My Monthly Goals {Update on August & Goals for September}

Setting monthly goals is a great way to focus on what you want to get done. Choose a goal to finish or break a large goal down into smaller chunks each month to accomplish something over a larger time span.

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Anyone else as excited for fall as I am? I used to hate cooler temps in August because my birthday is the 29th and I wanted pool parties, water balloon fights, and anything else that screams summer to last at least until then. Now? Now that my kids start school in the early 20s of August and my favorite season is fall I’m ready for sweaters and soup and changing leaves as soon as those school doors are unlocked. Bring on the apple crisp! 

But before we jump into my goals for the start of fall I’ve got to go over the goals I set for August. They were relatively simple but helped me to be purposeful with the last chunk of summer rather than letting it slip away without doing the fun things I had in mind. 

Goals for August

1. Family Goal – Celebrate the end of Summer

My goal included taking the kids on an outing once each week plus a larger celebration for the end of summer. I managed to do this and we so enjoyed it! The first week the big boys were at their grandparent’s house but I took the little kids out to a friend’s house and we played and ate a feast of pancakes. The next week we had friends over for a pizza party instead of venturing out. During the last full week I took the kids on a bike ride and we spent time at a park. We all went out as a family for lunch over one of the last weekends to say goodbye to summer and I ventured out with all five to various spots around town for an end of summer hoopla that included a trip to the toy store. I say we did a great job celebrating the end of summer together!

2. Home Goal – Prepare for School

Freezer cooking and school supplies were on my radar in this area. I made an 8x batch of waffles for breakfast one week and managed to get two dozen waffles into the freezer. How did three little kids eat just as much as when there are five kids around? I also made a double batch of English muffins, two loaves of cinnamon bread, one loaf of peanut butter chocolate chip bread, and created a basic breakfast menu so I can think less about what’s for breakfast each day. Keeping it simple!

The big boys helped me sort through all their school supplies to figure out what we still needed and we got everything bought easily. I had quite a bit saved from prior years from buying on clearance so we didn’t need to purchase a huge amount and I’m hoping to do the same this year. The boys followed their checklists and got everything packed to bring to their open house and even packed a little extra in case their teachers needed more. 

3. Self Goal – Book Progress

I wanted to get two sections edited in the devotional I’m working on but computer issues put a snag in this. Do you know how scary it is to have your computer tell you it cant read a hard drive? Ack! Thankfully we got it figured out. I did manage to get my order figured out and got most of the entries put in the book but there is still lots of trimming that needs to happen. Lots. So very much in the editing department. But I’m getting there. 

Goals for August

I spent some time thinking and praying about how to approach my goals and decided focusing on one area was helpful initially but now I need to spread my focus a little more. Now I’ll have a single goal for different areas: family, home, and self. As I continue to see how this works I may expand the number of areas to make sure I’m growing as I need to be. 

1. Family Goal – Fall Activities

I adore fall and there are always a couple activities that really need to happen each year, at least in my mind. We have a great orchard near us so apple picking is a MUST. And following apple picking is making apple crisp and apple cider. I wish we could jump in big piles of leaves but we don’t have trees! We may need to venture to a friend’s house for this 😉

2. Home Goal – Update Photos

I took some really great pictures of the kids over the summer and I haven’t touched them – in nearly three months! I need to get them edited and have prints ordered so I can get new pictures up on our walls. The last time I printed good pictures for our gallery wall was after the twins were born. Um, they turn three in October. It’s time for some new ones!

3. Self Goal – Book Progress

I’m keeping my goal basically the same this month. I want to finish the first round of edits this month. I’m aiming for consistency in the style of each entry because some are significantly longer than others and the format can vary greatly. Trim it up! 

Did you accomplish your goals in August? What were they? What goals are you setting for September?