Procrastination Pays Off

At least that's what I like to tell myself. Putting off laundry = large loads = more efficient load of laundry, right? Wednesday is catch up day for me, and today I feel like I've been very efficient, hehe.

I did finally get around to a few of my business resolutions. I've updated my Etsy banner, added the new Pantone Sprint 2013 Color Palette to my designs, even sent out an e-Newsletter. The list of things to do for my shop is endless, but I'm working diligently and it's paying off. I feel very blessed.

About those other resolutions, I'm working on those, too. Putting them on the blog has really helped motivate me. Here's how it's going so far:

Goal 1: Invite more people into my home
No formal plans yet, but I've been stirring ideas around in my head. I'm thinking regular game nights with some people from church. Maybe some churros? Did I mention my husband made me churros? So sweet, both the churros and my husband.

Recipe Here

Goal 2: Get my children involved in more activities
This one isn't as easy as I thought it would be. How do people do this? I looked into half a dozen water polo and basketball leagues for Eleanor and I'm convinced that there is no such thing as a sport that doesn't conflict with violin. I'm hoping this one gets easier when she gets to junior high and the school has teams. For now I'm must trying to get them outside more, to the park or in the backyard. The weather has been nicer which has made this more enjoyable for me.

Goal 3: Make more meals from scratch
I packed my refrigerator and freezer so I wouldn't be tempted to eat out as much, but I haven't made nearly as much progress in this area as I'd like. I'm a little stumped by the fact that so many recipes I come across either have a ton of ingredients I don't keep on hand, or I don't think my kids will eat it. They did like the baked beans I made from dried beans (a first for me) but they were a bit sweet for me. I also went back to some old favorites, including home made build-your-own taco salads. I really think if I'm going to be more successful in this area, the next goal has got to happen.

Goal 4: Work Less
Would you believe right after I wrote my post about resolutions I found out my per diem job is changing? I've been working Tuesdays or Thursdays there for a little over a year. Now they've gone and hired a more regular employee and pushed me to weekends. I wonder if God isn't trying tell me to give this one up.

Goal 5: Encourage people
2 steps forward, 1 step back. While I have made some effort to say more encouraging things to people, I've also stuck my foot in my mouth a few times over the last week. The devil is trying to keep me from this goal, and it's making me kinda angry. This is a life goal, I know He who began a good work in me will be faithful to complete it.

Goal 6: Pray
Fail. Ughh. Why is this one so hard? While I haven't really been formally praying, I do find myself more thankful. Amazingly, I have managed to keep up with writing in a daily journal. It's helped me to remain positive and thankful for the blessing of each day. If you've never tried this before, I highly recommend it. I know I'll cherish it forever.

Here are a few entries I thought you may enjoy:

January 4th "I hope I never forget how cute it was watching George chase the others with a light stick"

January 11th "Already time to order [Suzuki violin] book 4, so proud!"

January 13th "Bought a pea coat. Paul said I look like Kate Middleton"

January 18th "Tonight George said 'night night' for the first time, just like his big sister"

Resolve

I've really never been one to make New Year's Resolutions but for some reason it's on my mind this year. Let's blame it on Pinterest. I think what started it was a blog post I saw about writing in a journal everyday. Next thing I know I'm buying a daily calendar at Target to write in. I'm sure I won't write in it everyday, and that's just fine. But there are a few things I'd like to work on this year.

In 2013 I want to:

*Invite more people into my home.
This one will require quite a bit of effort for me. I'll have to clean a lot more than I do. I'll have to make plans, which isn't in my nature. If it were up to me, I'd live under a rock. There are quite a few reasons this has got to happen, and I've just got to stop being lazy and do it!

*Get my children involved in more activities.
Paul said something I loved so much I wrote it in my daily calendar. We were talking about not having much time for ourselves and the things we want to do. He said something about realizing that we've just got to give that time up. We need to commit to the time it takes to do the things kids need to do. This year Eleanor is going to do more than violin and summer swim.

*Make more meals from scratch.
This will be difficult for the same reason the first one is, I don't plan. One reason I don't cook much from scratch is that I'm always missing some ingredient. But there's got to be a way, and I'm going to find it.

*Work less.
Or at least work smarter, not harder. Paul bought me a Silhouette Cameo, and I really have no excuse now not to rock my Etsy shop. As much as I love working as a dietitian, God wants me at home with my kids. I wonder, will this be the year I figure out how to stay home full time?

*Encourage people.
After the terrible thing that happened in Sandy Hook I noticed articles and Facebook posts about "random acts of kindness". I know many people have made a resolution to commit more of these. But I say there is no such thing. What I meant to say is kindness is intentional, not random. I'm going to find ways to bless people. Last year I told my AWANA commander that I want to recognize the leaders who volunteer so much time and energy to help us out. Up until now I've been doing a pretty mediocre job. I know God gave me a gift in this area, and I seldom use it.

*Pray.
How can I accomplish any of this without God's help? I used to think of prayer as something you had to do at a certain time, in certain way, with particular thoughts or feelings. Maybe having kids has changed my mind. When Henry prays before dinner, you'd think God was sitting right next to him and they were having a great conversation. Thing is, God is there!

Hopefully 2013 will also be full of fun and interesting craft projects, like these upcycled egg carton lights. I got this idea from this great post. My daughter really enjoyed cutting and painting them. They hung on our divider above our advent bags giving just the right touch during our holiday festivities.

Happy New Year, may God bless you all in 2013!