Last week’s goals:
Family/Mothering Goals
1. Finish reading In Grandma’s Attic aloud to the children.
2. Take Kathrynne out on a mother-daughter date for her birthday.
3. Write a love note to Jesse.Personal Goals
4. Finish reading Try Giving Yourself Away, Blue Like Playdough, and Against All Odds.
5. Complete week 4 of the Couch to 5K program.Home Management
6. Finish two more weeks of pages for my Project Life album.
7. Finish knitting the Squidge dishcloth.8. Make Homemade Rice Milk.
Business Goals
9. Finish writing an article for AllYou.comand MomLifeToday.com.
10. Fly to VA to appear on the 700 Club.
This week’s goals:
Family/Mothering Goals
1. Read at least 5 chapters each from In Grandma’s Attic and Corrie Ten Boom aloud to the children.
2. Write letters to one of our Compassion children.
3. Write a love note to Jesse.
Personal Goals
4. Finish reading 7: An Experimental Mutiny Against Excess, A Symphony in the Dark, An Organized Heart, and Thunder Dog.
5. Complete week 5 of the Couch to 5K program.
6. Write two handwritten notes.
Home Management
7. Go through house from top to bottom and clear out clutter {I’ll be blogging some of this and encouraging you to join me!}.
8. Start Andalutheean Knitted Dishcloth.
9. Make Homemade Rice Milk.
Business Goals
10. Finish writing article for MomLifeToday.com.
How did you do on last week’s goals? What are your goals for this week? I’d love to have you share your progress on last week’s goals and your goals for this coming week in the comments. Of, if you’ve blogged about it, leave your direct link below. Let’s cheer each other on to live purposeful and productive lives!
You can download a free customizable weekly goal-planning sheet here.
Jen @ Master the Art of Saving says
I don’t know how you’re able to get so much done every week, but it inspires me to keep trying. 🙂
Liz @ Wonder Woman I'm Not says
Great job on sticking with the couch to 5K program. I’ve been working on a new exercise program and know how difficult it can be to squeeze it in.
KATIE says
I’m in for cleaning the clutter too. The bedrooms are my focus this week.
Christine says
I just made my goals for the first time. Thanks for giving me the kick in the butt to do it! I’ve already felt so much more motivated and purpose-driven every day.
Shelly says
I need to do some decluttering in our family room. It has way too much stuff for the space. We are hoping to get some bookshelves soon which will help but if I get rid of some items before hand it will be easier to organize.
Erin @ My Mommy World says
I will join you on your decluttering mission! Our closets need some serious attention!
Nicole says
So many of the books you read to your children are ones I read as a child and teen and am now reading to my younger siblings! I recently posted some of my favorites on my blog, and its been amazing to see how many people read these same books as kids. I am thankful for good quality kids books!
Steph says
We tried your pizza crust recipe last week. LOVED IT!
angel says
One of our family goals was to purchase a Vitamix for Christmas. We saved and then waited for it to be available again at Costco, middle of January. We are in love. Having 2 family members that are gluten-free and dairy-free, I’m excited to hear how your rice milk turns out. As of now we’re mainly almond milk with occasional coconut milk in baking. I will be making the black bean brownies you posted this week, with dairy free choco chips of course!
Corie says
I’m with you on clearing out the clutter. All of our extra clothing and household items goes to the Outreach Home at our church. I’m trying to go through at least a drawer a day.
Marie says
I love when you post your goals. I think it’s great and hope to get there soon. I am leaving to go to CA. for 9 days with just my youngest as my husband works out there. The twins are staying home with sitters.
My main goal is to read your book!! I was so excited to get it but wondered when I’d find the time. My husband laughed at me as I packed everything but the kitchen sink! I have two major projects I’ve wanted to get done but no time when it’s just me 24/7 6 days a week! I also packed magazines I just haven’t been able to get to and other paper work.
He asked, “Will you have time to relax? That’s the point of you getting away.” I hope to do that to but am on a mission to accomplish these things that have been weighing me down!!
Hopefully, I will get it all done and feel more relaxed when I get back.
beth b says
I’ve set some personal writing and research goals as well as continuing through the Designed for Wellness course. This includes a new, more disciplined morning routine. I love sitting around in my super comfy robe for awhile but need to start getting dressed earlier. 🙂
Other goals include:
Podcasts: On the Media, Planet Money, Simple Mom, and This American Life (ifI have time)
Audiobooks: finish Complaint Free World, start You Know When The Men Are Gone
Books: finish The Happiness Project then I get to read my current Louise Penny mystery
Question for Crystal and others: To what extent do you force yourself to finish a book you may not be enjoying? I’m having a hard time with The Happiness Project for various reasons but I feel like I should keep reading because I am learning a few things. Then I get annoyed and life us too short. 🙂
How often do you put books down without finishing them?
Crystal says
I put down two books in the last few weeks that I just didn’t find worthwhile. I think if you’re not really gleaning much from it, skim through the rest and call it quits. No need to waste reading time on something you’re not enjoying/benefiting from. Unless you just really want to push yourself to plod through something!
