As 2013 has come to a close, I am compelled to reflect on the personal goals I had set for myself twelve months ago.
Some call them resolutions. I choose to call them goals. (This post contains affiliate links.)
GOALS seem more flexible to me. A goal is something to shoot for...something to fix your eyes upon and draw near to with forward motion.
Perhaps it is nothing more than semantics, but a RESOLUTION, seems to be clouded in failure before it is even begun.
Although I am quite RESOLUTE in my desire to to reach a few personal goals each year, in this season of necessary flexibility in my life (aka motherhood), I refuse to call them resolutions.
But, I digress...
Getting back to my goals.
Progress report of my 2013 goals
Finish Two Quilts
Four years and two babies ago, I started two quilts for my sons' bunk beds. But then...well...life happened, as it so often does...and the quilts began to collect dust. At the beginning of the year, I RESOLVED to get those blankets D.O.N.E.
And since this is NOT a picture of two handmade quilts adorning the mattresses of two twin bunks, it's safe to assume I DID NOT get them finished. HOWEVER, all I have left with each of them is to hand-stitch the binding.
Soooooo...I'm gonna go ahead and give myself a thumb's up for at least coming close enough to see the finish line with this goal. 
Start AND Finish a Knitting Project
I know how to knit. I do. I really do.
But, I can't really prove that to you as I do not have ONE completed knitting project to show for it.
HOWEVER, I was determined to change that sorry status this year. I had set a goal to make something. Anything.
Here's a quick peek of an infinity scarf I started knitting last week. (Nothin' like waiting until the last minute.)
It's, obviously, not done yet, but with my 2013 resolution...I mean goal...looming over me, I am confident that 2014 will find me sportin' this little beauty everyday whether it matches my outfit or not! I've already promised to make Sweetie Pea a matching one.
Read Books...ADULT books
I used to be an avid reader. I loved books. I still do. But, sometime after the Newbie was born...somewhere between diapers and division flashcards...my energy and free time for reading had fizzled away. At the beginning of 2013, I vowed to launch back into books. ADULT BOOKS. Books just for me.
Don't get me wrong, I enjoy Charlotte's Web just as much as the next homeschool momma. But, a 30-something woman reading the misadventures of Wilbur the pig to herself in the doctor's office waiting room is frowned upon in most social circles. And so, I went on a search for a book. ONE BOOK. Any book to get me started with my goal. Not surprising, one book led to another and I soon found that I was hooked once again!
A quick look at my Good Reads account shows that I read the following books in 2013.
A Woman's Place by Lynn Austin
20,000 Days and Counting by Robert D. Smith (not at all worth reading...just so you know)
Radical: Taking Back Your Faith From the American Dream by David Platt (I'm not one to flippantly use the term "life changing", but The Hubs and I found this book to be just that. Life changing in more ways than one.)
Blog at Home Mom by Christin Slade
Choosing to See by Mary Beth Chapman
Organized Simplicity by Tsh Oxenreider
Kisses from Katie by Kate Davis
Desperate: Hope for the Mom Who Needs to Breathe by Sarah Mae and Sally Clarkson
The Art of Strewing by Aadel Bussinger
The City Homesteader by Scott Meyer
For the Children's Sake by Susan Schaeffer Macaulay
Family Feasts for $75 a Week by Mary Ostyn
Let Me Be a Woman by Elisabeth Elliot
The Unschooling Handbook by Mary Griffith
The Money Saving Mom's Budget by Crystal Paine
Unglued by Lysa TerKeurst (This was my second time through this book)
50 People Every Christian Should Know by Warren Wiersbe
God's and Kings by Lynn Austin (The first in a fictional series based on the Old Testament kings of Israel.)
Cut out Processed Foods
This past year due to some very minor health concerns, I took a big gulp, pulled on my big girl pants, and resolved to take my "from scratch" cooking to a whole other level. I threw out any foods/ingredients with MSG, high-fructose corn syrup, and food dyes (with the exception of the decorator's dyes that I use for decorating birthday cakes).
While I still serve up a pre-packaged treat every once in a while, I've come a long way from the city-girl who thought Hamburger Helper was home-made simply because it was made at home. With tinsey-tiny baby steps, we've been enjoying a mostly whole-foods diet for the past six to nine months and feel much better for it.
And that brings us to the new year and my
Personal Goals 2014
Although not perfect, I count my 2013 goal-meeting a success and definitely feel compelled to formulate some aspirations for 2014...because, if I never make goals in my life (at New Years or anytime), I remain stagnant. Stagnant in my faith. Stagnant in my relationships. Stagnant in my ability to be the wife and mother I know God would have me to be.
