March 2017 Small Goals

It’s March! I am pretty excited about this month. This is Michael’s birthday month and my friend’s wedding month. I have some big stuff coming up and I’m pretty happy about it.

February was pretty productive. I was very mindful of my goals and it lead to some good results as shown below.

1. Make Quiet Time a Priority: I am very proud of accomplishing this. I have been getting ready for bed early and turning on some worship music to do my quiet time before bed. It has helped me feel more relaxed before bed. I think it has also helped me sleep better.
2. Post At Least Once a Week: So I skipped a week in there of posting. I did not plan out the posts well so that is something that I am trying to do better with this month.
3. Use My Planner More: So having a consistent quiet time has really helped with my planner. I have used my planner for Scripture journaling and for planning. Now to remember to put it all on my Google calendar as well so that Michael is aware.
4. Work-Out Once A Week: So since I am being honest, I skipped a week of working out as well as blogging. I do feel that I made up for that week by working out three times in the last week. I am following one of the programs from Nike Training Club. I used NTC in high school and it seems to be even better now.
5. Drink More Water: I have accomplished this pretty well. I reach for water instead of other things between meals. I drink a lot of water at work, although I still do have an afternoon coffee.

So now for my March goals. I did a lot of thinking about what I wanted to put as goals for this month. It will be a busy month and I don’t want to overload myself.

1. Post At Least Once a Week: This is a carry over and I have a plan in place to accomplish this so that’s a start.
2. Interact with Other Blogs: I have been wanting to interact more with other blogs. I have been following other blogs for a while, but without saying much. I am wanting to assert myself more.
3. Finish my Real Estate Finance Class: This class has been dragging for me. It’s not hard, but it’s extremely boring and hard to get through. I am going to do it this month though.
4. Finish my NTC Plan and Start a New One: I have gotten half way through this plan and I am all set to finish it. I am also planning on starting a new 6 week plan when I’m done.
5. Plan Michael’s Birthday: Michael’s birthday is at the end of the month and while I am not planning anything big (at his request), I do want to do something nice for him. I am going to make him the Tres Leches cake I made him from the Pioneer Woman last year, but I am hoping to do something a little extra.

So there you go! I have March all ready to go.

As usual, I am linking up with Nicole over at Writes Like A Girl for my monthly small goals.

What are your goals for this month? Do you have any big plans for March?

February Small Goals

Well, it’s officially February! I want to say that I can’t believe I didn’t find the time in January to write a single post, but actually I can believe. If there is one thing I have learned in this past month, it is to give myself grace. I had some unexpected things happen at work that pretty much doubled my workload, plus the organizations I volunteer with have started up again. I have been coming home exhausted almost every night, only to be reminded that there is more on my schedule than just work. January has been a busy month professionally and personally.

All that to say, blogging was not a priority in January as is reflected below in my January goal recap:

1. Start Blogging Again: See long rant above!
2. Start Hockey Wednesday: I’m half tempted to count this half done because I started a post, but if I’m being honest it falls under blogging not being a priority.
3. Stick to a Budget and Pay Off a Credit Card: First a little happy dance for accomplishing what I marked as “a big one.” Through a lot of hard work and putting clothes back on the rack, I ended the month with my budget in tact and payed off a credit card. Now I only have one credit card with a balance and have a payment plan for it.
4. Cut Out Carbs: Another big one accomplished. While I have lost some weight, the biggest plus for me is that I feel much healthier. Through meal planning, reading ingredients and using will power, I am off sugar and things that turn into sugar.
5. Start Scripture Journaling: So I started Scripture journaling, but then I stopped. I had my alarm set for 20 minuted before I needed to get up so I could use it to journal. That 20 minutes turned into my snooze time pretty early in January. Definitely something to work on in February.

So here is hoping for a better February goal-wise. Two of these goals are variations of unaccomplished January ones.

