The harsh fact is that 8% of people stick to their new year’s resolutions. Shocking; yet again, if you asked me each December what my resolutions for that year were, I don’t know that I would even remember. This year, I am dedicated to doing something about each goal I set. I plan on checking in on my goals at the end of each month for accountability. Hopefully, I’ll have some sort of action step for each of the goals I set. Of course, I’ll share them here.
END OF MONTH GOAL CHECK IN
HERE is the post I did on 20 goals I hope to accomplish in 2020 if you didn’t catch that post. I set goal in several different categories, so let’s see what I accomplished this first month.
PERSONAL
1. 5 AM WAKE UP TIME
I’ve always been big on a morning routine. Having 2 kids under the age of 2 this year, I completely lost my mornings. Once my baby, Beckham began sleeping through the night, I decided my alarm would go off at 5 AM each day. After a short yet satisfying morning routine, I get in a workout or 2 hours of work before my boys wake up at 7 AM. It’s been amazing and I plan to keep this up in 2020.
January – at the end of 2019, my 5 AM alarm turned into waking up to the alarm of my 2 little boys ~7am, so I am slowly working it back up an am currently at 5:45 AM
2. THOUGHTFULNESS
One of my mom’s many strengths is her thoughtfulness. Everyone around her knows her for it: if you’re having a bad day, expect a Starbucks gift card in your email. I had smiley faces on my fruit for morning snacks and notes in my lunchbox growing up. She always goes the extra mile for others and that is something she instilled within me. I want to heighten that trait of mine. My goal is to go out of my way to bring about happiness just 1x per day for someone else.
January – I can think of several times I consciously thought to do this; I’m not doing this on a daily basis yet but I’m definitely aware of being more thoughtful
3. REGULAR SKIN MAINTENANCE
This year, I want to establish a professional skincare regimen. I did a great job this year of at home skincare and want to take it a step further. I’m going to be looking into regular facials and maybe even microneedling and/or laser treatments.
January – I got a facial w/ a special hydrating treatment for my birthday
4. STRAIGHTEN + WHITEN MY TEETH ?
While we are on the superficial stuff… I had braces and like so many others, I did not keep up with my retainers. My teeth have shifted and I said I would do invisalign for years but…. babies and life… you know how that goes. This is the year I’ll do something about it: straighter + whiter.
January – an incredibly sweet LG Sister reached out regarding potentially partnering on my smile journey (what!!)
5. INCREASE MY PHYSICAL STRENGTH
I am so impressed with where I’ve taken my body over this past year, and I look forward to going even further with my workouts. I want to challenge myself with weight this year to increase my overall strength. It’s just such a bada$$ feeling, you know what I mean?!
January – currently following the Weight Training Plan for 2020 + making huge improvements
6. PRACTICE GREATER PATIENCE
2019 was a tough year for me. In going through challenging times, I had to focus on myself and my family to deal with what was at hand. I feel like I lost my patience in the process. At my core, I am a very patient person so to see myself having a short fuse is hard for me to witness. Little things like standing in a long line at the store and wanting to roll my eyes or not allowing my kids to be as slow as they are… I just was not as patient as I could be this year. It felt icky. This is something I want to improve in 2020.
January – I haven’t taken any proactive steps here
FAMILY + RELATIONSHIPS
7. GUILT FREE CHILDCARE
I have a good amount of childcare from a part-time nanny to gym day care and family that helps out. 95% of the time, I use this childcare when I’m working, which I don’t feel guilty about. However, when I use childcare so that I can go enjoy myself, I feel guilty. So, I usually only sneak away for a mani during naptime or we wait until after bedtime for date night. I know that the happier I am personally, the happier I am as a wife and mother, so this year, I am committing to not feel guilty about accepting help with my kids.
