Momma's Secret Passions...

By Amy

Hmmm, sounds a little steamy, huh?  Haha, I realized while typing the title it sounded a bit scandalous...and then I laughed my head off, cause I am like the LAST person who would write a naughty blog post.  And, then I HAD to keep the title.  :)

So.  I'm pretty sure all of us have secret dreams and aspirations that we keep hidden and safe.  It could be something you used to love to do, but can't seem to find the time for anymore.  Or, maybe it's something that you lack confidence in and you can't seem to get back into it. (Or try for the first time!)  Sometimes, a dream seems so stinkin far-fetched that we pass it off as unrealistic and never even try.  (Like my dream of becoming a famous rapper.  See pic below.  And, I'm kidding.  I can't rap to save my life.)

Yes, that is me (on the right) with my husband.  My rapper name: Al-Z Vanilla Face Danger Mouth. 

But, I love to hear stories about someone who out-of-the-blue decides to pursue a secret goal, whether it's big or small.  Like the retired businessman who takes up painting or the school teacher who decides to start training for a marathon.  Or the stay at home mom who decides to take a Hip Hop class.  Or the 65-year-old woman who enrolls in online courses so she can finally finish her degree. (I know an amazing lady who is currently doing this!  Love her!)

Here's the thing about passions: we don't have to be absolutely incredible at something to pursue it--if it brings us joy, then we should do it!  Even if we only share it with a few family members or friends--we should do it. :)  It takes a lot of guts to get out of the cozy comfort zone and try something new, but MAN is it awesome!  I feel like the freakin queen of the world afterword. :)

Ok, confession time...here are my two secret passions:

First of all, I love to sing.  Like, a lot.  It's always been my secret ambition.  Being at home alone during the day with only my toddler, means I can belt to my heart's content!  (My poor downstairs neighbors...Sorry Amanda!)  And, Hayden loves to sing with me!  It's pretty awesome.  :)

From a tiny age, I was singing.  My mom says I sang recognizable tunes before I could speak.  And I grew up in a very musical family, so I learned a lot from my big sister, who can sing any harmony part.  I sang in tons of choirs and musical numbers, including many duets with my talented BFF Shandee.  I was always happy to be the alto to other singers, since I love harmony, but as I've gotten older and less timid, the idea of singing a solo no longer makes me want to vomit.  I think growing up and caring less of what others think of me has boosted my gutsy-ness too!  I recently dared myself to share a video on Facebook of my son and I singing. (Ok, mostly me...he quit singing when I started recording it!)  I was terrified to share it, and hoped that people wouldn't think I was just being conceited by sharing a video of myself, but everyone was SUPER supportive!  It was awesome...what a confidence boost. :)  And a couple months back, I got up and sang at an open mic night!  Afterward, I thought, "HOLY CRAP, what has happened to me?"  It was a major rush!  My next goal: to sign up for a 6 week vocal performance class this summer at the Performing Arts Center where I teach a couple of kids Art classes each week.  At the end, we have a recital and I'll have to sing a SOLO!!!  And, I REFUSE to let myself puke or pass out.  Ha, I probably won't have tons of breath support, since I'll be 3rd tri pregnant by then, but I figure NOW is the time to take the class, not after baby comes.

Now, don't get me wrong...my dream isn't to be some famous singer, crooning to sold-out crowds.  Not only does that only happen to one in a million (and I'm not like some phenomenal, miraculous singer) but I wouldn't want that lifestyle anyway.  Nope.  I just love to sing for the pure enjoyment of it.  I would LOVE to someday be part of a small Acapella group.  Oooh, singing those tight, sweet harmonies make chills go up my spine!  (Pentatonix and Peter Hollen are my fav Acapella singers...check them out if you don't know them!)

My second passion: I LOVE houses.  If I were to go back to school, I would study interior design and take architecture classes.  Currently, my husband and I are designing our dream home.  I don't really know what the crap I'm doing, but that doesn't stop me from spending HOURS (especially on road trips) drawing and hashing out the layout, rooms, furniture, colors, etc of this future home.  It is seriously so fun to me!   And, may I add, we are SO many years from being able to build a dream home, (student loan debt to our ears!) but dang it, we're going to be ready when the time comes! :)  Here are a couple of pics.

So those are two of my passions. :)  I have others, like doing other people's make-up, dancing and traveling, but singing and designing my dream home are my strongest passions right now.

