I have never been a fan of New Years Resolutions. When I use to teach fitness classes more regularly I always found January so frustrating because my class number would skyrocket for a few weeks and then I would never see them again. The reason I don’t like them is there is too much pressure to follow them and often they are unrealistic.
Instead this year I am going to set some goals that I would like to achieve but if we fail a bit at the beginning of the year we won’t stop but try again.
1 – Declutter! This is pretty much due to Gord’s nagging for the past year. We have too much stuff and it all usually just ends up thrown in the basement. This year I want to get my basement organized and functional! I would love for Eileen to be able to shoot a puck around with Daddy in the basement and have a better chance of hitting the net than a pile of junk. We have already decided that we are having a yard sale in the spring but now we are starting to sort through things. Today I cleaned the fridge, freezer and pantry; while Gord and Kaitlyn cleaned out the barn and garage. Then we did a little bit of work in the basement. Gord took a load of large items to the transfer station and I organized my wrapping station in the basement throwing out tonnes of old gift bags that are ripped or that I know I will never use again. My supplies are organized so it should be much easier to wrap gifts for the many birthday parties the kids go to.
2 – Get moving! I look back at my fitness level 5 years ago and it makes me want to cry. It is very ironic because even just a year ago I was preaching about how it is not hard to get moving with your kids. I could use some of my own advice now. I think much of it is because we have become so busy both in and out of the home. Work is a lot more work, and we are doing more literacy and craft activities but our home exercise routine is definitely lacking. I am not too worried about the kids because they have dance and skating/hockey and swimming, and they never stop moving at home unless in a specific stationary activity. The problem is Mommy is not moving. My second goal it so find ways to incorporate more physical activity into my day.
3 – Reading! I love to read. I use to be a teacher-librarian and that was only a couple of years ago. The pile of books and magazines beside my desk is very high and doesn’t seem to be going down at all. The problem is that when I am finally sitting at the end of the day I am usually either on my computer or watching T.V. (something I have PVR’d or through Netflix). I really want to read more, both for fun and professionally. This past year I joined NAEYC when I moved to Kindergarten and I keep getting these amazing resources in the mail. Sometimes it seems a little overwhelming – especially adding to the professional resources already in my pile, but I really want to get through a few of these. I also was to read for fun – I use to be in a book club but could never get through the books in time – I need to make the time.
4 – Time for Me! When Michael was born I decided I needed one hour a week to myself and I started going to Yoga. It was amazing, but it doesn’t hurt that I found an amazing teacher. I NEED to start doing this again. It keeps me grounded both emotionally and physically. It may seem like I am taking time away from other things but I think it makes me a better mother, teacher, and person!
I don’t normally share things like this on my blog but I wanted to put it all in writing because maybe then I will have to be accountable!
Mommy's Lessons 