January – boys had a sleepover at my parents + I completely enjoyed the time guilt free
8. MORE TRAVEL (especially with friends + without kids)
I look forward to traveling more this upcoming year. In 2019, taking 2 kids under the age of 2 on vacations wasn’t exactly relaxing; we did it twice but it was a lot of work. This upcoming year, we plan to take a few family trips but also want to prioritize traveling as a couple and with friends. I’ve been thinking about a Paris/London trip.
January – talking about some upcoming trip destination + timing
9. WISCONSIN SUMMERS
This past year, we celebrated Leo’s 2nd birthday back home in Wisconsin where Anthony and I grew up and many of our friends and family still live. It was the Midwest summers we experienced as kids: lake life, running around a big backyard, bonfires, etc. We left knowing that we wanted to spend a good part of our future summers in Wisconsin. Ultimately, I would love to purchase a lake house or cabin in northern Wisconsin when we land on an exact location. For 2020, we hope to rent a home for a good chunk of the summer.
January – we picked a location!
10. STEP UP MY WIFE GAME
Kids change your marriage: in wonderful ways as well as in challenging ways. Personally, each year that we welcomed a baby, our relationship took a back seat. This year included. I think that is pretty common but this year, I want to become a better wife. I want to be a better listener. I want to get more interested in my husband’s interests… lately, he is very outdoorsy. I want to make more time for our relationship. My husband and I are truly best friends and this year I want to get back to the fun, teenage relationship we began our journey with.
January – I guess I would have to ask Anthony but one thing I am working on my mindset: not looking as much on what he isn’t doing and instead focusing on all the many, many things he does
FINANCES
11. SMART MONEY MOVES >>>
2019 was the year Anthony and I got our finances in check. Majorly… money management, budgets, additional savings accounts, retirement, college funds, investments, etc. I’m only going to touch on this briefly because within the next few weeks, I will share a more detailed blog post because… game changing. This year, we decided even though we made more than ever, we did not need more (and if you agree- you fall into a major minority and can expect to feel resistance in society in getting to your goals). Regardless, we set lofty financial savings and investment goals and are laser focused. We shifted our spending and decided to reinvest in ourselves to set up for an even bigger future. 2020 is the year that a lot of these goals and plans grow greater.
I am going to share more of this in the upcoming year because it’s been one of the greatest things for my marriage and family’s future. I wish money wasn’t such a taboo topic. In 2020, I will do my part to share what is working for me in hopes of it helping you too.
January – shared the first blog post on this (here) + we continued taking huge steps in our personal life
12. MORE IMPACTFUL FINANCIAL DONATIONS
I get so excited to “help a little” that I’ll donate a bit to this and to that and to everything in between. For our Christmas donations this year, we did something different by making impactful donations to people in our lives who really needed it. For example, a family welcoming a new baby but struggling to make ends meet, a family who was being supported by a mom while her husband looked for new work after a career-ending accident, and a woman who left her job to care for her special needs child, starting her own home-based business. With those donations, I felt a huge sense of impact. In 2020, I want to donate time and money where I can see an impact.
Update – ‘Im going to keep this section private (a little odd to talk about what, when, where I am donating? no?!) but I did do something impactful and special in January
13. SPEND LESS, SPLURGE MORE
Sounds odd, right?! I l am product obsessed (as you know!), but I don’t want to become an accumulator. This year, I was to spend less on stuff I “like” and splurge more on things I “love.” Do you know what I mean by that?!
January – no splurges
CAREER
14. GROW THE LG COMMUNITY
Since I began LG, I primarily focused on creating quality content and programs. I work to serve the women who show up and raise their hands to ask for help. I don’t focus much on growth. I believe so strongly in the sustainable healthy lifestyle my plans provide and quick, effective workouts I have to offer. But, I should focus on growth to allow more women to experience the life-changing effects the plans have had on me and tens of thousands of other women.. This is the year that I am determined to make business moves that grow the LG Community.
