Goals for 2011

I usually avoid resolutions like the plague.  I think a resolution, by its very nature, is destined to fail.  But this year, with the start of a new year, I felt a real pressing desire to set a few basic, measurable goals regarding things that matter to me.  I didn't think long and hard about them; they came very easily to me because they are all things I care about that I haven't done a good enough job with lately ever.

Here are my three goals for 2011:

1. Read every word of the Bible in a year.
2. Write on my blog at least once a week.
3. Leave the Nashville area at least four times.

Of course, I have other things I want to do this year.  I want to decorate more of our house and make more time for friends and have more trunk shows, but these three represent things that I really wanted to make a conscious effort to achieve and change.

So far I am fifteen days into daily Bible reading.  I have read part of Genesis and today we finish Job.  (Until now, I never knew that Job lived before Abraham!)  It really helps that Jim is using the same plan so we are able to discuss our reading and hold each other accountable. 

I am also on track with blogging.  I would ideally like to blog more than once per calendar week, but by doing at least once a week, I hope to record key parts of our family life that I can print out and document for my kids when they get older. 

As far as leaving Nashville, it probably seems like a weird goal to a lot of people.  The thing is, I love to travel, explore, and experience new things.  Jim, on the other hand, is a homebody.  He wouldn't notice if he didn't leave Nashville in years.  Because I love it and he doesn't, we don't always agree about how to prioritize our spending.  But one thing is certain.  I cannot go for months at a time without a change of scenery.  Deciding to prioritize travel will make me a happier person and therefore a better mom and wife.  So far I have one trip planned for February and another one in the works for April.

So, there are my top three goals for 2011.  Feel free to check with me in a few months and see how I'm doing!