New Year's Resolutions 2013

Many people make new goals for the New Year.  This year I decided to give it a try.  I usually don't participate because there are ALWAYS things I have goals for throughout the year.  This year, however, Ben really wanted designated goals and steps on how we were going to achieve those goals (he went to a seminar and came home really pumped about the lecture, something about attainable goals).

#1- Like everyone else in the USA we want to lose weight, but more than that, I want my kids to eat healthfully also.

1. Read Eat to Live and Disease Proof Your Child By Dr. Joel Furhman and follow it.  (This new eating plan is basically vegan and more fully a veggie and fruit based diet.  I'll explain more fully in a different post.)
2.  No junk in the house, if we're going to not follow the plan, it'll only be outside of the home
3.  Always have sliced veggies available for after nap (when the kids just can't wait until dinner).  At that point, who cares if they don't eat dinner, they've likely just eaten carrots, zucchini, cucumbers, celery, radishes, or whatever else I've put out.
4. One smoothie per day.  I can add spinach, kale, romaine lettuce, or whatever else so long as we add          fruits it tastes delicious and we drink it up, most the time you can't even taste the greens.  It ensures   we get at least some greens and berries (both of which Inara claims to hate) into our bodies.

#2 - Attend Church Meetings on time.

1. Thankfully, church is now at 11AM.  We eat a late breakfast, get dressed right after and leave 10-15 minutes early.  
2. Make sure kids are fed a filling breakfast before church.  Keep TV off (works a whole lot better now that it's down stairs).  Make sure church bag is ready to go.  (Church bag:  Living Scriptures coloring books, crayons, maybe a little doll or car, mini hymnal, all class literature, tiny notebooks with a pen. -That's it.  We're not there to play around, we're there to listen and learn.)

#3 - Aside from special details- finish left side of basement.

1. Put TV downstairs so as to have nothing keeping us upstairs during evening hours (the only time to work on basement).
2. Clean right side of basement so kids can be watched easily while we build on the other side...and just so it's clean.
3. Builders permit- by end of February
4. Install electrical- by end of April
5. Put up walls and finish building the closet wall- by end of May
6. Install insulation in ceiling (walls already have insulation) and put up ceiling drywall (or whatever it is)- by end of July
7.  Put in flooring- by end of October

 (This does not include trim, painting, or other special details, although I hope to have it painted before flooring, and trimming shortly after flooring.)

#4 - Garden

     This one will be a little more difficult.  We've always wanted a garden but we have many trees and very   few spots of full sun that are not on our drain field.  There is a space out back that we believe will work (I watched it all last summer) so we will try there.

1. Determine which fruits or vegetables to grow.
2. Green house or fenced in or convertible green house.
3. Build short raised beds, maybe one 2x4 high.
4. Constantly read up how to grow my garden and tend to it.
5. Involve kids or they will be bored to tears and I'll accomplish nothing.  :)