New Year's Resolution Update #4 - Make More Time For Things That Are Important To Me

My final New Year's Resolution update for 2011 is about finding time for things that are important to me, namely reading, journaling, keeping our house clean, and cooking more meals at home.  Honestly I don't think I have done super about these this past year, but I am still working on it and gradually learning some things about how to make these possible.

Regarding house cleaning, I do my best to implement my Just Do It strategy with the little things day to day so that the big stuff doesn't seem as overwhelming and ka-razy.   Also, now that we are hosting a weekly Bible study in our home, it kind of forces me/us to keep the house clean on a regular basis, therefore diminishing the "oh my gosh, the house is a complete wreck" days.

As for cooking...eh.  This is still a work in progress.  BUT, we have gotten our budgeting and finances on a much better track over the past few months and I try my best to go get groceries as soon as I get paid.  If we have groceries at home, we'll eat at home, partly because there is food there that we paid for and don't want to waste and also because then the money has already been spent on groceries, leaving less for eating out.  Get paid, get groceries, eat at home. Seems pretty simple but we are still working on it.  Some pay periods are perfect and others, not so much.  Oh well.

Ok, reading, journaling, and I'll throw in Bible study, even though that wasn't really part of my original resolution.  I have made myself a spot in our home office that is where I can sit down and focus on these things.  Here is my spot:

I can either sit at my desk, which my Grandma bought for me for my birthday years ago, or sit in the rocking chair in which my mama rocked me when I was a baby.   I've got my journal and my Bible:

I've got some Bible studies that I'm working through:

And as far as reading...oof.  I have so many books I want to read.  This is "my" shelf on our office bookshelf, the rest are full of Tom Clancy books and random textbooks that we weren't able to sell back.  The books to the right of the index card are ones I have read already and the ones to the left are ones I still have yet to read.  There are even some others on another shelf in our house that I want to read.  I'll get there somehow, someday.

I'm being pretty realistic about this ongoing effort, knowing that I'm busy and won't have a whole lot of regular time for this stuff.  But I think having a home base for these things (journaling and Bible study at least...I'll read wherever) is a good start.  Too bad I didn't set it up and figure this out till the end of the year!

For now, I'm in Dallas for the rest of this week for a CPE seminar for work.  Nice hotel room all to myself, free wi-fi, CPE during the day and relaxing/reading/journaling in the evenings, plus I get to see Steph and Tammy tomorrow for dinner!  I'm going to be reeeeally ready to head home by the end of the week, but for now this is a nice change of pace...

Um, yes that that is Big Bang Theory on tv...