- get the exercise routine I didn't make happen in 2014
- get into a better place with the dogs
- redo entire wardrobe
- rediscover Jesus
- sewing basics from Mrs. Mayhew
- clean the shower
Now here comes the crazy part. When I started 2015, I had an almost three month old baby and I felt completely underwater with the house and the dogs and my own cleanliness and nursing and sleep schedules, etc. etc. I knew I wanted to read some books in the new year, but I had absolutely no idea what realistic expectations were or should be when coming up with a number. So instead of a set number goal, I made a small list of books that I'd wanted to read for a long time and just hadn't gotten around to yet. I thought that if I read those fifteen or so books by the end of the year then I'd be more than content. Well...I read those, and then many many more. I blew my reading goals right out of the water, almost completely because I started listening to audiobooks. There's no way I would have been able to read anywhere near as many books as I did this year without audiobooks. I highly recommend them! I will say though, that I think my audiobook days are on hold for a while, since my little baby ears are getting older and more aware (and more picky...she only wants Veggie Tales from my phone playing all day every day, not books read aloud). But some of my goals for this year address that, in an effort to keep the reading going strong. I'll get to that in a minute though. Here's the list of all the books I read this year. (For the sake of my sanity, I'm not going to link them all to my blog posts, mostly because that would take me the rest of the day. Just look at my Book Reviews page for all the links.)
- Yes Please, by Amy Poehler
- Unbroken, by Laura Hillenbrand
- Serena, by Ron Rash
- Harry Potter #3, by JK Rowling
- The Rosie Project, by Graeme Simsion
- Harry Potter #4, by JK Rowling
- Dash and Lily's Book of Dares, by Rachel Cohn and David Levithan
- Harry Potter #5, by JK Rowling
- Is Everyone Hanging Out Without Me?, by Mindy Kaling
- Eleanor and Park, by Rainbow Rowell
- Wild, by Cheryl Strayed
- Harry Potter #6, by JK Rowling
- Harry Potter #7, by JK Rowling
- A Long Way Down, by Nick Hornby
- Through Painted Deserts, by Donald Miller
- Bud, Not Buddy, by Christopher Paul Curtis
- The Girl on the Train, by Paula Hawkins
- Bossypants, by Tina Fey
- The Best Yes, by Lisa Terkeurst
- House of Hades, by Rick Riordan
- When You Reach Me, by Rebecca Stead
- Crash, by Jerry Spinelli
- Monster, by Walter Dean Myers
- The Graveyard Book, by Neil Gaiman
- Simplify, by Bill Hybels
- Still Alice, by Lisa Genova
- Al Capone Does My Shirts, by Gennifer Choldenko
- This is Where I Leave You, by Jonathan Topper
- Designed to be His Help Meet, by Debi Pearl
- Wonder, by RJ Palacio
- To Kill a Mockingbird, by Harper Lee (reread)
- Night, by Elie Wiesel
- Half Broke Horses, by Jeannette Walls
- Cold Tangerines, by Shauna Niequist
- A Thousand Splendid Suns, by Khaled Hosseini
- Three Times Lucky, by Sheila Turnage
- His Needs, Her Needs, by Willard Harley
- My Heart's at Home, by Jill Savage
- The Impossible Knife of Memory, by Laurie Halse Anderson
- Diary of Anne Frank, by Anne Frank
- The Silver Star, by Jeannette Walls
- Silas Marner, by George Elliot
- The Sky is Everywhere, by Jandy Nelson
- Al Capone Shines my Shoes, by Gennifer Choldenko
- Landline, by Rainbow Rowell
- Isla and the Happily Ever After, by Stephanie Perkins
- Okay for Now, by Gary Schmidt (reread)
- Al Capone Does my Homework, by Gennifer Choldenko
- Liar & Spy, by Rebecca Stead
- Ghosts of Tupelo Landing, by Sheila Turnage
- In Defense of Food, by Michael Pollan
- The Storied Life of AJ Fikry, by Gabrielle Zevin
- Fahrenheit 451, by Ray Bradbury
- No Country for Old Men, by Cormac McCarthy
- The Martian, by Andy Weir
- Killing Kennedy, by Bill O'Reilly
- The Rosie Effect, by Graeme Simsion
- And the Mountains Echoed, by Khaled Hosseini
