New Year, New Goals

So, a few days ago I mentioned that I had been feeling that instead of one making huge New Year’s resolution, I wanted to have 12 different monthly resolutions. This is the follow-up post!

I haven’t made resolutions in a long, long while. The pragmatist in me decided that if I wasn’t going to actually follow through, then why even bother? Plus, as I mentioned in this post I wrote for another blog, the resolutions don’t seem as fun to make when you can’t keep your eyes open ’till midnight on NYE!

But late last year, (that sounds so weird! It was just a few days ago!) I have felt a gentle tugging in my spirit about excess. Excess of food. Excess of time on the computer. Excess of reading fiction books. A lot of excess in my life. So I wondered what it would look like to give up one thing each month. I have made a tentative schedule for the first six months, but no promises it won’t be tweaked a bit! So here’s what I have.

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No eating out. Of course, this one affects the whole family so we’ll be able to share with our children why we are doing this. And why are we doing this? Restaurant dining is pretty much our favorite past-time- which adds up to lots of extra money and lots of extra calories, and quite honestly, in most cases, more time. So, we are giving up something we love in order to save money (not quite sure what we’ll do with it yet), be healthier, and have more time at home in the evenings. {Disclaimer: an exception for my daughter’s birthday. We’ll eat out that day if she chooses!}

{click picture for source} Sorry, I couldn’t resist this picture! While I don’t wear makeup like this, it does, however, represent what is going on in one of my bathroom drawers- an excess of makeup! This month, I won’t buy any makeup, shampoo, conditioner, facial cleanser, or moisturizer unless I run completely out of something. (I don’t want to scare people coming out of the house with unwashed hair and an (even) paler face! And taking a look at that drawer, I won’t run out!

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No sweets. Aaaaah this one will be tough. There is definitely nothing wrong with sweets, but just the act of giving them up hopefully will bring to mind those who have much, much less than we do. I want to be conscious of the fact that not everyone has easy access to every.single.thing. one can imagine.

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No buying new clothes. I am not a huge shopper but I do like to spruce up my wardrobe with a new item or two each month. When I take a look in my closet, however, I see a huge abundance of clothing that, while it was practically all bought at clearance prices, I don’t have to have something new each month. Also, a goal during this month is to cull out unworn items (which I do on a regular basis) and find a good place to donate.

So, there you have it! I am actually very, very excited about these next few months. Especially this month- we have definitely never made it a whole month with no dining out. And now that it’s public- I have accountability!

I could also use ideas for the last 6 months of the year! (hint, hint!)

Hope that your first week of the new year is filled with a renewed love for God, family and friends.

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