This is the year we go back to basics. We already live fairly simple lives as compared to many families of our size, but life gets out of control in a large spiral then gains momentum. Before you realize, it’s string cheese for dinner as you fly out the door to youth group or 4H meetings.
This must not continue.
I’m sharing my plan for 2014 to accomplish my goals for health, homeschool, church, my home and my garden. It was born from exasperation stemming from too many days of buzzing around in circles and accomplishing little. I need results, people! I thrive on them, in fact.
In sharing my thoughts, I hope to clarify the foggy areas and focus on my priorities. Also, I feel if I don’t get some organization to my thoughts, they will make my head explode in dazzling display of glitter, rainbows and unicorns. Oh sure, that sounds fun for you, but I wouldn’t be right after that.
So here I am. I am hoping you will keep me focused and hold me accountable.
Health
- Drink plenty of water daily. This seems like a no-brainer, but it’s so hard to remember. I begin the day with good habits but as the day progresses, I get busy and never have a free hand to perform the physical act of holding a glass and bringing it to my lips. I need a beer hat with the flexible tube straws to hold a couple of bottles of water. You may think I’m just saying this be funny, but I kid you not. Don’t be surprised if you ever meet me in person, is what I’m saying.
- Incorporate more fruits and veggies into daily diet and move away from meat-based meals. Buy organic produce when possible and grow more in the garden. We eat healthy meals overall, but we have room for improvement. We deal with multiple food allergies in our family so meals can become complicated when trying to feed everyone. Over the years, I have tweaked recipes to allow for delicious and healthy meals for all. We have a good-sized garden so with a little more effort, we can achieve this goal.
- Cardio and strength-training workouts. We have an old one-and-a-half story bungalow. Before we bought our house, the upstairs had been gutted and renovations began. We spent a couple of long, dusty days up there recently to organize it more efficiently. I now have a sewing and crafts area and we now have a workout area for the weight bench and elliptical. Now I have no excuse for not exercising. I have mixed emotions about this.
- Schedule annual check-ups for everyone early in the year. I’m guessing most of you don’t have an issue with this like I do. I usually put off scheduling doctor appointments until closer to the month we need them. My thinking is that I will be better able to schedule appointments around the other chaos and obligations. This. Never. Works.
- Start a routine of getting the kids out for a daily walk. We homeschool and the day can get pretty hairy in the afternoon if the kids don’t get a break from schoolwork and chores. A short hike through our property or to the mailbox (we live in the country) will hopefully prevent them from turning into angry bees.
Homeschool
- Keep ongoing records on computer for easy management and to print year-end records to be stored with work. This is pretty straight forward, but up until now, I have been keeping handwritten records. I know! What was I thinking?
- Allow for more field trips and journaling to replace textbook curriculum. After all, I’m teaching them not just to make a living, but to make a life. We learn naturally from experiences. This might be the best thing for my little ADHD bee. She’s an eager learner when it doesn’t feel like learning.
- Incorporate life skills into homeschool day. Teach cooking, fiscal responsibility and time management. We all grow up and leave the hive someday. These skills aren’t optional.
- Weekly trips to library for movies and books. This is me being self-indulgent. I love the library! I could live there! They won’t let me, though. Need a business idea? Library/B&B. There you go. You’re welcome.
- Use Spanish immersion technique to reinforce what has already been learned by my older child and to begin teaching the girls. I’m planning on driving my family crazy with this. When they get frustrated with me and the shouting begins, I’ll shout back “Espanol por favor!”. This will be fun!
Church
- Phase out responsibilities of youth group and Sunday school to prepare for busy school year. I almost didn’t include this. We currently are the youth leaders and Sunday school teachers for high school kids at our church. These activities require planning and time in an already stretched schedule. Many days I feel like we aren’t making a difference and anybody could take our place. (Here is where I mentally scream and stomp and then sigh.) God called us to do this. He led us here for a reason. So, phasing ourselves out of church responsibilities probably will not happen this year. I think I’m ok with that.
Home & Garden
- Improve soil in existing garden beds and maintain. Easy peasy. We have plenty of organic compost. The hard part is digging it out from the bottom of our bin.
- Create cleaning schedule and keep clutter under control. This should more accurately state Blow the dust off the cleaning schedule created last year and put it to use!
- Regularly go through household items and donate unwanted items. When we cleaned upstairs to make room for a workout/sewing/lounge area, we cleared out and donated several bags full of clothing and items we no longer need. Well, we haven’t donated them yet. They are sitting in my kitchen. I like to think of them as frumpy fans cheering me on as I channel my inner rockstar while I cook. I feel badly as I kick them aside to access the lower cabinets. They understand.
Cancel newspaper subscription and Netflix. Done and woohoo! Man, those two innocent-looking subscriptions are a beast to control! Unfortunately our day doesn’t allow for sipping coffee leisurely while catching up on local events. I have to say, newspaper wrangling just isn’t for me. As for Netflix, it became a burden to sit down and watch a movie and return it in a timely manner. We plan to check out movies from the library. Problem solved.
This next goal doesn’t fit in any one category above, yet it fits perfectly in all of them.
Find the funny in everything. Humor keeps me sane by laughing hysterically and it is everywhere! We have all heard that laughter is the best medicine, but did you know it’s also the best workout? It’s true (in my head). If you laugh hard enough, it’s an excellent ab workout so you don’t have to spend any time upstairs in your newly created workout room. Two birds, one stone.
Join me in my journey of simple living. If you have any tricks up your sleeve that help keep your life simple, I would love to know.
the simple hive 