Plans - Meet Life

At the end of the year last year, I joined in with a group of bloggers on The Plan 2010. If you don't click the link to that post, here is a relevant paragraph describing 2009:

"This past year was a mess. Clear and simple. It was the year that Willow grew into a wonderfully curious but high-maintenance toddler. It was the year I got laid off, my husband had a stressful time at his work, we both ended up getting new jobs in the middle of this year, my son started his last year in grade school. We are still trying to get used to being a family of four. We are still working on methods and medications to help Michael with his ADHD. I am still trying to re-gain my exercise routines while also trying to eat/live better and healthier. (Unfortunately, the stresses of this past year has made that latter goal very slow in obtaining.)"

Well, that sums up 2010 also. It was a mess, it was choatic, it was fun, it was stressful, it was busy, it was peaceful, it was hard and soft and fuzzy and slippery. It was life. And life doesn't follow Plans very well.

But yet, we still make them. And sometimes, we can actually achieve goals through them.

Here are my goals from The Plan 2010, and where I stand now, on the verge of 2011...

Physical Health

Lose and keep off the baby weight
Take vitamins
Become more active
Maintain my morning exercise routine; expand it to working out of WiiFit at night for at least 15 mins.
Brush and floss my teeth more often

Lost and maintained the loss of 15 lbs.; need to lose more.
Taking vitamins, based on a good physical check up, the only thing added is Vitamin D supplement
I am more active and I have maintained a morning exercise routine; was doing great with the working out at night on WiiFit, until Willow decided that 10 p.m. is a better bedtime...will hopefully figure out how to get back into this.
Still working on flossing more, but teeth maintainance is improved.

Mental Well Being

Re-start our Family Meetings – try to make them bi-weekly
Simplify (Throw things AWAY)
Use alone time to relax, not just to get things done
Take a step back from situations that frustrate me, try to use patience.
Make more of an effort to connect with people

Well. All these things have been kept in mind this year, but still need improvement. Had a few Family Meetings, but time ran short. Have been trying to be more simplified, but yet...its complicated.
I try to relax, but when life throws you curve balls, sometimes you need that alone time to just re-group and get things done.
I have learned to be more patient. However Willow really, really likes to test me. EVERY.DAY.
I have connected with a lot of people in 2010. Unfortunately, it has not always been as meaningful as I wanted it to be. But I am trying to be more extroverted and less introverted, and I think this was successful this year.


Self-Improvement

Save more, waste less
Make an effort to spend more alone time with my husband
Use our babysitter once a month; try to utilize other people for babysitting
Complain less
Enjoy what I have; quit worrying about what I do not have
Scrapbook more

Hmmm...well, I think we are saving more and wasting less. We could improve more though. Alone time with my husband has been a mixed success, as is the babysitter situation. We definitely need more time apart from the kids, but money and time have hampered this.
I don't think I have complained that much, but I have definitely worried more this year.
The year went by so fast, even when I was trying so hard to make it pause so I could enjoy it.
More scrapbooking was done, more needs to be done.

Family

Re-start family gaming night/afternoon (?)
Cut back on the computer/video game ratio in the household
Involve the kids more in food preparation

Gaming night/afternoon is still not obtainable because of Willow's rambunctiousness, but I think the other goals have been a little more achievable. Food prep--Willow REALLY likes it when I let her help. I often let her help even when it works against my goals of speed and patience. Michael is not as into food prep as he used to be, but I involve him in clean up and try to involve him when I can--he is often unavailable because of homework.

Based on these goals and how successful/unsuccessful I have been with them this year, I will change my Plan for 2011...TBD.