Looking Back to Look Forward

Well, I successfully didn't write a single family blog post in 2013 after my New Year's post.  Pitiful.  There were blog posts - almost one every day, but they were for my kids in my class room, not the family.  Oh well. 

Before I can kiss 2013 goodbye, I figured that I needed a good laugh by looking at my resolutions post to see how poorly I did at keeping them.  Since I could not even remember over half of them before I looked at the post, my hopes were not very high. 

#1 - Read a book a month - HALF SUCCESS
Well, by my count I read about 6 novels over the past year.  Not quite one a month and most of the books were read between the months of April to August.  Needing to pick 4 summer reading books for our grade level actually pushed me to read a bit more than I would have on my own.  My greatest recommendation for this year is Wonder  by R.J. Palacio.  If you haven't read it - kids or no kids - it is a great book and a quick read.  It is a story of understanding what others go through that have far more challenges than I do. 

#2 - Finish Aiden's room - SUCCESS!
Aiden's room is as finished as it is going to be - just in time for him to move out :)

#3 - Complete our wedding album - NOPE
Didn't even start.  Didn't even touch the boxes.  Celebrated our five year anniversary this past summer and no album to look through.  Guess that means this one rolls over to next year...

#4 - Lose 8 pounds - TOSS OUT
Well, we are going to have to throw this one out.  I did lose some weigh - possibly even 5 to 8 pounds - toward the start of the year, but then I got pregnant.  While the first few months of a pregnancy are always typical weight loss times for me, it is safe to say the weight loss has now stopped. 

#5 - Exercise - NOPE
I still can't say I have found a successful way to fit this into my schedule and life.  Granted, I am not counting the last 6 months or so that I have been pregnant.  I just still have not found the time to be the teacher I want to be, the mom I am desperately trying every day to be, the wife I continue to work hard to be, and then still have time in the day to take 30 minutes for me to exercise.  Needs. More. Work. 

#6 - Schedule time to clean - NOPE
Our house is still a mess.  Adding another kid to the mix is only going to make this place worse.  I am - by nature - not a neat person and this continues to be a daily struggle.  There is far more digging we could go into this issue, but for now let's just call this a big fat fail. 

#7 - Aiden's 2012 scrapbook - SUCCESS!
I am proud to say that this one is successfully completed!  Photos are uploaded, organized, scrapbook was even made and printed and given to each grandmother. 

#8 - Get involved at church - HMMMMMM
Can't say I can check this one off yet.  We have gone to church more this year than last year, but I can't say we have become more involved.  However, I am hoping that will change as Matt and I signed up for a program at the church this past week.  Hopefully this opportunity will give us a chance to become more connected to other people there. 

#9 - Focus on friends - SORT OF
I think I have made more time to see friends this year, but I can't say I am where I would like to be.  The friends I see the most are my friends at work (even spending time with them outside of work), which is great - I work with amazing, supportive, caring women - but I also want to maintain relationships with my high school and college friends better than I am now. 

#10 - Learn photography - NOPE
Fail.  Still a goal for the future and still a hobby I enjoy and want to know more about.  I even talked to Matt about possibly taking classes at Jeff State.  Guess when the spring class is offered?  Mid March into mid April.  Not going to work for this family. 

#11 - Sign Language - NOPE
I hate to admit, but I think much of what I learned from years ago is slipping away.  This is actually another class I looked into at Jeff State, but much like the photography class, it is offered right after baby comes.  Two words - summer term?

#12 - Grading papers - SUCCESS!
I am proud to say that I have done better at this than in years past.  So much so that Matt has even made comments!  That's progress!  I can't say I have mastered the art of grading yet or completely had it all under control (I have spent the last two days grading and will spend most of tomorrow grading papers since grades are due for the semester on Thursday), but I have been consciously more diligent and organized and purposeful about it. 

#13 - Write a children's book - NOPE
Much like the wedding album, I can't say that I touched this one with a ten-foot pole.  I knew it was a lofty goal and truthfully, just wanted to have a concept and possibly even a draft done, but neither happened.  It is still a goal, just one for another year. 


Well, by my count that's 3 goals met, 2 halfway met, 1 thrown out, and 7 not met at all.  Oh well.  While it seems that most of the year was a fail, there were plenty of things that weren't really recorded on the list of resolutions that did see some improvement.  I have cooked more thanks to the wonderful world of Pinterest (again, we are throwing out the past few months of pregnancy when I could barely step in a grocery store without getting sick).  School work has been under a little better control and I have not had as many days of staying as late as I usually do.  There are still many, many, many areas for improvement - but hey, that list is what the first day of the new year is for, right?