My 2019 Goals and How I Did
I'm honestly stunned with how well I did on my goals this year as I'll fully admit I forgot about most of them until we were a good 3/4 of the way through the year! I think maybe just writing them down meant they were somehow working in the back of my mind??
I truly don't know how I did it but I am pretty thrilled with how well I did and plan to set more short-term goals throughout the year this year. Before we jump into the new year and my new goals though I thought I'd take one last look at how I did with last year's goals:
Personal goals:
1. Make more time for cardmaking, scrapbooking, and personal crafts making sure to do at least 2 projects a month-- YES!! I so far surpassed this that's it's laughable. I really found I enjoyed scrapbooking once again and managed to get almost a dozen pages done most months. I started making ALL the cards for every occasion and even tackled lots of Cricut crafts that were completely new to me.
2. Go on one date a month with my husband (or 12 dates in 12 months)-- YES! We far surpassed that! Now that our boys are older and don't really want to go many places with us I find that my husband and I have all sorts of time for dating-- as long as we're a bit flexible with the definition of date. We even went away just the two of us for TWO different weekends!
3. Read More Books for the year.-- YES! I didn't have a set goal with a specific # of books to read but managed to read 90 books this year and found some new favorites. Here are my favorite books of the year.
4. Keep up with my fitness goals-- YES!! I joined Weight Watchers in March and managed to loose over 30+ lbs (and keep it off!). I struggled a bit this month but am hopeful that once I am feeling better after my surgery/ post-op I can get right back to it.
Professional/ Blogging:
1. I'd love to get a few more subscribers to my blog-- Nope! In fact my subscribers went down and then I think I lost them altogether when I switched over to my new blog; but I am OK with that since big blog changes needed to happen sooner or later anyway. I feel like the overall interaction on my blog has increased and while I am starting over I don't feel like I am starting over from scratch so I am just thrilled. As of writing this up my blog subscribers are about the same they were when I wrote this.
2. Finish update ALL old posts-- Yep! While there are still many old posts I don't really like, I did go through and update them; tried re-formatting them, adding photos to posts that didn't have any, etc. I even deleted a few! Most of them needed some sort of pinnable image like this:
3. See if I can get even MORE pageviews each day/week-- Yes and No! Somehow I almost tripled my pageviews most days... then I swapped out the blog and went down by a lot but I do think that number is slowly and steadily increasing as more and more readers rediscover my blog and start following along.
4. Work on my photography skills-- Yep! I joined 52 Frames and made it a point to take a photo each week following the assignment. I can't say I learned a whole lot about how my personal camera works but I like to think I am taking better photos... maybe? It was fun too and something that challenged me to think about how I sometimes need to step back and stop comparing myself to others. Of course now I have an even newer camera I need to learn how to use but I think I'm up to the challenge! I got this camera with free Adobe software for almost 50% off with one of Amazon's black Friday deals!
Homeschooling goals:
1. Get the boys working more independently-- Yep! I would say that they are doing most of their work on their own each day and I just sit nearby in case they need help. I have seen huge strides in all the boys this year.
2. Find at least one book we can all enjoy!-- Yep! We read so many books together; books that had all three boys laughing! Most of them by Gordon Korman and our favorite was definitely Schooled. I think it had just a little something to do with the main character adjusting from being homeschooled on a commune to being thrown into a local public school.
3. Add even more physical education/ exercise into our day-- Yes! While we haven't been getting out much lately with the weather being so cold we were up to hiking 4 or 5 days a week sometimes in the spring and fall. I find that we can hike so much further in our hour goal than we used to be able to hike too.
I truly don't know how I did it but I am pretty thrilled with how well I did and plan to set more short-term goals throughout the year this year. Before we jump into the new year and my new goals though I thought I'd take one last look at how I did with last year's goals:
Personal goals:
1. Make more time for cardmaking, scrapbooking, and personal crafts making sure to do at least 2 projects a month-- YES!! I so far surpassed this that's it's laughable. I really found I enjoyed scrapbooking once again and managed to get almost a dozen pages done most months. I started making ALL the cards for every occasion and even tackled lots of Cricut crafts that were completely new to me.
2. Go on one date a month with my husband (or 12 dates in 12 months)-- YES! We far surpassed that! Now that our boys are older and don't really want to go many places with us I find that my husband and I have all sorts of time for dating-- as long as we're a bit flexible with the definition of date. We even went away just the two of us for TWO different weekends!
3. Read More Books for the year.-- YES! I didn't have a set goal with a specific # of books to read but managed to read 90 books this year and found some new favorites. Here are my favorite books of the year.
