Resolution Recap for July

I think this will be the saddest resolution update I've written yet. Summer is hard and I've been way out of routine for everything. Weekdays have been spent shuttling the kids to camps before and after work, or entertaining them in my office. Weekends have involved lots of driving to deliver or pick up, or even swap kids around. I'm craving a weekend to stay home and unwind (and catch up on laundry and dishes!)

I don't even really want to write the update, but sometimes I find them motivating, so I will go ahead and do it anyway.

Steps? I've taken off my pedometer and stopped tracking them. I know I've been sitting a lot, but I'm still parking far away from the building to walk in. I'm hoping to pick it back up when school starts again and my routine gets back to normal.

Dates? Ken and I have been spending more time together, for sure, but we haven't really added a real date. This is another thing I hope to be more intentional about when school starts again.

Reading? I'm glad that I've been reading, but I haven't been challenging myself with any good non-fiction. Any suggestions?

Yelling? Finally! A good report! I've definitely gotten the yelling under control. I'll call this a double win since it's summer and that's a harder time on everyone. It sounds backwards, but I've been giving out a lot of hugs when I see us getting to the tipping point. That seems to help keep things on an even keel.

Weight? Another good report! I've been consistently in the 125-126 range. I really want to add exercise to the mix, but fitting it in has been hard. I know that I just need to make it happen, but my motivation has been pretty close to zero.

Blogging? It's been going well. I've been reaching out and enticing readers from new places. Summer is a hard time for blogging because lots of writers take the summer off or cut way back. I've not intentionally cut back, but I've allowed myself some space when I just didn't feel like writing. I know when I force things it doesn't come out well anyway.

It's honestly been a great summer. The kids have been very busy with lots of different camp experiences. This week and next we are trying to take it somewhat easy. The bigs have had the sniffles, so they might have caught an end-of-summer cold. I'm on vacation next week, but we're not going anywhere. I'm looking forward to relaxing and home and getting caught up on the house. Does that even make sense!?!

The Liebers: Halftime Report

It's hard to believe that 2015 is halfway over. Technically a little more, since I'm a bit behind! I've attempted to do an update of my yearly goals each month, and although I haven't been 100% with my updates, I'm still working on it. If you fall off the wagon, you've got to get back on, after all!

I've been feeling in a bit of a funk lately, so I'm afraid that might color this update, but I'm posting it anyway because it needs to be done and crossing things off my to do list makes me happy!

The Good

Good news!! I haven't been yelling as much as I used to! I'm not sure if the change is due to the children's behavior improving or my standards being more realistic. I think it's honestly a combination of the two. All three kids have been acting much more grown up lately, and I'm really enjoying this stage with them. I've noticed that in giving Frances and Henry more responsibilities, they act more responsible! Frances has been a big help at home and I was so proud of her at Vacation Bible School when she and a friend were in charge of a group of Kindergartners. Henry has gotten a much better handle on his emotions and doesn't lash out nearly as much as he used to.

The Bad

Health-wise, I've not been keeping track of my walking like I used to. I think I've actually been walking more, though, just because I've had tasks that take me around the building as well as different drop offs for the kids for summer camps. I've actually lost about 4 pounds, but I'm not sure if that's because I've been walking or because I haven't felt like eating for a while.

I set a goal to read 12 non-fiction books this year, and I've only finished two! I really haven't had much time for any reading at all, which makes me sad. The funny thing is that Ken has been home more in the evenings, which is nice, but it also means I haven't had a night to myself in quite a while.

The Ugly

Money-wise summer camps have kicked my butt! We had a few last minute opportunities come up that I really wanted to make happen. Unfortunately, that meant dipping into my savings, so much of the progress I had been making is gone. I keep telling myself that's what a backup fund is for. And when I hear about the amazing things my kids are able to do this summer, it feels mostly worth it.

Moving Forward

Blogging has been going well, but summertime always seems to be a less busy time. I've decided it's now or never with a newsletter, so I set up the list. If you'd like to join, I'd love to have you as a subscriber. I'll probably only update once a week or twice a month. I'd also like to have this list available to me for any special offers I might come across that I feel my readers might be interested in. You can sign up below.

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I've made a huge dent in my basement and gotten rid of a lot of stuff that we just don't need anymore. The kids have actually been playing down there and it means less mess in the main living areas and more room to play. We've made some progress upstairs, but not quite as much. We did get it clean enough that my brother can come spend part of the weekend with us and I'm really looking forward to that!

I hope you are having a great summer and making good progress on all your goals. This month I'm channeling the tortoise and reminding myself that slow and steady wins the race!

Linking up here today:

Joy! I Can Breathe Again!

We are almost through the semester! JOY! Most of the heavy work has been done and now I am just coasting through until summer session starts. The students have a week off, and while I still have to work, it's a light week. I'm looking forward to it. It is such a relief to ease back a bit.

April is such a busy time of year on a college campus and this year was no different. Add in the extra family stuff going on and I am just worn out! We've all been feeling a bit fragile. No one has been sick yet, but we're all run down and could use a break. So far, May has been a breath of fresh air. We are winding down with the kids' school activities as well, so we can focus on getting through testing and the other end of the year craziness!

It's the first week of the month and time for me to look back at my resolutions for the year and see how I am doing. I honestly couldn't tell you what all ten of those resolutions are right now, so I'm a little worried about my progress. However, I really enjoy this recap because it gives me the chance to recommit myself each month and stay on track.

The Good

I've been doing well with my walking goal. My step average has been at least 1,000 above my goal except for one week when I lost some data. I'm impressed that one week when I forgot to record a day, I still met my weekly goal!

