Category: Yearly Goals

July is in full swing at our house.  The flags are still out and will remain that way throughout the month.  In some ways it feels like summer’s just begun.  We’re in that sacred month which is, at last, unscheduled by the world.  So much of the year is like a paint by number experience:  the lines are all drawn with schedules and commitments and it is only up to us to determine how well we color it in.  Summer days are different, like a blank canvas waiting for brush and paint.  We’ve got more scheduled activities than I’d prefer, but for the most part we’re rolling with them well and enjoying a lot of down time.  I love it.


This week’s report:  79 steps.   Works for me.
Highlights:

1.  I’m trying hard to edit the THINGS we have in our home.  I want to take care of people, not stuff.  This week I hit an area in the basement.  I think I’m slowly succeeding, for I’m finding more time to play with my children.

2.  I made a concerted effort to hold my little ones more.  Several times I just sat down and waited to see what would happen.  Invariably I ended up with 3 little bodies climbing all over me (literally).  It was wonderful.

3.  Reading, reading, reading.  We’re all doing a lot of it.  I had the sweetest experience today with a grouchy four year old and Maurice Sendak’s Where the Wild Things Are .

4.  I resisted the urge to crack down on the state of the toy room, and am glad I did.   As the week wore on I found that my children fell into a heartwarming play experience together.  With their ages spanning from baby to teenager, it is uncommon now that they all find a meeting place, but somehow that happened this week.  I wouldn’t trade it for the cleanest toy room in the world.

5.  I spent an evening watching my daughter’s soccer practice while the little ones ran in the grass.  It was one of those nights when she discovered an instant aptitude for each new drill introduced, and she enjoyed a lot of praise.  Not only was it fun to watch her shine in practice, but I also found myself being renewed by observing the evening sun as it cast rays of sunlight across the shining hair and faces of my little ones.  I hope never to forget the sight of my daughter sprinting for the sprinklers.  The beauty of it made me catch my breath and feel so grateful that I paused to soak it in.

6.  In a search for a quote I’d lost, I re-read several of Abigail Adams’ letters.  What a treasure they are!

7.  As I look back on the week, each day held a particular lesson or insight for me personally and as a mother.  I’m particularly grateful for those moments, and grateful that I paused to record them.   While some of them will take time to produce real fruit, there is already a feeling of victory in my heart, a fresh reminder of this powerful lesson I pondered early in the week.

I am excited for a new week to begin, and look forward to all the surprises it will hold.  I hope yours is great!

Jennifer

Happy Independence Day!


I hope you’ve been celebrating all weekend long!  We certainly have.  The 4th of July is my favorite holiday of the year, and this one did not disappoint.  Even the weather was perfect:  cool breezes and pleasant temperatures.  Life is good.

This week’s report:  57 steps.  It was a productive week.  The week also brought the end of June, which signals the half way point in this year-long goal mine.  The total count of steps recorded this year surpassed 1500 this week, a number much higher than I dared to hope for when I began this journey.  Here are the highlights.

1.   I found the courage to keep a promise to myself.  I entered my Wild Thing quilt in our city quilt show.

2.  I tried a new recipe this week, and if I tweak it a bit we’ll have a new family favorite.  It was DELICIOUS.

3.  I cleaned out my pantry.  I’m blessed to have a really awesome pantry, and I love it when it looks like this.


4.  I cleaned out my little girls’ room this week, and had them select just a few items to keep in their room.  This included clothing and I’m really hoping it helps them keep their room clean.

5.  We had our annual 4th of July breakfast on Saturday.  I kept my traditional menu and served this and this , along with fruit salad.  We invited a family over whom we haven’t seen much of in the last few years.  It was great to see them and catch up on their lives.

6.  I listened to an awesome book on CD this week.

7.  We enjoyed a pleasant neighborhood BBQ tonight.  I’d forgotten how yummy my potato salad is.  It was fun to stand together for the Pledge of Allegiance.

8.   My heart is full of gratitude and remembrance this week.  I am grateful for honorable men and women who lived long before me but who inspire me to reach higher.

