2012 Goals Report

 

1. Learn how to play a new instrument (like the guitar or ukelele)

I give myself a PASS on this goal. Josh's grandma sent me her 3/4 size guitar earlier this year, and I took guitar lessons this spring to learn to play it. I struggled with some of the chords due to my small hands & fingers, but I enjoyed learning how to play a new instrument, and I am so grateful for Grandma Parsons and the gift of her guitar. I purchased 25 ukeleles for my 5th grade students, and we will be learning how to play them next month and I am so excited!!

 

2. Learn and apply a new way to exercise (like yoga)

I FAILED this goal. I did go to group yoga 3 times, and I really liked it, too, but that's where it ended. I was surprised that it made me sweat and get a work-out amidst the relaxing stretches. I wish I would've stuck with it...

 

3. Go to at least one new temple (that I've never been to before)

I PASSED this goal. I took the three younger boys with me to the Brigham City Temple open house in August. It was a new temple I'd never been in before, and I'm excited to go back and do a session there now.

 

4. Go on a date with Josh to at least one new place

PASS! Josh and I took a couple's retreat to Salt Lake City last February, and one day we drove to Park City and spent the day there. Neither of us had been to Park City before, and I was glad to finally see that place (especially since I grew up in Utah)!

 

5. Make one new food recipe a month (and eat it, too)

I give myself a PASS on this goal. I blogged throughout the year with the recipes that I tried each month. In January, I made a hamburger/lentil/vegetable/rice soup. In February, I made ham hocks with beans that I spiced with homemade salsa. In March, I created a new twist on an old recipe, and colored the mashed potatoes green for St. Patricks Day. In April I made my dad a cake with a new idea of arranging cream puffs & mini chocolate cupcakes. In May, I forgot to do one, but I made up for it by doubling up on new recipes in later months. In June, I made spaghetti casserole, which has become my new favorite way to eat spaghetti! In July, I made cream cheese strawberries and homemade dip-filled cucumbers. In August, I made chicken pot pie from scratch and chicken spaghetti. In September, I made raspberry/peach crumble and chili cheese fries made from potatoes we grew. In October, I made pumpkin nut fudge with pumpkins we grew (a huge hit at the pumpkin patch sales!). In November, I made beef pot pie. In December, I made chocolate fudge. It was a yummy year with all the new recipes I tried and I thoroughly enjoyed completing this goal!

 

6. Do one new (& different) entry every day in my happy journal

I earned a PASS for this goal!!! I kept track on the side bar of my blog of 365 things that make me happy (actually it was 366 items because it was a leap year). Each day, I thought of something that made me happy, and no two items on the list could be alike. As the year progressed, it became more challenging to think of something new that I had not already said, but I'm happy to report that it was a success! Tomorrow on my blog I will be posting the completed list!

 

7. Do service for others every day

Unfortunately, I FAILED at this goal. Each member of our family had this goal, and we started off the year strong. I bought little notebooks for every family member, and at dinner each day, we reported what service we'd done for others that day and I recorded them in the individual journals. The rule was that no two services could be the same in one week. Over spring break at the end of March, we didn't have dinner every day together for some reason (I can't remember why now), and the service-reporting and journal-entering stopped. I stayed strong on passing this goal for 3 months, and a weaker attempt was still made for the next 2 months, but by summer, I had stopped thinking about it altogether. I passed 5 of 7 goals, which is a good effort, but I admit that I could've done better. I'm currently working on creating my goals for 2013. Usually we work on them together at Family Home Evening, but the last two Monday nights have been Christmas Eve and New Years Eve, so we are a little behind on making our goal lists. I am a list-making, goal-oriented girl, so naturally I love this time of year: reflecting on the past year and making lists of what I've done, and looking forward to the new year by setting new goals for myself.