First things first! Thank you all SO much for your comments, calls, texts, social media comments offering your congratulations on our big news. We are so appreciative and we are so excited!

I am feeling like I’m ready to get back into the swing of things with blogging. Now that our secret is out and the boys are at school, I have a little time to myself in the morning and I can freely talk about what’s going on in our lives.

So reading was always one of my biggest goals every month. I’ve been reading three books a month since January, and love swapping book recommendations with y’all. But since I got pregnant, I cannot quiet my mind. And it’s like I get motion sickness from reading… even when I’m sitting still. (More on my pregnancy symptoms in another post.) And reading has kind of fallen to the wayside in favor of mindless television and late night episodes of Family Feud with Steve Harvey. (I wish I was kidding.)

But I love fall. And even though it’s still 100 degrees here, there is the promise of fall. The grocery stores are selling those yummy spiced cinnamon pine cones and brooms and I. Am. Ready.

Let’s get right to it. My September goals. Again, nothing super big, but all stuff that I either need to get done or want to get done.

1. Work on Brother Room

Our original plan was to move the guest room to the finished room over the garage and put the nursery in the guest room. We didn’t think we wanted the boys to share just yet. But now we’ve decided to put them together in Hudson’s current room and put the nursery in Hayes’s current room. We had just finished up getting all of Hayes’s bedding together, so now we’ll just get the same bedding for Hudson. I’m so excited!

2. Set up my DVR for Fall Television

Goodness, I can’t believe I put that in writing. But all of our favorite shows are coming back. Scandal, Homeland, The Newsroom, The Good Wife, Dancing With the Stars, and all the college football we’ll be watching. Again, I’ll be lucky if I read at all this month, but I’m going to try!

3. Read Two Books This Month

I’m cutting it back to one book for the sake of grace. Let’s see if I can jump back in the reading saddle. (I will update y’all with what I did read this summer! I crossed two books off my list.)

4. Host a Family for Supper

We’ve done this at least once a month since January and it has become my favorite goal. We have plans with friends this coming weekend.

5. Get Back Into Our Wednesday Routine

AWANA and children’s choir starts back this week at our church on Wednesday nights. Todd and I like to go early for supper, eat together as a family, take the kids to their classes and then attend our pastor’s Bible study together. And then I go to choir rehearsal. It’s one of my favorite nights every week and I’m so excited it’s starting back. I’m looking forward to having dinner with so many of our favorite families.

So those are my goals for the month. Nothing crazy to tackle. We’re back on track with meal planning. Our house is getting back in order after the low key summer. I’m excited about this season!

How about you? What’s on your agenda this month?

June Goals Revisited

Well…. I treated my goals about the same way I treated my blog. Out of sight, out of mind. I didn’t read three books, but I read two. I didn’t walk Boudreaux every day. We did make a little bit more progress on Hayes’s big boy room. But, most importantly, we spent time out of the house every day. We were either at the park or at the pool and we’ve been having the most fun summer. I haven’t been eating all that well. After the beach, I completely fell off the wagon. But I feel great about myself. I think the Vitamin D does that for me!

June was a great month of fun and family and sweet reflection. We haven’t been taking life all that seriously and it’s just been nice to be intentional about family time and fellowship with friends.

All that said… I do have some July goals, if only for the sake of a blog post.

 1. Read three books

Okay, okay. I put this down every month, but I love to read. I only read two books last month because I got sucked into Season 2 of Orange is the New Black. But I’m planning to read The Orphan Train, The Book Thief, and Goldfinch. What’s on your list?

2. Go to the pool four days a week

This isn’t all that challenging either. It’s the only way we can spend time outside in the summer and the boys love it!

3. Register Hudson for fall swim “team”

Hudson is quite the little fish and I want to make sure he has the opportunity to continue to do something he loves after school starts. He’s not a huge fan of soccer because he’s not super competitive. But he got really excited when I mentioned swim team to him.

4. Host friends for dinner at least once.

We had out of town visitors for a few days in June and we will have friends visiting again in July. We’re also hosting a going away party for our dearest friends in July, which will be fun, but I am not at all happy about it. So sad.

5. No spending. Period.

I do not need anymore clothes. The boys do not need anymore clothes. All we need are groceries. Amen. And I’d love to save to buy our curtains for the family room and breakfast room.

How did you do in June? About like me? What are your plans for July?

I have loved sharing my monthly goals with all of you, and love the accountability that comes with it. This summer feels a little different because I just want to soak up my time with the boys, but I also need to be intentional about a few things. I need a schedule and structure, but I also need the reminder to do things that are good for me and things that are fun for us. Goals that bless our friends and family. So here’s a look back and then a look at May.

A Look Back At May’s Goals:

1. Invite another family over for supper at least once– The Soong family came over for supper on May 24, and we had such a relaxing night having supper and watching the kids play. I am so thankful for sweet friends in the same season of life.