4. Keep up with my fitness goals-- YES!! I joined Weight Watchers in March and managed to loose over 30+ lbs (and keep it off!). I struggled a bit this month but am hopeful that once I am feeling better after my surgery/ post-op I can get right back to it.
Professional/ Blogging:
1. I'd love to get a few more subscribers to my blog-- Nope! In fact my subscribers went down and then I think I lost them altogether when I switched over to my new blog; but I am OK with that since big blog changes needed to happen sooner or later anyway. I feel like the overall interaction on my blog has increased and while I am starting over I don't feel like I am starting over from scratch so I am just thrilled. As of writing this up my blog subscribers are about the same they were when I wrote this.
2. Finish update ALL old posts-- Yep! While there are still many old posts I don't really like, I did go through and update them; tried re-formatting them, adding photos to posts that didn't have any, etc. I even deleted a few! Most of them needed some sort of pinnable image like this:
3. See if I can get even MORE pageviews each day/week-- Yes and No! Somehow I almost tripled my pageviews most days... then I swapped out the blog and went down by a lot but I do think that number is slowly and steadily increasing as more and more readers rediscover my blog and start following along.
4. Work on my photography skills-- Yep! I joined 52 Frames and made it a point to take a photo each week following the assignment. I can't say I learned a whole lot about how my personal camera works but I like to think I am taking better photos... maybe? It was fun too and something that challenged me to think about how I sometimes need to step back and stop comparing myself to others. Of course now I have an even newer camera I need to learn how to use but I think I'm up to the challenge! I got this camera with free Adobe software for almost 50% off with one of Amazon's black Friday deals!
Homeschooling goals:
1. Get the boys working more independently-- Yep! I would say that they are doing most of their work on their own each day and I just sit nearby in case they need help. I have seen huge strides in all the boys this year.
3. Add even more physical education/ exercise into our day-- Yes! While we haven't been getting out much lately with the weather being so cold we were up to hiking 4 or 5 days a week sometimes in the spring and fall. I find that we can hike so much further in our hour goal than we used to be able to hike too.
These were great goals! I am pinning this to inspire me in 2020. Lord help me.
ReplyDeleteThanks!
DeleteGreat job! I'm wondering if weight watchers would be good for me. I gained back 5 pounds and I'm not sure how to lose it again and keep it off!
ReplyDeleteI debated for so long about joining Weight Watchers but one thing I really liked about the program is that it really has taught me HOW to eat. I don't have to cut out any food groups or avoid anything entirely; just eat sugar/chocolate and those foods that tend to be my downfall in moderation. I also like that even weeks where I don't exercise I still see results and knowing I can eat all the fruits and veggies I want has helped me make those healthy choices. I want to eat those good for me foods and I enjoy my meals and snacks. I'm not yet at my goal but I have been maintaining my current weight for well over a month (even with all the incredible junky foods I've been eating lately).
DeleteI knew you'd have a great list of goals! And we are also very flexible in our definition of "date," but when you've carted kids everywhere with your for so many years, it's fun to go ANYWHERE with our sweeties!
ReplyDeleteCongratulations on the weight loss! 30 pounds made an amazing difference!
Aw, thanks!
DeleteWow! It must feel so good that you reached so many of your goals in 2019! Congrats on your weight loss.
ReplyDeleteThank you! It does feel pretty good.
DeleteThanks for visiting my blog and taking the time to comment. I don't do goals or resolutions but I do reflect on what happened and was accomplished over the past year and how I can learn from it. - Margy
ReplyDeleteI never used to do goals or resolutions either but decided to give it a try last year.
DeleteSounds like a good year!
ReplyDeletewww.chezmireillefashiontravelmom.com
It was. Thank you.
DeleteCongratulations on your success with your 2019 goals. You look terrific! I need to get back on the WW program. I've regained some of my weight, and I know if I would just track daily, I'd drop the weight gained. Goals!!!
ReplyDeleteAll the best for 2020!
I have vowed to start tracking EVERYTHING today and at least exercise for 15 minutes.
DeleteYou had a great year! Hopefully the new blog will grow and you'll reach some new goals this year!
ReplyDeleteThanks for sharing at Farm Fresh Tuesdays! See you next week!
Melissa | Little Frugal Homestead
Thanks! I think the blog should grow quite well once those readers who seemed to be reading fairly regularly re-find me.
DeleteYou rocked it! And that's amazing about your traffic, even with the name change. I'm hoping to really hit my stride this year, and even started using an editorial calendar to keep me on track. Also, seriously amazing work on the weight loss front! You're so close to the finish line!!
ReplyDeleteI really am... I keep hovering around the 6-8 lb mark so not far at all! I think once I get cleared to exercise if I just focus on that and keep eating the way I am I should make that goal weight in no time.
Delete