Day 1: Another Day, Another Year

It's January 1st, 7:00 pm, and all I have done today is watch football on the couch. I deserved the rest after hosting an awesome and fabulously fun New Year's Eve party until 3 o'clock this morning! But I fear that if I keep on keepin' on, I'm going to learn to accept my current ruts as normal, and then they are no longer ruts, but routine and okay, and THAT IS NOT OK. My ruts aren't all that bad, but they keep me from being the person I really want to be for my kids, my husband, and especially for me.

Here is what I wish to "un-rut" this year (aka: my New Year's Resolutions)...

• Get back in shape, regain some strength, and lose some flab so I can feel better about how I look and just feel better in general.
• Improve as a homemaker so I can provide a positive example that will guide my children and teach them how to care for the many blessings they will receive in the years to come.
• Save, save, save and then save some more so that I position our family to fully achieve the goals we have set together.

Those don't sound so major; nothing too difficult, right? But actually accomplishing these tasks on a daily basis IS really tough! I'm not overweight, but I am not the size or shape I could be with a little diligence. Sometimes, though, losing a little is way more of a challenge than dropping 40 or 50 pounds. My house is never a true disaster zone, but I can certainly do more to teach my kids how to manage and care for their homes and belongings in the future by doing more in our's today. We're not in the poor house; we don't struggle to make it through the last week of every month like we used to do when we were first starting out. On the other hand, I spend too much and lose focus on our finances time and time again.

As you can see, I'm not trying to shatter the earth, but I need to initiate a little quality control. I have good intent, but since the road to hell was supposedly paved just this way, I figure I need a better plan. Since I watched and felt inspired by "Julie & Julia" over the holiday break, I think a blog is the way to go.

Thirty minutes and one crazy idea later, I now have this accountability tool to rely upon when I can't count on my own will power, when I have lost all motivation, or when self-discipline flies out the window. I'll do what Julie did: I'll write a little each and every day to keep myself on track. I've even set an alarm on my cell phone for "Each and Every Day" so I will not forget to blog.

Each and every day, sometime between when the wake up alarm goes off in the morning and when the blog alarm goes off in the evening, I promise to accomplish the following three things:

1. Work out for at least 30 minutes in some form or fashion.
2. Complete at least three housekeeping tasks.
3. Take one step toward financial peace and well-being.

Even though it is not Sunday, it is my day of rest, so I'll finish designing this blog, find the BowFlex video I've never watched, and go start my menu planning for the week...tomorrow begins the journey to being more than just a mom.