Do Not Make Any New Years Resolutions!

 So...it's that time of year when many people will be making resolutions. Then there are those, who as the years go by, realize it is useless to make resolutions because they never keep them.

What to do, what to do. As for me, I will never make another  New Year's resolution, ever, again. New Year's resolutions are destined to fail. Here are a few reasons why:

1. We, as a society, have come to expect resolutions to fail. Even before many finish making their resolutions, they are making jokes about how long it will take them to fail. We have accepted that most people will fail trying to achieve the resolutions. Why should you be so surprised when you fail?!

2. Some resolutions are too general. Some resolutions are just that: I will lose weight, I will eat healthier, I will exercise more, I will be more productive at work. It is hard to measure how successful you are at keeping your resolution when you have nothing specific to measure it by.

3. Resolutions have a sense of expecting us to be perfect. For example, let's say you resolve to not drink anymore sodas this next year. You are doing great and then on January 11 you slip up and have a soda. Arrrghh, now that resolution has gone out the window, YOU HAD A SODA! How many of us have given up on a resolution because we messed up one time trying to keep whatever the resolution was. 

Instead of resolutions, I set New Year's goals/specific goals. I came up with the idea last year. I was at home celebrating New Year's eve with my family but that didn't last long as the daughter and hubs went to bed before midnight. I actually had time to myself, time to think. I decided to make my resolutions. I didn't want to make resolutions that I would not keep, but I felt it was very important to set goals in my life. How can I ever be successful or get anywhere if I don't have a plan. I also knew a year from now I wanted to look back and see that I had been productive, that I had  accomplished some things in the past year.

The next thing I knew I was on Pinterest creating a secret Pinterest board. The pictures I pinned served as inspiration for my goals. Some of my goals were more serious and some were just things I wanted to do in 2014. I went through a lot of my Pinterest boards full of wonderful ideas I had grand plans of doing and actually picked some that I wanted to do. I evaluated different areas of my life and found pins to go along with them. Some goals were more personal so I did not put them on Pinterest. 

Here are the things I kept in mind as I made these goals:

1. Make the goals specific. Instead of resolving to "complete some pins on Pinterest" or "be healthier" or "be more organized" I chose specific areas to focus on/complete. 

2. Have fun goals and serious goals. Yes, there are areas of my life I need to improve upon, but I want to have fun as well. I want to create things for my house, take some time to complete projects/hobbies I enjoy. In fact, this year I plan on adding things to do with my family.

3. The idea is to complete as many goals or form as many of the desired habits that you can by the end of the year. You have an entire year! This is much more empowering than making a resolution to start doing something January 1only to fail a few days later. It takes about three weeks to form a habit, if not longer. No wonder most resolutions don't make it past January. Notice I also said to complete as many as possible. I know I have been using the term goals, but some of these are more just things I would like to do. I am not setting up myself for failure by demanding that I have to complete all of them by the end of the year.

Was I successful? Yes! No, I did not complete every pin/goal, BUT, I accomplished a whole lot of things I feel I would not have if I had not made it a goal to attempt them last year at this time.Throughout the year, when ever I completed a "pin"/goal, I moved the pin to a new secret board titled "Completed New Years Resolutions." (I am now sharing the board since 2014 is over. Click here to see the board.)While there, I would reflect on all the other pins/goals I had not yet completed and choose another one to work on. Life threw some twists/curveballs, so some goals had to be adjusted. Some projects I said I wanted to complete did not seem as appealing to me as the year went on so I "deleted " them. 

As this new year begins, I encourage you to set aside time and create goals/plans you would like to complete this year. I even encourage you to set up a secret Pinterest board to help motivate you and keep track of what you are doing. You just might surprise yourself a year from now!

Do You Elf?

Do you Elf? We sure do! This whole elf thing usually elicits three responses:

1. We do the Elf and love it!

2. We don't choose to do it.

3. That thing creeps me out.

I must confess, I was once determined our family would never do it. I really didn't know what it was all about and didn't understand what all the excitement was about. When I finally started entertaining the idea, Madison was 6. Knowing how her brain works I didn't expect her to really believe the elf was real or could pull off the shenanigans we created for the elf. Was it even worth starting up? Would she even care by the time she was 8? What drew me in was the idea of starting a family tradition, and the $5 gift card Target was giving with it if you bought it Black Friday/Thursday night. 

This is "Little Rose's" third holiday season visiting us...and yes, it was definitely worth starting up. This Thanksgiving Day I did not even mention Little Rose should be appearing the next day. I wanted it to be a total surprise. As I was trying to sleep in the morning after Thanksgiving, Madison jumped beside me in bed and said, "I wonder if the elf came?!? "

That definitely answered the question would she still care at 8 years old. I'm pretty sure deep down she knows it is Jason and I doing the Elf, but she goes right along with the whole charade. 

If you are still on the fence about this elf thing, here are 4reasons to do it or, if not the elf, some sort of tradition.

1. IT CREATES LASTING MEMORIES. I can't remember half of what I got for Christmas as a child and I'm pretty sure Madison can't either. But ask her what the elf has gotten into?  She remembers that. And hopefully when she is older she will appreciate the lengths Mommy and Daddy went to to make it work. 

2. IT IS A BONDING EXPERIENCE FOR YOU AND YOUR HUSBAND. Seriously, it is! IT is absolutely adorable when Jason runs up to me excited about an idea he has for the elf to carry out. We have so much fun coming up with and researching ideas. 

3. IT PUTS A FOCUS ON THE FAMILY. While this might be the " most wonderful time of the year", it can be a very busy time of year. With school and work schedules along with juggling all your holiday to do lists, it is easy to overlook your family. the elf ensures you carve out daily time for your family. 

4. IT MAKES YOU APPRECIATE THE LITTLE THINGS. There is a wonderful feeling you get when you see your child's excitement over discovering the Elf's latest adventure. There is also a sense of pride in knowing you created the experience, especially when you woke up at 3 in the morning in a cold sweat because you forgot to move that lovely elf. 

Need some ideas to get started?

Click on the picture above of the elf in the fridge and it will take you to my Pinterest board!

Another Blog?

You know those crazy daydreams you have, the ones you are just sure would be amazing if you had the power, time, and money to bring to fruition? One I have had for awhile is to have my own magazine. One that covers all aspects of a woman's life, but with a Christian perspective in mind.

Well...I definitely don't have the power or money and I'm pretty sure I don't have the time either(you know between teaching pre-K, teaching Bible class, raising two young girls, trying to keep our house livable, running my eight-year-old to gymnastics, meal planning, squeezing in some sort of fitness, and giving my husband attention).

So the logical solution is to start a blog! It's okay if you are rolling your eyes right now. I know, I know, another Mom starting a blog and expecting others to want to read it. But that is what it is and I do hope you want to read it! This will not be a blog to document my life, although I will share personal stories as I find them helpful or entertaining. This blog is my "magazine" where I hope to share a variety of things from blogs I write personally, to whatever I find on the Internet to share.

Along with this I am starting a Facebook page to go along with the blog. If you are like me, there are hundreds of blogs I have run across but do not have the time to read regularly. If you follow the Facebook page you can choose what you want to read and ignore what you want.

If you have read this far in the post, thank you!!!! It really means a lot to me ( and hopefully I have not bored you ). I do ask for prayers that I keep up with this and use the blog for good. Stay tuned for whatever comes next!