I'm also keeping up with my monthly savings goal. I am 3/4 of the way to my yearly goal and the money comes out of my paycheck directly, so I am getting used to not spending it. Logging in to check my balance for this post filled me with joy. Especially since we are looking at buying a new truck for Ken. It's nice to know we have a buffer when that time comes.

The Bad

My weight has bounced up lately. I was sure it wasn't because there were days when I was too busy to get much lunch. Unfortunately, if I don't eat lunch, I eat a HUGE dinner and then some. I'm working to get that back on track. Especially because eating like that makes me feel sick and I don't like feeling that way.

Blogging-wise, I didn't get a VLOG in for April. I mostly just forgot. I also had a pretty full editorial calendar and I've learned that if I don't specifically block out these things, I won't be able to fit them in.

The Ugly

I have been able to pick up some books after giving them up for Lent. It was nice to get back to reading, but it's been mostly fiction again. I did read a non-fiction book about women in the Bible. I also read Lose the Cape for a blog review. Those are the only two non-fiction I've read this year, though, so now I'm two behind if I'm supposed to read one per month.

In blog-land, my page views have fallen off a bit. I've not been good about my promotion schedule, mostly because I've been mostly writing at the last minute. My goal is to get ahead of myself again so that I have more time for purposeful promotion. It seems that attention span in this business can be pretty fragile and if I fall behind with my own visits and comment responses, I notice a downturn in my own stats.

Have you checked back on your resolutions for the year? How are you doing?

I'm linking this one up for the #1Word Blog Challenge. This weeks' words are joy and fragile.You can find more details or link up here:

The Ridiculous Resolution Recap!

It's April Fools Day and I don't have any kids to prank! I hope my parents have tricked them with the traditional green milk at breakfast. I'm excited to hear all their stories when they get back tomorrow afternoon.

For today, though, it's time for a resolution recap. I like to take a moment each month to look back at my goals for the year and see what progress I'm making and what areas I need to work on. It's not really all that ridiculous, but I like the alliteration. And instead of the traditional "good, bad, and ugly," I thought I'd try "fantastic, unwise, and preposterous," as those are all synonyms of "foolish" in honor of today's holiday!

Positive Progress: Slow and Steady Wins the Race

I've honestly been dreading writing this post. Last year I made a set of resolutions and I shared an update each month. I made good progress on most things, backslid on some others. Generally, though, the updates were great for keeping me accountable. Last month, however, my calendar filled up before I realized I hadn't left a space for the recap. I thought about doing it late, and then it just never got done.

Today is the first day that I've gone back and looked at my resolutions to try and assess my progress (I had a general idea in my head what they were, though). I won't go over each of the ten because they might get boring. Instead I'll share...

The Good

I've been trying to build up our savings, so I set a goal of saving an extra $100 per month. I almost hate to say this because it seems like every time I talk money some huge expense hits us, but this resolution has been a real success so far and I am proud of my hard work. Two things, specifically, have helped. I took on a new job doing some data entry for the brother of a friend. He has a website where he sells small engine parts, and I've been cataloging his inventory him to make the site more searchable. It's work I can do in my own free time at my own pace, so I can decide how much to work and how often.  

Also, when I left teaching, I cashed out my retirement because we needed to money. When I started working here, I was told that since it was a state position that I could buy back previous service. I jumped at that! For the past three years, I have doubled up my retirement payments and as of January 31st, I have 6 years worth of retirement saved up instead of three. Now that I've bought back all I can, I have that money back in my paycheck again. But since we've been living without it, I transferred that amount directly from my paycheck to my "secret" savings account and I still don't see it.

I am now 1/4 of the way to my $1200 savings goal for the year! I like being ahead so that if an emergency does come up, we'll be more ready for it.

The Bad

Date night has not happened. I would blame the babysitter for not being available when I ask her...at the last minute, but I know it's really my issue. I need to make plans farther out so we can find a sitter and get everything squared away. That's hard with Ken's schedule changing every week, but I am making a vow that it will happen! I'd try to plan three date nights in March just to make up for lost time, but that might scare Ken and make him think something's up! LOL!

The Ugly

Looking at my resolutions there is one that really stands out for not making progress. It makes me sad as well as angry at myself. I really want to stop yelling. It's not an effective strategy and it doesn't make anyone in my house feel valued; me included.

I honestly tried putting rubber bands on my wrist like I mentioned in my post, but I couldn't find any that weren't too tight. That and they got lost when I put them in my hair or Frances would borrow them. I really dropped the ball on this one.

What I do know is this. The kid that gives me the most trouble is the kid who is asking for love the most often. That's not a platitude, though I've seen it written many times before. It is a reality in my house. I am trying really hard to remember that an extra hug will go much further than a raised voice.

Just last week, this child was being a real jerk: arguing a point that didn't need to be argued and digging in heels that didn't need to be dug. A light bulb went on in my head and I told myself, this is not about being right or wrong, this is about being heard.

I pulled this kiddo aside and I said, "God gave you some real specific gifts. Being stubborn, persistent, and headstrong are not bad things*. They make it hard to be your mom sometimes, though. I want you to know that these qualities will serve you well as a grown up. You will get the best job, you will find the best spouse, and you will get the raise that you ask for. Mainly because you will refuse to take 'no' for an answer and you will stick with it until you get what you want. For now I want you to remember three things:
1. I love you
2. Tickles
3. Hugs and Kisses"

This kiddos love language is touch, so those last two really did it. The arguing stopped, the heels lifted, and we both felt better. It's a lot more work than yelling, but I'm okay with that.


*By the way, I read this parenting article a long time ago and it's really stuck with me. I think it was one of the first things I ever pinned!

How are your resolutions going??

Happy Birthday #TuesdayTen!! {Giveaway Included!}

Phew! Coming back to work is kicking my butt! And we're only one day down!! But today is a special day because ...

Tuesday Ten is ONE year old!!!

