Goals for this Week

 

During my internship, I threw a lot of my daily habits out the window because it was exhausting to essentially be working two jobs along with everything else that was going on. For the last few weeks, I have been trying to get back into doing the things that make my life better. It's a lot harder to get back to them than I thought it was. I decided the best thing to do would be to make a bullet journal spread to track my progress. It worked great when I was getting started on the Mirical Morning last year, so I figured it would be the best way to jump back into it and the other habits I have been working on. I am excited to get started on Monday!

One Month Left

I only have one month left of my internship. In some ways, it will be nice to be done. However, I will also be sad to be done. I love helping other people and feel that I am doing it in a small way in this internship. I like the people I have been working with and the many things I have learned about this population. Working with them gives me a greater sense of purpose, and I know I will find a way into this field again. The only thing I won't be sad about is the time commitment. Doing this on top of my regular job and everything else going on in my life has been hard. 

I am considering trying to find something part-time similar to what I have been doing when I am done with everything this summer. I would love to find my way into working more permanently with people experiencing homelessness, and I think that dipping my toe into it more would be beneficial. I have looked online at job openings and know that I would not be paid what I need to leave my current job. However, it I were to find my way into this field and work my way up to better pay and benefits, I would quit my current job and jump into this type of work full-time. I have said many times that my job just kind of fell into my lap as a way out of the call center, and I mainly stay because I have a wonderful boss who does what he can to keep our team together. It just doesn't fill the purpose I know my life needs to have.  

Getting Closer

I finally started my internship this week, and I love it! I have wanted to be part of the solution for so long. With this position, I can finally do just that. 

I am working 16 hours a week with Catholic Charities helping people who need it. I have only done 2 shifts so far, but I have already learned a lot about helping those in shelters. I have mostly observed at this point, but I can't wait until I am trained enough to have a more active role. 

When I was getting divorced, it was known that my job sucked and I wanted a different one. When asked what I wanted to do, I would just say, "I want to make a REAL difference." The problem was I didn't know what I wanted to do or how to do it. All I knew was working in a call center was not going to get me there. 

About 4 years later, after earning an associates degree in business, I decided to go back to school. This time I started with the Pathways program and transitioned into online classes through BYU Idaho. This time I prayed about the program in which I would be enrolled and what career I would be working towards. I had the distinct impression that I should work an a degree in marriage and family studies with the goal of working in a shelter. I have worked hard on this goal while working a full time job in the shipping industry, raising 3 kids, working to have a healthy relationship with my husband, and growing my faith in my Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ. 

This internship is the last step to achieving the goal of getting my bachelor's degree and a big step towards what will hopefully be a fulfilling career helping people who need it rather than helping line the pockets of corporate executives. Leaning what little I have at this point, makes me want to learn more and strengthens my resolve to do what I can to make this world a better place for those who need it the most. I can't wait to see what the future brings!

After Day 1

Yesterday was the first day of the April session of General Conference for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints. Chad and I watched the first 2 sessions of the day together, then he went to a Mammoth game with his brother while I watched the last session on my own. I really enjoyed listening to the talks and music. They filled my home with the Lord's spirit. 

I went into the day with one question. "What can I do to progress in life?" I have been working on getting an internship but feel like I have been stagnant or slipping backwards in so many other areas lately. I want to progress spiritually, financially, in my relationship with Chad, and in so many other areas of my life. Before conference started, I prayed for an answer to this question going that, like others have said they have done, I would receive an answer. I got my wish. 

As I listened to the talks, I got an overwhelming feeling that I need to grow my relationship with the Savior. I thought about this impression as the talks continued and during downtime. I'm pray daily, read my scriptures most days, go to the temple on a regular basis, and attend church and partake of the sacrament each week. What am I missing? 

I need to get past the checklists and follow the spirit to guide me towards a better relationship with my Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ. I am going to read Jesus the Christ. At first, I thought I would have to borrow the book from someone since I am not buying new books this year. I was a bit worried about doing this because I am a slow reader, and it would probably take a few months for me to finish it and return it. Thankfully, I don't have to do this. The entire book is available on the Church's website. I can read it directly on the website or app, listen to it, or print it one chapter at a time. I have decided to print it piece by piece and put it in a binder as I go. It may take me a while to finish this book, but I feel strongly that it is my next step to grow my testimony and relationship with my Savoir. 