Life is great.  I hope your holiday weekend continues to be enjoyable and that this is a great week for you!

Jennifer Note:  I’m sharing my annual 4th of July trivia quiz here .  Answer correctly to win a fun flag holder!

It is Sunday evening and the sun is beginning to set.  Most of my children are upstairs playing cheerfully while my oldest is in the kitchen making soap bubbles the size of watermelons.  It is nice to be back in our own house.  As I review the week  I realize how nice it was to have a slow weekend.  This was the first weekend in 7 weeks that we haven’t either been out of town or had out of town company over the weekend.  In fact, this was only the 4th weekend to ourselves in 13 weeks.  Life has been so, so busy!  If you heard someone breathing a long sigh of relief in the past few days, it likely came from me.

So here I am again with my report.  This week I logged 48 steps.  Honestly, I thought I’d accomplish much more.  After we came home I realized how tired we all were, and not only due to traveling.  Our family has been moving at a crazy pace for months and we’re all exhausted.  Here’s an example.


I love taking pictures of toddlers who pause for a moment and accidentally fall asleep.  Today she did it on the stairs.


So, instead of the whirlwind I intended to be, we all got some extra sleep and relaxed a bit.  I’m happy about what was accomplished (much of it unexpected).

Highlights:

1.  On Monday we were still in Escondido.  My husband organized a party at the beach in Oceanside for his family and any old friends he could contact.  Lots of people showed up.  We had a large crowd, lots of children running around (making it harder to count heads than it usually is for me.  I have a habit of counting heads every 2 minutes or so when we’re in public) and adults chatting.  It was a very enjoyable evening.  The best part came near the end when all the men put on wetsuits and grabbed their boards for some surfing.  I felt so happy for my husband that he had the chance to do this.  I don’t think he’s surfed with these guys since high school.


A bunch of us stood in the parking lot talking well after sundown.  It was hard to say good-bye.  I managed to get a picture of  some of them before we left.


2.  Upon arriving home I discovered that one of my dearest friends is moving to Seattle in just over a month.  She is the mom I’ve watched for the past 10 years, trying to be like her.  I had the opportunity to help her get her house ready to show and it was so nice to spend some time helping her.  I feel incredibly sad that she’s moving.

3.  One of my washing machines wouldn’t start after we got back from vacation.  We had a dryer break shortly after we bought them a couple of years ago and although the manufacturer ended up replacing it, we learned that it’s difficult to find people  who know how to fix them.  My first impulse was to feel frustrated and discouraged.   My washers and dryers are good friends of mine.  I can’t afford to have them break!  I decided to say a prayer and see what I could do to troubleshoot.  An hour later it suddenly turned on.  Relief!  (followed, of course, by a prayer of gratitude) 4.  I’m working my way through the reading material I chose for the summer.  Much of it is heavy reading – one of the books is a college textbook.  I did some reading and writing this weekend.  It’s true that you learn much more when you write about what you’ve learned.  I think of Michelangelo’s words, “I am still learning.”  Isn’t it remarkable that we never have to stop learning?  What a gift!

5.  For some reason I began cutting my girls’ hair a few years ago.  It always ends up that we do it on Sunday mornings.  I think I’m getting a little better.  My seven year old requested that I cut off about 3 inches of hair.  Here is the “after” for today’s haircut.


6.  One of our local grocery stores had eggplant on sale for $1 each this week.  Yippee!  I made my eggplant parmigana for dinner tonight and fed our family a delicious meal for $5.  That’s pretty good for 10 people.

7.  I have one child who whines much more than the rest of my children, and another who’s done a lot more of it in recent months.  This week both my husband and I tried to gather them into our arms and hold them when they were whining.  I think it helped.

And there you have it.  I’m giving myself permission to feel exhausted tonight and in the morning the break has got to end.  I feel like I haven’t done anything creative in too long, and I need to get the juices flowing again.  My favorite holiday is next Sunday and I’ve got a lot of work to do if we’re going to celebrate in style!

Have a great week!

Jennifer