2. Read three books – I did this again. This has become a standard monthly thing and I think in a few months it won’t even make the goals list. I have loved reading. It calms me and keeps me from getting anxious from too much TV and too much social media “noise.”

3. Catch up on my Bible in a year plan- No. I am still behind. I know that checking the box is not the most important thing here and that spending time with God is the most important thing. So a couple of verses a day, or six chapters a day, the time spent in communion with Him is where my focus should be. But I would love to complete this goal this year and I do want to catch up.

4. Continue to eat clean, unprocessed foods- This is something that I’ve been doing for the past 45 days. I feel so good! I have had “cheat” moments and when we’ve eaten with friends, I’m not as dedicated. But every day that goes by, this becomes more a part of my life.

5. Send three notes in the mail to friends “just because.”– Done!

6. Celebrate our anniversary and Hayes’s birthday– We celebrated our anniversary by eating supper at home and then going to see Draft Day with Kevin Costner. It was low key, but it was nice to get out. We celebrated Hayes’s birthday with a birthday party at home with some of our closest friends.

7. Get started on Hayes’s big boy room- We have a mattress and box springs for Hayes, but still don’t have a bed. It has been a sweet little transition. He loves sleeping on his mattress and thinks it’s a big boy bed. I have a lot of the artwork for his room. We just need to get the bed and the bedding.

Goals for June:

1. Stick to a paleo lifestyle. Really no sugar.

I’ve had a few little slip-ups and sometimes it’s not as easy to stick to it, but I feel so much better when I’m not eating sugar, dairy, or processed foods.

2. Read three books. 

I’ve already finished Emily Giffin’s The One & Only, and it would be great to read more than three books month.

3. Invite friends to dinner at least once

This has become more of a habit, and it is one of my favorite parts of every month. We’ve loved filling our home with friends and family and look forward to doing it a couple of times a month if we can.

4. Walk Boudreaux every morning

Boudreaux and I have started going out early in the mornings while Todd gets ready and the boys eat breakfast. It’s a nice time every day to get out of the house for a little quiet alone time and then Boudreaux is worn out for the rest of the day.

5. Do one activity out of the house with the boys every day

We’ve been spending a lot of time at the pool and at the zoo. And some days I know we may just be outside for a couple of hours playing in the yard or the driveway. But it’s good for us to break up the day and get out of the house.

6. Send three letters in the mail

7. Schedule dentist and dermatologist appointments

I’m good about going to the dermatologist, but I need to make an appointment for Hudson. And I really need to schedule dental appointments for Todd and me.

So these are my goals for June. What are your plans for this month?

1. Invite another family over for supper at least once- Hospitality makes me come alive and I love filling this house with people we love!

2. Read three books- This has become a fun habit for me and less of a goal at this point, which just makes me happy. I have fallen in love with reading again!

3. Catch up on my Bible in a year plan- full disclosure here… I am a month behind. A month! And it’s Deuteronomy that is tripping me up. I know that many of us have struggled with Deuteronomy. My New Testament reading is going great. This is all a blog post for another day, but I’ve really really fallen behind in this area.

4. Continue to eat clean, unprocessed foods- For the past 10 days I have eliminated dairy, sugar, and all processed foods from my diet and I feel amazing. I’m hoping that this goal becomes a full habit because the benefits have been incredible.

5. Send three notes in the mail to friends “just because.”- I love doing this and it seriously only takes about five minutes. Every month in my Day Designer, I make a list of 3 people I want to send a note to, and I do it within the first week of the month.

6. Celebrate our anniversary and Hayes’s birthday

7. Get started on Hayes’s big boy room- Hayes is still in a crib, and with his third birthday next week, I know it’s time to start moving him. We’ve got all the elements for his room picked out, but decorating takes time. This month I’d just like to get him in a bed.

May is a big month for our family. We got married on May 3 and Hayes’s birthday is May 5, so we do a lot of celebrating. But I’m trying to make sure those celebrations aren’t totally centered around food and specifically sugary food.

Many of my goals have become habits for me, and that’s exactly what I wanted at the beginning of this year. Each month I want to host another family for dinner, read three books, read my Bible, and send some letters to friends.

This month, I intentionally left off big lofty goals. The truth is, I don’t have any big lofty goals right now. I’m not seeking to write a book or do big things with this blog. Not because I want to be “small,” but because I’m becoming more and more aware of my limits and personal boundaries.

The things that fire me up are being with my people and making sure I have just enough time to myself to recharge.

My friend, Hayley, has a great community-filled link up every month where bloggers can share their goals for the month. And my friend, Lara, reminded us yesterday that May is the new January and it’s like we can get a fresh start in May. I agree. I feel energized and alive, and I’m even looking forward to the end of preschool. I’m excited about a fun-filled summer with my family.

I’d love to hear more about your monthly goals if you have them.

I’m linking up with The Tiny Twig today!