When I think about what made me the happiest over my little mini-vacation, it wasn't presents that I received but the time I was able to spend with my family. I was also able to have some time to think about what I wanted for the next year. I really want to make 2010 a great year for us. So I've made some goals for myself and tried to incorporate some blog series around them to help fulfill them. Now, I could fail miserably at achieving them but I'd rather try and fail then not try at all. Here's what my current list looks like:
Personal Goals for 2010
1) Spend even more time with the kids. I'd love to use everyday life activities to teach them the skills they'll need in school and life in general.
2) Pay more on our house to reach our long-term goal of a debt-free life in 2014. For over a year now, I've said that I want to be debt-free by the time I have to take my daughter to her first day of Kindergarten.
3) "Give Back" even more to those in need.
4) Be sure to include in more "me time" throughout the week.
5) Learn more ways to stretch my grocery budget and to expand my knowledge in the kitchen, along with turning favorite recipes into a healthier version.
So to help me achieve these goals, here are the new series that I'll do at random on the blog:
Upcoming Blog Series
1) Outdoor Learning/Play & Learn - So this is the year of my hopeful big garden. I'm hoping to not only get in an extensive variety of veggies but to also create a nice butterfly/bird flower garden. I also want to spend more time outside with the kids, in general, finding great things to do for free. I'll be sharing our experiences as they happen.
2) Long-Term Savings - While weekly hot deals, freebies and coupons are great to find, it's hard to base a budget around them. As I find more ways to maximize our savings and find more ways to have fun on a limited budget, I'll share them with you. Some of these will be similar to my 31 Ways To Save On Your Grocery Budget Without Coupons Series I did HERE.
3) Locate Great Donates - I'm taking a Rubbermaid Container, marking "Giving Back" on it and hoping to fill it up quite regularly. As I find items that are free or near free at stores, I'll share them with you so you can fill your donate boxes, too. I'll be putting a link-up option on each weekly posting so you can share your findings and/or pictures of your over-flowing boxes! (that you'll donate when full)
4) Read With Us - I was able to take some time to catch up on some of my magazines over my "break" and it just made me realize how much I miss getting in some reading time. So each month, I'll share with you the book I plan on reading and hope you will share yours, as well, so we can all find some "great reads" for the year. I'll also be doing a giveaway each month for whatever book I'm reading.
5) Happy & Healthy - I'm the only one that can be responsible for me living a healthier life. I'm hoping to take our favorite recipes and find healthier versions. I'll share any good recipes and/or books that I find to help fulfill this goal. I'll also be starting back up my Conveniently At Home series of where I try to find more homemade recipes that I like.
These series will be at random and will be in addition to the daily hot deals, freebies and coupons that I find.
Your goals may not match mine, but I hope you enjoy me sharing my journey to reach them. Did you set any goals for yourself in 2010?