1. Make Quiet Time a Priority: This may mean going to bed earlier so I can get up earlier, or turning off the TV earlier and doing my quiet time with God at night. I’m gonna figure out what works best for me and put it into action.
2. Post At Least Once a Week: So I am going to start small. If I can manage more posts in a week, then I’ll have overachieved. I just feel that this goal is more realistic than saying I’m going to post twice or more a week.
3. Use My Planner More: I have gotten away from using my planner lately. I think the empty scripture page has gotten to me, so I don’t open it any more. I had a couple times in January when I lost track of dates, so I need to get back to being a bit more organized, especially with everything kicking into high gear.
4. Work-Out Once A Week: So now that I have my eating under control, I need to work toward being more active. Once again, I am being realistic and starting small.
5. Drink More Water: I need to be better at staying hydrated. I can seriously feel how dehydrated my body is at times, especially the morning after a day that I barely drank water. The goal here is really to try drinking at least two 24oz bottles of water a day. Once again, starting small and realistic.

Obviously the theme of this month is setting small realistic goals. I already have some ideas on how to accomplish some of these, but I am always open to suggestions, especially if you have found something that works for you.

As always, I’m linking with Nicole at Writes Like a Girl! Go check out her awesome blog as well as the other bloggers setting small goals for the month!

2017 Word & January Small Goals

Hello 2017 and World of the Internet. It has been a while! I took a long break from blogging this fall for a few reasons. The biggest being that my life seemed to be spiraling a bit and I needed to figure some stuff out. The good news is that I have done that for the most part and am now back to a place where I can write and post things again.

So since, I have not posted any small goals for a few months, I figure I’ll make this my 2017 and January goals.

First 2017! I can’t believe it is already a new year. I’m hoping for some big things this year, some of which are out of my control so we will see. I have decided to make too many specific goals/resolutions for 2017. I have chosen a word for this year though! That word is focus. I have found that recently my life has lacked focus. I have just been going through life hoping and wishing that things will happen to me. I really haven’t had a focus and it has taken a toll on me.

Here are some of the things I am going to focus on:

• Focus on God and His plan for me
• Focus on building my career
• Focus on who I am as a person and not as a relation
• Focus on my budget
• Focus on my health
• Focus on being joyful through everything

So now on to specific goals for January:

1. Start Blogging Again: I have missed blogging. I never had a ton of followers, but it has been a nice outlet and I look forward to doing it again. I am going to try to post more consistently and get stuff done ahead of time (I am working on this post on Sunday to publish on Monday).
2. Start Hockey Wednesday: This is something I have had in the works for a while, but I really want to dedicate a weekly post to hockey. I am working on a Hockey 101 series that I am hoping to start this month.
3. Stick to Budget and Pay Off A Credit Card: This is a big one. Budgets are easy in theory, but when that cute outfit you have been wanting stares at you in the face, budgets seem to be forgotten. I do have a budget laid out and I have scheduled the last payment on one my credit cards.
4. Cut Out Carbs: This is another big one. I have gained a lot of weight at the end of the year and it is not good for my health. I can feel how unhealthy my body is. One of my good friends cut out carbs and has had a lot of success, so I am going to lean onhere for help with this.
5. Start Scripture Journaling: I found the Intentional Planner, through Molly of Still Being Molly and I knew I had to have one. I got one and plan on using the Scripture Journaling part everyday. I really want to seek God’s purpose and plan for my life this year, so this is a good start.

So there you go! I am hoping that my few readers will keep me accountable to these goals and focuses. Please reach out and ask how I am doing on my goals for the  month.

Just like I used to, I am linking up with Nicole over at Writes Like A Girl and the rest of the goal setting bloggers!

Comment below with some of your goals or tips for any of mine!

October Small Goals

It’s October! That means it is time for tights, boots, pumpkin, cinnamon & hockey. I have a pretty busy month in October, but is should be a lot of fun too. Before we get into my goals for this wonderful month, let’s recap my September goals.