In 2013, Lisa and I were both doing our own Tuesday Ten posts. Late that year, we decided to collaborate and turn it into a weekly link up! The first Tuesday Ten we co-hosted was published on January 7, 2014.

In the past year, we have had some super fun linkups and we have created a small, but dedicated community of readers and linkers! To celebrate and to thank everyone who has been a part of our first year, we are hosting a great giveaway! One lucky winner will receive TEN $10 gift cards - one to each of the following:

Starbucks, Amazon, Target, Visa, PayPal, iTunes, Dunkin Donuts, Chipotle, Panera, and Chick FilA

To enter, see the Rafflecopter below. The contest will be open through January 17th, 2015 and the winner will be announced on January 20th.

Special thanks to our giveaway sponsors:

Kiss My List

Tamara (Like) Camera

Epic Mommy Adventures

Ripped Jeans and Bifocals

The Not So Supermom

Happily Ever Laughter Blog

Finding Ninee

Dancing In The Rain

JVKom Chronicles

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Today we are also posting and linking up our New Year Resolutions. It seems that resolutions have fallen out of favor over the last few years in favor of a Word of the Year. However, last year I made resolutions for the first time in a very long time...and I made them publicly. That made me feel very accountable for them throughout the year and I updated them monthly to watch my progress. I think I grew a lot last year and I am very proud of myself. One thing that really hit home was how to make resolutions and goals that get met. It's known as making SMART goals, so that's how I'll be making my resolutions this year.

This year I resolve to...

1. Take 28,000 steps a week. That's an average of 4,000 per day. I didn't quite meet that as a daily goal last year, but I am pushing myself to get up and move more this year.
2. Save $100 per month. I would like to have an extra $1200 in my savings account by the end of this year. I adjusted my direct deposit near the middle of last year and we've slowly gotten used to that money not being available. We've dipped into it a few times, but NOT THIS YEAR!
3. Get my weight into the 123-125 range. According to this BMI calculator I still need to lose some weight. I've been making good progress, and I've only got 5-7 pounds left to lose until my pants fit the way I want them to.
4. Schedule a monthly date night. Ken and I really strengthened our marriage last year, but we still don't have regular date nights. This year I plan to change that with a scheduled monthly date just for us.
5. Teach the kids (and myself) and new prayer each month. There's a great list of Catholic prayers here, but I've got a few others I'd like to work on too. Frances is especially excited to memorize the Prayer of St. Francis.
6. Read one non-fiction book per month. I do a lot of fluff reading, but certainly that's not all my brain is capable of comprehending! We got a great book about Catholic spirituality at church, so I'll be starting with that one.
7. Monitor my yelling. I hate yelling. It makes me feel crappy and it makes the kids feel crappy. I will be putting five bands on my right wrist each morning. Each time I yell, I will move one to the left. I hope to be more right than left each day.
8. These last three are blogging goals that I hope to achieve: I will post a VLOG each month. They are fun and I love playing with iMovie.
9. I will increase my page views by 10%. To do this I will need to be much more intentional about promoting myself.
10. Increase my social media following by 25%. Again, promotion is key here. Look out for me on the web!!

Thanks for sticking with me all through this LONG post!! If you have resolutions to link up, feel free. You don't have to have 10, we're pretty flexible on that one!!

An InLinkz Link-up

Happy 2015!

November Resolution Recap

Happy December! I hope you had a wonderful Thanksgiving with whomever you chose to spend it. I'll have my recap and pictures on Wednesday, but since today is the first of the month, I have some goals to update you on.

Last month I set some specific goals, based on my New Year's Resolutions from January. I've been trying to keep on track with those goals, and setting more specific goals has really helped me to be accountable to myself.

Old Goal #1: Save Money

My first goal was to save money. I did really well with this goal through some hard work and a few chance occurrences. We kept the fast food to the bare minimum. I think the only two times we stopped were the travel days for Thanksgiving. The week before Thanksgiving, we only bought the bare essentials because we weren't planning on being home Wednesday through Saturday anyway. In looking back at my bank statement from the month, we only spent $212.38 out of pocket for groceries for the whole month! Part of that is thanks to the sponsored post I ran for Food Lion last week because I was compensated in gift cards, so it's not really a long term possibility, but every penny helps and we saved a good amount of money in November!

Old Goal #2: Get in Shape and Lose Weight

I also pledged to get in shape and lose weight. Exercise is still my nemesis because I just don't know where to realistically pull those hours from. I have been wearing my pedometer and using this website to force myself to get up and move around during the day. Except for the time I was out of town for the holiday, I did really well with tracking my food on MyFitnessPal too. I've been staying under my calorie goal, which the app actually yells at me for, but I'm not going very far under. My lowest recoded weight for the month was 128.4, and I really excited about that!

Old Goal #3: Cleaning

Cleaning...oh cleaning! I've done some good work in getting things out of the house. I scrubbed the stove top until it was whiter than when we moved in! But my cleaning calendar was a bust again last month.

In looking back on those goals, I think I made pretty good progress. There are still a few things I could tweak, so I'll do that in setting three new goals for December.

New Goal #1: Be Careful for Christmas

Saving money in December seems like a pretty dumb goal to set, but I'm going to do it. I've got a list of who gets a gift, and I've filled in half of it with stuff I purchased early. Most of the other gift recipients will be getting handmade gifts, so the expenses will be low on those. I'd like to keep my total budget for Christmas gifts under $400. I've also got extra money coming in from blogging and other side gigs that will be quite helpful at this time of year.

New Goal #2: Walking and Eating Right

I'll aim for 127 pounds by the end of December. I have the last two weeks of the month off from work, so eating right when I'm not in my routine will be the biggest challenge. However, that challenge also comes with an opportunity for more movement, so I think I can do it. I'll be keeping track of my steps, and I'd like to average 4000 per day by the end of the month.

