Mid-Year Resolutions
Every year it seems that January 1st comes and goes without me even taking any notice, so I rarely make New Year’s Resolutions. It’s a shame, really, because I love to plan things and make lists. I don’t think we should let the calendar year or tradition necessarily dictate when we set goals, however. That’s why I was excited when I saw a post on SparkPeople about Mid-Year Resolutions. I feel like now is the perfect time for me to set some extra goals for myself. So here are my Mid-Year Resolutions:
- Read the Bible in 90 Days: Right now close to 500 people are doing this through Mom’s Toolbox. It’s day ten, and it’s still possible to sign up, but it will take some major dedication! So far I am on track. I missed one day of reading, but I caught up again the next day. The reading is from July 5th to October 4th. I’ve already learned so much and I look forward to making it all the way through to the end.
- Complete NaNoWriMo: Also known as National Novel Writing Month, this is an event that takes place every November where a bunch of crazy people try to write a 50,000 word novel in 30 days. This was one of the highlights of my year in 2009 because I had a fabulous support group of fellow writers. This year will be a bit different, but I know it will be just as fun. I just need to find a plot.
- Earn a 3.5 for fall semester: I am now officially a student at a four year school and I’m moving in 43 days to finish my undergraduate studies. I maintained a 4.0 for the entire school year in community college, but I will be taking more credits and at a higher level in the fall, so my goal is just to continue earning an honors GPA. I have to free myself from being a perfectionist sometimes!
- Achieve 5,000 fitness minutes: I have been exercising almost daily lately and I want to continue to do so. I track the amount of time I spend exercising each day on SparkPeople, and I’ve set my goal for 5,000 fitness minutes this year. That means spending a little over 90 minutes a week exercising, which is totally doable and will be great for my health.
- Apply to study abroad: Phew. This is the scary one. My school has an opportunity to study abroad for five weeks in the summer at Oxford University. Studying at such a prestigious university and living in England for a while are two big dreams of mine, but the application process is competitive and it’s expensive. I’m hoping and praying I get to go. I need to work on my application toward the end of the year.
- Have one date night a week: Right now, my husband and I have such crazy schedules that it seems like we’re ships passing in the night sometimes. I know that things will likely continue to be pretty crazy even after we move, so I want to dedicate one evening just to spending time with him instead of starting movies at eleven at night when we have to get up at five.
- Stick to the monthly budget: We are pretty good about creating a budget, but we are often a little too flexible with it. We need to be more diligent about following our plan so that we can meet our short term and long term goals. I also need to make sure I’m updating the budget at the end of every month and consistently having budget meetings with Matthew once a month instead of just doing it myself.
- Blog three times a week: I’ve let my blogging lapse lately. Sometimes I bite off a little more than I can chew, so instead of trying to blog daily, I’m going to aim for three posts a week. I think this will be much more manageable for me and I hope it will prevent a situation where I have to put too many things on the back burner for too long again.
- Take Sunday off: There is a good reason God gave us a day of rest: we need it. Even though the traditional Sabbath is Saturday, it’s easier for me to take Sunday off. My husband and I learned that we get extremely burned out when we don’t have any time off. I’m going to make a commitment that I won’t be working or studying on Sundays for the rest of the year. It’s hard to uphold this commitment in the middle of midterms, but I hope I will be able to do so.
- Eat fewer processed foods: I just finished reading The End of Overeating by David Kessler and I was so bothered by the amount of processing that much of our food is subjected to and the amount of preservatives and other chemicals most of us end up ingesting. I am going to try to cook more things from scratch and buy organic meats because I don’t want to be putting that kind of stuff in my body anymore.
Do you have any Mid-Year Resolutions?
About the Author
Shawna is a twenty-something year old English major living in the Pacific Northwest with her husband, Matthew. She enjoys reading old books, writing novels in a month, listening to Regina Spektor, watching British TV shows with her husband, making tasty treats, exploring Portland with her friends, making self discoveries and blogging about her adventures as a college student. Find the author on the web at http://www.eruantale.net/.
I don’t believe in resolutions. They’re made to be broken. Instead of people making resolutions, they should just decide to do something and do it.
Read the bible in 90 days? Go you. I couldn’t read it in several years. I have no idea what they’re talking about.
You should definitely try to follow through with the study abroad one. It’s a really good opportunity. And how many people get to fulfill their dreams?
I don’t mind processed foods, preservatives, and chemicals. As long as it only kills me, what does it matter. I know there’s a big to do about it, but eating healthy, and organic is expensive, and not an option open to everyone.