Ya know, it can be tricky as a mom to figure out how much time to give to hobbies, or even part-time business ventures.  Sometimes I feel guilty for wanting to do anything else outside of my home/family.  But, I think there's a balance between two extremes--one side being the martyr mom who does nothing for herself and is run-down and sad, and the other being a mom who is so into her own interests that she's only giving her left-overs of time and energy to her family.  I don't want to be either.  No accomplishment in the world would ever make up for failing my family.

But, I believe it's totally possible to achieve our dreams a little at a time, while living a normal life!  God and my family are my number one priorities, but--ya know what?  Mom is a person too.  We are allowed to do things that we're excited and passionate about!  I believe that God gave us talents and strengths to enrich our lives, as well as others lives, and it's good for our kids to see us working hard to achieve worthwhile goals--what an example for them!

When I consciously try to fit in little snippets of time for these goals and hobbies, I feel so much more human and alive!  I feel rejuvenated--which makes me a happy mom instead of a resentful, impatient, bored mom. (Sorry if that sounds terrible...I'm SO grateful for my son and that I get to be home with him, but the day-to-day routine can get a little monotonous at times.  Some days it seems like my life will just be dishes and diapers FOREVERRRR.)  I'm grateful for blogging as a way for me to share my heart and connect with other women, and I can totally do it during my son's naps. :)  For my emotional well-being, fitting in these little moments of time for my interests are SO worth it!

I've also noticed that when I am spending even a little time everyday feeding my spirit, like reading from the scriptures for 5 minutes and kneeling for a heart-felt prayer before breakfast, my soul is more peaceful.  When I'm not taking the time to connect with God, I feel dissatisfied with life, no matter what's going on in it.

Another thing, I think it's ok if our passions evolve over time to fit our life circumstances.  When I was a kid, I would draw all the time, filling sketchbooks down in my room.  But, now--though I still love art--it feels more like work to me, since I was an art major in college and now I teach art professionally.

Doing art homework in college.

This is me teaching a teen art class.

One of the very few art pieces I've done since my college days.  It was for my brother-in-law's high school Art auction...it's of my sister-in-law, Alyssa.  I got to give it to her for Christmas! :)

Plus, not having my own space to do art makes it tricky with a toddler who is into EVERYTHING. So, I have to adapt and be ok with smaller, quicker art, and I don't pressure or guilt myself to make art when I'm busy with other things.  Drawing my Dream Home is basically my only artwork now-a-days. But, this summer I am taking a break from teaching, so before baby #2 comes and blows my mind, I have the goal to make 5 works of art!  YIKES!  We'll see if I can get my keester in gear.

I guess, for adults with families, it all comes down to the constant balance act.  Sometimes we have more times for our dreams, passions, hobbies, and loves, other times, not so much...like when you have an infant.  (ha, my only passion during those first few months is SLEEP!)  But, even working at small goals will bring us a lot of joy.  Cause dishes will always be undone the next day, another meal is always approaching, and the house never stays clean for long, but learning how to play an entire song on the violin is a goal that can be accomplished!  It's worth it to make the time for passions and interests, even when it's just easier to veg out after my son goes to bed and watch all 5 seasons of Drop Dead Diva on Netflix.  (Ha, I just finished it!  Dang cliff hanger!)  I mean, I LOVE to veg, but now and then I need to accomplish something cool. :)

Ok ladies, I am SO interested to hear...what are your secret dreams/interests/passions?  Be brave and let us know!  Is it tap dancing?  Yoga?  Do you want to write a fantasy trilogy?  Do you have killer invention ideas?  Do you yearn to learn an instrument?  Do you want to develop incredible culinary skills?  Do you want to travel the world?  Would you love to act in movies or on the stage?  Do you secretly want to start your own business?  Tell us! :)  And, I'd also love to hear your thoughts on finding a balance between pursuing your own interests while still keeping God/family as your highest main priority...cause it's not always easy!  :)

Well, friends, as always, please Like/Share if you enjoyed this post!  :)  And, if you're new to SOM, Welcome!!!  You can follow along by clicking the "Like" or "Join This Site" buttons....we have a lot of fun around here.  :)

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Update on Goals. (I'm So Ashamed.)

By Amy

I wish I had something amazing, inspiring, funny, or heart-rending to share with you today, my friends.  But I only have a sad confession.

