2017 Goals

I am so excited for this year to start! That's not even a sarcastic statement. Last year was really good for us. It was so good that I'm looking forward to 2017 with anticipation instead of my usual trepidation. In the past few years, I've stayed away from specific New Years Resolutions because I always quit them. I switched to broader overarching goals that have actually worked better for me. Yearly themes offered the kind of flexibility that I needed to succeed. 

However, as I've considered things I want to focus on this year, some pretty specific things keep coming to mind. They still fit under my major life goals of marriage, personal growth, spiritual growth, and family, but I'm getting into the details this year (Geez. I sound like a life coach or something).  So here's what I'm thinking for 2017.

• My husband loves gifts. Presents speak to his heart. They do not speak to my heart. My excitement over a gift is that a person spent their time on me. I like experiences and gifts of service. But you see, there's this weird thing about marriage. It's not all about me. I know. It seems so unfair, right? So in the spirit of speaking love and life or whatever into our marriage, I'm committing to giving Jon one wrapped gift a month. I love Jon. He's an amazing guy so I'm going to work extra hard to speak his language this year. 

• For personal growth, that's easy for me. I will spend the first half of my year preparing for living my lifelong dream of going to France!!!!!!! OHMYGOSH I'M SO EXCITED!!!!   I'm going to brush up on my French, take my exercise seriously again because I do NOT want to be the chubby American girl in Paris. I also want to be ready to enjoy all the foods France has to offer without guilt. And I'll be reading some books on the things I'll see, watching movies set in Paris, etc. All the France Stuff!!!  

• As for Jesus, this one may sound a little strange, but I'm going back to bringing my actual Bible to church. I started using my Bible app on my phone years ago. Honestly, it was just easier. I can't tell you how many times I dropped my Bible because I was holding a toddler, a diaper bag, a sippy cup, and another child's hand. I've really noticed a difference in my retention though since I made the change. I need to physically hold the book and flip to the page. It makes such a big difference in how much I get from reading or listening to a sermon. And I don't have all the extra little kid detritus to deal with anymore so I'm without excuse. This year, I'm ditching the app and going old school with my physical Bible. 

• Family...Okay. I don't have a specific one for family. With Tommy, I'm starting to feel the urgency that comes as a child gets closer to leaving the nest. I'm trying to act cool about it, but I keep thinking of all these things that we might have missed teaching him. Or worse, what if we taught him how to do life ALL WRONG?!?!  Charlotte is closing in on middle school. Matthew is...well, he's Matthew. It's hard to nail him down in a word. I guess my goal for this year is to spend time trying to see who they are individually and speaking what they need. It's so easy to treat them as a group, but they're individuals with their own specific needs, talents, dreams, and struggles. I want to zero in on them as people and help them along on their own path, whatever that road may look like. 

So that's my plan for 2017. Feel free to ask me how things are going. I'll warn you now that I will find a way to drop France into my conversations on a regular basis. I'm too excited to keep it inside. I'm like a pregnant mom that talks about her baby and pregnancy all the time. I'm pregnant with a dream. I have to talk about the dream!