Growing In His Glory: Family Goals for 2013

On a recent drive to a family Christmas event, my husband and I hashed out a notebook page of goals for our family, specific items we need or want to see happen this year. Everyone knows that the key to accomplishing anything of importance is to break down your goals into manageable, doable parts. So, that's what we attempted.

Our family's goals for 2013:

1. Kate's future schooling. Our oldest daughter will not officially start school until 2014, but I'm a planner and this is a BIG decision. We have considered homeschooling, but we aren't so sure that's what's best for the family. So some thorough research and serious prayers are necessary to find the best fit for our daughter.

2. Revising & sticking to the budget. We didn't end 2012 with a good grasp of our budget at all. So, we're calling for a do-over. Daniel has already set up a new budget for 2013, and we're back on the cash-only envelope plan. To keep us in check, we're also planning monthly meetings to discuss progress and make revisions where necessary.

3. Run a 5K. I've been running off and on since October, but at Christmas, I committed to run my first 5K in March. Daniel and my dad intend to join me. That means more frequent trips to the gym for training and some research on preparing to run a 5K. I'm excited but oh how my poor body aches.

4. Sell our house. Last year we put our house on the market and had no success. In the spring we intend to take a second run at selling our home. We've created a punch list of items to complete. Now we just have to motivate ourselves to do the painting, cleaning, and minor repairs needed.

5. Organize family photos better. I'm pretty good at taking pictures but rarely do they get organized and printed. This year I want to create an online photo album so when Christmas rolls around, all I have to do is hit print and I'll have instant gifts. My husband bought me a Canon T3i for Christmas {he's a keeper!}, and I'm using iPhoto to organize my pictures by event and date to make this goal a reality. Plus, I'm really liking Smilebox for its kids' scrapbooks.

6. Mission work. This year we really want to work on ministering to family and friends who aren't in church. There are so many loved ones whose souls and hearts we've been praying for for a while now, but this year, we want to be more vocal in sharing the gospel and more available in serving others. We've also committed to sponsor a child in Kenya through Compassion International, a mission opportunity overseas. We do need to work on hashing out more specific plans for this goal.

7. Family dates. My husband is really good about taking the girls on daddy/daughter dates every couple of months. Kate and Cora love to spend time with their Daddy, and going for breakfast at Chick-fil-A is a sweet treat. This year we want to be more intentional about our dates. We also want to let each of the older girls have one-on-one time with Daddy and Mommy. Additionally, Daniel and I are going to take a once-a-month date night ourselves, so we can spend some QT, just us.

8. Daily Bible time & lessons with the girls. Before Annabeth was born, we had a good routine going with daily "school" and Bible time in the mornings, but since May, that's been erratic at best. I'm getting myself geared up to re-start our ABC Jesus Loves Me, preschool Bible curriculum. If you aren't familiar with ABC JLM, it's completely free and really fun! My girls have loved the activities, and you can tailor the lesson plans based on the attention spans of your children.

While I have my own personal goals in addition to these that I hope to post in a day or two, these are our family's goals for 2013.

What about you? Do you set goals for your family?

Blessings to you & yours in 2013,