Remember when I told you about my list of goals to achieve before baby #2 blows my mind?  (No, this is not an announcement, sorry mom and mom-in-law...ha!) And then, ya know that one time when I was full of pie in the sky promises about accomplishing one of those goals by running the Halloween Costume 5k?

Well, I did not run it.  I am ashamed.

A few days before the race I came down with a stupid cold.  I am a pathetic asthmatic and when I am sick, my asthma flares big time, plus I am out of my asthma meds, sooooo....I deemed it unwise.  I didn't think it would be fun to be found way behind the whole pack of runners, gasping on the sidewalk, having an asthma attack.  In a costume.  Like a crazy freak.

But worst of all, I didn't get to pull off an epic costume!  My husband and I SOOOO would have won the couples costume prize.  Grrr...and the prize was a good one too; a bunch of gift certificates to restaurants and cool places in town!  (In other words, we would actually go on some dates, ha!)  I was going to be a hare (I had these adult-sized pink footie pajamas, and I was going to face paint my face like a bunny and loop my hair with wire into ears) and my husband was going to be the tortoise (I was going to paint his whole bald head green!!! Then make a cardboard turtle shell....what a cool costume for a race, huh?  The tortoise and the hare!")  When I decided I shouldn't run, I tried to convince my husband to wear the bunny suit, which would have been SOOO freakin hilarious, but for some reason, he objected to it being a little too small on him...I guess he doesn't like running with a constant wedgie.  I believe he called it "obscene", and "like running in a thong".  "Pshhh, you have to make sacrifices to be amazing," I told him, but no go.

So, no.  I didn't run and I failed at my goal. :(  Even though I heartily dislike running, I was actually pretty disappointed, especially after I told all of you about the race!  Do you still believe in me?  I will try again, my friends.  

Here's pics of my husband and my son and their insanely cute twinner-ness before the race.  And then pics of my husband and two of his little bros who came down to run it with us.  It was fun to cheer them on and all three of them kicked bootie!

My jesters!

Captain America, Superman (complete with tights...he's quite confident, ha!) and the Jester

Do you set goals?  If so, is it hard not to beat yourself up when you fall short?  Do you try the goal again, or just move on to something new?  Well, at least I ran a bit in preparation for the 5k (not as much as I should have), so even though I failed, the goal was still good for something, huh?  :)

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I {Almost} Acheived my Cooking Goal!

By Amy

If you read my cooking post, you'll know that I'm probably the most pathetic cook out there.  But, I decided to quite being lame, and set a goal to cook 4 meals this week, two of which had to be a new recipe.  If that doesn't sound too impressive, keep in mind that I was probably actually "cooking" one meal a week before this.  The other days, we'd have sandwiches or quesadillas, or my hub would cook.

It's time to report on my week.  I told you guys I wanted to be accountable!  I didn't quite hit 4 meals, since we did end up going out of town, but I did make three meals and two were new!  WOOP WOOP!  Biggest success of all?  DIDN'T BURN A THING.  Yeah, Baby.

Monday:  Crispy Southwest Chicken Wraps
I got all stressed out about what to make, I put it off, then stressed some more, and finally made a recipe I found on a cooking blog that my friend, Lori shared with me.  We had leftover rice in the fridge and two random pieces of chicken in the freezer, so this recipe was the perfect fit!  And...ya know what?  Once I got past just making the decision of WHAT to cook, and actually got to cooking, it went pretty ok!
Patrick liked them, we found out that Hayden loves black beans straight outta the can, and I got to make a relatively simple recipe which I could dump salsa over.  SO everyone was happy! :) They were pretty yum, and I will be trying them again!

 

Patty likes it!

Empty tray, what a miracle! (He's a picky little fella.)

Tuesday: Because I am a genius, when I set this goal, I forgot that I can't cook dinner on Tuesdays, cause I teach art classes at a local community center from  4:30-7:00.  SO.  I didn't cook dinner that night.  But when I got back, Patrick had hot Papa Murphy's Pizza waiting.  Let's be honest folks, that beat the pants off of anything I would have cooked.  Stinking delish.