January – honestly, I haven’t done anything specific for this
15. LEVELING UP ALL MY OFFERINGS
I love the evolution of life: personally and professionally. I am already hard at work to bring the very best of everything to this community in 2020. I take in feedback. I listen to what you have to say. I make things better. In 2020, this community will experience even better versions of all my offerings.
January – major work on the website + updating all the programs
16. 1 DAY/WEEK = NO WORK
I’ve worked 7 days/week for the past several years. I truly love working, so it doesn’t feel like work. I often think “it’s just 2 hours of emails, writing a post or something simple” BUT I have to view that time spent working as time that I am not giving to my children, especially on the weekends. This year, I am going to *try my best* to take 1 day/week off from working… probably Saturdays.
January – unfortunately, have not stuck to this
HOME
17. GET + MORE IMPORTANTLY, STAY ORGANIZED
I always seem to be getting organized. My home is pretty organized. BUT, my struggle is staying organized. This year, I plan to make my organizational systems easier to keep up with. I am also committed to “finding a home” for everything in my house, which is one of the
January – I created a huge organizational action plan; I’ve personally started + received some amazing help from my assistant
18. FALL IN LOVE WITH MY HOME
One of our bigger family decisions this year was regarding moving. We were deciding if we wanted to build a new home better suited for our family. And, where would that be. We decided the best place for our family to be right now is right where we are. Two reasons: 1) we love our life here. My kids play in the cul du sac every day with their neighbor friends. Our neighbors have become friends. A random night turns into a fun night outside. You can’t buy that. 2) we don’t know exactly where we want to be and the best thing you can do sometimes is nothing. SO, in 2020, I am taking all my “I need more storage” and “I would do this, this and this differently” comments about our home and turning them into love. Whether it’s just doing a few decor updates or shifting my perspective, I am going to better love the home I am in and my life here. And, more exciting things coming on this topic!
January – I loved taking down the holiday decor + freshening a few things up
SPIRITUAL
19. REGULAR CHURCH ATTENDANCE
This is a pretty personal one… in 2020, I want to begin going to church again. I can’t believe I’m even saying that because I was raised Catholic, attending Church every Sunday… actually, 2x/week because I went to Catholic schools most of my life and we went every Wednesday as a school. I went to college. Got busy. Moved across the country. Never found the right fit of a Church here in Texas. I’ve always kept my faith but it’s just the act of going to church, being present, part of a spiritual community that I want to get back to. I don’t even have to go every Sunday… maybe 1-2x/month and watch a service on the other days.
January – I found a Church I think I plan to join
20. YOGA
For years and years, I did a yoga class 1-2x/week but life… kids… you know the story. There’s something about yoga, particularly the practice of presence and focus on breathing that I miss most. I have to figure out just how to incorporate this but I will.
January – nothing
JANUARY GOAL CHECK IN SUMMARY
I am actually pretty impressed with some of the action steps I took on all of those goals. I am particularly proud of the personal section goals because as a mom, I am never on the top of my priority list, so it feels good to feel good, you know?! Also, I’ve made huge work strides in January. What I actually find more beneficial is seeing the areas I didn’t make much of an impact, so I can dedicate more effort there in February.
Areas to Improve in February:
More Patience + Yoga – I am actually going to tie this into the yoga goal I didn’t do anything about in January. I am going to start with meditation… I think doing a short yoga flow and meditation may help improve my patience. I always feel so centered with a short flow and/or meditation
Step up My Wife Game – I am going to try to do something for Anthony on a regular basis
LG Community Growth – I work with amazing women who help me develop strategic business moves; we’ve been so focused on the new website and now that that’s wrapping up, we can shift into this area
Take 1 Day Off/Week – I just have to do it. Maybe, I can better plan ahead to make this happen.
Organization – I have the master list of what needs to happen, so I need to continue taking action
This was fun. I can’t wait to check in next month and see what other moves I can make! As always, thanks for following along. I hope these goal setting posts inspire you to set some goals and take action in your own life. We are all on this beautiful journey of being our best selves and showing up to serve others together.
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