BethB says
The question I keep asking myself is *why* I’m having trouble with a particular book. Am I resisting because the author’s message is one I really need to hear but I’m being stubborn or is the book truly not useful to me. You know what I mean?
Emily @ Our Frugal Happy Life says
I can kind of relate, Beth. I just finished The Happiness Project, and at times, I struggled to get through it. I persevered through it, though. I appreciated what she had to say, but I think I struggled with it because I don’t think like she does. I kept thinking, “I’d never find happiness in these things – they are so boring!”
BUT — that’s the point of her book, right? Find happiness in what you enjoy. I appreciated the basic premise of her book, and I think I just have to remember that.
I had some of the same issues with Quitter…an interesting read, but not really my “cup of tea.”
I will say that, overall, I try to finish books that I start. But I think that’s a personal thing. Do what works for you! {And for the record, I have quit reading a few books in my time!} 😉
Laura Jane @ Recovering Chocoholic says
My two cents: there’s nothing wrong with not finishing a book if it’s really not worth your while. You can move on to another book that is more profitable for you. I do set a goal to get at least a quarter of the way through a book so I give it a good chance. I didn’t finish The Happiness Project either. It’s long (21 hours on audio), and I felt like I gleaned the basic message by about halfway through.
Camille says
Thank you for inspiring me to start writing my goals down. It’s helped a lot. Decluttering! Sounds like something I need to add to my list, in certain areas. Seems like I’m having trouble linking. I’m new to all of this. What could I be doing wrong?
The Prudent Homemaker says
Some of my goals for the week:
Cook several pots of beans and freeze the beans for easy meals later.
Defrost a turkey and cook it this week.
Prune as many fruit trees as possible.
Sew barrettes for birthday gifts for a child.
Sew projects for a paid sewing project (at least partway done this week)
Prune grape vines
Read library books to the children.
Put some things aside for an upcoming garage sale.
Put up 2 new things on my website this week (one today!)
Amy Jo says
I am trying to declutter my whole life! I am excited and scared at the same time! LOL
Carol@simple_catholic says
Every week when I read your goals, my list of books to read gets longer and longer! LOL!
I’m very interested in hearing how the homemade rice milk turns out. My husband was drinking rice milk for a while but it is so expensive.
Mackenzie @ The Random Path says
Well, one of my goals for February was to wear a pedometer…and I forgot to wear it the first 4 days of the month! 😉 I remembered to wear it yesterday, and now I keep it out on my nightstand when I go to bed; as soon as I get up now, I put it on!
Anna @ Feminine Adventures says
We just submitted our tax return and will have enough to finish paying off the rest of our law school student loans once it arrives. I am *ecstatic* and can hardly wait to see $0.00 on the bill!
I also started reading chapter books aloud consistently (reading “In Grandma’s Attic now!)
Marianne says
🙂 I used to read the Grandma’s Attic books!
Leighann says
My goal for the new year was to declutter my house. My husband gets 2 weeks of vacation off for the winter holidays and he didn’t go back to work until January 9th this year! We spent that last week cleaning and de-cluttering the house. We gave as much stuff to the thrift store as possible, but we really wound up throwing most of it away. We went through all the clothes, toys, books, movies, CDs, etc and just *got rid of it* There wasn’t really any sort of pattern or plan; I picked a room and we started there and worked on the room until it was done. Anything we hadn’t used in a year got tossed (except books; I collect books like other women collect shoes!) and I was amazed to see how much stuff we had lying around that we just don’t use. My home has never been this clean before. Even with three kids (including a 9 month old and a 2.5 year old!) our house is staying tidy because we’re able to just put all the toys away into a little carry basket at the end of the day. No more toys are allowed in the living room than can fit into that basket. It works!
My advice for decluttering is: don’t think about it too much. Just get in there and do it, and you’ll be happy with the results. Good luck!
Sarah says
I thought week 5 was the most challenging of C25K. Hang in there. You can do it. Once you finish this week, you’ll be on a roll and the rest will just fall in place. Well, that was my experience anyway, and I was not at all a runner before I started. 🙂
Wendy says
LOL — I think Week 1 is the most challenging. I’ve been doing week 1 for 3 weeks and still can’t make the last 2 sixty second sprints. My legs just give out. Not sure why. But then again I hate to exercise anyway. I only do the min. that’s required to keep my cholesterol levels low so it could be lack of motivation.
Diane says
Wow! I feel inspired reading your list! I think it’s time to set some goals for this week!
Thanks so much for sharing!!
Carrie @ Busy Nothings says
The goals that I shared in the link are actually for the whole month, but I’m pleased to say that I have already cleaned out the laundry room (and it looks great!), and I’m doing well with staying off the computer one day a week (and feel much better for it as well). 🙂
Alysha @ aparkspot.weebly.com says
Honestly, after reading your goals a week or two ago, I was motivated to write goals. It was harder than I thought. Starting a blog was one of my goals for 2012 which I have started and I am very much enjoying it. aparkspot.weebly.com BUT, I could not bring myself to publish my goals. I am normally a transparent person, so it surprised me that I struggled with this decision. Is publishing them an essential part of the goal making/setting process?
