Update on May's Goals & My Goals for June

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It’s that time again! The end of the month has arrived and it’s my time to reflect back on the goals I set for myself. Honestly? This month was a bit all over the place. Getting sick threw me off for longer than I wish it would have but I managed to get back on track and end the month on a good note.

Let’s look back at the four goals I set for May and how they went for us.

1. Clean up the living room before bed every night

This was really hit or miss all month. There were nights where we got it done with zero issues and other nights where it was a huge battle. Then other nights where we didn’t even bother due to activities, exhaustion, or other circumstances. Our neighbors were moving this month so I wanted the kids to get a chance to soak up play time with their friends and by the time they got inside I just wanted them in bed. I think I’m going to change this habit to directly after dinner before any more outside time can happen. Incentives 😉

2. Add in counters to the “cleaned off every night” list

I did okay at this but definitely not as well as I wanted. The nights I made a point of cleaning off the counters I also usually got the floor and table as well so the kitchen looked fabulous. The nights I didn’t I felt frazzled in the morning because there were dishes or crumbs where I needed to be prepping breakfast. Definitely something I need to keep working on to make more of a habit.

3. Sort the laundry the day it comes out of the dryer

This went really well because the boys have learned that helping = money. We have certain tasks the kids are expected to do without compensation. Chores like cleaning their room, putting away their laundry, cleaning up toys, bringing clothes to the laundry room, and clearing their dishes to load into the dishwasher. Everything else that is considered a “household chore” can earn them money. They get a quarter each time they help so they didn’t mind sorting a basket or flipping loads. So much easier for this mama! This is another that will stay a habit in the house.

4. Organize under the bathroom sink & linen closet

I got this done and shared a post on it last Friday. I’m so pleased with the results and so far they still look as good as the day I did it! Now I need to figure out what my next organizing project should be 😀

Goals for June

I mentioned in the May goals post about making the monthly goals focused on one area of life just as Alexandra does in Loving My Actual Life. Even though May didn’t go as well as I had hoped due to other circumstances I still liked focusing on one area in my life rather than being scatterbrained all over the place.

This month my focus is on Adventure. The big kids are out of school, Micah and I are celebrating our 10 YEAR ANNIVERSARY! (when did we get that old?) and we have a short trip planned to visit family. I want to embrace big adventures like vacation but also little adventures like walks around the neighborhood and trips to the library.

Watching the kids grow and learn is an adventure in itself and very little planning really needs to happen for them to have an adventure but having some ideas in my back pocket isn’t a bad thing 😉

1. Go on one “outing” with the kids each week.

I tend to not bring all five kids on my own very often because they end up all over the place or I just haven’t been confident in myself before. Now that they are getting older I’m really wanting to be braver about this. We’ve discovered some new parks in our area, we have an amazing indoor playground near by for those rainy days, we all love ice cream, our city has several great libraries with amazing events, and there are so many more ideas swirling in my brain, especially because I’ve got my bingo cards ready to go! I figure one outing each week is easily doable.

2. Cook with the kids

I’ve mentioned before that the kitchen is my safe, happy place. Bringing the kids in often makes me more anxious than joyful but I’m determined to change that. I want these kids to know how to read a recipe, how to make simple dishes, and to not live on microwaved foods when they leave home. We’ve worked together to create a list of several foods they want to learn how to make like scrambled eggs, cookies, and pancakes. I may even make a series of posts out of this so I can share my success or failure in finding joy in teaching them this much needed skill!

3. Celebrate our Anniversary

Micah and I weren’t sure how we were going to celebrate this milestone yet, but after talking to his parents and figuring out schedules they are going to stay with our crazy kids so we can get about 24 hours of kid free time together! This is amazing as the last time it happened was for our 5 year anniversary! Technically we did a hotel stay for our 8 year but I was about halfway through my twin pregnancy so it wasn’t really kid free 😉 We are so excited and incredibly thankful that they are willing to do this for us! Thank you, thank you, thank you!!!

4. Go on vacation!

Micah’s grandparents are celebrating 60 years of marriage in a couple weeks so there is going to be a big old party for them. They are such an inspiration and are amazing people. I feel so blessed to call them Grandma and Grandpa even if they are only related to me by marriage. They welcome everyone in as one of their own and embrace all the chaos that is part of being a huge family. We are going to make a long weekend of it to soak up time with extended relatives and it is going to be so much fun. It’s a long car ride but that’s part of the adventure, right?