New Goal #3: Cleaning

I'm giving myself a second chance on the cleaning. I'm not feeling any cold/allergy symptoms coming on, so unless I just jinxed myself, I can do it! Also, the extra time off at the end of the month will be good for catching up on cleaning. 90% success rate on the cleaning calendar!

Resolution Recap: How SMART was October?

I've been updating my resolutions every month all year. Some things I've made progress on and some not so much. Last month I switched it up a little and tried using SMART goals (Specific, Measured, Action based, Realistic and Time bound). Now it's time to update how I did with those goals and adjust my goals for November.

Goal #1: Save Money

Well, it's only slightly embarrassing to report that we made it to the end of September without dipping into our overdraft coverage. That's pretty good for us. Ken and I both stuck to our "no fast food" pact for the most part. We did buy pizza for dinner twice, but those were planned purchases for nights when we were celebrating. For the most part we didn't spend any money we didn't have to. I skipped the grocery store one week and we ate food we already had on hand.

Goal #2: Get in Shape and Lose Weight

I started out the month doing some exercises in the evenings, but then I got hit with some nasty allergy symptoms that had me feeling really drained. I gave up the activity after the first week. I went for a nice bike ride one afternoon with friends and it felt good to be out and active. I've been trying to watch what I eat as well. I had set the goal of seeing 128 on the scale. I didn't quite get there, but I saw 129 a few times. Actually, I did see 128, but when I stepped away to get my phone and come back, the scale went up to 129.2 just to make me mad!

Goal # 3: Clean

This is probably the biggest fail of all! I have been so tired this past month! The laundry is out of control due to a surge of bedwetting activity as well as me trying to swap out seasonal clothing for the kids.

In looking back at these goals, I think I was less realistic than I should have been. The fact is, I have maybe an hour every evening that isn't already dictated to me. On nights when I'm crazy tired, I go to bed. And if we have weekend plans, nothing gets caught up. I'm making my new goals more specific and realistic. And hopefully sticking to them!

New Goal #1: Save Money

It's getting close to holiday time, so I want to be extra careful with this one. I've already bought some Christmas presents, but making a list of what's already been done will help to keep me from panic spending as the holiday nears. I'd like to continue with the fast food goal, but I'll go ahead and allow for two free passes this month. Also, I'm going to skip the grocery store and "shop the pantry" at least once this month as well. We have a bunch of good food in the freezer downstairs; I just have to remember to cook it.

New Goal #2: Get in Share and Lose Weight

For a more concrete goal, I am going to get back in the habit of using My Fitness Pal to keep track of what I eat. It's helped in the past, so I know it will help again. I've set reminders, so I can't forget to log my food. I'm also going to take my vitamins. They seem to help me feel less tired so I can accomplish more.
As for getting in shape, I'm going to walk around my building twice a day. It gives my brain a break and helps me to get in some exercise.

New Goal #3: Clean

My cleaning calendar has been my biggest helper, so I am printing that out to get back on track with it. I'll allow myself to catch up on things if I get behind, but I'd like to have an 80% completion rate with those tasks by the end of the month.

Resolution Recap: Getting SMARTer after September

I'm going to be honest. It seems a little silly to still be updating my New Year's Resolutions in October. I've done a monthly update every month this year and I feel like I'm typing the same things over and over again. And I am making some progress. It's just tiny progress. And some months I've gone backwards on some things. The main reason I've kept at it is because I don't know how to let an idea die I think that revisiting those goals every month has helped me to keep myself accountable.

Last week, though, I read this post that made me totally rethink my own accountability. NJ talks about setting SMART goals: goals that are Specific, Measured, Action Based, Realistic, and Time bound. So, instead of just making baby steps for the month of October, I am going to pick a few of my original resolutions and create SMART goals that I will accomplish!

Save Money

Saving money has been on my list. We've had some ups and downs with it, but nothing huge. I know that when it comes to creating savings you have to either make more or spend less. This month I am committing to both. I challenged Ken to a "no fast food" pact. I think we both stop by the drive thru when things get hectic and we don't even think about it. This month, though: NO FAST FOOD! Also, I've picked up a side gig through work administering Praxis tests. It takes up most of a Saturday, but it's good money. I am committing to do one every month that I'm offered. I have one scheduled for October already.

Get in Shape and Lose Weight

Getting in shape has had some real ups and downs. I want to workout, but I can't go to a gym.  So I am committed to working out at home. I want to start easy on myself for October. I'm going to do 20 minutes every day of activity. Some days that might mean jumping rope for 20 minutes in the dining room. Other days I'd like to try this (found here).

That will help with losing weight as well, so my goal is to lose 2 pounds in October. I run about 130 most days, so I want to see 128 a few times this month!

Clean

Cleaning is my nemesis. I don't understand how the house gets so messy with all of us gone for 12 hours a day and sleeping another 8! I don't want to spend my weekends cleaning up everything in sight, so I've been working with the kids to get chores assigned and completed. I'm going to dial back my expectations to make them more realistic and attainable. This month, we will spend 20 minutes cleaning together each evening. Monday=living room; Tuesday=dining room; Wednesday=kitchen; Thursday=bathroom; and Friday=bedrooms.  I'm bad about remembering before shots, but I'm going to work on those so the afters have some context.

Those three things will keep me plenty busy throughout the month, but I think they are totally doable.  Thanks to NJ at A Cookie Before Dinner for the virtual kick in the pants!

Resolution Recap: August?...Can we Skip August?

I honestly thought about not even writing a recap this month! In some ways I feel like I accomplished nothing at all in August, but as I sit here thinking back on it, I was hyper focused on a few things and everything else fell by the wayside. That happens, right?