Emily @ Our Frugal Happy Life says
Alysha – I certainly don’t think it’s a requirement!
From my personal experience, I think it helps me to post them publicly because it gives me accountability. I WANT to accomplish them so I can cross them off next Monday! 🙂
If you can find accountability in other ways (or if you don’t NEED the accountability), then I wouldn’t worry about publishing them. Above all – do what works for YOU!
Crystal from Crystal's Ramblings says
I always enjoy seeing what you read with your children!
Jessica Claire says
I love the fact that you write a love letter to Jesse. That is so precious! Not sure I could write 1 let alone 2 in a row! I did however make a Valentines day card for my husband. I am not craftsy at all so this is out of my comfort zone but I feel like it turned out pretty well. I also finished a knit dish cloth! Just knitting, I haven’t learned purl yet.
jennifer in tn says
Here’s what we are hoping to get done this week: playing outside lots and lots — it’s 60 degrees here in TN. Also, VALENTINE’s crafts! We scavenged the Family Fun site and are making a mess. 🙂 I don’t really do this kind of thing often enough with my five. Here we go. . .
Kimberly says
Okay- so I just have to ask… how on earth do you fit all of these weekly goals in along with homeschooling, cooking, couponing, grocery shopping, laundry/dishes, blogging… Do tell secrets of how you allocate your time. Do you let yourself go on somethings? I have trouble doing it ‘all’ and loving my children well individually, etc. Theres not enough time in the day 🙁 I know you have shared on this before. Then when there is away time from home, playdates, etc- there really isnt enough time. Secrets??
jennifer in tn says
Kimberly, I know exactly what you mean. One thing to keep in mind is that people have all different levels of: energy, priorities, and goals. Go easy on yourself. I have 5 children and I rarely (um, almost never) do ‘homemade’ stuff (laundry soap, crafts, sewing, etc.) outside of cooking. I’m not good at it, I don’t like it, and I don’t put that pressure on myself. Do what your family thinks is important and interesting. No one’s life will look like yours because no one’s life IS yours. Grace to you. . .
AJ says
In addition to what Jennifer says, Crystal has also told us all that she does have help/assistants for some things.
Kayla says
This question is asked a lot and Crystal has shared on it frequently.
Please remember that she has assistants to help with the demands of blogging and some errand running. She’s also shared many, many posts where she doesn’t accomplish every goal or things don’t go as planned.
I personally think the biggest secret is not to be too hard on yourself, I feel like a family going to bed every night happy is a good day!
You might want to check out the Time Management Series:
https://moneysavingmom.com/time-management-101-series
Patti says
I started by simply writing down what I had to do each day… my daily goals are things like eat breakfast, take my shower, dress, make the bed…etc. I also try to do one inside project and one outside project each day. After about a month, I have now got the basics down so I am not thinking about them so much and am setting goals for the inside and outside projects. I am happy to report that it is keeping me focused on the task at hand vs. getting distracted by other influences. For instance, today I did kitchen cleaning tasks for my inside tasks and am now going grocery shopping for my outside task. Before I would have run around trying to clean up all over the place or try to run 10 errands while out grocery shopping. But looking further down the week’s goals, I see where I have planned to do those tasks, so I am no longer pushing it to do them today. I hope that helps you. I am finding now that I am accomplishing “today’s” tasks quicker and actually able to move on to “tomorrow’s” tasks if I feel like it. I am also giving myself some “me” time each day so I don’t feel so burned out. And realizing that some days some things just aren’t going work out but if most days they do, I am making progress.
Carolynn @ mylittlebitoflife.com says
I am so glad that a couple of projects with deadlines of end of Jan. very beginning of Feb. are done! 🙂 They were very time consuming and now I feel like I can get back to a more normal schedule!
http://mylittlebitoflife.com/?p=3023
Lisa says
Crystal-
I am fed up with my clutter too! I am going to declutter 40 minutes a day every day during lent!
🙂
Lisa
Jessica says
Thanks for the awesome dish cloth pattern! I can make that with what I know about knitting (which is little), and I’m planning to make some for Christmas gifts.
Tricia says
I love Corrie Ten Boom!!! What a great story!!
Anna @ Feminine Adventures says
Me too! “The Hiding Place” is one of my top five favorite books of all time!
Tammy Skipper (@Tammy_Skipper) says
I was very happy with last week’s progress towards my goals, including using your pizza dough recipe like I mentioned on Twitter. We did not eat out for dinner since the first of the month, so this week the goal is to not eat out for lunch either which means making sure there are leftovers to take. I’m also working on memorizing James 1 and exercising regularly. http://skipperclan.com/2012/02/05/3-in-30-week-5-update/