by Tessa | Personal Development
I didn’t get my March Summary goals post up. The second half of March consisted or a round robin of a yucky cold virus. It hit each member of our family, even Baby Bear, and made for a not-so-fun few weeks. April has felt like a new start. A new season. A new day. Baby Bear is the first of my children who is not high need and he still has a really consistent routine. The biggest perk: I’m rested. I make sure to go to bed on time and we still deal with multiple night wakings but it’s amazing how a content and peace-filled family can show each other love during the day. If your family doesn’t enjoy each other’s company, there is no quick fix but I can say that slowing down and resting more will get you further in life that running around and hardly allowing yourselves to breath.
Goal updates:
Faith:
Read the Bible in one year: I got very far behind in March but am almost caught up. Doubling up the reading on some days and getting back into the habit of listening daily. I’m currently in 1 Kings for OT and making my way through the Book of John for my NT readings.
In depth book study: Oh, right. I was supposed to be reading Ephesians…. I’m going to be caught up soon on my yearly plan so I’ll stick this back into the rotation.
Focused Daily prayer time: I’ve been more sporadically praying for people and events as I think of them instead of taking a specific time each day. Trying to think of when I could add this in. Last month I mentioned a prayer prompter. Still haven’t made it. Putting it on my To Do list right now though… Scheduled for my Sunday afternoon planning session.
Wife:
Monthly “out” date with Adam: No dates. We did errands together without the bigger boys. But they took too long and we didn’t actually sit down to focus on each other. I just mentioned this fact to my husband and C has already figured out he’s going to call a friend to watch him and his brother. I’m glad that even my son sees the value in it… friend texted and May’s date is scheduled.
Shared interest “doing something” time: He totally out paced me in the game that we were playing and I have been left in the dust. This month’s “doing something” involves a garden and a plan for yard work. I want it done and he actually enjoy most yard work.
Kiss Adam daily: So simple and yet, with all the sickness we had in March, we completely got out of the habit. I didn’t review my goals at the end of March either so we really have some work to make this a priority again.
Mother:
Play: Can I just say that my kids are awesome? They truly are fun to be with and, even though I don’t usually get down on the floor with them to push cars around, I love spending time with them. With the weather having (finally) warmed up, we have been taking a lot of walks and doing story time outside and we have been making good use of the swingset. Baby Bear isn’t to sure about swinging but he sure does love participating with the big boys.
Their faith: We did pretty good with out daily family Bible readings for a while but then slacked again. I’m trying to figure out how to make this a firmer habit. Do you have any suggestions? Perhaps a visual chart by our dinner table that we can add stickers to each day we read. Kids love stickers!
Homemaker:
Cleaning: I feel like I’m getting the hang of this whole housekeeping-with-3-kids thing. Baby Bear is about 5.5 months so that’s quicker than I adjusted with the first two. My house certainly isn’t perfect but I’m also not overwhelmed anymore. It’s like a breath of fresh air to not feel like I’m always running behind.
Food: Freezer cooking? Baking? Yogurt? What’s that? I have been making kombucha so that’s a benefit to out health. I also have my tomatoes, peppers, and broccoli started and we will plant the rest of the garden in a couple of weeks.
Project: March’s project was to plan my garden and I still need to do that. April’s project was to clean my bay window so I could start my seeds and put them there. May’s project is to plant everything that can be planted in May. I didn’t plant a lot of things on time last year so my harvest was rather pitiful. This year will be different!
Hobbies/Blog/Personal:
Reading: Two non-fiction books in April were The Essential Oiler’s Handbook. I have used essential oils for the last few years but we had a real breakthrough with Biscuit and his emotional issues during sleep (perhaps I’ll write about that in more detail one day) so I started doing a ton of research. I read about 6 ebooks on essential oils and that was the best. Another one I really liked was The Aromatherapy Bible: The Definitive Guide to Using Essential Oils. It is not a Christian book and there are a few things that I don’t agree with in it but it has great tips for recipes and how to use oils. My favorite part of the book is the section that is dedicated to an overview of a ton of different oils. 