August was a busy month at work. We moved back into our regular offices and had lots of stuff to unpack and routines to get back to. I have six new students at work this year, so I had preparation before they arrived and then a crazy week of training when they came back to campus. We do our training during the students' regular shifts, so I often feel like I am in six places at once, trying to remember what I've said to which students. Luckily I've given them all a checklist so they can keep track of me! It works really well, so I'm glad I had that idea. I barely sat down at all last week and the times I did sit down I was so scatterbrained and tired, I don't think I accomplished much.

At home, we had the last two weeks of summer camps and then the obvious back-to-school chaos going on. We've got three kids in three different school this year. It means I'm juggling three different calendars, three different lunch menus and three different sets of procedures. I've gotten myself some crates for organizing papers we want to keep and a binder for keeping track of notes and important documents, but it's a matter of training myself to start using them.

So that I don't look at the month of August as a complete failure, I would like to take a moment to brag about the two things that did go well in August:
Firstly, I read a great article about teaching your kids to pray. It really hit home with me because, while my kids are good at their rote prayers, I've often noticed that they don't know how to create a spontaneous prayer. We've been using the ACTS method of prayer as part of our bedtime routines and the kids are starting to pick up on the parts. I don't make them each say something for each part, but I do leave long moments of silence to encourage them if they want to say something.

We've also been doing really well with our timers and routines in the mornings and evenings. I changed the songs on the iPods to get their attention and mornings haven't been as bad as I had expected. We are getting up a full hour early that last year (the kids now get up at the same time as Ken and I do). The boys have never had an issue getting up early. Now Frances takes a shower in the morning and that seems to get her moving a little better.

In summary: August was BUSY!! I'm looking forward to keeping our routines going and having more time to get my house back in shape and work on other goals.

What have you been accomplishing lately?

Resolution Recap: You Should Have Seen My House!

It's August. That means summer is winding down and soon all the routine and craziness of the academic year will begin again soon. I have two kids on an academic schedule and I work at a university, so my own scheduled is affected by the chaos that is about to begin again shortly. 

July was a truly magical month, though. The only totally summer month. There are a few days of school in June and a few more in August, but July is ALL summer! And we took July for all it was worth!!

I've said before that I don't spin plates well, so it shouldn't be a total surprise when I say that some of my original resolutions got hit hard in July and some got mostly ignored.  Whatever. I'm getting used to that pattern. I guess as long as I don't ignore the same goals for multiple months in a row, I'll be okay.

The big excitement for me in July was all the cleaning and housework I got done. My main motivation was a Premier Jewelry party I had scheduled for July 18th. I've been to house parties for Tupperware, Premier, Thirty-One, and even a wine party from the Traveling Vineyard, but I've never hosted one before.  I've always considered my house to be too small and too messy to even consider it.

Then I got slightly addicted to Premier and I really wanted to host a party.  That became my motivation to go all out with housekeeping and get my house ready.  I've had a cleaning calendar for a while now, but it's always been hit or miss.  I assigned a different chore to each day of the month and try to get it done that day.  In July, I hit it hard and even had a cleaning streak of 11 days in a row!!

The week of the party, I added in the task of packing for vacation. We left the morning after the party and I needed to be ready for both at the same time.  I slacked off of some of the cleaning, but I still had the house ready and the van packed on time to meet both deadlines. The best part of all of it was this for the first time ever, we walked into a clean house after a trip away from home. Maybe that's normal for most of you, but usually when we leave the house is a mess from last minute packing. Not this time! When we walked in the house, I was able to go straight to the couch and collapse on it...for a brief moment before I had to help unpack the van and start putting things away!

The second best part was the $22 I spent on FIVE new pieces of jewelry as part of my hostess benefits! Free jewelry and a clean house!! That's definitely a win-win!!

As for my other resolutions: Unless you count cleaning, I didn't do much exercise.  We kept our money on track and I was really impressed with how well the kids have been saying their prayers lately.

Snowballing Your Debt: It Really Makes Cents

One of my resolutions this year is to save money and a part of that is getting our debt paid off.   We don't spend tons of money on extras, but we do have three kids, a mortgage and school loans.  The bills come in and the paychecks go out and honestly, some days I don't see an end to it. I tell myself that we only have one more year of day care to pay for.  I tell myself that we are both fortunate to have good, reliable jobs with benefits .  But I still wish I could see a brighter light at the end of the tunnel.

Then I heard of snowballing your debt.  It is a debt repayment strategy that Dave Ramsey has advocated.  Conventional wisdom would say to pay off your highest interest rates first so you can save the money you would be paying in interest.  According to this plan, however, there is a psychological aspect to debt that needs to be recognized.  The snowball method proposes that if you pay off your smallest debt first, you will see results more quickly and be motivated to pay off more.

The key to snowballing is that when you pay off one debt, you take the money you were paying and add that amount to your next debt. The idea is that you gain more and more momentum as you make payments and your debt gets paid off faster.  I'll admit to falling into the trap of "Phew! We paid that off, now we have more money to spend!"  But that's not the way to think about it!  

There is a fun calculator at What's The Cost that allows you to plug in your debts and see a plan for paying them off.  Seeing it all spelled out is highly motivating for me. I can even save the snowballs I've created and watch as the "time til debt free" gets closer and closer!

First you need to collect the following information for each of your debts:

• Name of debt (You can name it whatever you want)
• Balance due
• Annual percentage rate that you are currently paying
• Minimum monthly payment (whether it is a fixed amount or a percentage of the balance)

Tell the calculator how many debts you want to pay off and plug in the information for each one. Then you can decide whether you want a plan for paying them off according to the interest rate or the balance.  (Don't worry, you can toggle between the two to compare what looks better for you.)