Wednesday: Lasagna
You may not believe this (I am still in awe) but I made a freaking lasagna.  I have never done that before, but my friend, Shandee, told me that lasagna is actualy pretty do-able.  So I found a recipe online, and it went well!  I had a scare cause I thought I had overcooked those humongous noodles, but they turned out being ok.  Phew!  I did run out of cheese at the end, cause I didn't separate it out equal parts (um, duh, me!) so the top layer wasn't all ooey goey cheesy.  But the inside layers were nice and cheesy! :)  It tasted pretty dang good!  And, yes, our side dish was green beans out of a can, but...still, I MADE LASAGNA.  Patrick loved it, too!  He said, "This is really good." Not once, but TWICE.  {Insert victory dance}

Thursday: Tacos 
We had some ground beef left in the fridge from the lasagna, so I made tacos.  (I know, easy-peasy but, hey, it counts as a cooked meal!)  Gotta love tacos.

On Friday, we headed out of town, so, I ended my goal for the week.  Few things I learned

A.  I CAN cook, but I need to find simple, non-stressful recipes
B.  It's better to plan meals ahead so I take advantage of cooking double the meat and using it for two meals, using up left-over rice, etc.
C.  I still didn't enjoy cooking.  So the better I get at it, the faster I'll be, and the less time I'll have to spend doing it!  Win Win!  I also need to get crock-potting, cause HELLO!  Easy.

My realistic goal is now to cook 2 meals a week.  Between left-overs, sandwich nights, and Patrick taking a night or two, we should have our week covered!  Please hit me up with any more meal ideas that are yummy, easy, and nutritious...I (and my husband who is burned out on quesadillas) would appreciate it! :)

Thanks, Friends!
Amy
Ps. What is your go-to meal?  The one that is fast, easy, and the whole fam loves?

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Let's Get Healthy, Yo!

By Katelyn
Introduced by Amy 

Katelyn is the wife of a guy I knew while we both did church missionary work in Missouri.  After our missions, I met his lovely fiance, Katelyn, at a party.  Then later...by a crazy fluke, I sat next to her at a Messiah sing-a-long last Christmas, (OH my goodness, people, she has a GORGEOUS voice.  I was blown away!) and we've been friends ever since!  (Check out our little boys clobbering each other on a playdate.)  She's so genuinely kind and fun to talk to.  I'm so glad she agreed to write a post on health habits, because she's so down-to-earth; I knew she'd give us REAL advice, that REAL women can live by.  Cause, seriously--who wants to spend an hour and a half at the gym everyday?!  NOT me.  

So, enjoy this read, then--let's get to it! :)  
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Hey, I'm Katelyn and this is my son, Peter.

May has arrived and you know what that means? Yes... blossoms and flowers and warm walks to the park and pulling out your old summer clothes with hopes that they still fit and yadayadayada.  It also means dead New Year’s resolutions.  Like so dead... dead on January 5th dead.  You know what I'm talking about.  That pile of books you vowed to read, collecting dust, and every so often you swear you can hear it sneeze a lonely, illiterate sneeze.  And what about that gym membership?  Lost in the bottom of your diaper bag with it's fingers crossed every time you dig down searching for a spare binky.  It is feeling abused.  Let's be real, New Year's resolutions are great and all but their life-spans tend to be shorter than a dragonfly's... which turns out to be 24 hours although I'm not totally convinced.  Don't you think we should reevaluate these short lived resolutions (let's call them goals actually) and give ourselves a break if we haven't quite done the impossible like we promised we would do on New Year's day?  I think we should.  I think we should talk about some of the most common resolutions made by us unhealthy humans (cough Americans cough) and make them do-able goals.  Let's accomplish something huge without having to actually do something huge.

Have I caught your attention?  Because I can almost guarantee one of your goals is the one that I have in mind.  Yep. It's that goal.  The goal that says you can't eat sugar ever again.  It's the goal that says you have to lose 75 pounds by June.  Guess what people... these goals are hard!  And I believe that you can do hard things… but I also believe in efficiency.  Trying to get healthy by totally restricting your sugar intake or trying to lose the weight equivalent to your right leg is not efficient.  Making small goals to become more responsible with your sugar intake as well as gradually losing extra weight is definitely much more efficient.  Now your goals may be different than the two mentioned but really this applies to any behavior change you would like to make.  Let's review, making small stepping stone goals so you can do huge things=very good.  Very good and very do-able.  That is how we are going to accomplish something huge without actually doing something huge.

