Last year was the first year I set a reading goal on my Goodreads account. I fell one book short of my fifteen book goal. While I didn’t set a formal goal this year, I wanted to increase my reading and decrease the amount of time spent surfing on my phone. I’ve done this in several ways. We created a reading nook upstairs. It is Liam’s favorite place to read. We make trips to the library and hit library book sales to ensure that we always have plenty of books. I started carrying my Kindle in my purse. When I am waiting somewhere, I would read a few pages rather than scrolling Facebook.
My latest book is You Are a Badass, by Jennifer Sincero. A good friend recommended it while calming me down the day I wimped out of the obstacle skills class. I ordered it that afternoon. I read it in chunks, loving her quotes and practical advice. My husband was so patient on the train ride to New York when I interrupted his book every few minutes to read a line.
My biggest takeaway from the book is the need to set specific goals. While I set goals in my mind, I don’t make them concrete and known. As Sincero notes, this does not make it a goal. With this in mind, Michael and I set our goals for the upcoming school year. I have been working with him on perseverance. This was a great opportunity to remind him it learning is a process and it often takes several times to succeed.
Michael:
- Learn times tables
- Make first communion
- Go another school year without having to see the principal’s office
- Earns A’s and B’s in all of my classes
- Complete Cannonball Alley at ninja skills class
- Finish reading Harry Potter
My Goals:
- Stay at least one project ahead of my planning at school
- Run three miles in 36 minutes
- Plan a trip to New York City so Michael can see the Statue of Liberty
- Hold a handstand for 30 seconds
- Include a date night with Mike once a week, even if it is an at home date watching Big Bang Theory reruns on the couch
- Read twenty books in 2017
World's Okayest Runner 