Internship Coming Together

 I have been working hard at finding an internship so I can graduate in July. I believe I have found one that will be a perfect fit for me. As long as everything continues to go smoothly, I will be doing my internship at Catholic Charities helping people with navigating employment options. I am so excited! 

When I interviewed for this position last week and learned more about the organization, I knew that I wanted to be involved in any way that I can. The supervisor I spoke to is exactly the kind of person I could see looking up to as a mentor. Everything about being there with her felt right. 

The only obstacle I have left is for my application with the school to be approved. I am little worried about that part because I am not sure it is related enough to Marriage and Family Studies. Honestly, if it isn't I would be devastated because I don't have a backup plan, and I really want to do this. 

When the internship is done, I hope I will be able to work for an organization like Catholic Charities. I want to be the kind of person that makes a difference in other people's lives. It has always been my wish and is even more so now that I am so close to the goal of graduation. 

So Close

 I am very close to getting my Bachelor of Science in Marriage and Family Studies. How close? I only have to do the internship. I have been this close for almost a year now, and I have put off the internship because I'm scared to put myself out there and don't know where to start looking for it. Ideally, I would find an internship that I can work in the evenings after I get off work and would be paid as a part time job. Realistically, I know it is unlikely that I would be paid, but I may be able to find something that I could do after work and on Saturdays. I have just let the fear take over and keep me from achieving this dream. (I do this way too much!)

Over the last few days, I have had two calls from the university. The first one was from advising reminding me that I need to do the internship by the middle of April. (I don't know if that is even possible.) She gave me a few options that could extend that deadline, but I would have to take more classes because I have been in school for so long. One of the options was to switch to a professional general degree in which I would have to take a handful of classes, but I would not have to complete an internship (very appealing). After talking over these options with Chad, I decided that changing to the professional general degree from marriage and family studies would be the best option and emailed her back telling her so. Today, the director of the department called me to let me know that if I could get going on an internship, he would do everything he could to help me complete the degree without taking any more classes. He said that this would be the best option because the internship could help me network and possibly lead to a job in a humanitarian field. This was followed up with an email that gives me the email address to reach out to the internship coordinator. 

I think I am ready to do an internship. I am worried about being gone most evenings. I don't want my kids or husband to feel neglected. However, I do like the idea of being able to switch to a career in which I can actually help people. That has been my goal for a long time.

Making Weight Loss Goals Again

I have rewatching Biggest Loser lately after watching a podcast episode on YouTube where Jillian Michaels interviewed some of her past contestants that have continued to be successful. I loved listening to them talk about their time on the show and decided to search out old episodes after they said they are available to watch. I found seasons 10 to 17 on Prime. It looks like the rest may be available to purchase on there, but I'm not willing to do that. 

I am very inspired by this show. I know that losing as much weight per week as they did is not healthy, but watching what I eat and exercising is healthy. This show gives me hope that weight loss is possible. 

I finished season 11 last week. For about the last month or so of that season, the girls were getting to be smaller than me and losing 3 or more pounds per week. So far, this is the most inspiring part of the show. I think I can lose 2 or 3 pounds a week if I really try. 

Another inspiration from this show came from one of the men. Each week, he wrote his goal weight of the week. Each week, he met or surpassed his goal. I have decided to follow this example by putting my goal for the week on my hand. This is not going to be an easy goal to meet, but I think I can do it through a lot of hard work. 

I know I have tried to lose weight many times just to gain it all back. I hope to be able to create the habits necessary to lose weight and keep it off. 

So Pretty

 

I have been making sourdough bread since last spring. I have been able to make it taste good, but haven't made one as pretty as I wanted yet. I had decided around Christmas time that I just wouldn't be one of those people that made fancy sourdough even though I had found a few recipes I liked. 

Today, I made another un-loaf thinking it would turn out just like the last one. However, this time my starter hadn't sat dormant for as long. I carefully followed the recipe, and ended up with my prettiest loaf to date. 

This may be my new favorite recipe after all. 

January 2025 Bullet Journal

I am determined to make this month more productive than last month. I won't be disobey trying to make Christmas magical for my adult children, and I hopefully won't be so sick that I land in the ER with asthma issues. I will, however, be working daily on my goals. I have made spreads in my bullet journal to do this. 

First, I have a page that lists my goals of the month and has a tracker to mark off the days that I have completed them:

Then, I have my Miracle morning tracker. On the opposite page is my affirmation for the month. 