Once you've entered all your info and picked a strategy, the calculator will give you a chart showing how much to pay each month on which debts. You can decide from here if you want to try paying more each month than you are currently.  

I ran my first set of numbers about two years ago. It was slightly depressing at that point, but seeing it spelled out gave me the motivation to get it taken care of.  I set up our payments on auto pay and put in a slightly painful amount to be paid every month.  New things have come up, some months have been really lean; but now when I run the numbers I see a light!  If we stick with what we are doing now, we could be debt free in 2-3 years (I didn't add the mortgage in to this.)

Do you have a debt repayment plan? Should you?

If Wednesday is Hump Day Does That Make June Hump Month? {Resolution Recap}

We are halfway through 2014! Can you believe it??  There are some parts of the year that have seemed to fly by and others that have just dragged and dragged. I guess that's how it always is though.

Since it's the beginning of a new month, it's time for another update on my resolutions from the beginning of the year.  While I was composing this post in my head, I saw this hysterical photo from Science of Parenthood that sums up June perfectly!

I was so proud of myself for how May had worked out! I posted about my progress and almost instantly regretted it! My motivation seemed to go down the tubes. It wasn't until I really thought about it and actually had it spelled out to me that I've got a better grasp on what's going on with some of my habits.  Let me back up...


I was home Monday afternoon. I did about 5 loads of laundry in order to get caught up.  Frances was helping by putting away stuff too, so it's not just sitting around clean and folded. The whole time I was doing that laundry, it kept occurring to me that was I was doing wasn't actually cleaning, it was maintenance. No matter how much laundry I complete in one day, I will never actually be "done" with it because we keep wearing clothes. In fact, just to drive home that point, Ben had an accident at school and came home with two bags of wet clothes!

Yesterday when I left work, I mentioned to my boss that we were walking home, but after that I would be available by email in compliance with our summer work from home schedule.  Frances piped in and said, "You mean watching TV and taking a nap? Like yesterday?! HAHAHAHA!!"

Luckily my boss laughed, but it made me mad. Number one she could have gotten me in trouble.  And number two, I MOST CERTAINLY did NOT take a nap and watch TV the day before!  I worked my butt off!!

I was telling Ken this story last night as I was trying to motivate myself to go sweep and mop the kitchen floor. (I have assigned myself a long-overdue chore for each day this month.) Ken commented that I should take a break because I had worked so hard the day before. Something clicked in my head when he said that and I had an epiphany.

That's what I do! I work really hard one day just to get closer to caught up. Then the next day I take a break because I worked so hard the day before. It's a great justification for laziness, but it's exactly what gets me in trouble and keeps my house from being presentable. So last night, I marched into that kitchen and swept and mopped the heck out of it! I even made Ken give me a star on my chart. What kind of reward should I work towards if I fill out my star chart for the month!?!

Today's task is for everybody to clean off their dresser. Harass me for pictures this evening, okay?  I need some external motivation to make sure it gets done.

P.S. For a quick update on the rest, I will say that my weight has stayed pretty steady, so I'm happy with that. I'm still working on another 5-10 pounds, but slow progress is fine with me.
The money situation has some really good news, but I have a separate post planned for that later in the month, so check back.

Resolution Recap: Marvelous May

OK, so I'm late to write this post, because I've been trying to do my recap on the first Monday of the month. However, just because I'm late with the post, doesn't mean it's bad news. It's actually mostly good news!  May was a very busy month with soccer, violin, ballet, and choir activities ending and having their end of season presentations and celebrations. It was an exhausting month, but I think having all the different events going on forced me to plan ahead better.

My resolutions that I wrote about back in January are still on my mind and I think I've made great progress on them. I've always said that these are not things I can "finish" and cross off my list. Instead they are new habits or behaviors that I want to be more consistent with in my everyday life.

Praying and being still are two that I feel like I'm making the smallest steps on. While I've been more purposeful in my praying with the kids, I don't really feel like I'm doing a good job personally. I find it really hard to be still when there are so many things going on. One issue that I deal with frequently is insomnia. Usually when I can't sleep I go out to the couch and read for a little while. Lately I've been trying to stay in bed and clear my mind, but somehow that always seems to make it worse.

Being more healthy is also on my list. I have been doing really well with eating right and losing weight. I finally have a reliable scale in the bathroom that is easy to use. I don't have a huge weight loss goal (5-10pounds) but it sure is nice to see the numbers getting smaller.  I've been trying to walk to pock up the kids in the evening and that's good exercise. I've also been working on a daily plank to strengthen my back and core. That has really helped with some of the back pain I had been experiencing.

I feel like we got a blow in May when it comes to saving money. We ran out of money before we ran out of month and I spent a lit of time stressing about how that had happened. I finally figured out that I had pre-paid a lot of summer camps and deposits for the summer, so while we may have run short in May, it should put us ahead in June and July when camps are already taken care of.

House-keeping is another area I feel like I have made great progress on.  I've been mostly keeping up with the dishes and laundry, but more importantly, the kids and I have kept their room under control and the living room has looked pretty great too. We are at the point that those two rooms need diligence, but not a major overhaul.  I even kept the kids up late one night because I told them they weren't allowed to go to bed with a messy room. They groaned, but I think they are starting to appreciate the space and being able to find things!

As for going to bed on time and wasting less time online, those two seem to have their days. As I mentioned above the insomnia throws off my sleep patterns pretty wildly and then I need a few days to reset. When I can't sleep I waste time online, so those turn into two sides of the same coin. definitely still a work in progress. The operative word being WORK!

What progress are you making on your goals lately? 

April Update

Here I am, busy as a bee, trying to talk about work stuff at work, when one of my students pulls up my blog (with Friday's post still showing) and says, "Ummm....Your readers are ready for some new material!"  I think that just about sums up most of April! And since it's the first Monday of the month, it's time to check in on my resolutions anyway.

