Looking back and forward

Alright now that we are already two weeks into the new year I guess it's time to look at last year's goals, see how I did and set some new goals for this year.

2008 Goals:

1. Lose 50 lbs and get in shape.  This was probably my biggest goal for 2008. I lost about 25 lbs in the first four months and then hit a plateau for awhile. I wasn't too worried about it and thought that I would catch up at the end of the year. Well those plans were de-railed by me getting pregnant again. Oh well, at least I started this pregnancy lighter then either of the others. :)

2. Potty train Dean. This is a goal that didn't happen but not by lack of interest on Dean's part. He actually loves going to the potty and has gotten to the point where I think he is physically ready. Of course about the time he reached that point I was pregnant again and now we're getting ready to move. Two big no-no's as far as timing with potty training so I keep putting it off. Poor guy, pretty soon he'll just train himself because he'll be tired of waiting.

3. Read two books a month.  I acheived this goal with ease though I only managed to read two or three non-fiction books this year. Sigh! It seems for the most part when I want to sit down and read I want to escape and not think too hard. Part of my problem though was that I got into a mega-heady theology book by a New Testament scholar. Very insightful and challenging, but oh so hard to read. I still want to challenge my mind, but I think this year I will pick non-fiction books that are a little easier to read. :) 

4. Do more home improvement projects. This one got totally derailed by a lack of finances. I really don't think of myself as a decorator as much as a fixer-upper type. One can usually decorator for little or no money, but fixing up stuff always requires "dough". Honestly though so much is wrong with our house I've given up and am ready to move on to somewhere else. Maybe a place that doesn't need anything will be good for awhile so I can focus on the children more. 

5. Take a vacation with my husband. Unfortunately, this goal suffered the same fate as #4. We were saving money each month to take a vacation over our 4th anniversary. We ended up having to use the money for necessities and well we got pregnant again. I would still like to accomplish this some year, but at this point I think we're looking at at least 2010!

So now that I've looked back, let's look forward to this year.

2009 Goals:

1. Gain a healthy 20-25 lbs with my pregnancy, have a healthy delivery, and then lose my pregnancy weight plus 10 lbs.  I think this is a realistic goal for me and since I started this pregnancy healthier it should (fingers crossed) be easier to get back to where I was.

2. Potty train Dean by May and possible Abi by the end of the year. I am bound and determined not to have three in diapers, so once we get moved my first project after unpacking will be to get Dean potty trained. As I mentioned before, I think he is ready and is just waiting for me to lead him. Abi has a tendency to want to do whatever brother is doing and will be two in Oct, so I don't see why she can't be potty trained this year too. If she decides to stall though it won't be a big deal. I can handle two in diapers.

3. Read more non-fiction this year. I have figured out how to read more, now I just need to read more things that challenge and stretch me. It's finding the balance between entertainment and education that I need. Too much in any one direction and I miss out or don't get through it.

4. Get settled in a new community and find a way to be more involved in church. I seem to have become something of a hermit since having kids and I know that moving to a new area can only exacerbate that. So I need to be intentional about making new friends and being involved in stuff at our new church. Without the dynamic flow of friendships in our life we become like the Dead Sea, stagnant and stinky! :) I know I could use some freshening up!

Well those are the things I came up with for this year. We'll see how it goes.