- Go Set a Watchman, by Harper Lee
- Copper Sun, by Sharon Draper
- Room, by Emma Donoghue
- Revolutionary Road, by Richard Yates
- Killing Lincoln, by Bill O'Reilly
- Out of My Mind, by Sharon Draper
- I am the Messenger, by Markus Zusak
- First Boy, by Gary Schmidt
- Orbiting Jupiter, by Gary Schmidt
- 7, by Jen Hatmaker
- Let it Snow, by John Green, Maureen Johnson, and Lauren Myracle
Speaking of next year, I've come up with a similar plan as far as goals go. A short personal list for my life, and a short book list that I'm hoping to surpass by lots. Things are changing in the reading department once again, with (what I'm assuming to be) the absence of audiobooks, but one of my personal goals is much less television and more reading instead. We created a playroom that's separate from the TV room this week, and I have already read and/or completed three and a half books since then. And the TV hasn't been on once other than when JT has been home. I'm thinking that will prove to be incredibly helpful with a lot of my goals. :) Without further ado, here's my personal and reading goals for 2016:
Personal Goals:
- Get dressed/ready for the day by 9 am: When I was in the middle of thinking of goals one day last week, I realized it was 3 in the afternoon and I hadn't brushed my teeth. #lifeofastayathomemom Well no more. Because that's just silly.
- Exercise 5 times a week: Thanks to my new Christmas present the Fitbit and my tendencies toward obsessiveness, I've exercised every day this week already (which, if you're counting, is actually six, not five). I'm hoping that this magical new combination of the treadmill and the Fitbit and the Kindle that sits comfortably on the treadmill, this one will be a matter of maintaining throughout the year rather than the creation of a whole new goal.
- Less TV, more books: Fairly self-explanatory. I watch way too much TV, and that should probably stop. It's easy, it's handy, and it's brainless. I am capable of doing more with my days than watching How I Met Your Mother all the way through for the sixth time.
- Less noise, more quiet: I love background noise. Whether it's music or podcasts or audiobooks or Netflix, I always have something playing. That should probably be lessened too...I think I'm finally ready to learn how to just have quiet.
- More intentionality with friends: This one's vague, as a lot of these are, but I'm that introvert who has good friends and gets sad she never sees them instead of just reaching out and inviting them for a walk or a cup of coffee or lunch. I've always been that friend, and I'd like to keep pushing myself to initiate a little more, and to also make my time with friends a little less about me and a lot more about them.
- Monthly dates with JT: This unfortunately won't be possible every month (for example, he will be spending a lot of the summer in Florida), but we really do want to make this a priority when we are physically able.
- Weekly dates with Charlotte: I don't mean for this to be anything crazy or complicated or stressful, but just that I try to do one fun, intentional, different-than-the-norm thing with Charlotte every week.
- For the Love, by Jen Hatmaker
- Good News for Weary Women, by Elyse Fitzpatrick
- Bittersweet, by Shauna Niequist
- Bread & Wine, by Shauna Niequist
- Parenting with Scripture, by Kara Durbin
- Love and Respect, by Emerson Eggerichs
- The Excellent Wife, by Martha Peace
- The Underdogs, by Markus Zusak
- Every You, Every Me, by David Levithan
- Every Day, by David Levithan
- We Were Liars, by E. Lockhart
- Reality Boy, by AS King
- Forgive me Leonard Peacock, by Matthew Quick
- Lindsey Lost, by Suzanne Marie Phillips
- Belle Porter series
- To All the Boys I've Loved Before, by Jenny Han
- Odds of Getting Even, by Sheila Turnage
- Attachments, by Rainbow Rowell
It's been a great year, for books and for goals. I'm excited for this new one.
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