Why small stepping stone goals?  First off because we are human and that is how humans are meant to work.  Also because many of us are moms, some of us work full time, we have multiple community and church responsibilities, and the list goes on!  Not to mention the menial activities that fill our days.  Pretty much we just don't have time to drop everything and focus on one huge, barely do-able goal.  Do we have time for little bite-size goals?  You know it, Jack!

So let's do it.  Let's get healthy.  Let's throw those over-sized-stretchy-pants goals out the window and start with a new slate.  Let's talk to ourselves about what we really want and what we can do to get there, one step at a time.

Let's do it.

Alright are you in??  Oh good, I'm so glad!  You won't regret it, I promise. (:

How do I know what I want? 

For the most part, many of us "know" what we want.  We want a smaller pant size, smaller scale reading, smaller waist measurement, smaller calorie intake, you name it.  Although "smaller" seems to be the key problem word here... it's actually the fixation on numbers that is the issue.  I know you've heard this before... but it's true, the numbers do not matter and you will always be beautiful.  Seriously, just accept it.  As much as we know our bodies we can't totally understand our metabolism and natural healthy state so don't discourage yourself with outrageous goals fixated on the numbers.  For example, let's say I weigh 157 lbs.  I would love to weigh 130 lbs but my body just wasn't built to be 130 lbs.  I have broad shoulders and broad hips... so unless I flatten out like a piece of New York style pizza, light on the cheese of course, I'm not going to ever weigh 130 lbs.  So seriously though, don't stress over the numbers, you will lose inches, you will lose pounds, you will drop pant sizes, and your body will settle into it's most healthy natural state if you are doing your best to focus on making healthy decisions.  So what do you really want??

What should and shouldn't my goals look like? 

Like I mentioned (more like hammered into your brain) before... they need to be small!  A goal like "I will run a marathon next month" is not small.  A goal like "two times this week I will wake up at 6:30 and run 1 mile" is so much better!  For those of you not in need of exercise help... how about your nutrition?  What?  I can't understand what you're saying through that piece of chocolate cake.  (yummm please share!!) How about a goal like "instead of two cookies for my afternoon snack I'll have one cookie and an apple."  See where I'm going with this?  Small steps.  Then once you feel comfortable with those goals you can upgrade to running 2 miles three times a week.  Or likewise having a cheese stick with your apple instead of a cookie.  Pace yourself.  Small steps.  Success.  Yeah!

What should I avoid? 

Two words: fad diets.  They lead to major weight fluctuation and you don't need them.  Seriously, put down your weight loss sprinkles, roll out of the wrap, take off your exercise simulator and get healthy the right way.  These fad diets are pretty much anything advertised in the media minus choosemyplate.org (now there's an awesome website you should check out for getting-healthy help).  Please PLEASE don't fall for the fad diets!  They are going to try really hard to snatch you with all sorts of advertising tricks... my least favorite is promising that you'll be down 8-10 pounds in the first few days.  Listen, losing weight takes time... like half a pound to 2 pounds a week if you're over weight and really working hard.  So don't fall for it!  This weight that they're talking about is called water weight... water keeps the body alive.  You don't want to lose 10 lbs of it over the weekend.  That's called the flu.

How do I achieve these goals? 

Patience.  Lots of patience.  And persistence.  Getting healthy is not going to happen overnight as much as we'd like it to.  Getting healthy takes months, even years to really understand.  Just like any other good-for-you-goal... it takes time.  There are going to be road blocks, road bricks, and road why-the-heck-is-this-so-hard-today moments.  For example, as soon as I felt like I was getting healthy and understanding my body (2 years into my program/interships focused on health and fitness) my husband and I got pregnant.  We were thrilled!  But I had to learn an entire different way of being healthy... and for two people!  Then the baby came and I got to learn how to be healthy while breastfeeding and in 3-ish more months when my little guy stops nursing I'll get to re-install all of the things that I learned before I got pregnant.  So hang in there and understand that getting healthy is never flawless, you have to struggle to get better at it.  Luckily, once you have the basics down and you know what it feels like to be in good health it is fairly easy to adjust to your different life situations.  Speaking of life situations, everyone's is different so don't compare yourself to your more- or less-successful neighbor.  Everything that I am sharing with you is based from my own life situations as well as from the experiences of individuals I have coached through my undergraduate career... not to mention the material taught to me by some pretty neat-o professors.   Anyway... keep that in mind and just be ready to be flexible.  You can do this!