If you recall, March was pretty much a wash.  I felt all out of sorts and unproductive and like a total failure in regards to making any progress. April was better in terms of my attitude and perception, but not necessarily better in terms of meeting goals. I did a Google search for quotes about April and found this one that gives me hope:

My method of taking baby steps towards my goal may not get me to the finish line very fast, but hopefully I arrive there at some point!  Since I made these resolutions five months ago, I think it will be helpful for me to write them out again, along with a little update on where I stand:

• Being still and praying more--There have been quite a few days this month where I have been "on" from the moment I woke up until the moment I fell asleep trying to put the kids to bed.  April was a busy month coupled with some insomnia. I have stayed off track with both of these goals, but they are on my mind often, and that's a step in the correct direction, right?
• Lose weight and exercise--I actually feel pretty good about my weight. I gave up sweets and snacks for Lent and that made for less stress eating.  I lost some weight and have not gone totally back to snacking, so it should stay off.  Exercise has been a little easier with the weather warming up a bit. I've been spending more time outside and trying to move around more during the day.
• Better planning--April was so busy that I had to have a schedule printed out, or I would have been totally lost. As it is, we missed one of Frances' choir rehearsals because there was an extra one I forgot about. I did pretty well with meal planning, especially considering all the nights we weren't even home because of some event!
• Save money--I am proud to say that I've done pretty well with this. Have you seen the 52-week money challenge that seems to circulate near the beginning of each year?  The challenge to is start a bank account and add $1 the first week, $2 the second and so on until you add $52 the last week of the year.  Some people have complained that the plan as written is hard because you are supposed to be depositing more money near the holidays when money tends to be tight.  Some people have pledged to do the challenge backwards to lessen the impact at the end of the year, and also to get more money in at the beginning to earn interest.  I've made up my own idea and I wrote out the amounts from $1-52 and I've added a random amount each Wednesday.  I've stashed away over $400 this year! If I stick with this plan, I should have at least $1378 by the end of the year.
• Clean my house--I've been way off track here and I am embarrassed to admit what a mess my house is.  However, I did get my own bedroom mostly clean and I've managed to keep it that way.  It's a nice little oasis in the rest of the house. Now to get a public area under control!
• Go to bed on time--This one I can almost declare a new habit! There have been a few times I've fallen asleep in the rocking chair after putting the kids to bed, but for the most part, I've stuck with a 10 pm bedtime. I've been a little bit flexible on the weekends because Ken gets home at 9:30 and I would barely get to see him if I went to bed at 10.
• Curb the online time--This is another almost victory! In fact, I don't even have a Facebook tab open right now! In the evenings, I've switched to reading on my Kindle app instead of mindless hours on Buzzfeed or Facebook. It's definitely a step in the right direction!
• Be a better example to my kids--This is really a hard one to evaluate. I feel if I am doing well at all the others, then I'll be doing well with this one.  Obviously it's still a work in progress.

What kind of progress are you making towards your goals?

Resolution Recap: Can I Call a Mulligan on March?

I don't play golf.  I'm pretty good a putt putt. But I don't completely understand the term "mulligan."  I used it anyway because I'm pretty sure it means I want a do over.  In terms of keeping up with my resolutions, March was a big ole BUST! I've actually been dreading this post since about three-quarters of the way through the month.  And even though I was dreading that I was going to have to admit complete failure, that was still not enough to bring me out of my funk and get me moving on anything!

March was such an odd month!  We had so much bad weather and so many scheduling changes that I started to really have a hard time keeping track of which day was which!  There was a whole week when Benjamin was gone to my parents. Immediately after that was a whole week where Frances and Henry were gone and Ben was the only kid I had.  I missed three days due to weather at work and got behind on projects I was working on. Next to nothing got done at my house!

All through last month, I kept reminding myself that I can't give up and also that His mercies are new every morning!  With those two thoughts in my head, I am determined to make April a better month and get back on track.  And so I remind myself here of what I am working towards and why.

I need to take better care of myself through prayer, exercise, good sleep habits, and eating right.  I want a cleaner, calmer house for the benefit of my whole family. I can accomplish these things little by little. Sometimes even tiny step by tiny step.  These changes will make a better life for me, for my husband, for my kids, and for all those with whom I come in contact.

I can do this!!

Resolution Recap: The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly

I promised myself I was going to keep track of my resolutions this year. My new motto is "Just because you fall off the wagon doesn't mean you give up on the whole journey!" I updated at the beginning of February, so I thought I'd update again here in the beginning of March. It keeps me accountable to my self and to anyone here who feels like calling me out. Feel free to do so, by the way, if I forget an update one month.

Resolution Round-Up: How's it Going So Far?

I've often said that blogging helps to keep me accountable.  By writing things down I feel more pressure to keep up with them. That is one of the main reasons that I wrote out resolutions for 2014.  Now that I have those goals written down, I think it's a good idea to go back and check on them for myself. I plan on making this a monthly feature at the beginning of each month. I don't plan on rehashing each one on the list. I just want to hit the highlights.  The ups and downs, ins and outs of trying to make myself a better person. Just because you fall off the wagon doesn't mean you give up on the whole journey!

The Ups
The good news is that I've been doing well with daily prayer and I'm even finding better ways to include the kids in that routine.  Henry is so proud of himself for reading the morning and evenings prayers and I get a little teary each time he suggests saying an Our Father or Hail Mary in addition to what's on the page.

Being still is still not easy, but I have been making a conscience effort to try it every day.  Just to sit for a bit and appreciate the quiet.  Turning off my brain is hard work!!