My fiction selection was The Swiss Courier by Tricia Goyer. The kindle version is cheaper than I could have driven to the library and back. I have read another couple of books by Tricia and read her blog regularly and just love her writing. This book was no exception. It was a WW II book and I haven’t been able to read a WW II book for a number of years because I found that they affected me too much. I took a chance on this book, however, and I’m so glad I did. Fantastic story that left me on the edge of my seat and had me applauding by the end of it. I rate this book 5 out of 5 stars.
Writing: I have been pretty consistently writing daily. Not always something for my blog but I journal and have even done something that I hadn’t done for probably 15 years: I wrote a song. Or rather, a part of a song. It isn’t quite complete. It has been great to get back at the piano and have the mental capacity and the joy in my heart to be able to write music again.
Website: March’s goal of making a disclosure page is going to be completed in May. I want to give a little more information on how and why I decided to monetize my blog and how those kinds of things affect my writing and how they affect you, as a reader.
Blog: My regular readers will know that March was a tough month for posting but I’m getting things organized again and I am enjoying posting regularly again. The thing with a blog is that it’s never just writing. If all I had to do was write, I could post daily. The truth is, as any blogger will tell you, the photos and links and formatting and marketing all take up more time than the actual writing does. I put a lot of time, effort, and heart into my final project so if a post really resonates with you, please share it!
Planning Session: I missed a few of these due to sick kids and Sunday’s spent away from home. I had to do some very quick and sporadic planning on Sunday evenings or Monday mornings and the hurried planning showed. I really love my planning session because it helps me organize my thoughts on all the areas of my life. I can accomplish so much more when I have a game plan.
Quiet time: I love warmer weather. I skip out of the house a bit when my husband comes in to make lunch. I get to take a walk alone or, occasionally, with a sleeping baby on my back. The boys play outside a lot so all the noise is out there. I can put Baby Bear in his little chair on the deck and he sleeps or watches his brothers and I can relax. Feeling much more refreshed with the amount of quiet I’ve been experiencing.
Health: Drinking water: It is much easier to keep my fluids up when the weather is nice. A cool glass of water on a hot day is perfect. I would say that I’ve got this “drinking water daily” habit in the bag. Eating fruit: Fruit and summer go hand-in-hand. And my boys have started asking for fruit at snack time so I prepare their snack and make an extra plate for myself at the same time. Strengthening my back: My back injury was over 3 years ago now and it still gives me grief. It makes me a little sad to think it but, at the same time, it has improved drastically. I am starting to find a routine of essential oils, back stretching exercises and remembering to massage daily (my chiropractor recommended the Professional Body Massager 
and I love it). My back still pops out daily and gets tired easily but it doesn’t usually hurt. I’m so glad that pain is minimized! Reviewing goals regularly helps keep you headed in the right direction.
Do you have a regular time to review your goals? If you have written a blog post on your goals, we would love to have you link up and share your goals with us. You could grab the button and put it on your post to help spread the word that we are writing these posts. Or leave a comment with a summary of how your life plan for 2014 is coming along.
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by Tessa | Personal Development
Disclosure: This post contains affiliate link which means if you purchase something by clicking on the link, I get a small referral commission, at no cost to you.
Back in December I let you know about a Goals Blogging link up that I’m involved in and shared a bit about the process I used to make my life plan. I don’t normally share my goals because I feel they are very personal, but I know how much I benefit from reading what other people are (or are not) accomplishing in their lives so I thought it beneficial to share my progress with you this year.
Without further ado, I’ll jump right in:
Faith:
Bible in one year: keeping up with this one. I usually read between 5-6am when Baby Bear has his waking time.
In depth book study: I want to study Ephesians and James in more detail this year but haven’t made the time to even begin reading them. Adding it to my “to do” list and I’ll start my first read through of Ephesians next week.
