April 2014 Goal Update

 

Happy May, y'all!
Do you feel like April went by in a flash? Maybe it was the late onset of warm, spring weather, but I was pretty shocked when May 1st showed up on my calendar.
April was a busy month. I had a lot of fun posts to share, including some great recipes, my 100th post, and a giveaway - so fun! 
Anywho, now that it's May 3, it's time for another update on my Goals for 2014:

February 2014 Goal Update

It's March! How are you doing with your goals or resolutions? I'm still plugging along. There are goals I haven't even touched yet, but we're only two months into the year. I have time, and a plan, so I'm not too worried yet.

Here's my monthly progress:

Time Suck Challenge Update

After I started the Time Suck Challenge, a few people told me that my timing wasn't exactly stellar. I mean, the Olympics are on, people!
I gave myself plenty of license to watch TV after Kiddo went to bed, but during the day, the time log really helped me make better choices and stay productive (especially in the kitchen). So, while the log wasn't a true measure of my typical day-to-day activities, I was still able to recognize a few things about my time usage.

Free Printable Goal Planning Sheet

Raise your hand if you have trouble making or keeping goals. This is a safe space, so don't be afraid to admit it - I know I'm not the only one who can get overwhelmed! See? My hand is up right next to yours. :-)

After writing my goals, I started noticing that my favorite blogs were sharing all these great goal printables. Some were for writing out your goals, some were for planning, and some were for tracking your progress. As I looked through the printables shared by bloggers I follow, I liked features in all of them, but I kept looking for more. A Pinterest search revealed a great collection of options. (I'll be sharing them soon -stay tuned!) That's when I decided to try my hand at a goal printable. I took some of my favorite features of the ones I found out there on the web and put them together into one chart. 

Goals for 2014

Goals, goals, goals. It's a new year, and I've been surrounded by talk of goals and resolutions. Most of the bloggers I follow have set goals for the upcoming year, which inspired me to follow suit.  But first, I have to admit that I have a love-hate relationship with goals.
Goals get you places and keep you motivated. I love checking off a list. However, they can also make you feel like a failure. I'm what you might call a "defeated perfectionist." I'm very particular about the little things I know I can control, but the big things that I know I couldn't possibly do to the standard I desire? I don't even try. Or I settle for "just good enough." The good news is that I don't often beat myself up over those things -- I just accept them for what they are and move on. With that in mind, I don't like setting goals where I risk failure. That's why I'm setting the bar low for many of these and giving myself room for grace. And by putting these goals out for the whole world (ok, my few loyal readers) to see, I have some actual accountability to accomplish them.
So, without further ado, here are my 2014 goals!