1. Spruce Up My Resume: Done! This was actually not that hard, but needed to be done.
2. Finish Promulgated Contracts Class: Also, done! Now, I need to look into taking my next class.
3. Use To Do Lists More at Home: I’m counting this one even though I didn’t use them as much as I really want to get into the habit of doing. I did use them a few times in the month and it really helped my productivity.
4. Finish 3 Crochet Projects: I’ll have to settle for finishing 2. The good news is that I have really gotten the hang of this pattern so this third one should be done in no time!
5. Post 2x a Week: Yeah… that didn’t happen. This will be one of those goals that get pasted on to the next month!

So 3 out of 5 is not bad, but could be better. Part of my problem was probably that I didn’t keep my goals written down anywhere so I couldn’t easily reference them. Here are my October goals:

1. Post 2x a Week: Let’s try this again. I actually have posts planned for this so it should really help with that.
2. Finish 2 More Crochet Projects: I’m thinking 3 was a pretty high goal last month so I’m just hoping to get 2 done this month.
3. No Spending Extra Money: I’m really trying to build up my savings account more, so this month I am not spending extra money. I’m obviously still buying, groceries and gas as well as the occasional going out to eat with friends or family, but I am not going to spend money on a bunch of extra activities.
4. Use Instagram to Share Posts: I am going to make an effort to use Instagram to share and promote my posts.
5. Establish a Work-Out Routine: I really need to get back into a good work-out routine. I am not sure what that is going to look like yet, but it will be a priority this month.

Here’s to a good October! As always, I am linking up with Nicole at Writes Like a Girl and the rest of the wonderful Small Goals bloggers.

What are your goals for this wonderful month?

September Small Goals

I can’t believe it is already September! I’m actually pretty excited about August being over. It was a rough month for me even though I had two vacations. I’m looking forward to a better September. Let’s recap my August goals.

1. Use Snapchat and Instagram More: So I was doing pretty okay with this goal until my phone broke and I couldn’t use it for a week and a half. Also, with Instagram stories rolling out I find that I am taking the same picture twice. I need to decide what I want to put on which platform.
2. Work-Out 2x a Week: This didn’t happen. I have been rather lazy this month with my work-out routines. I really need to get excited about working out again.
3. Maintain Monday Musings: So I am counting this as done. I missed one week, but that was because I was at the beach condo with no internet.
4. Watch Less TV: So I’m going to say this counts as half done. I’ve watched a lot of TV these past two weeks, but only because with Michael in school full-time and working full-time, I have a lot more time to myself. I have been making sure that all my chores are done before settling on the couch with my latest project for TV so that is an improvement.
5. Take Mouse to the Vet: I did this, although I seriously put off until the end of the month. I actually was considering putting off for another month until Mouse started peeing on the bed and I noticed a reddish tint to it. At that point, I had to take him to the vet and get his UTI taken care of on top of all the other stuff he needed.

So overall that makes 2.5/5 goals achieved. Not great, but I’ll take it. Let’s move on to September.

1. Spruce Up My Resume: I found out this week that I will need to find a new job by the first of the year. It’s a long story, but I need to make sure that I am ready and that my resume is ready.
2. Finish my Promulgated Contracts Class: I am currently taking Real Estate License classes online and I really need to finish them as quickly as possible. If I have my license, it will be much easier to find a better job.
3. Use To Do Lists More at Home: I use lists all the time at work and it has really helped with my productivity and focus. I want to apply this technique to my home life as well. I have a day designer planner that has a To Do List section, but I really haven’t used it. I think I would feel much more accomplished at the end of the day if I had list of everything I finished that evening.
4. Finish 3 Crochet Projects: I have 7 crochet projects total to finish in time for Christmas. I have one that is like 1/3 of the way done, so I think it is realistic to finish that one and the other two that are identical this month, especially with all the free time I have while Michael is in class.
5. Post 2x a Week: Having more time to myself means I want to dedicate some of it to my blog. I hope to be able to post at least 2x a week and have those posts planned ahead of time.

Here’s to a better and more productive SEptemeer. Also, quick shout-out to my mom! Her birthday is today! Happy Birthday, Mom. Love you lots!