Cleaning house is still a battle for me, but I'm trying out a few things that seem to be working for me. We've been actually using the vacuum and the kitchen has been mopped twice this month!!  And not because something spilled!!

The Downs
I'm still working on my weight and exercise. My Zumba class was cancelled this semester because there were not enough people signed up.  Besides being disappointed, I think I've been unmotivated because of that set back.  My weight has stayed the same, which is better than gaining, but I really need to work on that.

We are still working on saving money.  Ken's truck needed a bunch of work to pass inspection, so of course that throws things off.  There are a few once a semester or once a year bills that come up in January, so those have affected the budget too.  We're making progress, but not as much as I'd like.

Did you make resolutions this year?  How are they going?  If you'd like to meet up with me here at the begining of March, maybe we can keep each other accountable.

Tuesday Ten: My New Year Resolutions {LinkUp}

We are now officially a week in to 2014, so I thought today would be a good day to post my resolutions.  I would actually laugh about my procrastination habit, but I've actually had this post planned for about a month.  Today marks the first day of my collaboration with Lisa at The Golden Spoons for our Tuesday Ten linkup.  Today we are asking you to link up your New Year's Resolutions in this post.  It can be a post you've already published or one you write specifically for this link up.  It doesn't even have to be 10 things. We aren't the internet police or big meanies.  All we ask is that you link up a post related to the topic and then go visit and few others and leave them some comments.

<a href="http://thelieberfamily.com" target="_blank"><img alt="The Lieber Family" src="http://i1291.photobucket.com/albums/b552/lspoon1/35772375-425c-4d00-be98-7bd0fae4c333_zpsd2bae8b3.png" /></a>

As I've been thinking of my resolutions, I decided to go check out my resolutions from last year. I'm still not sure if that was a mistake or not!  Many of the things I am resolving to do this year and the same as things I resolved to do last year.  That's not to say that I failed at all my resolutions. It just means that there is still progress to be made and I am not giving up.

1.  Being still--I wrote about my word of the year in this post, and I am putting this at the top of my resolutions.  I am going to take at least 10 minutes each day to just be still: no iPad, no TV, no books, no kids, no husband, nothing.  Just stillness and listening.  Maybe some very quiet stretching.

2. Praying more--I have joined a facebook prayer group. I have told my family that they are invited to say the rosary with me every Sunday after lunch.  I have a few devotional books that I am going to read this month and then I'll seek out some more (leave me a recommendation). I also have a kids' devotional book that I am putting at the table that the kids and I can read at meals.

3. Lose weight--This one was a big fail last year. Not only did I not lose weight, I'm pretty sure I gained some.  Part of the problem is that I haven't weighed myself at all.  I'm certainly not going to start weighing myself every day, but it's a good idea to check once a week, right.  I'd like to lose 15 pounds by not snacking so much.  I will replace my bored and habit eating with drinking water.  I will also keep...

4. Exercising--Zumba starts again in a few weeks and I will be keeping up with that again. I also plan on doing some exercise at home in the evenings before bed.  10-15 minutes a night is a good, realistic starting point for me.  We'll see if I can work up to 30 minutes a night.

5. Better planning--I am currently reviewing a meal planning service that is making that aspect more fun.  Near the end of last year I also started printing out a weekly schedule on Fridays for the coming week.  We already have monthly calendars printed, but the weekly version allows me to plan meals around other things that are going on and the format is bigger, so it's easier to see what's going on.

6. Save money--I really want us to be able to move sometime in the near future. One bathroom and five people is difficult and crowded.  We're not underwater in our mortgage, but we are in the position that we will have to sell at the same time that we buy and that's going to make things complicated.  I have a "secret" online bank account that I am going to divert some of my paycheck into each pay period.  I don't check it often, so I won't be tempted to use it for things.  We are also making good progress at paying off our credit cards, so that helps too.

7. Clean my house--My house is my nemesis!  I've tried lots of different ways to force myself to be a better housekeeper, but I typically lose steam after a few weeks.  The good news is that each time I lose steam I am a few baby steps closer to my goal.  I downloaded a new, fun cleaning app for my phone.  The initials are UFYH and I will warn you that there is a bad word in the title (the f one), but it has some great cleaning challenges and it is irreverent and fun to do.

8. Go to bed on time.  I am hereby giving myself a bed time.  10:00 seems reasonable.  Actually it just seems like the time I typically fall asleep on the couch anyway.  This year I am going to fall asleep in my bed and stay there all night instead of wrestling with myself to get up and move in the middle of the night.

9.  Be more purposeful about my time online--I'd like to spend less time online--Yes! I said it!!  I want to spend less time online and more time interacting with actual human beings and my house.  This can be a hard thing to attempt since, as a blogger and an office worker, online work is required, but I need to do a better job of signing off and leaving the devices alone when I am at home.  I need to do a better job of concentrating my time and not bouncing around all over the pace.  Especially because I plan to increase my monthly page views and interactions.  I think that by planning a concentrated effort towards community building and readership, I can increase my numbers AND spend less time online.

10. Being a better example to my kids--Every single other resolution comes back to this one.  I want to be the best moter I can be and that means setting the best example that I can in all areas of my life.  I want my kids to be happy, healthy, spiritually-nourished, and secure in my love.  That means I've got to set up all those things for them.

Also, just for your viewing pleasure, I'd like to present some of the Mother of All Meltdowns Crew and their resolutions for 2014:

Your Tuesday Ten hostesses are:

We hope you have enjoyed our Tuesday Ten Lists!  If so, please link up one of your own and share using #TuesdayTen!

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1) Link up a post, old or new, pertaining to the Tuesday Ten topic for this week and add our Tuesday Ten button to the post or to your sidebar.

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An InLinkz Link-up

Come link up again next Tuesday January 14th when the topic will be "Ten Things You Love/Hate About Winter"