Next is my "no spend" tracker. I could be more of a low spend type thing, but Chad and I came up with rules that we both agreed on that we feel will lead us in a better financial path. 

My next spread is for cleaning. This of course is the bare minimum. I hope that everyone else will pitch in. We'll see. 

The only other tracker that I am using is one I made last month for the book that I want to finish and implement what I have learned soon. 

I will be keeping track of my hobbies without a tracker, and the conference talks are being marked in the book. 

Hello 2025

Going into is honestly a bit scary. I have no idea what the future brings. All I know is I need more direction in my life. My hope is that by tweaking a few things, it will be one of my best years. 

This year, Chad and I will be working harder on our finances. We will be doing a no spend year (more to come on that). As we do so, we will work harder on paying off debt and building some sort of homestead on our kettle plot of land. I'm hoping this bring us closer together.

My crafting will have a new theme. This will be the gear of gifts. I will be making gifts for friends and family throughout the year. This will save money and break down my yarn stash a bit. I am already working on Eric's birthday present. I will for sure blog about this as I go as well as recap last year's theme, the year of the sweater, in future posts. 

I hope to finish my degree this year, but this is a very scary thing for me. All I have left is my internship unless I get procrastinate too long. Then, I will have to take a few more classes as well. I really want this to be done. I am just not good at being around new people and searching for something like this is terrifying. 

I will continue to work on my faith journey this year. I love that prayer and scripture reading have become a part of my morning routine. I want to incorporate General Confidence talks and regular "Come, Follow Me" study as well. My hope is to also make it to the temple at least once a month outside of our twice a month shift as ordinance workers. I am at a point in my life where I crave spiritual guidance. The more I learn about the Lord and His plan, the more I want to develop my relationship with Him. I hope I am in a better spot by the end of the year than I am now as I continue to grow my faith and knowledge. 

It is scary going into a new year. I hope that these goals will give me the direction and discipline I need in my life. 

December Bullet Journal Spreads

I have made a plan for December and put it in writing. I know we are a week into December, but I'm ok with that. There are still plenty of days to work on and accomplish goals this month. 

When making my plan, first I decided on what goals I wanted to focus on and used those goals to make a December cover page. 

Then, I went down the list and made bullet journal spreads for each goal in the order I listed them. My favorite is the one for tracking miles (the first goal).

My next spread is for the Miracle Morning. I'm not as happy with this one because I tried to use colors from the washi tape, and I'm just not a fan of brown. It works with my theme, though.

Then, I made one for a book that I really want to finish to help me towards my weight loss goals. I love the colors I used for this one! I wanted to make sure to include the appendix, so I made circles for each.

Finally, in conjunction with my affirmations, I will be tracking the amount of time that I clean. This is the only page I made without washi tape, but I think it turned out fairly well.

In had a lot of fun making these. I found most of my supplies at Hobby Lobby. Some of the stickers and the markers were things I already had around the house. Sometimes I still can't believe I have become a person who enjoys this kind of thing.

Miracle Morning Update

I have been doing the Miracle Morning for about 3 months now, and I can feel the difference in my day-to-day life. I have become more active, calm, and organized. I feel like since I am accomplishing 6 goals first thing in the morning, I am motivated to do more with my day. 

In my day planner (I still use an old school paper planner), I have many daily goals outside of my Miracle Morning routine. I have a cleaning goal (dishes plus one other task), an exercise goal (for now it is a walking challenge I'm doing with my sister), a goal to get rid of at least one thing, and anything else that needs to be done that day. I get the sense of accomplishment that I have been missing for about four and a half months, and I love it. I feel like nothing can stop me from becoming the person I need to become. It is amazing how small tasks can lead to bigger things. 

Miracle Morning Ready?

I have decided that I want to work on the Level 10 Life again. I tried and blogged about it in the past, but I stopped doing it when I struggled with keeping the bullet journals going for a while. I have realized that I have let a lot of things in my life slip and missed my goals because of this, and I need goals to feel like I am moving forward in life. 

To get ready, I found a bullet journal I bought a few months ago that had been barely used and pulled up Pinterest to remind me how it was done. As I as reading through the articles I found, I was reminded that the Level 10 Life came from Hal Elrod's book, The Miracle Morning, so I bought the book. While I read it, I will do as the blog posts I found on Pinterest suggest. My hope is that I will get back on track in the various things in my life I feel are lacking and better my mental health. 