Once successful how do I maintain my new healthy habits? 

This is the tricky part.  Obviously you want to be healthy because you’ve been making goals for years that have addressed different aspects of health.  The trick is somehow keeping that motivation around longer than January 5th.  Remember why you want to get fit.  Do you want to be able to keep up with your kids?  Are you trying to avoid a certain health issue that a close friend or family member is unfortunately experiencing because of their bad health habits?  Do you want to fit into those jeans from years ago and look dang good while doing it?

Remember what motivated you to get healthy in the first place and stick with it.  Stick with it through the good days and the bad… because there will be both but I know you can do it!  I know that with practice we can all be healthy and fit and really respect these awesome bodies of ours that are so neat.  Seriously, think about all of the mind blowing things our bodies can do… why would we not want them in tip-top shape?? 
-Katelyn

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Isn't she cool? :)  I love her wisdom, especially about making realistic goals!  

So, what about you, ladies?  What are your health goals?  How do you stay motivated to have healthy habits?  If you blow it (for me, every holiday I become a carb-binging pshyco...) how do you get yourself back on track?  We'd love to hear from you!
-Amy

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Goals to Achieve Before Baby #2 Blows My Mind

Birthday Cake! He calmly shoved handful after handful into his mouth.

-By Amy
 
Sometime in the next year or two, my husband and I plan to become pregnant with numero dos. (Well, Patrick won't be pregnant, just me...Ha, that would be awesome, though..."Hun, it's your turn this time.")

I am excited--Hayden is so cool, we gotta have another!  :)  We've always talked about having 4 (Patrick's number) to 5 kids (my number--well, before Hayden came, then for a couple months I decided that 1 was good--but now I am good with having more again!)  We want Hayden to have siblings and since I'd rather not be having kids into my 40's...sooner is looking better than later! 

I've been thinking a lot about how life will change when a new baber comes (I will call the babe a "her").  Taking care of a newborn as well as a toddler looks, um....challenging.  (That's my positive word to replace "terrifying").  I am excited to grow our fam, but I fear for my sanity during the first year after she is born.

I realized when Hayden was a few months old, that NOW is the prime time to accomplish some of my life goals before baby #2 rocks my world.  Therefore, I wrote them out and I proudly display them on the bulletin board in my kitchen, where I can see them often. (Though, now and then I get funny comments from guests...ha!)  These goals have really helped me to stay productive during Hayden's sleep times.  And, I'm not the only momma to use this strategy!  My friend, Sarah, posted on her blog about "the mommy slump" and lots of ladies shared their techniques in the comments for overcoming the "slump"; many use goal setting, just like I do!  I know that for me it is SO energizing and emotionally satisfying to accomplish things outside the realm of my everyday routine, which are tasks that always need to be done over and over. (take care of baby, clean the house, prepare food, repeat, repeat..and repeat.)  So here are my goals and my progress on each one, in no particular order:

GOALS TO ACHIEVE BEFORE BABY #2

• Potty-train Hayden: Yikes. 

• Decorate my house to a state of awesomeness: CHECK!  Woo!  I'm sure I'll do little projects here and there, but for the most part I'm done.

• Get fit (back to the weight I was when we got married): Kinda Check.  I reached that weight (for about a day...haha!) but, I keep going from that weight to about 4 pounds heavier, back and forth.  Really, I'm fine with that.  Fluctuation is real life, sometimes I have more time to exercise, sometimes I eat more (holidays).  I'm just gonna keep trying to be active and eat healthy, and not get too hung up on the number. 

• Teach art lessons: (This may seem like a random goal if you don't know me, but I have an art ed. degree and I taught Jr High and High School art before Hayden was born.) CHECK! Going well!  I teach neighbor kids in my home twice a week.  It's been fun, and I don't have to worry about faculty meetings and bus duty like I did as a teacher in a public school.

 

 

• Take a dance class:  Haven't done this since getting married.  I danced all growing up as well as taking many dance classes in college...I MISS it!  Though, I do dance with/for Hayden everyday...and he claps!  Love that kid.

• Find and learn how to make at least 15 new recipes: I have three new ones so far...I'm a really crappy cook.  I get so A.D.D. with all the instructions and steps and timing that have to go on simultaneously, then add a crying baby into the mix...and heaven help me if I'm making a side dish to go along.  Oh, man, cooking makes me stress; 15 new recipes is actually really pushing my comfort zone.  And, no I'm not counting 15 different kinds of quesadillas.  Ha, I wish. 

