Home » You » Fitness » Hello 2014, Goodbye 20s!

Hello 2014, Goodbye 20s!

by Megan

Wow. Two thousand fourteen. I remember looking ahead to 2000 and turning 16 that year.

Well, I was born in 1984. So if you’re good at math (or even just okay at math) you may be able to figure out that I am turning 30 this year.

I’m okay with it. Kinda sorta. We’ll talk more about that in May though. For now, I want to talk about the things I hope to accomplish in this wonderful year of 2014!

2014

I’m honestly having a hard time with goals right now. It’s not hard coming up with them- I have plenty of things I’d like to do! But I’m trying to figure out if it’s better for me to try to do more or less, to plan more or let things happen on their own, to try to set a routine or decide minute-by-minute what I’m going to do.

I’ve spent more time than I’d like this past year stressing out about, well, everything. I’ve become obsessive about housework (not that it’s always done, but I wake up every morning with the need to clean and organize the entire house, and I get down when that doesn’t happen).

I’m also questioning the value of some of my goals. I know that I like to accomplish things and “check-the-box,” but how many things am I doing “just to do it” and is that worth my time and effort?

One thing that I’m going to do differently this year is that I’m not going to set monthly goals. I’m setting goals for the whole year, which I will work toward each month, and I’ll report on my progress.

Last thought before I actually list my goals! It has become a “thing” to choose a word to represent what you want in the new year. Well, that’s something I’ve actually done for years and years, as far back as middle school. I would choose a word which was what I wanted most in the new year, and it would be the first word I spoke after midnight, the first word spoken in the new year. Since I’m apparently a hipster, I’m thinking of breaking my long-running tradition and not choose a word for 2014. BUT, if I WAS going to choose a word, I’d actually choose two. The first would be “efficiency.” I want to figure out the quickest and easiest ways to get things done and eliminate any wasted time. Then I would ideally put that freed up time to good use, spending time with my family, making this blog extra special great, etc. My second word would be “fun.” I want to have fun. I don’t want to waste time on things that don’t make me or the people around me happy. I’m turning 30. Life is short. Let’s have fun.

merry-go-round carter

Okay, so now that I’ve ranted and rambled…here are my goals for 2014! I’ve narrowed it down to four major categories, in order of importance:

  • My marriage
  • My faith
  • My fitness
  • My blog

1. Improve my marriage

Last week my husband and I had a series of “discussions” (*wink* definitely not arguments *wink*) where we let out some pent up frustrations. It feels so much better to talk openly rather than seething on the inside, and I think we have both stepped up our game a bit. Daniel has mentioned more than once that even though we love our kids, there will come a day when they will leave, and it will just be us again. We can’t let that day come and realize that we don’t know each other. So in 2014 I want to make a concerted effort to make our marriage fantastic. It’s already good, don’t get me wrong, but it can always be better.

Side note: It is ridiculously hard for me to write such personal material! Everyone in blog land makes a big deal about being “real” and not “censoring” and all that. I have a really hard time opening up, so be my friend, okay? ;)

2. My faith

I don’t write about this a lot on here, but our church is a huge part of our lives. We are members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (commonly known as the “Mormon” church). Daniel has always been a member, but I joined 9 years ago. When I first joined, I was really gungho about everything, and I was surprised when I found out that not all members followed the doctrine exactly. I am still a very active member of our church, and we have been very good with our daily scripture reading, but since having kids, it’s definitely been a “back burner” kind of thing for me. I’ve become complacent, and I’ve let less important things take up my time. I need to reevaluate my priorities and make time for what is really important.

3. My Fitness

My baby is now 6 months old, and I do not plan on becoming pregnant at any point during 2014. In other words, NO EXCUSES! My major goal in 2014 is to train for a marathon. The only reason I don’t say “run” a marathon, is because the one I’m planning on running is actually at the beginning of 2015. So I plan on doing a lot of running throughout the whole year, but training for that marathon in the second half of the year. In addition, I am still pushing through with my year of no sugar, and I’m just two weeks away from the halfway point! July 14th, 2014 will be a day of sugar, have no doubts, but before and after that day I want to work on my diet and make better food choices in order to reach my weight loss goals.

4. My Blog

I love this space. It’s gone from a hobby to a passion to (dare I say) a business, and I want to keep working at it and cultivating something great. I want to write better, I want to focus more on giving, and frankly I want to make more money doing what I love. I have a plan to go back and optimize my older posts as well as improving what I have to offer in the future. Suggestions welcome. ;)

A few more thoughts…

First, I feel like I need to mention the fact that nowhere in those goals did I mention my children. I have not forgotten them. Each day I strive to be a better mom than the day before, and there are plenty of successes and failures. I always want to spend time with my kids, show them they are loved, teach them, and build their self-confidence. Those goals supersede anything else I ever mention.

merry-go-round vanessa

Second, there is the 30 before 30. Am I still working on it? Yes, definitely! But like I said before, I’m trying to prioritize better. And if that means that I don’t find 100 geocaches or finish the 100 greatest movies, then that’s okay. I don’t want to stress out about those little things when there are much more important things to put first.

So if you’ve read this far, thanks for sticking with me! I hope you had a wonderful 2013 and are looking forward to a fantastic 2014!

Happy New Year!

Love it? Share it!

You may also like

Leave a Comment

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

7 comments

Kim January 1, 2014 - 7:01am

Happy New Year! Best of luck as you work on these goals this year! Can’t wait to read along!

Reply
Kadi January 1, 2014 - 2:23pm

I’m so excited for you! It’s going to be a great year! I love your goals and I wish you all the success possible! My piece of advice (because you know I always have one…sorry) is to work harder on your relationship with God than anything else and He will help you with everything else. I’ve tried it and I know it works, even though I get distracted sometimes! Love you!

Reply
Leslie January 1, 2014 - 6:33pm

I am not making specific goals this year. I have a vision of where I want to see myself next year and I know what I need to do to make that a reality. I love the categories you have chosen and I think this will be a great year for you. I’m turning 32 this year and when I turned 30 I was okay with it. Now I am feeling “older”. It’s hard to explain…but let’s just say it’s hard to sit on the floor and get up again lol.

Reply
Kate @ Songs Kate Sang January 4, 2014 - 10:17pm

I just love you to pieces! Yes – marriage is definitely work. Have you read ‘A Severe Mercy’? It is my favorite book about how to really pour yourself into a marriage.

Reply
Megan January 6, 2014 - 8:42am

I haven’t but I’ll need to check it out!

Reply
2014 at a glance - Shaping Up To Be A Mom January 13, 2014 - 8:46am

[…] to a year just as filled with love and fun, but maybe a little more relaxed! I already talked about my goals for this year, and I plan to make those a focus each month, but here are some of the other things I have to look […]

Reply
I’m Wishing – Shaping Up To Be A Mom January 31, 2014 - 12:04am

[…] made my 2014 resolutions here, where I stated that I wanted to work on four things this year: my marriage, my faith, my fitness, […]

Reply