Resolutions are Pish-Posh

Resolutions are funny things.  I make grand plans and then lose my resolve within a few weeks.  Then I feel guilty or discouraged that I didn't follow through. 

Maybe it's all simply a word game, but instead of resolutions, I like to make goals for the coming year. 

Resolutions are rigid and can be broken.  Goals are flexible. Goals are ideas of things I'd like to try or accomplish, not rules I've set for myself. 

Last year, I posted a short list of goals for 2012.  (The lines and red words are my updates.)

• Make a pastry pie crust from scratch and make a graham cracker pie crust from scratch--
  made lots of new recipes in the kitchen, but never got around to the crusts
• Read the Samantha (American Girl) series aloud with Maddie
• Read the Henry and Ribsy series aloud with all the kids
• Write monthly letters to our Compassion child-- wrote more than usual, but not every month
• Learn to make a yarn pom-pom  : photos here and here
  
• Work with the kids on better stewardship with their money :  details here
  
• Move our books from boxes to shelves-- unloaded some of our boxed books onto our first built-in wall unit.  The rest will be unpacked onto the second built-in which was installed in November and still needs to be painted.

I also mentioned we were contemplating a dog.  We ended up with a black Lab puppy and 3 cats!

Some goals were not made until mid-year.  Last January, running was not even on my radar, but in the fall, I began training for a 5K. I've finished the first phase of my training program a few weeks ago and am starting the second phase this month.

These are some of my goals for 2013:

Short-term Goals:

• Work on the walls:
  
  1. Have the 3 boys paint pieces of abstract art for their bedroom wall 
  2. Make a large photo poster for our living room wall
  3. Update some of our  frames with more current photos

• Finish moving our books from boxes to shelves.
• Attempt some of the ideas on my Winter Pinterest Board

Longer-term Goals: 

• Run a 5K in the spring
• Work with the kids on responsibility and finishing tasks to completion
• Potty train Alaine
• Continue to find ways to welcome people into our home
• Have a date night with Brian (at home or out) once a month

Do you make resolutions? What are your plans for this new year?