Focused Daily prayer time: I have been partially doing this one during my morning quiet/Baby Bear awake time, after reading my daily Bible passage. But I think I would like to make a more specific prayer prompter.
Wife:
Monthly “out” date: We actually had our date last night. A late dinner while a friend watched our sleeping older children. It was great to be out with him but I think that, for February, we will go somewhere a little more quiet.
Doing something together: We have been learning about Queens of old through reading and watching biographical movies. It might not sound fun to everyone but it’s been a great bonding experience for us to talk about historical politics and lifestyles.
Kiss daily: Most days I do this. There are days when we barely see each other and I need to make it more of a priority on those busy days.
Mother:
Play: I have chosen to give up my best housework hours of the morning and spend that time playing with my kids instead. We have read countless stories, played playdough, done paper crafts, raced cars, gone for farm walks, and more. I’ve never been much of “playful” mother but it has blessed them to have my focused attention for that time and it has reminded me that it’s okay to “let down my hair” once in a while, so to speak.
Their faith: We forgot to read the Bible at dinner for a couple weeks but have started that up again. I bought The Narrated Bible in Chronological Order (NIV)
as a family Christmas gift and we read a chunk every night after dinner. Still working on making it a firm habit but we’ve read as a family more often this month that we did all last year. I have never read the Bible in chronological order before and it’s such a different experience.
Homemaker:
Housekeeping: This is tough with a little one who takes much of my time and attention but the house is livable and we have food and clean clothes. My goal for the year is to get back into my regular cleaning rhythm. I have all my routines typed up and, at this point, am focusing on completing my Monday tasks consistently every week.
Food: We stuck to our goal of not eating out (except our date last night) so I’m planning an evening of freezer cooking for sometime in February. I also want to make bread and homemade yogurt once a month and accomplished both of those.
Project: Last month was kids’ clothes and a friend came over to help me power through the mountain and sort them all into storage bins. February’s project will be to set up and use a digital organization system. I bought an instructional book, called Paperless Home Organization: How to Create A Digital Home Management Binder
that I’m working through and, so far, it’s great. By the end of February I should have my email inboxes, Evernote, and calendar organized.
Hobbies/Blog/Personal:
Reading: I have started keeping track of the books I’ve read and have a goal to read two non-fiction books per month and one fiction. I’m currently exceeding that goal because I sit to nurse or rock so often. I just keep my tablet and ereader beside the rocking chair.
Writing: My goal is to create a daily writing habit. So far I’m writing about 2-3 times per week so I’m halfway there.
Website: One “tweak” per month. In January I updated my “About Me” page and keep your eyes open for my February tweak of a new header.
Blog: Continue guest posting at TOTS Family and consistently post once per week. I hope to increase my personal posting frequency but, in this season of my life, it just isn’t realistic. So, for now, I’ll post once per week with the occasional “wild card” thrown in.
Plan to plan: Take an hour each week away from the kids to plan and prepare for the upcoming week. This could be a simple sanity saver for me but I just haven’t been doing it. I have just added it to my calendar (that syncs with my husband’s) and even added a reminder so both my phone and tablet will let me know to actually do it.
Quiet time: As an introvert, I crave quiet. I have moments when my house is quiet but it is very rare that my mind is quiet. I am trying to make a habit to take just a minute or two of outer and inner quiet during the day. I did this several times over the last month but need to make it a regular part of my daily routine.
Health: My goal to drink more water has been going well but my goal to eat a piece of fruit every day is not. I don’t naturally eat fruit in the winter so I’m going to continue working on this habit.
A couple things that I have yet to do for January that will get bumped to next week: get money out of the bank for church donation, and do some research on exercises to strengthen my core and hopefully eliminate my back issues this year.