As always, I’ll be linking up with Nicole at Writes Like A Girl.

What are some of your goals for September? Do you have any tips for resume building?

 

August Small Goals

It’s the first day of the month and I have two posts up already. That means it was a productive weekend for blog planning.

Anyway, let’s recap my July goals:

1. Work-Out 5 Times a Week for 2 Weeks: Yeah, that didn’t happen. I am setting a more attainable work-out goal this month.
2. Post 2 Times a Week: Another fail on my part. July taught me that I need to spend more time putting together posts if I am hoping to get them up on the blog. Imagine that!
3. Only Buy Clothes if I Sold Clothes: Okay, so I am counting this one, even though I ended up with more clothes at the end of the month. I bought one t-shirt before I made this a goal and the rest of the clothes were given to me. I did buy a pair of boots, but that’s not really clothes, right?
4. Get Ready for Quakecon: I’m also counting this as done even though my packing list is not quite complete. I had three big things that meant I was ready for Quakecon. My packing list is started and on it’s way to completed. I played a ton of Overwatch this weekend so I will be competitive by Quakecon (I’m level 23 & level 25 is competitive). I ended up getting Mouse an automatic feeder so that he will stay fed while I’m gone all weekend.
5. Finish my 3 Months of WW Strong: I’m definitely counting this as done! I managed to lose 12 pounds total in the last 3 months.

3/5 is not horrible, but I missed the mark on my two hardest goals. Hopefully, August will be better.

1. Use Snapchat and Instagram More: I am trying to be less lazy about my social media and I decided to start with these two. I use both on a somewhat regular basis, but I could do more. I’m hoping to use them both a lot while at Quakecon and on my beach vacation.
2. Work-Out 2x a Week: So here is my more attainable work-out goal. I’m pretty good about working out at least once, so I am upping that to two times a week. I’m learning that even a small quick work-out is good.
3. Maintain Monday Musings: I decided to start a regular weekly post called Monday  You can read the first one here. I really want to start strong and post one every Monday in August.
4. Watch Less TV: I watch way too much TV. In fact, I will put off chores because I just want to sit on my couch, turn on Netflix and crochet. I need to make sure I do everything that needs to be done before I turn on the TV. I’m not eliminating it, just consciously watching less.
5. Take Mouse to the Vet: For those who don’t know, Mouse is my cat. This is just a chore that I have been putting off for about 2 months. Mouse is out of his monthly medicine and his shots need to be updated so it’s time to take him.

As always, I’m linking up with Nicole for Monthly Small Goals. Make sure to check out everyone else’s goals.

What are some of your goals for this month?

H54F: End of July

It’s Friday! This month has been really busy at work and at home so I have not been blogging as often as I want to. I have had lots of ideas for blog posts, but I just have not had the time, but today (actually last night) I made time to put this H54F together to link up with Tif, Katie & Della! I’m covering two weeks again. This is not looking good for one of my July goals.

On July 15, Michael and I went to one of his co-workers’ wedding. I loved getting to dress up and I got a blow out at the Drybar before hand. The wedding itself was a lot of fun as well. Lots of dancing and we sent the couple off with massive sparklers.

Pre-Wedding Pic

That Monday, I got my official IREM pin. I was pretty excited. IREM stands for the Institute of Property Management. It’s an organization that will help me in my industry a lot.

July 19 we had our Tenant Summer Event. It was a Hawaiian Luau with smoothies and other fun Hawaiian snacks. We had a steel drum band as well as a photo booth.  We had lots of fun and our tenants really enjoyed it as well.

Photo Booth Craziness

I went with my Dad and Michael to see Star Trek on the Friday that it came out. I love Star Trek and to be able to see the new one with the two men that share that love with me was awesome. We went to Alamo Drafthouse so they had a little area that you could take pictures in. Of course Michael and I both dressed up. I pretty much take any opportunity to wear this dress that my mom made for me when I went to DragonCon last year.

