My thoughts are everywhere today. I feel like I want to make some changes--some improvements--in my life. Where in the world is this coming from?
Saturday I celebrated my 38th birthday. Yep. I'm that old now. 38 years. I certainly don't feel that old. One of my friends kindly reminded me that we graduated from high school 20 years ago this June. TWENTY YEARS!?!! I do realize that I have six kids and the oldest is 16. I get that it all adds up. I've lived a full life, but it doesn't seem that I've been around that long.
With my birthday coming at the beginning of the year, I sort of combine birthday goals and New Year's resolutions. Here are a few things I'd like to focus on for this next year.
Focus #1: Service
As my gift to myself and the world, I will give 38 gifts of service this year. I did this 2 years ago, and it really enriched my life. I felt that I thought more about service. I didn't do it this previous year and I missed it, so it's back on like Donkey Kong.
Some of my requirements have to be that it can't be service I would normally do. For instance, doing the laundry for my family doesn't count because this is part of my regular responsibilities. The service might be planned. It can be unexpected. I love those spontaneous, catch-me-by-surprise opportunities to bless someone's life. They must be meaningful. I expect them to frequently be inconvenient.
Two years ago, I did keep track of my gifts of service, but I didn't want to toot my own horn. Where's the fun in that? I didn't mention them very often to people. This time, I will write most of them in my journal but I may feature occasional opportunities that come my way here or on Facebook.
Focus #2: Healthy Living
Since June 2014, I've been working to lose weight and get in shape (like most everyone I know). I've lost about 30 lbs. and would like to lose some more. I will continue to work towards my goals in this area.
I'd also like to encourage my kids to get more healthy as well. We are actually going to have a Family meeting about this tonight. I will blog about our plan later.
Focus #3: Balance
This past year, I did something I've never done since graduating from college and having #1. I started working. First, I began writing blog posts for several companies. It's called content marketing. I didn't earn tons, but I thoroughly enjoyed earning a little extra $ and pushing myself to improve in a new style of writing. [Honestly, this is the reason for rejuvenating my blog. If I can blog for others, why not myself?]
There were moments of imbalance with the blog writing. For instance, the month of June, I wrote 43 blog posts for one company alone. It was a bit much. I didn't spend enough time with my kids. The house was a mess.
Then, in July, I discovered Jamberry Nail wraps. I love the product and decided to become an Independent Consultant to get the discount for me and my girls. I knew we'd use them and we might as well save money. However, I was lured in by the Fast Start incentive program Jamberry offers. Next thing I knew, all I was doing was Jamberry. Jamberry parties--online, in home, catalog. I promised myself that I would give it 3 months to see if I could make a business out of it.
I totally made my initial investment back in the first month, and I still love the product, but my life has been out of balance. I spent hours on Facebook posting things about the product and playing fun games. I loved the element of interacting with people. Compared with writing, Jamberry appealed more to extrovert in me. However, my kids complained. My husband complained. I felt out of control trying to be super stay-at-home mom, super Institute teacher, super pianist for choir, super Primary chorister, super writer, super Jamberry consultant, super weight loss seeker, super housecleaner, super daughter, super friend. I pretty much stunk it all up! I can't do it all.
I'm still not sure what to do. I hate to give up on Jamberry. I feel like it's wrong to call it quits. And yet, if I have something else that is more important that I feel I should do, I'm not being a quitter. Decisions, decisions.
Either way, I need to strive for balance in my life.
Focus #4: Order
After a discussion with my sister today, I feel driven to have more order in my home. For years, I religiously used chore charts, but I've slacked off the past 6 months or so. A combination of reasons for this:
- I know my older kids are busy. I feel guilty pouring more on them.
- I get tired of the constant nagging. It's honestly almost easier to do it myself.
- I hate making chore charts. I've used MyJobChart and I like it, but it's annoying having to log on to see what the chores are.
Nevertheless, I know my kids need to contribute around here. They help make the mess and they need to help clean up. They need to learn how to do the tasks. It will prepare them for when they go out on their own. Plus, working and cleaning up after yourself is a life skill.
For my birthday, my husband deep cleaned our bedroom which had become the dumping zone for all sorts of odds and ends. Today, it is gloriously clean! I love it! I hope to try to work on organizing more areas in my home.
Scattered Toys and Thoughts
So there you have it! Instead of cleaning my house today, I am cleaning up and organizing my mind and goals.
"Begin with the end in mind." Stephen R. Covey
Now that I have some idea where I am headed this year, I can get on the road!
