Doodlebug. So far she loves them, and I love being able to share that world with her. Here’s to a magical year!

— Kathy