The next day, Michael and I went on a lunch date to Cheesecake Factory. It was nice to spend some time just to two of us, especially because August is starting to get packed. We have Quakecon as well as separate vacations and he will start classes again so I am taking advantage of little opportunities to have time together.

He’s so cute!

That’s the highlights from the past two weeks. Like I mentioned above, August will be busy for me. I am going to really try to write posts ahead of time and schedule. I am finding that is the easiest way, especially since I going on two vacations in August. I will be documenting those vacations on Snapchat (bekahm21) and Instagram (pinkpearlsandhockeyskates) so feel free to keep up with me there!

Look for my Small August Goals on Monday as well as my first Monday Musings post!

What are some of your highlights from the past week or two?

 

H54F: Two Week Recap

It’s Friday and I have a half day at work, so I am over the moon.

You may have noticed that I have not posted in two weeks. My week nights were very busy during that first week and I did not have a chance to put a post together. The second week, I purposely did not post on my blog. As I am sure you have heard, Thursday, July 7 my city was rocked by a violent act. At the time, I was not sure how to put my feelings into words and chose to stay off the blog for a bit. I didn’t want to go n with blogging like nothing happened, but I also did not know how to express my feelings.

I am going to be recapping the past two weeks for H54F, so here is goes!

July 4th weekend was fun and relaxing. We did not do a whole lot. We saw a movie Saturday. Sunday, I went out with family to celebrate my little sister’s 20th birthday, and on Monday, Michael and I took Chewie to the dog park. Pretty good weekend in my opinion.

My baby sister is adorable!

He loves the dog park for all the people, not the other dogs!

Last Thursday evening started out really well. I have a Girls’ Night with tow of my friends from church at a Cru Wine Bar in Plano. We had a lot of fun, talking and drinking. When I got home, I found out about what was going on less than 30 miles away. I stayed up late watching it unfold. Like most Dallas people, most of Friday was spent listening and watching the news for all the details.

This past Sunday we celebrated Tori’s birthday again, but this time at my mom’s. During the afternoon, Jacquie and I took Tori shopping and some good sister time together. That night, we did birthday dinner and then had some amazing cake. Tori’s childhood best friend’s mom now makes and sells goodies in the Dallas area and she made a beautiful cake for Tori. Look her up on Facebook at Sweet Smith Bakery. I highly recommend her. The cake was sour cream almond and oh so delicious. Look at the detail on these flowers!

Monday, I hosted my small group at my apartment. We had dessert night so I tried a new Pina Colada cupcake recipe. They were pretty good. I always enjoy hosting people at my apartment, and I love my church small group.

Last night, I was elected as the 2016-2017 President for the Terry Scholars Alumni Association- DFW Chapter. I am so excited to be part of this team and for everything that will be happening this year. I will be writing a blog post this month about the Terry Foundation, Scholarship and what it has meant to me.

So that is a condensed version of the last two weeks. As always, I am linking up with Della, Tif & Katie!

I am so excited for this weekend. Michael and I are going to a wedding tonight, so I am using that as an excuse to have my first DryBar experience and I am so excited about it! We also get to go down to Austin for my cousin’s 8th birthday and to see some friends. It will be a full, but fun weekend!

What do you have going on this weekend?

July Small Goals

Half of 2016 is already gone! It’s seems like just yesterday that I was celebrating New Year’s Day and now I am celebrating Independence Day. I am pretty excited that it is a Monday today, yet I have no real plans because I don’t have to work. Anyway, this post is not about me choosing to be boring on a holiday, so let’s recap June goals.

1. Complete the Everyday Unicorn Challenge: I started out strong, but quickly lost track as I do with most Photo Challenges. I really need to stick to one though!
2. 26 Before 26 List: I actually succeeded at this and posted it to my blog! I was pretty excited about this! One of my goals: Take a picture every day! Check-out my Instagram to follow along on that progress.
3. Read Three Books: Done! I read the last two Fourline books and then another one called Terms of Use. All three were good and free through Kindle First Books and Kindle Lending Library.
4. Get and Play Overwatch: Michael bought this as an early birthday present, partially so we could play together. I am getting better at it slowly but surely. I have been playing the D. Va character a lot so I am feeling like I need branch out a little more.
5. Have an Awesome Birthday: Although the day of my birthday was not great, my friends and family made sure that the weeks surrounding it were awesome, so I am counting this as done!

