2012 Yearly Goals Update + some final thoughts

With the end of 2012 rapidly approaching, it's time to take a look at my goals for the past year to see what I accomplished!

When 2012 started, I created a list of goals I had for the entire year. After the summer, I updated my goals and created a list of goals for the remainder of the year.

Here is a look at how I did with my original list:

Personal

• Read 36 books in 2012 = three per month. {I read 43 books in 2012!}
• Completely reorganize our filing cabinet. I intend to spend at least one hour per week on this (during an average week).
• Complete one Do-It-Yourself project per month. {I did well with this for the first half of the year, but morning sickness messed with my summer and these intentions fizzled out.}
• Exercise regularly - at least three times per week. We just bought a Nordic Track treadmill, so I will be working on creating some workout routines that work best for me. {I did well with this until I got pregnant...and now I'm not able to stand or walk for long periods of time.}
• Create monthly goals (a new concept, but similar to my weekly goals) for my personal life.
• Continue creating weekly goals.

Blog

• Post a Do-It-Yourself project update at the end of each month.
• Post a monthly reading update at the end of each month. {I stopped posting updates on my blog, but I did keep track of the books I read on Pinterest.}
• Post two new recipes per month. {I posted 14 new recipes in 2012.}
• Create monthly goals for my blog.

Marriage and Family

• Continue reading through the Bible together according this two year plan (we are on year two).
• Read several books about marriage and family: The Meaning of Marriage, 7 Habits of Highly Effective Families and Power of a Praying Wife.
• Continue supporting each other through a huge upcoming change in our lives.

And here is a look at what I accomplished during the last four months of the year:

1. Read 15 more books, for a total of 44 books in 2012 (stay tuned). {I came very close...I read 43 books throughout the year!}
2. Complete four remaining Do-It-Yourself projects (stay tuned).
3. Exercise 3-4 days per week (walk on treadmill, yoga stretching).
4. Finish intensive cleaning (in September). {Thankfully, I did finish this!}
5. Finish my crochet washcloth. {I finished my washcloth and have since nearly finished a baby blanket for our baby girl!}
6. Organize our "childhood memories" in tote boxes. {Yes, this is done!}
7. Put together tax spreadsheet and keep it updated. {This is nearly ready to print...we need to be ready early this year since the baby is due in February!}
8. Create monthly and weekly goals.

Some thoughts about what I learned this year about myself and goal-setting:

• Goal-setting as a whole has made a huge difference in my life! I enjoy having something to work toward and felt like I was able to accomplish so much more this year because I was being intentional with my time.
• In some areas, I was overly-ambitious, but overall, I did well sticking with my goals. For example, I wasn't able to stick with the Do-It-Yourself projects, but I really enjoyed the projects that I did try. I would have never learned to crochet if I hadn't made that one of my goals - and now I've made a baby blanket!
• My most favorite goal was my goal to read 36 books (later upped to 44 because I was doing so well!)! I even surprised myself at how many books I was able to read. I have always loved to read and it was so fun to create a list and follow that throughout the year. Because of how much I enjoyed it, I have already created a list for 2013 and am so excited to dive in!
• I'll be creating more broad yearly goals for 2013. We are expecting a baby in February and I know that one event is going to change our lives dramatically! Look for my 2013 Yearly Goals tomorrow, December 31.