• Do 15 works of art:  Um, I've done one, a painting for my living room.  I have anxiety about this one.  It is hard to get myself to do something that I once was really good at, cause I am scared that I will be super rusty and make some crappy piece of art!  Also, it's hard to get out my supplies when I never have much uninterrupted time to work, and little space to spread out all my stuff.  Yada, yada...enough excuses.  I could just do some drawings for heaven's sake!  I will do better.  I can, and I will!

The sketch...

• 

  In progress...

Voila!  Eet ees feenished! (spoken in a realllly bad french accent...)

• Make my own collection of cards to sell on Etsy:  I have a ton of research I need to do.  This is a lofty dream-of-a-goal, but I already have lots of sketches for cards and a business name.  I just need to figure out logistics and get to it!  (I'm nervous that I will fail...I just need to quit being a coward and COWBOY UP!...to quote my high school welding teacher...)

• Start a blog: CHECK!  I'm not very techno-savvy, so this has been QUITE challenging, but I'm slowly figuring things out, and it's been super fun!  I love all of you who are reading my silly stories along with the amazing posts written by other swaggin' ladies.  I love these women; they've bravely opened their hearts to us, even when they're nervous about their writing abilities.  Over and over, I am filled by hearing your experiences.  I feel honored to create a platform for others to share the stories they yearn to tell, and it's been so fun to connect with all of you through your comments!  It's meant so much to me.

• Run a 5K:  Not yet. Oy.  I don't really want to, but I'll have to train to achieve this goal--basically, this is a way to turn "stay active" into a measurable goal.  I'm thinking I'll do a turkey trot at Thanksgiving. 

• Hike Table Rock: Not yet, but it's planned for August!  Now this, I will love, though it will be a challenge.  I love hiking!  The scenery, the slower pace, the uphill slope, which works my muscles, (the M & M's I pick out of the trail mix...) and the picnic at the end...what's not to love!? :)

• Read the New Testament and the Doctrine and Covenants:  Not done yet.  I read scriptures every day, but sometimes I slack and just read a verse or two.  This goal is to get me moving and consistent!  I am almost done with the Doctrine and Covenants, and will start the New Testament next. (The Doctrine and Covenants is another book of Scripture, more words revealed by God to prophets.  Members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints read it along with the Bible and Book of Mormon.)

• Sort all my photos, and get current with photobooks: This is kinda a chore for me.  I am getting close-- I am only one year away from when Patrick and I met.  I took SOO many photos in college.  Good grief.  I am burnt out on traditional scrap-booking (too much time and too expensive-- and digital scrapbooks are spendy too) so I use the fancy photo sleeves!  Ha!  They aren't the most aesthetically pleasing, but at least they'll be organized and easily accessible...that's the important thing, right?  I don't want my pics stuffed in boxes for years while I put off scrap-booking them.

Notice that these goals are ALL things that I can check off.  I purposely didn't include goals that are ongoing (like my resolutions: exercise 3x a week, go on two real dates a month with hub...those are never finished, till the end of the year), because I wanted to feel the accomplishment of being able to check an item off the list as "finished".

Also, I have different goals that are daily, weekly, or monthly things I need to be doing to take care of my family and others...maybe I'll share them at some point.  But my list above is mostly about my own interests and hobbies. (aka--my fun-and-kinda-selfish goals.) And, though I may not achieve everything on this list, I've already reached more of these than I expected!  So, when you set goals, write them down!  Use cool colors or type them in sweet fonts, but make them noticeable and put them where you will see them often.  Even if you only accomplish 80% of them, that's probably 60% more than you would have done without any goals to work towards!  These are solid, mathematically researched statistics, by the way.  (Check out my cousin Tracy's cool goals.  She inspires me!)

Well friends, there's my goals.  Looks like before I'm taking care of two awesome babes...I got a lot of work to do!   Cause I'm sure that when I'm caring for a newborn while keeping Hayden from climbing the bookshelf or drinking toilet water--I'll have one goal: Survival.  :)
-Amy

How about you!? What goals do you have?  Do you find goals motivating or discouraging?
And, moms of two or more, how was the transition?  Am I right to fear?

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