If you have written a post on your goals, share your post by linking up. Grab the button and put it on your post to help spread the word and let’s help each other stay accountable. This linky party goes up the last Friday of the month and stays open for a few weeks. So feel free to link up or le me know in the comments how you are doing with your goals this year!
by Tessa | Personal Development
The best goal setting book I have ever read is The Power of Focus: What the World’s Greatest Achievers Know about The Secret to Financial Freedom & Success
, by Les Hewitt, Mark Victor Hanson, and Jack Canfield. I have been using the outline in that book for my business and life plan, on and off, since about 2005. I love how it organizes goals into 7 main target areas: financial, business/career, fun time, health/fitness, relationships, personal, contribution/spiritual. I have tried to keep all these areas in mind as I set my goals and figure out my priorities for 2014. I have also tried to keep in mind the different roles that I fill: child of God, wife, mother, homemaker, entrepreneur.
I’m going to admit that I don’t have a personal (or family) vision or mission statement. I’m sure that goal setting would be a lot simpler if I had one. One day I’ll write one up. For now, I’m borrowing an idea that I saw on a blog just over a year ago: a one word yearly theme. 2013 was Peace. My family desperately needed peace and we sought it and managed to maintain it, in spite of the move and new farm set up (and more recently a new baby). We praise the Lord for that!
One word for 2014: Pursue.
Definition: To follow in an effort to overtake or capture.
I have felt called to pursue God in a way that I never have in the past. I also want to teach my children to pursue Him. I want to pursue my husband. I want to pursue my children’s hearts. And I want to pursue my God-given dreams.
My goals will revolve around this theme and be broken down into monthly habits/routines that I want to instigate. I am working on making a plan to apply this in the 7 main target areas of my life and the 5 major roles that I have.
I have been spending a lot of time in prayer about where I’m currently spending my time and effort. Some things I have figured out and other things I am still waiting for guidance on. I’m planning to talk to some mentors in my life (including my husband) to ask their advice in certain areas. Only time and the Lord know how the next year will play out, but I’m excited to enter into it with a clear picture of where my focus will be.
I’m also excited to be sharing this journey of Personal Priorities: 2014 Edition and want to say a big THANK YOU to Tammy from Creative K Kids for organizing this wonderful way to stay accountable to these goals and priorities. Make sure you hop on over to the other blogs participating in the 2014 edition of Personal Priorities.
Grab the button from the sidebar and join me on this journey. Link up the LAST Friday of the month at any of the participating blogs and let’s help each other stay accountable to have an unstoppable 2014!
*This post contains affiliate links. If you follow the link and choose to make a purchase, I may receive a small referral commission, at no extra cost to you.*
by Tessa | Motherhood
I’ve already told you about what unschooling is to my family and why I feel the need to set up a plan for our year. This post will break out a few more nitty gritty details of how I’m hoping to accomplish a planned unschool year.
Step 1: Figure out the boys’ interests and write them down. I gave them each a tab in a binder (binders have become an organization obsession of mine lately). C was very easy in this regard as I already know many of the things he wants to learn about. Things like birds, weather, corn, mustangs (the GT Supersnake in particular). I asked him what he wanted to learn and was rather shocked by his some of suggestions:
* Play tricky games
* World of Warcraft – logging on (Out of sheer adoration for his Daddy)
* How to teach the new baby to play (when he/she gets here)
* How to treat toys
* How to treat shoes
* How to treat ourselves
* All about our bodies
* Write numbers and letters
* How to be gentle
* Bees
* Zebras
Biscuit wanted his own list. It was much simpler:
* How to write “Opa”
Step 2: To C’s tab, I added a sheet with the heading “Methods C Enjoys.” Here I’ve listed things like movies, video games, reading and painting. I’ll ask him for input on this page as well. I’ll also be able to add and pages with notes on how to help him expand on certain ideas/interests. For example: Magic School bus has some videos and books about bodies and I have a couple of lapbooks from Currclick on some of his chosen topics.
