rarest generic

It’s been one week since I posted about my goals for this new year, but I feel like I’ve already made strides to achieve all of them. Here are my updates:

1) I will write more. Well, for starters, I’ve written 7 blog posts already (not all have posted), including this one. I’d say that’s more than I was writing. I’ve also committed to writing at least 2 posts a week and have scheduled this writing time in my planner (Sunday and Monday). I scheduled time to write in my journal every Wednesday and I managed to accomplish that this past week. I also created a bookmark folder in Firefox for “things to post about” so when I see something online that makes me think of a post I can write, I have it saved. I’d say I met this goal this week.

2) I will read more. I finished reading my 9th book of 2009 just before the year was over (Lost in a Good Book by Jasper Fford; book banter post to come). I’m already reading quite a few books (you can see the list of my current reads on the right side of this page), and I’ve started reading two more books this past week, Severance and The Big Over Easy. I’ve designated every Thursday as reading night, and I’ve been keeping up with reading all the blogs to which I’ve subscribed. I didn’t read this past Thursday (it was New Year’s Eve so I was busy), but I did read a lot this past week. I feel like I’ve accomplished this goal this week, too.

3) I will honor the Sabbath. I thought this would be a lot harder for me than it has been. I usually have a slew of chores to do on the weekend, so this week I wrote them all in my planner on Friday and Saturday, and that included prepping tonight’s dinner yesterday to minimize the work I’d have to do today. We’re having slow-cooker pot roast, so there’s minimal hands-on time anyway (I planned this on purpose). I’ve written all my recurring weekend chores on a post-it that I will stick on every Saturday so I make sure I get them done that day (laundry, grocery shopping, giving the house a quick tidying up, etc.). The only thing that some might consider “work” that I’ll be doing on Sunday is writing my resolutions update post, but I don’t consider that work. Writing (anything) is something I enjoy. I realize the day isn’t over yet, but I think I’ve succeeded this week at honoring the Sabbath.

4) I will find a home church. I’ve written it in my planner every Saturday to decide where I’m going to go to church the next day, that way I’ve committed before my alarm goes off the next morning that I have somewhere specific to be. I attended church this morning and I’m keeping a list of all the churches I’ve been to with some notes about my experience there to make it easier to track where I’ve been. This week, I’ve done as much as I can toward this goal. This one will just take time.

5) I will take better care of my body. Late last year there was a solid 5-week time period when I was working out every weekday, and I hope to get there again, but I’m not going to dive right into that just yet. This past week I only worked out once—I know I could’ve done better. This coming week I’m going to work out 3 days, and late in January I’m going to resume the 5-day routine. In the meantime, I’ve found some workout videos to stream on Netflix, and I’ve been writing out some small workouts I can do here in the house as well as some ideas about outdoor workouts so I can choose from a list what I’d like to do that night rather than get stuck in a rut like I usually do. I was also a lot more conscious this week about my food choices, trying to work in more vegetable servings (you’ll find in keeping up with this resolution that vegetables and I have a hate-hate relationship), and I’ve been consistent about getting at least 8 hours of sleep every night. All of these will prove more difficult this week as work is resuming tomorrow. I think I could’ve done a little better this past week, but I have made improvements and plans toward getting better, so I’d say I met this goal.

6) I will be more loving. This one is a little hard to track. I can think of many times this past week when I consciously stopped my thought process to insert positive thoughts of service—I had to make myself stop internally complaining and start volunteering my time and energy (especially to my coworkers) with a happy heart. This was hard for me last week because I had a specific set of tasks I wanted to accomplish and I didn’t because I was busy helping others. But it isn’t about me, it’s about other people. This will take some time too, but I feel like I accomplished this goal this past week.

To help me achieve all of these goals, I’ve put an extra piece of paper in my planner on every Sunday so I can jot in notes and keep track of my progress during the week. And perhaps the biggest stride I’ve taken to achieve all of these goals is adding them to my daily prayer list. “…With God all things are possible.” Matthew 19:26

Overall, I’ve done well. Here’s to continued success!

How are you doing with your New Year’s resolutions so far?