Homemade Breakfast

 

I have really been enjoying my breakfasts this week. They have consisted of berries and a sandwich made of homemade English muffins, butter or cream cheese, and an egg. There is just something satisfying about eating something I have worked so hard at making. It’s a lot more filling than cereal and has far less preservatives. 

This was my second batch of English muffins, and they are far from perfect. I’m learning with each batch though. I still need to turn down the fire on the burner, and I may need to let the sourdough starter ferment a bit longer. I definitely need to be a bit more patient while making them. I am determined to make this work. 

Knitting and Crocheting Plans

I have kind of lofty knitting and crocheting goals for this year. My main goal is to knit 3 sweaters. I also have plans for 2 afghans, throw pillows for the couches, some hats, and at least one poncho other than the one I am currently making. Of course, I will finish the things that have been started and take one or two things out of “timeout.”

I have good start on the sweaters. Noel picked out her year and pattern months ago, and I have been actively working on it for about a month and a half. 

Then, I’m going to make the Poison Apple Pullover from the Knitting with Disney book. It will be a great Halloween sweater and nice enough to wear anywhere.

I will wrap up the sweaters with a Christmas sweater. (Was there any doubt that I would?) I have narrowed down three patterns. I’m thinking it will depend on when I finish the Poison Apple Pullover and if I still want to do color work. 

For my couches, I am going to make an afghan and pillows with Friends references from my Friends crochet book. I will be changing the background color to match.

I know other things will be made/completed. Of course, I’ll blog about it as I go. 

One Thing Per Day

I decided on the first that I wanted to make a gaol to help declutter the house a bit. I really don’t like the whole big purge thing. I tried it after reading Marie Kondo’s book 4 or 5 years ago. It was freeing but also hard because I get attached to stuff. (I would probably get help for that at some point.) There is something I can do that isn’t as intimidating: get rid of one thing at a time. That leads me to my goal. 

This year, I will get rid of at least one thing per day. It isn’t a lot if you just look at it from the daily or weekly numbers. However, if you look at the whole year, I will be either throwing away or donating 366 items including leap day. That sounds a bit more significant and will be done in a way that doesn’t scare me. 

Goals for 2024

As we get closer to the start of 2024, I have been considering the goals I want to pursue. Do I want to make a goal that will take the whole year to complete or should I concentrate on weekly and monthly goals? Maybe I could do a combination. 

My main goal of the year is to graduate. I have been working on this degree for a long time. All I have to complete is the internship and the one very hard, yet required, class. I can finish. I just need to concentrate on one thing at a time. If I do that, I will be done in July. 

The other big goal is to train for and complete a marathon. Chad and I made a goal to run a marathon the year he turned 50 in 2018. At the time it seemed so far away, but he will be 50 in February next year. Now, we have to do this thing. We have chosen to run the Saint George Marathon in October. It is supposed to be a good one for first timers, and he can visit his mom while we are there. 

For now, these will be my main goals. I don’t want to overwhelm myself with too much all at once. 

Progress Not Perfection

 I still have a long way to go before Chad and I run a marathon, but I’m getting better. I have changed my intervals to 35 seconds running and 40 seconds walking. It is still a bit of a challenge but not so much that I am hating it. I really want to get back to walking the intros to songs and running during the feast of them. I loved running when I was doing it that way. I’m sure I will get there soon. Until then, I’m just going to enjoy getting into shape while remembering the goal of running a marathon the year Chad turns 50 (it’s coming up way too fast).

“Running” Tradition

For the past five years, Chad and I have done our best to run the BOLDERBoulder. We even did the virtual one in 2020. This year was, I believe, the hottest and least trained one we have done, and I really felt it. I still had fun though. Where else would I be able to take a picture with Elvis while he sang?

The most impressive sight was the firefighter running in full gear carrying the American flag. I love going to events with so much patriotism especially on days set aside to honor those who fought for our freedom!

My Favorite

 

I love this man. He understands me in a way no one else does. He supports my dreams, and is my biggest cheerleader. I have very few regrets in this life because all of the struggles I faced before meeting him, led to to him, and everything since has brought us closer together. Some people cringe when they hear how quickly we were married after we finally started dating. To me, it just felt natural. We were meant to be together for eternity.