Step 3: Plan into my daily routine time to sit with my sons and allow them to choose a topic and learning medium. It sounds very technical but this step naturally comes with more flow. A typical day may start with C talking about the very cool robin he saw on the lawn. We can watch some videos on YouTube, print out a coloring page, make robins with playdough, and, of course, head outside to watch the robins in the trees. Depending on his level of interest in the topic, we can add in lapbooks (what little boy doesn’t like cutting and gluing?) or photography and scrapbooking (i.e. notebooking).
The most important part of this process will be for me to be diligent in spending time in the boys’ world on a daily basis. It is so easy to just let them play independently, since they play so well together. I frequently pull them into my world with asking/allowing them to help with housework, gardening, and meal preparation. They even join me for my morning Bible reading. I, however, need some prodding and reminding to get down on the floor with them just to play cars, or sit at the table and play playdough with them instead of just putting it out and letting them have at it. We even painted together the other day and it was so much fun! And sometimes we walk to the barn just so we can play with the kitties, and this (rather large and pregnant!) mama sits in the straw with a kitty in my lap as the boys make up stories about what the kitties have been doing. The only thing that I haven’t joined in with is playing in the dirt. That’s totally Papa Bear’s department.
by Tessa | Homemaking
Typically, the words “unchooling” and “planning” do not show up in the same sentence. So how can I claim to be an unschooler and still be scouring the internet for information on how to plan a homeschooling year?
C is 5 this year and, even though kindergarten isn’t mandatory where I live, I have decided to register with a homeschool board. I did this for a couple of reasons:
1. To get people off my back about his education. Everyone is asking me what we’re doing so now I can tell them he’s registered as a homeschooler. It just eliminates some of the much-repeated questions I receive.
2. To give a school board a “trial run.” I know that I want to homeschool but I don’t know exactly what it will all entail, as far as there being required records or plans, or what a meeting with a facilitator would look like, or what a homeschool board will offer in terms of support/guidance.
Back to the whole “planned unschool” idea.
I used to be a schedule-a-holic. My days were planned down to the minute (including time for inevitable interruptions like traffic or getting stopped by a chatty co-worker). I loved it and thrived. It reduced a lot of stress in my hectic life/career and helped me accomplish more than I would have if I wasn’t a planner and list maker.
5 years ago: enter baby #1. He was on his own schedule (of nursing for about 30 minutes every 1-2 hours and not sleeping longer than a two hour stretch until about 18 months). It didn’t match mine. I retired from my business and significantly slowed down my pace so I would be better able to meet his needs. It was an amazing season of growth, trust, and learning priorities. Everything else could wait. My son could/would not. He was about 2.5 before he finally settled into what most of society would consider a decent routine. Which allowed me to settle my life into a bit of routine again. Until his brother was born a couple months after that. Thrown into chaos, any semblance of a rhythm or routine eluded me. Fast forward another couple of years and we moved away from everyone we knew and, consequently, all outside of the home commitments. The first few months were hectic as there was a lot of extra work on the farm which made scheduling anything rather difficult.
A few months ago I started reading about home management binders on Pinterest and became a little obsessed with finding a way to work a planner back into my life. The boys are at a stage where they spend much of their time playing together happily outside, which means that I have more time to figure out things like a housekeeping and time management system that will suit our ever-fluctuating family rhythm. I have been running my home management binder (a “lite” version compared to some of the other ones out there) for a couple months and it has made a huge difference for my family.
I am in the process of figuring out a loose routine that will allow me to have lots of breaks to sit a nurse the baby or change diapers and such, but will also encourage me to stay on top of things in my household, including encouraging the interests of my children. I’m not there yet, but I’m praying about it regularly and the pieces are starting to come together. Including the pieces that require me to be very involved with my boys’ interests and assisting them in furthering those interests, through various methods. Though I’m not planning any curriculum for them, they still deserve my focused attention. Their interests are important to them and, therefore, they are important to me. And kids spell love T-I-M-E. So that’s what I am planning to give them.