Some might find my goals to be simple or even self-pleasing, but there truly is deep-rooted method behind all of the madness. So here they are in no particular order.
Dress to Please My Man
I'll let you in on a little secret, I have about as much fashion sense as a rock. Shopping just isn't my thing. (I'd rather poke myself in the eye than go clothes shopping!) As long as I am dressed and relatively comfortable, all's right in my world. But, the fact of the matter is, my world is not my own. I share it with the man I love. And although I still fit into the GAP sweatshirt from eighth grade (You might disagree if you saw it on me.), he'd rather I leave it hanging in the closet...or burn it {ahem!}.
A few summers ago, I took on the challenge to wear more skirts and dresses around the house, because although he would NEVER tell me I HAD to wear them, I know he likes me in them because they are pretty and feminine. And you know what? I FELT pretty and feminine in them.
That's summer. Summer is warm. A skirt or dress is perfectly fine to wear in the summer.
But then, every year, winter would hit with its -40 wind chill temps and the thought of wearing a skirt just seemed insane.
But, this year, I've got myself a plan. I've begun to pin a few winter-inspired dress/skirt outfits on Pinterest in hopes of learning how to look nice but stay warm. With the help of some Christmas money, a trip to a thrift shop, and a little binging and purging of my own closet, I was able to piece together a few simple hubby-pleasing outfits to get me started with my 2014 plan. I'll still wear jeans most of the time, but will be able to weave in a few dresses/skirts AND thick leggings as weather permits. (Is it possible to wear two or three pairs of leggings at the same time?!)
The great thing about this goal is that the Hubs loves me no matter what and thinks I look pretty even in sweat pants. But, just as he does the dishes nearly every night not because HE wants to but because he knows how much I appreciate it, I can take the big plunge and SHOP {gulp} with femininity in mind knowing how much he likes it. Because in doing so, I am making an investment. An investment in him. An investment in us.
So, bring on the tights and thick leggings, 2014 is about to get pretty!
Break Bread with Friends More Often
My home is my hub of ministry. I've always wanted my door to swing wide and welcoming to anyone. Prior to baby #3, we used to invite friends for supper at least once a week. With the addition of more babies and more life responsibilities, that weekly date began to stretch into a monthly one...and then somehow disappeared altogether.
I am making it a goal to break more bread with others this year, as is shown in the book of Acts. Whether planned or completely spontaneous, I'd like to invite folks to our table at least once a month. I can't always guarantee gourmet, but I can provide a hot meal with a genuine smile and an encouraging word.
Control the Paper Clutter
This past year, The Hubs and I made some changes in the household "administration" duties. Unfortunately, these very welcome alterations have brought some not-so-welcome piles of paper clutter. While brainstorming a few different ways to organize all the mess, I remembered a filing system I first heard about in junior high while tagging along with my mom to a ladies conference. I gathered up as many old file folders as I could find, refurbed them with some homemade tags, and created a system that I hope will curb the clutter.
I'll be sharing more about this filing method very soon.
Embrace and Utilize My Spiritual Gifts in Ministry
Eight years ago, The Hubs and I took a spiritual gifts quiz to determine which of the Spirit's gifts were most predominant in our lives and personalities. Since then, much has happened in our journey with Christ and we have seen God refine us, transform us, and use us in unconventional ways.
With some urging from my lovely in-laws, The Hubs and I re-took the spiritual gifts quiz and were humbled to see how those God-chiselings had helped to develop a different set of gifts than the ones we had grown oh-so comfortable with.
In the coming year, I hope to prayerfully seek how God would have me use FAITH, ADMINISTRATION, and TEACHING for His glory and His kingdom.
I will be joining the Announcer's Wife in leading a Wednesday Night Women's Bible Study called Believing God in just a few weeks. That will take much faith, probably some administration, and a whole lot of teaching. So, I anxiously wait to see God's Spirit at work in this humble, very-unworthy vessel.
Those are my simple plans for 2014.
Whether I keep all four of these or not, it is my prayer that with God's help, I have forward motion...that I am not the same person twelve months from now. I look forward to His continual transformation in my life and head into the new year with Isaiah 43:19 before me,
"For I am about to do something new. See, I have already begun! Do you not see it? I will make a pathway through the wilderness. I will create rivers in the dry wasteland."
So far, 2014 is off to a great start! How about you? Have you set any personal goals for the upcoming year? If so, I'd love to hear about them.