Four out of five is really not bad. Now on to July goals:

1. Work-Out 5 Times a Week for 2 Weeks: My doctor said that I should work-out ffive times a week since I am heavily predisposed to diabetes and that really is the best way to stave off diabetes, so I am starting small and building up.
2. Post 2 Times a Week: I have really let my blogging fall to the wayside this past month. I need to work on sticking to my editorial calendar more! I had one for June, I just let myself get lazy.
3. Only Buy Clothes if I Sold Clothes: I need to only be buying clothes with money that I get from selling some of my old clothes. This past month I sold some stuff on Poshmark and was able to get two tops! I need to stick to this rule in order to stick to my budget well.
4. Get Ready for Quakecon: This is a goal that is more applicable for the end of the month, but still a goal. This year is the first year that I will be at the BYOC and not just stopping by to visit the boyfriend. It starts August 3^rd so I will need to pretty much be ready by the first. I need to have packing list, get really good at Overwatch and make sure Mouse is taken care of during that weekend.
5. Finish my 3 Months of WW Strong: When I started Weight Watchers at the end of April, they had promotion that if you lost 10 pounds in 3 months you got a $50 gift card. I reached that goal and then my BFF trip and birthday tripped me up a bit. I really want to finish these three months of the promotion really strong and go beyond the 10 pounds.

I’m definitely excited for this second half of the year! Check out everyone else’s goals on Nicole’s link-up!

H54F: Spending Birthday Money

Another week has gone by and I have not had the chance to put a blog post together. Nothing super exciting has happened this week, but work has taken up a lot of my time and energy. When I get home, I’m pretty drained. I am really going to try to do better next month and set aside blogging time. Anyway, here are my top 5 this week.

Saturday, Michael and I went to a Frisco Roughriders baseball game. We went with the alumni association for the Terry Scholarship (I had this scholarship in college). I was in charge of the whole thing as the event coordinator, and we ended up with a great turn out. It was great to meet new people, see old friends and the all you can eat food didn’t hurt.

He loves getting on a freshly made bed.

Monday, I got home to packages. The sheets and bed skirt I ordered with my birthday gift card had come in. I was so excited because my bed redo is almost done now. I just want to replace my pillows some time soon. If anyone has recommendations for good pillows that are affordable let me know!

I may have fallen in love with Kendra Scott.

Tuesday, I spent more birthday money and I had my first Kendra Scott color bar experience. I got this pair of earrings and I got to pick the actual stones, not just the color. I was pretty excited. By the way, if you go to an actual store and show your ID, you get 50% off one item during your birthday month. I covered the rest of the price with a gift card from the best friend! My new Women’s Bible Study also started that evening. It was a great time of fellowship and Bible study. I’m excited for the next 5 weeks of the study.

So much work, but so yummy!

Wednesday, Michael and I took a break from work out Wednesday due to the fact that I forgot my tennis shoes. I did get to experiment with a new recipe. I made the Cheesy Jalapeno Popper Baked Stuffed Chicken from Skinnytaste (my favorite website for WW recipes). It was really good. Michael loved it and then cleaned up after dinner so I could relax. I have such a good boyfriend.

Rocksbox Kendra Scott and New Top = One Happy Bekah

This week I also got two new tops I got from Poshmark. I love that I can use credit from clothes I sold to buy more clothes. I got two tops and wore one yesterday. I absolutely loved my outfit and had to take a picture for Instagram. I love getting things in the mail!

We don’t really have any big plans for the weekend, just a lot of small plans. I’m just excited for a long weekend to relax and a short work week next week.

As always, I’m linking up with the H54F girls: Tif, Della & Katie!

Send me your pillow recommendations please! Also, what is your favorite quick Fourth of July dessert (I need to make one)?