My Intentions and Goals for 2016

I love New Years. I love the hope the new beginning brings with it. 2015 was an amazing year and I’m so grateful for the woman I am today because of this past year. I’ve honestly never been happier and more at peace with myself and my life. I sit here today, in a sun filled living room with my westie at my side, and am filled with joy.

I am really looking forward to the year ahead. 16 is my favorite number and I’ve been looking forward to having 365 days that end in the number 16. I’m excited to build upon this past year and to live with purpose. My intentions and goals for 2016 are built on just that, purpose.

I’ve always prided myself on being such a great multitasker. I can work on 10 different things and manage to get them all done. I can watch Scandal, work on a blog post, hang out with my husband, Gchat with my sister, and rest all at the same time… but multitasking leaves me feeling drained, worn out, and in many ways, unsatisfied. Why couldn’t I just watch Scandal? Why couldn’t I just blog? Why couldn’t I just hang out with my husband? You get my point. This year, I want to live with purpose. I want to live in the moment and to be fully present.

I love to fill my days with many things, but I want to live a more focused life. This will require being organized day-to-day and week-to-week, that way I can focus on just one thing at a time and still be able to accomplish everything on my plate.

I have created a few goals for the year ahead, with ‘purpose’ in mind. You’ll notice that one thing is missing from this list… weight loss. For the first time, I think ever, weight loss is not my goal for the year ahead. I will always want to remain focused on living a healthy life and if weight loss comes with that, awesome, but I no longer want weight loss to be my purpose or to run my life. I am more than weight loss.

Here are a few of my goals for 2016.

Stop using my cell phone in the car. This really boils down to safety and the law. It’s unbelieveable how many people drive past me each day and are flipping through Instagram or reading e-mails. I am going to put my cell phone in my purse before I start my car and will leave it there.
Start listening to books on tape. The other day on Instagram I shared a book I’d love to read but would never make time for. A few followers shared their love for books on tape and I realized it was time for me to venture down that road. I spend 3 hours a day in my car, so I could listen to a gazillion books and podcasts in a year. I’m excited.
Blog in my home office and not on the couch. I either blog after Magnolia goes to bed or first thing in the morning if I’m not working out. I usually sit on the couch with my laptop and watch TV while I blog. This turns blogging into a multi hour event. I want to start blogging in my office, on my iMac, and to remain focused on writing instead of multitasking.
Continue my 5AM workouts. I love working out at Orange Theory and absolutely love my 5AM workouts. Getting up at 4:15AM is hard, but I just have to do it. It is the only time I am able to workout and I love working out.
Spend more time with friends. I want more girl time this year. I want to press pause on my to-do list and to enjoy time with my girlfriends. I used to throw parties, plan lunches, go on random adventures with friends, and I need more of that in my life again.
Find a new church in our new town and become a part of the community. Now that we’ve bought a house, I’m so excited to find a church we can raise our family in. I want to pray more, worry less, and to be filled with the fruits of the spirit.
Date my husband. I just adore my husband and I love spending time with him. This year, I want to date my husband again. We need to plan dates at home and find a babysitter for nights out.
Save money and invest in our new home. I want to save a lot of money and I want to renovate and decorate our new home. We have lots of plans for our new home, but we’re going to need to make sacrifices in order to save money. Neal and I are also planning an anniversary trip for our 5 year anniversary in 2017, so we need to save for that!